Event Coverage ACME SPEED SHOP-Road Trip to the Round Up 2015

Good morning. A few more before we hit the road. I usually try to "post as I go" so the story and photos are in order. That ain't happening on this trip so you get random roadside goodness instead.

 

There's not much that can equal the coolness factor of old neon signs.

 

Pie Town! Yes, I had TWO pieces!



New Mexico apple pie with pine nuts and green chilis

 

A beautiful day in New Mexico.

 

HA! No guns allowed.

 

My kind of chart.

 

Always try to stop in Winslow and vandalize, ER, add another sticker to our friend window.

 

What treat to meet John and ACME Gal on the road. I've made this trip countless times and thanks to their pix, I will stop more frequently to check out the relics along the way.

 

Diggin' all the latest pics ... And the bibs !
Never had it before , but that pie looks tastey . Yum !

 

A long day of driving in Texas today. We had some catching up to do after 3 days of goofing off.

 

Finally made it to Austin. We are at C Boy's for the launch party of The Jalopy Journal 3.


Thank you Justin for buying the 1st book!

 

Good Morning LSRU 2015

 

H.A.M.B. meet & greet

 

Thanks to Steve Wertheimer and the Kontinentals for another kick ass roundup. Awesome show.










Buddies.

 

Here we are at the tire store on our way out of Austin. Hopefully all we need are new tires - not bearings. Keep your fingers crossed.

 

The road took its toll on the van this trip. May be tires making the noise, may be wheel bearing. Waiting for the Firestone guys to see what they think. My bet is tires; never really liked the ones in it.

 

Thanks for the photos,brought back great memories from when we met you guys on the 2013 trip.
Safe travels.

 

Yay. It's only a tire issue.

 

Fingers crossed that all ya need are tires . Thanks for the updates for all the guys & gals that can't make the trip .

 

LOL - I was a minute late , as usual !!

 

Drove 338 miles from Austin to Fort Stockton today. The last hour was a "push" for me. The sun was setting and it just got dark. 4 miles to go and then......I'll let John tell you the rest of the story. All I can say at this point is "State Trooper".

 

ruh, roh

 

Great trip and pics, thanks for sharing!

 

Thanks for the pics! Hope everything is OK !

 

Thanks for sharing another Great road trip story.

 

Finally the wind died down and the road smoothed out. Looked like it would be a cruise to the finish tonight. We could see the lights of fort Stockton in the distance. I saw a car in the shoulder ahead so I moved left to go past. It was a state trooper and just after I passed he pulled out and lit up his lights.

I pulled over wondering what I had done but it turns out I had no running lights or brake lights. The officer was really great, he checked out our license and registration then offered to escort us into town. He took us right to the front door of the motel. When we got there I jumped out and told him this was the first time I was glad to be pulled over, thanked him and gave him a "what could possibly go wrong" bumper sticker. He laughed and stuck it on his clipboard. We shook hands and said good night. Thanks officer Juan.

 

Glad you made it to Fort Stockton . We came through Pecos Co.,Fort Stockton , saw 13 DPS officers in 50 miles .

 

Both twilight bulbs were fried. It was the last thing I checked because what are the odds? I figured that the tire shop must have caught a wire when removing the spare or that we blew a fuse; then I remembered the crazy rain storm Saturday night after the Roundup. We drive back to the hotel with the lights on so the bulbs were hot when we parked. Not too much later the sky opened up and it poured for over an hour. These bulbs got wet and broke.

Back on the road.

 

Long day of 400 miles of driving from Fort Stockton to Lordsburg, NM. Always enjoy stopping in small towns and conversing with the locals. Americana at its finest.

 

Rolled into Lordsburg NM about 9 pm after a good two hour evening push. As soon as I began to slow on the off ramp I heard it. Something was seriously wrong. A loud grumble and grinding sound.

This van is a bit like driving a 50 gallon drum; its sometimes hard to tell where a noise is coming from. A few slow laps around town and I could tell it was from the rear end. I climbed Under the van to inspect and I found nothing obvious. First thing this morning I brought it by the local (very small) Ford dealership to see if they could help. They did a test drive and agreed that something inside the rear is broken but had no time to do anything. A quick phone book/Internet search proved there weren't many other options in town for a quick repair so a new plan was hatched. We are flying home and I will come back with my truck and trailer to get the van in a few days.

The service writer called her parents to see if they knew anyone that could take us to Tucson to catch a flight home. They volunteered and we had a great time getting to know them On the drive.

Not the ending I imagined but that is part of what makes a road trip so fun; the unexpected.

Here are a few shots from yesterday.


Treasures from the road.















The vans home for a few days