Well, the truck is coming along well enough that I'm fairly sure we'll be headed to Alaska in August. My friend Tom and I leave Detroit on the 16th, then head west to Seattle, then north to Alaska. I would love to meet as many HAMBers as possible on the way! (And I kinda want a support network, as the truck is untested...) Planning stopovers in or near Minneapolis, MN, and Billings, MT. I'm interested in shops we could cruise through, or events anyone knows about close to the route, which will likely be mostly highway. Let me know what's up! Mike
Good on ya for jumping in and driving it! To bad I am the opposite direction than what you are heading. my garage is always open to help out a stranded hot rodder. I am surprised there is not a HAMB member assist network map or something (maybe there is and I just haven't found it yet) On one of the motorcycle forums I am on there is a map of people willing to help out stranded members (tow off the side of the highway, bring you a gallon of gas, use of a garage and tools, etc.) Keep us posted of your progress with pictures and what not... Chappy
Now that you mention it Chappy, I feel like I have seen that around here somewhere... I'll have to do some digging!
Man, I love a good road trip! Going to be a bit cramped in that cab though. How many miles do you plan to roll per day? Personally, I'd try to stay on all the two lanes rather than freeway but you may have time constraints preventing that. Can't make any recommendations for hot rod stops as I am a bit south of your route (northern NV, south of Reno). Good luck with the trip and make sure you do a trip report here with lots of photos!
We've been thinking that too! We're two guys both over 6 feet with some extra padding... but the seat is freshly redone, so that will help. Planning about 800 miles per day on the way out there, so two-lanes are mostly going to be quick jaunts to see stuff I think. Might change though, we have an extra day built into our timeline for mishaps. Thanks a mil! I'll start my list and put you on it. Yeah, pretty much 94/90 all the way out. 94 to Billings, then 90 after that to Seattle. From Seattle to Alaska we're in a rally, so the route is up to the organizers. On the way back we're coming through Canada, but that route is still up in the air.
There's a few updates in my build thread (in signature below), but long story short, nope. We made it to Rockford, Illinois, which would normally be about a 5-6 hour drive, in 14+ hours. Determined there that our mechanical malfunctions were enough that we weren't going to make tech inspection in Seattle in time, so bowed out and came home. Trying again in 2020 for the February rally.
The Jalopy Journal
