Great Race Day 9

Dave and Duane's Great Race came to a close today on the Santa Monica pier. What a glorious spot.

We did well. Team June Bug finished third in the Rookie Division. We also won the first stage rookie daily award. Two nice plaques and some money.

Today we rallied around Los Angeles. The course included a trip through the Los Angeles National Forest. Quite a nice place.

We were also treated to Los Angeles stop and go traffic as we went to Santa Monica. My arm is tired from shifting.

Tomorrow we start home to Davenport.

This was all the adventure we thought it might be. I can't thank Dave enough. He really was a great navigator.

Great Race Day 8

We made it to San Bernardino. Just one more day and this adventure comes to an end. I'm so happy to have met so many wonderful people.

Team June Bug is in third place in the Rookie Division. We gained a spot due a mechanical failure on another car. Not the way we wanted to move up. We still race tomorrow. Nothing is final.

The run from Lake Havasu was beautiful. We rallied in Joshua Tree National park. What an incredible experience.

Tomorrow we go to Santa Monica and finish on the legendary pier.

Great Race Day 7

It is HOT! We're in Lake Havasu. When we rolled in it was 117. At 10:45 it's 106. At times driving I didn't want to  touch the black steering wheel.

We are still alive and well. Another mixed results day. We are holding on to fourth place in the Rookie Division. Today is going to be tough.

The wild burros in Oatman were quite interesting. The scenery coming through the mountain pass was spectacular. Dave is taking pictures. I can hardly wait to see them.

On to San Bernardino.

Great Race Day 6

Day 6 is in the books. No perfect legs. We did have four legs with a one second error. Not bad. We sit in fourth overall in the Rookie Division. It is really getting tight heading into the final three days. Anything can happen.

We had to drive through a controlled brush burn. I couldn't see a thing. Not a good feeling.

We stopped for lunch in Winslow, Arizona. Except they ran out of food. Luckily, a Navajo family were making sandwiches to sell. Not a good deal.

The other downer was the June Bug not wanting to engage her starter. Dave pushing for the clutch popping got us going through the afternoon. After she cooled off and we fiddled with some wires she started right away. Goes with the Great Race motto. "Ride, repair, repeat."

On to Lake Havasu by way of Oatman tomorrow.

Great Race Day 5

Day 5 and we're still alive. Who can believe it. Team June Bug is still in the hunt. We gained a place in the Rookie Division. We are now third by cumulative adjusted score. This can change real fast.

The New Mexico landscape was truly majestic. Today was our first truly hot day. It pushed 100. The car complained a bit,  but soldiered on. Lots of cars stopped running in the heat.

We were treated to a tasty lunch at the Unser Family Museum. Al Unser was there with his wife to talk to the Great Racers. Dave and I spoke to him one on one for a few minutes. Turns out he was once passed going up a snowy mountain road by a Volkswagen. He also mentioned he had owned a few.

Dinner in Gallup was pretty good. Again, lots of folks showed up to see the spectacle.

This is quite the adventure.

Tomorrow we go to Flagstaff.

Great Race Day 4

Pretty good day today. We were able to visit the Cadillac Ranch on our way out of Amarillo. Crazy place, that.

We had long flat stretches of rallying. The scenery was beautiful. Even with one eye on the speedometer at all times. We saw a road runner in the road. First time bird for me.

Santa Fe gave us a great welcome. We parked the cars around the town square. Hundreds of people visited.  The dinner was first class Mexican. Quite a treat.

Our scores improved a lot from yesterday. We are holding fourth place in the Rookie Division. Hard to tell how it will end. We have a lot miles to go and they are old cars.

Overnight in Gallup tomorrow night.

Great Race Day 3

Day 3 brought the big change in landscape. Rolling out of Oklahoma City things changed dramatically. We will see even more as we get our kicks on Route 66. Interesting flat terrain when we got to Amarillo today.  You can see for miles. 

Our scores were not as good as the first two days. A lot of factors caused us to be late to most check points. The Texas panhandle winds at a steady 30 mph was one of them. We sit at fourth overall in the Rookie Division. Still in the money.  But it's only day three of nine.

The June Bug continues to run strongly. She is more ready every morning than I am.

Today we're off to Santa Fe.