Cross-country to the National...in a Hudson!

MikeWA

My sojourn was of a much lesser scope, but an interesting twist at the end.



Our daughter (last to leave the nest) was married in Ellensburg, WA (about 3 hours west of Spokane) on Saturday, the 31st, so I trailered my '48 coupe, than came on east on Sunday to my friend's wheat farm at Reardan, 30 miles west of Spokane. Stayed the night there, then drove the coupe into Spokane monday morning and enjoyed the convention.



Drove back to Reardan, and started to encounter fuel starvation as I neared my friend's place. Electric fuel pump was clicking, obviously starving for fuel. Couldn't be out of gas, as I had only driven 60 miles on a full tank. Did manage to drive it onto the trailer, and came home to western Washington.



Figured the problem was crud and corruption in the tank, so decided to remove it and clean everything up. First order of business was to siphon out the rest of the gas- but I couldn't get the siphon pump to work. Finally tapped the bottom of the tank with my fingernail- it was obviously empty!



Leaking 15 gallons of fuel in 60 miles would have left some obvious evidence, so I ruled that out. Only thing I can figure is that I got siphoned while in Ellensburg. The hotel had a "pull through" area at the rear, and the way I was parked, the back half of the Hudson was shielded from view by the hotel's dumpster enclosure, but had easy foot access from another direction. And the car up on a trailer made for much easier siphoning.



I had considered going on a tour with other members of the NW chapter that morning, but decided against it. Sure glad I did! And the "fix" for my problem was a lot easier than I had anticipated.

Jon B

Monday into North Dakota

The Steinmetz saga continues....



"This was one of the hottest travel days but still unique and enjoyable for Susan and I. We drove the 1951 Hudson 371 miles. As we moved from Eastern Montana into North Dakota, the terrain seemed to magically change at the state line. The rugged mountains morphed into rolling hills and grasslands. The first corn fields appeared. North Dakota was the last of the lower 48 states that I hadn't ever visited. There was very little traffic, and great sights. We enjoyed the Theodore Roosevelt memorial area, cowboy museums, and crossing the Missouri River too. Some of the strange road signs were hilarious. At the end of the day, after checking into our Jamestown motel in eastern North Dakota, I went for my constitutional walk. I decided to go to a nearby Wal-Mart….the two beverages that I purchased are included as one of the photos attached. I wonder which bottle I sampled?"

Jon B

Ted and Susan's excellent adventure continued on Tuesday...



Tuesday Homeward Fun



Hello everybody and thanks a million for the nice notes about our three week odyssey. On Tuesday, we made a marathon 423 mile trip from Jamestown, North Dakota to Eau Claire, Wisconsin. We've only been averaging 60 MPH in order to preserve the Hudson's energy. I'm reminded of putting George Burns in a track race. Prudence is the key.



Every day is unique in scenery, weather, emotions, and events. North Dakota seemed to hold its barren, rugged, stereotypical, "ride 'em cowboy" terrain and mood to within a few miles of the Minnesota border. Then, the change was almost sudden. As we passed into the Central Time Zone, Minnesota presented the first truly green grass and real trees in nearly 700 miles of travel. Gone were the rocky foothills, cattle grazing, tumbleweeds, humongous ranches with Interstate 90 private access, and other icons of this historic Lewis and Clark trail. There was even a great jolt when we saw a small lake, totally absent from our sight since central Montana. Then there were more and more and more lakes. I noticed that the Minnesota state motto is "land of 10,000 lakes" They aren't lying!



Then the rains came. A brutal 2 hour rainstorm really tested the chemical "Rain X"on our windshield. The wipers haven't worked for 20 years. The chemical in "Rain X" is a non-polar compound that rejects the polar adhesive nature of water molecules. SHUT UP TED! THIS ISN'T CHEMISTRY CLASS! Anyway, it works.



The scenery looked very much like New Jersey. It was great to see houses, gardens, towns, small forested areas, and people. As we approached Saint Paul, the dark shrouded sky quickly gave way to normal sunshine. The traffic through Minneapolis was the usual annoying bumper to bumper stop and go rush hour endurance. The Wisconsin state line was just outside the city and we drove through nice lush rural landscapes until our nice Best Western Hotel in Eau Claire. I'm not sure how to pronounce it but I think I heard "Ooo Clair" phonetically on the local news radio station. The car is still running with 85% quality. The front end seems to pull to the right slightly and it is "bucking" at slow speeds but smooth as silk on the freeway. We hope to get home on Friday afternoon, and be justified in showing off our "Long Distance Driven" trophy from the Hudson Club national meet. Remember the Apollo 11 made it back to earth!

hudsontech

If you sampled the bottle in your left hand first - you probably don't remember what was in your right hand anyway!!! LOL



Being a "roady"* as my second most favorite thing (after HET) I've really enjoyed your travelogue and am going to be disappointed when it is over and we hear no more.



*Roady - definition: Nut cases that would rather travel from hither to yon via the old U S highways, such as U S 40, U S 50, U S 66 and the rest of them!!!



Hudsonly,

Alex Burr

Memphis, TN

37 CTS

Hi Ted and Sue,

I really enjoy reading your Epic Saga Travelogure. A highlight of the national was riding in your car. It is a tribute to the cars that the early members of HET drove everywhere as their daily drivers. In 1968

there were only a handful of stepdowns that had been restored. I hope you never "paint" or redo your car in any way,

Only a "Real Hudson" driver goes cross country on 1971 spark plugs!

Jon B

Here's Wednesday's installment on the Steinmetz Adventure....

SOUTH? ALL DAY? NOT EAST?

Today's 398 mile trip was Susan's good idea to avoid the Chicago traffic nightmare. We experienced that "close up and personal" on the way out 2 weeks ago. Our route is about 100 miles longer than the AAA "trip tik" suggested. Since we're spreading it over three days, what's 34 miles anyway? We slid down a meridian of longitude instead of eastward latitude advancement. Sorry about the earth science.



I enjoyed the adventure but the actual scenery was just a tad below the previous states. We're getting used to much higher traffic density but the heat is still an enemy of comfort….especially Sussan's. Indeed air conditioning is a great invention! However, I hear the voices of the Oregon Trail and Lewis and Clark endeavors of centuries ago laughing at any perceived discomfort. They're amazed at paved roads, restaurants, comfortable Hudson, and the total science fiction of our modern world.



I must admit that the most annoying part of today was deafening noise for at least 4 hours. I'd forgotten what it's like to ride next to tractor trailers at high speed with the car windows open. Also, the type of concrete on interstate 94 made everyone's radial tires produce a steady very loud screeching that isn't apparent in a modern "windows up" automobile. I had to have the radio at nearly full volume to decipher talk show voices. Susan is like a profitable hospital, loaded with patients…heh heh. There were still pretty scenes, togetherness, and good photos for the eventual "commemorative DVD" that I'll probably assemble as a modern memento. Tomorrow we're off to Zanesville, Ohio, the last hotel of the journey. In a nutshell, it's all still great fun.

Jon B

Ted and Susan's excellent adventure nears its conclusion....

We're almost home – This is it!

We left the small town of Farmer City, Illinois, (population 288) this morning and headed due east through Indiana and into eastern Ohio. It was brutally hot all day and Susan is "building spiritual treasures in heaven" for her low complaint level. I know she dreams of our 2009 Toyota Camry which is hibernating in our Medford garage. I was also harassed again by the deafening noise of the high speed trucks and autos which travel in parallel lanes with us on Interstate 74 and 70. There was at least 100 miles of that "singing type" of concrete again today. Hooray for quiet asphalt! This is a little known advantage of air conditioned cars……closed windows shut out noise.



We also had a "vapor lock" incident at a gas station. We let the Hudson motor cool down for 15 minutes and then it started fine. Another great improvement in modern cars…electric fuel injection, electronic ignition and modules certainly are more reliable in hot weather than the old carburetor with points, plugs, condenser, coil, distributor, and rotor. I guess the Victrola has been outsmarted by the I-Pod too. The terrain was like a Euclidian plane through Illinois, Indiana, and Western Ohio. Then, fairly quickly, we entered the foothills of the Appalachians here near the upper finger of West Virginia on the way to Pennsylvania tomorrow. These were the first elevations since the fairly small Wisconsin ski areas that we passed yesterday. We're now relaxing in Zanesville, Ohio and getting ready for tomorrow's triumphant final jaunt, hopefully. Thanks so much for your comments and interest in our bizarre vacation trip.



Photos:

Top: Removing butterflies from the radiator

Middle: Temporary Vapor Lock

Bottom: Foothills of the Appalachians

[Deleted User]

Be nice to see this adventure get written up in the WTN.

[Deleted User]

51hornetA wrote:

Be nice to see this adventure get written up in the WTN.

Agreed!



The pioneer spirit is alive and well and rides in a '51 Hudson.:D



What a terrific story this is and thanks for telling it!!!



Kevin C.

Jon B

Here's Ted's final instalment:

We made it!

The journey was a complete unforgettable enjoyable adventure. Yesterday we covered 441 miles in the Hudson back to our house in Medford. The scenery was nice, mountainous and foggy to flat and sunny. The traffic was horrendous and the tractor-trailer wheel noise was often deafening due to the on and off change in concrete fine surface grooves. We didn't speak very much as the familiar surroundings of eastern Pa and NJ seemed like fantasyland. The car ran fine and the usual Friday night young adult neighbor families gave us a standing ovation as we slowly glided down our home block. Thanks for the interest and support to everyone on the e-mail list and a personal response will be coming soon. I'm now off to the Lenape High School class of '68 reunion. I'm taking tomorrow off to help Susan get things back to normal with the house and other activities too boring to mention.



Some Hudson statistics:



Car was bought in 1968 for $200



8-cylinder engine changed in 1971 to Hudson 262 cubic inch six cylinder



Car was used on our honeymoon, bringing 3 daughters home from hospital as infants, and in their three weddings too.



Odometer shows 171,000 miles



Average MPG on trip 15



Oil consumption on trip 21 quarts (somewhat incontinent)



Radiator water added was 7 quarts



Vapor lock non-start incidents in hot weather 2 (OK in 15 minutes of cool down)



Tire pressure 40 pounds never changed



Longest day was 551 miles (Park City Utah to Missoula Montana) (trip to Spokane)



Shortest day was 269 miles from Bozeman to Miles City Montana (return trip)



Biggest lesson learned --- air conditioning for cars is a superb invention



Cost of trip -- roughly $3000 for everything. Not bad



PHOTOS:



Top: first one of these since Utah

Middle: they have seen a dinosaur in a modern zoo parade

Bottom: curtain call

[Deleted User]

Thats a great idea. I would have loved to be on this trip wow thats an adventure! Chuck G

hudsontech

Cooped up in a Hudson for 5000 some odd miles, in the middle of the summer with it's heat and humidity, putting up with each other in closed confines - and you can still get a kiss at the town limits as you return home!!!!!



My friend you are truly blessed in your marriage!!!





Hudsonly,

Alex Burr

Memphis, TN

[Deleted User]

Enjoyed "following" you and your wife's journey. She is obviously a saint. Your next trip should be wherever she chooses to go. God Bless both of you and hope your all your future trips end in a safe return.

hudsontech

dave kastelic wrote:

Enjoyed "following" you and your wife's journey. She is obviously a saint. Your next trip should be wherever she chooses to go. God Bless both of you and hope your all your future trips end in a safe return.

Yeah, that too.



Hudsonly,

Alex Burr

Memphis, TN

Hudsonrules

:)Enjoyed reading of your journey round trip across the U.S. Hudsons were made as "road cars", big and comfortable. They are still great road cars but lack some of the comforts of our current crop of vehicles. The roads and speed limits have changed a lot in 60 years. Imagin driving a Model T Ford cross country in the twenties, or a big 29 Hudson or a Packard from the 30's. It was done manyu times and people just accepted the weather and times. Today it would be a test of patience and a challenge.

I am glad that you and your wife made the trip with few problems. I was told that in a few years, there will be a National in Northern California in place of Las Vegas. It would be great to see some hudsons from back east. The reason for no Las Vegas National is that the temperature is around one thousand degrees in the summer on a cool day. Arnie in Nevada

hudsontech

Hudsonrules wrote:

:)Enjoyed reading of your journey round trip across the U.S. Hudsons were made as "road cars", big and comfortable. They are still great road cars but lack some of the comforts of our current crop of vehicles. The roads and speed limits have changed a lot in 60 years. Imagin driving a Model T Ford cross country in the twenties, or a big 29 Hudson or a Packard from the 30's. It was done manyu times and people just accepted the weather and times. Today it would be a test of patience and a challenge.

I am glad that you and your wife made the trip with few problems. I was told that in a few years, there will be a National in Northern California in place of Las Vegas. It would be great to see some hudsons from back east. The reason for no Las Vegas National is that the temperature is around one thousand degrees in the summer on a cool day. Arnie in Nevada

Lost Wages sounds cooler than Memphis on a hot summer day!!!!



Hudsonly,

Alex Burr

Memphis, TN

RL Chilton

Very first time we went to Lost Wages it was 126-degrees. Dry Heat, mind you, but shoes were melting on the black top.

[Deleted User]

I've been in love with traveling with a Hudson!!



You to miss a story! very very good! pleasant, and jealous for many! jejejejej :rolleyes::rolleyes:healthy envy!! I want to someday! far away day... but some day! be able to do a trip of this magnitude!



I am very grateful for having shared this wonderful journey in the forum! why thank you!



Congratulations and have a car so prity! and reliable!

Bye form Spain!

Clutchguy

I think Ted and Susan's great Hudson adventure is a funny story! I'm so glad they made back to their home. Ted,are you writing all night still?. They are such nice folks,what fun! CG:)

Lee ODell

Thanks for sharing your adventure with us. I throughly enjoyed the trip. The pictures and storys were wonderful. It was the next best thing to being there. Lee