The Kinda Grand Tour [FINALE]

OT: Is it intentional that ODC isn’t the sum of TBDC’s for some teams?

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tell it’s not just me that can’t read it normally, and instead sung the song…

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Team BAGS

Brian: So far so good; there’s another point of interest coming up…

Gary: Should we stop there?

Amy: If we do, we could use the time lost to take a breather.

Stephanie: But I don’t think it will be necessary to do so yet. Our fatigue is not severe enough at such an early stage in this trip.

Brian: So we should just keep driving, then? All in favor say “Aye”.

("The other three team members all say “Aye” at once with minimal hesitation.)

Brian: OK then, we won’t stop at Crescent Lake; we’ll just drive past it instead. If anyone or the car has a problem, please let me know.

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team 1’); drop table participants; – (aka Team Bobby Tables)


Friday, 2pm-4pm

As the ferry approached the docks at Port Townsend, Da Wei and Frank headed down to their car. Some teams were busy planning the next section or adjusting stuff, others were still on their way down from the passenger deck. Some loud country music was heard from team Twin-Snails’ car.

Frank: Wanna drive? Takes the car keys out of his pocket
Da Wei: Take it easy, we’re on the end of the ferry. we’ll be launching last anyway. but it’s a bit cold though, i’ll turn the car on and get the heater on

*grab the key
*put into ignition
*start the engine
*engine turned on but dies again

Da Wei : huh, battery must be low

*tries to start the engine again
*nothing

Da Wei : uh…. shit…… the indicator lights on the dash goes kaputt when i try to start it. frank, can you get the voltmeter from the trunk? it’s in the brown leather bag. it’s where most of our tools are in.

Frank gets out of the car and looks for the bag with the voltmeter in the trunk.

Frank: Found it. Can you open the hood?

*pulls hood lever

Da Wei : there you go.

Frank turns on the voltmeter and attaches it to the two battery terminals. The voltmeter shows 7.3V

Frank: Shit. That thing’s gone.

Da Wei : 7. how the hell does a battery goes as low as 7v…… never seen that before. also, how did the car even run on that battery…. amazing that nothing was broken because of that. but you know what? i left behind your 6 bags of marshmellow behind and put in a battery jumper on the back. hehehe. i’ll go and get it.

They attached the jump starter and tried again to start the car. It started, but as soon as the jumper was removed it began to stutter and turned off again.

Da Wei : Right then…… i knew this car were a bit too clean for it’s price. but i didn’t expect it to show up at the start of the event. now what? the ferry’s already empty, and the workers are just waiting for us.

Two dock workers had seen what happened to us and offered us to push the car off the ferry. They also told us there was an auto parts store down the road.
As soon as the car was parked at the docks, we headed for said parts store. We arrived there, exhausted from running half a mile.

Frank: There it is. I hope they have a spare battery.

Da Wei : they better do. we’re already so far behind. and grab 2 while we’re at it. i did not know how that battery got to 7v. and i’m afraid it might do that again.

Frank: Good. Let’s get two of them.

$180 spent on two batteries, they arrived back at the car. Da Wei installs the battery in the car, but it still won’t start.

Da Wei : the F*ck’s wrong this time? oh wait

noticed a burnt part of the negative cable

Da Wei : oh well damn. now that i noticed it. this wire is too freaking thin, and i think we somehow burnt it when using the jumper.

Frank: Shit. Did we take some spare wire with us?

Da Wei : not proper ones. i brought some wires, but none is thick enough for this. you rest, i’ll go back to the store. you still need to drive after all this. okay?

goes back to the store to get some thick ground wire. and then, another 20 minutes later

Da Wei : huff huff here you go huff huff, you can install it right? huff just 2 screws. huff i gotta catch my breath

Frank: Ok. Get on the passenger seat and have some rest.

Frank replaces the old, burnt wire with the new one, then gets in the car and tries to start. The car started and kept running. Both Frank and Da Wei felt relieved.
Frank threw the burnt wire in a waste bin, asked the workers around who had helped them to dispose the battery and gave them a tip of $10.

Da Wei : right. we got some catching up to do. time to use all of whatever’s left of that 216HP that existed in 1985

With Frank on the driver’s seat, the team headed for the road, really pushing the old Scela trying to catch up to the other teams.


Morale: -3 (-1 total)
Fatigue: +2 (+2 total)

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2-4PM
Wookiee: Hey, Bill. You’ll love this first POI. They made those movies here, you know, tho ones you took your wife to.
Bill: That narrows it down.
Wookiee: With the whole sparkly monster thing.
Bill: What are you on about? Oh, wait… the gay porn thing?
Wookiee: So you did watch them!
Toni: Boys! It’s a bit early to start on each other.
Wookiee: No fun.
Bill: Fine. (pulls out map). We’ve got, what 50 miles to the next stop, how are we going to not be bored senseless?
Toni: Pull out the camera. See if you can get a snap of this… car we’re coming up on. We’ll run with them for a while.
(Wookiee pulls out the camera, and Bill grabs his audio player/speaker.)

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#Team ‘Southend or Bust’
Original Post - Previous Post

…Continuing from VicVictory here,
James chuckled. “So then” he asked, “why something so old for such a long drive?”
“We wanted something with a little character” answered Rick, looking proudly at the car. “Chancellors are kind of rare, especially the GL trim. Plus, how often do you see something with a red leather interior?”
“Fair points, and it is a very nice red isn’t it?” admired James, inspecting the interior through the windows. “There must be something a bit iffy about it though”.
Jen and Rick smiled. “Well, it’s an old car, everything is bound to go wrong on it at some point” said Jen in a bright tone.

“What about the engine then? I’m sure if Martin was here he’d be able to list all the major problems these cars had with their engines” said James.
“Actually it’s been reworked and fixed up quite nicely” Rick began. “New head gasket, new timing chain kit, new manifold gaskets, and the throttle body was thoroughly cleaned. The turbo was checked for excessive play, and got new gaskets as well.”
James nodded in appreciation.
“Did we forget to mention it’s the same engine that was in our Suzume last time around?”
“No? Seriously? Reusing old parts?” said James.
“Yeah, no point putting a unit like that to waste”
“Can’t argue with that” returned James. “And to drive? Is it good?”
“It’s actually not that bad. The turbo helps it move along once it kicks in, but unlike the original V8, it doesn’t cause the back end to break loose in holy hell off the line” said Rick as though he were giving a detailed lecture. “And this thing is cushy as hell. Fuzz hasn’t complained once about the back seat.”
Fuzz shouted something in agreement.

James chuckled. “Damn, well I certainly wouldn’t have as much confidence as you to bring something this old along.”
“I guess that’s the spirit of the challenge” Jen added. “And we couldn’t just quit after last time. We felt there was unfinished business. That, and it was an excuse to go see some fantastic scenery while doing something a little nuts”
“Isn’t it gorgeous around here, eh?” replied James. “Well, I better get back. Nice talking to you though, best of luck”.

.

“So they were nice people then?” asked Martin.
“Yeah, great people. Lovely car too” replied James, scanning the map. “I really cannot wait to see the Pacific properly”
“Me neither” said Seb, mockingly. James knew excatly what was coming next. “Because we’re in the Pacific North West, where a certain TV show was set, wasn’t it Martin?”
“Yeah” Martin joined in. James sighed. “I think it was called…”
Seb cracked a smile. James grimaced.
“…Twilight?”
Seb paused. He thought Martin had been going along with the joke. “No Martin, it’s Twin Peaks, remember? 'Cos James is named after”
“YES SEB, we ALL know who I’m named after” James butted in.
“But seriously Seb, Twilight was set in these parts” replied Martin, feeling genuinely confused.
“Have you actually watched Twilight?” asked Seb.
Silence fell in the car.

“Well, I think we should put some music on” James burst out, scrambling for the aux cable and his phone. Moments later, Dance Hall Days came on over the old speakers.
“Ohh, now this is a proper driving song!” said Martin, reaching for his shades.


“Ayy! Join the club!” said James, whacking out his beloved pair.
“Oh come on guys, mine are in the boot” said Seb, frustrated.
“Too bad, mate” said Martin, looking ahead and smiling.
“Wohh!” Seb shouted suddenly as the Minerva tore past.
“Fucking christ balls” shouted Martin, blaring the Merna’s little horn. “What are Twin Snail doing?”
“I’m telling you, Americans can’t drive” said Seb.
“I’m beginning to agree with you” replied Martin.

Thankfully, the rest of the journey was a breeze, and soon enough, they were on the outskirts of the Pacific coastline.

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Team Bamford

Day 1 Part 2
Jason Clark sat in the rear of the Advance as they bounced off the ferry and onto the dock with Ken still driving.
“Did you see that Corolla that the Gryphon team was running?” said Phil, excitedly “What a unit!”

“Everyone was going on about that thing” muttered Ken “Is that what you kids like, small hatchbacks with lots of speed?”
“Are you trying to get some market demographics for the next car pop?” asked Jason
“I might be”
“Well, pardon me for saying Ken, but if you want to corner the kids market, then you’ll need a cheap car that’s fun to drive, like your old sports cars from the 80’s”

Ken turned his head for a moment, here was Phil, the biggest idiot in the world, offering sound advice…

“We want a car that has loads of character, a story to tell and an adventure that’s only a moment away”

The car remained silent for a few moments

“We’re on that adventure right now” replied Ken “Now, who wants to listen to a CD?”

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If it is, it was a typo. The spreadsheet is keeping accurate tally, so at some point my dumb ass will correct it. :slight_smile:

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Team Greasy Lightning (2p-4p Drive Portion)

Rick’s mouth was agape as the Ardent pulled off the ferry and onto the dock. They had just passed the Sclea, seemingly dead on the deck of the M/V Salish, two WSF deck hands slowly pushing it off the vessel.

Fuzz broke the near deathly silence. “Hey, at least we weren’t the first ones to break down this time, right?”

“Yeah,” Jen murmured. “Great news.”

“Hope it’s nothing major,” Fuzz continues. “We all know what a huge bummer it is to get knocked out early.”

Their 2 mile, 6 minute drive to Fort Worden proceeded without another word. The mood changed sharply as they pulled in to the parking lot of the State Park, and they scrambled out to take a picture. The old Endicott-era coastal fort was an impressive sight of military engineering, despite its armaments being long gone.

After a couple minutes they piled back in the Chancellor and continued on US Highway 101. The factory radio started to crackle and pop as they started to move out of range of the Seattle-based FM radio stations. Jen pulled out a small bluetooth speaker, plugged it into the 12V charger, and fired up the music app on her phone.

“I’ve got a little something to start us off here.”

Hardwell - Smoke

“You’ve got to be kidding,” Fuzz groaned. “OK, fine, but I get a turn with the speaker later.”

“No way, it’s mine!” Jen protested.

Rick laughed. “You brought this on yourself, hon. We’ll all take turns. New rule. Whoever is riding shotgun gets to play with the toy. And since we’re all taking turns here…”

Jen let out a halfhearted sigh and dramatic pout. “Fine.”

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OOC: Song choice very much approved by me!

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#Team Flaming Fart Cannon
The moment the gate of the ferry went down, Kai was hard on the gas, slamming the front bumper into the ramp with an bone-jarring crunch before bouncing up the road and blazing towards the highway. Well, not exactly blazing, with 150bhp, but with a power:weight ratio of under 8kg per horse, compared to the rest of the competition it was pretty fast.

“BRÖM BRÖM” Kai shouted, hunched over the wheel like an Italian madman who was really a bull who had just spotted a red cloth. Mercifully, the car wasn’t capable of the kind of gut wrenching straight-off-the-road-and-into-a-pole maneuver commonly found among actual Gryphon Gear models, but Strop found himself mentally counting down the jolts until the shocks packed it in completely. On the other hand he was for once pleased to be seeing this car driven as aggressively as it looked, because then they didn’t look like just half-baked tools, they were going full douche. Oh man.

Time to take their minds of that, and time to completely ruin the idyllic country view. Strop poked his head out the window, at the nearby baby-blue Ambassador just behind. “HEEEEY YOU WANNA HEAR SOME GOOD OL’ ROCK AND ROLL???” He then cranked up Kai’s UE Boom to the max in windows doooooooown mode:

Inside, Strop paled. "Fuck, was that the writer from Mountain Pass I just trolled? The brostep effect was immediate, Kai dropped a gear and gave it a bit more gas, the turbo drawing an extra rasping exhaust note, blitzing past the traffic with blithe disregard for the actual speed limit.

“Hey, is this one of the states where the speed limit’s really strict?” Strop asked.

“Do you even know where we are?” Kai asked back.

“Er. Not really.”

Soon the slower cars were a mere speck in the mirrors. But one of them didn’t: the big hulking Minerva with an engine undoubtedly twice the size of theirs. If anything it was getting larger and larger until, with its greater speed, it passed with a sonorous blast of a tritone truck horn.

“Oh, it’s on”, Kai snarled, frisking his fresh can of air-horn whoopass.


MRL +4 overall
FTG +1 overall

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>is Danish
>uses Ö
TRIGGERED
I think you meant brøm brøm as he’s Danish, not Swedish, Finnish or German :wink:

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Team ‘Routed…


The Three Aussie blokes from Sydney are back! Fresh from their failure to finish the Roulette and complete buggering up of RPing. But these complete failures to achieve anything, all while costing them precious holiday time, speeding fines, back pain while letting themselves get stuck out die out in the barren wasteland of Gasmean wilderness…? Still this time…what could possibly go wrong?

Sam Paschke aka Speeding Backbreaker Sam!
34-year-old actually a New South Welshman, he still works in Sydney as a software engineer and his still thinks the Roulette Runner was a better break from the hellish commute into the city…But maybe that was just because he was actually moving. He still owns a 2014 Kimura Auriga SXi. His completely rubbish performance in the last event has earned him the position as…passenger!

Daniel McGowen aka JDM Lover Dan
32-year-old a wild Queenslander who now lives and works in NSW. His daily is still a nice but kind of boring 2012 Saminda C3 which he mostly just drives that to the station and trains into the city where he works as an Insurance manager. He still thinks JDM is the only way they should have done this event and everyone else suspects he somehow caused the untimely demise of the Maesima. Which why is still ‘given’ the position as team navigator because can you guess what their entry is this time?

Mitchell Phillipps aka Mitch’ll fix it
44-year-old Victorian He’s still the oldest and most experienced although his only a hobby mechanic. Mitch still being a bit of wheeler-dealer and has a habit of finding acquiring old bombs for next to nothing and then fixing and selling them at a profit. He’s going to be taking the wheel for the fist legs anyway. He still lives in NSW and works as a Maintenance officer but he sold that old 1983 Erin Merna for a fairly good deal and now his driving a Maesima NL-992 which also happens to be the same as our car for this event. Speaking of which…

The Car


The car is started out as Mitch’s donor car…or rather a long time ago it started out a 1992 Maesima NL-992, the first pre-facelift model in top-grade Australian Deluxe Touring trim. The NL-992 was the Maesima’s first attempt at the big markets of the world.

Sure now it seems like a terrible idea for a little-known communist country to try and sell a luxury car for their first go. Well yeah, it wasn’t the brights of ideas but here in Australia Maesima had already got its foot in the door with affordable entries. But for those in the US, it was the first time they’d heard of Maesima.

In the reforming economy of the DSRA in the late 1980s, anything seemed possible. So they saw what the Japanese were doing thought they could jump the Chinese and Koreans to the market. The idea was simple enough, a rear wheel drive platform based on the NRZ sports cars with the same double wishbone setup front and rear which was rather good and on top of that they worked hard on a new advanced V6 engine with DOHC setup.

The first of the MCF-engine family. It was still a cast block with alloy head but no VVL or anything else. Sure they threw all the luxuries they could for the time. Real wood grain…at least that’s what the brochure says. Advanced four speaker sound system from some unknown brand. But the rest leaves a lot to be desired these early ones had fairly terrible old four-speed box and with all that extra luxuries the brakes are and were pretty awful and the years have not been kind.

One of the reasons Mitch started picking these up beside their soft back soothing ride is they sold very poorly back in the day. Leading to price cutting further eroding its attempt at the luxury market. But that makes them extremely good value for money these days. As we said this was a donor for his current daily which only cost him about $1,500 but this one had no rego and the auto box seems to be slipping but otherwise everything works.

This particular example is an Australian export model, registered RFW 382 in NSW. It rolled off of the production line in Namju, Democratic Socialist Republic of Anikatia on May 24th, 1992, and has since done only around 197,000 kms. While we have found the original owners manual and even a faded old brochure there wasn’t any service records so we don’t know how many owners it has had.

But it doesn’t seem to have had a very hard life especially compared to our last entry. The paint is a little faded and sunburnt with the clear cost coming off only on the bonnet and roof, it’s not been kept in a garage and has been subject to harsh Australian sun. The body appears to be in fairly okay condition a bit of rust around the sunroof but otherwise pretty clean and only a few usual scrapes and dents. Probably a pensioners car before falling into some other more careless entries.

The interior upholstery and leather have faired much better and the driver seat is a bit worn but not too bad. The fake looking real wood trim and cheap hard plastics of the dash have mostly held up. Some of the electronics don’t seem to be working and the radio isn’t working on all speakers. A/C is working thankfully. This model also got cruise control…but it’s not really umm working either. While the coolants, oil seem to be overdue for a service its only really the transmission that gives us some concern.

So this time hopefully, this should see our team through! At least it should be comfier in any case. We bought the thing for $650 AUD which is only like $478 USD.

Day One


The team was once again very late to the party. Mitch was cruising along enjoying the soft a pliable ride of the NL-992.
They maybe a bit late but it looked like they’d make it. Sam and Dan were testing out the legroom in the back. The large boot was packed with all the gear they’d need and plenty of beer too.

It was quiet ride everyone was tuned out listening to some random noise on the radio they call music or maybe it was an ad…kind of hard to tell or maybe that’s just the quality of the speakers.

Sam was resting headphones in and Dan was checking his maps…Before you knew it things were moving along as planned they were up and at it with the rest of the pack ready to face the first real day of adventure!


Now the event had truly begun they set off in their sunburnt and ageing but nonetheless luxury sedan. Mitch knew it was best to settle into this event slowly and run the car in before things started to really push the machine. Every now and then he could even relax with the cruise control on it invariably it would start to falter speeding up or slowing down.

You could never take your eyes off the road for too long but at least you’d get to rest your feet every now and then and take in the Californian views. So let’s crack up the ‘luxury’ four speaker sound system and cruise on…

“Hey lads,” Mitch announced.
“Looks like we’ve got a bit of convoy going here with the Erin, Ardent, and Zast.”
Still, it seemed like things were off to a good start this time in a smooth comfy luxury ride of the Maesima soaking up the windy Californian roads. Mitch with his laid back driving style and steady hands things seemed to let things flow in a relaxed west coast approach to the event.

“Wait a minute, aren’t those the same Pommy kids that left us to for another 12 bloody hours before we got rescued!?” Sam piped up.
“Well if you hadn’t crashed the damn things we’d be fine y’know that right?” Dan said with a smile.
He opened his mouth to speak again but Sam interrupted.
“Not another word…about JDM.”
'Well…"
Dan protested.
“I mean look at that team!”
Dan pointed to ‘Toothless’ the black 2001 Corolla.
“Sure the E120 is ugly as sin but still that’s a Toyota so that thing will probably outlast us all!” Sam took in the view. “That’s the Gryphon Gear team isn’t it?”
“Yeah, good to see some more Aussies even if they are from the Hipster capital.” Dan agreed.

But that little beast didn’t stick around it zoomed off to the leading pack. Leaving the big Maesima to trail the rest.Sure those young Brits with that little Erin were racing ahead and even that purple sporty looking Zast thing was ahead too. Heck, even the big old Ardent had got the jump on them. Sam might have been growing concerned if he had been paying more attention.

But Mitch wasn’t worried he was cruising… besides they weren’t last at least as far as they knew. As long as they could keep the up with this pack a chance might open up to really let the big six fire up. Certainly not around here they were bound to be police crawling around and Mitch knew it was best to hoon responsibly.

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Clearly Strop never knew how to BRØM like a man!

I - guess that’s what comes with being a horse…

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This is very deliberate, use of umlaut causes Kai’s creator (who is Danish) physical pain :smiling_imp:

…but should I change it???

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TEAM OUTRIDERS

Blake: Smooth sailing ahead.

Marc: Hey Luigi, pass me up a bag of Doritos.

Luigi: No.

Marc: Why the hell not?

Luigi: Because you didn’t say the magic word.

Marc: (sigh) Could you please pass me up a bag of Doritos?

Luigi: Absolutely, proper etiquette is key don’t you think?

Marc: You want proper etiquette? How about you sit your five-dollar ass down before I come back there and make change!

Blake: Oh no he di’nt!

Luigi: I’ll remember that.

Blake: Where are we presently?

Marc: Heading “south” on US101. According to our compass we’re facing west.

Luigi: This whole state’s nuts. They can’t even point their roads in the correct direction.

Marc: Maybe they couldn’t afford your mob union buddies to make 'em right.

Luigi: At least we aren’t too chickenshit to be gangsters.

Marc: You’re kidding right? There were many Jewish gangsters.

Luigi: Hah, name one.

Marc: Shondor Birns.

Luigi: …

Blake: Let’s put on some music.

Luigi: Is it me or are some of those guys in the other cars really interested in this area?

Marc: Something to do with Twilight.

Luigi: What’s Twilight?

Blake: Some kind of drivel involving androgynous vampires and women falling in love with someone who will drink her blood.

Marc: I remember when the first movie came out.

Blake: How was it?

Marc: No idea, I was next door playing Pinball.

Luigi: I can’t remember the last time I saw a vampire movie.

Blake: I can, it had Peter Cushing in it.

Marc: That takes me back. Personally I favor those old chop socky movies.

Blake: Sonny Chiba?

Marc: Oh yeah, and you did not want to be in downtown Detroit when a Bruce Lee movie came out. Everybody thought they were a kung fu master after watching the movie.

Blake: Says the guy who’s been in a number of fights through his life.

Marc: True, but I never learned karate or any of that shit.

Luigi: So where did you learn to fight?

Marc: On the streets. That’s how those four skinheads ended up in jail and me with only two cracked ribs.

Blake: That sounds like dirty fighting to me.

Marc: Every single person who’s called me a dirty fighter has done so from the floor where I put him.

Luigi: Remind me not to piss you off for real.

Blake: Looks like a lake, anyone want to stop?

Marc: I’m good.

Luigi: Me too, you see one lake, you’ve seen em all.

(Arrival at Fort Worden State Park)

Marc: How are we doing on gas?

Blake: Better than I thought we would. If we stick with the highways I estimate we’ll get 350 miles out of this tank.

Marc: That’s pretty low.

Luigi: Well, the car’s sporting an engine that’s designed to haul boats and shit.

Marc: Yeah, but I figured the lighter weight of the car and the fact that we’re not hauling a trailer would compensate.

Luigi: It does, that’s why we average 15 mpg rather than 11.

Marc: Lovely.

Blake: Relax, they put 20 gallon tanks in these things, we’ll be fine.

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Team Teenage Hopes And Dreams
Friday 12-4:

So, 4 hours in, things are going well. The car is 100%, and the engine, despite it’s scrapyard heritage, is making the car go like the X-15.

Leon: “You’ve had your fun, now keep the car going. We’re not blowing this car up trying to catch a wagon. Remember, V8. You know how much I hate those things.”

Monty: “But we haven’t gone near any corners yet!”

Leon: “THINK OF THE FUEL ECONOMY!!!”

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Sorry i’m playing catch up here, been a busy week at work

Team ‘Green Turd Racing’

**

Day – 1:

Beth walks up as Lupus is tinkering under the hood of the Shaphe, which is held up by a sketchy looking stick

Beth: How are you dear lupus?

Lupus groans

Beth: Is that any way to greet your gran, get over here and give me a hug.

Lupus pokes his head out from under the bonnet to look at Beth, his face and entire front are covered in grease

Beth: Dear god boy, go and get yourself cleaned up or I’ll hose you down myself.

Lupus: Yes Gran, I was just finishing up here anyway.

Lupus closes the bonnet and heads to the bathroom for a shower, then meets Beth in the kitchen making a cup of tea

Beth: Much better dear, while you were in the shower I made your favorite, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, would you like a hot chocolate?

Lupus: oh, yes please gran, and thank you.

Lupus munches loudly on the sandwiches

Beth: so how is our little chariot running dear? Do you think it will make the long journey in one piece?

Lupus: sure thing gran, I’ve checked over everything people on the Shaphe forums told me to and it appears to be in good running order, despite being a terrible driver the previous owner clearly looked after this thing, it just needed some routine maintenance and fluids but it’s good to go now.

Beth: what are you not telling me?

Lupus: N-nothing gran, everything is just fine under the hood - he says nervously

Beth: You had better not be lying to me boy, if this car doesn’t make the trip I’m calling your parents and telling them you tricked me into this journey.

Lupus: But gran this thing hasn’t been tested on a long journey yet, anything could go wrong

Beth: I suppose you’re right dear, but you had still better not be lying to me, I was promised a good long road trip and I had better get one.

Lupus: Yes of course gran, I’ll do everything I can to keep that thing driving.

**

Day 0:

As they pull in to the camping ground with Beth at the wheel the shaphe gets a lot of puzzled looks and a few snickers from the other competitors

Lupus points to a spot on the outskirts of the team camps

Lupus: Lets park up over there and set up the tent.

Beth: looks like a good spot to me dear.

**

Day 1; Friday 12 – 2:

Lupus: wake up gran, we need to take a photo of the bridge coming up, and this thing takes forever to get back up to speed so there’s no way I’m stopping, we need to make that first ferry or we’ll be waiting forever.

Beth is still struggling to figure out how the camera works as Deception Pass Bridge comes into view

Lupus: jeez gran just take the wheel and give me the damn camera

Beth: how rude of you dear, pull over so I can work this darn thing

Lupus: no time for that gran

Lupus snatches the camera from her hands and lets go of the wheel, the car veers toward the opposite side of the road and Beth reaches across to straighten the car up

Beth: WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING BOY! YOU COULD HAVE GOT US KILLED!

Lupus snaps the picture and retakes control of the wheel

Lupus: IF YOU HAD TAKEN THE WHEEL WHEN I TOLD YOU TO IT WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN A PROBLEM

the rest of the leg is driven in utter silence save for the loud exhaust tone, they make the first ferry with time to spare

**

Day 1; Friday 2 – 4:

On the ferry ride over Lupus teaches Beth how to work the camera, so that she can take pictures of the points of interest along the rest of the journey.

They drive past Fort Warden State Park and Beth snaps the picture without incident as they drive past

Beth: since the journey takes us along 101 why don’t we stop off at Crescent Lake and you can go for a swim.

Lupus: but we’re doing good gran, I don’t want to lose our position by stopping.

Beth: nonsense dear, the other teams will have to take breaks too along the way, besides it’s a Friday afternoon, there might be girls your age there.

Lupus: You’re right gran, even with cushions on the seats this car is getting really uncomfortable, it would be nice to have a break, but we’d better make it a short one.

Beth: ok dear, I’ll let you know when it’s coming up.

6 Likes

Previous

Friday, 8:00am

The light turns on.
“Wake up Paul we have to move” Aaron says into the room, still in Coffee Zombie Mode
“10 more Minutes, Mutter…” Paul answers while covering his face with another pillow.
Without any words Aaron slowly moves next to the bed.
His eyes spott a water bottle which was placed on a nightstand , next to the bed.
Slowly he puts his warm coffee mug next to it and lifts the bottle up.
Quickly the cap gets removed and the content dumped on the Sleeper.
" AH GOD WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU"
" I am not caffeinated enough for this, get up , get dressed and met me at the car"

Friday, 8:46am

Slowly Paul moves to the car.
“I am here, what now bro. Have you already put all the stuff… WHAT IS THAT”
Aaron was wearing a bright yellow hazmat suit with a big gas mask which covered his mouth and nose.
“Mrgh mrrgh mrgh”
“The Mask Aaron”
Quickly the mask got pulled down.
“Ah right. So, if you are thinking i gonna sit in that piece of filth , you though wrong”
“So you wanna sit in the car and doing the whole journey in that outfit?”
“You would be correct, yes”
“Could you at least not wear the mask so you we can talk ?”
“Never”, Aaron responded while putting the mask back into place.
“So… Is everything ready ?”
“Mmmrgh mrgh mrrgh Mmmrgh.”
“God have mercy…”

Friday, 10:45am

Slowly the boat of a car moves into the parking lot.
Paul is the first to exit the car.
“Seems that we made it”
“Mmmrg Mrgh pff”
Aaron also joins his brother
“CAN YOU PUT THAT THING AWAY?! You are out the car Mister Bubble Boy”
" I said : Yes it seems like we did"
" Good. Do you know where the drivers meet ?"
" I seem like everybody is gathering over there at the tents. We should join them"
And so Aaron starts to move.
“Wait you wanna meet them in your suit ?”
“Pff like that would be the weirdest thing they have seen”
“Fair enough”

Friday, Noon - 2PM

While on the SR20 Aaron notices something.
“Mrgh mpff mrgh mpf ?”
“The mask”
Aaron shakes this head.
“Off with it or no talk”
With that Aaron lifts the mask a tiny bit
“Why are does signs saying ‘Ferry Port’ ?”
“Because we gonna go on one”
" You KNOW that i get seasink very easy."
" Its just a lake, you will be fiiiiinnneeee"

20 minutes later
“Just let it out Aaron”
The sick Copilot was pointing his face down the boat side.
“At least you get some real fresh air out here !”
Aaron’s head popped up
"Shut up you stupod Fu… "
But before he could finish , he went sick again.

Friday, 2PM - 4PM

“We should be there soon” Aaron said, now unmasked.
“See. If you talk with me we can go from place to place without problems”
“YOU THROWN THE MASK INTO THE SEA”
“An Accident”
“Throwing it with all your strength while asking other driver to guess how far it goes, does not sound like an ‘accident’.”
“Bah Bah Bah. Accidents happen. So should i turn here”
“Yes…”
With a big swing the yacht moves into the park.
“The Leader said we should take a photo of the car and the location”
“You got a Cam Aaron ?”
" NO ?"
“Smart Phone it is”

“How does it look ?” Aaron tries to look at the screen
“Not the best, not the worst”
“I think you shouldn’t have parked on the grass”
“Pfff as long as nothing gets damaged”
“Let’s get on with it then”
“Sounds good to me”
Both brother get in and the engine starts.
With a big roar the car back up , leaving big trails in the wildness
“So much to ‘As long as nothing gets damaged’ " Aaron says.
“It will regrow. So where now”
" Back to the highway first , then South”

5 Likes

Legend of Terms:

TBDC: Time Block Distance Covered. This is the amount of mileage covered during the current 2 hour period.
ODC: Overall Distance Covered. This is the total distance that the team has covered since Noon on Friday
MRL: Morale modifier
FTG: Fatigue Level
Notes: Any notes I have for your team during this time block. Including POI results, car issues, etc.

Friday, 4PM - 6PM

Weather Conditions: 64 degrees, partly cloudy.

All vehicles are on US101 South (most teams have actually hooked around to the south at this point).

Upcoming POI (optional, let me know if you want to stop at them for rest/sightseeing): Ruby Beach

Next Waypoint: Fort Stevens State Park, OR

VicVictory:
TBDC: 106 mi OD: 243 mi MRL: +1 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@yurimacs
TBDC: 104 mi OD: 241 mi MRL: +1 FTG: +4 Notes: None.

@Fayeding_Spray
TBDC: 111 mi OD: 249 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@Madrias
TBDC: 106 mi OD: 246 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: Braking is a minimal concern; this section of road has only a couple speed limit changes and not much traffic.

@BobLoblaw
TBDC: 107 mi OD: 245 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@CriticalSet9849
TBDC: 86 mi OD: 224 mi MRL: +4 FTG: +0 Notes: Stopped for 30 minutes at Crescent Lake for rest and scenery. Grandma really enjoyed this.

@BailsMackenzie
TBDC: 88 mi OD: 228 mi MRL: +4 FTG: -1 Notes: Stopped for 30 minutes at Crescent Lake for rest and scenery.

@Mikonp7
TBDC: 105 mi OD: 241 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@TheBobWiley
TBDC: 105 mi OD: 244 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@DeusExMackia
TBDC: 106 mi OD: 241 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: Dash lights have been occasionally flickering, particularly during braking.

@HighOctaneLove
TBDC: 105 mi OD: 241 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@strop
TBDC: 108 mi OD: 248 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@stm316
TBDC: 105 mi OD: 244 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@JohnWaldock / @Sillyducky
TBDC: 105 mi OD: 243 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@abg7
TBDC: 104 mi OD: 240 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@rileybanks
TBDC: 105 mi OD: 245 mi MRL: +1 FTG: +4 Notes: This car is pretty uncomfortable, and it’s not helping with road fatigue.

@koolkei / @FrankNSTein
TBDC: 110 mi OD: 211 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: Making up time slowly but surely.

@Rk38
TBDC: 104 mi OD: 241 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@Nomade0013 / @ramthecowy
TBDC: 107 mi OD: 243 mi MRL: +2 FTG: +3 Notes: None.

@SkylineFTW97
TBDC: 102 mi OD: 239 mi MRL: +1 FTG: +3 Notes: Having difficulty adjusting to the clutch.

The following cars are within visual range or in a pack:

241 miles: Zast, Erin, HMC, Maesima
243 miles: Ardent, LPV, Gamma

Team Greasy Lightning

Team/Car info

Team Greasy Lightning took a quick pit stop in Port Angeles to go to the bathroom and change drivers. Jen is now driving, Rick is in the back seat, and Fuzz is shotgun.

Rick glanced out the passenger window. Beyond a short outcropping of rocks lay an azure, almost glassy lake.

“Lake Crescent. Beautiful. I’d love to take a dip in that,” he said.

“You’re going to have to pick somewhere else. We’re not stopping,” Fuzz added as he dug at his phone’s screen furiously with his index finger. “Speaking of picking things… yup, OK. I’ve got this thing figured out now.”

“What?” Jen asked.

“This.”

With a firm tap on his screen, the music spilling forth from the bluetooth speaker changed.

Fuzz’s experiment

Jen nearly swerved into the oncoming lane, eliciting a long honk from an oncoming driver. “You dick. Why is that even in your collection?”

Fuzz just giggled.

“No, seriously? What’s wrong with you?” she growled.

“Chill out,” Fuzz shot back. “Just figured out how to get this thing to play YouTube. It’s not actually on my list.”

“Then change it, snot-breath!”

“Sheesh. Testy, much? Alright. I’ll change it back to my playlist.”

Bush - The Sound of Winter

Both Jen and Rick sighed in relief. Jen because her nerves were no longer on edge, and Rick because he wasn’t going to have to explain why his wife murdered her own brother.

“We just keep going this way?” Jen asked.

“Yup. Fort Stevens is a long way away.”

8 Likes