And now: Amazing Race, the Sierra Edition!
*cues dramatic music*
So our two heroines, 'Ro and Raurence, can be found teaming up at the UC Davis VMTH, where they're cannily making use of the working printers and printing out directions to their next destination.
And, totally talking about the relative eye-candy merits between 'Quantum of Solace' and 'Australia', which isn't exactly race-worthy behavior, but Hugh Jackman is hot. :D
They race off to their first roadblock: 'Repack 'Ro's backpack so it's less 'VMTH survival' and more 'fun things to do in Tahoe'. The second part of this task involved moving 80 pounds of cat food from the back of the car into the closet, so that the car won't get pried apart by a bear like a sardine can once in Tahoe. Our heroines did fairly well on this task, managing to complete it in under an hour.
Successfully completing this task, they charge off East in their trusty Saturn coupe towards Tahoe.
And immediately run into traffic on the Causeway between Davis and Sacramento.
One hour later, our heroines finally make it to a gas station in Sacramento, where the car is successfully filled with gas for under $15. They also get beverages, because the person driving has been working 13-hour shifts the last two weeks, and the person riding can't drive a stick. Traffic is better once they get back on the highway, and they make good time to Auburn.
Where all windows in the car promptly fog up. Completely. Within ten seconds. 'Ro, trying to stay calm, throws in the emergency lights and pulls over onto the (very narrow) shoulder, and attempts are made at fiddling with the controls to provide clear windows. Their attempts begin to succeed when... a tow truck arrives.
Our heroines, thinking they're about to see someone smashed on the highway since there are great big trucks rumbling on by in the slow lane (thanks so much for getting over, guys), try to wave him off, but he makes it all the way to the Saturn's driver's side window (why he didn't go for the passenger side, I'll never know) before getting the message that there wasn't a car failure, there was a window failure. Tow-truck guy then trundles back to his truck, narrowly avoiding getting squished, and disappears off into the night while the girls wait out their windows.
When the windows are
finally clear, they take off again.
Fifteen minutes later?
Fog.
Rinse and repeat (sans tow-truck guy).
Once the windows are clear again, they take off up the hill.
Fifteen minutes later?
Fog.
This time our heroines (now rather flaily and wanting their car to just work damnit because it's 7pm and it's really time for dinner) are able to make it to an actual exit, and pull into the lit overhang of a gas station (very slowly, because any attempts to wipe off the fog just brings it back a second later. The user's manual is dug out of the nether regions of the glove compartment and consulted.
(This would be the scene where the two racers are looking worried and at their wit's end and there's dramatic music. Yeah really.)
Finally, it's discovered how their window-clearing strategy is wrong, and it is adjusted. Clear windows! Enheartened (and kinda hungry), they speed off into the night.
And then, about twenty minutes later as they roll into Truckee... snow. Did we mention that
neither of our heroines have ever driven in an actual snowstorm? Lucky for our heroines (who did have chains in the back, but weren't relishing the idea of using them), they got in right behind a plow truck, thus not needing chains.
And then the truck turned on
all of it's lights, which our heroines decided was a lot like being at a rave party (in the mountain, near cliffs, in the cold). It was at this time our heroines hooked up the iPod to the radio and Raurence got control of the play list. A grand time was hand by all, and the rave party truck was left behind once the snow turned to rain. They finally rolled into the pit stop at 9:30 where... tragically, there was no Phil to tell them their place.
There was, however, family, and food (yummy chili) and warmth, and beds. Which is better than Phil, actually. :D
And now we're criticizing the acts in the pre-parade show, and (really) waiting for the dog show later. :D
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