Another White Dash

The rest of MTTS went by like a blur of white highway dashes, twists and turns, and parties. But I'll try to recap it.

MTTS Day 2/3: The evening event at Sandia MINI in Albuquerque wasn't dampened by the rain. They moved it under a tent, and they had a band and some nice food. I checked in and picked up my badge and goodie bag.  Then I ran into Suzanne from Seattle, a fellow native Long Islander and Mets fan whom I'd met on the way to Denver during MTTS 2010. It was nice to see her since the rest of my Sin City Mini folks were not scheduled to join us until Phoenix. The MINI USA people brought several special MINIs with them including a new GP and the ClubVan. MINI USA VP and Chief Motorer Jim McDowell was driving a black MINI convertible which he allowed MINI owners to sign with a gold or silver sharpie! Every inch of it was covered. I just barely squeezed in my name on the bonnet.

They also brought along our very own Paralympic athlete. MINI USA sponsors the Paralympics, so Michael Johnston, a triathlete hopeful for 2016, was going the whole way from NJ to LA and issuing challenges along the way. If you signed up you could swim, bike or run along with him at different stops along the rally route. He had different leg attachments for each sport. He drove the whole way in a Countryman, and was given the title of Motorbassador.

The next morning we lined up to be escorted by Albuquerque police officers out of the dealership lot and onto the freeway for our run to Phoenix. The first hour was pretty much all freeway, but then we turned off onto some pretty nice little roads full of twisties, and altitude changes down through mountain passes. We had a stop at a casino in Payson, AZ where the Dynamic MINI Collective, an AZ club, provided a little goodie bag/desert survival kit. We had just over an hour more to get to Scottsdale where the host hotel and event were taking place. It was a long drive, around 410 miles. We arrived in hot muggy Scottsdale and I retired to my hotel for a nap before the evening event at the Saguaro.

My hotel was really cute. It had hardwood floors in the room! I tried to watch the Mets game on my iPad while I was in there, but it wasn't working and it turned out they were having technical difficulties. The Mets lost. After two hours, I got up and changed clothes and headed over to the Saguaro hotel. They only offered valet parking and I realized this was the first time I ever valeted my car. I avoid it whenever possible. I don't really want strangers getting in my car. But I figured since it was a MINI event, full of other MINI owners and their cars, it would be fine. The party was okay. They offered h'orderves, but we had to pay for drinks, even soda. They had a band which featured a drummer who also worked at MINI of N. Scottsdale in the service department. They were okay, a typical cover band. They had a raffle and the usual thank-you speeches. The Sin City folks arrived from Vegas after an extra scenic drive through the 12 miles of terror. There were about a dozen of us altogether including Agro, Chris, Lisa, Julie, Karen, Mike, Kerry, Toni, Richard, Alia, Tommy, Larry and Dee. Suzanne arrived at the party with her boyfriend Eddie in tow; he'd surprised her by flying down from Seattle. Scotty from the DMC, who I'd also met on MTTS 2010, was excited because we were finally in his territory after he'd spent so much time hanging out with us in Vegas. He had arranged a TV spot in the morning on the local news about MTTS and was trying to get volunteers to show up at the station early in the morning before we left for L.A. I told him I'd try to make it, and I didn't go to bed too late, but the next morning when my alarm went off at 6:00am, I decided it wasn't going to happen. He told me later they had about 40 cars show up so I didn't have to feel bad for not showing, it all worked out.

MTTS Day 4: With the storms passing through all weekend, it was uncharacteristically muggy in Phoenix, so I was glad to be heading out in the morning. We gathered once again at the Saguaro, and picked up our snack and route instructions.  This day's drive would be a straight shot on the 10 Fwy all the way into L.A. about 405 miles. We stopped in Indio, CA (home of Coachella) for lunch at In'n'Out Burger, then got to L.A. just in time to check into the hotel and get to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena for the MINICross. I got to drive the Coupe and the Roadster in the MINICross course. It was fun. Then it was back to the hotel to change for the evening event, the big MTTS wrap party at the House of Blues on the Sunset Strip.    

The location was pretty neat, I had never been there. MINIs filled the valet lots and there was a nice view out over the city.

The HOB restaurant provided a really nice buffet dinner and there was a concert by singer/songwriter Matt Nathanson who provided good music and witty banter about MINIs, his songs, and the audience. 

There was also a giant cake shaped like a MINI which Matt commented about continuously as the HOB chef began slicing it up. 

I enjoyed this party much more than the one in Phoenix. I did not enjoy the traffic getting off the Sunset Strip however, but oh well. I got back to my hotel in Pasadena around midnight. Only one more event to go. 

MTTS Day 5: In the morning I got up and headed out to Gladstones at the Will Rogers State beach in Santa Monic on the Pacific Coast Hwy. There we gathered for the official end of MTTS, at the Pacific Ocean. They provided a breakfast of fruit, yogurt, granola, and muffins. There were more speeches and thank-yous and they announced the sweepstakes winner of an all-expenses paid trip to the London Olympics at the end of the month. That would've been nice to win. But all in all, there was plenty of fun to be had and Rory's first big rally was a great success. 

After a quick shopping stop on Melrose, Rory and I headed home. We hit some stormy weather so it took longer because the roads were flooding a bit. We got home around dinnertime and I unloaded my luggage and all the goodies I'd accumulated. George had been by in the morning to check on the turtles and had told me it was stormy in this area too. And it poured down last night and was still raining this morning when I got up. I was glad I took the extra day off to rest up. Back to work tomorrow. 

Fugitive Motel

MTTS Day 1: I left late. I always leave late, but I was actually waiting to see if my meds came in the mail. They didn't. So I set off without them around 1pm, jumped on the 95 and was on my way. Passed Hoover Dam, into Kingman, AZ to get onto the 40 and then a long ways to Flagstaff. I didn't make a hotel reservation because I wasn't sure how far I'd get the first day. It turned out to be a good thing. Even leaving late, I was in Flagstaff by 5:00, too soon to turn in for the night. I stopped at a Taco Bell for dinner. They got my order wrong. First they forgot my cinnamon twists so I went back and asked for them and then I realized that they had given me beef soft Tacos instead of chicken but I ate them anyway. I enjoyed the break and the 30 degree temperature drop from Vegas (82F!). Afterwards, while in the parking lot, I booked a room in Gallup, only another 2.5 hours further. I figured it would be best to get that far, so it would only be another 2 hours to Albuquerque in the morning and I'd have some time to get settled and explore on my own before the rest of the Minis got to town from Boulder. It also turned out that Gallup was the furthest reach of my gas tank. I arrived at the motel with only about 20 mi worth of fuel left. The place was cheap, and smelled a little like someone had smoked in the non-smoking room. I was able to park Rory right outside the room, literally at the curb outside the door, so it was like he was sleeping right next to me. I read for a while, the book I'd been reading about a group of women on a road trip to Las Vegas from Wisconsin, so it felt appropriate. Outside, right across Route 66, cargo trains rolled by all night. It wasn't a great night's  sleep.

Day 2: In the morning we fueled up and then got back on the road. Besides podcasts, I've been listening to a playlist I made called MTTS which from what I can tell was probably made back in 2008 for the rally that year. But I have to say, it's a pretty kick-ass playlist. I don't recall what made me put these particular songs together, but it's really good. I started to make a new one for this year, adding a few more recent songs, mostly stuff with the words road, drive, car or street in the title. You can make a pretty good long list just from that. I didn't spend a lot of time working on it though, so I've deferred to my previous MTTS list.

I arrived in Albuquerque around 12:30, but I was able to check into my hotel early, so that worked out. I did a little internet recon, then headed into Old Town. First I got a car wash. The thunderstorms we'd driven through yesterday were refreshing but left Rory with a dirty boot. I determined that the rest of the Minis should be arriving in town around 4:00, and the evening event is not until 7:00. It's at the local MINI dealer, Sandia MINI.

In the meantime, I did a little IPS fan geeking; I stopped by the Sunshine Building which is what they used as the exterior of Mary and Marshall's office on the show. In reality, it houses a theatre, so a closer inspection revealed posters for upcoming concerts, so that was kind of neat. Too bad the show isn't filming anymore, I found a website that gave details of places/dates where they were were shooting around town. But alas, the final season is done. Next I was off to a nice place for lunch called Sadie's. I think I remember Chris Hardwick recommending it once on the podcast. I got a chicken burrito which is huge. Half of it is still sitting on my plate right now.

Next I'll go back to my hotel and change I guess and get ready to go to the evening event which is called, "Westward Go!" Live music, food and drinks and mechanical bull rides are in store, and MTTS will begin for Rory and me in earnest.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Albuquerque, NM

On the Road

The Biennial Cross-country rally known as MINI Takes the States (MTTS) is here again. And it's Rory's first time. I purchased him just after MTTS in 2010. MTTS 2012 began in New Jersey last week and is heading west. I've decided to join the rally in Albuquerque and finish at the endpoint in L.A. Many of the Sin City Minis are going to join in Phoenix on Friday, but it seemed too dull just to do the last leg. I had time off coming to me, and it's just enough of a trip to get the full MTTS experience without spending too much money. The downside, I have to get to Albuquerque on my own before I'll likely encounter anyone familiar. Last MTTS, I was a co-pilot, and our group went all the way from here to Denver. I'm kind of looking forward to the time alone though. I can take my time, and relax on the way out. Then all the MTTS craziness will be a good contrast on the way back. I'll be leaving tomorrow, probably with a stop in Flagstaff, and then on to ABQ by Thursday night to meet the rally. Then we'll head to Phoenix, then L.A., then home.

Coincidentally, I was actually in L.A. twice last month. First I went to see a live taping of the Nerdist podcast with Chris Hardwick, Jonah Ray and Matt Mira. Kind of spur of the moment since my trip to New York got cancelled. Then three weeks later, Dad and I went down to see the Mets play the Dodgers. It was his Father's Day present. George was supposed to come too, but he had to beg off at the last moment. It was a good time though. I took my Dad to the ballgame, the Mets won 5-0 (another gem from Johan!), Ike Davis hit a home run just for me, and we had a fun little road trip. There was singing along to Neil Diamond. I was surprised that Dad was happy to go in my car, but with just the two of us it was perfect. So one trip on my own, and one with Dad. And now the main event. I still hope to go to New York to see Hina, but we'll have to figure that out after the rally. 

On the bus home from work today I was thinking about the sort of symmetry that's coming into play here. MTTS 2006 traveled west to east. After it hit Vegas, it headed for Flagstaff, then Albuquerque before continuing on, ending up in Connecticut. MINIfir was just 3 years old. When I started, I knew no one in the MINI community. Now 6 years later, I'm a veteran of the MTTS scene, travelling in my second MINI (a nearly two year old youngster), and after two other variations of the route, we'll again be hitting some of the same cities, but east to west. It also puts me in mind of another road trip I took, a little over 10 years ago, in a foreign land, unravelling spools of string as I went. This time, I'll have GPS.

It also happens to be the All-Star Break for Major League Baseball. Two Mets made the squad, R.A. Dickey, whose phenomenal 12-1 first half should have earned him the start, and David Wright who was cheated out of his starting slot by some overzealous fans in San Francisco. They both got in the game at least. The Mets finished the first half at 46-40, six games over .500, just 4.5 games back of the 1st place Washington Nationals. It would've been nice to win that last series against the Cubs. The Braves were able to just squeak into second place ahead of us by 1/2 game. But it's all good. We start the second half against them, and maybe some bulllpen help will be on the way before the trade deadline. We can only hope...

In the meantime, GO FORTH. GO WEST. GO MINI.