One Last Hurrah [FINAL RESULTS]

Community Challenges & Competitions
163

Team Redneck day 2 5:00

Jake and Otis wake up without the need for an alarm clock.

Jake, “We have an update”

Otis, “Oh?”

Jake, “No highways through Sault Saint Marie State Forest, back roads only”

Otis, “Really, that’s interesting”

Jake, “Let me look it up on maps and see what roads are available” He pauses while munching on a bagel to look up the roads, “From Highway 75 get off at 80 to s Mackinac Trail, to Rudyard, then Trout Lake rd all the way to Caffey Corner then Hiawatha Trail to Engadine, north on 117 to highway 28 then on to Itasca State Park” eats some more while he checks how long it will take, “Eight and a half hours under normal conditions, so probably nightfall by the time we get there.”

A little before 6am they pull the tarp off of the cab, Jake folds up the tarp, while Otis fires up the engine. They let the engine warm up while they clear the rest of the snow off of the hood, in which a small snow ball fight between the two begin and anyone else who wants to join in, @Jaimz

5 Likes
164

Spanners wakes Gran and Mopy up at 5:30.

Spanners: I’m making up some of the ration packs. Hot all day breakfast apparently. I’ll eat mine while I’m defrosting the car.

Spanners heads for a shower

Mopey: Jeeezuz…have you seen the snow?

Gran: Oh dear. Maybe we should wait a bit. These rations don’t taste that bad after all…and at least it’s hot.

Spanners come out of the bathroom dressed an heads outside

Spanners waves at Jake and Otis: Grim morning!

Spanners goes about his business. Clear the bonnet of snow, open it and remove the blankets. Tests hoses for any that are frozen. Checks washer bottle and washer pipes are not frozen. Finally start the car and clear the snow from on and around the car, checking the condition of the tyres and chains. A snowball clips Spanners’ hat…

Spanners: Oy! Careful!

He then decides “sod it”, grabs a handful of snow and launches it at Jake. Mopey appears at the door, after hearing shouting, and thinks “sod this” and closes the door again.

Gran: What’s all that noise?

Mopey: Spanners’ in another fight!

Gran: Oh dear…not again.

After the snowball fight Spanners will talk to Otis and Jake about cars, fixing cars and keeping pieces of crap on the road for 3000 miles. He’ll ask about travelling together for safety. There is also an offer of hot “All Day Breakfast” packs. @Zabhawkin, your choice.

Gran and Mopey come outside when it’s time to go and look relieved at the lack of bruises and blood.

5 Likes
165

Team Mountain Pass

Team Bio
Day 1, 6PM to 8PM

Day Two, 5AM, Boathouse Country Inn

I woke up to the alarm at 5AM. This really annoyed me since I’d asked Andrew to set the alarm for 7AM…

P: “What the hell! ‘slaps the alarm clock until it shuts up’ Andrew!!! I said SEVEN, not five!!!”

A: “Well, I wanted to make up for lost time… You’re such a slacker when it comes to early rising”

P: “Look outside, what do you see?”

A: “Uhhh… Snow. Falling snow and more snow; some of which is falling”

P: " There’s no way we’re going out in that! The locals wouldn’t drive in that, so what makes you think we stand any chance?"

A: “Hmmm, you make a good point there. I’ll reset the alarm for seven, no sense getting up when the kitchen’s probably not open yet…”

P: “Good choice. Now shut-up and let me sleep!”

And with that I promptly rolled over and went back to sleep. :sleeping:

Distance covered: 0 miles
Overall distance: 365 miles
Fuel state: Tank is full, kinda
Overall fuel used: One tank plus a little bit
Morale: +3 (+7) Safe and sound indoors!
Fatigue: -12 (-2) So comfy in these nice warm beds…

5 Likes
166

Legend of Terms:

POI NOTE: Blah blah blah you know the drill by now.

BD: Block Distance. This is the amount of mileage covered during the current 2 hour period.
OD: Overall Distance. This is the total distance that the team has covered since the event started.
AT: Ambient Temperature
FS: Fuel Status. Approximate fuel reading. May also include other fuel related concerns.
MRL: Morale modifier
FTG: Fatigue Level
Last Town: Last town of note that was passed (will not include tiny villages)
Next Waypoint: Should be self explanatory.
Notes: Any notes I have for your team during this time block. Including POI results, car issues, etc.

Friday, 6AM - 8AM

VicVictory:
BD: 38 mi OD: 541 mi AT: 26 F FS: Full MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has refuled in Oshawa, ON. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@Madrias
BD: 71 mi OD: 491 mi AT: 26 F FS: 1/3 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Cobourg, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team delays departure until 6:30 am. They have spent much of this time period following a snowplow. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@Mr.Computah
BD: 32 mi OD: 452 mi AT: 26 F FS: 3/4 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Colborne, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has procured and installed a set of chains. Speed currently limited due to chains. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@Jaimz
BD: 41 mi OD: 507 mi AT: 26 F FS: 1/4 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Oshawa, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has spent some time behind a sanding truck. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@Awildgermanappears
BD: 0 mi OD: 368 mi AT: 26 F FS: Full MRL: +0 FTG: -11 Last Town: Kingston, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team is asleep at the Residence Inn by Marriott in Kingston. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@BobLoblaw
BD: 53 mi OD: 556 mi AT: 26 F FS: 1/4 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team wakes up at 6am and is available to hit the road at 7am. WEATHER CONDITION: Light now.

@Zabhawkin
BD: 63 mi OD: 529 mi AT: 26 F FS: Full MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Oshawa, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has refueled on Cobourg, ON. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@HighOctaneLove
BD: 0 mi OD: 386 mi AT: 26 F FS: Full MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Kingston, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has delayed departure. They are still at the hotel. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@Fayeding_Spray
BD: 0 mi OD: 420 mi AT: 26 F FS: LOW MRL: -1 FTG: +1 Last Town: Belleville, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: This vehicle is poorly suited to the conditions. Vehicle will not start. Troubleshooting in progress. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow

@DoctorNarfy
BD: 74 mi OD: 539 mi AT: 26 F FS: 1/4 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team wakes up at 5 am and is available to hit the road at 6am. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@FindRED19
BD: 0 mi OD: 503 mi AT: 26 F FS: 2/3 MRL: +1 FTG: -4 Last Town: Oshawa, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team awakens at 7 am and will hit the road at 8 am. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@stm316
BD: 0 mi OD: 465 mi AT: 25 F FS: 2/3 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Cobourg, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury ON)
Notes: Car is poorly suited to the conditions. Team has opted to delay start temporarily. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@Mythrin
BD: 0 mi OD: 433 mi AT: 25 F FS: 2/3 MRL: +1 FTG: +0 Last Town: Cobourg, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team awakens at 730am and will be ready to hit the road at 830am. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@abg7
BD: 31 mi OD: 399 mi AT: 26 F FS: 3/4 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Kingston, ON Next Waypoint: Dyamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has acquired and installed chains. Speed currently limited by chains. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@Nicholander
BD: 70 mi OD: 573 mi AT: 26 F FS: 1/4 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has spent some time behind snow plows, and time leapfrogging them as well. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@LordLetto
BD: 0 mi OD: 368 mi AT: 26 F FS: FULL MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Kingston, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team is awake but unable to move due to pending mechanical work. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

@cpufreak101
BD: 38 mi OD: 503 mi AT: 25 F FS: 1/2 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Cobourg, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: None. WEATHER CONDITION: Light snow.

Vehicles that are traveling in packs:

Note: vehicles within ~5 miles of each other are within CB range.

Team Moss Boss

Hank is driving, and Kyle is on his phone, trying not to distract the driver.

7 Likes
167

V6 Vandals - Day 2 12-6a - “The Plan”

At 6:30, Luke led the team into the parking lot, where Jake and Cody quickly climbed into the torture chamber back seat and got belted in, before Amy and Luke got in, setting the seats back into their original position.

“It’s cramped back here.” Cody grumbled. “Why’d we have to get a car with no back seat room?”

“Could’ve let me had my Myriad. That had four doors and four seats.” Luke swiftly countered, before dropping the Truckling in first and working to get out of the parking lot. In the barely-cleared snow, there was quite a lot of wheel spin, and Luke found a lot more luck in trying to crawl out of the parking lot in third, eventually making it to the road.

“If we had the rear engined car, we couldn’t have gotten out of there.” Jake said.

“Nonsense. Tire chains, or a delayed start.” Luke responded, before saying, “Plus, all the weight’s on the driven wheels. Would’ve done much the same as this.”

“Didn’t it look like they were having problems getting the OSHL started?” Amy asked. “Shouldn’t we have offered to help?”

“If I’d known they were having problems, I’d have helped, but unfortunately, I was playing ‘200 questions’ inside with you guys trying to learn more about the teams.” Luke said. “Instead, we left at 6:30 on the dot because my alarm went off.”

“Ah, fair enough.” Amy replied, before turning the radio on.

A quiet fuzz of static drowned out most of it, but as it faded in, they got a tail end of the weather report. “… Minus Three degrees Celsius, and the snow is here to stay for a while. That’s the end of our weather report.”

“Nice to know.” Amy said, before plunking the cassette adapter into the radio. “Any thoughts on some music? Otherwise, we’re starting with Luke’s playlist, and he’s heavy on the classical music, so I’d advise trying to…”

Jake reached up and grabbed the cable, then said, “I’ve got a playlist, but feel free to change it as needed.”

After they had some rock-and-roll playing, Luke managed to settle into a spot behind a snow-plow, the little Truckling following the big truck in a comical train of vehicles. The V6 growled quietly as Luke tried to keep out of the engine’s torque band so that they didn’t just have twelve-tons of wheel-spin.

For the next hour and a half, they followed the snowplow, the Truckling cruising beautifully in the cold, crisp air. “Down to about a third of a tank. We’ll have to gas up soon.” Luke said, though kept cruising along.

“But then we’ll lose our plow.” Jake said.

“We’ll lose it either way if we run out of gas or if we stop for gas. I’d rather not mess with emergency cans in this shit.” Amy said. “We’ll stop for gas soon enough.”

Cody, meanwhile, was busy playing a game on his phone, otherwise ignoring the current situation.

Morale: +5 (NC)
Fatigue: 0 (NC)
Waypoints: 3
Fuel: 1/3
Fuel Stops: 1

4 Likes
168

Team Mountain Pass

Team Bio
Day 1, 8PM to Day 2, 6AM

Day Two, 7AM, Boathouse Country Inn

The alarm blared it’s incessant jarring screech at exactly 7:00AM; I know this because I saw it on the little LED screen. Andrew jumped out of bed to hit the showers early and I looked up the weather by looking outside. The snow was falling only sporadically so I figured we might as well head off since we weren’t getting any closer to the finish line dawdling about here…

After morning preparations were completed, Andrew and I had a leisurely breakfast of hotcakes with maple syrup and butter, bacon, eggs and some hot buttered toast. This was washed down with plenty of strong coffee. Andrew then went out and prepared the Bogliq for departure; defrosted the windows, unstuck the wipers and loaded up our luggage. I made a final sweep of our room then paid the bill for the night, thanked the concierge for the excellent services rendered and joined Andrew in the parking lot…

A: ‘hands over the keys’ “Now I’m hoping you know how to drive in snow cuz I have no idea what we’re in for!”

P: “I’m thinking, go easy on the throttle, smooth steering inputs and don’t brake… Or something like that”

A: “At least it’s lightly snowing. If we’d left earlier visibility would have been terrible!”

P: “Yep, so now we have a chance of being rescued if I bin us into a snowbank, two hours earlier it was almost non-existent!”

A: “Agreed; now let’s get going so we can turn the heater on! I’m freezing!!!”

We jumped into the bright blue Bogliq, fired her up and carefully made our way out of the carpark and onto the road heading south… Wish us luck!!!

TO BE CONTINUED

Distance covered: 0 miles
Overall distance: 365 miles
Fuel state: Tank is full, kinda
Overall fuel used: One tank plus a little bit
Morale: +0 (+7) Just leaving our sanctuary so nothing to see here…
Fatigue: +0 (-2) Delicious breakfast and two hour sleep in are keeping us keen and mean!

3 Likes
169

Team Thunder Taxi, Part 5

Kingston, Ontario

Shortly after waking up, Jack rallied his teammates and instructed them to find traction devices. “It’s the only way to solve our traction issues”, he told Bob, who soon dashed out of the hotel room.

Bob found a set of snow chains and promptly put them on all four tires. “This should help!” he exulted as he got in the car.

“We’ve got some catching up to do!” Chris told his friends as the Thunder Taxi roared back into life.

Vince suggested a more conservative strategy in light of the challenging conditions: “Take it easy, Jack. The snow is making things trickier for us.”

Soon the Thunder Taxi was back on the road, quickly accelerating into the distance. Barring any unforeseen incidents, they would reach Toronto within the next few hours, and continue on to Sudbury soon after. But there was still a lot of ground to cover, especially on the other side of the border, and anything could happen on the long drive south.

3 Likes
170

Team Marx

Marx: How’s the drive?

Lenin: you think a lil snow will stop me?

Marx: no, I don’t.

Lenin: good, cause it won’t. this is nothing like Siberia.

Marx: That’s reassuring.

4 Likes
171

TEAM OUTRIDERS

The team wakes up at 06:00, two men take showers while the other two eat breakfast, then they switch. By 07:00 they are packed up and ready to go. Blake is behind the wheel for this morning start.)

Blake: All set?

Marc: Yup.

Zach: Yup.

Luigi: Not yet. We’ve got this bitchin’ stereo system, I say we put it to use.

Blake: Hell yeah!

Marc: Hold on, I know where you’re going with this, I have only one condition.

Luigi: What’s that?

Marc: Play that shit loud!

Luigi: Yeah!

(Blake turns the key, the big block roars to life. Luigi plugs in an MP3 player and switches it to the song everyone… well everyone but maybe Zach has on their mind.)

Blake: Let’s hit the bricks! YEE HAW!!!

(The Enforcer takes off with a flurry of (intentional) wheelspin. After throwing the car into a couple sliding figure 8s Blake turns the car onto the road and they take off in a roar of thunder!)

Zach: Jesus Dad, are you crazy?

Blake: Oh come on, where’s your sense of adventure?

Zach: Back at the hotel, but don’t worry, my mortality took its place.

Blake: You’re much too tense, you gotta learn to live a little.

Zach: Dying in a wreck isn’t what I’d call living.

Marc: Don’t tell me you’ve never had fun in the snow. Throwing the car into skids and practicing getting out of them.

Zach: My first car was a Petoskey Legion, not exactly known for taking honors at the drag strip.

Luigi: Those were pretty solid though.

Blake: Vast amounts of metal between your child and the tree he will inevitably hit.

Zach: I never hit a tree.

Blake: Thank God no, but if you had then at least you’d be walking away from it.

Luigi: Anyone know what the weather forecast is?

Marc: Light snow, and it looks like it may pick up later in the day. Expect snow all day, slippery roads, and an Italian homo in the front seat.

(Luigi turns around to give Marc the finger)

Luigi: sigh I’ve been in this country too long.

Marc: That’s what we’ve all been saying for over twenty years!

Luigi: Blow me! How’re we doing on gas?

Blake: We’ve got a quarter tank.

Luigi: Hey, maybe our esteemed Police chief will take a crowbar to his wallet for once and buy the next tank.

Marc: I understand, since you blew all your savings on midget hookers.

4 Likes
172

@Jaimz I didn’t read your post until it was too late, so I am rolling with what is there.

Team Redneck Day 2 6-8:00am

After the snowball fight they have a brief discussion about old cars, up until the truck got warm enough to start melting the ice and snow on the hood.

Otis, “We need to get going, we tend to be early risers if you haven’t noticed”

Otis heads for the drivers side, Jake for the passenger side, as they pass the front wheels each one bends over to lock the hubs. Otis eases out of the parking space and heads toward the road where he pops the clutch and does a 4 wheel drift across most of the road. Once straightened out Jake pulls the chord to let out a blast from the train horns mounted under the hood. They pull in for gas before heading onto the freeway making slow but steady progress.

5 Likes
173

Legend of Terms:

POI NOTE: Blah blah blah you know the drill by now.

BD: Block Distance. This is the amount of mileage covered during the current 2 hour period.
OD: Overall Distance. This is the total distance that the team has covered since the event started.
AT: Ambient Temperature
FS: Fuel Status. Approximate fuel reading. May also include other fuel related concerns.
MRL: Morale modifier
FTG: Fatigue Level
Last Town: Last town of note that was passed (will not include tiny villages)
Next Waypoint: Should be self explanatory.
Notes: Any notes I have for your team during this time block. Including POI results, car issues, etc.

Friday, 8AM - 10AM

VicVictory:
BD: 51 mi OD: 592 mi AT: 28 F FS: Full MRL: +1 FTG: +2 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Morale note: Car is handling well in the snow. Speed currently limited due to weather conditions. WEATHER CONDITION: Heavy snow.

@Madrias
BD: 50 mi OD: 541 mi AT: 27 F FS: Refuel in progress MRL: +1 FTG: +2 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team stops to refuel in Toronto at exactly 10am. Morale note: Car is handling well in the snow. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

@Mr.Computah
BD: 51 mi OD: 503 mi AT: 27 F FS: 1/2 MRL: +1 FTG: +2 Last Town: Oshawa, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Speed currently limited due to chains. Morale note: Car handling well in the snow. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

@Jaimz
BD: 53 mi OD: 560 mi AT: 27 F FS: Full MRL: +1 FTG: +2 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has refueled in Toronto. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow, heavy at the end.

@Awildgermanappears
BD: 0 mi OD: 368 mi AT: 27 F FS: Full MRL: +1 FTG: -5 Last Town: Kingston, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team iwakes up at 9 am and is ready at 10am. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

@BobLoblaw
BD: 43 mi OD: 599 mi AT: 28 F FS: LOW MRL: -2 FTG: +4 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Driver loses control and gets vehicle stuck on a barrier. Tow truck en route. WEATHER CONDITION: Heavy snow.

@Zabhawkin
BD: 51 mi OD: 580 mi AT: 28 F FS: 2/3 MRL: +0 FTG: +3 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Retaining control is difficult. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow, heavy at the end. Team is starting to feel slightly fatigued.

@HighOctaneLove
BD: 78 mi OD: 446 mi AT: 27 F FS: 2/3 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Kingston, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team departs at 8 am. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow, light at the beginning.

@Fayeding_Spray
BD: 45 mi OD: 465 mi AT: 27 F FS: Full MRL: +0 FTG: +2 Last Town: Cobourg, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: This vehicle is poorly suited to the conditions. Issue has been isolated to a choke that is stuck closed. Team was able to eventually fire up and get the car on the road. Team has refueleld in Belleville. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow, light at the beginning.

@DoctorNarfy
BD: 52 mi OD: 591 mi AT: 28 F FS: LOW MRL: +1 FTG: +2 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Morale note: Car is handling the weather well. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow, heavy at the end.

@FindRED19
BD: 45 mi OD: 548 mi AT: 27 F FS: 2/3 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has refueled in Oshawa. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

@stm316
BD: 37 mi OD: 502 mi AT: 27 F FS: 1/2 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Oshawa, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury ON)
Notes: Car is poorly suited to the conditions. Team has delayed start until 9am. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

@Mythrin
BD: 67 mi OD: 523 mi AT: 27 F FS: 1/3 MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Oshawa, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: None. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

@abg7
BD: 60 mi OD: 459 mi AT: 27 F FS: 1/2 MRL: +0 FTG: +2 Last Town: Kingston, ON Next Waypoint: Dyamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Speed currently limited by chains. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

@Nicholander

Nicholander
Nicholander962×528 102 KB

BD: 31 mi OD: 604 mi AT: 28 F FS: LOW MRL: -5 FTG: +3 Last Town: Toronto, ON
WEATHER CONDITION: Heavy snow.
CRITICAL FAILURE: Despite slowing down, driver lost control and went nose-first into a barrier. Car is undrivable, but occupants are uninjured.

@LordLetto
BD: 0 mi OD: 368 mi AT: 26 F FS: FULL MRL: +0 FTG: +0 Last Town: Kingston, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team is available to hit the road at 10 am. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

@cpufreak101
BD: 38 mi OD: 541 mi AT: 27 F FS: 2/3 MRL: +2 FTG: +2 Last Town: Toronto, ON Next Waypoint: Dynamic Earth (Sudbury, ON)
Notes: Team has stopped for optional POI: Saint Peter’s Catholic Church in Toronto. WEATHER CONDITION: Snow.

Vehicles that are traveling in packs:

Note: vehicles within ~5 miles of each other are within CB range.

Team Moss Boss

“Man, it’s really coming down,” Kyle noted.

Hank nodded silently.

“Still doing OK? Do you need me to take over?”

“I’m fine. We’ll switch in a bit.”

“OK. Well, if it gets to be too much, just pull over. Don’t push it.”

“10-4.”

5 Likes
174

Team Thunder Taxi, Part 6

En route to Sudbury, Ontario

Jack had eased off on the accelerator to cope with the conditions better. Meanwhile, Chris was busy pointing out hazards along the route. All was going well so far…

“So, we’re at least a hundred miles behind the leaders, but it’s early days. Hopefully we’ll catch up to them”, Bob told his teammates.

Jack nodded silently, acknowledging Bob’s status update. Meanwhile, Vince had been writing in his logbook about this epic road trip, detailing the team’s exploits. He wondered whether or not any of the racers ahead of him had crashed out in these demanding conditions, only for Chris to answer that question for him.

“We’ve just got word that a yellow compact has gone off the road near Toronto. The car’s wrecked, but the occupants are unharmed.” He could not believe his luck. The Thunder Taxi could gaine one place without overtaking any active competitors as a result of the crash. Considering that it could move even further up the order after the kooky Scandalnavians blew their engine on the previous day, he took this as a good sign; so far, no major mechanical issues had manifested themselves. Even so, the Thunder Taxi was still a long way from the border, and its crew told each other to expect the unexpected.

3 Likes
175

V6 Vandals - Day 2 6-8a - “On The Road Again”

“Wow, it’s really starting to chuck it down out here.” Cody said, watching the snow falling around the Truckling, occasionally glancing at the unusual triple-windshield-wiper arrangement scooping snow off of the windshield and flinging it onto the road.

“Handles beautifully in it, though. Still responsive, no understeer or oversteer tendancies, just have to mind my braking distance, and the other traffic.” Luke replied, looking around as they cruised along.

“It’s slow-going, but better to be going slow than sitting around for hours waiting for it to get better.” Jake said, giving a light smile.

“And to think the Rednecks gave us shit for it being front-wheel-drive.” Amy said, chuckling about the situation.

“Well, in all fairness, they do have a proper four-wheel-drive, with the transfer case and everything. They probably have an easier job of driving in this than we do.” Luke responded.

Around 10:00 AM, however, the little Ishu Truckling announced a formal protest to the long drive with a violent shudder as they cruised into Toronto.

“What the hell was that?” Jake grumbled, as Cody yelled, “OW! I just hit my head on the fucking window! Don’t drive through potholes, you prick.”

“Oh. We’re out of gas.” Luke said, coasting into the gas station. With the fuel door opened, Luke stepped out and plunked the nozzle into the fuel filler, selected Premium, and squeezed the handle. Amy got out and wandered into the gas station to buy some snacks, while Jake and Cody looked around to see if they could spot any of their competition.

“Hey, look over there, isn’t that thing the ‘Commie-taisia’ or whatever it’s called?” Cody asked, pointing to the church parking lot.

“Yeah, I think that is a Communitasia. They’re not exactly common cars, so that’s gotta be those jokers cosplaying as Marx and Lenin. I’m just hoping they don’t get themselves shot over a bad joke like that.” Jake said, chuckling.

“Maybe they’re praying to God that they don’t get shot in the US when we have to drive through there.” Cody said.

“Or they could be praying for more snow. Those things could drive through Siberia in winter if they had to.” Luke said, adding a further point to their little discussion.

“That is true. But we’re not doing too bad in this.” Jake responded.

“It gets much worse, I’ll be wanting chains, and I’ve only ever had to chain up in Alaska. This weather makes me wish I had signed out the Storm Surge company car as a write-off at $500. Three cylinders, hybrid, about 50+ MPG and all-wheel-drive with geared differentials. Wouldn’t have been fast, but… I’d have just left at 6 AM and not 30-minutes-after.” Luke said.

“Finding chains would take too much time.” Cody said.

“True, which is why I’m hoping that our cheap eco tires can still grab onto this snow when it starts coming down heavier.”

Morale: +6 (+1) - Feeling lightly confident as their truck handles well in the snow.
Fatigue: +2 (+2) - You try sitting in the cab of a micro truck for two hours and see how you like it.
Waypoints: 3
Fuel: Filling
Fuel Stops: 2

5 Likes
176

Team Mountain Pass

Team Bio
Day 2, 6AM - 8AM

Day Two, 8AM to 10AM

We left the Boathouse right on 8AM and hit the road. The roads were slippery and vision wasn’t great (due to the snowfall getting heavier) but we made good progress. This was especially surprising since our Bogliq was RWD and we only had winter tyres installed. I had done some snow familiarisation driving before so I was light on the throttle, deft on the steering and absent on the brakes. This resulted in us making good on our earlier procrastination with almost eighty miles achieved, despite the snow doing its best to try to kill us!

With no plans to stop for lunch (we had supplies, don’t fret) the two hours blurred into a sequence of careful driving, warm HVAC air keeping us tolerably warm and Andrew alternating between looking outside and fiddling with the radio. Thankfully he was unable to locate a country music channel but I knew this wouldn’t last when we reached the good ole USA!

TO BE CONTINUED

Distance covered: 78 miles
Overall distance: 443 miles
Fuel state: 2/3rds full
Overall fuel used: 1 and 1/3rd of a tank
Morale: +0 (+7) No scares or near misses to bring us down!
Fatigue: +0 (-2) Warm heater keeps us from feeling the worst of the weather.

5 Likes
177

Team Mushroom Cloud

Day 1, 8:00pm- (closer to) 10:00pm
Having left Kingston behind something just shy of 2 hours ago, Bill had been spending time alternating between navigation and checking his emails, when he looked at his watch and noticed the time.
Bill: It’s getting late, Aunt Toni. Don’t you think we should find somewhere to call it a night? And I’m hungry. It’s must be really cold outside, are we going to drive all night? What if we have an accident?
Wookiee (he had been dozing on and off): Shut it. She knows what she’s doing. What’s with the complaining? You sound like a little kid.
Toni opened her eyes: Huh, what? OH! Ah! yes… umm. Put some music on. Then find somewhere, I think we all need some shut-eye.
Bill looked for a place on the far side of town, to get that little more distance covered (because it really makes that much difference). They JUST made it to Wendy’s before closing time, then hit the hay at their chosen location… a place called the King George.

10:00pm-6:00AM
I won’t go into details about what happened in Toni’s room, but Bill was glad he wasn’t sharing.

Day 2
6:00AM-8:00AM
Bill met Toni and Wookiee for breakfast, and they agreed that the time bomb might fare better if the snow was given time to slow and settle. Plus a little more of a lie in couldn’t hurt. Turned out the snow didn’t feel like slowing or settling, so they may just have gotten themselves into some trouble. Bill took the time to check race details, and was quite pleased (he’s a bit of a prick sometimes) when he found out that 2 competitors had fallen by the wayside.
8:00AM-10:00AM
By 9, they’d started the car (with a degree of difficulty, and it idled like a pig).and prepared to return to the adventure of ice skating… I mean… driving in snow.
Toni: (to the car) It’s either me or you. One of us is going to kill the other. Keep this shit up, and I’ll make my move first.
She turned to the boys, who were debating who had created the yellowest snow beside the building.
Toni: Really? :roll_eyes: GET IN! Bill, you drive.
Bill: I’ve never driven in snow before!
Wookiee: Guess that changes now, bro.
Bill pushed Wookiee just that touch too hard, he tripped and fell.
Wookiee: They were my only pair of gloves!

5 Likes
178

Team Shitbox Brothers

Night 1 - Bold move

(You know the drill with the accents)

Ana shifted into third gear. The chains rattled as they helped the wheels gain traction.

Ana: “Told ya, would be a good idea to use these chains. They might be holding us back, but…at least we’re certain we’re gonna make it.”

Alejandro: “Well, we have a lot of catching up to do. The guys on the truckling are way ahead of us.”

Ana: “We’ll catch 'em. Nothing better than a friendly race.”

Alejandro’s phone vibrated, emitting a notification tone. Alejandro unblocked it, reading what he had just received.

Alejandro: “Aaaand another one bites the dust.”

Ana: “Who and what happened?”

Alejandro: “Lads in the yellow coupe. They lost control and plowed into a barrier.”

Ana: “Lads in the yellow car? Can’t remember them. Anyways, we have a long way to go. What will we do in the detour?”

Alejandro: “Play it safe. I’d rather finish the race and lose than risk it and not finish the race due to a breakdown. And we have plenty of kilometres to go and catch up anyways.”

Ana: “Gotcha. Remind me to stop whenever we get out of the snow to remove the chains. Also Ana sips her energy drink remind me to buy more energy drinks on our way.”

Alejandro: “Sure thing.”

The two brothers kept driving southbound, with a lot of catching up to do still, to the sound of Orchid by Dizkodeath, remixed by Christine.

5 Likes
179

Gran: David, this snow’s getting worse. Do you think we should stop?

Spanners: Not yet, we’re still making progress. Granted we aren’t going as quickly as normal but at this speed, using the snow chains, we aren’t likely to have an accident.

Mopey: Seems like I made a good decision with this car.

Spanners & Gran: SHHHHHH!!! Don’t jinx us with fate! (Fate being the trip organiser!!!)

Mopey: OK, no need to snap at me! My internet keeps cutting out….there was mention of another competitor out on the Twitter feed….face first into a barrier!

Spanners: People or car?

Mopey: Huh?

Spanners: Sigh Was it the car or the occupants that went face first?

Mopey: Oh, the car. Occupants OK but a bit disappointed.

Gran: Next stop is Dynamic Earth…apparently it’s a science museum. We can stop there, have a look and something fresh to eat.

Mopey: Yeah, they have a giant nickel there. It’s a replica of the 1951 Canadian coin. It was completed in 1964 and the whole thing is about 30ft tall.

Spanners: Wow mate! Who knew you’d be so knowledgeable about Canadian things.

Mopey: I’m not….Wiki is my second best internet friend!

Spanners: Who’s your best internet friend? Buxom Beatrice?

Mopey: NO! Google…….Spanners, you’re weird!

Spanners: Comes with age Georgie boy. You’ll get there eventually. Either that or you’ll go blind!

Gran: Now now boys. Let’s not get snipey. We need to concentrate.

@abg7 - You haven’t passed the stricken car yet…they are still officially leading at the end of this timeframe.

5 Likes
180

TEAM OUTRIDERS

Zach: It’s coming down hard now.

Luigi: Yeah, you might want to take it easy.

Blake: Don’t worry, we’ll be fine.

Marc: I’m with those two, we should slow down a bit.

Blake: Okay, okay, I’ll ease up a bit.

Luigi: We should try to find a plow truck and follow behind him.

Blake: More than that, we’ll need to stop for gas soon. She’s really getting low.

Zach: It’s hard to see out there.

Blake: Yeah, this call for… Oh shit! Shit! SHIT! Hang on! (sound of brake pedal pulsating as ABS kicks in)

(WHAM!)

Luigi: Ow!

Blake: Everyone alright?

Luigi: I’ve felt better.

Zach: I’m okay.

Marc: Fine.

(Blake puts the car into reverse and attempts to back off the barrier, unfortunately the car refuses to move.)

Blake: Shit! Let’s see how bad we’re stuck.

Marc: Oh you dumb fuck!

Luigi: How the hell did we get it on the barrier itself?

Blake: Deflected by the push bar I imagine. (looks underneath) Doesn’t look like anything was damaged.

Luigi: No, but getting it off won’t be easy.

Blake: Marc, go put some flares down. The last thing we need is for someone to drift right into us because they couldn’t see. Zach, Luigi, help me with these shingles.

(Marc lights up some road flares to alert other drivers to their presence. Blake, Zach, and Luigi place a number of roofing shingles on the ground under the rear tires, Blake climbs in the drivers seat.)

Blake: Here goes.

(The Enforcer lurches back slightly, but the shingles are thrown forward by the spinning tires.)

Marc: Doesn’t look like enough weight on the ass end.

Luigi: It’s that barrier, it’s propping the car up and supporting most of its weight.

Zach: Then it looks like we’re calling a tow truck.

Blake: Yeah.

Marc: Let’s get a tent set up so we can at least be out of the elements.

Zach: Can’t we just sit in the car?

Marc: We lucked out as far as injuries go, no guarantee that someone won’t plow into us while we’re waiting for a tow truck. Blake, push in the cigarette lighter. Luigi, do we have an empty coffee can in the car?

Luigi: Not empty, I’ve got it full of kindling.

Marc: Empty it out, get some blankets.

(The team is now waiting inside a tent for the tow truck. Using the dashboard lighter inside of a coffee can, they have a viable source of heat while the tent keeps them sheltered from the wind)

4 Likes
181

Team Marx

WARNING: GOOGLE TRANSLATE AHEAD

Lenin:snow’s picking up. not that it’s a problem.

Marx: well, at least we got to a church finally.

Lenin: yeah, we need to have a word with God.

Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin then proceed to enter the church

Lenin: angry look on face Who’s here.

Pastor: comes out to greet them Ah why hello you gu- freezes up when he realizes it’s Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin in his church I-I thought you guys condemned religion…

Marx: lets just say some complicated stuff came up, and we have a personal fight with God now.

Pastor: H-how so?

Lenin: just sit back and watch. clears throat YO GOD YOU BETTER RESPOND RIGHT F**KING NOW!

GOD: A bit harsh man, you don’t have to say that

Pastor: Eyes light up, he falls to pray but ends up collapsing out of shear excitement

Lenin: It doesn’t matter. we have come to talk to you on your own turf. Tell us, why do you keep bringing us here?

GOD: Does the answer really matter that much?

Marx: F*ck yeah it does

GOD: How so?

Lenin: We had our own lives in the past. I have a country to run, revolts to stop, Wealth to distribute, and Marx has his own book to write.

GOD: Who’s to say you should have done that?

Lenin: if the pastors reaction had anything to do with it, we influence history in a big way.

GOD: Not the right way.

Lenin: It doesn’t matter. We do what we do, and you’re getting in the way of it. My country needs me, and Karl needs to finish writing his book.

GOD: So what? this is for the betterment of my people.

Lenin: If that’s how you feel, answer us one question. Why are you making us go through this? you could have just killed us, but instead you force us to do races. Answer the question.

GOD: It’s a trial.

Marx: A trial of F*cking what?

GOD: I will not tell you now.

Marx: You better f*cking tell us.

GOD: If you want the answer that badly, you’ll have to go through another trial.

Marx: Bring it on f*cker.

God: Just for that, it will not be easy.

At that moment, God has an entity appear in the church, it turns out to be a person forming

Lenin: now who is this?

GOD: you’ll find out soon enough. I have to thank you for coming to a church though, I can only do this sort of thing here.

The entity finishes forming, and wakes up. He speaks German and has a funny mustache.

Marx: Um, hello?

Pastor: wakes up finally oh Lord, Jesus, and Mary… face turns completely white in fear

Marx: you know who he is?

Pastor: that’s… Adolf Hitler…

Lenin: and what’s his issue?

Pastor: He kills jews… he killed six million of them in horrendous ways. So many children of God… dead at his hands.

Marx: locks up and appears to panick

Lenin: Karl, what’s your issue?

Marx: Lenin… I’m Jewish…

Hitler: Notices Karl Marx Ich kenne Sie

Marx: turns white as a ghost No… No you don’t.

Hitler: *appears visibly angry with an apparent bloodlust.

Lenin: Yo Pastor! get me some rope! fast!

Pastor: runs to a back room to get things to restrain Hitler with, things such as giant cross necklaces, thick lent ribbons, and some ropes used to hang a cross from a wall, then proceeds to throw them at Lenin

Lenin: Marx try to get him down!

Marx: dodges Hitler’s first lunge at him, before getting on top and pinning him to the ground. NOW!

Lenin: * proceeds to tie up Hitler’s arms and restrains his legs* Karl, tell this man to calm down, you know German!

Marx Okay, beruhigen.

Hitler: Still trying to attack marx

Marx: Just throw him in the back seat.

hitler has been thrown in the back seat of the communitasia

Marx: versuche ruhig zu bleiben

Hitler: spits at marx

Lenin: welp, time to hit the road.

Adolf Hitler has Joined the team

some distance down the road

Marx: Hey, have you heard one of the teams near of us broke down? not even far off course.

Lenin: Just come in over the CB or something?

Marx: Yeah, someone was reporting and repeating it. perhaps we stop by and see if we can give them a lift.

Lenin: assuming they don’t mind whoever this Hitler guy is rambling in German.

Hitler: du wirst zahlen

Lenin: welp, lets try to get to them. Radio them if you can Marx.

@Nicholander You can pick up from here.

2 Likes
182

(… WTF just happened there?)

3 Likes