Dave Reese

I have posted a few photos of just some of the classic American cars on display on my Flickr page. These cars are from the Bulgari collection and all drove to the museum as Mr. Bulgari believes that all his cars should be driven from time to time. I will post more photos after the display is completely installed, but it was so much fun to be basically alone with these cars while polishing the bumpers and other bits of chrome and doing finishing detailing this past week. The display opens Saturday April 11, but the cars can be seen now. They will be at America On Wheels in Allentown PA for about 6 months in the West Gallery. Relive your pre-WWII fantasies. I will be posting photos of the Hudson on display for Alex soon, but here is the write up of that particular car: 1936 Hudson Series 65 Custom 8 Convertible L-head Inline straight eight cylinder engine, three speed manual transmission, 120 inch wheelbase This car is a fine example of a super Art Deco design with center mounted dash cluster, disappearing wing window assemblies, electric shifter on column, and very low windshield line. The standard equipment found only on the Custom Eight series includes the large wheel covers, a banjo style steering wheel, a radio with under-the-running-board antenna, and a cigar lighter. This Convertible Coupe also sports various optional equipment including fender mounted parking lights, an electric clock and the “Electric Hand” vacuum-electric transmission control system. This is one of only six known survivors. Who is coming so I can give them a personal tour?

Happy Birthday Denny...Have a GREAT DAY!!!

A friend of mine posted this on Facebook: Hey Shelbyville ~~~ help me find someone to rent the old Hobble House building on North Main.....I inherited this from my mother and need a renter or we may need to tear it down. Any ideas.....? I thought someone who knows the area may have a suggestion I can send my friend. Hate to hear of buildings in useable condition being torn down...

We saw a few at the Big Cypress Bend as well as the canal in front of the Big Cypress visitor's center. I hope you and Sheila get to take a good trip to Key West. It is a fun place and interesting history as well.

Well, We are back from a fun vacation. Sunday, March 1, we flew to Tampa Airport and picked up the rental for a drive to Key Largo. I had not really figured out how far that was when booking the flights and then the hotel for for Sunday Night, so I mostly just hightailed it on I-75 to Route 1. We got to the Bayside resort around 8:30 pm, checked in, had a nice dinner at Sundowners, and then crashed. I am not used to eating dinner that late, and not eating well the rest of the day, so it was not a good sleeping night. But Monday morning was cool and sunny, so we explored Islamorado for a bit to see places we might want to vacation for an extended stay in the future. It looks like a potential location for a week of rest in the future. We went just south of Islamorado, and stopped at the recommended place of Robbie's Marina. It was a cool place with some shops, a pay to stay beach, and a place where you can pay to feed the tarpon. We ate at the restaurant at the site on the patio of the Big Tarpon and had a very pleasant lunch, and then a leisurely drive down US-1 to Key West. We were staying with the Lifetouch Alumni Club, my former employers, so we stayed at a hotel that we normally would ignore due to the cost, the Hyatt Key West Resort. It was located on the water near the Pirate Soul Museum, and a block or two from Duval Street. The hotel is known for their live turtle display. While in Key West we rode the touristy Conch Train through the town, stopped at the Hemingway House, Truman's Little White House, Mallory Square at sunset, and Pat Croce's Pirate Soul Museum. We also shopped at several interesting stores, people watched, and had some very good meals at Jack's Seafood Shack at the Crowne Plaza La Concha hotel and Red Fish Blue Fish. On a previous trip we had dined at the Hog's Breath Saloon and had toured the Flagler Museum and the Mel Fisher Treasure Museum, so they were not on this trip's agenda. Our last evening included a sunset champagne cruise on a catamaran. We did enjoy our three days in Key West. Thursday morning we headed north through the Keys and had a very nice breakfast at the Midway Coffee shop that is equidistant to Miami and Key West. From there we headed up through Homestead on their old main street of Krome Avenue on route 997. It was a very cool way to travel to the Tamiami Trail through the Everglades and Big Cypress area. We visited an Indian Village and stopped a few places in the 'glades to see the local nature. That evening we headed up to the Comfort Inn on the Tamiami in Sarasota. It was an okay place to stay, but one night was enough. That night we ate a very good meal at Barnacle Bill's Seafood and had great service from our waiter Billy. Friday morning was a short 1 block drive to the Ringling Museum. Most people probably go there for the art, but I was there mainly for the Circus exhibits. Since I had last visited in 1958 things had changed again. There is now an amazing miniature circus exhibit in a whole new building. This new Tibbals Learning Center was an amazing 1/16 scale of 8 main tents, 152 wagons, 800 animals, and a 59-car train and occupies 3,800 square feet. A film in the Asolo Theater which was originally built in Asolo Italy in 1798 told the history of the Ringling Brothers, and especially John and Mabel Ringling. We also toured their mansion, Ca d'Zan before driving to Clearwater so I could enjoy a bit of the Phillies Spring Training Camp. We did not get to hit any local restaurants there but enjoyed a return to a Joe's Crab Shack which we had not visited for a few years, and a first time at a Smokey Bones. I have some photos posted at Flickr. . Since the Ringling Museum asks that no photos from the grounds be reproduced without written permission, I have not posted any from there yet, but maybe I can add them later. Denny, we never got to Blue Heaven although friends had a brunch there and were quite pleased with their meal.

The closest ones to the Lehigh Valley are over an hour away. I periodically email the chain to suggest the lot across the street from America On Wheels as we need a fun eating place near by, and that would be a perfect fit. Maybe someday they will listen to me.

Peg and I will be in the Keys, and the Tampa area, for the first week of March. Since we are now in weight loss, low cholesterol mode, we are looking for healthy places to eat. I know that I can eat lots of Salmon, so that will probably cover my first night when we stop in Key Largo, and plan to go to Sundowners. But I will be spending the next few days in Key West, so suggestions are appreciated. We have a number of tours planned through my former employer's Alumni Club (retired old farts who travel together twice a year), but we will be on our own for several meals. When we leave Key West we are heading to Saratoga so I can revisit the Ringling Circus Museum, one of my fondest memories from being 8 years old a half century ago. I hope it is still as fascinating. We will need at least one place to eat there as well, and then we will drive up to Clearwater so I can attend a Phillies Spring Training Game. We know there is a Mimi's there (which has a pretty healthy menu), and I plan to splurge at a Quaker Steak and Lube (not too healthy, but really good), but we will be there two full days, so suggest away. Thanks!

Wow, That like's like something that should come with an EMT in waiting. Since we cut back on portions, fats, cholesterol, etc in our diets after Peg's recent heart attack, I find that I will just need to skip out on some of the destinations which we used to have in our future plans. Tank's looks wonderful, but the Ostrich Burger with side salad at Kelly's Brew Pub in Albuquerque was also delicious, and I did not feel like having my cell phone ready with my finger on the 1 with the 9 and 1 already dialed. Thanks for sharing and making me jealous that you young and robust people can still enjoy those things. (Okay, maybe once and a while I will indulge, like at a Quaker Steak and Lube).

On a good day, maybe.

Dave, If you go through the photos individually rather than as a slide show, you do get to read the title and comments about the photos. During a slide show you can click on "show info" on the upper right of the screen and the information will appear in an overlay over the picture. I post more of my travel photos on Flickr now as two of my photos have been selected for the schmap guides such as this one for Anchorage.

Thanks Denny, I did not do the Unser Museum this trip, but really enjoyed it a couple of years back. Glad you like my new 'do'. It took a lot of transplants to get there.

We were in Albuquerque again this past week, and did some limited travel on bits of Route 66 as well as NM 53. I posted some photos from this trip and a previous excursion on the Turquoise Trail on my Flickr page although a few have been posted before. We were a bit limited in our excursion mode this trip, but I hope you enjoy the photos.

Thanks Denny, It seems to be working for me...

Denny, Let me know if you find a plug-in for Outlook 2000 as that is what I am running too. Thanks.

Remember that the Smithsonian is more than one building... I also enjoyed the US Post Office museum at the old train station, Ford's Theatre, and the National Museum of the American Indian were all fascinating, although there was a lot of reading. If you go to the Holocaust Museum, make sure you have something fun to do afterwards as it is depressing, and quite effective. We found the Capitol City Brewing Company at 1100 New York Avenue, NW to be reasonable for very good dinners. I believe they have another location as well. Good luck, and let us know what you find...

Dave, Quite impressive and enjoyable. I really enjoyed that and look forward to more of these items from you. Too bad you are not available to do them of some East Coast locations that I know. Keep them coming!!!

I would make the attempt to visit the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam even though you are starting in Las Vegas. You can use old Route 66 from the dam to the Grand Canyon, and then back track on the interstate if you want to make up time. I would not miss those two when you are so close.

I have only been to numbers 8 and 10. Lititz is north of Lancaster, and is a quaint little town known for it's pretzels among other things. There is a bit about it's Moravian History listed here.

Mark, Welcome to a most wonderful group of friends. No matter how or when you find this place, you are immediately welcome to be here. Enjoy the ride... PS: I don't know if you ever met my good friend and composer, Steve Reisteter, but you can listen to a number of his compositions at JWPepper's website.

Denny and all, I truly look forward to your trip, as well as the next issue of the magazine as Peg and I will be traveling to Key West, I believe in March, with the Lifetouch Alumni Club (my former employer). We plan to pick an airport other than Miami for our long weekend, then drive to Key West for the meeting and adventure, then road trip it back to the selected airport. I remember a romantic dinner at the Sundowners Restaurant in Key Largo last time we went to the Keys, and I do remember a wonderful lunch (during a power outage) at the Hog's Breath Cafe, plus wonderful tours of the Mel Fisher and the Flagler Musuems on our day trip to Key West from a business meeting in Key West. A day trip was not enough, but now I will have lots of new suggestions as well.

I love all those bridge overpasses on the Merritt, and have also used the Taconic a number of times. Those are about the only major highways I can tolerate in that area, but if time is important and I can't stick to two lanes through the smaller towns, then I will often be on one or the other of these when heading to New England.

Merry Christmas to everyone here at American Road: those who write, photograph, and publish for the marvelous magazine, those who keep this amazing forum available through technology and moderating, those who post the interesting items, and those who just lurk in the background. And to all, a Safe and Healthy 2009 too.

Dave, I think I have the links now working in my original email above. It was a setting on the new web site I am using instead of the old geocities account. Hopefully you can see the photos either above or on my home page.

Okay, the photos are on my home page. Hopefully they will show up now.