Sent June 2008.
This is the latest email from mum. She’s doing so fantastically and is very very happy now that Aisling and Andy (my sister and her boyfriend) have joined her out there!
Hope this finds you all very well
Love jess
xxx
Route 66
Just thought I’d tell you a bit about the Mother Road partly really to explain our trip (thanks to Jerry McClanahan).
It was pieced together from an existing network of trails and unnamed roads and was officially born on 11th November 1926 ( 4 days after my dad was born! ) In the 1960’s the inexorable invasion of the Interstates has altered much of it . In other words it does not exist as a single long road but there may be 2 o3 wiggly bits or some which is just Interstate ( motorway). I am taking pretty much the shortest route and of course cannot run on the motorway bits apart from when I did 3 miles running in Illinois early in the morning so as not to wake the boys . I of course was picked up by a nice policeman but not arrested . So I’m not doing anymore motorway on foot!
I was making up missed ‘Interstate miles’ by running to and fro between mile markers that Dom set me , but it’s pretty tedious so to save my brain and body I am not going to make up these miles but will forge on on all walkable Route 66. This will mean that I only complete about 2100 miles rather than the original 2400 miles that I had calculated so I hope no one feels too cheated….
THE TEAM
The Team in the U.S so far has been Dom and Kev who are brilliant friends of my family and they have had a most extraordinary and exhausting time to get us to Albuquerque , which had the most fantastic entry via the Sandia Mountains and it’s a great city but with I suspect a few drug problems .
Anyway Dom’s role gradually took shape with being in charge of navigating Route 66 with maps and GPS . He has to spend much time poring over both because of course R66 is not just a single road as I mentioned . Kev is the purveyor of great food starting with my tuna surprise sandwiches he makes me for my predawn start . At about 10am we have maybe scrambled eggs and cereal and tea. Lunch is a most beautiful humungus salad with so many goodies on it delicately prepared. Supper may be pasta or fish and vegetables and often brownies for pud. I take a pot of nuts and grapes and chocolate along on my travels so as not to get hungry between times . I have a camel-pack with a litre of water and carry extra for the hot times.
They both have to get fresh water and empty the grey and black ( poo!) water every day which is tricky sometimes finding places where you can do this.They then need to do their Wallmart shopping and Kev in particular is in love with same shop as everything is always in the same place in every branch! After all this they need R and R with visiting the interesting R66 sights along the way , going to skateboarding shops and talking to everyone they meet and being generally great ambassadors for the Psoriasis cause and England in general .People often come up to the van and read our psoriasis posters and ask about the trip etc. It is very heartening the good feelings people give and a nice ol’ lady gave $10 towards the cause!
Anyway in 3 days time Aisling ( my 2nd daughter) and her boyfriend Andy will be coming to join us so will be able to give Dom and Kev a bit of help .I think it will be a shock for them with jet lag , getting straight into the trip and the high temperatures which Dom , Kev an’ me have all had some time to acclimatise to..Anyway it will be more adventure for us all, and very squished in the van and hilariously funny I guess!
I’ll let you know..
p.s. the chocolate is e.g.mini Twix’s and I squeeze them out like those Frubes yoghurt drinks….because they’ve melted in the heat.
Be the first to comment