Odometer (Legend): 554,414
Odometer (TL): 99,872
Trip Distance: 1,700 Miles
Merrill Vernon Hansen was my great-grandfather. Born September 18, 1902, he would have been turning 115 years old next month, but he passed away before I was even 4 years old. About the only thing I remember of him was when he’d stick his big finger in my face and say, “Are you grandma’s boy?”
Merrill was a man who I wish I had gotten to know better – along with so many of my other ancestors. But one of the highlights of the past weekend in my home state of Utah was thumbing through a few of his books where he’d written messages inside the covers. One such example was this page from his Holy Bible. He was 21 years old and getting ready to depart for the “Eastern States Mission” for his church when he wrote this down on Friday, February 29th, 1924. Not a bad penman!
Grandpa Hansen had a lot of preparations to do at that time. A week and a half later on Wednesday, March 12th, he would be departing for New York City and spending the next two years of his live giving voluntary service, with very limited contact with family and friends back home in Utah. So on March 7th, he bought shaving cream for 35 cents. On March 8th, he got a haircut for a quarter. And that same day, he bought flowers for his mother as well as for his girlfriend Della – who later became my great-grandmother. Guess they did the trick. Here was his expense ledger.
It was later in his life when Merrill opened up what we believe to be Cache Valley’s first automotive service station. I talked about that here a few years ago. He lived a long and prosperous life until his passing in 1985.
I was glad to learn a little more about Grandpa Hansen thanks to a weekend road trip up north. In the 4 months I’ve had my 2007 TL, the poor thing has been stashed away in the garage for a good chunk of that time. I decided to change all that – in a big way – by taking a 4-state, 1,700 mile journey to visit friends & family.
I had a special guest along for a good chunk of this ride: My 87-year-old grandmother (and Merrill’s daughter), affectionately known to our family as “Lamb,” took the passenger seat for a time. With a bad left hip and a frail build, she’s used to being transported in vehicles with higher step-in height, like her PT Cruiser or dad’s MDX. So when she sunk into the cockpit of my car, she said, “In these sedans, you just disappear.”
I’d only driven a mile or two northbound on Highway 89 in Logan Utah with her and had to pull over one more time – grandma hadn’t fastened her seat belt so the car was warning me with its repetitive beep. We got that taken care of. We completed our shopping trip to Kohl’s for some bath towels and a lunch date at Cache Valley’s best pizza joint, called Fredrico’s. Grandma is the most savvy shopper I’ve met: We got $36 worth of merchandise for $2.71 thanks to her gift card mailer and some clever couponing. Score!
Rewinding to the start of the trip, I experienced one of Arizona’s famous “monsoon” thunderstorms on Highway 93 between Wikieup and Kingman – drenching me enough that visibility was next to nothing and I became grateful for fresh wiper blades and grippy Michelin Pilot tires. By sunset, I rolled through Las Vegas and then had only two hours left until my nightly stop at mom’s place in southwestern Utah.
After a workday in St. George, I motored 4 more hours north. The TL makes a long-haul drive pretty effortless, thanks to its torquey V6 and low revs in 6th gear. The sound system – I’ve said this before but it deserves another mention – is absolutely rocking. You haven’t lived until you’ve heard Celine Dion “Us” blasting through an ELS Surround Sound System. Most of Interstate 15 is set at 80 miles per hour speed limits so the farmland passes by with ease and quickness.
My friend Branson and I did dinner that evening in Salt Lake at one of my absolute favorite (though very “chain”) restaurants: Texas Roadhouse. I’ve known Branson for 14 years now. We initially connected – this won’t surprise any of my readers – through the car community since at the time we were both driving Acura Legends. His current Legend coupe, in fact, inspired my selection for the TL’s license plate, so it seemed appropriate that we lined the two cars up side by side for pictures.
Finally, on Saturday morning I hit northern Utah and southern Idaho. My friend Ryan (guess what – met him through his old Legend, too!) introduced me to his current collection of Audis. He has 6 cars and in that sense he “speaks my language” as a car hoarder myself.
I also had the opportunity that afternoon to visit the campus of Utah State University – born in 1888, and later, the institution that granted me a Bachelor’s degree in 2005. The Business facilities have vastly improved since my time on campus but it was fun to roam around some of the same pathways and corridors I hadn’t seen in 12 years.
Dad took me and my niece Vivienne for an ATV ride a few miles up Providence Canyon near his home and we got to check out a couple of waterfalls. He whipped up homemade tacos and we dined al fresco on his back deck in Providence overlooking the valley below. The sunset across the Wellsville Mountains always seems a bit like a postcard.
The reason for the trip overall came on Sunday morning, when I transported grandma to Kaysville near Salt Lake City for a church service. My 21-year-old cousin, Cache, just returned last week from his two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as the Mormon Church. His mission assignment geographically centered around Anaheim, California. A congregation of about 200 people, including friends, family (like me), and other “ward” members gathered in the chapel to hear Cache address the crowd. He recounted some interesting stories and words of wisdom.
Cache’s experience was a lot like mine: I spent the years 2001-2003 in southern California on a similar mission. Here my assigned “companion” and I were riding a tandem bike in September 2001.
These were some of the children in a family we taught in the community of Ramona.
Cache’s mom, my aunt Shelly, hosted an open house with enough food to feed everyone (times two) and then I hit the open road to continue my long southward trek home.
It was convenient for me to spend another night in St. George and visit a few more family members on my way. I opted to take the more scenic way home via Fredonia and Flagstaff, Arizona as opposed to going through Las Vegas again. It was a good choice: Open roads, stunning scenery, and a to-go lunch of a chicken salad sandwich from grandma.
Hope you enjoyed being a part of this journey!
Branson doesn’t like the camera! Here he was taking the TL for a spin.
Those rolls at Texas Roadhouse, though!
Odometer on Branson’s coupe. He’s had it since around 120,000.
Garlic bread, dripping in butter, from Fredrico’s in Logan.
The home in Logan where I lived until I was about 13.
With grandma, and my brother Payton, at a family member’s gravesite.
Someone likes Buicks!
Figured I might as well cross off a state for the TL since I was only a few miles away.
It was around that time that it rolled 99,000 with Ryan at the wheel.
Ryan knew about a scale that we could drive onto at a nearby manufacturing plant. We hopped out of the car.
The TL weighs 3,540 pounds without us in it.
Saturday night vibes – having gelato from Zeppe’s Italian Ice.
Scooter race!
Another page from Grandpa Hansen’s Bible.
How many choices do you need? Maverik in Washington, Utah. First time I’ve ever seen 88 octane “Clear Gas Ethanol-Free.” I just went with Premium 91.
Jacob Lake, Arizona
Vermillion Cliffs, Arizona
My favorite piece of road. This straddles the UT-AZ state line.
drivetofive 