Picked up my new MCS Wednesday 14 June in San Antonio. Spent two days there then drove thru the hill country to Austin. Tonight is my last night here (Saturday) then off to Memphis. So far the drive has been fun. Had dinner with my MA Faron Smith and his family. Super nice guy who was wonderful to work with. The car has been great except for an annoying sqeak of a belt or something. No noise at idle, but as you give it throttle ir starts to make this squeaking noise. I will take it to the dealer when I get home if it makes it.
I have soem pics of our travels that I will post when I get home. We are heading to Texarkana then across the lower part of Arkansas. Then we will cross the MS river and head up to Memphis for a few days. Then it is Nashville, Deals Gap (Tail of the Dragon), ASheville. Then it is up the Blue Ridge Pkwy to VA and on to Richmond. If anyone want to meet along the way, let me know on the board.

 

CAn't post pics yet but here is the status so far.

We left Austin this morning and just arrived in Vicksburg, MS tonight. The trip was uneventful except for my contribution to the East Texas town of Jewett. 67 in a 55 within sight of a 70 mph sign. What a bullsh*t way to collect revenue. Oh well. I got hassled b/c of my lack of registration, temporary tag and no proof of insurance (it is insured through USAA though). The funny thing is I had just gotten passed by two Texas plated pickups when I got pulled. I guess they were targeting the out-of-towner who they know will not be able to contest the ticket. B*stards.

Tomorrow, we travel Highway 61 aka "The Blues Highway" to Memphis. It should be a fun and educational drive.

Justin

 

From a fellow VA'er (and a Richmonder at that), have a safe trip!

I've only driven in Texas on one occasion, but your story about being pulled over is exactly why I minded my p's and q's while there.

 

Sounds like a great trip! The BR Parkway is fun!

 

Wish I'd read this a few days earlier! I'm in Austin, and I've got a Mini on order through Faron. What route did you take through the hill country from San Antonio. Please tell me in didn't involve I-35...

The wife and I are actually heading out your way on a road trip in July (alas...the Mini will probably be somewhere on the Atlantic at the time...so we're taking her Mustang). Austin to DC and back.

 

Here is an update.

At about 200 miles, My MCS developed an annoying belt squeak. We were in Austin at the time and it didn't seem to run bad so I called the MINI Center and talked to a tech who said it was probably OK to continue on our journey. As the miles added up the sound got worse. I called the dealer in Memphis, Roadshow MINI, and told them of our predicament. They said to bring it over right away and they would check it out. When we got there, they immediatly took it in the service area and determined it was a faulty tensioner pulley. They fixed it on the spot in about 1.5 hours. My thanks go out to Roadshow MINI for getting us back on the road in no time at all.

Justin

 

Cutting through a ranch in the Texas Hill Country.

 

wow that's one way to break in a new car...

 

This is a Huge Dam somewhere in TX

 

Austin TX skyline. Great city to visit. We will definately go back.

 

This is where the locals eat breakfast. Best Migas in town.

 

State Capital Building

 

This kind of stuff is all over East Texas. I love this kind of thing. My wife thinks I am nuts.

 

Oil pumping device. Didn't really see many of these.

 

Welcome to Louisiana. Didn't really do much here. Just passing through.

 

Downtown Vicksburg, Mississippi. Very quaint town. Good bit of money pouring in there due to the Riverboat Casinos.

 

USS Cairo (kay-ro) This is a genuine Union Ironside that was sunk by a Confederate mine in the Mississippi River near Vicksburg. It was recovered in 1964 and put on display at the Vicksburg Battlefield. Pretty amazing to see the engineering involved in the powerplant and other bits of the powertrain.

 

Just north of Vicksburg is this home. The story is that a preacher wanted to marry his sweetheart and he promised he would build her a castle if she did. This is the castle.

 

We drove Highway 61, known as the Blues Highway, up to Memphis. This area is where the Blues made its way from New Orleans to Chicago. Pretty much flat as a pancake and fields everywhere.

 

This is the legendary Crossroads of Highway 61 and 49 where blues legend Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil in exchange for mastery of the blues guitar. For those who saw the movie Oh Brother Where art Thou, there was a pretty funny seen in the movie in which this was portrayed. I am sure it was less busy back in those days.

 

Elvis Presley's Graceland.

 

Beale Street in Memphis. Great ribs and live Blues. Nice city to visit too.

 

Very Nice, cool to see you got off the beaten path!

 

This was one of my favorite stops on the trip. The original Sun Recording Studios. If you are in Memphis this is a must see place. Take the tour you won't regret it. This original studio is still intact as it was when Elvis, Cash, Carl Perkinsand many more layed down their tracks. It was very chilling experience.

 

Mississippi River in Memphis.