Vol. 20 No. 1 - 31 March, 2016

We arrived back in Daytona Beach on 1 March, thanks to Ron Hewitt for collecting us at Orlando airport, again!  It takes a few days to adjust to the new time zone.

Both Joe and Jimmy were in Daytona Beach when we got there.

Jim got to the truck early and checked it out, not much needed to be done to get the truck and trailer ready for the year.  During the week, Jim replaced a board on the trailer because it had a hole in it.  All four strips the length of the trailer need replacing soon because they have rotted.  Will do that when we take time off in June.

On Friday, 4 March, Jim and a few others rode to Savannah, Georgia to watch the Flat Track races there, Cody Johncox was racing there – on his way to Daytona Beach.  It was a cold trip – pleased I chose not to travel up on the motorbike!

Michele flew in to Daytona Beach airport from Buffalo and arrived mid-Saturday morning.

Did a few trips to Main Street to see if there was anything new.  The previous year there were only a few of the chopper, big front wheel style bikes – this year there were hundreds of them!

Attended the usual moto guzzi gathering on the first Monday of Bike Week at Pentheon Pizza to catch up with guzzi friends.

A half day fishing charter on the Critter Fleet out of Ponce Inlet harbour.  Jimmy, Barry, Joe and Michele and Jim went out on the Critter Fleet.  They had a good time and caught fish.  I met them at the inlet and we went next door to Hidden Treasures Restaurant and the chef turned the catch into fish wraps and fish bites.

At Hidden Treasures Restaurant.

Good eating at the Ormond Crab Shack beside the Tomoka River - a popular Bike Week spot.

Flat track races at the Daytona International Speedway on Thursday night (10^th) to watch Cody race.  The tract was in rough shape – several tranches developed in it, mostly at the corner we were sitting at! Jimmy, Shayne, Jim and I sat at turn 2 and got covered in dirt and rocks!  Cody raced well, but didn’t make it to the Main (final) for that night..

A huge crowd the last weekend of Bike Week.

Corsets were popular this year!

Lis cooked a very tasty (early) St. Patrick’s Day dinner for us on Sunday 13 March – corn beef, cabbage and vegetables, and pie and ice cream.   Enjoyed our catch up with them.

Monday morning, 14 March a partial load was on the load board.  We wanted something to get us out of Florida and rolling again.

Quickly loaded the truck with our personal gear and loaded in Lake City, Florida early afternoon.  Two construction signs on trailers. A light one to get us going. 

Lake City, Florida to Montgomery, Alabama.

Delivered them the next day at a safety company in Montgomery, Alabama.

A quick trip back to Panama City, Florida and loaded TRANE air conditioners in the afternoon.

Air conditions from Pensacola, Florida to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

A steady drive to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma to deliver them on Thursday, 17 March.  Weather got a bit cooler and there were damaging storms in Texas, south of us.  We missed it, though.

Friday morning we loaded at TEREX in Oklahoma City, then drove the weekend to deliver in Miami, Florida on Monday morning.

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma to Miami, Florida.

After delivering to Armstrong Equipment, deadheaded back to Daytona Beach for two nights, then loaded close by in Oak Hill, Florida.  The shipper refurbished airport equipment – we had a generator, a baggage cart, a lavatory cart, and an air conditioner.

Delivered them on Friday morning to the Fort Walton Beach Airport / Eglin Air Force Base.

Loaded in the afternoon in Mobile, Alabama at UMS Metal Fabricators – they make steel buoys. Eight were loaded on our trailer for the US Coast Guard near Boston, Massachusetts.

Buoys - Mobile, Alabama to South Weymouth, Massachusetts.

A little out of the way, but we planned to spend a day and a half in Buffalo area to catch up with Jim’s family over the Easter weekend.

Heading north, we spent Friday night at a truckstop in Geneva, Ohio and Joe arrived there an hour later, and we ran with him Saturday morning to the Pennsylvania / New York state line and Jimmy was waiting for us there.  So we all ran together to Joe’s place.

Our truck, Jimmy's and Joe' at New York/Pennsylvania state line.

Saturday afternoon, Art came out and visited.

Joe carted stainless steel barrels from Ohio for the Sugar Shanty where Baillie works.  These are used to ship the maple syrup.  Delivered them Saturday evening, and enjoyed the maple sap boiling.  A big fire to boil the sap for hours – so very warm in there!  It was a cold night.

The Sugar Shanty at Meyers Farm.

Maple sap, boiling to make maple syrup.

Sunday morning Baillie did a quick boiled egg dying – had planned to do it Saturday, but other things happened!

Dyed hard boiled eggs for Easter.

Sunday Easter brunch at Jim’s sister and brother-in-law’s near Alden.  Great to see family there that we haven’t seen for a while.

Sunday evening, Michele prepared a scrumptious meal – Polish sausages, pierogies, casserole’s, etc.   A Western New York ‘thing’ is the lamb shaped butter for Easter.  This photo taken after dinner, so the 'lamb' is looking a bit odd!

Butter Lamb for Easter tradition.

Wikipedia:  The Butter Lamb is a traditional butter sculpture accompanying the Easter meal for many Russian, Slovenian, Polish Catholics.  Butter is shaped into a lamb either by hand or in a lamb-shaped mould.  It is sold at delis, Polish specialty markets, and some general grocery stores at Easter time.

The butter lamb is a particular tradition in Buffalo, New York’s Broadway Market, in which the annual introduction of the butter lamb is a symbol of spring.

Frequently the eyes are represented by peppercorns and the white banner with a red cross on a toothpick is placed on its back.

On Monday morning we left Joe and Michele's and headed to Boston, Massachusetts area.  On the way we stopped at a diner in Bergen, NY.

I am on a Facebook group for Australians in America.  Stephen posted to see if there were any Australians in the Western New York area.  I answered to say I get through there several times a year to see my husband’s family.

We have kept in contact, and this was our first chance to meet.

Stephen and his American wife, Teri live in the Rochester area, Stephen is from Adelaide, South Australia and has been here three years.

We had a fun breakfast – lots to talk about.  Stephen liked the Aussie representation on our truck - the VB emblem on the front, the "G'day Mate" licence plate and the kangaroo sticker on each side.

Teri and Stephen, Jim and I at Bergen, New York.

We delivered the buoys to the US Coast Guard yard in South Weymouth, Massachusetts on Tuesday morning, then to Cumberland, Rhode Island to load reels of copper wire at Okonite for Kansas City, Kansas.

There were two parts to the shipment.  Wednesday we delivered the last reel on the trailer, to Okonite west of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Cumberland, Rhode Island to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Kansas City, Kansas.

The remainder of the shipment was not time sensitive, so we took a detour to Louisville, Kentucky to attend the 45^th Annual Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS) at Kentucky Expo Centre in Louisville, Kentucky.  We had three days there, so will keep that for April's Casey Capers.