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From Florida to Connecticut

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pdplot

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Just got home last night after driving from Venice to Stamford. Some observations.

1. Many, many blown truck tire carcasses scattered at the side of the road. Are they running recaps?
2. One close call- a fender lying in the middle lane of I-75 in Georgia. Wife was driving that leg and managed to avoid it.
3. Only one LBC - an MGB heading south on I-75.
4. Windshield got covered with dead lovebugs in Florida. I had to buy some Bug/Tar remover at an O'Reilly's in Macon, Ga. Did a pretty good job.
5. Saw a Volvo coupe - a C-80? Looked new.
6. Many semis were breaking the law and riding in the left lane.
7. We were lucky and had no delays due to accidents or construction.
8. Started all 3 cars left here - all started right away, including the TR6 and the Alfa, but the Alfa transmission made a growling noise and would not go into gear. I put it in reverse, clutch in and started it, let out the clutch and backed out of the garage. It was raining so I couldn't see if it would shift normally once under way. Baffling.
 
TR3driver

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pdplot said:
1. Many, many blown truck tire carcasses scattered at the side of the road. Are they running recaps?
Click to expand...
For the most part, yes. Those big truck tires are hideously expensive and of course there are a lot of them. When you start talking about having to replace tires every year, and a set of new ones costs a month's pay or more, there's a lot of incentive to use recaps.
 
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Some states out west are really good about patrolling for tyre carcii. Others...well, long trips we count them for something to do.
 
DrEntropy

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Driving an LBC would have been a challenge. My Elan chassis is the victim of highway debris, a piece of angle iron in the left lane. No choice but to run over it, split the frame at the diff 'steady rods'. VOR (Vehicle Off Road) as a result.

Still trying to decide whether a Spyder frame or fixing the original is the better option. Money is an issue.
 
Basil

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DrEntropy said:
Driving an LBC would have been a challenge. My Elan chassis is the victim of highway debris, a piece of angle iron in the left lane. No choice but to run over it, split the frame at the diff 'steady rods'. VOR (Vehicle Off Road) as a result.

Still trying to decide whether a Spyder frame or fixing the original is the better option. Money is an issue.
Click to expand...

My wife ran over a piece of (we think) lawn mower blade while following some truck. The piece bounced around under her BMW Z4 and pierced the floor just behind the driver's seat. Scary.
 
Bayless

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Years ago I had a 190SL. Was behind a rather ratty looking old car. Its muffler fell off and before I could dodge it, it punched a hole in front of my passenger seat. Fortunately I was alone.
 
DrEntropy

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pdp, glad you made it without incident.

Bayless said:
Years ago I had a 190SL. Was behind a rather ratty looking old car. Its muffler fell off and before I could dodge it, it punched a hole in front of my passenger seat. Fortunately I was alone.
Click to expand...

Sympathies. I was lucky a few decades back on a trip to Mid-Ohio in the Elan with a pal. Saw the exhaust on a domestic sedan ahead of us wagging around and got into the left lane and beside the car just as the whole thing, collector to tailpipe, let go and pirouetted and flipped around behind us. Scary stuff.
 
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pdplot

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With experience, you learn to avoid bad cars and bad drivers. You can usually tell.
Oh - I forgot to mention the motorcycles doing at least 90 and weaving in and out. Not the Gold Wings with two on board blending in with the traffic.
 
AngliaGT

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I didn't know you were driving - I thought that you were flying.
Did you come through Roanoke? If so,we could have met up.
 
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pdplot

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We stopped for a late lunch at a Mexican restaurant in Salem, VA.- El Rodeo. Not bad. We would have liked to stop in Roanoke but time was getting late and it was too close to our destination, C'Ville. We only drove because I hadn't seen my brother & wife in 2 years. We took the Auto Train down this year. Expensive and getting hard for my 85-year old body to climb into the upper berth without a ladder plus you don't get any sleep. Flying is the way to go but you have to ship the car to the East Coast and drive across Alligator Alley plus worrying about them denting and scratching a leased car. So -there is no good way to go.
 
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DavidApp

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A long time ago being driven up the M1 in a friends Lancia Beta going at a little over the 70 MPH limit I was jerked in my seat as he wrenched the car into the next lane.
There was a complete wheel and tire laying in the middle of our lane. If he had not reacted in time I would probable not be on this forum now.

David
 
vette

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pd, glad you had a safe trip. I am curious which routes you take. I have never taken I-75 when going north from Florida.
 
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pdplot

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I-75 to Macon, GA, then on to Atlanta Bypass I-285 to I-85 past Greenville, SC to I-26 north to Asheville, NC, then I-26 to I-81 through VA and PA, then east of Harrisburg at the fork, I-78 to NJ, on to I-287, I-87 across bridge through Westchester to Merritt Parkway and home. That's the traditional way. Google took us from 285 onto US 441 and 23 to I-40 east into Asheville which they claimed was shorter. If you live near Williamsport, you would bear left at the fork after Harrisburg to stay on 81 and not take 78. 81 has a lot of trucks - but then so has 95.
 
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pdplot

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What happened to your kidney stone?
We ate at the Bonefish Grille. Stayed at the Marriott nearby. Looked like a nice town.
 
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DavidApp

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Going in to have them blasted in the morning. Hope that will take care of them.

It is a nice town where people have time to say hello as you pass them going into the stores. Has an interesting history and a strong musical past. Little Richard and the Allman Brothers come from Macon. We also have the largest copper domed roof in the world in the Macon City Auditorium.

David
 
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DavidApp

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Thankfully the Dr. was able to get a couple of them on this go around so he has a sample to test. Now he can decide if blasting will work on the rest of them. I see him tomorrow to hear what he has planned for the next move.

I have not had any pain since the emergency room visit in fact I did not get the last narcotic prescription filled as I have plenty left over from the first surgery. I hate to take that stuff unless it is absolutely necessary. Advil works for most things.

David
 
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