Man, this tablet is ticking me off... seems like it doesn't like the heat, it needs to be reboot once a day or so.

I actually had cell service, and was going to post from there, but the tablet wasnt cooperating. Now, I'm at the bottom near US-24.

Sitting in my car, so I'm cutting this short. I'll post a bit more later... off to Bonneville.

 

hate to say it but bonneville will most likely have 15" of water on top of it still, it doesn't dry up for a few more weeks still. hope you'rs not dissapointed!! let me know if i'm wrong but i've been out there and it was just a 15" deep salty lake as far as i could see, after speed week is the best time to go - this year it's mid august so maybe you'll be ok, maybe they know more than i do - i word to the wise, if it even was a skiff of water on it dont drive on it as it will fill every nook and cranny of your under carriage with raw salt and that shit eats metal fast! you'll put 5 years on your chassis in one run.
108 in a vette thats it? hhhmmmm well check out my crx album and see the pic i took while driving my car on the salt 5 years ago, too bad the speedo stops at 125 cuz i've had it along side an S2000 (not on the salt) and his digital gauge stops at 165 and i was still pulling away (allbeit slowly but he couldn't keep up)
it's freaky on the salt even though on a good day it's as hard as concrete, with nothing around you to base speed on it kinda gets boreing out there - takes sweet pics though!!
i'll look for your call and about my number and putting it out there, well i aint scared - LOL <--- famous last words

 

Cell service is so spooty here, almost as bad as on the summit.

It took me an hour to climb Pikes Peak, from the toll booth to the top.. but I took a couple of minutes at gift shop, and there was both slow traffic AND construction. They turn a short section into single lane, alternating traffic.

I think I can make it under 35 minutes (maybe).

On the way down was quickish. Would've been just plain quick if i wasn't being held up by traffic again. I was talking to a guy before I went up, he said it takes only 20 minutes to get down... I suppose I could, if i were using one set of brand new brakes just for this. At the brake check, I pulled off momentarily to check my brakes... leaned in and took a whiff... yup, it was cooking. When i finally got the guy to do a thermo check, it was at 287 (if i recall correctly).

So yeah... if you want to do some PP summit runs... wait until after Jan 2012, construction should be done by then. And don't go around noon like I did, too much traffic. I would think there'd be less traffic later in the afternoon and into the evening, since its harder to see from the summit by then, I guess.

About the last post, I'm not heading straight for Bonneville, I'm going to SLC. I should get there by tomorrow night, I hope.

 

I'm at a rest area about three hours from SLC. I chose not to drive into SLC, because if i did, I'd have to get a motel room. While I don't mind getting a room for a (whole) night, I'm not fond of getting it for only a few hours, by myself. Check in at 4 am and have it count as a day by 11 am? No thanks. Rather save myself that one night and check in earlier for the next night.

I rearranged my "room" again. Originally, I had just enough room to lay down, but with my legs folded up. I couldn't even lay on my side, because I couldn't lay my folded legs down. Then I moved a bunch of stuff and turned my cooler so I could lay sideways (still folded legs though). Now, I can lay down completely stretched out, albeit diagonally across the rear area. Had to move the front passenger seat all the way up and fold the back part, forward. Then I stuffed my duffle bag, full of clothes, into the gap between the front and rear seat. Interestingly, I can use the back of the front passenger seat as a recliner this way.

I think I'll head for the salt flats later today and then come back and stay at a motel for the night, and finally meet up with vtecfit1 at the track the next day. Well, since vtecfit1 mentioned it, I'll have to check the condition of the salt flats. If it isn't completely hardened, I won't go. Not going to risk getting stuck in a salty brine/mush. Of course you're welcome to join me if I go to the flats.

Alright, enough wasting time... gotta sleep.

nite.

 

Goobers- Safe travels & enjoy your journey. I did some of this route except going to the east coast last summer. I thought Nebraska had the best roads & rest stops.

 

Hum, now that you've mentioned it, I do like Nebraska roads, pretty smooth and quite fast. But I like Iowa's rest stops, but I think they might be all new. But both states are snooze fests, I was dosing off way too much. Same with Illinois.

Colorado, on the other hand was fun, and keeps you attentive. But, I guess not all states can have a mountain range.

Coming down US 24 and C9 was nice. But I70 THROUGH the mountain range was the best. While the turns are wide and sweeping, if go through at 60/75, or 70/80 in my case, it feels quite sharp for an interstate curve. I couldn't really enjoy 25 and 9, even 9 had switchbacks, because I was constantly stuck behind some nitwits.

I need to buy either a thick blanket or some sort of cushion... while I have room to stretch, the cargo floor is hard, and bumpy over that middle section.

Alrighty time to drive off to the gas station, and hopefully find a place to freshen up. This rest area sucks, it only has two single person toilets, which appear to be no more than permanent port-o-potties (they don't flush).

 

A rubber bitch is what you need to get..... That is USMC terminology for an air mattress.

 

Once a jarhead always a jarhead TC!

A camping or egg crate mattress

TMI Goobers, but thanks for taking us along on the road trip... Be safe!

 

Ahhh, 50 more miles to the salt flats. I wonder if I'll have cell service out there. Maybe I should wash my car before I head in there for a little photo shoot. That is, assuming it doesn't completely get covered in salt before I find a nice spot. Lol

I've been getting pretty good mileage, even at 75 MPH, but if course at that speeds I was going downhill on the interstate. On flat land, it seems to like 60-65.

At least this rest area seems like a "proper" one... though I still haven't gotten a Utah map yet (collecting from states I visit).

Okay... gonna rest up for a few more minutes and then go.

 

Weeeeeeeee

Had a little bit of fun on the salt. It wasn't completely dry, but it was enough if stayed close to some designated cones. I think the cones were for the folks doing a commercial, so they don't wander and get stuck. The commercial itself was still further down, or whatever they were doing.

I took some pics and a few (bad) vid clips. Its hard trying to do stuff and keep yourself both in the shot AND close enough so you don't look like a speck. I'm sure other folks can do better, oh well.

Well, time to find some place to wash off the salt. I forgot to take a picture using my tablet.... you'll have to settle for a crusty wheel. LOL

 

Greetings from... Salt Lake City.

Staying in a motel tonight, going to the track tomorrow with vtecfit, then head of to da norwes.

Man there's nothing on the boob tube... not even a car wash.

Alrighty... nite nite.

 

I used to jump up and head out like you are doing but I never knew where the hell I was going and was on a motorcycle... I slept on picnic tables when I was in the middle of nowhere unless I pulled off on a side road and slept in a ditch... If I liked the scenery, I'd check into a run down, dirt cheap motel and sleep for a couple of days and cook on a Sterno stove until I wanted to look around elsewhere.. Have a good time.

 

Gahhh, what an idiot I am. I decided to use my iPod as an alarm to wake me up at 7. Of course I didn't adjust the clock for the timezone difference from Chicago!! I guess I'm awake early enough to get some breakfast for a change.

Sometimes I wish I had learned how to ride a motorcycle, but its so damn hard getting into one those free classes. And the paid classes are pretty pricey for me. On the flipside, I worry about my lack of balance affecting my ability to ride one.

 

Greetings from Miller motorsports race track.

I actually was just about convince by vtecfit to join him on the track... but I didn't have a helmet, and the rental would open up too late for me.

Off to watch the races.

 

Welllllllllllllll, that was interesting. First, I'm at some rest area on the I15 in Utah still. According to my GPS, its just south of the 91 to Brigham.

So, after their first session, I decided to go and see if the shop was open... it was. @.@

So I paid up for one session and rushed to get a number on my car and headed out onto the track. I got lucky, because they usually don't even let you buy half days sometimes (150 for full day).

First lap, I went off at a turn onto concrete "runoff." Pulled myself back on the track before the concrete changed to gravel. Before that, I felt something rub my neck.... it turned out the roll of toilet paper I had came loose from the pocket and was unwinding itself! So I pull into the pit to deal with that.

Second lap, did the SAME thing going slightly faster! But I came to a stop before the concrete ran out and drove slowly over the gravel back onto the track after a couple of cars passed.

Third lap, DIDN'T GO OFF! YAY.

With some confidence, I went on to do a fourth lap... didn't go off again, but right after that, on the next corner, I went a little too fast. Drifted just enough to catch gravel... and spunout, or is it spun in? Since I ended up ass backward back on the track?

Since I was right at the entrance to pit lane, I took it. Pull up to the guy at the end, and he basically wanted to know if i knew what happened... yeah, I was being an idiot.

My gas light came on a lap earlier and since i only had 5 minutes left out if the sessions 20 minutes. I said screw it and pulled out of the track area. I probably could've done two more laps.... just enough time to start the "sixth" lap as the checkered flag would've come down. I know I'm slow, but even I can do a lap in less than 5 minutes. That sessions fastest driver did it in 1' 53"!

I did four laps in 15 minutes, so I averaged (about) 3:45... but that's including my stops, so I think I should've made under three minutes on that third lap, if I'm lucky. We might never know, because I didn't have time to get a transponder to track the lap time.

Wanna know how slow I was going? I used by brakes only once or twice per lap. You have to use it at nearly every turn when going faster (at least EIGHT times, if you don't brake for some of the "lesser" turns).

All in all, I'd say... awesome experience. First time on a track, never raced (unless you count mini coopers in PGR3 )... and the unfortunate luck of not being able to have an instructor for the course.

Should I buy Grand Turismo?

 

Sounds like your have fun, Be safe and have a good time.

 

Greetings from the potato state. More specifically, Twin Falls, Idaho.

I got a nice picture from here, though my Fit isn't in it.... right now, i'm at an overlook near the bridge, came just in time to watch some folk do a base jumo off the bridge... I'd like to do it, but this requires experience, which I lack.

I,m looking for one of the falls, called Perrine.. the only one that flows year round. If I get a good spot, I'll upload one more.

Off to eat, pinic style. Well, a sandwich anyway.

 

Greetings from... the another stinking rest area in idaho.

Despite how nice it looks on the outside, the vending machines are caged (not that im using them, I have my own stash of Pepsi, cheaper too). And they don't provide free road maps... or anything.

I was trying to collect road maps of all the states I cut through.... but neither Utah or Idaho have provided me any. I stopped more often than i needed to, too.

Alrighty, gonna probably drive up into Oregon before I stop for the night.

See ya then!

 

Watch your right foot in Oregon. Lots of bush patrols lurking there!

 

I'm tickled at Goobers for just up and taking off like he did... I get a good laugh from his post... I like to travel alone myself because I don't follow schedules well but make an sincere effort to and having someone else along just screws everything all up.... Two Vietnam veteran buddies of mine went to race in the Barstow to Vegas off road race and got so irritated they beat the shit out of each other and were to messed up to work when they finally got home..