Kelly’s and my trip across country is one I will always hold special. As I said at the beginning of this blog, I am no stranger to cross country travel. My first road trip took place in 1955 in a red and white Ford Station Wagon with my parents and brother and sisters from Arlington, Virginia to North Hollywood, California. My dad, an Air Force career officer and former test pilot, had been reassigned from the Pentagon to Burbank and Edwards AFB in the R&D group, and he did not want us to live at then was a remote part of the high desert, about 100 miles north of L.A. So we moved to L.A. – birthplace of much of the American Car Culture – and Dad took a weekly USAF commuter flight to Edwards (or Nellis AFB or the Tonopah Testing area – both in Nevada) every Monday, and returned each Friday. Dad did not mind the commute, and put his family first. He also liked open road travel. I think too, that is where I get this bug.
So our cross country travelogue repeated itself again in 1960 when I was in the second grade. Dad and mom took our entire family out of school in February and traveled back east from L.A. along Route 66 ( as far as Springfield , Missouri) and then southeast to Georgia to see our grandmother in Atlanta, and then relatives in Harrodsburg, Kentucky and places across the US. The modern interstate system – conceived by President Dwight Eisenhower in the 1950s as a national defense initiative to get troops and supplies around the country in case of national emergencies – was under construction then (and took over 30 years to fully complete), so most of our travel was on the two lane highways which formed the backbone of the US Highway system. We returned to L.A. after a four week journey across probably 20 states and extended stays with relatives. Again, in 1962, my dad flew all of us from L.A. to Atlanta to pick up a brand new Ford Country Squire midnight black wood-sided station wagon, with a red interior, and complete with air conditioning and a power rear window. Tall cotton for the Voyles family. Beaudry Ford, in downtown Atlanta, was where Dad did business, as the head of the sales department, Mr. Daniel, was my dad’s old boy scout troop leader from Morrow , Georgia. That 1962 trip home sticks vividly in my memory, as we visited Kentucky again, toured Mammoth Cave, Shakertown, Lexington and then ventured north to Indiana, Nebraska, and then points further west. When the family moved to Virginia in 1965, we toured north up into Oregon, saw the Space Needle and World’s Fair in Seattle, up into Canada to Lake Louise and Banff and then into Yellowstone, Glacier NP, and points further east. We stayed frequently with extended family, but also made a second home out of Holiday Inns and Sleepy Travel Lodges.
Somewhere along the way I became simply mesmerized by the open road – the sites, smells, foreign looking gas station logos, strange roadside diners, and the endless seeming monotony of telephone poles, fences, and frequent surprises one would encounter on the road. We were never bored, however. My sibs learned to play all kind of road games….. travel bingo, counting the cars on the many freight trains whose rail paths often paralleled the old US Highways, the alphabet game using license plates, and looking for the next set of Burma Shave signs, among others. I also began collecting rocks on these trips, a habit which continues to this day, and at one point, collected both matchbooks and bottle caps. Between 1965 and today , I believe I may have criss-crossed the country at least an additional 15-20 times, and each trip had its own unique flavor. One seven day trip I did with my son Drew in 2002 – from Seattle, WA to Atlanta via US-2 then later down US-61 along the Mississippi River then across Tennessee on US-68 from Memphis to Chattanooga was also particularly memorable – one highlight being catching the Field of Dreams in Dyersville, Iowa at sunset. No doubt, every trip taken in as diverse vehicles as an open roadster TR-3, an enormous 1970’s Cadillac coupe, and several Toyotas of various descriptions, has had a distinct character all its own. So you see, road travel is in my blood. I just love the open road.
Even on this very special trip, I never cease being amazed by the geographic diversity and splendor of our United States. Having grown up mostly in California and getting somewhat used to the notion of nearby beaches being only five hours away from the tallest mountains in the continental US, coupled with both vast deserts ( including the lowest point in the continental US) , wonderful surfing, waterskiing and snow skiing, as well as the tallest living organisms on earth (giant Sequoyah’s), Californians often forget how much more there is to see in our great country. Kelly and I did our best to do just that in a short seven-day just- completed travel window.
Some of the things that I noticed as distinct from previous journeys included the following:
- America is warming up to the idea of roundabouts – something we have been slow to adopt from our European brethren – those special gas saving intersections which allow cars to keep moving as opposed to being stopped at random stoplights, often in the middle of nowhere. We encountered roundabouts in California, Arizona, Kansas, Colorado and Missouri.
- Windmill farms are here to stay, apparently. Even with the dramatic drop in oil and gas prices over the last year, there are massive numbers of windmill farms. We saw them in California, Arizona, Colorado and all across Kansas. The once ubiquitous Chicago Aeromotor windmill which provided ample supplies of water for so many homesteading farmers in the mid-to-late 19th and early 20th centuries, have now been replaced by these new versions of technology.
- British sports cars can no longer be found on US roadways. Alas, we saw only two the entire trip, and both of them were in Colorado Springs. Introduced to America in the late 1940’s by returning WW II veterans stationed in England who fell in love with those open seat twin seat roadsters – designed for no purpose other than the joy of simply motoring – today such cars appear to be almost extinct. And that makes me sad. My Morgan +8+, once part of a healthy stable of fun open seat roadsters, including the marks of Austin Healey, MG, Triumph, Jaguar, AC, and Morgan, have essentially been passed away or been relegated to “homes” inside air conditioned garages or museums ( or is it mausoleums?) where they are seldom brought out except for special events, car shows and the like. That is not my plan with this car because I believe all cars need to be driven to be enjoyed.
- The need for speed – exceeding the speed limit, is no longer something I am obsessed with. Nor did we encounter many speeders on the road. During the entire trip, I kept our speed limit at or no less than a five miles/hour max over the posted speed limit ( and then just to stay up with traffic flow). Not only did we get there more comfortably, but there was much less stress worrying about me trying to explain to an out of state police officer why I had a car with California tags titled to me in Georgia, but no current registration because of a bureaucratic catch 22 between Georgia and the State of California where I could not get a current tag without an emissions test and could not get an emissions test in California without a tag. Harbingers of the nanny state married to the Obama-nation! Sorry, for one last time…. I digress. This is not intended to be a political review!
- Family is most important, and always trumps anything else. While much of our pictures in this travelogue relate to the Morgan +8+, the real story here was the unsurpassed commitment of my daughter Kelly to join me on this merry adventure. And I actually had other kids ready to take her place if she was not able ….. now that’s commitment! She was a terrific sport through the entire journey, and both she and her husband Anthony deserve a medal. The night before our Southern California departure, Anthony, after coming home from the Dodger playoff game at 10:30 PM, stayed up and helped get the air conditioning condensing tubing installed in the car – as my mechanic had not completed that task – as well as getting our Sirius XM hooked up right before we departed at 8 AM the following morning. Thank you Anthony for offering up your sweet wife, as well as your work getting the Morgan up and running.
- I plan more road trips and have learned a few things from this one. Pack light, You never use all the clothes that you think you’re going to use. Stop and take breaks every couple of hours to get up and walk around is very helpful to not only stay awake, but also in keeping your circulation patterns good; and check the weather forecast before you leave. Kelly and I lucked out greatly on the trip. We had five literally cloudless days in a row, all with the evening temperatures down in the mid-50s; and daytime temps ranging from the upper 80s leaving Phoenix, to low 80s/high 70s in Arkansas and Tennessee.
- Bill Fink, the master builder and Morgan legend from Bodega, California, did not let me down. His car performed virtually flawlessly over a 3500 test drive, making the four year time frame worth the wait. As I have said several times, the Morgan is the quintessential English Roadster, a bit of an anachronism in our Uber, iPhone and iPad – dominated, millennial world, but nonetheless a delightful throwback to the sheer joy of driving. I love it. And say thanks to my friend and Morgan- master Bill.
In sum, this special journey was a memorable, fun and simply spectacular trip. Had we run into inclement , rainy weather which is currently dogging California and Arizona, maybe not so much. It is often said that God’s grace is beyond our comprehension, and His mercies are freely extended to us on a daily basis. Kelly and I certainly experienced both His grace and mercy in abundance on this trip. I am a deeply grateful man because of that, and appreciate all of the love, assistance and encouragement my bride of nearly 40 years, my business partner and colleagues, and my four kids and their spouses each extended to me making this trip possible.
So, thank you. And all the best to all of you .
And hey….. who is up for the next road trip????
Let’s roll!
FINIS
P.S. In thinking about this trip several months afterwards (now January ,2016), I was struck by the sheer beauty of Katherine Lee Bates’ Song about America which I referenced earlier in my thoughts at the foot of the Rockies in Colorado Springs. Yes, I am sentimental. I remember hearing the extended lyrics probably for the very first time at Disneyland in the mid-1960s, when Disney opened the “Hall of the Presidents” , fresh from the 1964 NY World’s Fair. The particular sonnet “Thine Alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears…” It still chokes me up when I sing it, or listen to it. Even now……
I guess I simply love our great country, and I hope any who reads this story will be reminded of how absolutely spectacular it is and how blessed we are to have her as our own. So here , in closing, on this travelogue about the great USA, are the full lyrics to “America, the Beautiful”:
O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
O beautiful for pilgrim feet,
Whose stern impassion’d stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine ev’ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!
O beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev’ry gain divine!
O Beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam,
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
2015 Cross Country +8+ Morgan Tour 