Man, I thought I pulled it off unnoticed! Just don't make me bring it back, please, Cal. Not only is it too pretty, but that drive will likely kill me if I do it again. 2700 miles in a little over two days...I don't know how those guys in the Cannonball used to do it. Lots of amphetamines, perhaps. At least they weren't pulling a trailer through a snowstorm in the middle of the night. I thought I was a goner for sure, going up a hill at 3 a.m. somewhere in Kansas, following a semi, no other loonies stupid enough to still be on the road, no lanes per se but just two tire tracks in the snow, my drivers' side windshield washer inoperable, tired as hell...and then, glare ice and the Ford dually goes sideways...an exciting moment with someone else's expensive enclosed trailer riding along behind.
Luckily the snow and ice ONLY lasted 500 miles or so. Unfortunately the cold lasted a lot longer. What a sight that must have been, Cal, Jeff Karnitz, Cal's son, and me standing around scratching our heads, 10 p.m., 5 degrees above 0, the GT40 all ready to load up, the locks on the back of the trailer frozen solid from being filled with slush for the last 24 hours...try WD40--nope, try de-icer--nope, try holding a lighter to them--nope, try holding a candle, fer chrissakes--nope...finally a hair dryer is produced and has the desired effect. Man it was COLD out there! It took half an hour of sitting in the truck with the heater on full blast to thaw my feet out!
All's well that ends well, they say. 26 hours after loading the car up we rolled back into our driveway, having driven nearly the full length of I35 in the last day. 5 hours of sleep in the last 66 doesn't sit as well as it did when I was young, but it sure is nice to see that sucker sitting in the garage!
Thanks to Cal, his son, Jeff Karnitz, Cal's wonderful wife, and my own spouse, who endured the trek with me uncomplainingly and took over the wheel to spell me occasionally. A huge thank you also to my pal David Kee and his buddy Kurt for the use of the excellent trailer they co-own. It was a "good pull", as they say, and made hauling this precious jewel much less nerve-wracking in some dicey weather. I'll post some pics when I get my digital camera charged up--
Bob aka sleepless in San Antonio
