Popeye

Day One :Lets headem up and movem out

Stardate-19092010

Sunday morning was cool and overcast with temps in the upper 50's

I knew better than to run top down even though Beck had a jacket on so we waited until outside temps hit 68+ degrees some where just inside the Kentucky-achee breakee line

1st refuel was @ 12:30 for both theS and us

Arbys for the crew and Shell 93 for the 29.9 mpg Honda

Next stop would be Corky's BBQ in Memphis and yes it is awesome

Voted 20 times in a row best BBQ in town;quick stop for some EXXON 93 MPG now dow to 28.7......sooorrry I was hungry and in a hurry.

We say good bye to Memphis and hello to Arkansas as we quickly learn that the state animal is the road gator

I have never seen so much crap scattered all over a freeway for miles and miles and miles and miles......oh yeah and horseflys the size of finches


Well we're in Lil Rock now although all the rocks 'round here are huge

Someone forgot to pack the photo downloaderer thingy so no pics till we get back

later

Popeye

Day Two:Point of no return

Stardate:20092010

I have changed my mind about Arkansas having the world's worst roads .Five miles before Lil Rock the road becomes smooth as glass all the way to Oklahoma;thank God

Also a nice surprise is a quarter car wash just 1 block from the hotel room

We were west bound and down @ 8am and stop one is 308 miles away in Oklahoma City at a lil steak house called The Cattleman's .
It's Becky's birthday and I promised her a steak and what an incredible T-bone it was along with a house dressing on the salad that beyond words

The downside to Oklahoma is that it should be called the "road construction state " there was twenty continuous miles of orange barrels coming in and 15 leaving

We're talking single lane 55 mph people

The upside is the S is running flawless and MPG is high 29's holding steady @73mph

We're getting ready for supper here in Amarillo Texas and are looking for some good ole fashion Tex-Mex

............ and maybe a peeeecher of margaritas for birthday girl


later

Popeye

Day 3 WESTWARD HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Stardate :21092010


Amarillo is...I how can I put a positive spin on this A nice to stay for 9 hours as long as you're sleeping It is mostly a lay-over and not much more

The morning brought cool cloudy skies but 10 minutes west the sun broke thru and the temps hovered around 75-80deg the push to Albuqueque was uneventful and smooth as glass ...road wise and yes the Panhandle of Texas is flat but not lifeless.

There are miles and miles of cattle farms and we saw Brahma bulls and Angus cattle too.
Becky was the 1st to spot antelope just grazing along I-40

As we entered New Mexico the terrain changed and became more "cowboy". Huge mesa's and buttes large out cropings of rocks like they had been pushed from underneath by the hand of God

Lunch was in Albuquerque @ Gardunno's Mexican grill........this place rocks!!!!!!!!!! everything is fresh and authentic; blowing away anything found in Central Ohio. I love Albuquerque ;it is so clean and the people so friendly

And a 75mph speed limit too

We arrived in Flagstaff about 30 minutes ago and let me say the climb up from the desert is fun but once you reach the summit where Flagstaff is all you smell is nothing but pine trees

Becky's getting ready for supper and it's time to explore the local cuisine

later

Popeye

Day 4 The throw away day

Stardate 22092010

We awoke this morning to rain ..pouring rain but by 10am it had stopped and the roads were dry which was the time we finished breakfast

Let me say that as much as we loved Albuquerque...we now love Flagstaff that much more What an incredible clean and hospitable and picturesque town ...........but wait there's more

After b-fast it was a quick 70 mile run to the Grand Canyon and was well worth the trip

Pictures, TV, and Hollywood just can not do justice to the natural wonder just breathe taking is all I can say

Plans were to continue on to the Hoover Dam and then stay in either Las Vegas or Henderson and the continue on to Cali..............however we took Rick's (BlueBarcheta) advice and came back eastward to spend a night in Sedona

Wow Wow Wow is all I can say ......this is John Wayne west ....this is Clint Eastwood west ....... the vistas are beyond words

Majestic comes to mind.......... prehistoric is another word that comes to mind I am reminded of Devil's tower in Close encounters of the third kind only these rock formations are everywhere and on both sides of the road !!!!!!!!!!!!!


Some will not like what I have to say but 89A south out of Flagstaff to Sedona is more challenging a drive than anything Tennessee or N Carolina has to offer and the scenery just blows away anything in the Smokies


I'm now ready to retire and it's called Sedona

later

Popeye

Day 5 The reason we're early...a mini disaster

Stardate :23092010

We both woke this morning in Sedona to temps in the high 30's yes it was 39 degrees

But sunny and promising after strong storms went thru this area last night.

There was flash floods in Phoenix yesterday about 120+ miles south,all we got was a gully washer which cleaned the red dust off the car

We had planned the Hoover dam and maybe Vegas; but all was not to be

The problem is that both Beck and I got sick on something we ate yesterday so bathroom breaks have been plentiful. After debating we've decided to circle the wagons and stop in Kingman, AZ about 15 minutes from the Cali border

After an hour nap I feel alot better and so does Beck

Tomorrow morning bright and early will be the big push and probably a taste of LA traffic

later

Popeye

Day 6: Finally

Stardate 24092010

Bright blue skies welcome the final push to the coast;after a great night's sleep in the best hotel stay so far we aim the lil S westward

We had our 1st double double In-N-Out burger in Victorville Ca for lunch and it was delish

Two hours later and we're in LaLa land

Let me just say this......... you people are crazy.......... this traffic is ridiculous......and I'm glad my normal commute is 7 minutes and involves no freeways

That being said California is incredible and the next few days before heading back are going to be a great adventure

later

Popeye

Day 7 Homecoming

Stardate:25092010

Up at 5am left coast time ,we have a 7:15 meet time for "color" coordination and drivers meeting

The SoCal owners provided us with an awesome pastry "wake me up" and a coffee shop was opened just around the corner

The trip to American Honda involved an 8:00am run on the 405 for roughly 33 miles

Again these people are craaaazzzzzzzzzzzy 65mph bumper to bumper seven lanes wide ...... a high speed ballet

But all arrived safe and sound and soon we were all treated to a yummy lunch and a surprise appearance by Shigeru Uehara all the way from Japan

For those who don't know :

Shigeru Uehara joined Honda R&D Co., Ltd in 1971 and went on to specialize in vehicle stability and handling performance at the company. In 1985 he was appointed Large Project Leader for the mid-ship research project that led to the NSX project in 1990. Amongst his many contributions to the company, Uehara led Honda’s sports car development projects of three very important projects at Honda R&D, and saw them from conception to ending culminating in the S2000, Honda Integra Type-R (DC2/DC5) and the NSX-R. He is also known for his close friendship with the late Ayrton Senna.

Shigeru Uehara completed the S2000 CR as his last project before retirement, as his pride and joy. The color (Apex Blue) is his favorite color, the tires are made with the same tread design as the NSX-R's Potenza's (which he helped design), and the purpose built body kit produces lots of rear end down-force at speed. Also, the shocks and springs are stiffer than the stock S2000. The Honda S2000 CR is Uehara retirement gift to Loyal Honda customers.

Having him there really made this trip very special to both Becky and me and after having a way too brief talk offered insight as to how dear he feels toward the S2000

Saw a lot of cool cars both old school Honda to the 2011 Odyssey and CRz and something only found in Cali

The FCX Clarity hydrogen car

More later we're heading out to supper

Popeye

Days 8,9&10

Sunday morning and we are treated to a brisk run up the PCH to a little restaurant called 3Thirty3 located right at a marina

Brunch was an incredible made to order breakfast burrito that kept the both of us full until supper which would be back in Flagstaff

After brunch and saying our goodbyes to our gracious hosts we head north and east back towards Ohio

We ran back through the desert as we did when we came west but this time the temps are over 100............108 to be exact just out of Needles,Ca

Dinner in Flagstaff was at Roma's pizza and it was very good ....it reminds me a lot of Minuteman pizza in Lewis Center

Leaving Monday morning with temps hovering around 45 degrees so the top stayed up for a total of 35 minutes which is all it took for temps to be back @ 65+ degrees and as was every day of this journey we had brilliant blue skies and zero clouds

Next stop was back again to Amarillo but this time in the Hilton ......by far the nicest hotel we've been in .We were on the 2nd floor and the hallways reminded me of the halls in the original movie ......The Shining

Again this morning temps were in the high 50's but within an hour we were soaking in more sunshine roofless

One thing I'll say about the Texas panhandle ........it's flat.......as in flatout hmmmmmmmmm how fast can we go ?

Well last overnight until home and I'm already missing being out here even though we still have 10hrs drive time left

Final thoughts and our best and worst after we get home

......and the 350+ pics Becky took

Popeye

The totals:

5072 total miles 175.5 gallons of premium fuel 28.9+mpg

Average speed was 72mph

Highest price for fuel was in Needles,Ca @ $3.89/gallon

Lowest was $2.89/gallon in Arkansas

California, Arizona,and New Mexico all have 75mph speed limits

Arkansas,Tennessee,and Kentucky are 70mph

Ohio is of course 65

Highest air temp was 108 in Needles Ca

Lowest was 38 in Flagstaff, Az

Scooterboy

Have a good, safe trip! It is a fun drive.