Part I: Syracuse, New York.  Home of Syracuse University and the Carrier Dome where Orangemen teams for decades have won national championships from basketball to lacrosse.  And last weekend, this was supposed to be the location of the Eastern Championships for the Xtreme Cheer and Dance competition.  So perfect for AFP!!!  But alas, a last minute cancellation of the dance fest threw our plans into a tailspin and we had to improvise.  Plan B…the Dartmouth College winter carnival.  “It has potential” we thought to ourselves.  And its only 2 hours away.  Running the truck on veggie grease most of the way, we pulled into Hanover, NH with about 10 minutes to spare before the start of the Polar Plunge.  For 2+ hours, Dartmouth students shed their winter clothes on the ice of Occam Pond, revealing skimpy bathing suits, and one-by-one lept into the frigid water.  It was akin to watching lemmings walk single file off the edge of a cliff.  Smiles and screams of excitement on dry-land quickly subsided when bodies went into the sobering emotions of survival mode.  The things we do for a quick thrill!  And the things we’ll endure for a good photo.  Even with completely frozen hands, we persevered to make some nice frames.

Polar Plunge from Ross McDermott on Vimeo.

Part II: What started as an auspicious morning quickly turned in a different direction.  Seeking hot chocolate and wifi, we were cleverly duped by the “Dirty Cowboy Cafe” who could provide the beverages but not the broadband.  What college coffee shop doesn’t have internet?  Lame.  So we peaced and headed over to frat row (Webster Street) to poke around and get the skinny on all the party happenings that night.  Ross had read online about Dartmouth’s infamous winterfest parties (rumor has it “Animal House” is based on one of these fraternities) and thought what better opportunity to photograph America’s best and brightest at their finest.  With our ear to the street, word of an 80’s party surfaced and we set out to guarantee our place in party history by gleaning the local Salvation Army for neon ski outfits.  To make a long story really short, the shopping was certainly successful, but the parties were a total bust.  When you throw a costume party in Charlottesville, you better bring your A-game.  Apparently at Dartmouth, its means costume optional and beer pong trumps dancing. We were appalled.  But then again so were the frat boys looking at Virginina IDs with DOBs from 1981.  To say we stood out is an understatement.  We looked like undercover cops.  Where had all that northern love gone?

Actually, we found that northern spirit of generosity and friendship about 7 miles down the road waiting for us with cold beers and plenty of room for bedding down.  Our hostess with the mostess, Ms. Amy Miller, is a friend of a friend and through a series of small miracles ended up welcoming us into her country home.  She didn’t even bat an eye when we arrived to the door after midnight still wearing our ridiculous retro threads.  For the next four days, AFP had awesome meals, great conversations, sledding adventures, and the all important wifi for blogging.  There was even the opportunity to hear “Patience” played bluegrass style.

Amy is a classical violinist turned fiddle player who is no stranger to travel.  Her dad is an esteemed anthropologist and took the family every year to live in various parts of the world for 3-6 months.  Having spent lots of her life in West Africa, she seems content to be settling into life in Vermont.  Her goal is to open a space in her hometown in Norwich, VT that will be an anchor venue for local artists and community events.   At 25, most young people are still thinking about what they can take for themselves.  For Amy, giving back seems to be her preferred way of life.  We certainly enjoyed the benefits of such a warm personality.

My friend Hope brought a very expensive bottle of champagne that was used to christen the Airstream!

the only grainy photo that exists!

the result of shattered glass…

What a beautiful group of ladies adorns the airstream couch (from left: steph, allie, krystin, and Emily).  I hope this can be repeated throughout the trip (by the same four I mean)!

Does anyone have more pictures to share from the party? I was so busy, I forgot to take photos!

I’d like to recap and call out some people who were an incredible help in getting on the road.

Two weeks ago Matt and I traveled down to his hometown in Albemarle, North Carolina. There, Matt’s father, Rick Burris, donated a set of tires to the Airstream and hours of work by his shop crew. Their help and knowledge was invaluable.

how many people does it take to fix an Airtream?

Rick Burris in the Burris Tire office. His father, pictured on the wall, started the business. Thanks for all your help Rick!

Here is Kevin, auto-electrician-extraordinaire. He wired up the Airstream and trailer hitch in a matter of hours. Thanks for your help and for buying a print Kevin. You know we will be calling when we break down!

The official shop crew that helped so much. From left: Steven, Kevin, Boo, Alan, and Eric. Thanks guys!

I’d also like to thank Matt’s sister and brother-in-law for taking their only day off and helping us to clean and fix the Airstream. You all are so generous! Here, Julie braves the ammonia fumes and give the trailer a scrub-down.

Dan the man working on the Airstream seals. Danny took his only day off to help us on the trailer, then spent an hour after work the next day to do some welding on the bumper.

Here’s the whole Burris crew in the shop. Matt is being sent off with a good support team behind him! Thanks Rick, Sue, Julie, and Steven.

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On Thursday afternoon we received the WVO conversion kit from Golden Fuel Systems. What should have been a 2-day installation turned into a maddening 4-day challenge to get the system installed because we were not sent adequate directions. Nonetheless, we had a genius behind us all the way, Mr. Wheeler Gum himself:

If it were not for Wheeler, and a few others, we never would have figured out the installation. Wheeler worked endlessly for almost three days to help us leave in time.

Our other savior was Mr. Dan Raudenbush (left). He swept in at the point of despair and laid out a diagram for the wiring. Thanks Dan!

Mr. Tom Hughes devoting his whole weekend to help us. Thanks Tom!

I can’t remember who took this picture of me covered in veggie oil.

The crew doing some problem solving.

Another big thank you goes out to Emily Gum and Hope Sowell. Emily shared her husband with us for three days and did some beautiful upholstery work for our couch. If you may remember from before, Hope re-plumbed the Airstream and put in more hours than what we traded for. Thanks for your knowledge and work and sharing your tools!

Lastly, I have to thank the two people who really assisted in helping during the last few months of preparation. Jeff Erkelens and Joey Conover gave me a free house to live in for a few months and let me park the Airstream on the street for its two-month slumber in Charlottesville. They let me store my personal items, use a bathroom, and borrow tools. Thanks Jeff and Joey for your generosity, flexibility, and support!

I’m writing from the backwoods of North Carolina, in the middle of soy bean country. That’s our truck and Airstream trailer sitting in Matt’s front yard. (Note the blue square. Basically we have some more work to do..) There is plenty of open sky and sweet tea down here.

Have we officially left on our trip yet? No-far from it! Well, not too far. We have 7 days to take off and right now Matt and I are in Albemarle, N.C. visiting with his family, packing up Matt’s belongings, and doing some detail work to the Airstream. What does one do with spare time in North Carolina? Why shoot guns of course!

Matt’s brother Steven took us out into the soy bean fields to do some target practice. The family is trying to convince me to take a gun on the trip. It’s a hard decision, but I imagine we’ll meet some characters on the road where a little bit of intimidation could come in handy.  I met a guy last week who traveled in an RV all across America for three years and he said he would never go on a trip without a gun.  I think I’ve been living a sheltered life in Charlottesville because it has been years since I’ve ever felt threatened.   Personally, I’d rather be shot than shoot someone else.

The past week has involved lots of preparation for the trip. There’s been goodbye meals, visits from friends, and Airstream work with Matt. Here’s a sample from the week:

Dark skies on I-81.

Dinner with gracious hosts Cameron and Rose. The best meal I’ve had in weeks (and all local)!

My dear friend Gregory comes for a visit and lunch at Mel’s–Charlottesville’s best diner/burger joint!

I had the fun experience of helping The Mr. and Mrs. Gum with their soon-to-be very impressive, traditional wood working bench. It’s a shame we’ll be leaving before it is completed. If you want fine furniture made, Wheeler Gum is your man. Besides, with a name like that, don’t you just want to meet him!

The very serious gluing process….

Hope Sowell saves the day with her impressive and patient plumbing skills!

Matt on the roof of the Airstream, riveting a new panel from where we removed the TV antenna. Look at those arms!

The neighborhood painter has taken a liking to the Airstream. Edward showed up about two weeks ago and has since completed a number of paintings. Last week he drove up in his eight-year old Honda hybrid and painted the Airstream and his car together. He told me they were the two most over-the-top futuristic things on the road and they had to be painted together. I’m giving him the old appliances from the Airstream and he’s giving me a painting. I love doing trades with artists. Edward paints all over Charlottesville and always wears headphones when doing so. He had a teepee in his backyard until a few months ago.

We’re in N.C. until Monday and then we return to Charlottesville for the vegetable oil truck conversion, continued preparations, and then a send off party on the 30th! Please come out and join us at 817 King St. Starts at 6pm. Bring us a good novel or mix CD for the road.