By 9 AM this morning we had accumulated 14 Model As and a few more modern conveyances to begin the trip down to Death Valley. As we departed the WalMart parking lot it commenced raining and more or less continued to do so for the rest of the day. Our first stop was at our old friend, Tiffany Ford in Hollister, where we were treated to hot coffee and fresh donuts. We made sure to fill up before leaving town, since the next services available were about 90 miles down the road. It continued to precipitate, and to make the experience more fun, the wind came up and blew us all over the road mercilessly. 
To top off the experience, we blew a rear tire about forty miles outside of town, placing us somewhere in the middle of nowhere. Glenn and Vicky stopped to help us, and we were on the road again in a few minutes, after a good soaking, and light basting in country mud.
Next stop...Coalinga for lunch and more gas. We visited a 1934 restored Richfield service station in the middle of town, then struck out for Bakersfield, running through a seemingly endless field of oil rigs pumping for Chevron, Exxon, etc.
Cutting left to Buttonwillow, we crossed I-5 and sprinted for Bakersfield and a warm room at La Quinta. But the Pollands found their room to be a deep freeze (no heat)...so they are going to plan B...you'll have to ask THEM what that is...And just as a footnote...we dug a horseshoe nail out of the flat tire, which was good, because we know why it went flat, but bad because it caused the flat. Damn horse.
First day in the bag.
John & Judy and a buncha other good Model A folks
We're on the road again with Model A's and friends goin places we've never been. A lttle chilly and wet but a good day. Hopefully no horse presents tomorrow.
ReplyDeletebob& patti
Hope the weather gets better!
ReplyDelete- Ken
Thanks for the trip commentary. Great to see where you are going and how things are going.
ReplyDeleteHope the rest of the trip is a lot easier.
Keep us informed.
Love Nancy