Team Ramrod tours Central Asia

Weeks late....

2006-09-20T11:25:00.000-07:00

... and lets not even get into how many dollars short. But, in spite of relevancy issues, here is The Team Ramrod Fightsong, as recorded (poorly) by me and performed at the benefit show, and then performed (incredibly poorly) in a small village in Kazakhstan.

Pix!

2006-09-02T12:52:00.000-07:00

I have a flickr account now and have uploaded some of the photos. These are just from my camera and start after Volgograd and continue to the end (although I ran out of batteries around that time and soon lacked the car in which to charge them). More to come!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/34264943@N00/sets/72157594264209562/

Team Ramrod circumnavigates the globe

2006-08-25T01:15:00.000-07:00

Team Ramrod landed in Seattle about 5 PM Thursday evening, completing their round-the-world journey. Preliminary reports indicate that they enjoyed themselves on their circumnavigation, but are pleased to be back in the US. Total time spent talking with customs agents - 1 minute. Amazing.

Our other top story concerns the final voyage of Lucas Speedlimit's Micra. Before departing early Wednesday morning, Ian and Yvonne entrusted it to Patrick and Justin.
After a lunch at Dave's, one of his staff was wrangled into helping find a tow truck. After some negotiations with the traffic police, he flagged down their tow truck. It had a winch, which made getting the car up far easier than previous attempts on the smaller trucks.

Once up, it almost appeared to be a waveoff, since the police were demanding 100 bucks. Locals helped get the price down to 50000 tugrug. Here's the car being loaded.
Patrick got in to help direct the tow drivers find the place and off they went. Having no chance to follow along, I went and got in touch with Cory so we could meet up that night, and then spoke with the British embassy regarding the resolution of the accident. I also spoke some with rally Tom, and he is hoping to get the fine reduced to something less preposterous. Let's hope something good comes out of his efforts.

Here is the Nissan at Nairaamdal, where it will finish out its life.

It's official, the stamped car passport for Lucas Speedlimit.

9 people and the 3 cars all reached Ulan Bataar in the end. So it was promised, so it was done, albeit not necessarily according to plan. After the Micra had been deposited at the final dropoff, Ramrod spent the afternoon sharing stories with other ralliers, and then Cory and his wife swung by for a final get together. Huge thanks to them for what they did and for fielding the onslaught of calls from my frantic family.

Afterwards, P and J collected their bags and headed for the airport. Shared the flight to Seoul with Bonkers Bovine. Then the long flight to Los Angeles and the quicker jaunt up to Seattle brought the trip to a close.

Triumph, part two!

Speed Limit Rides Again!

2006-08-22T19:01:00.000-07:00

After a five day struggle, the legal proceedings surrounding the car crash have all been resolved. Ian had to pay a 1000 pound fine, but otherwise is free of all obligation regarding the crash. He and Yvonne brought the news this morning around 4 AM, pounding on the hostel door and putting to rest all the anxieties we'd struggled with over the last few days. They headed for an airport about an hour later, so Patrick and I are the final remnants of the convoy in Ulan Bataar. Jemima did make it into town last night, and we intend to take her to her final resting place this afternoon.

Chiming in at 8,753 miles

2006-08-21T22:31:00.000-07:00

Once again Justin has gotten the better part of the recent blog mileage, but I should put in a few words. First off, thanks to Terry and his family, Pennie and Ron, Margaret and her host mother and Megan, Chris Chris and Bo in Krakow, the Ukrainian Mechanic who fixed our carburetor on a sunday afternoon, the mechanic in Barnaul who fixed our spring for free, and the other mechanics in Barnaul who fixed our spring for $16, and the mechanics in Irkusk who fixed our spring for $20, and the friends and family back home who ran support for us in terms of calling embassies and sorting our cell phone and putting up text messages on the blog site after we lost the phone, plus showed us support throughout the journey. Thanks for power bars and shot blox, and vodka, instant coffee, afternoon tea, clothing that wicks, tires that hold air, thanks to the irridium satellite phone network. Thanks for duct tape and WD-40. Thanks to all the Tatiannas at the british embassy in the ukraine, and to Cory at the US embassy in Mongolia. Thanks to Ian ("Speedlimit"), Tom ("Tommy Gun"), Yvonne ("Ivan"/"Evie"), James ("Glynnie"), Ben ("Prockie"), Tim ("Tiny"), and Cyrus ("Cy") for sticking it out with us in the long haul -- you guys are the best. Thanks for the green stamp and all the other stamps along the way. Thanks for the girls who helped translate for us at the accident site, and to Anna who got to the police station quickly and translated all night long. And special thanks to the loved ones who kept us in our thoughts and showed up in ours along the road.

So we're finally here / and shit yeah, it's cool!, as Guided By Voices say. And shouldn't it be? We have come an awful long way, and seen a huge number of amazing things. When we saw camels in the headlights at 4am just over the Kazak border, and it suddenly hit that we had really GONE somewhere. There are loose ends still to wrap up, plane journeys home, and potential criminal cases still to be sorted out. Some of the difficulties have placed a shadow on the finish, but it's still a pretty amazing finish, if just for showers and real breakfast and places to be where you don't drive anywhere for a while.

As for now, we have time finally to reflect on it all and to try to recollect everything that has happened. We have a couple days to relax in UB before returning home, and we have friends and family and bets and apartments and jobs to return to. Personally, I cannot wait (except maybe the job bit, but that's life and I will take it with the rest). The trip itself will need some time to process in full, but I think the label of "the Awesomest Thing to Ever Happen to Anyone, Ever" fully applies.

Or something like that.

Ramrod to Return

2006-08-21T00:24:00.000-07:00

The Team Ramrod Ulan Bataar-Seoul-Los Angeles-Seattle World Tour finishes up at 4:45 PM this Thursday in Seattle.

Triumph, comrades!

Patrick talks like an English person now

2006-08-20T23:42:00.000-07:00

Last night we gathered at Dave's Place, planning to head out for dinner and then return for a last party. My chance to shower came later, and by the time I arrived, dinner had begun at Dave's. It was unfortunately too late by then for Cory to join us. Fatigue began to set in amongst some of the group, especially those leaving for the airport a few hours later. This essentially broke up the evening's events, so we gathered for a little while in the hotel to collect pictures.

After a trip like this, no one really knew how to say farewell. The brits have some advantage in that they see each other occasionally. Most of the convoy has now gone their own way, hopping aboard their flight to Moscow early this morning. Patrick and I will be around with Yvonne (who received a clean bill of health today) and Ian for a couple days. The events here now seem so distanced from the rally however. No real way to link the city experience with the constant driving of the last month. Most appropriate Kerouac quote in the comments section below.

Here's another selection of pictures, after much painfully slow internet time.

Camels!

Proper rally-driving in Kazakhstan.

Farewell to the Mini.

Roadside party.

Signal mirror fashion accessory actually came in quite handy when the Micra clutch got hot and unhappy.

Heat destroys a well-travelled pair of boots.

Bishkek.

Americans with Margaret's host mother. (P, J, Margaret, Tom, Joy, and Megan)

The convoy before leaving Margaret's. (L to R: Yvonne, Ian, James, Tom, Patrick, Cyrus, Tim, Justin, Ben)

Oops.

All springs repaired, the holy spring features in this shot.

Siberian roadside fuel tank repair.

Above Lake Baikal

Mongolia!

Farewell to Jemima, the other Micra.

So what did you do yesterday?

2006-08-20T23:03:00.000-07:00

Oh, the usual. Went up into the hills outside Ulan Bataar and shot AK-47s with a group of mineral worker expats and the rally organizers.

Here's Mr. Rally himself, Tom, shooting a Dragunov sniper rifle.

When in Mongolia...do as the Mongolians do and abandon all concerns for personal safety.

Team Ramrod 1, Mongol Rally 0

2006-08-19T19:26:00.000-07:00

Ulan Bataar. Team Ramrod just drove 8739 miles in a 75 pound sterling Nissan Micra from London's Hyde Park to Dave's Place in Ulan Bataar.

Unfortunately, it is a difficult victory. Friday night Speed Limit was involved in a crash with a Mongolian driver who had been driving down the road in our lane. Ramrod managed to avoid him, but in the avoidance Speed Limit couldn't see the car and sideswiped it. Thus began a preposterous, confusing sojourn on the side of the road and later at a police station. American embassy was phenomenal! Very helpful, got my passport back, and brought us food on the side of the road. Special thanks to Cory, his wife and their compatriots. It really made our day that they came to see us out on the road. We struggled long and hard with the police, but it appears to be part of a legitimate process now, but unfortunately Ian and Yvonne are having to stay around to resolve the matter and we don't know what exactly will happen.

Morale is a bit low, despite the success, due to the uncertain outcome for Speed Limit. Things are picking up a bit as we realize what we've achieved, but it has been a difficult couple of days. We're trying to find flights out now, but hopefullly a second Mongol Rally party will convene tonight at Dave's Place since we nearly made the official one. Tom seems to think so, and he has been helpful in getting us support.

We're pressed for time since we have to go check in the cars soon, but it's so great to be on internet. I'll throw out a few tidbits from the last couple days, sure there will be more to add as our brains come back to life...

112 hours from Barnaul on Tuesday until we arrived in UB. Continuous push no stops except for the 32.5 hours associated with the accident. I apparently slept through a Speed Limit flat and the final departure of the Fiesta's exhaust one night. The two cars driving into UB were most excellently NASCAR.

The other driver from the accident infuriatingly helped the police measure skid marks - I was ready to bust out a slide rule and tell everyone what really happened. This was one of the times when tempers were harder to control due to the absolute farce concerning the 'crime' scene. But everyone did a great job getting our case across and getting what we needed.

On a related note-being forced to sleep on the side of a highway. Not being allowed to take Yvonne to a hospital even though the entire other family except the driver left the scene. (She is fine) Yes, we are filing complaints and hopefully there will be more embassy action on Monday.

We may have suffered a bad crash, but while waiting on the road that night, we saw what was unanimously determined to be the most amazing rainbow anyone had ever seen. Completely full in a pink sky in the east stretching above the pointy hills (Mongolian countryside is beautiful), while across the road to the west the sky was lit up in an amazing red-pink glow from the setting sun. Stunning. Everyone stopped what they were doing to see it.

Putting the damaged Micra (it doesn't roll anymore) on the back of a tow truck barely bigger than the car itself. A few planks, some brute strength and a pile of stupidity did the job quite nicely.

Super helpful bystanders at scene who took over the unofficial translation from the other local who wasn't particularly compelled to actually translate. Tim and I tried to fix their father's car but wasn't much we could do. Americans were great from the embassy. Cyrus's sat phone really paid off (and so we'll be paying him off).

Seeing the light of truth in people's eyes who believed the other driver's story and then finally listened to what we had to say. Then watching it be pushed away as a million people gave explanations as to why that couldn't be the truth.

Dumping worldly possessions on the side of the road in order to fit all the people in the cars. I maintained a spare radiator was worth three or four of our companions, but was outvoted, so everyone is in UB.

Mongolian ambassador in London called up Tom on his own accord to notify him of our situation when we were trying to figure out how to get hold of Tom. Another big morale booster to hear from Tom while waiting at the police station for hours and the translator he sent was incredible (and her driver really puts pedal to metal)

Justin discusses a feeling: We split off from the Fiesta containing the Speed Limit occupants at the police station last night. They were going to finish off their statements while we got out of town to avoid being dragged back into the affair before counsel with the embassy. It felt awful.

Tom and James getting their passports back at 4 in the morning and then the whole group being forced to have cigarettes with the cops when their ordeal was over. Hopefully, a sign of improvement in the situation.

Ran into Mission Mongolia in Ulan Bataar. Apparently, Anton made out like a bandit in his abandonment in Astana. PS: Bribing your way onto a plane is one experience we've so far avoided.

Strange feelings all around, but we did it. We drove to Mongolia. It'll take the cake if the other Micra gets towed to UB and all three cars go to rest with charity here.

Thanks to everyone who called on our behalf to get us some help on the Mongolian roadside.

NB: Probably not the end of the blog, as we'll update with pictures and more details to fill in some of the gaps, so keep checking if you're interested.

The metals kissed and the fuel turned lively and we are exactly where we want to be, as Patrick might say.

Sunset over Siberia

2006-08-19T19:22:00.000-07:00

Bad roads. Amazing, colossal lightning flashes over the forested hills.

Sunrise in Siberia

2006-08-17T07:36:00.000-07:00

Cold! Beautiful and wolves.

Faith in humanity?

2006-08-16T12:03:00.000-07:00

10 hour Russian border crossing, including P providing soundtrack to perfunctory search of vehicles at guard request and Cyrus pantomiming that I was a geek in response to questions regarding my employment. After a few hours sleep in a field, we encountered a bit of that adversity. Patrick tried to break up a fight between his knife and a watermelon and as a result got cut. This unfortunately required me to wake up in order to help him. We gave him 15 Advil and a Red Bull IV and he seems fine now(really).

The Micra then helpfully turned 2 unwieldy springs into about 6 more conveniently-sized bits. We limped 200km to Barnaul and found a dealership that refused to help us. However, one of the mechanics approached us. He had helped a team last year. He found a friend with a spring and changed one for us. While working, he told us about his faith being orthodox. He refused payment for his help. I knew he wouldn’t accept and was embarrassed to offer him money, but it would have been wrong not to. Amazing that amongst all the people in it for themselves here that someone was still willing to do their good deed. We found another spring this morning and got it replaced so we’re rolling again. After the first fix, the front right of the car was jacked really high. Very cool, earned lots of stares and the name ‘Easy Rider’ briefly.

The car also get referred to as the Passion Wagon due to its magical backseat, which is the best dozing spot in the entire convoy apparently. Secretly, P and I are pumping exhaust fumes back there so we don’t have to listen to the Her Majesty this and that’s from our Rule Britainnia comrades.

Now, springs are one thing, but lack of music can be a rally ender. Cassette player no longer works and cigarette lighter just died, but ramrod refuses to stop.

Adventures in blogging

2006-08-16T11:57:00.000-07:00

[the first of two posts sent in 29 individual text messages pieced together]
Margaret’s place was fantastic! After a night in Almatay, we drove to her village. Crazy run-in: other ralliers had just sold one car. Guess who was in the gathered crowd-Margaret. Strange to meet someone you know only from email, but she was really cool, as were her brother and his wife Joy who were visiting. Megan, another American, also came by for the fun. Three other teams joined the convoy in staying at the house.

Her host mother played the ‘tea’ joke, where she says she’s serving tea but it’s actually tons of delicious food along with chai. A bunch of toasts and then the real party began, going long after the cows came home. Everyone needed to let loose and they did. Guitars came out around midnight and I’m sure the whole village was kept awake. Patrick brought out ‘somany whales’ at the absolute most perfect moment on the trip. That song really brings everything together. People began heading towards the tents under the apple trees, but P and I magically ended up with beds for the most relaxing sleep of the trip. I think being able to absolutely trust our hosts made a big difference. Even with the most friendly people on this trip that isn’t something we’ve been able to do.

More tea followed in the morning. I was strangely first to rise and everyone else oozed out of their tents subsequently. We walked around to check out the local flora and fauna(village Russian name is after an apple grown here). No one really wanted to leave this friendly little paradise and we ended up eating lunch there. It felt a bit like imposing, but we were served the best fried potatoes. We finally dragged ourselves away in the afternoon after pictures and goodbyes to the baby cow, Lada, and Margaret’s puppy, Snoopy. This really was the only place one the entire trip that I found hard to leave. Thank you so much, Margaret and family!

Text from Patrick, 11:30pm 8/14/06

2006-08-15T09:44:00.000-07:00

I'm in Barnaul and we just finished some basic repairs. Plan is to pick up the pace and speed to ub! Itching to get home. [Jen did some research and it looks like other teams taking this route took around four days to arrive in UB from Barnaul.]

Text message posted by Susan

2006-08-12T10:31:00.000-07:00

Approaching Russia. Met Margaret and had amazing food. Western Kaz really beautiful. Can you send numbers for korean airlines? love, j
[note from Susan: Margaret is teaching English in Koilyk, Kazakhstan, but traveling, they may have met up elsewhere]

Ramrod 0, Bishkek 1

2006-08-10T09:26:00.000-07:00

One night in Bishkek cost us 1500 som for a room, and one cellphone. Ramrod has now gone dark, since the 'mobile' was stolen from the car last night. Someone was clearly in the vehicle, but didn't take anything else, like Ben's CD player and CDs or the DVDs that were opened up. Bizarre and annoying. We'll be communicating via Cyrus' phone if necessary. Those with a need to know can contact Susan for the info. This unfortunately means no text or progress updates on the website.

Kazakhstan Part One was a real trip. The roads from Uralsk to Aralsk were incredibly bad. You could literally park a Cadillac in some of the potholes no problem. We actually prayed for the dirt road detours alongside the highway as they were often smoother. We had one afternoon of decent dirt, which turned into the most hooligan-style rally you could imagine. Probably the most fun part of the trip.

We camped a couple of nights in the middle of nowhere, one night quite literally. No structures around and no towns nearby and road on which you were lucky to average 30 miles an hour. Absolutely incredible view at night. The stars were really bright and the Milky Way quite prominent. We keep cooking up delicious variations on pasta sauce, onions and sausages.

Aktobe is described as a 'drab, industrial city' in the Lonely planet guide, but is actually paradise on earth. Gigantic posh hotel for a reasonable price, restaurant outside, happening casinos and cool ex-Soviet aircraft on display. We ran into Mission Mongolia and Blue Lightning, the Fiat team there. They were both having car trouble and considering switching over to rail transportation. A supermarket in the morning helped us stock up for the next day's run through roads worse than you can imagine.

Aralsk was a bit more bleak, but the people quite receptive. We attracted a pack of children at the market (strange to be in a shop without lighting) who walked most of the way across town to see our cars. They seemed to like us better than the adults. The Micra makes quite an impression with its NASCAR engine note. Feels like a proper race car really, other than the engine stalling if you don't keep on the gas.

Ah, I was just handed a tasty 1996 era Coca Cola. Delicious.

Once we cleared Aralsk, we were able to make good time. It's amazing how much you can appreciate smooth road, even flat gravel road. Pretty empty across Kazakhstan. Dry shrubby grass, long stretches of road and hot sun to tire you out.

We stayed at a gigantic casino hotel in Shimkent for about 10 dollars a person. Triple rooms with multiple balconies. Rock solid beds which were amazingly refreshing. Also, at the gas station a woman handed Tim three meat-filled pastries for us which was really nice.

Once outside the city, the terrain immediately began to rise, a mountain range basically popping up just to the east without a lot of foothills. Gets higher in Kyrgyzstan but it was quite beautiful after the long flat stretches of western Kazakhstan. I mentioned in text the thievery in Kyzylorda, which really added a sour note to the previously friendly Kazakhs. It was a situation we should have avoided, but in the end we got the Fiesta exhaust fixed for 20 bucks and a couple headlamps.

The Kazakh/Kyrgyz border wasn't too bad. We tried to get suckered but James played amazingly dumb, fooling the whole convoy. It worked and we got out. No trouble with the Mini either, which was nice. Best part of Kyrgyzstan is the easy availability of beverages. On the roadside will be like ten identical stands selling water, coke, fanta and beer. Pepsi was heavily featured in Kazakhstan but Coke is making a comeback. Water had been harder to find in Kazakhstan. The stands seem to be open all night as well, if you get a watermelon craving while trying to stay awake at 2 in the morning.

We just had a fantastic american style breakfast at Fat Boy's in Bishkek. Has hurt our schedule for today, but I think that along with the internet stop has improved morale. Ham and cheese omelette with some sort of real, non-Cheddar cheese and hashbrowns, plus Yvonne orders fifteen different items so there were pancakes and meat to scavenge.

Interestingly, we ran into a Kyrgyz man on the way to breakfast who actually has been living in Sacramento for the last couple of years. We talked briefly and he said the city was a foreign place to him, it's changing so fast. This is about the only city we've actually been tourists in for awhile (lot of the other towns didn't have much to offer, and we needed to make up time). Lots of trees for this part of the world, cool Mig 21 on a post and the Presidential palace is right in the middle of town. Props to these countries for having lots of old aircraft around. The best was the two Mig 23s in the cornfield in Poland though.

The plan is to set out for Almaty and beyond today, hopefully meeting up with our new acquaintance Margaret in Kazakhstan tonight. Cyrus might ride with us again so we'll probably cover more ground in the video games and movies discussion.

A bit rushed on the post here, so it was somewhat stream of consciousness. Patrick and I are having a fantastic time.

PS: Big thank you to Mike for coming over from the states this morning and punching the parking lot attendant who probably conspired to steal our cellphones. Good, quick work. General consensus among the convoy is that no problem cannot be solved by Zidane, Jack Bauer and Condi Rice. Nice to see someone else stepping up as a go-to guy when things get bad.

NB: We are travelling with two other cars, plus the two individuals from the Mini.

Lucas Speed Limit: Tom, Ian, Yvonne (Nissan Micra)
Aces over Mongolia: Tim, Cyrus (Ford Fiesta)
Team Misc: Ben, James (Formerly of the Mini, now in Speed Limit and Ramrod)

Route since Volgograd: Astrakhan - Atyrau (via ferry over Kazakh moat and gravel roads, really weird, couldn't believe there wasn't a major road at the border; infrastructure in western Kazakhstan almost non-existent)-Uralsk-Aktobe-Aralsk-Kyzylorda-Shimkent-Taraz-Bishkek

Blog Entry sent by Justin via text for Susan to post

2006-08-08T14:11:00.000-07:00

Much has transpired since the last BLOG post from heavenly business center at our hotel. We ended up staying another night there since the convoy caught up with us. Amazingly, Newyorkistan and their convoy showed up at the same time. Much rejoicing and pizza. Most significantly since then, the Mini has gone to the great tiny parking space in the sky. I can verify that it had a shredded wheel bearing, but I have no idea who took it or where it went. Since this event has intimately bound our fate with that of the British contingent, it might be worth giving some impression of who they are. James figures prominently as he speaks Russian, running point on our more complicated communications. Ben is James' teammate and rides with RAMROD aka team usa. Quiet and into music, relaxed and can sleep through car-sized potholes. Tim is a solid Scot with an RAF dad. Loves aircraft. Cyrus loves a good plan and is a huge film buff. Ian 'party boy' entertains with his dancing and bickers with Tom 'Tommy Gun' like they were married. They're both hard to put in writing in a text message late at night. Yvonne reads the Constant Gardener, does not drive and loves dancing. [8 messages long - sent from their own cell number]

Text Message posted by Susan

2006-08-07T09:57:00.000-07:00

30km east of Aralsk. Bad roads better now. Good time. 4476 trip miles. Our phone incompatible with most networks here unfortunately.

Just my two cents ....

2006-08-01T02:47:00.000-07:00

Justin's gotten the majority of the blog mileage of late but I just thought I would chip in and say I am having a (albeit occasionally terrifying) blast. The low point so far was breaking down in the Ukraine. The high point was probably actually the border to the Ukraine, meeting cool people and conspiring to infect the border crossing with our jovial cheer. When we had the wagons circled and were playing the Rolling stones on the car stereo loud, with our little happy camp site just on the other side of customs, and the brits put on the kettle to make tea, it was the most brilliant thing. The random woods party with strangers in Kharkiv would be a close second.

But the best story so far probably happened last night; we were following some (helpful?) cab drivers to a hotel in volgograd. It's about midnight, and we are heading farther and farther out of town. I am wishing i knew how to add "but not a hell hole" onto the "not too expensive" phrase I brought out when we were asking directions. Anyway, we finally are in volgograd's darkest outskirts, pulling up to a parking lot with a barrier across it that lets the cab in. It is pitch black but Justin very intelligently points out that this is where westerners go to die. I had been all for this adventure up until now but I have to admit he has a point, so the micra goes into reverse, gets floored, and pointed back up the one-way highway off ramp we came off of, in the wrong direction and at speed. Neither of us much cares and besides traffic is light, and a quick U-turn across the highway gets us pointed back towards town center, not a cop in sight. So we are catching our breath and playing it cool but of course the cabbies (three in the car?) catch up to us and start shouting at us in Russian, at midnight in Volgograd, strangely trying to point us to the town center as if they were being helpful afterall (and god knows maybe they were). Justin is trying to wave them off and eventually succeeds in handing them 300 rubles through the window of the car as we cruise down the highway, hopefully having paid our debt to the local cab mafia. Considering ourselves lucky to have lived, we drive down to the Volgograd hotel, which turns out to only be $60 and well worth it as they have a car park and it is beautiful.

And THAT is not something that happens to a fellow every day.

I also wanted to say that I miss everyone back home and that its not the same without you. Thanks for your emails, texts, and comments. I miss you Jen!

On the banks of the Volga

2006-08-01T01:44:00.000-07:00

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!NB: Any concerns regarding the breathalyzer text message should be directed towards the United States embassy in the Ukraine. Points of discussion could include: how a person who never drinks alcohol could fail a breath test, why police officers feel a need to stop people for no reason in order to make money, and why the British embassy acted immediately to resolve the situation of citizens being held for 20 hours at the border and the Americans merely told us to get receipts for future litigation if necessary etc.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

!!Phone minutes are also resolved. Big thanks to the crack squad that actioned on this particular item, and especially to Ron for unlocking the bureaucratic mysteries of Vodafone.!!

Much has happened since the last post(which yes, was referring correctly to poland). We teamed up with an awesome group of Brits at the Ukraine border. In fact, the Russian speaker in their midst really helped us get away without large sums of money on deposit. The British embassy also really came through (see above). Special thanks to the squad of Tatiannas who really lit up the Customs Control phones.

Unfortunately, the Mini had some serious bearing issues in Kharkiv. We initially thought it was a brake problem and despite some hurried, in the road repairs, we ended up having to spend the night at a deserted gas station until we could hit the repair shop the next morning. The militsia (cops) apparently use the same area as a staging point, but seemed fine with us staying. The next day they even came over and chatted for awhile, as much as that could happen given the language differences. The other unfortunate news was that the Mini needed to stay until Monday to get the necessary parts. Fearing delays, Ramrod set out alone, two brave hobbits now journeying into the wilderness apart from the Fellowship, as Frodo Tewson puts it. I mainly complain about missing the Shire and how all we have to eat are digestive crackers.

Unfortunately, all we apparently did was declare open season with the cops. Despite our best attempts at making friends with the police while with the convoy, we seem an easy target since. If you know someone in law enforcement, please say thank you to them. There are apparently many different ways of being a cop, and they are not all equal. It is a hassle, but not so bad. We might have to play tougher soon, as the money will become an issue. Or maybe I'll just make Patrick drive more, as he seems to glide right past everything. Knock wood.

Before I go, the actual breathalyzer story, and then a few pictures from the trip (I'm not going to make the effort to do fancy formatting, sorry). We're in paradise in the Hotel Volgograd...Internet!!!- slow internet.

The Micra lost the ability to deliver fuel to the engine. If it sat for awhile, it might run a bit then die out again. We had to spend the night on the side of the road after we had left the convoy. The next morning, we flagged down some guys. They pulled open the carburetor, used a pump to blow out the jets, etc., but still no dice. They drove off and wouldn't tow us. A nice gentlemen stopped with his family, tried some more stuff with the carburetor and then gave us a tow. His daughter spoke a few words of english but we were pretty much in the dark. he just sort of hooked us up and drove off. I was steering the Micra behind him. At the nearest small town, he stopped and asked around. No mechanic apparently. Sorry for cutting you off Angela, we thought we were having a money negotiation. We thought he was driving off and leaving us, but we were still attached. Thus began the 80 km run to Donetsk.

We were stopped by a policeman and our tow man hopped out indignant. He talked to the guy and we got going again without incident. We finally got to Donetsk. The man's wife appeared to be berating him throughout the entire drive, trying to leave us everywhere, but he kept going. On the outskirts of town, he stopped to ask some cops directions. Or to tell them to screw us, not certain. One came over and made me get out. I got to go chat with him, he asked if I was American. All of a sudden, he was like 'Pivo?'. Being one of the few words I recognize, I said 'no beer' 'nyet Pivo'. So I got to go sit in a police car with another man, who gave me my breathalyzer with a rather dubious zero setting. I waited for it to drop to zero, blew a zero and waited for it to climb up to some sort of drunk setting. It did, and he was astonished and wanted money. Negotiation ensued and my (non)drunk driving of a towed Nissan Micra at 7:30 on a Sunday morning resulted in something like a 12 dollar fine. I think he could sense my utter disbelief and hidden irritation, as he is the only cop to return american bills to me. Patrick reminded me that this was the funniest thing that could possibly happen on the trip, which was good because I was about to punch through the side of our car.

Pictures!
Prague at sunset:

P and J at the party in Prague:

Aces of Mongolia and the Mini team- Tim, Cyrus, James and Ben:

Part of the convoy in Lviv (trying to throw sugar packets to the other car):

Again part of the convoy at a cafe by Lviv airport:

Don't worry, we're eating well:

Okay, a chaser for that last one (you asked for it):

Text messages from Rod Farva sent to Susan for posting:

2006-07-27T02:07:00.000-07:00

Poland is an Adventure! The roads are mostly two lane but they make three lanes out of it. Passing markings are basically irrelevant. It's thrilling and makes sense. It was hard to adapt to driving style at first because we drive a car that WILL NOT ACCELERATE. Now, we play the head-on game like champions. I don't know what my codriver thinks when I spit tobacco onto the speedometer and reach for the gear lever, but I am thinking only 'I will not lose'.

We witnessed a defenestration!

2006-07-24T14:57:00.000-07:00

How could I forget? In the city that put defenestration on the map of possibility, Patrick and I were fortunate enough to witness a real, live defenestration. As we drove into the city, we began following another team who we thought might lead us to the party. Instead, they drove to their hotel. While we were waiting for them to check in, we saw a man apparently being kicked out of his girlfriend's apartment. He was on the street trying to make a call, while she slowly threw all his clothes of her 8th story balcony. Fascinating. The defenestration has yet to spread into a larger political conflict, but we're keeping an eye on it.

I found it interesting how similar the Czech republic was to Croatia. This is perhaps not surprising, but so much of the language was extremely close. My croatian numbers were functional, as were a number of other basic words and phrases that seem to have similar variations throughout eastern europe. I blanked on the word for water when trying to get a bottle from the pizza stand. I kept saying water and the lady didn't understand. I thought it was funny, because she then began naming all their beverages. When she said 'still water', I said yes. Somehow it had been learned as one word to her she couldn't pick up what I was saying. That or I was babbling incoherently. Poland is much more challenging, but there are still similarities. You could also found burek in Prague.

And most importantly I want to clarify that the geldwechseln/autobahnvignetten girl at the Czech border only warmed up to Parick when he started pulling crisp $20 bills out of his wallet.

We're in Krakow now, using the internet of Melody's friend Chris, who is very generously putting us up for the night.

Something bland for the road

2006-07-24T03:55:00.000-07:00

Civilization! Thank you, Germany. Finally we get some Mezzo Mix, brotchen (needs an umlaut) and tasty ham and cheese roadside sandwiches. Not to mention beautiful stretches of road. We went to Luxembourg yesterday! Also took the packet to Calais. We're in Prague now, entered the city as the sun set. Absolutely stunning to see the castle with the setting sun behind it. Worth the price of admission so far, and what a price! A couple nights in the car park and a night with friends tonight should hopefully get spending under control soon.

Had a fun time in Prague last night. Ran into a couple of teams we'd met on the road and they helped us party well into the AM. Lumley Run, Obi12Gobi and Smith Monkey provided quite a bit of entertainment and we hopefully will run into them at some point. They're mostly headed south, so who knows when that might be. Prague really has a great vibe at night, it really is more beautiful than most places. I think the riverside bar in Duga Resa beats out the club we visited last night, but it's an entirely different scale in Prague. Dubrovnik has a more relaxed feel, not quite overrun in the same way, so if I was going somewhere to hang out for awhile, that'd be the place but I fear it will end up like Prague soon.

It was funny that the British guys thought it was weird to encounter a drunk american girl spilling her beverage everywhere. They clearly need to attend American colleges. And yes, the Americans we chatted with really had very little sense at all of where Mongolia was.

Learned about the fate of Newyorkistan last night outside the Cafe Dinitz where the party was (yes, there was a cuban band). Hope they get back to driving soon. Would be nice to meet up with them. We appeared to be the only american team in Prague, as we didn't see any people or cars that we knew, but maybe they were hiding. Time to hit the road for Poland.

Onstand summed up a lot of the feeling around here...
" It’s 110°F (43°C) in my office. I’m taking the air temperature with a meat thermometer. I’ll see you when I see you, unless Monday ends casket-style."

Team Ramrod visits Prague

2006-07-24T02:30:00.000-07:00

I'm posting this from an internet cafe in Prague, next door to the establishment previously known as the Marguis de Sade (sorry girls, the rumors were true -- it went out of business). Team Ramrod is safe in Prague! It's been a blast so far, we are both exausted and smelly (well, Justin is currently posting a marathon sleep, but I'm exhausted, smelly, and tack on hungover to that list). The micra is holding up like a champ (rumors of clutch slippage are true but generally only take effect at speeds 20 miles higher than most other rally teams have attempted), and the frayed minds of the drivers are much soothed by a night of traditional Czech revelry, ie a bunch of brits (ok, and americans) drinking themselves stupid. We fell in the Wrong Crowd, of course, a trio of southern-route teams from the UK who had some local knowledge, a powerful thirst, and a hillirious and incredibly entertaining manner in that british way. We left the rally party at some point and went to a lame club in the most beautiful part of the most beautiful city and got properly saused. At one point, an american student from the next table starts a conversation with one of our crowd (in the middle, of course), collapses on the poor fellow, and spills her cocktail on Justin's nice threads. A shame. Our companions proceed to give her the sharp edge of their wit for the rest of the evening, not that she notices.

A quick recap: The launch party is strange, full of nervous tension. Lots of beaurocracy. We get registered, leave to get more minutes for the mobile, and come back to hear the mongolian ambassador give a speech and listen to some mongolian music. Suddenly its time to go, and justin's in the bathroom. He comes sprinting out and we head out onto the streets of London maybe 6th or 8th in line amid much honking, cheering, music blaring, and confused stares from the locals (the record will show that the Nirvana song that goes "I miss the comfort in being sad" played us out). Then hit traffic for the next two hours, finally open highway, and finally board the 5:20 ferry out of Dover to Calais. We are probably one of the first teams to leave the UK (later we learn that our dear friends from Newyorkistan suffered a clutch failure on their Lada, and as of last night were still in the UK! We are cheering for them to catch up ASAP).

Oh yes, text messages. we aren't sure what's going on there. I think they just haven't figured out the text messages on the website yet.

Anyway, back to the trip -- it's raining heavily the first night and we can't find a hotel, so we spend the night in the Micra in a parking lot at a rest stop. As I am going to sleep I suddenly remember that Europeans have freaky sex orgies in these places!! Every passing footstep freaks me out for a bit, then I realize it doesn't really matter. Later we hear of another team's experience sleeping in a car park where there really was freaky sex orgies happening. Crazy!

Next morning, we wake up, hit the road, take a wrong turn in Liege and detour through Luxemborg, zoom pretty much straight through germany (pretty, good sandwhiches, people drive like dicks and I saw like three people almost kill themselves including the guy who hit a large scrap of tire in his VW at about 13,000 miles and hour, which blew his own as well, creating a giant clowd of blue smoke and lots of chaos on the autobahn for a bit). We are consigned to the slow lane at 70-90 miles per hour. The pretty lady at the czech border crossing is the only person anywhere near here who doesn't speak english like a native, and justin and I desperately try to remember high school german enough to get our vehicle pass tax sticker whatever (let the record show that Justin remembers far more german, but she liked me better).

And that's that so far! Just two days on the road and looking toward a third. Prague is beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, and almost completely ruined by foreigners such as ourselves. Ten years ago this place would have been the bee's. As for us? Push on to Krakow where friends of friends have just gotten in touch. Cross your fingers for us that things continue to go so well!

The Godbeast of Zathar

2006-07-21T16:04:00.000-07:00

We pay her homage, and she will watch over us.

Snapped this totally bodacious pic of Patrick just before the Godbeast laid waste to Oxford Street. She almost stepped on him! Wouldn't that have been bad?

Two concerns ahead of the rally tomorrow...
1. The sunscreen wore a hole through the plastic baggie it was in. This means the campsuds and bug spray can now fall out of that bag. We're really not sure what to do about this.

(Speaking of...here's what went into the car tonight)

2. We lack a copy of Will Oldham's recording of "Southside of the World". I think we might see some fierce musical competition on the rally since this event is about style more than anything. Not just clothes and hair, but the complete image of the team. So I've blown it on this one. It also would have helped if we could have managed to get P's music into the pod. Nevertheless, I think our secret mix tapes will acquit us well. We also have a dark horse...Patrick will keep right on whaling long after the iPods lose their charge. There are no misspellings in the previous sentence, for those in the know.

Patrick tarted up the car tonight during the packing phase. I snapped some shots in the dark and have made a little composite. It would be nice to have daytime pics, but I don't think we'll be able to post those for awhile and the car will begin receiving abuse immediately. So here is a pristine, if dark, record for those of you who want to see your sticker. Thanks again for your sponsorship!

Mongolia, tremble tremble tremble.

I'm the luckiest guy, etc.

2006-07-21T15:09:00.000-07:00

`Cause I got wheels, and you wanna go for a ride...

We picked up the Micra from the shop today, early (for us), which began a long day of last-minute preperation. This involved travelling (by car this time) to the bustling metropolis of Haverhill, where essentials such as fuel cans, tow rope, duct tape, canned meat, and toilet paper were purchased for the journey. As Justin and I are both working on sizeable holes in our key-carrying pockets we got the car keys copied so that we can both lose them at the same time. The Micra drives so well after coming out of the shop (thanks to acorn garage) ... the new tires and alignment, plus the considerably tighter shifting, put the finishing touches on what was already a near-perfect driving experience.

Then we returned home .... and ate possibly the most wonderful meal of our lives courtesy of Pennie and Ron. While it is indeed time for us to leave the nourishing embrace of Hall Farm House, I have to say I will miss it ... we have been treated so well, and if this trip provides nothing else it will have reunited me with the relatives on this side of the pond.

Quick Recap; met up with Newyorkistan last night for polish food, it was awesome! We had so much to talk about that it just came out in little spurts of rapid fire conversation. We of team Ramrod managed to eat burgers, drawing some stares, but it's just really what we wanted! Anyway, this deserves more but I gotta go to bed, so I summarize that it was awesome and this rally is going to be a ton of fun.

Then back to tonight, and packing the car. Nothing puts it all in perspective like trying to cram your spare radiator into the trunk alongside your 25 liter jugs of water. We put stickers on the car as well. Everything fits, we are geared and ready to go, and will leave Great Abington early early tommorow to meet up with the Rally at Hyde Park. Have yet to figure out the text messages but hopefully soon? Check the Team Ramrod page for details.

See you in Mongolia. This could be my last post! (Justin will probably add some photos though).

I went shopping

2006-07-20T17:55:00.000-07:00

After a swim and sandwich today, Patrick and I were given a ride by his very generous aunt to cambridge, where we caught the train into london. I astutely directed us to the train where we took our seats, moments before the train departed. I watched it depart with the horrid realization that we were not on it. So we took the slow train on which we were sitting after misinterpreting the platform directions. I was not amused.

We made the city just in time for the banks to close, but Patrick was still able to change some money for the trip. We bopped through Trafalgar Square, since Patrick had yet to see the fountains when they weren't blood-filled (it was an anti-war thing, apparently).

We then strolled down Jermyn street. I made no purchases, since a tailored summer suit probably wouldn't be finished until we'd returned to the states, and the shopkeepers had their shotguns at the ready should I attempt to enter in my ripped shorts and painted tennis shoes.

We did purchase a couple books in the multi-story bookseller on Jermyn, then went to H&M for shorts. I found none, but did get a few other items of minimal importance. We then went to meet up with Newyorkistan. It was after some delay, a stop at Bunker with umlaut over the u, and change of venue, that we were able to sit down at a polish restaurant with Newyorkistan and their entourage.

Before I get too far past Bunker, I'd like to pose a question. You are in a somewhat german-themed, underground pub. You look for the restrooms. You see a door marked 'Herr'. Do you enter?

I won't spoil the quiz, but once inside the restroom, I found sinks with no basins- only a countertop with perforations under the faucets. There were signs which indicated they were automatic taps, but you in fact had to turn them on yourself. It was a strange place. But! It had the only hand drier in England that moved enough air to actually dry your hands. Thank you, Bunker! (with an umlaut)

Back to Newyorkistan...P Han and Roofestan were quite nice. Both different and similar to our expectations, as you might expect. We had an entertaining dinner, and preliminary indications point toward the formation of a convoy. Said wagon train will feature two KEXP bumper stickers, interestingly.

For you blogaholics,here's their link:
http://mongolrally06.blogspot.com/

And yes, mom, I took my malaria pills.

A quick one while I'm away ....

2006-07-19T14:48:00.000-07:00

For those of you who claim to be jealous of Team Ramrod, you should know that while you were asleep in your beds your intrepid explorers were suffering at the DVLA (like the DMV, but British) on one of the hottest days anywhere, ever (go ahead, look it up). Our trip to the commercial and beureaucratic hive known as Peterborough was difficult, hot, invovled MORE getting lost (this time on foot!). The DVLA, like its stateside equivilent, is a place where dreams go to die, as ours almost did when after 25 quid and several hours of travel we are informed by the friendly attendent that the V379 Registration for Temproary (shh) Export form requires my passport, which at the time was safe in Great Abington, several hours away. I plead for mercy and get away with my washington state driver's license, and we leave with the V379 firmly in our grasp.

We also visited camping supply stores, which yielded among other things the ever important twin 25 liter water cans (plastic, really), which gets me excited. We travel home each clutching one of the containers, as the two girls behind us chatter about how silly americans sound. They do a pretty good imitation. We try and think of clever interjections; one of us does, but is too chicken to use it.

IN ADDITION: we have spoken BY VOICE to one intrepid half Team Newyorkistan, disturbing her tax-disc-ery in the process. The Newyorkistanians, made famous now by their publicity-hogging NPR interview, share the dubious title of American Mongol Ralliers with us (and a few others). Tommorow -- we meet face to face! CAN YOU FEEL THE NOISE!?!?!

Can you?

Camp Ramrod, Cambridge, UK

2006-07-18T05:42:00.000-07:00

Both members of Team Ramrod are currently nestled into the lap of luxury in Great Abington, near Cambridge. It's nice enough although possible that the beautiful weather, regular healthy meals, occasional swims, and architecture older than our home country are blunting the competitive edge of the team. Our Nissan Micra is currently receiving similar treatment at the capable hands of Barry at the acorn garage around the corner. Having pried tax and insurance from the hands of the local bureaucracy by way of gentle conversation and generous palm-lubrication, we have only a registration document and supplies left in terms of major hurdles. We now look forward to a long evening sipping tea on the veranda enjoying the sunshine.

First, a recap; after nearly sleepless nights before travelling and nearly sleepless nights during the plane flight across the atlantic, the both of us landed safely in Heathrow airport. Immediately beset by confusion at the foreign culture surrounding us we sat down for a sandwich and felt better, proceeding to the infamous london underground to get into the city itself, and Charing Cross station. This would have been trivial except for the mountain of luggage we hauled behind us, and piled on top of ourselves in a comical heap while on the actual train. At Charing Cross we got in touch with Terry, the seller of the Micra, and then boarded a train to Ashford in Kent. Terry picked us up from the station in his fantastic Silvia and a swift jaunt through the countryside brought us quickly to the farm house.

Terry and his wife are friendly, as are their approx. 19 adorable children. The sun is shining and the micra looks great. Not as much can be said for the first frantic attempts for team ramrod of driving in England, as two lanes share the width of one and everything is backwards. One person drives, the other informs him of what he is doing that is likely to kill us and we adjust. Then we switch and come home. The Micra will do, and if that isn't enough the litter of tiny kittens at the farm house come out to wrestle with each other in the halls. We exchange registration info, pay the kindly family, and are on our way. It should be said that we had at this point been up for a long time and travelled a long time by car, airplane, train, and now are gearing up for two hours of highway driving through a foreign country, in a car that cost us 75 pounds. In fact the drive is not bad at all, except that the mere 5-10 miles over the speed limit I am comfortable with fails to satisfy the insane local drivers, Justin can't stay awake to provide directions, we get lost on the 50 million High Streets in the area, and the number we have for my Aunt is wrong. Ramdrod ultimately passes the first test of foreign navigation, however, and arrives safely in Great Abington none the worse for wear.

Since then, we have dropped by London, eaten Chinese food, enjoyed my relative's gracious hospitality, gotten insurance for the car and tax, and are currently poised for more adenture in local commerce and a trip to the DVLA for a registration document. Everything is coming up Ramrod, and we are in good shape to meet the crew in Hyde park four days hence.

Keep your comments coming, we appreciate the news of home!

First pic

2006-07-16T17:47:00.000-07:00

The rumors are true. We are in England, but I assure that we have been well treated. Patrick's aunt, our generous host, prepared a great lasagna last night (low fat too). She also made up some fried eggs and ham for breakfast, which I consumed after waking up around 2 this afternoon. It really was the best sort of day to sleep through-bright, sunny and warm.

We took the train into London today and met up with Emily. After sitting in the park for awhile, we went to a restaurant in Chinatown for some incredibly good food. Crispy beef, black bean chicken, hot and sour soup, duck with pancakes and some of the best sweet and sour I've ever had, on pork ribs.

Other than not being able to walk on the grass at the 'college' (it has members and doesn't offer classes) and Emily being picture-happy, today played out quite well as an excuse for avoiding anything rally-related.

While stopped at a rest area during the search for High Street in Abington, we discovered a local restaurant chain here called KFC. They sell the most incredible item, called popcorn chicken, and there's nothing quite like it after 48 sleepless hours. Despite my encounter with this new cuisine, my experience with England's road system has perhaps ended my love affair with the country. The British fondness for the roundabout has made me question all claims made towards the advancement of civilization.

Before I'm deported for being overly critical of the road infrastructure, I'll post the first pic of the trip. This moment occurred around 600 miles west southwest of Ireland as dawn broke over the Atlantic and after the man in the row in front of us had finished watching Unforgiven on his laptop. Thank you, man. It really helped me manage the period halfway through Bringing Up baby into the first part of the time when there were no more good programs available on the entertainment system.

Our Text Messages

2006-07-16T05:24:00.000-07:00

Should be available at: http://mongolrally.com/teamdata.php?teamid=175 when we start posting them.

Provided we manage to get a cellphone and get the system sorted out.

Ramrod lands on Terra Firma

2006-07-15T13:50:00.000-07:00

We are in the UK! We are safe! I own a Nissan Micra and met the most adorable family on the planet. We drove the car from Kent to Cambridge (with unexpected detours).

More later, for now I have not slept in so, so long .... tommorow, London!

PS Whomever wrote supportive messages in chalk on my walkway and sidewalk in the night, for us to find as we stumbled to the airport at 5am, who are you? We love you! Thanks so much!

A single Chesterfield wrapped in a page of the Bible

2006-07-13T12:47:00.000-07:00

T minus Awesome...

Thanks to everyone for supporting Ramrod! Here is the evidence to support Patrick's claim regarding our fundraising status.

Thanks also to Susan's dad for providing us with tools and suggestions for appeasing the natives when things get out of hand.

Thanks to Susan for helping with everything packing related, as well as picking up our main dietary staples for the trip(Powerbars) and being patient while Caitlin and I reaffirmed the impossibility of conversation.

Speaking of, a huge thanks to Caitlin's old high school boyfriend, and all his love, desire and knowledge of pumping and things that have nothing to do with pumping. Man, your mix tapes are going to keep Patrick and I pumping all the way to Ulan Ude and beyond. Uh, so to speak. And thank you Sarah for managing your embarassment while Caitlin and I brazenly commented on the superior craftsmanship that went into you (yes, Caitlin has punched me), as well as being willing to suffer the porch while giggling buffoons overran your room.

Also a big thanks to the mix maestro, Jay, who still reigns supreme in the fast and lethal underground of the mix tape mailing ring. Here's to keeping your hands for many years to come! Jay also deserves another big thank you, for he has given us an irreplaceable strength on this journey through his recounting of his time under fire in the waning days of the Second World War. Mike, you should definitely record his experiences on tape while we're away.

Tomorrow's the big day. I'll borrow from the stranger (cf The Big Lebowski) to fire up the voyage of destiny...So we go, down through the generations, westward the wagons, across the sands of time until...aw, look at me, I'm ramblin' again.

If we fail, do not pity us, we were weak. (scratches mustache) Catch ya further on down the trail.

UPDATE: (This is Patrick now) I would like to thank my sister for putting me onto this crazy venture, Angie and Zayce (I walked over to the cafe after work and said 'is this a good idea' and they said 'YES!' in unison) and everyone from Allegro who keeps me caffinated, Sascha's mad mix-tape-ery, also very much Mike for his support, Mel for taking care of my cat, the benefit show gang, everyone who donated, Terry for his car help, and Jen for her patience. You all rock!!

A long drive for someone with nothing to talk about....

2006-07-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

Tommorow morning, early early, Justin and I board a plane bound for Heathrow airport. Some 16 hours later we will arrive and then look to travel to Kent to meet our car, and the ever-helpful Terry who currently owns it. In some ways our Rally begins then, because we will be immediately set to the roads in a foreign country with no sleep and only the slimmest idea of what in the hell is going on. Much fun!

Things are going well in terms of preparation, apart from STA's apparent misunderstanding of the term 'overnight' to mean 'more than three nights', and the bother of keeping my up-to-now neglected typhoid vaccine cold throughout a transcontinental flight and subsequent overland travel. I have a $25 pair of underwear now ('17 countries, 6 weeks, one pair of underwear' the package claimed in a frightening manner), though, so it should all be okay.

I imagine you will hear from us, gentle reader, sometime after we have arrive in the UK. Stay tuned for news of car registration/insurance/tax, cell phone purchase, and procurement of much needed supplies once we are there.

Oh, Team Ramrod is listed as the fourth highest contributer to the Christina Noble Childrens' Foundation on the Justgiving website. Pat on the back, everyone!

Patrick bought a hat!

2006-07-11T13:22:00.000-07:00

We also talked about the rally. This has not happened since before we registered. Susan also pointed out that travel insurance, which we were lackadaisically pursuing, was in fact required for the rally. She also tried to tell us about the bad things in Russia, but we would not listen.

iTunes will not let you upload music from your iPod. That is so stupid. So stupid it has made my codriver love Mark Cuban, and this concerns me. But the internet tells me how to do this thing which cannot be done. So the iPod preparation continues. Now I just need a 2 day long cassette tape to make a backup of our music in case the pod is stolen by some rally organizer.

I stoop so low to reach so high. I should not write during lunch.

Make friends fast!

2006-07-07T20:46:00.000-07:00

What better way to show your Russian spirit than a Hammer and Sickle digital music player? Show that you're hip to the future while giving a sly wink to retro cool.

Join the Revolution.

Pick up your iCCCPod today.

Because every former superpower loves jokes about its controversial past...from citizens its successful former enemy...

Patrick, remember how I said if we got in trouble, and were having difficulty explaining to the police what we were doing, that we could refer them to this blog so they could see we're just fun-loving tourists? I don't think we should do that anymore.

I got a injektshun

2006-07-06T20:12:00.000-07:00

I also had a little spat with a pharmacist.

So today I was doing a little vaccination procrastination, all rolling up on shots that won't give me protection until I'm overseas and everything. After learning that I have a 'condition' (injections stimulate my vagus nerve encouraging a drop in blood pressure - I can do nothing), I went to the pharmacy to pick up some meds. One of the boxes contained pills that, as I understood it, were condensed thai food.

I told the pharmacist how awesome that was, and that I love thai food and that will probably really hit the spot after a couple weeks of mystery cuisine. She then got up in my face and was like 'no, these will keep you from getting thai food' and I'm like 'the hell I won't be taking them then' and she's like 'the crap of heck you will' and then we kind of departed from peaceful means of determining that she was wrong.

I don't recall if she slapped me or if I tore up the brochure first, but I punched her monitor and she was fingernails and screaming about the most bizarre of side effects. In the end, Security made it very clear that there were other ways to take the pills. So I guess I'll be finishing the dose over the next week.

Anyone else have 'typhoid' on their to-do list? It's unsettling.

Barriers falling down....

2006-07-05T16:11:00.001-07:00

Real progress is being made at team Ramrod headquarters! While Justin is off foraging for energy blocks and providing what may just be the best blog post in the history of the sport, some major steps have been cleared:

- Our visas came in! We now have Russia (x2), Kazakhstan (x2), Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan.

- We raised enough charity cash

- We appear to have found a car! Thanks to Terry and the Japcar culture club for patiently working with us.

But most importantly....

- I have procured mirrored aviator shades

So it looks like we are pretty good to go. Now if only I didn't get dizzy and start to faint every time I think of the trip, it would be far easier to try and plan for the remaining details....

We have energy bloks!

2006-07-02T15:39:00.000-07:00

Technically they are Shot Bloks energy chews, but whatever. In trying to find some sort of electrolyte replacement strategy, should Patrick and I be stuck somewhere in the desert sweating out the ones we have, I've become overwhelmed by the extremely wide technological variety now available. Every form of chemical action has now been channeled into a quick replacement product providing 4-8% of one's RDA sodium, 1-3% potassium, and 6-8% carbs, no fats. One can choose between colloidal amalgam, gelatinous hydro-stabilized solid, buffered powder solution, non-reactive propellant-fueled inhalation, or accelerated-sublimation interstitial crystal-lattice energy boost. It's really quite extraordinary and I can't say no to any of them.

The related note to this story, is that I just yupped out at REI in order to pick up additional supplies for the journey. I grabbed two Cultural Protection Barriers (each alarmingly holds two people), self-sterilizing tritium-fueled camping spoons, and the Hugo Boss signature model Lincoln Navigator, complete with mosquito-vaporizing, electrostatic generators; free-flow exhaust; 16 unit capacity bike rack; and integral Bribe-a-pult, capable of launching up to 5000$ in cash through the side of an armored-personnel carrier. Every time you hit the horn, it plays the Star-Spangled Banner (a Herb Alpert version, rather than the genre-defining Jimi version) and it has a button which launches 12 GI Joe action figures 200 feet in the air before they float down on American flag parachutes. In a nod to our Muslim destination countries, I did spring for the optional Gulf-Bling package, which includes Red Crescent spinner wheels and a Yasser Arafat bust for the hood ornament. This visit was expensive.

----

We have energy beans!

2006-07-01T22:33:00.000-07:00

Thanks everyone for supporting us at the Benefit show! Special thanks to those who helped (Susan, Kim) and everyone who played. Kudos to Mike for providing dope Mongolwear and to the Allegro for hosting. As for the money...consider it emBEZZled! Naw, it went into the coffers and guess what? We've met the minimum goal for participation on the rally. I encourage those of you who were thinking about contributing to still go ahead and do so, as every additional bit is a wonderful bonus for the charities involved.

As to the title of this post, I just came back from a little preparatory shopping. In addition to the basics like band-aids and Atomoexplosedrine ("Never Sleep Again!!"), I picked up a couple of exotic nutritional energy products. I figure after a week of not being able to ask for food, a shot of electrolytic slurry might be just the thing to reactivate our cell processes. The standout amongst these new items is something called 'energy beans'.

Apparently an attempt by a certain confectionary conglomerate to legitimize the consumption of sweets, I am suspicious as to both utility and flavor of these brightly colored athletic nuggets. Well, a little niacinimidic citrate suspended in carnauba wax probably can't hurt every now and then, I suppose. If you're interested in learning more, there is a tour of the factory available. Try calling 800-JB-BEANS.

I also screwed up while checking out, persistently rebuffing the attempts of the Russian-speaking checkout clerk to learn more about our journey. Some men will always be stupid, as the saying goes.

The Benefit Show!

2006-06-26T15:28:00.000-07:00

So, team Ramrod got a whole bunch of friends together and put on a concert event at Cafe Allegro to raise money for the team. We pulled in $285, which is great! (This should show up in justgiving soon, right JW?) A thousand thanks to everyone who played, to Susan and Kim who helped organize things, to everyone who donated raffle items, to Jay and Cafe Allegro for letting us put on the show there, and to everyone who came to the show. Team Ramrod loves you with an undying flame and will think only of you (yes, you) while trailing dust across the steppes of Central Asia.

First up was none other than Justin and Patrick of Team Ramrod. Patrick played a song or two and then was joined by Justin to rock out further. During this time Patrick attempted to compose a song in honor of WNBA center Lauren Jackson, having auctioned off the composition at the beginning of the set. The "Lauren Jackson" song was played for the first ever time as the last song of the set.

Next up was Mike, also known as Handsome International Man, and perhaps playing under a moniker too complex for me to remember? He was joined at times by Justin and also by the wonderful Kristy, who lent her dulcet tones to the excellent songs that were played. Mike also auctioned off a spontaneous composition -- this one went to a high bidder requesting the subject of "Cats". As usual Mike surpassed all expectations.

After this and some raffling, I like Danger? took the stage and crooned their way into the audience's heart, and amazed with their instrument-switching dexterity. Layerd harmonies and songs about friends, all in performed in a danger-loving way.

Following this, three of four members of a reunited Xander took the stage to shower their love upon those assembled with songs about dogs in space, last of the mohicans, thinly disguised double-entrendres, and suicidal electronics.

At the end of the night everyone got together for a rendition of the song "So many whales!" It was a euphoric and fitting end to the evening. The crowd and performers then disperesed for rest or afterparties and unloading gear, and Team Ramrod watched the day end with a warm feeling in their hearts at all the support they had received, and then returned to planning logistics for their trip.

Benefit Show and gathering

2006-06-14T17:48:00.000-07:00

Come out to the (southernmost) Cafe Allegro to show your support Team Ramrod's epic quest to reach Monoglia. Cover charge at the door should get a drink discount. All ages, tell your friends!

New Sponsorship info

2006-06-13T17:29:00.000-07:00

See the new sponsorship info at:

http://staff.washington.edu/ptewson/ramrod/car.html

Watch as the car is covered by stickers by clicking on the "See current stickers and sponsor us now!" link near the top of the page.

Jisas ye holem hand blong mi

2006-06-11T17:19:00.000-07:00

Recently, I've been running things through in my head, trying to get a picture of the rally. No matter what I try to picture, the same feeling keeps returning--fear.

I am afraid that my codriver is not ready for the fame that awaits him on the other side of the world. I don't think the author of "So Many Whales" and "Smile for a Friend" has any sense of the magnitude of international adoration he can expect. I fear that such a simple fellow may not respond well to the hordes of fans that we may encounter.

With anyone who has not heard his brilliant tunes soon to experience them at 146 decibels from our 1000cc guitar amplifier, I worry the onset of global fame may catapult Patrick into the stratosphere of megalomaniacal lunacy. And how do I as his observer, scribe and driver respond to the rapid expansion of Patrick's popularity and ego? How might the Dr. Watson of roadies aid the Sherlock Holmes of indie rock? At what point does a bizarre desert betrayal by one's close friend become a more compelling narrative than the ascension into perpetual, media-driven stardom? Does the end of a man breathe eternal life into his music, or can man and music exist simultaneously? Should they? Are we the jungle or is the jungle we?

What purpose does our slow, winding progress across the serpentine roads of Asia serve? Many from Don Delillo to Joseph Conrad caution that such journeys are fraught with the perils held within our psyches. When should literary men fear experience? Should men of action fear their own will?

I'm open to suggestions or counsel on this matter.

Team Ramrod has a website

2006-06-09T16:16:00.000-07:00

The Team Ramrod Website of Champions

Don't tell work, I'm hosting it from my staff account.

Route Map 1st Draft

2006-06-07T17:33:00.000-07:00

So based on some weird necromancy, half-remembered conversations with my codriver, and some odd combination of the conflicting information provided by several different on-line and paper maps, plus a healthy amount of lifting text and code from the Mongol Rally website, we have produced this:

The Route

I had a passing impulse . . .

2006-06-02T15:51:00.000-07:00

To pick up this Fiat 500 and stash it my office until we left for London:

To give an idea of scale, this car has about the profile of a large-ish road bike. It was parked at the side of the road while I was walking back from lunch, just the perfect little Mongol Rally Adventure mobile.

It's everywhere you want to be, except WaMu

2006-06-01T13:52:00.000-07:00

Visa services has again seen the intrepid faces of Patrick and me. While trying to get our Kazakh, Uzbek and Kyrgyz visas, we had a fine experience in the art of making friends. I believe is the most important travel skill when journeying off the beaten path.

Our bizarre travel plans piqued the interest of another traveler who was himself headed to Kyrgystan for some trekking, the source of Kyrgystan's growing fame--that and their potential to be bed-partner in the libidinous warmaking of the Administration(oops, what did I just say?). Patrick gamely engaged him in conversation while I tried to ignore the sixteen clocks on the wall telling me how many buses I was missing not only in Seattle but Copenhagen and Tokyo as well.

This fine gentlemen even offered us a few tips on towing and various other subjects, so it was quite a worthwhile meeting despite its brevity. It is always interesting to see people's reactions when you tell them what a frightfully moronic trip you're planning.

In other news, our Russian visas look really cool. The same cannot be said for the fruity new American money which will get us laughed out of Central Asia should we try to pass it off as real dollars. As far as I'm concerned the switch from pure green and black ink to this mockery marks the death of freedom and the American Way. I suppose there's always the suitcase full of $10,000 bills to really get things moving...

Terra Nova

2006-05-25T16:56:00.000-07:00

I remember quite clearly as a child watching a BBC drama based on the twin (and competing) expeditions by the Norwegian, Roald Amundsen, and the Brit, Robert Scott, each seeking to be the first to reach the South Pole. The part that really sticks out in my mind occurs after both expeditions have arrived at the edge of the ice and are preparing for the overland aspect of their journey. Travel in the polar regions being somewhat difficult, both have been beset by adversity, but then the fateful moment occurs -- a messenger approaches Amundsen with the news he has been dreading to hear; "Scott has landed his equipment on terra firma". Amundsen's eyes narrow at the news and dramtic and tense music plays, setting the stage for the rest of the drama to be played out.

Anyway, it is with the same sense of affected drama that I report to you: Team Newyorkistan has a car!

How could we have fallen behind at this early stage? Did Ramrod linger too long during the decades-long eugenics program required to produce Justin and I? Did the years of study with spiritual leaders in the alps take time away from an effort we could have devoted to untangling beaurocracy? Have we become distracted by the playboy lifestyle of jet-setting adventurers?

On thing is clear, this piece of information has only strengthened our resolve and quickened our pace. There are other pieces of crap to be purchased in the UK! More visas to Central Asian Republics to be handed out to would-be travellers! Even as we speak team Ramrod representatives are in touch with visa and visa support agencies, carefully bringing the threads together and weaving them into the perfect pattern to support the weft of our travels.

Adversity, we salute you!

A brief stop for humor

2006-05-24T11:58:00.000-07:00

Q: Why does the temperature in Ashgabat always remain the same?
A: Because its Ashgiabatic

Yes, benefit events. Benefit show in June? At allegro? Dune Party?

Snakes on the Grill

2006-05-22T14:09:00.000-07:00

Planning must commence! Now that we've conquered a few trivialities related to rally prep, visas for example, the important issues need to be addressed. And we're going to begin addressing them right now. Yes, we must set up a fundraising event.

This gala will promote the sponsorship of our designated charities who we hope will benefit extensively from our foolhardy quest. Also, attendees might have fun, but our most important goal will be to fake Patrick's death so the Dept. of Defense will not come looking for him while he is 'indisposed overseas'.

Patrick and I don't really plan parties for a living or anything, so suggestions are welcome and encouraged. I imagine we'll provide some music a la Brittain or Handsome International Man, and maybe even American Meat Monsters or god forbid a Xander reunion suicide. Perhaps we'll even debut the new snake man movie. For venues, I think Vladimir Radmanovic's floating pleasure palace is the top choice, so let us know if you have an in there.

You know, we've never actually had a Dune party, and being that this is Baron Harkonnen's first trip to the land of Spices, it might be apropos. Expect me to grow out my eyebrows to support him. Anyway, it will be one hell of a party whatever goes down since we'll be as committed to this event as we were to possibly completing all of our necessary paperwork. Oh yeah, special thanks to Caitlin for the inspirational messages from andrewww.k. on the art of partying. She just might win a free liter of cola.

Attention, the UK!

2006-05-02T13:46:00.000-07:00

We just bought two one-way tickets to London, we hit the ground early on July 15th. Check it.

Hello again

2006-04-30T15:07:00.000-07:00

I have negelected this journal of late, but only because my efforts have been focused on Rally preparation. Specifically, figuring out the car registration situation (verdict: doable in one week or less with a non-zero minimum of underhanded chicanery) and getting some of the nuances of the route down in preperation for the first round of visa applications. Tickets to be purchased tommorow, is the plan (for you Americans on the rally following this, not sure if you have noticed but the flight to the UK is likely to be horrifically expensive).

There's been a lot of discussion about music on the forums recently, and on this subject I'm proud to announce that we have just closed a deal with Sonic Youth to have the band follow us on a flat bed truck for the duration of the trip as they compose and perform an epic noise-rock opera in real time chronicaling our journey. It seemed like a longshot at first but I phoned Thurston and he was really enthusiastic about the project from the get-go. This does make the supply train a little bit complicated, however -- apparently, if Kim Gordon doesn't have her special brand of beef jerky available at all times she just freaks out. But I feel the added publicity this lends the team is worth the effort.

Team Ramrod tours Central Asia

2006-04-19T13:44:00.000-07:00

I went to an informational session on travelling in Central Asia last night. It was not particularly informational, more to sell a tour than anything I think. The lady giving it was a tour guide, and had a number of slides of Uzbekistan through to Ashgabat in Turkmenistan. Really only a portion of the Silk Road.

Useful tidbits:
1. Don't drink the milk or eat ice cream
2. She would backpack independently in Uzbekistan, but she knows the language.
3. Turkmenistan looks like Caesar's Palace in Vegas. All white marble, fountains and gold stautes of the president.
4. You're supposed to have a guide in Turkmenistan
5. Supposedly cops leave tourists alone in Uzbekistan and stop all the locals on the roads. Could not confirm how true this was.
6. Garcia's Family Mexican restaurant on 45th is about like any other in its category.

"I don't see any god up here"

2006-04-10T10:51:00.000-07:00

My codriver has gone and found The Baikonnur Cosmodrome. This is the type of thing I have him along for.

I have long held an unnatural fixation with Baikonnur, mainly do to an adolescent attraction to space travel combined with an appreciation for the Soviet aesthetic when it comes to branding and the soviet space effort in general. They have this sort of no-BS-and-look-good-doing-it thing going on that I've always appreciated. And I believe Baikonner is where Sputnik launched from, where Laika left on her journey, and where Yuri Gagarin left to be the first human in space. Holler!

For this reason, I would really like to go to the east of the Aral Sea. The route map shows a split around it, but the road maps I have seen thus far don't actually show any appealing road options, just a railroad track to the east and south that runs down the center of Uzbekistan, and marked roads that run down the southern border of Kazakhstan but would require backtracking to hit the checkpoint in Samarkand. A direct-ish route around the north side of the Aral sea to Samarkand would be much, much appreciated.

Regarding the Aral sea, it has come to my attention that, "this place seems wicked awesome."

Power

2006-04-09T02:30:00.000-07:00

Mix tape? Will our car have a cassette player? Hopefully yes. I have been considering bringing along the iPod with the tape adapter. Mucho mix, and it's pretty unobtrusive. I think it would survive. It just occurred to me that we won't exactly have a lot of opportunity to charge it up. Hmm...

My medical insurance dries up this Wednesday. Anyone know any good street doctors who do innoculations?

Chevy Tahoe

2006-04-05T18:16:00.000-07:00

Cool! Chevy has this thing that lets you make commercials, so my sister did one for us:

Ramrod Advert

She is too clever by half, that sister of mine.

The Mighty Beef

2006-04-05T13:01:00.000-07:00

Does anyone know how much beef jerky you can legally transport across Central Asian borders? When I picture my cravings for a tasty snack on a cross-continental drive, my mind imagines the succulent chewiness of flavorful Oberto brand Oberto Beef Jerky. The many varieties, like Oberto Teriyaki or Oberto Kippered Beef Steak, offer a choice for every situation. What better token of international friendship could be offered to gracious hosts on the journey? What spirit of international exchange is not buoyed by delicious Oberto Beef Jerky? If you know about the customs laws, let me know. Oh Boy! Oberto!

I feel like a lady trying to remind her man it's their anniversary coming up.

Team Ramrod tours Central Asia

2006-04-04T13:45:00.000-07:00

PS: The Lonely Planet guidebook for Central Asia has through a most nefarious connection made its way into my hands. I have begun a modest perusal.

In other news, the steering rack translates rotational motion of the steering wheel into linear movement. It is quite possible this is related to the direction the wheels are pointing.

Team Ramrod tours Central Asia

2006-04-04T13:39:00.000-07:00

3/3 dawg, perfect score...to the extent that the government has not lied to google. There is one small problem though. It did not have driving directions for any of these cities. How are we going to find our way there? I will try mapquest even though I hate it.

The End Point!

2006-03-28T15:59:00.000-08:00

I'm 90% sure this is it -- Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia. It's a sizable town with an airport, at least.

UPDATE: and Almatay?
UPDATE: and Samarkand?

Give give give!

2006-03-27T17:19:00.000-08:00

Donate to the Christina Noble Children's Foundation for Team Ramrod
Donate to Send a Cow for Team Ramrod

NOTE: Please do NOT use the "PAY ON COMPLETION" option at the justgiving site; trust us that our team intends to do everything in our power to complete this journey, but it is possible that events beyond our control could prevent us from finishing. If worse comes to worse and China decides to turn Kazakhstan (and us with it) into a giant glass lake MAD-style, we would like to think that the poor children of Africa could still get their cow. We are trying to figure out how to get that option removed from the websites, but until then please use the "SPONSOR US NOW" option.

Team Ramrod has taken steps to legitimize itself by securing two methods of contributing to the charitable sponsorship of our little drive. To participate in the rally, we must raise a minimum of 1,000 pounds for the approved charities; 25% of this amount must go to Send a Cow, a charity that provides livestock, training, and advice to poor African farmers. 75% of this amount must go to a charity that benefits Mongolia itself; we have chosen The Christina Noble Children's Foundation, a charity devoted to improving the lot of children primarily in Vietnam and Mongolia.

So, to ensure the donations are spread evenly, we ask you, the reader, to now think of a number from 1-4. Think hard, get it in your head, make sure you have it set and firm in there.

Great! Now, if the number you are thinking of is 3, Please Donate to Send a Cow. If you were thinking of a 1, 2, or 4, please Please donate to The Christina Noble Children's Foundation.

This division is necessary because, even if we raise one million dollars for one of the charities, we still have to make sure we get at least the minimum donation for the other one else we don't get to go.

Team Ramrod tours Central Asia

2006-03-24T19:19:00.000-08:00

Dear Patrick,

Many greetings from the eastside of the mighty Lake Washington. In response to your queries, I am well other than my eyes bear the strain of staring at a computer for the better part of today. I wish to send my deepest thanks for your gracious hospitality this evening past. Your welcome of myself and my lady companion echoed quite brilliantly the deep fraternal undercurrents whispering throughout the subject of our viewing, Red. Similarly, I applaud your efforts to engage in discussion with other participants on the right daft adventure unfolding before us. Surely the spirit of camaraderie you endeavor to cultivate shall make its value apparent at a later and more needful time.

All due compliment aside, I must unshutter the dark windows of reserve which have thus far disallowed open discourse on a most important subject. I suppose you took the first step via electronic mail earlier today, but I must say the manner of your delivery, with its spirit bordering on the blaise, and the limited scope of your suggestion disconcerted me.

Although I possess the battered nylon string acoustic guitar of which you spoke and it serves no purpose now but to patiently await the time when it meets destruction for a higher cause, I hardly imagine it solving our current musical needs. Bear as it might, six strings, and change their pitch one may by wrapping a set of fingers around the telegraph pole masquerading as its neck, it is a guitar in name only. I simply cannot imagine undertaking this journey without a proper instrument, all ruggedness aside. Furthermore, I declare our mighty cause to 'Make the World England' truly underserved by a few preposterous flamenco stylings on a fruitbox tarted up with nail polish and fretwire.

Despite the ominous shadow I cast upon the issue, I remain positive. A possible solution may be found by increasing our ranks to three, by inviting along the Epiphone. It is a masterpiece of low-cost engineering: eminently playable, strikingly finished and imbued with a dark spirit of a depth sufficient to partner with the vast unknown expanses of Central Asia. I can testify both to its steadfastness and pleasurable tone.

An acoustic guitar however, in its very nature is wedded to fragility. So I have considered bringing along the newest thoroughbred in the stable, the Stratocaster. Although lacking a soundbox, this sleek beauty carries with it a legendary reputation for near indestructability, a fact to which Buddy Guy will testify when pressed. Like a windburned Eleanor of Acquitaine, if she emergeth she may be the worse for wear but unvanquished in her essence. Also, the strat aptly bears the name Natasha, or perhaps too aptly for I harbor fears of the treatment she will experience being passed amongst the many and varied hands out on the road.

An electric guitar may also be amplified, and while this poses some difficulty far from the reaches of civilization, I have a few ideas. I believe a Nissan Micra bears appropriate dimensions such that the backseat may be removed and replaced with an array of speakers, four each of 10" and 12". These could be connected to a couple of cathode tube amplification units for a magnificent, continent-deafening sound machine capable of travelling over 31 kilometers in an hour. I shall be sketching schematics later this evening.

A most important point not yet raised concerns the ratio of guitars to drivers, which currently is at 1:2. I propose this be raised to something more sensible, such as 1:1 or possibly even 5:2. Possessing no possible escape from the other's personality, it follows accordingly that we might sharpen our skills in the duet in the time provided us. I can picture no finer delight than a brandy-drowned rendition of His Majesty the Hedgehog delivered full-volume at half past midnight in some sleeping village on the arse end of 71 degrees East.

I view myself as a fair chap, believing in a balanced division of labor. Since this task of finding suitable instrumentation in sufficient quantity could very well be an extended and nebulous effort, I volunteer for the good of the team to see to its completion. While you handle visas, insurance, vehicle registration and the like, I shall roll up my sleeves and visit the various guitar merchants and traders about and suffer their fork-tongued practices that we might find suitable accompaniment. I confess, this issue weighs upon me moreso than any other, save what finery shall comprise our costumes on this expedition. It shall be good to throw these horses overboard and raise our mainsails in more favorable winds.

Most Sincerely,
Rod Farva

I AM DEFINATELY FLIRTING WITH FREAKING OUT RIGHT NOW!!!

2006-03-24T11:22:00.000-08:00

Well, Team Ramrod is officially registered for the rally. The funny thing is that my boss at work will, about twice a year or so, will check in with my plans just because he seems to think I'm going to run off on a whim to join some commune in Alaska or something (and nothing could be farther from the truth, Mr. Jones). So I'm actually filling out the form to register and send payment to the rally organization when he pops his head in my office to see if I have any major plans, long absenses, or changes of lifestyle in the works. But since I had decided not to mention this to my work until the registration process was officially complete (some might say that was backwards, but whatever) and while I'm having this conversation I still haven't seen a confirmation yet, I just sort of shrugged and said I would let him know as soon as I knew of anything, but "no, nothing doing right now, sir." And now I have to find out how to say, "well, there is this one thing this summer . . . ."

But we are in the rally! And for now our primary difficulties become financial and logistical. I guess we don't really get to the fun bit until we hit terra firma in the UK.

It's 10:35 PM in Tashkent right now

2006-03-23T09:35:00.000-08:00

Patrick claims we can now post with individual identities, so this is a test. Personally I find his Ayn Randian fantasies of individuality distasteful, but I will attempt to suffer them quietly from here on out. Ayn RAND seems like a weird hybrid parody that someone like me would have explored to the disdain and detriment of all other humans on earth. Whatever. Patrick claims we're going to get into this rally thing, but the mighty voice of cash has yet to speak, so I remain skeptical. Also, an intriguing comment was left on his last post. We shall have to explore this further.

An interesting rally theme idea has presented itself...?
"Oh hell yes dogg right we gonna make the metals kiss and the fuel turn lively"

Over and out.

We Missed it! We Made it!

2006-03-21T16:57:00.000-08:00

So forgive the post-less window, but there's been a lot of ups and downs here at Ramrod headquarters recently surrounding the status of the team Ramrod's entry into the Mongol Rally. Currently, it appears that the two of us are on to participate this summer!

The story begins a couple of weekends ago, when the registration process was supposed to go live . . . and then takes a break while the registration was delayed, and then delayed again. Teams everywhere were on pins and needles, as the whole idea isn't going to really seem real until you get registered and pay your money and such. But after a couple of cries of 'wolf!' teams received news last weekend that the registration was going to open midday last Monday, UK time - or in the middle of Sunday night, PST. Due to previous registrations being non-events and on assurances that places would be held until late for USA entrants yours truly chose to sleep through the night . . . .

. . . and arrived to work Monday morning to a closed registration page, with the 'oversubscribed' message on the login page. BUT! Although this sounded dire, there was a somewhat cryptic, 'send us an email and we will work it out' message as well. So, I sent the email, and began to wonder what to do if it didn't work out.

Anway, long story short is apparently we sent the email in time and that Justin and I, it would seem, are travelling out of London this summer!

Wat ho, Barryheads!

2006-03-16T13:22:00.000-08:00

I suppose I should chip in here and make my presence known. I am not Patrick, so dedicated readers of this 'blog' should be able to sort out who I am. He really did a fine job with our background explanation though. I didn't think he'd remember all of that, but he pretty much nailed it. Hell, he even put it in ways I never thought about.
So driving across 8000 miles of Asia completely unfamiliar to me is something that has basically been impossible to get my head around, which I guess is as good a reason as any to do it. That and the password to this blog, which might be 80% of why I signed on to such a ludicrous venture. In times of confusion like this, I find it usually best to turn to the man who seems to know something about everything, who always puts it like it is, but without having to drag you down about it. Yep, Bruce Springsteen. Here's what he had to say:
"I remember the drummer in my first band coming over to my house with his Marine uniform on, saying that he was going and that he didn't know where it was."
Thanks, Bruce. I'm going to Mongolia.

A more formal introduction

2006-03-15T16:20:00.000-08:00

This journal is intended as a place where those who are interested can follow Team Ramrod as they prepare for the Mongol Rally, which as formerly mentioned is an 8,000 long group road trip from London to Ulan Batuur, Mongolia. Although it is possible to go through Russia for the majority of the trip, our route will most likely take us through the central asian republics of the likes of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan before a final jaunt through Russia into Mongolia for the final cross-country trek to the ending point. Registration for the rally opens this upcoming Sunday, March 19, and team Ramrod intends to use this opportunity to join the ranks.

There are a number of obvious questions to be asked at this point, most of which can be answered best by a quick visit to the Mongol Rally Website. This journal will cover more team-specific issues in addition to detailing the process we go through to make this event happen.

First, introductions! Most Mongol Rally teams are made up of two people; team Ramrod is Justin Wood and Patrick Tewson (author of this post).

Justin Wood is a filmmaker, musician, and engineer who currently works at Microsoft. He met Patrick, a beer- and caffine-swilling electrical engineering student and musican-to-be at the University of Washington, when he came upon Patrick surrounded by angry ninjas who were determined to steal the Tibetan book of the dead, entrusted to a younger Patrick by the Llamas of that nation as a last-ditch effort to save the text from the occupying Chinese army. Quickly realising the severity of the situation, Justin unleashed a hellish wave of musical fury from the electric guitar he happened to carry with him at all times, chasing the ninjas away and inspiring Patrick to what would become a life-long fascination with electric instruments of all kinds, and saving the book of the dead in the process. The two became fast friends and Justin learned of many things from the young intellectual Patrick, including of the wonders of Maclaren engineering and motorsports in general. Since that fateful day the two have gone on to make films, play videogames, woo women, form bands, graduate college and drive to California.

Patrick currently works as a software engineer at the University of Washington's Applied Physics Laboratory, and plays in I like Danger?, and indie folk band, in addition to occasionally peddling his tunes under the moniker American Meat Institute.

Justin has a spacecraft in his living room, no kidding. He has previously competed as an engineer and driver as part of the UW's Society of Automotive Engineering race car team.

Future information regarding the intended route of the team, Patrick's progress in learning Russian, progress with visas, registration status, and other preparations will be detailed in posts to come. Stay tuned!

In the beginning. . .

2006-03-14T18:23:00.000-08:00

There was a vision. And two gentlement living in Seattle saw this vision, and were inspired to take an adventure, and see the world.

This blog details the step by step process of pursuing that improbable task. Taking the name 'RamRod' in refernece to the beloved movie Supertroopers, these two brave pioneers set out to achieve a dream - to drive a car with less than one liter of engine displacement from London to Ulan Baatur, Mongolia, in the summer of 2006.