Pilgrimage to Mecca....er.....Metric
Okay, so this past week has been spring break. 'Spring break' is actually latin for "do so much shit that you need another break, but won't get one".
So, thus it began with me planning to set out for Oklahoma City on just after getting out of school, but decided to wait for a pending pelican parts order so I wouldn't have to drive 1000 miles with a bad CSB. It didn't come on friday. So, I sat around saturday waiting for UPS to show up and WOMP HUGE SNOW IS EVERYWHERE. So I thought "it's okay, i'll just drive out of it as long as UPS guy doesn't take too much longer. I'll just bring the replacement CSB and do it in oklahoma city". So, to pass the time I sat around in my underwear and played tetris64. 6 hours later there's dumb weather everywhere and.....A PACKAGE SHOWS UP! It's........my new HR springs. No CSB. FUuuuuuuuuu
So I left early Sunday morning. Weather was great! So great that I got a speeding ticket from Powertrip State Trooper 5000 in Springfield, Colorado (population: 3 shrubs).
Then, about 4 hours until destination at oklahoma city, I am doing 80 (again) on a little two lane highway. Semi trailers are regularly going the other direction, and buffeting my little car with the wind forces. Then, there's a certain one with a huge air dam or something, because when we pass each other, my rear driver's window RIPS OUT. Now I have an annoying constant breeze in my face and can't hear the stereo. weeeeeeeee
Fast forward 2 hours and it's night, and i'm still wearing my sunglasses because I don't want my eyeballs drying out. this is really fun because my headlights blow and I couldn't see hills so I kept getting this strange feeling that I was about drive off a huge ramp into an ocean. It was kinda cool, plus adrenaline keeps you awake. Then, I start driving over what I think are lumpy potholes in the road. I take off my sunglasses and discover I am doing 75mph on a two lane highway over chunks of snow drift (note that two front tires are fucking bald. rear left is semi new, and rear right is 60% tread studded snow tire from junkyard). fuuuuuuuuuuuuu
Then I make it onto I-40 and am now only 45 miles from my destination! Unfortunately, the whole highway is blocked with cars going 3mph because the snowmelt plus high winds had turned the entire road into a sheet of ice. The reflection was so clear that it looked like we were driving over a lake. Also, due to my tires, every time I tried to accelerate, the studded tire would grab and I'd spend about 30 feet sideways, pointing towards a ditch. Note that it's 25 degrees and I still have no window (or heat). Fortunately, I realized that I had my automotive safety glasses with me which had clear lenses, so I ditched the sunglasses. weeeeeeeeee
Finally I made it onto a part of the highway which had actual snow on it. People continued doing 15mph but oklahomans don't know what to do with snow so I just wailed on it and kept going around 45-50. I think I counted 19 cars in a ditch, 2 flipped semis and 2 annihilated cars during the 2 hours I was stuck in that shit.
Oklahoma was cool, blah blah etc.
I left for Richland, Missouri and immediately spaced out for the long drive and missed an exit and had to back-track 70 miles. fuuuuuuuuuu
I made it there around 4, and couldn't find Main St and no one in town had ever heard of Metric Mechanic. Finally, I got teddy on the phone and he gave me directions so I got there 20 minutes before they closed. it turns out they didn't really care anyway, but I was worried about that. After 5 days of no e30s ANYWHERE it was cool to see a whole stack of them, though now I can't find my camera AT ALL. Anyway, almost immediately Jim's wife said I looked like Bono, and Steve (employee) said I looked like a hippie. Good start. Then teddy took me around, we picked out my block and started cleaning it off, and each family member in turn asked what my plans were and all but forced me to stay the night there. They were wonderful!
Then, we went to his buddy Courtney's garage/shop/business of BMW fixing and hung out around an m42 getting a head gasket, a 635i getting suspension and his uncle who was getting a family recipe of rum punch. All very enthusiastic and jolly fellows! Much chicken was grilled and potato salad eaten!
Then I slept well in the family house after talking extensively to Jim all night about camshaft timing and valve overlap. Very interesting stuff.
The next day I got to glass bead my new block, as well as rummage through one of their parts cars for a new window (now attached courtesy of duct tape) for the drive back. weeeeeeeEEEEEE!
Grabbed all the pistons (and paid) and whatnot and headed out around noon, having just received a concerning text about another storm shitting all over the front range. The drive to I70west from Richland was amazing! Nothing but rolling hills and sweeping turns! That was really way too much fun, and it was only ruined a couple times by non-turning jerks in Buicks. Also got to see my first roadkill armadillo.
Fast forward 10 hours of kansas and I almost hit a chunk of ice the size of a VW Rabbit just as I come into Denver. Ahhh, home.
So, thus it began with me planning to set out for Oklahoma City on just after getting out of school, but decided to wait for a pending pelican parts order so I wouldn't have to drive 1000 miles with a bad CSB. It didn't come on friday. So, I sat around saturday waiting for UPS to show up and WOMP HUGE SNOW IS EVERYWHERE. So I thought "it's okay, i'll just drive out of it as long as UPS guy doesn't take too much longer. I'll just bring the replacement CSB and do it in oklahoma city". So, to pass the time I sat around in my underwear and played tetris64. 6 hours later there's dumb weather everywhere and.....A PACKAGE SHOWS UP! It's........my new HR springs. No CSB. FUuuuuuuuuu
So I left early Sunday morning. Weather was great! So great that I got a speeding ticket from Powertrip State Trooper 5000 in Springfield, Colorado (population: 3 shrubs).
Then, about 4 hours until destination at oklahoma city, I am doing 80 (again) on a little two lane highway. Semi trailers are regularly going the other direction, and buffeting my little car with the wind forces. Then, there's a certain one with a huge air dam or something, because when we pass each other, my rear driver's window RIPS OUT. Now I have an annoying constant breeze in my face and can't hear the stereo. weeeeeeeee
Fast forward 2 hours and it's night, and i'm still wearing my sunglasses because I don't want my eyeballs drying out. this is really fun because my headlights blow and I couldn't see hills so I kept getting this strange feeling that I was about drive off a huge ramp into an ocean. It was kinda cool, plus adrenaline keeps you awake. Then, I start driving over what I think are lumpy potholes in the road. I take off my sunglasses and discover I am doing 75mph on a two lane highway over chunks of snow drift (note that two front tires are fucking bald. rear left is semi new, and rear right is 60% tread studded snow tire from junkyard). fuuuuuuuuuuuuu
Then I make it onto I-40 and am now only 45 miles from my destination! Unfortunately, the whole highway is blocked with cars going 3mph because the snowmelt plus high winds had turned the entire road into a sheet of ice. The reflection was so clear that it looked like we were driving over a lake. Also, due to my tires, every time I tried to accelerate, the studded tire would grab and I'd spend about 30 feet sideways, pointing towards a ditch. Note that it's 25 degrees and I still have no window (or heat). Fortunately, I realized that I had my automotive safety glasses with me which had clear lenses, so I ditched the sunglasses. weeeeeeeeee
Finally I made it onto a part of the highway which had actual snow on it. People continued doing 15mph but oklahomans don't know what to do with snow so I just wailed on it and kept going around 45-50. I think I counted 19 cars in a ditch, 2 flipped semis and 2 annihilated cars during the 2 hours I was stuck in that shit.
Oklahoma was cool, blah blah etc.
I left for Richland, Missouri and immediately spaced out for the long drive and missed an exit and had to back-track 70 miles. fuuuuuuuuuu
I made it there around 4, and couldn't find Main St and no one in town had ever heard of Metric Mechanic. Finally, I got teddy on the phone and he gave me directions so I got there 20 minutes before they closed. it turns out they didn't really care anyway, but I was worried about that. After 5 days of no e30s ANYWHERE it was cool to see a whole stack of them, though now I can't find my camera AT ALL. Anyway, almost immediately Jim's wife said I looked like Bono, and Steve (employee) said I looked like a hippie. Good start. Then teddy took me around, we picked out my block and started cleaning it off, and each family member in turn asked what my plans were and all but forced me to stay the night there. They were wonderful!
Then, we went to his buddy Courtney's garage/shop/business of BMW fixing and hung out around an m42 getting a head gasket, a 635i getting suspension and his uncle who was getting a family recipe of rum punch. All very enthusiastic and jolly fellows! Much chicken was grilled and potato salad eaten!
Then I slept well in the family house after talking extensively to Jim all night about camshaft timing and valve overlap. Very interesting stuff.
The next day I got to glass bead my new block, as well as rummage through one of their parts cars for a new window (now attached courtesy of duct tape) for the drive back. weeeeeeeEEEEEE!
Grabbed all the pistons (and paid) and whatnot and headed out around noon, having just received a concerning text about another storm shitting all over the front range. The drive to I70west from Richland was amazing! Nothing but rolling hills and sweeping turns! That was really way too much fun, and it was only ruined a couple times by non-turning jerks in Buicks. Also got to see my first roadkill armadillo.
Fast forward 10 hours of kansas and I almost hit a chunk of ice the size of a VW Rabbit just as I come into Denver. Ahhh, home.
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