Welsh Highland Golden Spike

Saturday, February 2009 the Welsh Highland and Ffestiniog Railways will be linked in a golden spike ceremony, in Porthmadog, Wales. Actually a golden clip, they do things a little different over there.

Now the work begins for those of us in the U.S.  Time to spread the word, with the world economy going in the tank, it would be a shame for the Welsh railways to fail after all they have done to restore the lines.

I know that not everybody can afford to take off every other year or so, but, for a relatively inexpensive trip Wales works.

Give it a thought. Castles, little trains, mountains,sea,and great people.

I’ve been to London several times (big city) and York (old city) great trains museum there.  But if you would like to visit an area that lets you turn your mental clock back 50 years, it’s got to be Wales, OK Scotland was pretty cool to.

I’m going to work on a trip plan next time I get home, but I’m thinking there’s a loop from Manchester west along the north coast, then south to Aberystwyth (ask Avrila) then back to Manchester.  Train travel is very reasonable, and fast.  If you rent a car, try Avis, avoid National.  Someday I’ll have to tell about the Vaxhaul, $1600 for two weeks (OUCH).

Might be a good year to go if you can afford it. Lots of people are going to stay home and there might be some good deals to be had.

U.S. Customs

So, I get up to a book warehouse in Ontario, Canada today.  No problem getting into Canada, got the books on board and headed back to the border. Yep I got all my forms filled out and filed. What could go wrong?

Well somebody at the brokers office could reverse two letters on the trucks license plate.  Three hours later I left the border office with the full knowledge that during the time those inspectors spent “solving” that problem a couple hundred “farm workers” slipped across the southern border.  But the country is safe from trucks with PR instead of RP on the plate.

Oh, and in all the fuss over the plate, they forgot to run the truck through the scanner.  That didn’t dawn on me until I got down to Eire PA. and I not going back.

We may all be blown up someday, but at least we are safe from typo’s.

70 Challenger

Tempted to add to the title “Dumbest sale I ever made.”

To those who where wondering if this car ever did exist, yes it did.  Maybe it still does, if so, if I ever hit a powerball lottery win, it’s first on my list to find.

This photo, the only one I could find as yet,and was probably taken back in about 1974. Yes I know it’s cracked and faded. Maybe I’ll find some better as I go through my old junk.

For the car folk, it’s a 1970 Challenger 340 with a factory 4 spd.  Many people think it’s a R/T, but while it had the R/T hood and dashboard (150 mph speedo, and tach) R/Ts had big block engines.

Interestingly this Challenger, while it could top 145 mph, came frome the factory with non power drum brakes on all four wheels.

Over the years, it got a rear sway bar, an option I highly recommend, and as you can see, hood pins. It doesn’t show up in this photo, but the hood has two small creases near the center. That was from a run down highway 26 that forced enough air under the hood to bend it slightly. A trip to the Dodge dealer and a set of factory hood pins, set things pretty much back right.

Sold the Challenger about nine years ago to raise the funds for my first Freightliner. Probably a good move, but to this day I wish there had been some other way to do that.