I just got in from my longest road trip yet - a 4340 mile (6985 km)
round trip. I left home last Thursday evening for Anson's place in
Columbus Ohio, and we headed out Friday morning to Vermont for Sara's
WinterBeaterWars '05 with Anson's twin engined madness in tow...
Other than one of my dolly's fenders flying off at about 85mph that
leg of the journey was problem-free (maybe not for the guy following
us! :D Ooops...)
After dropping some parts off to Julie in NY, we headed towards
Burlington Vermont, at times the wrong way (I guess "Turn right" has a
different meaning in the backwoods of Vermont... - thanks Jason!).
The weekend was GREAT! I had a blast! I'm sure Anson will eventually
stitch together some video of the weekend's driving antics, but
suffice to say we all fed the Durocco with healthy portions of
right-foot the ENTIRE weekend. That car is a trooper... Mercilessly
gangbanged all weekend long, and not even a whimper... Poor thing...
By the time we made it out to the Ice Trials event on Sunday there was
only one more heat, so our times probably sucked compared to when the
track had "bite" earlier in the day. I don't think any of us cared
though - we were just out for a good time, sliding cars around a
frozen lake... The Durocco was a hit with the locals, and many got a
chance to flog it - you da man Anson! :D
The ride back to Ohio on Monday was uneventful, that is until I
decided to try "drifting" the twin while in tow behind my Audi at
60mph... While changing lanes after overtaking a semi, the "snow
berm" in the middle of the highway, plus the heavy rear end of the
twin started a high speed wobble that turned into a real
tank-slapper... The dolly started to oscillate side to side, more and
more until the "tail started to wag the dog". The ass end of the Audi
started to slide out more with each sway until I managed to reign
everything back in again. I don't know if it was skill or luck, but
we were fortunate not to have been in a potentially nasty accident...
I think not panicking and nailing the brakes saved the day - I just
let off the gas gently and counter-steered until everything got in
line again... I will make it a point to put winter tires on both the
dolly and towed vehicle if I tow in snowy conditions again though -
lesson learned...
Tuesday morning I headed out to Oklahoma to pick up an 81 that I
bought from David Utley. On the way I stopped in Missouri for the
night, and hooked up with lister Bob for a set of Mk1 fenders (thanks
again Bob! I really enjoyed talking with you...). One bummer for
the day - I got pulled over doing 82 in a 65, and have a $75 ticket to
prove it... I was luckier the next time I got pulled over, but I'm
getting ahead of myself...
The next leg of my trip brought me through the vast nothingness of
Kansas, which contrary to what I've heard, was spectacular. I pulled
over at one point, and just stared into the countryside. There wasn't
a tree to be seen as far as the eye could see, which I've never
witnessed before in my lifetime. It was quite moving - a feeling of
insignificance came over me. I felt very "small" surrounded by such
a huge landscape... Definitely one of the highlights of my trip...
After meeting David later that evening, I headed down to Purcell
Oklahoma Thursday morning, where the car was being stored. Here's
where the trip takes a turn for the worse. The car was nowhere near
the condition I was expecting. What was supposed to be an
accident-free, rust-free, complete car turned out to be otherwise.
Other than a missing engine/tranny, gas tank/filler neck, and various
interior and exterior bits, the car was nice and solid, with only
surface rust poking through here and there. I was fine with that -
pretty much what I was expecting... What started to get me worried
though was a front fender that bulged/folded out at the top of the
wheel arch. Further investigation revealed that the driver side front
was sitting almost an inch lower than the passenger side. There's
also a crease in the bottom of the "frame rail" just ahead of the
driver side strut tower. It looks like the car endured a semi-serious
accident which forced the driver side "frame rail" to collapse on the
bottom, and force it downwards - bulging out the fender in the
process. It's a real shame, since the rest of the car is exactly what
I was looking for - a relatively rust free shell that's worthy of the
time/money I want invest in doing a proper restoration of a Mk1. I'm
sure some time on a frame straightener will get everything back where
it should be, but I don't know if I now want to restore a
fundamentally "flawed" vehicle. I'm going to bring it to a local
bodyman/friend tomorrow and see what my options are with it...
I wished I would have asked for more pics before heading out half way
across the U.S. to pick up a car I should have passed on, but I also
don't believe David knew the extent of the damage. He doesn't seem
like the type to knowingly rip anyone off...
I don't expect to even come close to breaking even on it, but does
anyone in my area (Toronto/Buffalo) want this car? It's VERY solid,
and will make an excellent project/daily driver - it's just not the
car I'm looking for at the moment.
Part of the deal I made was for any parts I could pillage off of
another Mk1 which was rotted out completely and ready to be scrapped.
I figured I may as well make the trip as worthwhile as possible, and
stripped the car down to almost a bare shell over two days, and packed
what I could into my Audi and the 81. I managed to haul up one good
fender, semi-rusted doors/hatch/hood, a decent windshield, lights, "S"
seats, a front bumper, carpet, heater fan, single wiper mechanism,
fuse box, and a bunch of other odds and ends...
The trip back home was smooth - rarely seeing speeds under 85mph. I
was passing everything but gas stations! :) I managed to get pulled
over again in Illinois, this time with the 81 in tow, about 10 minutes
from the Motel6 I was going to crash at for the night. I was clocked
doing 87mph in a 55 zone, but some smooth talking got me off with a
"Be safe" warning from the cop...
All in all I had a great trip. I met a few listers I haven't yet had
the pleasure to meet personally, and saw parts of the U.S. that I've
never seen before... My plan now is to work in a trip to CA to pick
up Noel Browning's 75 "on my way" to Cincy to fulfill my quest for a
"keeper"... Other than the 75 track car I bought last summer, it
seems every car I pick up has at least one major flaw that prevents me
from comfortably committing resources and time into a proper
restoration - hopefully Noel's will be "the one"! :)
Later,
Mark,
75
80 S
81
90 Audi Coupe Quattro - 10vt
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