Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Wyoming...its always in Wyoming!

We recently returned from a trip to Illinois, visiting family. Now that we have two kids, flying isn't really an option. So, we loaded up the van and drove across the country. It was a great trip. The kids did really well. We had fun with family. My sister-in-law and her daughter were with us, so we had some great company. The only major problem, of course, happened in the middle of no where (a.k.a. Wyoming).

If you have ever made the drive along I-80 across Wyoming, Nebraska, etc..., you know that Wyoming is ALWAYS the worst part of the drive. The weather is never good, it seems, no matter what time of the year. The towns are spaced very far apart, so there just isn't much civilization if you have issues. That last part was where the problem came in.

I was driving along, everyone quiet, when all of the sudden a tire went flat. Great! I pulled over. With three adults in the car you would think at least one of us had changed a tire before. Nope! About thirty minutes later the spare tire was on and we were making our way to the nearest town of Rawlins, just 33 miles away. Now, if you have ever driven on a spare you know you are not supposed to go over 50 mph. So, my husband, being cautious, drove 47 mph the entire way. We got to Rawlins and drove around trying to find a tire store. Eventually we stopped at Family Dollar where they loaned my husband a telephone book. He made his way through the entire section for tire stores. Only one person answered. They informed him they would love to help, but they were closed. Thanks!

We got back on the road and made our way to the next town.....100 miles away!!! It was probably the longest, slowest ride I have ever had! We even had to make our way through a few one lane construction zones. When we'd reach the end of the one lane zone we would just look ahead, not wanting to see the dozens of angry people that had to slowly follow behind us.

We made it to Rock Springs a couple of hours later, found a Walmart right off the interstate, and were on the road a couple hours later. We sure felt like we were flying down the interstate after that!

Now, when you have such an experience you are bound to learn something, right?!? Right! First, I learned that even though it might not happen often, my husband can be right. Just the day before as we made our way across Nebraska, he tried to get us to stop and have the tires checked. My sister-in-law and I talked him out of it. Oops! Lesson 2, sometimes people can't help that they have to go slow. How many times have I been annoyed that I was stuck behind a slow moving car. It is very humbling being that slow moving car, especially when the line behind you seems endless. And lesson 3, check the tires before you make a road trip across the country. That one should probably go without saying.

1 comment:

Sally F said...

I seriously just got two new tires yesterday! Because of your reminder! And we'll be traveling that same I-80 through Wyoming, so I thank you from the bottom of my heart! :)