West Bound and Down
Earlier this year I decided it was time to get a different boat. One that was not only newer, but better at wake surfing and water sports in general. After a lot of research I found one in the Salt Lake City area. That is a long way from Houston and I hate driving. I spent a lot of time trying to rent a truck in the area so I only have to drive one way. Unfortunately there wasn't one available because it was their busy season and they didn't allow one ways. My only options were to pay a delivery company, rent a U-Haul, or drive there in my truck and pick it up. The delivery company was too expensive and driving a U-Haul that far would be miserable. I recently drove one an hour and thought I was going to lose a couple inches in height and I can't afford to lose any height.
Once I decided to do it myself, for about 1/3 the cost of the delivery company, I started figuring out when I could do it. After looking at several options I decided to do it on the back end of our annual Fourth of July vacation. So the plan was to drive from Houston to NE Oklahoma, spend three days at the lake with family, and then head to UT. The route looked like this. After mapping it out and seeing the time commitment, I almost backed out. The only thing that held me to it was that I had never driven those routes in CO, UT, and NM. Thus I was a little excited to "see what I could see".
It had five sections and I estimated it would take me five or six days.
1. 563 miles over 8 hours and 48 minutes.
2. 852 miles over 14 hours and 2 minutes.
3. 392 miles over 6 hours and 31 minutes.
4. 367 miles over 6 hours and 8 minutes.
5. 1062 miles over 15 hours and 46 minutes.
But somehow the trip changed to a version of "East Bound and Down" by Jerry Reed with one exception, I was West Bound and Down and picking up a boat. For the most part, the songs first verse and chorus definitely applied. Also, I am not Bandit!
Keep your foot hard on the pedal
Son, never mind them brakes
Let it all hang out 'cause we've got a run to make
The boys are thirsty in Atlanta (The lake has lots of sun and is ready in texas)
And there's beer in Texarkana (and there's a boat in Salt Lake City, Utah)
And we'll bring it back no matter what it takes
[Chorus]
East bound and down, loaded up and truckin'
We gonna do what they say can't be done
We've got a long way to go and a short time to get there
I'm east bound, just watch ol' Bandit run
The first day was from Texas to Oklahoma and is a trip we have done 100's of times. It is a relatively easy trip and we were all excited for fellowship with family over the holiday. The family time was great but we also took some time to think about the "Legacy of Liberty" by going to a war memorial.
