Steve and Tara's Power Tour Adventures: HRPT 2019-Day 5: June 12- Sparta, KY to Indianapolis, IN (213 miles)

Half our group took off extra early because the Power Tour was providing free lunch to Gold VIP members. Tara and I, Russ, and Ken and Kathy planned to leave at 8 am and Lori from Texas met us and rode in the back of the Acadian. A wheel bearing in their 1973 'Cuda failed 40 miles into yesterday's trip. They took the 'Cuda to a local shop, diagnosed it and had to order a new spindle and have it overnighted. All 4 Texans piled into the GTO and drove to Sparta to clock in. This morning, Ted, Kyle and Bob drove back to Bristol to fix and pick up the 'Cuda, so Lori rode with us. My parents decided to sleep in and have breakfast at the casino buffet and getting a much later start.

Would the last one to leave town please turn out the lights?

Within the first 10 minutes of leaving the hotel, Ken's car died and we were on the side of the road. Luckily, the problem was a fuse that wasn't stamped properly and didn't lock into place. We were able to trim it and pop it back in and were back on the road in no time.

A great start to the day

Today's weather was absolutely perfect (mostly cool with a high of 76) and the route was another great one. We drove through the quaint town of Madison, Indiana and wound through open farm country. It's not a Power Tour without gratuitous cornfields.

Firehouse in Madison, IN

We thought we had traded trees and mountains for rural farmland. But then hit The Indiana Scenic Byway (State Route 136) which was a great driving road. It wound along some state forests, had some curves, twists and elevation changes that made it a blast to drive. On a few of the of the more open curves, it was easy to confirm there was no oncoming traffic and clip the corners.

The sign says "fun ahead."

Along the way, we came across a church where everyone in town had parked their hot rods and encouraged people to light their tires. I guess the sign a few days ago was right, Jesus loves burnouts. There was more than one kind of burnout on this leg of the Tour, we also came around a corner into a thick cloud of weed smoke. Ironically, it was just as we were passing the local jail.

In front of the Church of the Holy Burnout

We had lunch at the Hob Nob Corner Restaurant in Nashville, Indiana. Nashville is a cute little village with lots of old buildings and shops that have been kept up and was a great stop. I had pepper steak soup that was unbelievably good. After lunch, Tara and Kathy grabbed some homemade ice cream from the shop next door and then it was back on the road to Indy.

Hob Nob Corner Restaurant

The new 1966 models are out in Nashville, IN

Not the Grand Ole Opry, but I guess you could still claim to have headlined in Nashville

The second leg of the route also had some good roads with twists and turns and only a handful of traffic lights and about 20 miles of interstate driving. We got to the venue, Lucas Oil Raceway about 3:15. Unlike yesterday, there was no traffic or problems getting into the venue and we got a space right up front near the vendors.

Premium Parking

Tara started her ritual of cleaning the car while Lori and I went to punch our credentials and pick up our magnets. I also stopped by the stage to say hi to Clarence, one of the MCs that year in and year out entertain the crowd of long haulers that set up in front of the stage. He suggested I come back to try my luck at "Clarence Says" later that afternoon and try and win a set of tires (see below). On my way back to the car, I came across a familiar yellow Challenger convertible that was not supposed to be on the Power Tour. Our really good friend Scott from Kansas with whom we have done many long hauls, told us he was not going to be able to make the Tour this year. Well, after reading my blog and seeing everyone's pictures, he and his daughter Cody decided to drop what they were doing and make the 700 mile drive from Kansas to Kentucky. They caught up with and ran with Tim and Lori earlier, but it was a complete surprise to me to see them.

Premium-er Parking

We also heard from Larry and his father who confirmed that the G8 was "fixed" and they made it to Indy too. Tour on!!

Looks like a boxer who lost the fight

My parents also made it to the venue around 4:30. I guess if you are the last to leave, you don't get caught in as much Power Tour traffic. Shortly before they got there, a BMW pulled into our row and we had to tell him he had been in a head-on crash with a bird. He looked at his grille and said "Someone asked me if the skunk on the front of my car was real and I had no idea what they were talking about-now I do."

We looked the bird up on Google it's called a "German Bumper Diver." Scientific name: Beemerus Dusplaticus

We all went to the stage for me to play "Clarence Says" and before that started, I answered some easy Mopar trivia and won a hat. Then he pulled me up to the stage as well as several others. The best part was he twisted Tara's arm into playing too. I was quickly eliminated. Tara lasted for a while longer, but eventually everyone lost to a 3 year old whose dad was moving him like a puppet.

"Clarence Says put your hands on your head"

The weather was so nice, we stuck around the venue for a while before all of us, joined by Scott and Cody and Larry and his dad , headed to dinner at the Mug n Bun. It's a drive-in restaurant that is nearly 50 years old. The food was so-so, but they make their own root beer which was really good and the overall experience was pretty cool.

Premium-er-er parking

With dinner done, we gassed up the Acadian and checked into the hotel where we began a large, boisterous game of Left, Center, Right (a fun dice/gambling game). Our group was joined by a couple that Tim and Lori met while drinking in the lobby. They had just finished working at the US Embassy in Peru and were living at the hotel until they could close on their house. Finally, it was time to call it a night.

Tomorrow we head to Ft. Wayne and there's a cold storm coming through. The high is supposed to be 62 and, they are predicting that, with the windchill and rain, it's going to feel like the 40s. Here are some other pictures from the day: