Hi all. My apologies. I have tried several times now and cannot get the internet to work long enough for me to get photos downloaded or a post completed.

This has been a heck of a week for Mike. He and Louis had a brake failure while driving to Wendover. They were on the last day of the trip near Orem, Utah. Thankfully they were able to safely stop. They called a tow service and spent the night there. A local auto repair shop got them fixed up the next day and they eventually got to the salt and then to Wendover to spend Thursday night.

Our gang arrived on Friday afternoon. This included Adam, Hudson, Trey, Julie McRae and me. Separately, Lee and Bonnie Gardner arrived as well. Mike had gone through tech inspection before we arrived but not the bail-out drill. That was to be done on Saturday morning. Our “Inspector Gadget”, Paul, is still a force. Mike was thrilled and had me to go to see him first thing.

We wrapped up the day at the Primo restaurant in the Rainbow Hotel and Casino.

Saturday morning we had to get to the salt early as Mike had to successfully complete the bail-out drill before he could make a run. We also had the driver’s meeting at 9am. Mike was able to get Mike Hopkins to come by first thing and he completed the drill. Then we towed the car to the line so we could make a pass as soon as the driver’s meeting was done. All of this sounded good but we did not make the intended pass until late in the day. Mike was all suited up and the next one in line when another car spun out and the driver was injured. We heard later that he had survived but was airlifted to a hospital.

Mike stayed in the car. It was very hot so we did all we could to keep him cooled. He stayed in that position for 2 to 3 hours. We used an umbrella and then later a tent to keep him cool. We gave him cold water through a straw and he poured it down his uniform.

He did finally get to run. However, there was a problem. We were on a special course because Mike had not been there to compete in awhile and had to step up his speed in increments. In this case the pass would be our only increment. Mike hit something on the course and the force wadded up the front apron underneath the car. The car lifted and stayed up for a bit and then came down without him rolling. Thank the Lord! He pulled the parachutes and cut the engine but below you see the damage done. We were all sick about it but very, very grateful he was walking around by the time we got to him. We were able to tow the car off the course. Then we had to get tools and jack stands to get the wreckage out from under the car because it was cutting into the salt and tearing up the course. Once the guys got the twisted metal our we towed the car back to the pits.

So, after only one run, we are done. Again, I have tried and tried to post. Currently I am sitting in the rental car where everything works just fine. I would have resorted to this earlier but sitting in the car at a casino in the dark did not seen like a good plan. Mike was too exhausted for me to worry him with it so I had to wait.

Here is a photo of the car that Julie McRae took. She is quite the talent.

Here is a photo we took this afternoon as we left the salt for the last time. Thanks to all our rock star folks including our Utah friends who pitched in and made this possible once the truck brakes became an issue. Thanks Dave Holt and Louie Vanderherp. Thanks to Adam Privette and Trey Williamson wihout whom this all would not have been possible. Thanks to Hudson Privette, crew chief, who is a rock star. Thanks to Louis McRae who made the long ride and helped to keep Mike safe as well as working tirelessly on the salt. Thanks to Lee Gardner for his efforts. Thanks to Julie and Bonnie who, like me, helped in any way we could.

Happy trails!