Hawk's Cross Country 70 Road Runner Trip

[HawkRod]

Glad to hear that I an not alone with the toe flick clutch pedal . What was the rattle in the door, had one on my trip ( tiny compared to yours ), was the nut that secured the quarter window frame.

Try adding the outer spring from a double carb spring setup. It fits perfectly around the standard fork rod spring and gives just a little bit of extra pull to get the pedal up. It worked for me!

I haven't taken to door apart yet, so the rattle is still there. There is so much to do so the rattle will have to wait until the car gets home...

If it more or less started suddenly my best guess would be a bad synchro spring, the ones that push on the slider struts if you ever took one apart. Bad news is only way to diagnose is to fully disassemble which would not be fun on a camp ground. Good news though, believe the spring is captive so won't grenade. Just deal with the rough 3rd gear shift & keep driving!

Yeah, that's not what I was hoping to read at all. I think if it were me I'd wind 2nd up a bit more and just skip 3rd altogether justvto be safe. Glad to hear you at least have a backup plan.

Jamie's probably gaining a lot of points from the way he's handling this and it's deserved IMHO .. I already want one of his new 5 speeds and this is really giving us all, lurkers too, positive vibes I would imagine. I was going to make the same suggestion as Devin .. or just keep doing what you are doing.

Thanks for all the transmission comments guys. Yes we are doing a combination of skipping 3rd gear and double clutching third when we need it. It works OK and we are able to get wherever we need to go. As long as it doesn't grenade on us, we'll be OK...

I can't add to any discussion about the transmission but I can say it is a good thing you don't have the honeycomb grill like the GTX, it will be tough enough getting those bugguts out of there, just imagine having to clean all those little "hex" openings in the GTX style grill!

I need more bug pics!!!!:hello2:

Hey Hawk, do you know what's the last thing that goes through a bug's mind when he hits your car?

I do. He thinks: "Wow, that is a cool green Road Ru..."

Oh my god the number of bugs we have smashed to oblivion with the front end must be in the thousands! When we did quick cleanup tonight, I also cleaned out quite a bit of bug guts out of the air grabber assembly too. The condenser is packed FULL of bugs. I think the whole front end will need to be disassembled and cleaned when it gets back!

By the way, speaking of Road Runners and getting squashed like bugs: We saw our first real Roadrunner soon after we crossed into Colorado. It ran out in the road and almost got smashed by a big green Road Runner! It was cool to see and I am glad we didn't kill a cousin!

Next post: Some pictures to catch up!!!

- - - Updated - - -

Day 11:

So on this day we drove from Kansas and crossed into Colorado. Honestly, it was mostly a long day driving some very straight and flat roads. We stopped in Dodge City, and then checked out some Santa Fe wagon ruts out in the prairie. We then made our way into Colorado and camped in San Isabel National Forest. It was a complete dead zone with respect to cell phones too. Here are a few shots from Day 11:

Kansas was flat and WINDY! Looks like they are taking advantage of all that wind...


We drove very slowly through Kansas to give the bugs a chance to get out of the way. :grin: Note RPM too.


Boot Hill in Dodge City. For those of you that want a historical tidbit, this Boot Hill is not the original location Boot Hill, but rather a tourist spot (the original boot hill has an office building built on it). It was still fun to see.


OK, so we like trains - sorry. Here is another train shot.


This was at the Santa Fe wagon ruts site. Note car in the background.


OK, so in this case WE caught the officer!


Here is our camp site in San Isabel.


Next Post: Day 12 and Pike's Peak!

 

[MT_Mopar]

Thanks for the pics Hawk, glad your rollin along, sounds like your having a blast. Cool pics, scenes and campsites.

Keep up the good work!

 

[bkleenfltx]

Okay this HAS to be the BEST thread evah!!! yessir go for it and be safe. I bet that is the best trip in a lifetime! and thanks for sharing!!!

 

[HawkRod]

Day 12: Pike's Peak!

We started the day checking out the Garden of the Gods. This is a park with some cool rock formations. From here we could see Pike's Peak too! We then drove up Pikes Peak. Let me tell you, the people that race up Pike's Peak have some serious guts. Any wrong turn and you go over the side, and in many cases that would be the end...
We ended the day camping again at 11 Mile State Park.

Some of the rock formations from Garden of the Gods


Help Tallhair! Need help with rotation again... This is a shot of Pike's Peak from the Garden of the Gods park.


Just in case you missed it - here is where we were going!


Sometimes it felt like we were just going to drive right up into the sky. Here are various shots of the drive up the peak...






At the peak:




On the way down...










And finally, at the campground with some more evidence of bug slaughter - and this was after a quick wipe down!

 

[NZ 70 RR]

Awesome photos mate, that is some serious height that pikes peak.
There is a Wild Food Festival held on the west coast of the South Island, NZ , and one of the most popular stalls is the one selling cooked grasshoppers and other bugs. If you 2 feeling hungry then snacks are a plenty on your bumper. Never been game to try one myself.
Fantastic updates.

 

[HawkRod]

Day 13:

Today we did a hike on the way towards Denver, but it was still a slower and more relaxed day.

To get to the hike, we had to drive through this...


...to park here.


A couple from the hike. Beautiful views!




After quite a few days of abuse, we gave the 'ol bird a quick rinse. The dust, dirt and bugs just streamed off of the car!




Tomorrow we will be doing some laundry and getting organized. Our wives are flying in to Denver and we are picking them up late in the day. Then we will be off to Estes, Rocky Mountain National Park, and Yellowstone with the girls. Now we are getting some class!!! :hello2:

 

[SteveSS]

Hey! You're in our back yard. Please stop by for anything you need. I'm just across from the Air Force Academy. I have 4 empty bedrooms for you.

 

[eldubb440]

awesome pics!!!! car looks great ...... wishin i was you right now

 

[zyzzyx]

Oh! You said Class! I thought you said A . . , Oh, forget about it. Nice pic's. Wish I were there. Yeah, you'll be clening with lotsa Q-Tips when you get home as soon as you re-hydrate all those carcasses!

 

[bkleenfltx]

I have huge respect for Pikes Peak! Me and a couple of friends did it in the snow.....(did it=drove up and then DOwwwwwnnnnnnnn it and onto Aspen) and it was frozen over ON MOTORCYCLES!!!! never been that skeer'd before or after....bike was slipping and sliding every where. All of us made it though.

 

[satman72]

You're just showing the car wash pics just to piss me off aren't you?:angry9:,

In all seriousness, you're having a great trip, and I thank you for sharing your adventure with the rest of us here on FBBO.

 

[SteveSS]

Okay just a quick geologic note. Garden of the Gods is a sandstone layer that was laid down horizontally. The Rocky Mountains came along and uplifted them vertically. The same formations are seen and Bandimere Raceway, the main drag racing venue in Denver. Also the natural amphitheater called Red Rocks. You can see actual dinosaur footprints in the rock at Bandimere.

Check out the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. That's the the hotel Stephen King based "The Shining" on.

 

[747mopar]

Wow, those are some great shots of the Bird and Pikes Peak! Looks like a blast for sure, rock on Hawk!!!!!

 

[NJRR]

Hawk- The pics of Pike's Peak were the best by far. Your trip is allowing all of us to enjoy our great country vicariously. God bless America and God bless you, your co-pilot and wives on the rest of this great journey.

 

[HawkRod]

Hey! You're in our back yard. Please stop by for anything you need. I'm just across from the Air Force Academy. I have 4 empty bedrooms for you.

Steve,

Much appreciated for the offer to stay! We might have taken you up last night, but had already booked our fancy Super 8 Motel. In a few hours we are picking up the wives and will start our Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes and Yellowstone adventure! The next few days will be BUSY!

 

[747mopar]

Make sure you explore the ever so wonderful smelling hot springs while at Yellowstone..... think sulfer! :sFun_doh2:

That place is amazing and really requires a whole day to take it in but the hot springs are a must see, enjoy

 

[HawkRod]

Okay just a quick geologic note. Garden of the Gods is a sandstone layer that was laid down horizontally. The Rocky Mountains came along and uplifted them vertically. The same formations are seen and Bandimere Raceway, the main drag racing venue in Denver. Also the natural amphitheater called Red Rocks. You can see actual dinosaur footprints in the rock at Bandimere.

Check out the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. That's the the hotel Stephen King based "The Shining" on.

Very Cool. We'll see if we can squeeze that in. We are heading to Rocky Mountain National Park/Estes tomorrow from Denver, and we have a day to check them out. I know, not much time, but then we need to head towards Jackson and the Tetons on Sunday.

On another note: We think we discovered why our mileage is so poor at around 15 MPG average. We smelled gas a couple of times and I had noticed some seepage from my gas cap. My gas cap is a 73-74 vintage vented cap, by the way. The gasket was cracked and beat up, so we bought some gasket material and made sure it sealed tight against the tube (of course leaving the center open to vent).

Well, later on I was still smelling gas, and the other day, right after we filled up I was smelling gas again and pulled over to check the cap again. Turns out my vent line (not my gas cap) was SPEWING out gas. The vent line on my custom tank is at the top of the front of the tank, and I routed a line up and over along the shock tower brace, and then out by the passenger wheel. Well, it turns out that vent was hardly enough. I guess I need to design a separator to sit in that line. Since that is nothing that seems reasonable to do on the road, we have only been filling the tank about 3/4 full every time. This requires more gas stops, but I am not into spewing out lots of gas. Not good for the environment OR my wallet, so it's a lose-lose proposition. I am also not sure plugging the vent is a good thing to do either. Perhaps that would build up too much pressure in the tank? Does that matter with a high pressure fuel injection? Not sure, so we are taking the safe way out for now...

On to Day 14:
Today we did some laundry and some of the minor car cleanup and maintenance. We then went to the Forney Car Museum in downtown Denver. Cool little place. Here are some pictures from that:

This was Amelia Earhart's personal car - it was some high performance roadster at the time. This was some brand I had never heard of (and have since forgotten again). Check out the side seat that slides out of the side of the car just behind the driver's seat! There was one on each side, so this way the two seater became a four seater.


Both Barry and I really dug this old Plymouth truck. Great lines on this - I'd love to have it.




A few for you motorcycle fans:






This was another oddball car with twin rear axles. It was custom built for a prince.


Here is a 1932 Plymouth. This car had hydraulic brakes (invented by Chrysler, but not common at the time). It sported a 196 cubic inch flathead four with 65 horsepower. This was the last year that a four cylinder was offered until 1971.


Here is another Plymouth, a 1949 Special Deluxe Convertible


The museum rotates various collections and focuses on certain cars, and it currently has a large collection of Corvairs. Now I am not particularly fond of the Corvairs, but I thought this Pickup truck based Corvair model was cool. I never knew a vehicle existed with a side loading ramp that lowered to the ground. That's actually kind of cool...

 

[Jeremiah]

Thanks for posting all of this up. I'm glad to see several other members that love to drive their muscle cars on road trips. I think trips like this really make the car part of your life like a family member. People used to trip out when we would gurgle in with the 440 loping in the middle of a blizzard wearing studded tires. Once people gathered up the fact that we were several states away and just cruising the countryside their eyes would really light up with astonishment. You don't see a whole lot of old Mopars and rarely do you see one with out of state plates covered in road grime. Pure cool in my book.

We are preparing to hit the coastal Redwoods this week and I have been looking forward to the trip more than anything this year.

Thank you for the inspiration and safe travels! I'm sure you won't regret this trip no matter how many rock chips and bugs you encounter.

 

[73JF1Bird]

WOW! AWESOME, AWESOME, FREAKIN AWESOME!!!! In May of 2005, when our children were 13 and 11, we left Mobile, AL in our 2004 AWD Hemi Durango heading west. It was the first year Chrysler offered the 5.7 in the new but ugly body style Durango. In the mountains, we were blowing the doors off all the Yukons and Expeditions out there. The awd allowed us to go on trails that the autos couldn't go. We stayed out for 3 weeks visiting such AWESOME places such as Grand Canyon, Redwoods, Crater Lake, Yellowstone and Pikes Peak. It was the best vacation we ever had. I can only imagine the BLAST that you are having in your FINE 70 Bird, sleeping outside under the stars! We all can't thank you enough for sharing this trip of a lifetime!

 

[tallhair]

Help Tallhair! Need help with rotation again... This is a shot of Pike's Peak from the Garden of the Gods park.
View attachment 277804

Fixed Hawk ... great photo's of Pikes peak and colorardo