True to our plan we were rolling down the highway by 6:30 AM.
The route passed through some rugged mountains and promised to be slow-going. It is a long, steep climb out of the San Joaquin Valley and we crawled up the hill with the rest of the trucks. The descent was also steep and we had to use the engine brake (Jake Brake) to hold us back. Taking the rig over steep grades requires concentration since 33,000 pounds of vehicle can quickly get out of control! A word to all you automobile drivers out there: stay away from trucks. Especially on hills.
After stopping to fuel the coach, we pulled into Santa Paula about 10:30 AM and set up. The rest of the afternoon was spent visiting family. I got away for a few minutes to update the computers, which we hadn’t done for a few days.
We received an e-mail from a friend, Bob, who is currently living in Denver. Bob and I grew up together in Los Angeles (Van Nuys) and managed to stay in contact. The friendship stretches back 45 years.
Apparently Bob is a Triplog reader and the 4/7/2005 entry about Winnemucca must have caught his eye. I’m not sure what prompted it, but he decided to write a fictitious newspaper article about our Winnemucca experience. Clearly, the article is something Triplog readers may enjoy and I offer it without comment. So, here goes:
News Flash! City Slickers Visit Winnemucca, Leave in a Hurry Winnemucca, NV (Winnemucca News Service) Lou and Cindy Tomas of Winnemucca waved off the receding tail lights of a large motor home late Wednesday night after an ugly incident involving two tourists from southern California. "They seemed nice enough when they rolled into town," explains Cindy, "strolling around downtown, taking in the sights, buying this and that for the kids back home. They even had dinner at our local Basque restaurant and told the waitress how great the food was." At this point Lou interjects "That's when the trash talk about our fair town started, with the big bald guy saying loudly there ain't nothin' in this town and no need to ever come back." "Guess some of the boys next door overheard that remark, decided he was probably right and they oughta help them on their way". According to Elko County Sheriff Tom Sanchez, at this point several patrons of the adjacent Red Light Lounge started mixing up a batch of Winnemucca's famous "sheep dip", offering to "clean up" the trash-talking city slickers before they left town. "I reckon they saw what was happening and decided to high tail it back for the border, at least they jumped in this big ass motorhome and tore outta town like there was no tomorrow", says Sanchez, "if Billy (referring to Deputy Sherriff Bill Frank) had been on radar duty that night out on the west end of town I figure we'd a-got them for at least a $200 speeding ticket!". Seeing their quarry leave, the crowd quickly dispersed with hearty laughter, most retiring back to the Red Light. Gloria "Hot Mama" Flores, owner of the Red Light Lounge, allegedly was so impressed by their job defending the town's honor that she had her girls offer up a round of "two-fers" on the house. Flores later was quoted as saying "I'll tell ya, my girls sure were sore in the morning but it was worth it. We just gotta support our troops no matter where or how they do battle." She then quickly added "Don't y'all worry, my girls are professionals- they'll be back on their backs tonight serving our boys". Fred Smith, proprietor of Winnemucca Ace Hardware, held a midnight madness sale on pitchforks and torches later that evening.