The 69 Diary - Chapter 2

7/27/01 – After work, I drive over to Philly and pick up Kat. We decide to take the vert after all and Kat drives all the way to Va Beach. It’s a nice ride. We get to Stella’s and I show her (and a few others) the pics .

7/28/01 – ede & Pam are at the track. They are leaving for Ohio at 10am Sunday from Petersburg. Kat will take me up there in the morning.

7/29/01 – awaken to more monsoon and leave Stella’s a little bit after 8. Decided to keep to the highways due to the weather. We got to ede about 10:30am and transferred me and my suitcase to ede’s truck. Left my jacket in the vert :(. Kat says we did 710 miles since I left home…..so far.

Nice ride to Ohio, even if the weather wasn’t good. Ede & I talked cars and message boards; I think Pam felt left out. I even dozed in the backseat for a bit. My car is in ede’s driveway and I give it the cursory inspection before doing much of anything else.

The keys and title are in the ashtray. Once ede unpacks, we try to start the car. The starter sounds like it needs replaced, but it fired. I couldn’t keep it running and we decided to leave it until Monday AM. Ede & I take a tour of Wellston and try to get the title notorized, but the notary isn’t home. We fill a flat tire on the 69 with Fix-a-flat and hope it stays inflated for the journey. A few more inspections and a bunch more pictures, and I call it a day. 451 more miles today.

7/30/01 – up and showered and off to Jackson, Ohio for a truck and trailer. It wasn’t ready and ede showed me the post office while we waited. Finally all the paperwork is finished and we drive to another yard to get the truck and trailer.

I follow ede back to his house and up the narrow driveway. The plan is to turn the truck and trailer around, by running it up into a field and backing it up close to the car. My backing skills are REALLY rusty, and not being able to see the trailer doesn’t help. We decided to hook the trailer to ede’s PU and manuver it that way. Jockeying the truck and the PU with trailer doesn’t seem to be much easier. Finally the truck is facing the right way and has the trailer re-attached at the bottom of the driveway.

One of the ramps won’t come out of the trailer. Ede hijacks a board and we decide to use that as a ramp after he cuts it to size. The day is getting hot and we are both sweating.

We tried to start the car but I can’t keep it running. Ede adds some starter fluid to the carb, but it still didn’t stay running. He sprayed a whole lot of fluid in the carb and flames came dancing out as soon as it started. I turned it off and he meandered back to the garage while I tried to remain calm. He beat out the flames with a rag and we decided to let the car roll down the driveway to the trailer. Ahhh – there is a reason that we left the truck/trailer at the bottom of the drive.

I can’t move the seat but the car rolls nicely and I manage to stretch to the brake pedal. Using a come-along, ede ratchets the car on the trailer while I steer. We go too far and have to back her off to get the come-along out. Poor ede is drenched in sweat. I discover I don’t have the strength to undo the ties that go around the tires either. Finally, we get everything tied down, chained in, and the car is ready to go. Ede supplies an Ohio map and I right down directions to get to the interstate. He warns me I have to drive through a city. At 11:50am, I load my suitcase in the passenger seat, and take off.

I am a nervous wreck hauling this trailer, but the roads are good and I don’t have many stops or turns. The trailer says don’t go over 45mph, and I do about 40. The fully loaded tractor trailers are passing me with ease, not to mention all the cars…..except for one pervert who decided to jack off next to me! (Warning: when approaching Athens, Ohio beware of maroon sedans.)

The truck itself is easy to drive, I just hate hauling things and I can’t see the trailer behind me. The weight of the car is noticeable – even in ede’s driveway, I locked up the brakes on the truck but didn’t stop. I kept reminding myself to swing wide and cursing at anyone who didn’t leave a quarter mile in front of me. I was considering, no dreading, the stop light and left turn in Marietta….knowing I would come to that before I had the problem of parking the truck in my street. Trying to figure out how to do my dead-end street had become an albatross over the past week, so the light and turn in Marietta was a good mental diversion. And all the time, my mind is spinning through fantastic ideas for my race car.

About the time I stopped shaking and noticed I was doing 45mph comfortably, I realized I had left ede’s in such a rush to be on my way, that I hadn’t left the money for the car for Bill. I feel like I am hauling a stolen car and wondering what happens if I get pulled over. I have no title, not even Bill’s phone number, and I didn’t pay for the car. God, I’m a dumbass!

I made it thru Marietta without incident and am feeling much more confident. By the time I get on I-77, I am looking forward to seeing Mac and doing 50 mph. I make it to I-70 in good time. The next obstacle is finding a place to park to meet Mac – it’s almost 3pm. He had told me to park by the Kmart so at exit 218, I pull off and scan for Kmart – it’s in the mall. I end up parking by JCPenney’s and Mac arrives in 20 minutes or so. It felt good to get out of the truck – I hadn’t realized how much vibration there was – I had only gone 176 miles and was down to half a tank of gas. In the meantime, I write a check for the car and a note to ede & Pam. I will ask Mac to mail it for me. I also pen a post about the pervert, hoping ede will get a kick out of the incident.

Mac and I had a short but wonderful visit over snacks at the Outback. He pointed out a gas station that I could pull thru (he didn’t mention the tollbooth-like exit, tho) and he crawled over my car, pointing out things I never would have imagined. After hugs and a suggestion to meet in Kentucky in September, I got gas and was back on my way…it’s almost 5pm.

The construction on I-70 stinks – one lane for miles and I am holding up traffic…but I am now confident enough to do 55mph! 10:45pm, I have gone 406 miles since ede’s and decide to get gas and coffee…and visit the ladies’ room…..I need to stretch. Fifteen minutes later I am back on the road, with about 200 miles to go. I want to avoid Philadelphia so I opt to take the NJ Turnpike to I-195 and down the Garden State Parkway. It is longer, but the roads are better than trying to wind through the pine barrens. I have also decided to park the truck/trailer in front of the house and worry about manuvering in the driveway in daylight. All in all the drive has been quite alright; time to myself to think and contemplate….much of it to dream about the race car.

But Sam has gone to bed, not moved any cars, and I can’t park in front of the house. I wake him up and get the truck parked, lock it up, and the car is home! It’s almost 3am and I have gone 1781 miles since I left Friday night. I am tired but feel good.

7/31/01 - After work, Sam agrees to help me park the trailer in the driveway. He won’t move his silver Fiero but on the 2^nd attempt I get the trailer in the yard. We unhook the truck and I turn it around.

The silver Fiero is where I want the 69 and the tree behind the trailer makes it impossible to unload it. I am not happy and leave it there to ponder.

8/1/01 - The ex agrees to come over and help me unload the car from the trailer. He even has a PU with a hitch. We decide to put the 69 where the vert goes – right in front of the garage. Sam’s Tempo gets driven into the backyard and if we had jumper cables, the silver Fiero would have joined it. We hook the trailer back up and get it lined up in the driveway. She unloads rather easily, after we got the stuck ramp unwedged, but she is crooked. This might not be so bad as Sam has room to get his bike out of the garage.

8/2/01 - Sam follows me up to return the truck and trailer after I fill it one last time with gas. The initial chapter of my adventure has ended well.