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NSXPO 2015 in Palm Springs, Part 1: Air Museum Opening Reception

Posted in California, NSX, NSXPO, Road Trip on October 8, 2015 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 537,972

Trip Distance: 279 Miles

I’m broadcasting live from the biggest U.S. gathering of Acura NSX owners in history.

NSXPO, the event that brings NSX fans together year after year, is based this year in sunny Palm Springs, California. The event opened for registration at the end of May and sold out at 250 tickets in a matter of only about a week’s time. The level of interest has been unprecedented, and we are geared up for a very busy next few days. 2015 marks a special year in NSX history for a number of reasons. It’s the 25 year anniversary of the year when the revolutionary NSX first launched. It also represents a 10-year anniversary of its last year of production. And finally – after a long-awaited hiatus – the newest iteration of this iconic sportscar has come back stronger than ever. Acura Division is here to show us its latest creation in all its glory. You’ve seen it discussed here on Drive to Five a number of times – even as far back as the North American International Auto Show in Detroit nearly 4 years ago, but now it’s finally here in tangible form.

(photo credit: Bob Ondrovic)

I’m an 11-time NALM veteran but this marks the first time I’ve participated in an NSX gathering of this size and scope. Best of all, I’ve been able to play a key role in the planning & development of the program. Our 5-person NSXPO Planning Committee has worked hard for about a year now on putting the pieces together to make this possible, but the rewards have been worth it and we’re thrilled that so many other like-minded fans will appreciate our efforts and enjoy the weekend.

Tonight, we kicked off the festivities with an exclusive event at the Palm Springs Air Museum. The logistics behind corralling over 160 cars into a parking lot behind and airplane hangar got a little complicated – especially when during a 2-hour window of time we had to check people in, have them sign 3 waivers, get them wristbands for the track day tomorrow, give them “swag bags,” ask them to do some judging for the car show, and keep our sanity together! But, somehow we made it through and thankfully everyone is being very patient with us as we do our best to keep things on track.

(photo credit: Bob Ondrovic)

My drive out to Palm Springs was a piece of cake last night. This morning, we had about 50 people check in early, so that helped put a dent in our remaining headcount for registration. We had some great volunteers to help us get goodie bags assembled and get credentials in alphabetical order. Then the onslaught of people started arriving. While people were outside in the heat trying to get cars parked evenly for a group photo, the rest of us were getting everyone inside the hangar situated with their gear. When I finally peeked outside, I saw a sea of aluminum: more NSXs in one place than I’d ever seen before! A few celebrities arrived, too – including Ted Klaus who is the large project leader on the 2017 NSX, RealTime Racing driver Peter Cunningham, and a few other special guests from the Acura development teams, marketing teams, and other areas. Automobile Magazine author Michael Jordan attended, as did Ben Hsu from Japanese Nostalgic car, and we even had a drop-in from Jason Cammisa of Motor Trend. Needless to say, I was a little star-struck.

It felt like we were all on The Price is Right when Event Director Chris Willson announced the 3 raffle winners for tomorrow’s ride-along in the 2017 NSX with Peter Cunningham at the wheel. “Come on down!” he said. The recipients were super excited and the rest of us will be eternally jealous!

Here are a few photos from our first day of fun out here in Palm Springs. Thanks for coming along!

Video!

The Legend out and about a couple of days ago

I-10 westbound in my 1992 NSX with 102,000 miles on the odometer

Staying last night with my friends Scott & Sandy. Scott has a 1992 NSX that’s a twin to mine (but with half the miles)

Good way to start the day! Group message with the other Planning Committee members.

With Event Director Chris Willson during early registration at Agua Caliente

Check-in table signage

Les Rowe and Jim Cozzolino from the Planning Committee, getting a little friendly!

Arrival a the Air Museum before the masses got there

Goodie bag assembly line

Solo shot with my car and the 2017 NSX in Berlina Black!

Scott sent this of the lineup of cars waiting to get in around that time

Chris Hand from Acura Social Media

The view outside!

Scott and I were in heaven.

And more

The new NSX was on a rug at the front of the pack

Rear ends

They keep going and going

Racing legend Peter Cunningham arrived with his wife. Peter had just gotten back from the “NSX Fiesta” event in Japan.

I asked him to sign my dash with a silver Sharpie, and he obliged!

With Ted Klaus, Matt Stall, and Michael Cao – these are some of the key players in the development of the new NSX

Ben Hsu from Japanese Nostalgic Car

Jason Cammisa from Motor Trend

The group assembled to have dinner

Arrival back at the parking garage, with my friend Ben Lin. I’ve now seen Ben at THREE automotive events in the last couple of months: S2000 Homecoming in early September, NALM in late September, and now NSXPO. We are on the same car show schedule apparently!

He’s the original owner of a 2005 “Silverstone” color NSX with only 7,000 miles on the odometer!

Tomorrow: Track day and an evening at “The Living Desert.” Stay tuned!

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Trip to Torrance, California: Honda S2000 “Homecoming III” Event

Posted in California, Car Show, Legend, NSX on September 13, 2015 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 535,296

Odometer (ILX): 140,911

Trip Distance: 861 Miles

How does a lowly Legend owner get a VIP invitation to a car show with over 200 Honda S2000 sportscars? Luck of the draw, I guess! It happened to me and I made a special trip to Honda’s North American headquarters in Torrance, California this past weekend to celebrate the occasion.

It’s been almost exactly 5 years since I attended the last s2000 meet-up of this magnitude. That one was called “Homecoming II” and was organized by the same individual who put on this year’s shindig. I shared a write-up, photos, and short video of that event on the Acura Legend forums at the time (it occurred just 6 months before I started this blog, or you would have seen it here). One of the many highlights of that event was the chance to personally meet Mr. Shigeru Uehara, the father of the NSX & S2000.

My Legend had just 441,000 miles on it at that time, so it’s taken me 5 years to add another 94,000 miles.

“Homecoming III” was slated to be even bigger and better than the prior event. I took off from work last Thursday afternoon and hit Interstate 10 westbound. Well, not right away. Interstate 10 in Phoenix is a bit of a danger zone right now, with about a dozen random “car shootings” taking place over the last couple of weeks. I detoured around Loop 101 until I got to Avondale before hitting the 10. The 430-mile drive was smooth sailing and it reminded me of how I racked up so many miles on the Legend in the first place: Low revs on the highway (fewer than 2500 at 75 miles per hour), smooth ride, and a great stereo. It was sundown by the time I rolled LA town via I-10, Highway 60, I-605, Highway 91, and I-110 to my exit on Sepulveda Boulevard. Welcome to Los Angeles.

Friday was an action-packed day including meetings with key contacts at Acura regarding next month’s NSXPO convention in Palm Springs. By late afternoon, my ‘hired driver’ (AKA, trusted friend) Peter had arrived at our hotel in Torrance with the NSX which would also be attending Homecoming, so both cars were safe and sound on location. I worked up a sweat doing some last-minute detailing in the parking lot (LA is experiencing a heat wave and the humidity is killer!), but both cars ended up glistening with some Meguiar’s quick detail spray and a little tire shine. My friend Ira had arrived from Portland in his 2002 Acura NSX in Long Beach Blue Pearl, as seen here in the background.

Game day (Saturday) came quite a bit earlier than we’d hoped. My alarm went off at 3:15 a.m., in fact. By then, I’m sure Peter was regretting his decision to volunteer as my second driver for this crazy adventure. We had a 4:25 a.m. meet-up with others from our hotel, a 4:45 meet up 2 miles away with the 12 other “showcars” in the Homecoming event, and a 5:05 arrival at Honda’s huge campus where we staged the showcars in a “mock” situation. I’m telling you, the ENTIRE DAY had timing laid out with that kind of precision. Exhausting.

In the meantime, Event Director Mike Trinh put us to work – breaking ice bags, filling up the cargo beds of two Ridgeline pickup trucks, and throwing in bottled waters and iced teas. By 7:30, we were ushered into hiding with our cars around the backside of the building while the row after row of Honda S2000 rolled onto campus and into their designated (by color) parking areas. If you’re afflicted with a moderate to severe case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder like I am, you’ll greatly appreciate that the fact that every section of the parking lot was perfectly color coordinated. See what I mean?

The S2000 model has a huge enthusiast following, as do so many other Honda models. The “S2K” (as it’s lovingly been named) sold over 66,000 units in total from its first year in 2000 through its final year in 2009. I know a few of my loyal readers are lucky enough to own such a vehicle, including Conor. This is his baby:

I talked for a bit with Chris Martin from Honda Public Relations and he asked me to help him pull a 2016 Honda Pilot out of the garage and bring it over to the showcar area. I happily obliged, and though my drive distance with the Pilot couldn’t have been more than 1/2 mile, it was my first time in the all-new redesigned model and I liked what I saw. Chris also had an Accord coupe and an HR-V on display. The HR-V was a 6-speed manual! It seemed like it would be a blast to drive.

From his wireless microphone, Mike T kicked off the opening ceremony and announced the originating city and owner’s name for each of the “showcars” as they filed in during a parade. Peter and I were sandwiched into the middle of the pack, but in line next to one another. I took the lead in the NSX and Peter followed in the Legend as we pulled into the main event parking lot amid a cheering crowd.

One of the key highlights of the morning was getting to visit the Honda “secret museum” down the street a few blocks on Van Ness. I think this marked my fourth time going in there, but it never loses its appeal to witness the preservation of such neat low-mileage examples of important Hondas of the past. Best of all, I reconnected with pioneer Acura founding executive Kurt Antonius and the Manager of Auto Shows & Exhibits, Dave Heath. Kurt is pictured here.

This is one of the vehicles on display: A 78-mile (yes, 78!) example of the 2004 Acura NSX.

We were starving by this time, so our first stop when we got back to the S2K Homecoming location was to get in line for the Habit Burger food truck. It was worth the wait! Italian ice was served up for dessert – a perfect remedy for the extremely humid weather that left us all chugging water and looking for any slice of shade we could find. Around 2:00 p.m., Mike kicked off the closing ceremony which included a raffle of dozens of items that were donated by event sponsors, many of which were quite high in value. I laid low for the rest of the afternoon back at our hotel, and made the return drive to Phoenix bright and early on Sunday.

One bonehead moment to share from the 6-hour drive home: I stopped briefly to use the restroom at the Love’s gas station in Quartzsite, Arizona just after crossing in from California. As I shuffled through paperwork and garbage on the passenger seat to collect a pile for the trash, I inadvertently threw my $80 sunglasses away in the trash bin. It wasn’t until I was a mile down the freeway that I went to grab for them on the seat and realized they weren’t there. I debated about whether I should return, but decided it was worth it. So, the folks fueling up at Love’s gave me a few weird looks when I returned to the station and took the lid off the trash bin so I could root around in there.

Yep, found the glasses.

Many thanks to the friends who made this memorable weekend possible! Here are the rest of my photos and a 4-minute video.

Someone else’s video: My parade entrance starts around 5:50.

Friday meeting location at Honda’s main office in Torrance. This is the lobby.

Found a random place for dinner that evening. Looked a little retro.

A 2016 ILX was improperly parked in the showcar area bright and early. So, it got towed.

Die-hard Honda fan, Steven, trailered this race-ready Honda S800 all the way from Dallas, Texas for Homecoming.

Lining up – Peter in the Legend, me in the NSX.

Parade fanfare. I’m still trying to track down video coverage of this.

Ira’s gorgeous Long Beach Blue NSX with 28,000 miles.

The crowd assembled for the opening ceremony.

Interior of a 39,000-mile red NSX on display.

Lineup of yellow S2000s

And silver ones…

And black ones…

Visiting with my friend Ben (left) who’s a fellow Legend owner, as well as Mike (center), the guy in charge.

The S2000s were led into he facility by Acura NSX “Pace Cars” which each wore this decal.

Interior of the HR-V 6-speed.

The 2016 Accord Coupe.

NSX + Legend

NSX + Legend again

Abandoned roadside Legend spotting this morning on I-10! Looked like it had seen better days… It had already been tagged by Highway Patrol.

By the way, I had a couple of neat features happen this week. First, this photo share from music artist “Fabolous” who has 2.5 million followers on Instagram. He posted an old (2007) photo of my Legends in Logan, Utah on his page on Thursday and it’s up to almost 27,000 likes now.

The second share was from Acura HQ when they featured a photo of my coupe for #FanFriday. Sweet!

Thanks again for coming along on this adventure!

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Quick Overnight Trip to Hollywood, California

Posted in California, ILX, NSX, Road Trip on September 9, 2015 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 534,436

Odometer (ILX): 140,832

Trip Distance: 796 Miles

Happy hump day!

It wouldn’t be a proper 3-day holiday weekend if I didn’t try and squeeze a little roadtrip in somewhere. A friend of mine who I hadn’t seen for about a year and a half was playing at the “WeHo Sports Festival” at the University of California – Los Angeles campus and I took the opportunity to cruise out to LA and meet up with him for a night on Saturday. WeHo is short for West Hollywood, and the WSF event attracted a total of over 2,000 athletes competing in 10 different sports. My friend, Jeff, had flown in from Calgary, Alberta, to play soccer.

The 400-mile I-10 westward voyage on Saturday morning was uneventful and even a little boring – my only two stops were for fuel and snacks at 339th Avenue in Tonopah, Arizona, and then again at Washington Street in Palm Desert, California. I did roll 140,000 miles though, so that was exciting.

I found my way easily to the UCLA campus off Highway 405 and Sunset Boulevard. UCLA has over 43,000 students, making it nearly twice the size of the student body of my undergrad institution in Utah. The campus itself sits at the base of the Santa Monica Mountains and covers 419 acres of land. I thought it was very well laid out and clean.

Unfortunately, Jeff’s team didn’t perform all that well but I still enjoyed spectating from the sidelines in 80-someodd degree weather. It’s the first time I’ve been able to use my cheapo $6 foldable camp chair that’s been rolling around in the trunk of my ILX for the last six months. After fighting Highway 101 traffic for about 45 minutes en route to our hotel (welcome to LA!), we met up with our other friend Jack, then enjoyed a night out in Hollywood glamour (or lack thereof, in our case). I talked a little about Hollywood during my blog post from last August when I attended a party out there.

On Sunday morning, Jack and I wandered from our hotel down Hollywood Boulevard to the TCL Chinese Theatre. On the way, we crossed the “Walk of Fame.” Even by 10:00 in the morning, the streets were already bustling with selfie-stick-wielding, foreign tourists. For a minute, I felt like I was on The Strip in Vegas, because there were guides passing out pamphlets and trying to sell me on a $49 tour of the city. I respectfully declined (I had to get my car out of the paid parking lot by 11:30).

The Walk of Fame consists of over 2,500 pink stars embedded into the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard. Each one contains the name of someone famous, and I recognized the names of a few actors, musicians, and directors as we wandered around. About 20 new stars are added each year.

TCL Chinese Theatre dates back to 1926 and has been home to hundreds of movie premiers over the years. It’s currently home to the third largest commercial movie screen in North America. But what brings thousands of tourists to the facility every year is the concrete out front: Here, you can see over 200 handprints, footprints, and autographs of famous people that have been immortalized on the ground.

Beverly Hills, 90210: It’s a location that’s been made famous thanks to TV and movies, and it’s pretty posh for sure. Driving along westbound Sunset Boulevard, you see posters alongside the road frequently saying “STAR MAPS!” and encouraging you to pull over at some roadside stand and get a guide to (I’m guessing) where the movie stars live. I didn’t take the time. Even as I type this entry, Weezer’s song “Beverly Hills” is stuck in my head. I was surprised to learn that the median income there is only about $90,000 – I might have expected it to be at least in six-figure territory.

As has been widely publicized in the news, California is experiencing a huge drought right now, and the impact is even hitting the folks in Beverly Hills. The streets’ medians have had their sprinklers shut off, allowing the grass to die off and turn gold. I saw a huge billboard along one of the interstates that said, “Let Your Grass Go California Gold” with a photo of a dead/dying lawn.

I rolled home Sunday afternoon, exhausted from such a quick adventure: Arrival in LA at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, departure at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday. Would you expect anything else from me? In & out. Places to go and people to see. Thanks for joining!

A rare sight of traffic freely flowing on northbound, 8-lane, Highway 405 in Los Angeles

Meeting up with Jeff at the UCLA campus

Route (really round-about route, suggested by my phone) to our hotel from UCLA

Anddddd, of course. Parked traffic on the 101 freeway thanks to an accident.

ILX street parking

Wandering past the Hollywood Wax Museum on Sunday morning

Following Jack’s red IS300 on Hollywood Boulevard – and he happened to be next to an ILX

Spotted a Prius towing a U-HAUL trailer on eastbound I-10 on my way home. I wonder how many MPGs he was getting.

Coming up soon: The Legend coupe and the NSX are heading to Torrance, California this weekend for a special event at Honda Headquarters. You’ll read about it here before too long!

In preparation, I hauled 2 new rear tires over to Discount Tire for install…

Rolled 101,010 miles…

And fueled her up!

21 Comments »

Saturday “NSXPO” Planning Drive: Palm Springs to Idyllwild, California

Posted in California, NSX, Road Trip on August 30, 2015 by tysonhugie

Odometer (1993 Legend): 178,323

Odometer (ILX): 139,512

Trip Distance: 657 Miles

Did you know? We’re only about 6 weeks away from what’s slated to be the biggest gathering of Acura NSX owners in history. NSXPO 2015, scheduled for October 8-11 in Palm Springs, California, sold out in only 8 days with 250 registered attendees. These people are coming from all across the country – as well as internationally – to celebrate the NSX’s 25-year anniversary with fellow enthusiasts.

There were just fewer than 9,000 Acura NSX models sold in the United States during the car’s 15-year production run. That makes them pretty rare (for comparison, Honda sells over 30,000 Accords in any given month), but NSXPO has been a tradition for over 10 years now and continues to draw a crowd.

One of the activities during our busy 4-day event schedule will be a 100-mile scenic drive through the San Jacinto Mountains just southwest of Palm Springs on the “Palms to Pines Scenic Byway.” The drive loop is comprised by 3 main roads: Interstate 10, Highway 243, and Highway 74. I’ve already taken a “test drive” of this loop (last year) but wanted to give it another go now that we’re getting close to showtime at NSXPO.

There are many logistics to be fine-tuned. Have you ever tried taking a group drive with even just a few cars? Someone needs to stop for fuel. Someone gets stuck at a light. Someone takes a wrong turn. Things can get turned around in a hurry. Now, expand the scope to involve upwards of 200 vehicles. There are special considerations were are taking, even potentially including police escorts. We want the driving event to be fun AND safe for all attendees.

On Friday evening, I drove out to Palm Springs via I-10 westbound and arrived in time for dinner with my good friends Scott & Sandy. On Saturday morning, I met up at the NSXPO host hotel, Agua Caliente Resort, with the following folks:

Scott in his red NSX – 47,000 miles
Rahul in his red NSX – 96,000 miles
JC in his yellow NSX – 98,000 miles
Les in his black NSX – 138,500 miles
Chris in his burgundy TSX Sport Wagon – 15,000 miles
Me in the silver ILX – 139,000 miles

Newest car in the bunch, and I still had more miles than anyone else! Chris rode along with the rest of us and even took a turn at the wheel of Scott’s car. Unlike last October’s test-drive, we decided to take the loop counter-clockwise this time. That meant our first leg would be via I-10 westbound to Exit 101 for Hargrave Street which connects to HIghway 243.

The highway narrowed to a two-laner as we started making our way up the grade. For being a Saturday morning, I was surprised how little traffic there was. I was also surprised how polite the other drivers were about pulling over to the turnouts when they recognized faster moving traffic (us) in their rearview mirrors. Road conditions were great and we had fun with our mildly-aggressive ascent up the mountain. Les became concerned about a fuel smell at one point and we took a break to investigate. He ended up continuing on and his NSX was fine for the rest of the day, however.

We dined at Jo Ann – a burger place in the center of bustling Idyllwild. Parking was a bit of an ordeal, even for just 5 cars, so we decided it will be best for NSXPO purposes if we tell our 200+ participants NOT to stop there for food or drink, but to continue onward. Les & JC headed back toward Banning & Orange County, while Scott, Chris, Rahul, and I continued on to the junction with Highway 74 and descending back into Palm Springs.

For a time, I got to ride in Rahul’s car and it was a real treat. Rahul’s NSX is special because it’s a limited-edition 1999 “Zanardi” edition, custom designed by Alex Zanardi, professional race driver from Italy. It’s one of only 50 cars that were built in that configuration – with fixed roof, upgraded suspension, unique wheel design, and other enhancements over the stock NSX. Rahul’s car is #16.

Here’s the numbered plaque behind the seats:

Continuing down the mountain:

Last stop on my Palm Springs visit was a check-in at Scott’s warehouse/museum. We happened to line up 6 Acuras outside and it seemed only fitting to take a photo. I got to drive his immaculate 1988 Legend L coupe with only 81,000 original miles on it, as well as his latest acquisition, a 1996 Subaru SVX with only 52,000 miles on it. Both cars drove amazingly.

Drive time home to Phoenix was about 4.5 hours and despite some extreme weather I made it with time to spare. Check out this dust storm I drove straight into, just west of Buckeye, Arizona on Interstate 10.

Here’s what it looked like from inside the storm.

Thanks for coming along for the ride, and enjoy the rest of these pics!

Short video of our Acura lineup at Scott’s:

Friday night arrival at my hotel on Indian Canyon Road

Parking in Idyllwild

Photo by Chris – getting ready to head back out after lunch

1992 & 1999 NSXs

Chris, Tyson, Scott – looking straight into some very bright sunlight

Lineup of Acuras at Scott’s storage facility

I suggested to Scott that he acquire the following cassette tapes to play in his 1988 Legend.

Rick Astley, George Michael, Whitney Houston… this is a star-studded lineup!

I agree with this graffiti on I-10 near Desert Center, California. Enjoy the drive!

Sunset in my sideview mirror to close out a great day. Thanks again for coming!

19 Comments »

San Diego, California Weekend Road Trip

Posted in California, ILX, Road Trip on July 16, 2015 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 534,065

Odometer (Legend Sedan): 146,991

Odometer (ILX): 134,665

Trip Distance: 734 Miles

I bet you didn’t know that the “official” Center of the World is actually in the middle of the desert about 10 miles west of Yuma, Arizona.

Detail on that sign:

Located in the far southeast part of the state, Felicity, California has a pretty bold claim to fame. The unincorporated community is home to a population of two along with a number of odd architectural buildings, including a pyramid that’s claimed to be the center of the world. Among the attractions is this 25-foot-tall section of the original Eiffel Tower staircase. It leads to nowhere and serves no purpose other than to attract people like me, and that’s pretty much all it’s done since it was planted there in 1983. This little roadside attraction is just one of a handful of sights to see along the Interstate 8 corridor.

How are real estate prices doing in your neighborhood? A median house in San Diego, California costs just a little over $700,000 (as of May 2015 data). If it wasn’t for the insane cost of living there, I’d consider relocation to that area. I can’t think of a more perfect climate – 263 sunny or partly cloudy days per year, average temperatures ranging from 55 to 72, and beach proximity within a stone’s throw. I was lucky to reside in San Diego County from 2001 to 2003 as a volunteer representative for my church, and I’ve returned to visit many times in the dozen years since. This past weekend, I took a few friends along with me for the ride.

Drive time from Phoenix to San Diego each way adds up to about 6 hours after you’ve made a couple of bathroom or fuel stops. For the most part, our route took us parallel to the Rio Grande River which forms the international border with Mexico. In fact, at times, it’s possible to look south from Interstate 8 and see the fence in the distance which separates the two countries.

Aside from our quick detour in Felicity, we were stopped once at an agriculture checkpoint just past the California state line and again about 50 miles from San Diego at a Border Patrol stop. Otherwise, it was smooth sailing. James was at the wheel of the ILX as we descended from Jacumba to the sea level elevation and watched the exterior temperature dip accordingly. It’s been quite some time since I was able to ride around in my car with windows down & moonroof open.

The “sunny San Diego” nickname didn’t hold true for us, as Saturday was filled with gushing gutters and intense thunder while the clouds unleashed from about 11 a.m. until at least 5 p.m. Still, we had a good time enjoying the sights & sounds of the bustling Hillcrest area around University Avenue and we found a few great places to dine, people-watch, and make a few new friends.

Thankfully, on Sunday morning it was back to business as usual and the clouds retreated long enough for us to enjoy some al fresco dining on the front patio at Huapango’s on 5th Avenue & Pennsylvania (best breakfast burritos in town!).

Thanks for coming along, and here are the rest of the photos from our quick weekend SoCal tour in the ILX.

Here’s the pyramid at Felicity. The center of this pyramid – which we didn’t enter due to it being after-hours – is said to be the official center of the world.

Proof! Established in 1985.

This seemed a little ridiculous. The distance from our hotel to a friend’s hotel was .4 miles. But when I plugged it into Apple maps on my iPhone to get directions, it gave me a 3.4 mile route, taking every possible roundabout way rather than just straight down the street. Sometimes “smart” phone technology is the dumbest way to go.

My car at the Best Western parking lot. Everything was so green compared to the desert landscape I’m used to.

Sunday morning, headed to brunch at Huapango’s.

Back to the car for our return trip eastbound.

Easy drive, straight out I-8 to Maricopa County, Arizona we went (via El Centro).

More time in the passenger seat for me. Good chance to enjoy the scenery and play around on my phone!

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Easter Weekend Road Trip: Family Shuttle to Palm Springs, California

Posted in California, ILX, Road Trip on April 6, 2015 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 532,850

Odometer (ILX): 120,919

Trip Distance: 1,619 Miles

I got home from work this afternoon and found a package in the mailbox addressed to “The Road Trip King.”

Thanks, Alex, for sharing that awesome “AQRA” Illinois Route 66 plate! I have some of the coolest friends!

As much as I enjoy my solo time on the open road, I always welcome the chance to have a road trip companion (or three). This time, my car transported some very important cargo, including my mom, my grandmother, and my aunt.

My overall drive consisted of four roughly 400-mile-each stretches of road: Phoenix to St. George, Utah; St. George to Joshua Tree, California; Palm Springs to St. George; and then returning home to Phoenix. It seems that Palm Springs has been on my frequent destination list lately. I was just there a couple of months ago for a visit to Thermal Raceway as part of our NSXPO 2015 planning activities. This time, the purpose of our trip was to attend a surprise birthday party for my grandma’s brother, Reo. The first part of my journey was the drive up Highway 89 from Flagstaff on Thursday night.

By midday on Friday, I’d picked up my 3 fellow road trippers and we hit the highway, headed for southern California by way of Las Vegas, Nevada. As soon as we exited at Nipton Road on Interstate 15 southbound after crossing into the California state line, I knew we were in for a roller coaster ride. For the next 75 or so miles, the Morning Star Mine Road took us through the Mojave National Preserve (the same route a friend and I took last November).

While the desert was a beautiful place to be, it’s also a very rugged and dangerous environment to be because of the extreme weather and remote location. Luckily the temperatures were friendly to us. Road conditions, however, were less than optimal. There were potholes the size of manhole covers and at least 6-8” deep. We definitely smacked a few of those at 55-65 miles per hour and felt the impact.

After we had driven through the desolate towns of Cima, Kelso, and Amboy, we started closing in on the community of Twentynine Palms, named for the trees found there by Colonel Henry Washington in 1852 while completing a survey of the area. Aunt Jodi piped up from the backseat. “Look, there’s one of those homestead shacks I was telling you guys about!” Sure enough, it was time for a history lesson and a prime opportunity for a pit stop.

As it turns out, in this “Wonder Valley” region of the Mojave Desert, there are hundreds of teeny homes that dot the landscape. And by teeny, I mean they’re typically no larger than a one-room, 12-foot-long rectangle. These structures started springing up around 1938 when a homestead act was put into place, granting up to 5 acres of land to settlers in exchange for just being willing to build a structure on the property. Very few of them have endured the test of time. In fact, probably 9 out of 10 have crumbled to nothing more than a few walls and a caved-in rooftop. Here’s a very interesting article from 2004 in the Los Angeles Times about the history and fate of some of these homes. We stopped to get an inside look at one of them.

Our evening was spent watching the sunset from the second-floor balcony of the High Desert Lodge on Twentynine Palms Highway after a delicious chicken enchilada dinner at Mi Casita Nueva Mexican Restaurant down the road.

The next morning, we had places to go and people to see. Right off the bat, a special occasion took place on Highway 62 through Morongo Valley: My ILX rolled 120,000 miles.

We took Indian Canyon Road on into Palm Springs for a hearty breakfast at “Bit of Country.” After a quick visit to friends Scott & Sandy, it was time for the grand event: My grandma’s brother Reo’s surprise 85th birthday party. All of our time in the car was made worthwhile in the space of just this one-minute video clip:

After enjoying several hours of food, family, and friends, it was time to set sail yet again. For the return leg of the trip, instead of going through the Mojave Preserve we opted to take interstates 10, 210, 215, and 15, which would take us a bit longer distance-wise but would probably be just as fast as the back roads.

The last stop on our adventure was in a teeny town on the outskirts of Death Valley National Park called Baker, California. There’s not much to see in Baker aside from its 134-foot-tall thermometer — the largest in the world. The thermometer’s height is symbolic of the record 134-degree Fahrenheit temperature recorded in nearby Death Valley in 1913. The structure was built in 1991 and restored in 2014.

What makes the Baker thermometer even more special to me was that it was the first place I ever did a “photoshoot” of my 1994 Legend coupe on the day that I bought it: March 26, 2003.

Sunday morning’s Easter egg hunt with the kids was a hoot, and after that it was back to the road for my return leg to Phoenix.

Hope everyone enjoyed the weekend as much as I did!

Climbing out of one of the homestead houses in Wonder Valley

Morning in Joshua Tree, California

Arrival at the birthday party

Nephew Rex doing some Easter egg hunting

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Saturday Drive: Thermal, California for “NSXPO” Recon

Posted in California, ILX, Road Trip on March 1, 2015 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 532,645

Odometer (ILX): 114,580

Trip Distance: 570 Miles

Panic attack. It’s alarming to see flashing red & blue lights in your rearview mirror, especially when they seemingly come out of nowhere. It was a normal Interstate 10 commute across the desert on Saturday evening until three or four black & white Ford Explorer highway patrol vehicles blasted up from behind and passed me like I was sitting still. I’d guess they were doing at least a buck-twenty on the speedometer. I exhaled in relief that they weren’t coming for me, but I thought to myself, “I’m going to see them again.” Sure enough, I’d just crossed over the California/Arizona line into my home state and traffic came to a halt. There were enough red & blues in the distance up ahead to light up a Vegas nightclub, so I knew things didn’t look good.

For 45 minutes while I sat in the ILX at mile marker 2, I entertained myself with Instagram and some classic 1990’s CDs I’d brought along (who doesn’t love a little K-Ci & JoJo, Creed, or Everclear?). A few vehicles started turning around in the median to head back to Blythe but I decided to try and wait it out — whatever “it” was. I got out of the car and grabbed my sweatshirt out of the backseat, then wandered over to the driver’s side of a semi truck that was idling next to me. Its driver was on his cell phone examining a spot on the fender of his truck. Except, it wasn’t just a spot. “Bullet hole,” he pointed and said when he saw me walking up. What I thought was just an accident was in fact the result of a high-speed chase and shots fired!

So that’s why every police cruiser in eastern California was blocking the road ahead. The truck driver said he’d seen a black SUV fly past and he’d heard a noise but at the time didn’t realize a stray bullet had come his way. I started chatting it up with a few of the drivers in the I-10 parking lot around me. There’s something about being stranded together in a traffic jam that makes people band together – it’s like we all shared this common bond and we wanted to swap conversation about what we thought was going on up ahead. I spoke for some time with a man and his sister who were en route from Oxnard, CA to Tucson, AZ with a Penske moving truck.

On the bright side, the traffic delay was a nice pause on my drive and a chance to see the desert sunset. After another thirty minutes or so, we finally were allowed to creep past the carnage of a rolled “getaway vehicle” black Chevy Tahoe and continue on our way. So, that was probably the peak of excitement from my 9 hours in the car on Saturday.

Why the drive? This was a “business” trip, in a sense. Each year, the Acura NSX Club of America (NSXCA) Board of Directors votes on submitted bids for an annual NSX gathering called NSXPO. It just so happens that the 2015 event will be held in Palm Springs, California. Three colleagues and I are putting the puzzle pieces together to organize the itinerary for our event which will be held in October and is anticipated to draw over 200 vehicles. Some of you may recall when I took my drive to Idyllwild last fall to scope it out as our proposed drive route for NSXPO.

This time, the recon mission was to check out our racetrack facility. The Thermal Club, located in Thermal, CA is a members-only facility that has 4.5 miles of freshly-paved, beautiful track. Administrators have graciously agreed to host our group during NSXPO so Chris, Les, JC, and I met up to get an exclusive tour. From the Cottonwood Springs exit off Interstate 10, I drove through Box Canyon toward the town of Mecca about 20 miles away – this was all “new” road to me, and the scenery did not disappoint!

Thermal lies just a few miles north of Mecca and there’s really not a heck of a lot there – except this glorious track.

Thermal Club is a high-class place for high-speed cars. What was once just a remote piece of land next to the airport has been developed into an oasis for car nuts. The first thing I noticed after the security guard granted me access from the gate on 62nd Avenue was that BMW had a Performance Center on-site. At couple dozen “M” cars were parked and awaiting test drives as part of a training program. I was surrounded by cars worth more money than I’ll make in my lifetime. During our tour, we walked through a garage that had three Bugatti Veyrons in it. That’s $3.9 million worth of cars!

The highlight of our visit was getting to ride as passenger in an Ariel Atom while Thermal member Rahul drove each of us around on the track. What a riot that car is! Powered by a 2.0 liter Honda 4-cylinder motor, the Atom is so light and nimble that it seriously felt like a go-kart. Well, a go-kart on steroids, caffeine, and with rockets attached to it. I don’t think I’ve experienced that many G-forces in a very long time. Thanks, Rahul, for the test ride!

The last stop on my SoCal adventure for the day was to pick up a box full of goodies from my friends Scott & Sandy. Acura brochures! Scott worked for over a decade with Acura’s ad agency and managed to collect a bunch of materials (43 pieces, in fact) that he decided to share with me, knowing how much I geek out over auto literature. Check out all these beauties.

Thanks for joining on the drive. Here are the rest of my pictures.

Headed westbound on Interstate 10 and rocking out to my CDs

Exit 168 would take me to Box Canyon

Road headed to Box Canyon

A few shots from within the canyon itself

You know it’s a light traffic day when you can be comfortable stopping in the middle of the road for a picture

Just before exiting the canyon

Arrival at Thermal and seeing a lineup of BMW performance cars

Thermal racetrack, looking toward the west

Interior of one of the Thermal Club buildings

Thermal Club map showing the 4.5 miles of track, and the homesites surrounding it

Beautiful day in Palm Springs

Visiting my friends Sandy & Scott in Palm Springs

Stuck in traffic later that evening on I-10 eastbound

Finally getting past the incident after a long wait

Does anyone else agree that I must own this sweater from the a 1988 Acura magazine?

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Palm Springs Again: Roadside Assistance

Posted in California, ILX, Road Trip on December 9, 2014 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 532,000

Odometer (ILX): 107,466

Trip Distance: 536 Miles

“Quartzsite tow” I googled on my iPhone. When the representative from Everett’s Towing answered the phone, I told her my situation. “I’m at the Bouse rest area eastbound on I-10 about 30 miles from Quartzsite with a dead battery. Can you send a truck to give me a jump?” Meanwhile I was reaching out of my comfort zone by walking up to random people at the rest area: Tourists in a rental Caravan, a guy in a white PT Cruiser, a couple in a black Acura TL-S, and a family in a Ford pickup. Nobody carries jumper cables these days!

Location reference. AKA: Middle of nowhere, smack-dab in the desert.

My predicament happened because while my friend Justin was in the bathroom, I left the car’s ignition turned on so that I could stay in the car and use my work laptop which was plugged in to recharge. I guess the laptop sucked a lot more power than I thought it did. When Justin came back and hit the red START button on the instrument panel, lights flickered, the engine jolted briefly, and then everything went dark. My heart sank as I realized what had happened. At over 107,000 miles and with 2.5 solid years of daily use, the ILX’s battery has been getting a little more tired lately so I should have known better.

Stressed out about making it home to Phoenix (still a 90-minute drive away) so Justin could make it to a volleyball tournament, we anxiously watched the clock as we awaited help from the tow company. Then, a light bulb went on. We remembered that stick shifts can be push-started. It was a long shot, but we decided to try our luck at doing the same with the ILX. Because of the angle of the parking lot, it made the most sense to conduct our experiment in reverse, so I took the driver’s seat and released the parking brake. Justin gave the car a hearty push from up front and I started coasting rearward in reverse with the clutch depressed. When I felt like I had some pretty good momentum, I kicked my leg off the clutch pedal abruptly and the car came to life. Genius! Saved by a manual transmission.

Meanwhile, I felt bad leaving the tow driver high & dry so I called and offered to pay him for the time he’d already spent heading my direction. Lesson learned: I’m putting jumper cables in the car tomorrow.

It was a quick out-and-back weekend trip to Palm Springs, California for a party hosted by my friends Scott & Sandy. Their beautiful home was dressed to the max and bustling with dozens of people, Christmas music, and plenty of cheer. Justin and I had the chance to take a spin in Scott’s nicely restored 1966 Mustang in the perfect top-down weather before making our return trip to Phoenix the following day. Here are a few quick pics from the weekend.

Pit stop in Desert Center, California

Interstate 10 westbound

Backyard with a golf course view

Party hosts

Home exterior, with the palms decked out in blue lights

Following Scott in his new 1993 Legend LS coupe

Taking a look at some old iron. Pictured here is Scott’s 1959 Mercury Park Lane. Massive!

Out for a spin in the 1966 Ford Mustang 289 V8 with “Pony Package” interior.

Mustang in rare “Emberglo” color. A real beauty!

19 Comments »

2014 Los Angeles, California Auto Show

Posted in California, Car Show, ILX, Road Trip on November 20, 2014 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 531,869

Odometer (ILX): 104,848

Trip Distance: 764 Miles

It would have cost me $460 to fly round-trip from Phoenix on Southwest for this week’s trip to Los Angeles. Was there any question I’d rather get behind the wheel and just drive? Still I get the “Are you driving or flying?” question from plenty of people who don’t yet know me well enough! For this trip, I had a copilot who’s a fellow seasoned driver: Jason from Las Cruces, who you’ve read about on Driven for Drives, accompanied me on this trip to the City of Angels.

The LA Auto Show started in 1907 with 99 vehicles on display at a skating rink. Since then, it has evolved into one of the largest annual automotive events in the country, filling 760,000 thousand square feet of space at the Los Angeles Convention Center. I’ve attended on two occasions in the past:

2012
2013

I attended this year’s show as an Associate Editor for DC-based automotive media company Redline Productions. Jackson and Sofyan from the Redline management team had asked me to work with them on some vehicle launch videos, and I was excited for the opportunity to collaborate with them again. Jason rolled into Phoenix on Tuesday afternoon from Las Cruces, New Mexico, and we hit the road just in time to savor some of Phoenix’s worst afternoon stop-and-go westbound traffic on Interstate 10. It was a relief when we finally broke free from the gridlock and set the cruise on 80 for the next 5 or so hours.

(photo credit to Jason)

Taking the ILX for a quick lap around Los Angeles International Airport’s terminal 5 to scoop up Sofyan and Rob, we checked in at the Sheraton in downtown LA for the night and charged up our batteries – literally and figuratively – for the adventures the following day would provide. Equipped with our press credentials and loads of ambition, we attacked Wednesday’s Auto Show with organization and strategy.

Throughout the day, each automaker got a 25-minute window of time to “wow” the journalists. We got ahold of the schedule and decided which press conferences we each wanted to attend. When we weren’t following the hordes of press people around, we spent time tidying up our scripts and networking with old friends, some of whom we hadn’t seen since last year’s show. I ran into Acura’s Chuck Schifsky and we caught up for a few minutes.

I got my moment in the spotlight when I did an on-camera preview of the newly-refreshed 2015 Chrysler 300 (above picture captured by a friend during my on-cam time), and then had some free time to explore at my leisure. Some of the automaker booths offered free food, drinks, and swag, so I was keen to keep my eyes open for such goodies. In all, I walked over 5 miles during the day while exploring the huge conference center, according to my iPhone’s “Health” app.

The afternoon hours flew by, and before we knew it, the 5:45 p.m. PA announcement was made: The show halls would be closing in 15 minutes. We hurried to wrap up our current activities and then made our way back to the hotel. The evening’s activities included dinner with a friend from Acura’s PR team and then a drop-in at a Hyundai-sponsored after-party at historic Hotel Figueroa.

Honda’s all-new 2016 HR-V model, a subcompact crossover based on the Honda Fit platform, was the subject of my focus on Thursday morning for day 2 of the auto show. After completing a quick vehicle intro on camera for Redline Reviews, I scampered quickly to the Acura press conference which was scheduled to begin at 9:35 a.m. Luckily I was able to score us some second-row seats for the entertainment. Right on cue, we were surrounded by thundering music, spotlights through smoke, and a gigantic countdown clock on the big screen ahead of us.

Acura’s Senior Vice President Mike Accavitti took the stage and teed up his introduction of the refreshed 2016 Acura ILX. As most of my readers will know, the ILX debuted for the 2013 model year and aside from some new standard features, has been largely unchanged since. For 2016, the car will now get a host of new appointments to sweeten its appeal to young car buyers looking to enter the luxury segment.

The climax of Mike’s presentation happened when two Acura ILX models – one in silver and one in stunning Catalina Blue – blazed their Jewel Eye headlights at us and drove up onto the elevated stage. Mike proceeded then to teach us a little about what makes the new ILX so special.

Among those highlights are the following:

Now-standard 201-horsepower, 2.4 liter direct-injected 4-cylinder motor (up 51 horses from the prior “base model” engine)
Standard 8-speed dual-clutch transmission
New front & rear styling, including signature Jewel Eye headlamps
Addition of power passenger seat and available memory seats
Seven-inch touch-screen on the instrument panel
New trim levels: Standard, Premium, and Technology Plus.
Available A-SPEC package for Premium & above – rolling in 18″ wheels, fog lights, suede seat inserts, red instrument illumination, gray interior stitching, and aluminum brake & throttle pedals
Advanced safety and driver-assistive technologies (blind spot detection, rear cross traffic monitor)

I’m saddened by the elimination of the 6-speed manual as a transmission offering, but I love everything else about the new ILX. It looks like Acura has listened to customers who had complained about the previous ILX 2.0-liter “base” engine being underpowered, at only 150 horsepower. I love the resurrection of of the “A-SPEC” name, as it’s great to see Acura getting back to its “Precision Crafted Performance” heritage. I look forward to taking a new ILX for a spin.

Among the show’s other world debuts were some important vehicles, 18 of which are listed on the show’s Wiki page under the “2014” heading. All-too-soon, it was time for Jason and me to collect our gear and ponder the 400-mile trek back to the desert. We said farewell to our friends from Redline Media and grabbed some boxed lunches to-go from the Media Center, then hit the road. Jason was great company for the drive and I thank him for coming along! Thanks also to the Redline Productions team for making it a great experience. I hope that you as my readers enjoyed the show as much as we all did. Below are the rest of my pics!

This is a video of an 8-minute segment of the Acura press conference, leading up to the ILX rollout/unveil.

Wednesday morning view from the 20th floor of the Sheraton in downtown Los Angeles

Jason, Tyson, Rob, Sofyan, ready to tackle the first day of the Auto Show

Media Center: Getting set up with our camera gear

The 2016 Acura ILX waits under black covers until its reveal the following day.

Celebrity encounters in the Media Center: Steve Ewing, Sr. Editor of Autoblog, and Steve Siler, featured author in Car & Driver

Another celebrity encounter: Davis Adams of Honda Public Relations, and “Lance the Driver.”

And a third! This is the MAN behind Acura: Mr. Kurt Antonius. His name appeared as the designated point of contact on the press releases back in the mid-1980’s when the Acura brand was created as a separate entity from Honda. He’s since retired, but still comes back to attend the shows from time to time. It was great to run into him!

Honda HR-V debut

Filming the HRV with Jason and Sofyan the following morning

Dinner meet-up with great friends

Hyundai after-party with a plexiglass cover over the swimming pool at Hotel Figueroa so we could walk on top of it.

Additional pictures of today’s 2016 Acura ILX unveiling – first, Mike Accavitti’s presentation.

This is the A-SPEC model that rolled out to the stage in Catalina Blue.

Interior

Rear

Rear again

Front

2.4 liter engine

Driver’s side interior

Driver’s side exterior

Accompanying silver ILX on display, with the new accessory 18″ wheels

Nice looking rear end

My good friend Scott who works for Acura’s media agency, Mullen

A few other sights from around the show: Mazda – with Jason conducting a review of the newly-revised 6

Volkswagen’s sexy new “Golf R”

Subaru

Toyota

Hyundai

Infiniti

Infiniti concept car

Bentley

Audi

BMW

Lexus

My trusty old car when leaving the Sheraton to head home from Los Angeles.

Whew!!!! Thanks for reading!

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Las Vegas to Palm Springs: Crossing the Mojave National Preserve

Posted in Arizona, California, ILX, Road Trip on November 14, 2014 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 531,809

Odometer (ILX): 103,603

Trip Distance: 628 Miles

“Stop the car RIGHT NOW!” I ordered to Justin as my eyes affixed on the quickly passing Roy’s Motel sign on the passenger side of the car. Obediently, he cocked the steering wheel to the right and we skidded to a stop on the gravel shoulder from about 55 miles per hour in a cloud of dust. The lengths that I go to for a photo-op is sometimes extreme!

What had caught my eye was a remnant of old Route 66: A true time capsule of architecture from 1936 in Amboy, Nevada that stood as a reminder of what the Mother Road once was. Justin positioned the ILX for a photo op and I immortalized the moment digitally for you all to enjoy.

Determined to keep the weekend fun going, on the heels of our Zion National Park hike, Justin and I decided to explore some new turf and visit friends in Palm Springs, California. My mom served up some delicious sourdough French toast and we hit the road with a full tank of gas and full stomachs. The 100 mile stretch between St. George, Utah and Las Vegas, Nevada was a repeat for me as I’ve driven it hundreds of times. Still, the Virgin River Gorge through the northwest corner of Arizona always provides amazing views in any direction. In its day, it was one of the most expensive stretches of interstate in the country.

It was the route we took after rolling through Las Vegas that brought some excitement to the adventure. Shortly after crossing into the California state line (and passing the landmark “Buffalo Bill’s” casino & rollercoaster) in Primm, we rolled onward for only about another 10 miles on Interstate 15 southbound before exiting on Nipton Road at mile marker 286. I turned over the ILX reins to Justin for a little while. The next few hours were spent in the desert backcountry – winding our way along two lane highways that combined whoop-de-doos, seemingly endless straightaways, and plenty of roadside scenery to enjoy. Pavement conditions were less than optimal, as Justin frequently had to dodge huge potholes while clipping along at 65 to 75 miles per hour. At least the ILX steering is pretty responsive.

It’s a good thing we had fueled in up Las Vegas because amenities were extremely sparse out there. We rolled around with windows down, moonroof open, and music blaring — the temperatures were perfect for an open-air cruise. We blasted through the town of Cima without even batting an eye, but Kelso was worth a closer look. It got its start in 1905 as a railroad depot for the line between Utah and Los Angeles.

When the mining industry boomed in the 1940s, the population maxed out at around 2,000 residents. The mines, however, were only open for a decade and – you’ve all heard this story before – the town pretty much dried up. Today, the original 1923 depot has been restored and serves as the visitor center. Fun fact: Due to its remote nature, Kelso residents didn’t get access to television until the 1970s. (nice overhead shot here from Scott Haefner)

Further down Kelbaker Road from Kelso, we drove past 45 square miles of sand dunes in the Mojave Desert Preserve. The road crossed over Interstate 40 and eventually led us to our next pit stop in Amboy – home of Roy’s. I wish Roy’s was still open for business, but its doors shut shortly after the interstate bypassed Amboy in 1972. Can you imagine being able to time-travel to the heyday of Route 66 and experience what it must have been like? Amboy’s population is 4, and those residents refer to their town as “The ghost town that ain’t dead yet.”

There’s not a heck of a lot to see or do in Amboy today, but just a bit to the west (and visible from the highway) is a 6,000-year-old cinder cone volcano that looks like it would be fun to hike around in or on. Our destination in Palm Springs awaited – and Justin was anxious to pick up the pace – so we moseyed onward. We breezed through State Route 62 in the town of Twentynine Palms, named by a colonel who surveyed the land in 1852. Palm Springs was just another hour beyond that, and we arrived just in time for a fantastic sunset.

Here are the rest of the pictures from this leg of the journey.

Accident-induced traffic at the NV/CA state line near Primm. All that red!

Justin driving past the Kelso railroad depot.

Distance marker near Kelso.

Kelso sand dunes.

I loved this straightaway with telephone poles running parallel to the road.

Rock formations nearing Amboy.

Arrival at Roy’s in Amboy, California. Look closely for a special message Justin sent me from the moonroof of the car.

And yet again.

Waiting for a freight train to pass by.

ILX interior.

Monday morning: heading back to Phoenix from Palm Springs.

Rest area just east of Quartzsite, Arizona.

Love how friendly the interpretive signs are: “Enjoy Arizona.” We sure did!

Thanks for joining!

Hey, on the subject of car longevity:

My friend Scott shared this article with me. It shows just how much butt-kicking Honda does with regard to vehicle reliability when compared to other makes. My favorite part was the section about how the Accord model singlehandedly “beats all of Europe.”

Enjoy! Link here.

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