A Day Of Ups And Downs

Our crew began the day with a fantastic tour of the Indianapolis Speedway and its museum in Speedway, IN. Ellen and her museum team were terrific hosts as we explored the historic cars and got a bus tour around the “brickyard” track that included a chance for the ceremonial kissing of the bricks at the finish line.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway

 

The Marmon Wasp - First Indy winning car

 



 The ceremonial kissing of the bricks for good luck

 

 The Borg Warner Trophy on display

After that, the trip north to Grand Rapids got very interesting very fast. I was driving the Mustang up Highway 31 near Peru, IN at 60 mph following Derek in the Chrysler 300 when his rear right wheel caved outward, the axle dropped to the pavement and sparks flew backward about 30 feet until he was able to guide it toward the side of the road to safety.

 

Calamity strikes the Chrysler on Highway 31; just glad driver Derek wasn't hurt

 

Definitely an unexpected turn of events, and I have to tell you that it felt like the collective heart of our team sank to the pavement along with the axle as we saw our mammoth, tail-finned beauty crippled and helpless by the side of the road. Without any hesitation, the team responded to the disaster by putting out safety triangles beside our vehicles. Dale, Ashley and Valerie then went to work on their phones and made magic happen. Within about 40 minutes, they had a tow truck on the way, an axle and parts being overnighted from Seattle and a dealership in Troy, MI ready to take in the Chrysler. The best news was, depending on how it goes, it’s possible our big red beauty may be ready to drive again by Friday. An AMAZING outcome, given what happened, and we’re all truly grateful Derek wasn’t hurt and was able to “land the big red plane” as well as he did.

While Dale and Valerie waited on the tow truck, the rest of us pushed on another four hours to Grand Rapids and a media event at Lambert, Edward & Associates, the PR firm that manages social media for the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. On the way, we lost a wiper blade and arm off the driver's side of the Nomad, but Bill and Derek jury-rigged a temporary fix and Valerie located a replacement nearby. A few media interviews and hors d’oeuvres after we arrived in Grand Rapids, we checked into our hotel to get ready for another day that includes a 6:15 a.m. Fox TV interview, a coffee and cars event, and a drive to snowy Traverse City.

A valiant effort by the Drive Home II team today – we proved again that while we may be slowed, we won’t be stopped on our way to Detroit and the North American International Auto Show.