I drove down to Indio California this weekend to meet Brendan, Jake, and Betsy for our first day of testing of our truck. The drive down was brutal, temps around 112 without a/c in my car. I felt like my skin was going to burst into flames. Without trying, Betsy and I managed to plan our trip so that we met each other on the highway, which was a funny surprise. We beat the guys since they were towing the truck from Phoenix. Betsy and I decided to go have a girl’s moment and stopped for a drink to catch up. It was great to sit there and talk about girl stuff, and she gave me the cutest toe rings for my birthday because I had been admiring hers on our last visit. I love them! One is a flower, and the other is a funky guitar with lime green stones she picked out because she knew I’m trying to learn to play. What a sweet and thoughtful friend!
We arrived at the ‘compound’ and were whisked off to have dinner with Brendan’s family. It was a great time, although I felt very out of sorts by going out to eat while being a complete disaster with windblown hair and sweaty clothes. I hate meeting people when I’m not at my best, and I was a mess. But we had amazing food and a great time.
Afterwards we cleaned up and met up with some of Brendan’s friends and family and went out. I even wore a dress, which I never do. Excitement about the truck and the trip was running high, and before we knew it we were shocked to find it was 4am. Not the best way to prepare for testing day, but still a lot of fun.
8am Sunday we were loading up the truck and running last minute errands and reached our destination in the desert early
afternoon. Brendan and Jake went out first to check the safety of the truck, then I borrowed Betsy’s helmet and strapped in. Betsy had to teach me how to work the harness, Brendan hooked me up to the Parker Pumper that fills the helmets with fresh air and we were off.
It was great. I tried to pay attention to the gears he used and the feel of the truck. They had previously removed the windshield and the heat wasn’t so bad with the wind rushing in. We did get the truck in the air, and one landing was a little rough, but I grinned like an idiot the entire time. And the rough landing made me laugh.
Betsy and I traded places and she and Brendan took off. Their plan was to switch
drivers and let Betsy get a feel for the truck. It was over 105 and there was no shade or wind, so Jake and I stayed in the tow vehicle with the air on. Brendan’s dad showed up and waited in his Bronco. The heat and the quiet soon had us all sleepy as the night finally caught up with us. All 3 of us dozed off.
I woke up with a start, sat straight up, and felt like something was wrong. I went to talk to Brendan’s dad to see if he had noticed the time when he arrived. He had not. I didn’t notice either. But I did notice that Brendan and Betsy both had left their phones behind. I told his dad that I was worried, that I felt they should have been back. He said it had not been as long as it seemed, and that if they didn’t show up after another 15 minutes he’d go look for them. I retreated to the other truck and kept looking for them while watching the clock. 14 minutes later Jake said “They’re back. But they’re walking”.
I jumped out of the truck and took a look at Brendan; Betsy was trailing behind in the dusty desert. They were walking zombies. They were bright red and exhausted. I grabbed some water from the cooler and handed them off. They drained the bottles and climbed into the a/c. They were not doing well, and Betsy wasn’t being dramatic when she said she had been afraid they weren’t going to make it back to us. It was awful to realize how quickly you can get into big trouble in those conditions. And we’ll always make sure from now on that the truck always has water and phones or radios before it’s driven off.
We took the trailer and the Bronco out to see the damage. Betsy had been driving back, took a jump, and landed wrong. It could happen to anyone. They hit a sand hill and the right front spindle broke and the wheel fell off, taking the brake line with it. When we got back to the truck it looked sad as it rested in the dirt on the frame.
Two hours later, lots of hard work, sweat, and cussing later the truck was on the trailer and we were ready to head back out.
The truck is now settled properly on the trailer and ready to go back to Phoenix. Today’s adventure set us back a week for getting our shocks to Bilstein and getting the truck to paint. It’s not a huge set back, but I can hear the clock ticking in my head as the Powder Puff gets closer.
Having a weak part break during testing is much better than running into the problem during the race. I’m not upset about the damage; I think everything will be okay. Brendan and Jake have a great feel for exactly what needs to be done to make the repairs, and I trust their judgment and skills. I’m thankful that the damage wasn’t worse, and that Brendan and Betsy made it back to us without being in worse shape.
Now I’m back at my new home, decompressing from the whirlwind trip. Next week is full of schedule talks and letters to sponsors, and will hopefully bring some great news.
This weekend reminds me of a great quote “If the path you’re on doesn’t have any obstacles, you’re probably not going anywere”.
