If you haven't already read Jordan and Jess' post below, read it first. Then watch this video:
(This post has been updated to include a lower-resolution video that should load much faster! - 6/12/09)
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Day 4: Dreams Actualized and Meat Sweats
This morning we enjoyed a nice complimentary breakfast at The Hotel Blue complete with a make-your-own waffle batter dispenser. Before long we were on the road again heading for the great state of Texas.
Today we got to do my thing. Back in 2005, there was a small reality TV series on CMT called "Popularity Contest," where city slickers were placed in a small Texan town, Vega (population 936), to win the hearts of the community members. The person deemed "most popular" in the town won $50,000 and was able to share an equal amount with the Vegan native of his or her choice. As followers of the show, Stephanie and I had made it our intention to visit this town before we died. You can imagine our excitement when we found that Vega was on Route 66.
Today we knew that we would passing through Vega. Looking through the restaurant guide, I found "Boothill Saloon & Grill," labeled as Rory Schepisi's fine establishment. Rory was the runner up on "Popularity Contest" and one of our favorite contestants. When we arrived at the restaurant, our waitress informed us that Rory not only still owned the restaurant but currently resides in Vega! To make a long story short, Rory showed up at the restaurant and Steph and I got a photo with her (see below). I was pretty star-struck and happy that Rory humored us. It was definitely a dream actualized for Steph and me...
From Vega, we visited another anticipated stop, the "Cadillac Ranch" (see photo below). We were even able to "tag" ourselves on these caddies thanks to someone's old spray paint left at the ranch.
After Vega, we headed for Amarillo, where we decided to pack it in for the night. After a bit of investigating, we deemed it necessary to visit The Big Texan. We'd seen plenty o' signs on the road for the locale, and the possibility of seeing someone attempt to eat a 72 ounce steak in one hour was just too alluring. Alas, the Big Texan Steakhouse did not disappoint, as not one, not two, but FOUR people ordered the 72-ouncer. So we had some dinner, and some entertainment, although it was clear by the 18 minute warning that our four young heroes weren't doing so well. We're all fairly certain that at least two of them had a case of the meat sweats. Our waitress confirmed that the Big Texan does not prorate the price of its meat to people who "miss the mark" on finishing the 72-ouncer (final tab = 72 big ones to the one who does not finish the meal). In the end, we felt bad for the guys and bought some fudge to make ourselves feel better. Moral of this story = bring your sweat pants and a sweat band to The Big Texan if you plan to tackle the meat sweat-inducing 72-oz steak. If you are hungry enough to finish the meal, the reward is well worth it!
Now we are ready to hit the sack in Amarillo in order to be ready for Oklahoma City and the "Blue Whale" in the morning (Adaryll and Jen, here we come!).
Post a collaboration by Jess and Jordan
Today we got to do my thing. Back in 2005, there was a small reality TV series on CMT called "Popularity Contest," where city slickers were placed in a small Texan town, Vega (population 936), to win the hearts of the community members. The person deemed "most popular" in the town won $50,000 and was able to share an equal amount with the Vegan native of his or her choice. As followers of the show, Stephanie and I had made it our intention to visit this town before we died. You can imagine our excitement when we found that Vega was on Route 66.
Today we knew that we would passing through Vega. Looking through the restaurant guide, I found "Boothill Saloon & Grill," labeled as Rory Schepisi's fine establishment. Rory was the runner up on "Popularity Contest" and one of our favorite contestants. When we arrived at the restaurant, our waitress informed us that Rory not only still owned the restaurant but currently resides in Vega! To make a long story short, Rory showed up at the restaurant and Steph and I got a photo with her (see below). I was pretty star-struck and happy that Rory humored us. It was definitely a dream actualized for Steph and me...
From Vega, we visited another anticipated stop, the "Cadillac Ranch" (see photo below). We were even able to "tag" ourselves on these caddies thanks to someone's old spray paint left at the ranch.
After Vega, we headed for Amarillo, where we decided to pack it in for the night. After a bit of investigating, we deemed it necessary to visit The Big Texan. We'd seen plenty o' signs on the road for the locale, and the possibility of seeing someone attempt to eat a 72 ounce steak in one hour was just too alluring. Alas, the Big Texan Steakhouse did not disappoint, as not one, not two, but FOUR people ordered the 72-ouncer. So we had some dinner, and some entertainment, although it was clear by the 18 minute warning that our four young heroes weren't doing so well. We're all fairly certain that at least two of them had a case of the meat sweats. Our waitress confirmed that the Big Texan does not prorate the price of its meat to people who "miss the mark" on finishing the 72-ouncer (final tab = 72 big ones to the one who does not finish the meal). In the end, we felt bad for the guys and bought some fudge to make ourselves feel better. Moral of this story = bring your sweat pants and a sweat band to The Big Texan if you plan to tackle the meat sweat-inducing 72-oz steak. If you are hungry enough to finish the meal, the reward is well worth it!
Now we are ready to hit the sack in Amarillo in order to be ready for Oklahoma City and the "Blue Whale" in the morning (Adaryll and Jen, here we come!).
Post a collaboration by Jess and Jordan
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Photo Journal Day 4: Tuesday
Day four of our road trip across the country via the old Route 66 continued today. Unlike the previous days, we didn't stop to experience anything big today, but instead, we saw several little things. For starters, just before crossing the Texas state line, we got to drive through a pretty narrow tunnel under I-40 (see my previous post), we passed by some pretty interesting signs, visited a ghost town, reached the midpoint of Route 66, Jordan and Steph got to meet one of their TV heros in Vega, TX, and we stopped at the Cadillac Ranch. Steph was the driver of the day, and we only had to make four u-turns (none of which were the driver's fault).
Photo highlights:
Continuing on...
Jordan navigating us through the remainder of New Mexico using our trusty Route 66 map that provides confusingly clear directions...
Yes, this is still Route 66. A very dusty stretch that included a trip through a narrow tunnel!
Watch out for falling rocks!
We did see some things along the way...
We saw the first advertisement for this restaurant at least 3 hours before we reached Amarillo. Apparently, if you can eat an entire 72 oz. steak in 1 hour, you get it for free!
State number 4!
Part of the ghost town of Glenrio, TX
We've only just begun!
Apparently, there was a reality TV show filmed here several years ago called "Popularity Contest." Jordan and Steph were fans, and really wanted to stop in to find some of the "stars" of the show.
Jordan and Steph meet Rory from the reality show, "Popularity Contest" at her restaurant in Vega, TX.
This place is called the Cadillac Ranch. It features old Cadillacs with their noses buried in the dirt.
Here I am leaving my "Mark"
All of us after we individually spraypainted our names on different cars.
Photo highlights:
Continuing on...
Jordan navigating us through the remainder of New Mexico using our trusty Route 66 map that provides confusingly clear directions...
Yes, this is still Route 66. A very dusty stretch that included a trip through a narrow tunnel!
Watch out for falling rocks!
We did see some things along the way...
We saw the first advertisement for this restaurant at least 3 hours before we reached Amarillo. Apparently, if you can eat an entire 72 oz. steak in 1 hour, you get it for free!
State number 4!
Part of the ghost town of Glenrio, TX
We've only just begun!
Apparently, there was a reality TV show filmed here several years ago called "Popularity Contest." Jordan and Steph were fans, and really wanted to stop in to find some of the "stars" of the show.
Jordan and Steph meet Rory from the reality show, "Popularity Contest" at her restaurant in Vega, TX.
This place is called the Cadillac Ranch. It features old Cadillacs with their noses buried in the dirt.
Here I am leaving my "Mark"
All of us after we individually spraypainted our names on different cars.(For the record, we are not the ones who spraypainted "Heavenly" on the front of this car. But it did work out nicely for us!)
Good thing the cars are on the OTHER side of the fence!
Good thing the cars are on the OTHER side of the fence!"RVs should join I-40 East here..."
About 40 miles from the Texas border, we were following our trusty New Mexico Route 66 map when it indicated that we would be passing through a narrow tunnel under the interstate. The map clearly instructed RVs to exit onto I-40 (which runs parallel to Route 66 most of the time).
As we drew near to the tunnel, the road was covered with the red dirt of the region, and would billow up behind our rented mini van as we careened down the old road. Eventually, we came to the tunnel, and I decided to capture the excitement on video. Be sure to listen at the very end as Jordan continues to read the directions contained in our Route 66 map...
My favorite comment is when you can hear Jess in the background saying, "Are you sure this is right?"
Sub-Sonic Experience
Last night after dinner, Jess really was wanting a Cherry-Limeade from Sonic (we happened to pass one earlier on our trip into Albuquerque). The rest of us thought some sort of shake or ice cream sounded good for dessert, so off we went!
We pulled into station #5, pushed the button, and ordered. Since I was in the driver's seat, I just inserted my credit card into the ordering station to pay for the food. Trouble is, the card reader appeared to have been damaged at some point, and when I tried to pull my card out, it wouldn't come out. The following video displays what ensued:
We pulled into station #5, pushed the button, and ordered. Since I was in the driver's seat, I just inserted my credit card into the ordering station to pay for the food. Trouble is, the card reader appeared to have been damaged at some point, and when I tried to pull my card out, it wouldn't come out. The following video displays what ensued:
The manager eventually came out with a flat head screwdriver and a straightened out paperclip and was able to get the card out.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Photo Journal Day 3: Monday
Well, today was my day to drive. I took the helm from the doorstep of our wigwam until we reached Albuquerque. Along the way, we crossed yet another state line, stopped in Gallup, NM for brunch with a friend of Steph's, experienced what I think was the most scenic portion of the old Route 66 highway (thus far), and eventually made our way to Albuquerque where we spent the afternoon at the Rio Grande Zoo.
Photo highlights:
Some of the landscape along the way
Our brunch location. Hope you don't mind green chile sauce on your breakfast sopapilla!
The main street through Gallup, NM
An old theater in Gallup
Time to hit the road again!
At one point, we had to pretty much drive around a huge mesa!
Here's the mesa from a little further distance...
At the Rio Grande Zoo. The sign says:
Cute Koala!
A baby chimp
A cool throne in the African section of the zoo
Wish I could just sit around all day long...
A cool Route 66 archway heading into downtown Albuquerque
The marker at the end of the bridge just before crossing the Rio Grande
Photo highlights:
We've made it to state #3!
Some of the landscape along the way
Our brunch location. Hope you don't mind green chile sauce on your breakfast sopapilla!
The main street through Gallup, NM
An old theater in Gallup
Time to hit the road again!
At one point, we had to pretty much drive around a huge mesa!
Here's the mesa from a little further distance...
At the Rio Grande Zoo. The sign says:Shhhhh! Pregnant Snow Leopard
Cute Koala!
A baby chimp
A cool throne in the African section of the zoo
Wish I could just sit around all day long...
A cool Route 66 archway heading into downtown Albuquerque
The marker at the end of the bridge just before crossing the Rio GrandeWell, that should catch us up to present. Depending on the internet situation tomorrow night, I'll try to update you on our adventures that await us tomorrow! Thanks for checking in on us!
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