Yo chaps!
I last wrote from Mitchell, S.D... Our second day started with a "photo op"
in front of the "Corn Palace", then off to breakfast and on the road. The
first of the days problems began at the Corn Palace where Tom's MGB
overheated due to a failed fuse link to the rad fan. Quickly fixed in the
parking lot of McDonald's. As we headed out of the parking lot to begin the
day's journey, I checked the gauges only to find I had NO oil pressure in the
MGC..I was leaving a trail of oil and quickly turned the car off. Upon
opening the bonnet, I found that the O-ring seal for the iol filter canister
had failed...I had become the Exon Valdez depositing 8 quarts of Castrol
20/50 on the streets of Mitchell....Lady luck was with me as I had brought a
spare oil filter to change the oil once I arrived in Vancouver, so I replaced
the seal, and between Dane and I, we had 8 quarts of 20/50. We were back on
the road within 30 minutes, with the oil pressure reading 52 pounds and no
"death rattle" coming from the bearings!.
Our first visit of the day was a drive through the Badlands....beautiful!
Then off to Mt.Rushmore (on the busiest day of the year)! I was more
impressed with the cafeteria where North by Northwest (Hitchcock) was filmed.
Our third mishap of the day happened here when the fuel pump on Dane's MGC
failed. The Park Service kept a watchful eye on us (as did the four
Presidents) as we did the changeover in the parking garage. We then drove up
to Sturgis, SD with the intent of finding a burger and a beer. (No luck, but
I did get a new Harley shirt.) We then drove up to Devil's Table, a fantastic
sight at sundown. A stormfront soon came through, providing us with a great
natural light show and a pleasant shower. We arrived at our motel in
Sheridan, WY about midnight...about 650 miles for the day.
Yesterday (Sunday) we took of an made a quick visit at Little Big Horn, site
of the famous "Custer's Last Stand"...then drove through Montana and into
Idaho for a layover in Couer d'Alene for the Fourth of July. Some GREAT roads
on the way! It was another 650 mile day. Today was a rather short day as we
drove across Washington to Seattle, where I picked up my wife, Jean at the
airport. (The drive to Seattle was problem free...the traffic around Sea-Tac
on I-405 and I-5 horrendous.) Again, luck was with us as Jean's plane had
arrived about 15 minutes prior to our arrival and she was standing on the
sidewalk waiting for us as planned! The drive to Vancouver was short, customs
no problem...the hotel a welcome site after four days on the road.
Other than a fews minor glitches (my tachometer has departed, my speedo cable
twisted off near the instrument panel, in addition to the previous problems)
the trip has been great!
I'll keep you informed on MG '99, as well as our return trip through Utah,
Colorado, and beyond!
Safety/Fast!
Rick Ingram
'69 MGC on the Road
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