GRIZZ's 2017 USA Road trip....... Small update. 28/08/18

[grizz]

Funny how these trips keep giving long after the fact.

Adam who owns the Hellcat, and is Denniss' son made the following comment on my FB feed this week.

Just made me smile as I guess it kind of forces my hand......




And yesterday Dennis sent me these pics of a newspaper his mum had kept all these years..... 20 years that is.

You need to read the article, to see that sometimes very little changes.





Seems they ended that year in 7 or 8th spot nationally in the US.





And nothing has changed.

Awesome to see two men as best friends.

Father and son.

[Frankenhealey]

So I'm sitting on my little camping stool, wearing my anorak and bobble hat just waiting for the next time

[fat-stig]

Hi Grizz,

I'm kindda new here, but have been reading all 3 roadtrip topics of you, and I must say there are awesome to read.

It is just reading a "feel good" story, it make me instant happy.

keep up the good writing,

cheers, peter

[grizz]

Oct 13, 2017 21:07:03 GMT Frankenhealey said:

So I'm sitting on my little camping stool, wearing my anorak and bobble hat just waiting for the next time

LOL !!

You and me both mate.

It certainly is addictive once you go there.

I have some other options the next time, including Colorado.

However, Dennis and his family have really become like my own family.

Hard choices.

Oct 22, 2017 21:59:35 GMT fat-stig said:

Hi Grizz,

I'm kindda new here, but have been reading all 3 roadtrip topics of you, and I must say there are awesome to read.

It is just reading a "feel good" story, it make me instant happy.

keep up the good writing,

cheers, peter

Hi Peter,

Welcome to the forums and also thank you for the reply.

I do like the idea of Feel good stories.

There is a lot of sadness and unhappiness out there.

The USA is totally addictive.

[grizz]

Thought I would just add some random pics.

NASCAR Truck racing stuff......

What keeps Dennis busy at crazy hours of the day and night.

Build them, break them, repeat.

So this is what comes home from the various tracks they race at. Often thrown into the walls at 150 plus mph.






When any of he 13 trucks get destroyed on track, they have to get rebuilt in the shop.

Every track has a car built to specification for that track, now you get why it's such an expensive sport.

Stripped down to a frame......




New sheet metal gets fabricated and a new carbon fibre nose added.




We had to pop in at Mittler Bros Racing to check the metal work of the truck they were rebuilding again.



Next up.... paint.





Then Dennis gets onto the fun part.

After the paint dries, he starts the wrap and stickers.






And then it is ready to be thrown up against a wall somewhere across the USA again, in the pursuit of a podium spat.




Nice to be working on these 358 cubic inch displacement V8 motors, pushing out around 750bhp.

Later.

[grizz]

Thought I would share these two videos.

Very different, but both made me smile.

And we all need to smile.

Anyone for a bus ride?





And of course a bit of history.





Enjoy the weekend.

Life is good .

[grizz]

Nov 10, 2017 10:01:03 GMT Speedle said:

Paying it forward as always Rian, if there was a single person on this forum I would pick out who embodies the spirit of RR it would be you! Great stuff!

Paying it Forward is real easy.

I always assume thst I am three payments ahead in the kindness people have shown me. So all I do is balancing the books.

To be honest Mat, it feels great when you can do stuff for someone without expectation of anything in return.

Kindness, even to an animal or especially to an animal fills your Karma bucket very quickly.



In unrelated news........

I know some of you read this for general entertainment.

So not quite Berlingo relalated but still in the realm of cars and road trips.

Some of you may remember that Dennis' son Adam and his Fiancé Hanna had bought a large parcel of land next to his. Maybe 10 acres or so to build a home and workshop on.

This will house his race cars, the Hellcat etc.

When I went over in September this was the state of affairs.

The pole barn guy works alone but meticulously so progress is a lot slower than if you brought a team of Amish barn builders on site who could spend a week putting it all up.

Inbetween their day jobs and racing Sprint cars at weekends, Adam and Hanna also have been buying fixtures and fittings to go into the house looking for bargains and ways to stretch their cash.

This was the state of it when I visited.





As time has evolved and moved on, it has progressed and Adam sensibly also had a "small" tool shed added to the rear for tools and toys.











Of course at the moment it is good storage space.




They cannot wait to get in.......

So the front door is ready.

[grizz]

Continuing the skinning of the barn.....






And looking from the front........



The next step is to cast the massive floor and then do the interior, which should go a lot quicker and show results.

The large workshop doors will be added later.

I have been enjoying the progress as Dennis shares it, going along.


Back home on Mud Island (Just imagine being in the Southern Hemishphere where the summers are kicking in now) things are going along their merry way.

I popped into Rochester last Sunday thinking the Christmas market had started at the Castle..... Wrong.




But it was on this weekend and I got some chutneys and sauces I wanted from a small batch manufacturer, so all good.

This week I also had a really good early morning sighting.

This was the front and rear of my house, photos taken less than 5 minutes apart.

From ugly skies to rain in under 5 minutes.

You have to love the weather here.


Looking at the Thames river and Essex direction out front.



Out the rear toward Dover and the Medway River.



Went to lunch with Katy and her daughter last weekend and seems they did know where to seat me.



Ohhhh..... and to get back to automotive type stuff.

I had washed and cleaned Prozac as well.

Love it when the little van is clean.

Despite its body being as rough as a Badgers butt it still looks great from 500 meters.

And makes me smile when I go out to the shops in it or use it as intended to move stuff about




So that's me kind of updated.

I am still contemplating buying either a Ford Ranger/Mazda B series truck in single cab/King cab 2x4 flavour, or if I can find an affordable Chevy S10 in 4.3 litre V6 flavour with a Fleetside body and king cab at the right money (cheap)...... woooohooo.


Later

[grizz]

Lazy start to the day.

Then went to the garage and opened up, to Harleys absolute joy. In like a shot she went. Happy cat.

I settled down to chop up all the planks and offcuts I had bought this week.
Then packed it all. Sorted in different sizes and purposes then garden shed still has loads of room.



Once I was finished with that, I thought it sensible to clear out the guttering in front of the garage and then started to sweep up, clean up and move stuff about.

Typical.

Followed by clearing up the lawn and then the garden beds.

Happy with this winter clearing.



Now reversing Prozac or a trailer up,and down the drive will be without plant contact at least.



As usual, Dennis and I were chatting at 07.00 my time, which is,01.00 hos time and he told me about this lightly damaged truck he missed out on yesterday.
1999 model, one owner from new, 100k miles, 4 cylinder Fleetside. $1000.00 which he would have offered $800.00 for.

Rubbish pic, sorry, but truck looks good value for what is is.



Today he finished work early, as it is Sig's yearly Christmas party at Ethyls restaurant.......

Guess.......??




Dennis had also bought some 12+ foot tall pine trees, to plant where we had cleared up in September when I was there

On the back of his,favourite truck after work, parked outside his place.



Ready to be planted once he complies the holes.



Of course, back to Ethyls.....

No Christmas party would be complete without the star on the tree.......

Or is that the naughty Elf??


Kelly........!!!

Everyone's favourite lady it would seem.




And one more photo for those of you already frothing at the mouth.

Or was it just me??

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM KELLY.



HOPE YOU,CAN ALL GET TO SLEEP TONIGHT.

[swampy76]

Dec 22, 2017 23:34:11 GMT grizz said:

Lazy start to the day.

Then went to the garage and opened up, to Harleys absolute joy. In like a shot she went. Happy cat.

I settled down to chop up all the planks and offcuts I had bought this week.
Then packed it all. Sorted in different sizes and purposes then garden shed still has loads of room.



Once I was finished with that, I thought it sensible to clear out the guttering in front of the garage and then started to sweep up, clean up and move stuff about.

Typical.

Followed by clearing up the lawn and then the garden beds.

Happy with this winter clearing.



Now reversing Prozac or a trailer up,and down the drive will be without plant contact at least.



As usual, Dennis and I were chatting at 07.00 my time, which is,01.00 hos time and he told me about this lightly damaged truck he missed out on yesterday.
1999 model, one owner from new, 100k miles, 4 cylinder Fleetside. $1000.00 which he would have offered $800.00 for.

Rubbish pic, sorry, but truck looks good value for what is is.



Today he finished work early, as it is Sig's yearly Christmas party at Ethyls restaurant.......

Guess.......??




Dennis had also bought some 12+ foot tall pine trees, to plant where we had cleared up in September when I was there

On the back of his,favourite truck after work, parked outside his place.



Ready to be planted once he complies the holes.



Of course, back to Ethyls.....

No Christmas party would be complete without the star on the tree.......

Or is that the naughty Elf??


Kelly........!!!

Everyone's favourite lady it would seem.




And one more photo for those of you already frothing at the mouth.

Or was it just me??

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM KELLY.



HOPE YOU,CAN ALL GET TO SLEEP TONIGHT.

kelly RETRO RIDES favourite stocking filler

[grizz]

Yup.....

Kelly, if you meet her, is an absolutely amazing woman and sweetheart.

[grizz]

Remember my Road Trip in September?

forum.retro-rides.org/thread/199863/grizzs-2017-road-small-updates

Well, this is a road trip that seems to keep on giving and giving and GIVING AND GIVING........

Today when I got back from Whitstable in Prozac, there was a letter in my mailbox.

Anyway........

Remember this entry when the Hemi Challenger broke down, due to a melted wiring loom, which turned out to be a factory recall job after Dennis spending a small fortune to get it bypassed in Jonesboro in order to get me mobile so I could get back to Rogers party and his birthday party??


Challenger breaking down in the middle of nowhere, in Banjo country....


So I try various ways to start the Hemi Challenger, but no go.

So I pull out my UK based mobile phone that will let me make a call at £1.10/min to call Dennis......

No reception.

So took some pics of the car, the address etc and started to walk toward the next home down Hiway 25 Arkansas.

Number 3001 has an old guy working in his yard, next to a trailer and 70's Big Block Suburban.





So I look for guns and approach, explaining my situation.

He pulls out his mobile phone and says "You can use my phone" while he carries on trying to remove a tyre from a rim with some wholly inadequate tools. But he does succeed.

Long story short, Dennis refers me to Dodge recovery service, they take my exact details and say it should take an hour (I am 29 miles from one small dealer at Wallnut Ridge and about 45 miles from the bigger dealer at Jonesboro)
I get a text a while later to confirm it will be just over two hours for them to get there.
So Walk back to the car to check if it will start again, but also just to move it more on driveway.
Then I hear RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.........!!!

Look back and see this.



Old guy in his EZ-GO Golf kart coming to pick me up and run me to the car.

Thank you Charles.

No luck there in the end.

We do look at this truck, found out later it was bought for the house owners son, but he lost interest fast and now has a jacked up V6 Toyota pickup



We go back to the old guys home, try to get a tyre onto the rim, unsuccessfully.
More chat, glass of water and local history.
Help him adjust golf kart throttle cable.
And then I go back to the car to await recovery service.
By 3.30 pm still no recovery, so I walk back to the house and ask for phone again......
at 4.03 a missed call, as I cannot raise the service......
Call back and it is the Recovery service owner to say they were given the wrong details and despatched to the wrong address

So I walk back to the car and at the same time my friend Steve from Jonesboro where I was headed arrives in his Toyota truck, so we chat while waiting for the service guys, who eventually get there after 5pm.



Car loaded, we head to Jonesboro, which is where Steve lives, the recovery service is based even though Dodge will only recover to the nearest address etc...... the owner Glenn says he will take the car to Jonesboro with us following in Steves truck.



Once we got there, signed off the car, to be investigated on Thursday.....

And Steve and I head home via a Pizza place with cold beers and great service.



Then home to see Lulu the dog and his wife.

Lulu loves me, and I love her gentle nature.

Knowing we need to be back at the dealers 30 minutes away by 07.30 the next morning, we turn in early-ish.

Thursday was going to turn into a pile of steaming poop.





SO TODAY WHEN I GET IN THERE IS THIS ENVELOPE IN THE POST.


I look at the return address and the memories come rushing back.





Take a moment to read this message from Charles, who had helped me when I broke down.

I had sent him and his wife Onida a nice Thank You card after I got back to Dennis and it must have impressed them that I did not take their help for granted.
They actually made the effort to find out what my address in the UK is.





Did I mention that LIFE IS GOOD ??

[Frankenhealey]

Rian, this is all great (as usual) but us hardcore followers need moar Kelly pictures please

[HoTWire]

Dec 30, 2017 21:44:54 GMT Frankenhealey said:

Rian, this is all great (as usual) but us hardcore followers need moar Kelly pictures please

Maybe start a forum for pervy old men? Rather than do it on this here modified old car form.

[johnthesparky]

Dec 31, 2017 13:11:14 GMT HoTWire said:

Dec 30, 2017 21:44:54 GMT Frankenhealey said:

Rian, this is all great (as usual) but us hardcore followers need moar Kelly pictures please

Maybe start a forum for pervy old men? Rather than do it on this here modified old car form.

I think if you look hard enough there is already one, and possibly even more sites out there catering for that

[Frankenhealey]

Dec 31, 2017 14:23:04 GMT johnthesparky said:

Dec 31, 2017 13:11:14 GMT HoTWire said:

Maybe start a forum for pervy old men? Rather than do it on this here modified old car form.

I think if you look hard enough there is already one, and possibly even more sites out there catering for that

Tongue in cheek, boys, tongue in cheek

[johnthesparky]

Dec 31, 2017 20:57:31 GMT Frankenhealey said:

Dec 31, 2017 14:23:04 GMT johnthesparky said:

I think if you look hard enough there is already one, and possibly even more sites out there catering for that

Tongue in cheek, boys, tongue in cheek

Was taken and reciprocated as

Happy New Year!!

[grizz]

Dec 30, 2017 21:44:54 GMT Frankenhealey said:

Rian, this is all great (as usual) but us hardcore followers need moar Kelly pictures please

OK then......


You asked for it.


So, what do you do after an absolutely awesome American road trip in 2017 where I managed to break a Dodge Hemi Challenger before his 60th surprise birthday party?

GRIZZ's 2017 USA Road trip....... Small update. 21/08/18

Which had followed the first trip to meet Dennis and a first trip using his Dodge in 2016

GRIZZ's USA Roadtrip 2016 - Best Trip EVER !!!

Which had of course come about as a result of my first road trip to America when mate Martin and I had flown into Texas and got to get in at Gas Monkey garage and a load of other amazing peoples garages.

Grizz and Martin's Epic USA Chevy C10 Roadtrip - Part II....


Well, if you strike it lucky and get a small performance bonus from your boss that will cover the plane ticket and airport parking, and you are able to arrange for an American Masters student in infectious diseases, (From Republic, Missouri, just up the road from Dennis) writing up his dissertation on Malaria to come live in your house and look after the cats etc for a month.........

As Steve the lodger from the last 20 weeks leaves........




You spend the cash and go on another road trip of course.


If you are really really lucky, you take along a friend from here craigrk (whose father I used to buy spares from 26 years ago) and then get Dennis in St Louis to hand over control of his shop for a week, to join you as well.........

By now most people know Dennis my very good friend in St Louis, Missouri so no introductions needed.

Craig’s interest is very wide, as is his experience in cars, having grown up on the shop floor of his parents’ VW garage.
His current cars all resemble each other, threads below.

1947 Chevy Fleetline Aerosedan: Inspiration!!

1949 Chevy 3600 Pickup: Pt 13: Electrifying Twin!!

1949 Chevy 3100 Suburban - Oops I did it again!!!


First leg on Saturday 1st September will be a long stretch from Missouri to New Orleans, including Tennessee, Louisiana.
After that there is Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and many more including Iowa, Illinois etc.

This year will be a high mileage trip again.

I hope we get to meet other members from various forums along the way.




A cooler full of beer on the back seat, Johnny Cash in the head unit and three reprobates in a big ass rental car, what could possibly go wrong?

Hold my beer and watch this.





I will start a separate road trip thread in the general section as it seems there are some people who are interested in riding shotgun with us.


Comments, advice as always welcome.

[rblote]

My comment is simple....That's a bloody beauty mate. Have a great time and take care!!

[ToolsnTrack]

Link to new thread in here por favor