Missouri to Seattle Trip

[mmoen]

T minus 5 days.

My son and I will be leaving Springfield, MO this coming week for a 2 week drive in the Cannonball Coupe. She is all prepped and ready to go. Unlike the NY to LA Cannonballs, this trip we will be stopping along the way. Our plans our fluid. As of now we are driving thru KS, southern CO ( San Juan Skyway), into UT around Moab over NV for the Loneliest Road in America. We have plans on hitting Hot August Nights in Reno. Then off to the San Fran area where I'm meeting up with my brother and family to make our way up to Seattle.

So If you have any recommendations of car stuff, noncar activities, great restaurants along the way please let me know.

Ill try to keep this post updated with pictures while we make our way to Seattle.
Since Instagram is easier to post pics to, it will likely be updated more often, mmoen74

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Mike M.

[UpNorth]

Mike,
This is such a cool trip!
Please keep us posted here as much as you can.
TIA

François

[Rsnake]

Hello Mike,
Dave and I are just south of San Francisco and would love to meet up. We met Glen on his cross country journey in his coupe, we had three coupes at the famous Alice's Restaurant in woodside. Let me know if you are interested.
You're going to have a great trip.

Greg

[Shakey]

When you get into the Seattle area, this car museum would be a cool stop. Just to the south.

https://www.americascarmuseum.org/


V/r

Shakey

[Bob-STL]

Cool trip, Mike!

Have fun.

[gbranham]

Enjoy! If you are coming across I70 through Kansas (which I assume you will), you'll be 5 miles from my house in Tonganoxie. If you need a rest/break in that area, would be happy to host, check out your car, you can check out my build (just started), etc. Let me know! I can offer refreshments, food, and a bathroom. :)

Greg

[Gbeck]

While on US-50 in Nevada be sure to toss a pair of old shoes in the Shoe Tree and stop for a burger at the nearby Middlegate Station! Also, NV-722 between Austin and Middlegate is a nice drive and a change of pace from the desert floor. And check out my Middlegate Monster Burger Run decal on the tailgate of their pick up truck.

Enjoy!

[Windsor]

One of the stops on Hwy 50 in Nevada is Ely, which is where they host a closed-highway racing event twice a year.

They don't host the events during peak summer temps, but maybe you'll see photos in a diner.

[weendoggy]

Wife and I have been across 50 twice in the Roadster. Stopped in Austin for bkfst. at the Toiyabe Cafe, and dinner in Eureka at the Owl Steakhouse another trip. Great driving road, two lanes and nobody!

[mmoen]

Thanks for all the recommendations and invites
Mike

[Jacob McCrea]

Mike,

Two suggestions:

1. The coffee shop in downtown Odessa, MO, on the right if you're heading north, has really good breakfast burritos and coffee. Had breakfast there Saturday and really enjoyed it.
2. The River's End Restaurant and Inn on the coast in Sonoma County, CA, just north of Bodega Bay, is really good.

Safe travels. I admire you for taking the car on big trips. I'm embarassed to say it but I think PGH to the London Cobra Show would be my limit!

[gbranham]

Great meeting you guys today in Tonganoxie, KS! You have a beautiful car! Safe travels, and send postcards! :)

Greg

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[NotDrivingTrains]

It might be a little out of your way, but State Route 11 (Chuckanut Drive) an hour plus north of Seattle is a world class drive (biased I'm sure) on a sunny day (so, a few times a year in Western Washington). Starts out in flat/straight farm country, but once you pass Edward R. Murrow's childhood home in Blanchard, it gets interesting and beautiful. You either enjoy the curves at speed, or the view if busy. Oysters/beer/coffee break in Fairhaven, and then on to B.C. or try SR11 again the other way back toward Seattle.

Regardless, jealous, what a great trip.

Enjoy!
Aaron

[mmoen]

Well I finally made it home. My attempt at uploading photos and posting along the way was unsuccessful. I didn't know my password and was unable to reset it. So here is a recap of my trip.

Springfield Missouri to Seattle Washington.
7/25 - 8/8

My son and I left the 25th of July and headed up to the Kansas City, MO area to meet Greg, a fellow builder. He welcomed us and offered us reprieve from the heat and sun. He showed us his new build and we talked about his first build nearly 20 years ago.
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We left after a short while with our only plans being to head east through Kansas. We spent less than an hour on the interstate and then hit the highways. This would be the only interstate drive until just outside of Reno, NV.

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We retired for the night somewhere in Kansas. I don't even remember the city.
The next morning we left for Durango, CO. Fortunately, we picked one of the hottest days of the year. After getting a late lunch we gassed up and I ended up topping off the 22 gallon fuel cell for good measure.
My son fell asleep and I enjoyed the open roads. Back country, rolling hills with very few other cars to impede my travel.

Less than an hour later and my son awoke and I decided to pull over to investigate the smell of fuel. I had first noticed roughly 30 minutes before when oncoming traffic passed me. We pulled over and both exited the vehicle with my son saying " I found the leak".

to be continued...

[Purple Venom]

Safe Travels Mike! We'll be down in your area 10/25 - 10/29

[mmoen]

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Well this surprised us both. Never before had I seen this. This car has been driven hard in all conditions. We are running under car exhaust with the muffler sitting 3.5 inches below the fuel cell. Reflective heat shield adhered to the tank. This car has seen Death Valley without any issues. The only change was that of a new intank fuel pump 2 months prior, done by me.
After speaking with Brendan Dougherty and a tap of the rollover ball valve the issue seemed to stop.
I suspect it was a combination of high altitude, ethanol fuel, stuck check valve (preventing it from puking out the vent), and higher than normal temps. Apparently fuel can boil as low as 95 degrees under the right circumstances.
We took it easy into Durango with plans to fix / remedy the situation given we were planning to see elevated temps in the next couple of days
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We enjoyed our down time by hitting the mountain bike trails. I had to show him I am still faster than him. That is only going up hill. On the down hill run he destroyed me, I suppose my fear slowed by descent.
After spending 2 nights in Durango, CO, we hit the road again. But first we wrapped the muffler with exhaust wrap and removed the block off plates to the side exhaust. Usually I run a solenoid that allows me to open the pipes at the touch of a button. I ended up blocking them off for this trip to further help with the sound. My son Jack used the fuel boiling as a justifiable reason to open the pipes for the Durango to Reno leg of the trip. After explaining the path of least resistance, he figured it would be safer to run them open. I couldn't argue with science.


Plans for stopping at Moab were aborted due to the heat. Cant say I tried to convince him otherwise. Actually somewhat glad he was ok with it.
Moab was 104 F. Despite AC the interior gets quite uncomfortable.
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We made our way to NV hwy 50. Known as the loneliest road in America. Let's just say we enjoyed Hwy 50. I assumed it would be straight and flat. It offered that along with plenty of elevation changes with twist and turns.
We drove all day and made it into Reno, NV that night.
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To be continued.

[gbranham]

This is just awesome! Love reading about your adventure, and I'm pretty jealous I don't have the courage to do it myself. Those pics of Nevada HWY 50 are just awesome! Thanks for stopping by on your way out of KC! I look forward to meeting up with you guys again soon!

Greg

[weendoggy]

@mmoen,
After driving across 50 twice in our roadster, I can't agree more. Crossing 5 to 6 8k+/- ft passes seems wierd, until you realize the base hwy. is about 6k ft. Open two lane road!

[mmoen]

My son and I were whooped after making it into Reno, NV. I waited to the last minute when booking the hotel, so our rest was to be had in Reno instead of Lake Tahoe. Who would have thought the hotels in Tahoe would be at capacity.
We had 3 days off and didn't do much. A little cart racing kept us out of the sun and our first visit to In & Out was had. Have to admit the burger was pretty good. The fries not so much.
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We hit Lake Tahoe where I was met with the most expensive gas to date, 5.99$ / gallon.
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After three days in Reno we had had enough. The night before leaving, Jack and I went to the Circus Circus kid casino, ie. Arcade. We enjoyed a little skeeball, and carnival type games. Jack then got to spend his "winnings" on a bow and arrow, and toy gun that shot ping ball balls. More on that later.

We, rather I, woke up early and replaced the block off plates on the exhaust as to not draw any unwanted attention in CA. Then off we went to Napa to visit a long time friend.
3+ hour drive and we were there. Strangely we felt like we had been in the car all day. We were both beginning to feel the wear of this car.


After a short stay in Napa, we hit the road to Half Moon bay just south of San Fran. Connecting with Greg and Dave over the forum, they offered a rest point and an early dinner. We arrived a bit early so a visit to the ocean was needed. Jack felt it necessary to try his hand at swimming in the 58 degree water. He survived but not without first turning a purple hue.
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We met up with Greg and Dave, both coupe owners. We then motored over to Alice's Restaurant. I don't know what I was expecting but I was rather surprised of how good the food was. Greg shot a video for his channel and we departed our ways.
https://youtu.be/4mdprjZBZO4
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This where our trip began to veer from our initial plan. We made our way into San Fran and crossed the Golden Gate Bridge. From there we hit the PCH and headed North. Originally my brother and family were to meet us in N Cal to sight see our way up to Seattle. Unfortunately this didn't materialize so Jack and myself were on our own. We only made it up to Muir Look Out before defeat. It was there we aborted the final leg of our trip to go up the PCH. Fatigue got to us and plans were changed to drive straight to Seattle. Done were the highways, sight seeing, etc. We assigned PCH for another time and backtracked our way to the interstate where we proceeded North.
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To be continued. Almost done, I promise.

[Rsnake]

It was a pleasure meeting you and your son at Alice's. I am jealous of your amazing adventure and hoping we can meet up at the Silver State Classic one day in Nevada.

[mmoen]

3/3
Days 11-14 were spent in Seattle. 10 day trip was the sweet spot. Our bodies were done. While in Seattle we rested and enjoyed our time with family. Prepped the car and garage for storage. I threw the keys to my brother and we boarded the plane.

But not before the last hiccup of the trip. As I mentioned previously our winnings at Circus Circus netted my son a ping pong ball shooting gun. Bright orange in color, no more than 5 inches in length it wouldn't likely ever pass for a real firearm. Unless that is if it were seen on X-ray at security. Jack 's bag was set aside and we waited for TSA to call us over for the search. Before beginning the agent asked Jack if there were any way he packed a gun. I realized immediately, but young Jack pondered the question as if it were a possibility. In their defense it did look an awful lot like a derringer on the X-ray monitor.

We made our journey home. Now just to get my car back.

[Jacob McCrea]

If you can get the car down to Salt Lake City by the 27th and rent a U-Haul trailer I'd be happy to haul it back to Missouri. I'm going to drive back to Pittsburgh around then; the truck is plenty capable of towing it.

Good adventure, by the way. My wife and I came through southern Colorado, including Route 50 in Colorado and Moab, a few days earlier. The heat was so bad that going up Monarch Pass my clutch fluid boiled and the pedal went to the floor! Glad all turned out well for you!