Here they go again

Here they go again...

6/22 6/23 6/24 6/25 6/26 6/27 6/28 6/29 6/30 7/1 7/2 7/3 7/4 7/5

The NSRA Rocky Mountain Nationals are in Pueblo, Colorado June 27 to 29, 2003. This is the first time we've been to this show and are looking forward to seeing new cars and old friends! This trip will be about 2900 miles and we’ll be gone about 2 weeks. Email us anytime at - GOLDCOASTRODDERS@YAHOO.COM

SUNDAY 6/22/2003 - We were excited to get going this morning & were up early & on the road as the sun was coming up. As we drove away from our beautiful Monterey Peninsula, the summer fog was pulling back already & we could tell it was going to be another great day. We hit sun by Laguna Seca Raceway on Hwy 68. We took Hwy 101 south to Paso Robles then HWY 46 east to Interstate 5 south & took 7 Standard Road east to Bakersfield, then Hwy 58 east to Interstate 15 north to Las Vegas. Stayed at The Wild Wild West Gambling Hall & Hotel. It’s close to the strip & you can park next to the room. Nice pool too! It was 97 here today. 494 miles today.

MONDAY 6/23/2003 - Started out this morning at 6:00 am. Went north on Interstate 15. 85 miles from Las Vegas we entered Arizona & 30 miles latter we were in Utah & the time changed. This area is all high deserts. The Virgin Gorge was spectacular, the most beautiful red rock formations I have ever seen. As we came down out of the pass the elevation was 2000 ft. we came into a valley of farmland. Then back into the mountains & back to a valley. At Interstate 70 we headed east for 232 miles to Colorado. Just 18 miles into Colorado we stopped in Fruita to see the Dinosaur Museum & Dinosaur Digs. It was on Jurassic Ct.! Lots of robotic dinosaurs & an earthquake simulator, complete with pictures of the earthquake damage in Watsonville, Santa Cruz & Los Gatos. We went on to Grand Junction to spend the night. The roads have been great & the speed limit is 75. It was cool till we started coming down out of the mountains. It was 93 in Grand Junction today & cloudy. 506 miles today

TUESDAY 6/24/2003 - With the time change we started out late today, 7:00am, our bodies still think it's 6am! The sun is already up & the sky is clear. In Grand Junction we got on Hwy 50 east. We'll take this all the way to Pueblo. Off in the distance we can see some of the Rocky Mountain peaks with the snow still on them. It’s 4597 ft. already here in Grand Junction & the peaks are 11,000 to 14,000 ft.! This part of Hwy 50 is 4 lanes & new! Last year they had just started to work on it. Most of 50 is still 2 lanes, but they're widening lots of it. We passed thru lots of small towns. We really feel like tourists today! We stopped at Blue Mesa, Morrow Point Res. & took pictures. The lake is about 40 miles long & the road runs right along its shore. Crossed the Continual Divide as we went across Monarch Pass. It’s 11,312 ft. at the Monarch Ski Lodge with the lifts going up the mountain from there. In Salida we stopped for gas & lunch. In the restaurant Jeff & Lydia, a guy & his wife I had visited with the day before at a rest stop, came up to say Hi, & introduce his Dad & Mom. Jeff is from LA & has an old car. Leaving Salida the road goes thru the canyon that the Arkansas River has carved. The road runs right next to the river, it’s mostly rapids. They have whitewater raft rides down the river all the way to Canyon City. This is Royal Gorge Country. There is the Royal Gorge Bridge & Park here. The bridge was built in 1929 & is 1.053 ft. above the river; it reigns as the highest suspension bridge in the world! There’s lots to do there, with 315 miles of whitewater rafting, scenic train rides, fishing, the Skycoaster, wildlife park, biking, hiking & the bridge you could spend a whole weekend there. We stopped along the river to watch the rafters & talked to quite a few of them. Then we stopped in Canyon City at a park where the Visitor Center is. It has lots of trees & grass. I visited with 3 ladies in the center & they told me all the neat places to see in the area. We got to Pueblo at 3:30pm. Checked in the hotel, the room has a kitchen with all the stuff in it so, I went shopping for some food! Pueblo is 4662 ft. & is desert. They’re having a cool spell, only 99 today! 284 miles today

WEDNESDAY - 6/25/2003 - Today’s the day to clean the Vicky & visit old friends. After we cleaned, we went to see Tony Armijo at his home/shop. He has quite a few new, projects he’s working on. He customizes cars & is an Artist. Not just at designing cars, but also on canvas! Tony took us to lunch at the Klamm Shell, A neat Mexican restaurant we had been to when we were here before. Tony has paintings hanging there he did for the owner. We all went over to Jim & Patti Piese’s home to see them & their Rod’s new home! They built a great house for their ‘34 Ford Sedan. It was cool for here today only 87, only! I think it’s great, plenty hot for me, but it is going to get hotter! Back at the hotel Al took off the Vicky’s hood to cleaned the inside & tightened the fan belt. You'd think we were having a party! We had a half/dozen people there in no time, mostly Street Rodders to see if we needed help to fix something. It’s a great sport to be in, everyone is so willing to help you out. So we had a great time getting to know them while Al cleaned. Talked to a couple from South Carolina about shows, that John had been to, to try next year. Most of the Rodders here are driving their cars & towing small trailers.

THURSDAY - 6/26/2003 - Registration was open today at the Pueblo Convention Center. We were pre registered, #236. The Convention Center & the fairgrounds are close to old town that has the River Walk. They have boats on the river you can ride around. It has been turned into a tourist area. Went over to Jim & Patti’s to go out to the BBQ The Pueblo Chamber of Commerce is putting on today for the Rodders at Rock Canyon Swim Beach picnic grounds. Lots of trees & grass. It was very nice. Lots of cars. Tonight they put on a street dance downtown. Bands set up along the River Walk. It was 82 today, just right for me, tonight it’s 75 & great to be outside. When we came back to the hotel, we had the door open, Al watching TV, me on the computer & all of a sudden we have headlight coming in the door! This truck was up on the sidewalk right up to the door. It was Ben & Joyce West, the Champion Luggage Trailer manufactures that we meet & got our trailer from in Oklahoma City. They came by to visit with us for a while. It was a very relaxing day.

FRIDAY - 6/27/2003 - We found a nice quite place under the trees with grass to set up the shade at the fairgrounds. This morning they had a police escorted parade from Kmart by our hotel to the fairgrounds. Walked around & checked out the vendor's. Lots of vendor's outside & also two buildings full & a woman’s world with crafts. Had a 34 Chevy come & park by our car, when he got out Al though he knew him but couldn't place him. It was Roger & Terry Rutar from Amarillo TX, he was the truck driver that helped us push the Vicky off of Interstate 40, in Albuquerque, NM last year. They sat with us & we had a nice visit. We went to lunch with Tony, Jim & Patti & their friend Kim, back to the Klamm Shell. It was 87 today but no breeze at all. The fountain was on for the kids to play in. Came back to the hotel for a while then over to Tony’s, to follow him down to B-street. It’s a street dance. Had dinner at the Steel City Diner. They had tables set up outside so you could listen to the music. There was also a live Rock & Roll Show at the fairgrounds tonight. The Royal Tones played. It was in the amphitheater right next to where we parked the Vicky. It’s still very warm tonight & will be warmer tomorrow.

SATURDAY - 6/28/2003 - At the show, they had Streets of Rods today. One of the groups was Li'l Haulers. We parked there today with the rest of the little trailers. StreetScene Magazine sponsored it. Everyone got a dash plaque that was parked there. Visited with Ben & Joyce West, they told us about a show in February, they would like us to come to in Louisiana. You never know! Lots more spectators today. It’s also warmer today. Checked out lots of cars & the exhibits. We had a NSRA Safety Inspection done & got a sticker for the windshield. We had the windshield changed after the trip to New York, so we didn’t have a sticker anymore. Went back to the hotel to rest & change. The pool was so full it was almost running over! Had Dinner & it clouded up & we had lighting & rain. Within an hour it was gone. The fairgrounds have an outside show tonight. Featuring “The Nacho Man”. We stayed at the hotel & just enjoyed all the cars driving by & talking to everyone.

SUNDAY - 6/29/2003 - It was clear this morning when we went to the fairgrounds. Checked out the winners circle & went to look at the swap meet again. Al had some lettering & a bee put on the Vicky. The show was over by 3:00pm, so we came back to the hotel to get ready to head out in the morning. We went to dinner & then to visit Jim & Patti for a while then to see Tony. Well our time in Pueblo is almost over. We head toward home tomorrow. We won't be on line for a couple of days. We’re going to be in some very small towns.

MONDAY - 6/30/2003 - This morning we stated for the west. It was a great time here & we really enjoyed visiting with our friends & the weather couldn't have been better. The City of Pueblo really went all out to make the Rodders feel welcome. There were so many things to do, day or night that you always had something to do if you wanted to. The city wanted to make sure the Rodders knew that they were looking forward to next year’s show. The local newspaper, “The Pueblo Chieftain” had front-page color pictures & stories. On Saturday they had a whole insert on the show. The show had almost 2000 entries this year, with lots of venders & spectators. This is a show we will try again! As we started out this morning, we went south on Interstate 25. The landscape is very flat & almost desert like, except it’s greener. It’s hard to believe that it’s 5,000 ft. high plateau here. The Rocky Mountains in the distance have snow on the peaks that are 12,349 to 14,345 ft. As we neared Trinidad, Colorado the hills started. As we entered New Mexico at Raton, the elevation went up to 7,834 then down to 4,958 at Albuquerque. There we took Interstate 40 west. About 20 miles west of Albuquerque, there was a wreck, a car clipped the back of a truck then spun & flipped into the middle of the freeway. As we all moved to the right to give them room, a car came speeding by on the left & thru all the gravel & car pieces & stuff that had came from the center, at us. It got the front fender, door, qt. panel & back fender on the Vicky & the top of the trailer. The Vicky & trailer’s bra’s saved a lot of damage. Went on into Gallup & found a nice local motel to stay in. 477 miles today

TUESDAY - 7/1/2003 - Started out early; we have lots to see today. Not only are there lots of Indian reservations, there are lots of parks to see. The scenery, with all the red rock is beautiful. There are the Ice Caves, Painted Desert, Petrified Forest & the Grand Canyon, there all really spectacular! We left Interstate 40, at Flagstaff, Arizona to go up to the Grand Canyon on Hwy 180, the scenic route, to Hwy 64 that go into the park. What can you say about the Grand Canyon? It's so big; that as you stand at the rim & look across it's awe-inspiring view; it’s hard to believe the Colorado River in the bottom carved it. There are lots of observation sites along the south rim & a free shuttle bus that makes traveling to all the points easy because parking is sometimes far from the rim. On the way out of the park we took Hwy 64 all the way back to Interstate 40 at Williams. Continued on to Kingman, Arizona to Hwy 93 to Hoover Dam. There were guards checking all that passed. No trucks or commercial vehicles are aloud to cross the dam right now. They even looked in our little trailer. It was 112 degrees; with stop start traffic for 50 minutes. But sights were great & going that slow we got lots of pictures. Had to turn the air off though, so the Vicky didn’t over heat. Went on into Las Vegas & back to the Wild Wild West hotel, got a room & had dinner. On the way back to the room two guys asked us if we knew who owned the Vicky. A cab had backed into it & left. They had gotten the cab number & the company name incase it had done much damage. Al took the bra off to check the fenders & the grill. The bumper is bent just a little. We we’re sure lucky. 547 miles today

WEDNESDAY - 7/2/2003 - Stayed in Las Vegas one more day. Went shopping in the morning then went down to Fremont St. to watch the light show. It was a new show from the last time we saw it. It was still 98 at 10pm when we got back to the hotel.

THURSDAY - 7/3/2003 - We knew it was going to be HOT today, so we left Las Vegas at 4am, an it was still 85 then. Went south on Interstate 15, it was only 30 miles to California. As the sun came up at 5:15 am, it made the red rocks almost glow, it so beautiful! At Barstow & headed west on Hwy 58. West of Mojave the mountain pass is full of wind generators. Coming into Bakersfield the elevation was the lowest we have been since we left California on this trip. At Hwy 99 we went north to 7th Standard Road, west to Interstate 5 & north to Hwy 46, then west to Paso Robles. At Hwy 101n we went south to Atascadero so we could go to Freedom Street Rods to get a new clip for the front fenders under the grill. We lost it in Pueblo after we took off the bra, the bolt holding in on must have came out someplace. Visited with Wayne for a while then back to Paso Robles & over to Lake Nacimiento to spend the night at Bob & Sally Tavares’s house so we can go to the car show in King City with them tomorrow. Bob & Sally took us down to the beach for a while & al & Bob went out in their boat. It’s really nice here, only in the 80’s. 437 miles today

FRIDAY - 7/4/2003 - Went into King City at 7am for the Valley Heritage Days Classic Car Show at the San Lorenzo Recreational Park. This was a real nice park & there was lots to do & see in the park. We watched a horse get shoed in the blacksmith shop. There were quite a few club cars there & a few of us got awards. We were chosen for 2nd runner up for “Best of Show”. Each car that entered got a ballot to vote for three classes, Under Constriction, Ladies Choice & Best of Show. They also had quite a few sponsor awards. This was a nice show. Left for home after the awards. 110 miles today

Well it was a great trip & it’s only Friday & we have two more car shows to do this weekend. Saturday at Seaside City Hall after the parade & Sunday in Gustine.

SATURDAY - 7/5/2003 - We grabbed some of the grandkids & went to the parade. They had a ball setting in the trailer & throwing candy! It was a really nice way to end the trip.