After the stop in Clines Corners and the possession of enough oil to last the night, I pressed on. I'm a night person so I'm pretty good well into the late hours of the night. Everything went well, I guess, as I can't really remember anything until I stopped for the correct oil and coffee once the sun came up. I was wearing one of my Blipshift shirts (can't remember which one exactly but I wanna say Audi Quattro short wheel base in full rally car livery) and the barista started talking cars, telling me he used to have a Corrado which brought me to bring up my 16v Scirocco and then finally onto the Boxster and all the excitement overnight I had experienced. With this, he genuinely seemed uninterested which surprised me until I remembered how I used to be before driving a Boxster. I didn't dislike the Boxster; it's just that I thought convertibles weren't in the cards for me. But it's really nice to discover something later in life that you always thought you never liked and then it's like a new food you never tasted before. Hmmm, maybe I should get an automatic transmission car or an SUV....Ok, no, no thanks, let's not get crazy!
Oh, well, probably better to end the car discussion as otherwise I may have stayed even longer talking cars instead of getting on with my drive. So, off I go resisting the urge to redline the car so he can hear what he's missing but with the mysterious & serious oil leak, full revs are not a good idea which even I in my rather tired state of mind thankfully recognized.
Lots of miles to go yet but thankfully the leak stayed consistent and didn't get any worse so the drive was uneventful. The one thing I remember is that my right foot and knee were in pain. I realized that this was caused by the stiff spring in the accelerator pedal and also the angle my leg wanted to go to support the pedal. But by the time I figured out something wasn't right, my knee felt like I'd ridden 50 miles on a bike with the pedal clips angled out 45 degrees! So I used cruise control a little bit (which I really don't like at all) and I tried moving my leg to a straighter position which was tough and then I got mad that the pedal spring is so stiff when it doesn't need to be. Hmmm, note to self: see if the pedal control unit is able to be modified.
So I've done this drive a few times, always in a Porsche. Once in a NA 944 and 3 times in a 944 turbo. I have to say that the Boxster isn't much more comfortable. The biggest thing is that the AC works, my first car ever with this feature! I have to say, I'm an AC believer! Also, my 951 is slightly modified: Bilstein Cup shocks and 450# springs insure that the car is rough over bumps. And a B&B exhaust insures it's not quiet but otherwise, the car has great bones for high speed cruising across the country which I truly didn't completely understand until attempting the same trip in the Boxster. Similarly, my 986S has a Borla exhaust and Bilstein B6 shocks so I think the ride is a bit stiffer than OEM even if it's not 450# springs rough.
Then again, maybe it was just the stress of losing oil but I thought it would be night & day difference between the two.
However, I did make it, arriving at around 3am. I'm not sure on the total time but let's just say it won't come close to my 951 record of 31 hours.
Hopefully, I'll get to experience the trip once more in the rejuvenated Boxster but many miles to go before that happens. And then, many more miles....
And, of course, the pics:
Yay, sun comes up and still about 20 hours to go!
Crossing the Mississippi. Wait, didn't I see on the news there was a giant crack in this bridge?!?
Never exactly "happy" to be back in TN but this was a long drive! Crap, and yet still another 230 miles to go!
Ok, finally approaching Nashville and not a car in sight...
Great, my life of excessive espresso bars and beautiful women in yoga pants is now replaced with bales of hay and pick up trucks! Help!
There are a few fun roads in TN but now they are populated by people yelling at you to slow down and pick up trucks trying to race you! The South: Land of Contradictions!
951 comes out to play...Very different by oh so similar!
Thank God I have the 951 there also as the Boxster went under the knife and is still awaiting rejuvenation!
My brother has a Milano just like mine only his looks like it should. Mine has lots of goodies though and runs great. His has issues which is another story.... I've been told there's another car in this pic but I don't recognize giant American cars that feel like boats. Mom wishes she had daughters!
Mom in her one and only Boxster ride so far because later in the day, a quick 2nd gear detent replacement ballooned into engine out repair extended to the current day.