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Return-path: Buflobrain@aol.com
From: Buflobrain@aol.com
Full-name: Buflobrain
Message-ID: <ea7572dd.24892b2d@aol.com>
Date: Fri, 4 Jun 1999 09:14:21 EDT
Subject: No Subject
To: PEager1996@aol.com, bpayne@sanynet.ne.jp, wwpotter-d-request@tscnet.com
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Five flats in eight days and a tornado...
=09A little background, if you please.
=09I=92m from Indiana; I call Evansville my home town. But I moved to=20
Pasadena, California in my senior year of high school and transmuted into a=20
Californian. So I return to my roots on occasions and maintain friends in m=
y=20
home town. My best friend is Dave Eager, an old car buff and retiree from=20
Sears. When I decided to motor East, through Evansville, to a sailing=20
adventure in Maine, I called Dave to see if he wanted to join me for a surve=
y=20
of Route 66 in my travels. He agreed and flew to LA where we spent a week o=
f=20
tourist =93stuff=94 before hitching Hull1075 onto the car for the trip. Dur=
ing=20
an eight day period which included one tourist day, we experienced five flat=20
tires and a tornado. The story starts in San Diego.
=09Dave and I went to San Diego to visit a third friend, see two car=20
museums and pick up some last minute boat parts. The morning we were to=20
leave our friend=92s home, we noticed a flat on the right rear. I called AA=
A=20
and a man arrived to give me some air and I took the car to a recommended=20
gasoline station for repair. It seems I picked up a screw on the inside of=20
the tread. It was plugged for ten bucks and we were on our
way.
=09The following day we loaded the car, the boat, and the boat to the=20
car and started the 2000 mile trek to Evansville. By the time we reached ou=
r=20
destination we had logged 2500 miles, the additional 500 being side trips an=
d=20
actual miles on old Route 66. The trip progressed well. We saw the wild=20
donkeys in Oatman, Arizona, slipped up to the Grand Canyon for a short look,=20
visited the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, and made another side trip to Los=20
Alamos and Santa Fe. But bad luck returned in Amarillo.
=09After visiting Cadillac Ranch, one of America=92s finest examples of=20
outdoor art, we pulled into the parking lot of The Big Texan for a steak. =20
There I noticed the left front tire look a little sad. We decided to look=20
after it before eating and setting out for another station. WalMart was=20
recommended by a local trucker and we made our way there. We were fortunate=20
to be the last on the rack there and they discovered a small nail in the=20
tire. My friend noticed they did a proper =92Sears=92 job of removing the =
tire=20
from the wheel and putting a patch inside the tire as well as a plug. They=20
charged $6.50. The Shell station in San Diego, I should say, merely plugged=20
the screw hole. We returned to The Big Texan and ate.=20
=09We motored on to Shamrock that evening. During that section of the=20
trip I learned the origin behind those long strips of tire tread we see dail=
y=20
on the freeways of our country. Less than an hour out of Amarillo the sound=20
of the highway changed. I moved to the other lane of the road and the sound=20
followed. I pulled to the side of the road and inspected the tires yet=20
again. This time the right trailer tire was minus 25% of her tread. I=20
bought Hull 1075 in Phoenix, Arizona and before I took it back to California=20
I had the bearings replaced, the tongue extended 2.5 feet and the wiring and=20
taillights replaced. The people at the shop warned me that the tires were=20
weather checked - they had probably not been changed since the boat was new=20
in 1981. But the tread was good and I decided to run them out. We replaced=20
the weakened right tire with the new spare which was bolted onto the frame=20
and used the old tire as rear ballast to reduce tongue weight - I threw it i=
n=20
the cockpit and we made Shamrock, Texas before sundown.
=09With the right tire gone, we knew it was a matter of time before the=20
left would go. But this was the Sunday before Memorial day and we were=20
between Amarillo, Texas and Oklahoma City, not L.A. Damn the flat tire... =20
moderate speed ahead! We were 35 miles outside Oklahoma City when the fourt=
h=20
flat appeared. This time, again, it was a separated tread on the left=20
trailer. But the learning curve had kicked in and I heard the separation=20
before we lost tread and polluted the highways with more chunks. Actually,=20
we were getting off the road for a buffalo burger... So here we sit at a=20
restaurant, no viable spare, 35 miles from Oklahoma City, and on Memorial=20
day. We asked the host for advice. I envisioned dropping the trailer minus=20
2 wheels and returning the next day with new rubber. He gave permission to=20
tuck the trailer behind an out building for this purpose.=20
This time we removed both regular tires from the boat and struck out on our=20
quest.=20
=09The host advised us that a boat store was within 20 miles and we=20
started off. We found what we thought to be the proper off ramp and as we=20
crossed over the freeway we spied a farm supply store open on the frontage=20
road. We were first misdirected to lawn mower tires, but we finally found=20
trailer tires. Lo and behold, I could buy them mounted on new rims or=20
unmounted. But they were =93b=94 rated. On the other hand it was Memorial =
Day=20
and they cost $20 each. I bought them and let a local gas station mount the=
m=20
for another $5 each. We returned to the boat and mounted the new tires. We=20
had lost maybe 2 and a half hours.
=09We were able to make a stop in Oklahoma City at the Federal Building=20
fence on that solemn day before driving more conservatively on to Tulsa. It=20
clouded over that night and rained. The next day, Tuesday, was overcast,=20
too, with a refreshing breeze as we headed East for St. Louis.
=09I=92m in new country here. I=92ve traveled Rt. 66 to Tulsa before, but=20
the last time I was east of Tulsa on the Mother Road was about =9156. And I=20
don=92t remember the 13 miles of Kansas at all. So we make a diversion. I =
had=20
heard that this little stretch of road was a real speed trap, but I did not=20
experience that. Of course, I wasn=92t near the speed limit anyway. It was =
a=20
very fine piece of pavement: an example of the last surviving concrete=20
bridge, a 1920=92s auto showroom converted into a small market and flower sh=
op=20
serves as the headquarters for the Kansas Rt. 66 Association (Rt. 66 in=20
Kansas is 13 miles long so they have started an annual Kansas Rt. 66 half=20
marathon), and friendly people.
=09We found our way back onto Rt. 44 after Kansas and Carthage, MO,=20
still under clouds and upped the speed to 60. As we came closer to St. Loui=
s=20
I saw signs advertising wine tasting. One in particular caught my eye, St.=20
James Winery. I am carrying most of a case of wine from Deer Park near San=20
Diego, but I=92m thinking I really should add some more ballast for the boat =
-=20
you know, fill the holes in the case where I=92ve shared bottles with friend=
s. =20
We need a stretch anyway. So we took the off ramp at St. James and found=20
the wine tasting room. Well, they have some very good stuff and four bottle=
s=20
expands to a second case before we get back into the car. =20
=09We notice the wind has increased and the clouds have become very=20
heavy now, late in the afternoon. But we are back on the road and scanning=20
the AM bands for Dr. Laura - my friend has caught the habit.
Then the program is interrupted for the tornado alert. The day before we=20
left, in response to a question I posed regarding weather reports, several=20
people suggested the Radio Shack weather scanner, a 7 channel, dedicated=20
pocket radio; I had bought one. We pulled that puppy out and tuned it in=20
to find twisters popping out all over. The radio announced 60 to 80 mph=20
winds, alerts, and 3-inch hail. On the down side, they listed the warnings=20
according to counties and I have no idea where we are. But the sky ahead is=20
lighter, even blue in some areas. I move up to 70 and wonder if the genoa=20
would help. It is another tense hour speeding down out of the Ozarks and=20
into St. Louis. But we outrun the tornado. The next morning the news that =
a=20
tornado visited St. James was overshadowed by the tragic airline crash in=20
Little Rock - part of the same weather system.
=09St. Louis to Evansville is a short 3 hours on a clear and fresh=20
morning. St. Louis traffic moves well for us and Dave, in his home country,=20
is happy to be home. We drop the trailer and take the car in for a lube and=20
oil change. Damned if the young man gets a low tire pressure reading on tha=
t=20
pesky right rear tire again! He bubbles it to find that the young man in Sa=
n=20
Diego missed the hole with his plug! Flat number five. I=92m considering =
new=20
tires... =20
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