The kids are in Ft Bragg California, though son Noah says he saw nothing passing through the first time that indicated there was an Army base there. They actually were further north but had to retreat to Ft Bragg as the Tracker has developed a problem.
Seems the nuts that hold the brake drum to the hub on one rear wheel have worked loose and they were in danger of losing the drum and wheel! Noah of course, as is his usual, called to say that the entire rear axle was about to fall out of the car, when it reality it is some loose and now damaged lug bolts and nuts.
This is especially aggravating because I just had that brake drum off the car last week! I did use the impact gun to run the nuts back on tight, though I admit I didn't come back along with a breaker bar to double check the torque on the nuts. For some reason, this Tracker has been harder on lug nuts and studs than any vehicle I have ever owned. I've replaced all the lug nuts at least once and most of the studs, either in the drums that secure the wheel or the hub to drum studs. (The parts are all the same.) Anyway, it has been a continual problem and it has resurfaced on this trip.
They actually had to creep back into town they were so concerned and Noah found a hotel room right across the street from one of the few auto repair shops in town. Hopefully he will find some competant assistance this morning and be back on their way soon.
Noah sounded pretty stressed when he called, he's sounded stressed from the first night when he called. I'm guessing that he is thinking that he bit off a little bigger trip than he expected. He suggested last night that Lily might be a fine Valium candidate right about now... Well, they wanted to be grownups and have an adventure so I guess this is working out just about right... Traveling is tough and finding your way on unknown roads and figuring out where to find a place to sleep and managing automobile breakdowns is all part of the adventure. I just hope they relax long enough to let the fun part soak in.
His dang cell phone continues to act up, working some times and burning up the minutes in huge chunks, then not working at all. I think it is actually the phone, which you might remember, I tried to save from the landfill by reusing. Now I'm catching hell from him and the BSU about cheaping out! Its a "dammed if I do, dammed if I don't" situation so there's nothing for me to do but ride it out.
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