Date: Thu, 21 Jul 2011 07:47:28 -0700
Reply-To: Gary Bawden <goldfieldgary@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Gary Bawden <goldfieldgary@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Cross-country trip report
In-Reply-To: <CACHTzae1XWBY2SqbnzaDFD-487jBxKfxvGm7uTeo3F1v3sPw-Q@mail.gmail.com>
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Greetings once again, Vanagaroons (not to be confused with vinegaroons)
Well, I am nearly home, just the 185 mile milk-run from Las Vegas to
Goldfield to remaining.
This has been a really great road trip, with the space shuttle launch
as my primary motivator, but finding that meeting several of our list
members was really what I'll remember the most. Thanks again to John
Rodgers, Unca Joel, and Jim Felder in Alabama (I miss the Brrmp!
Brrmp! Brrmmp-brrmp-brrmp! of Alabama's "Intersection approaching,
Will Robinson" road bumps already). And while travelling through
Arizona, no trip would be complete without a stop at Karl Wolz's
abode, who kindly offered me a place to stay (and sprung for a bean
burro!).
The following may be of interest to anyone familiar with I-17,AKA the
Black Canyon freeway, connecting Phoenix with Flagstaff, AZ. I
consider this road to be my nemesis, having driven it from the first
time I had a driver's license, with any number of different vehicles,
I've destroyed two engines on this road (part of this was any
teenager's necessary 'learning curve').
I entered the I-17/Northern Avenue interchange at 6:30 pm, with a full
tank of fuel, and headed out of town. I was able to leave Hector in
fourth gear up the first major pull until approaching the sign for
"Bumble Bee exit, one mile", at which point I went ahead and
downshifted to third, and was able to pull the hill all the way to the
Sunset Point rest area, keeping my road speed at forty mph, EGT's at
1200 plus or minus about 25 degrees, manifold pressure I kept at just
a hair under nine psi (the wastegate opens at around 9.5 psi). The
cooling temperature was up, but not alarmingly so, and after Sunset
Point was able to cruise normally (55 - 58 mph), bringing it up to 70
mph for crossing the Verde River bridge, then keeping my speed up for
the next set of hills. I was in third gear a total of four times, none
of the rest of the hills any more challenging than the first one, and
I arrived in Flagstaff in an astounding (for a former splitty owner)
two hours and twenty-two minutes!
After such a successful run up the hill, of course I went directly to
the Beaver Street Brewery in Flagstaff, where I celebrated with a pint
of IPA and a salmon BLT sandwich - - yum!
Then I headed back down the Lake Mary road to the Marshall Lake
campground, easy to find even in the dark.
The next morning, after hanging around Flagstaff for a few hours, I
had an uneventful trip out to Kingman, AZ, then up US 93 to a spot I
camp at fairly often, just off the Temple Bar road (m.p. 19 on US93,
up the Temple Bar road about 1.3 miles and then a couple of hundred
yards up the power line access road. Very quiet there, you can see the
planes with their landing lights on, approaching the Las Vegas
airport. Nearly hit a sidewinder on the way up the dirt portion, but
backed up, got out to ascertain that he was what I thought he was,
which alarmed the snake, who side-wound his way to under the nearest
bush, where he buzzed away in a most alarming fashion!
Once I get home I will add up the final figures regarding total trip
mileage, fuel mileage, and the like.
Signing off,
Gary
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