High point: Hitting our second antipode which means we’re even closer to completing full global circumnavigation, oh yeah!
Low point: Waking up freezing and convinced our tent was going to blow away in the gale force winds
No point: Why do Mehul and Steve keep speaking to the bewildered locals in French? Who is Delboy and who is Rodders? “Mange tout Rodney, mange tout”.
Quote of the day: ‘Merci beacoup’
I’m a big fan of camping but my four seasons sleeping bag just doesn’t cut the mustard, on top of that the wind howling all night and rattling the tent didn’t make for the best sleep I ever had, but I mustn’t grumble.
High point: Making the ship to Cueta, the Spanish border town in Morocco, with two minutes to spare thanks to ‘pedal to the metal Morrow’ and a bit of good old fashioned FTFE luck
Low point: Driving around Cueta for about 40 minutes trying to find a place to stay on a road we could fit Martha down
No point: Ship cam, 35 minutes watching the view from the front of the ship was riveting
Location: Coveta Fuma (Spain) to Cueta (Morocco)
Waking up somewhere familiar was very surreal indeed. Casa Holder brought back nice memories of summer weekends with friends, I never thought we’d be visiting again in a fire engine!
Team Fix It: Jamie, Karissa, Radhika, Annie, Jo and Adele
Operation fix Steve: Setting up and running a charity and attempting to achieve a world record, though extremely rewarding, is stressful and definitely takes its toll on the mind and body. Steve has been battered and bruised after spending 235 days driving Martha 28,268 miles across five continents. Due to the ship’s regulations we weren’t able to travel with Martha this time, so while she was bobbing across the Atlantic (I miss her) the goal of the week was to rest, recuperate and work (FTFE admin) in a super relaxed environment before the final push back to London. The Azul Yoga and Pilates Retreat was the perfect place to bring Steve back to wellness, whilst attempting to straighten his drivers back, catch up on much needed sleep and give him the energy to get home without 14 cups of coffee and two red bulls a day!
In Washington we were very lucky to spend time with the fantastic people at the Lung Cancer Alliance. We wanted to tell you a bit more about them and the amazing work that goes on globally to try and defeat this cruel disease. Not many people know that lung cancer is still the biggest cancer killer in the world, causing more deaths than breast and prostate cancer put together. Yetin terms of research it is the most poorly funded.
All amazing cities, all amazingly expensive. We have been over whelmed by people’s generosity in the US, up there with the best of them is the Carlton Arms Hotel who amazingly generously donated free accommodation for the FTFE crew whilst in New York for 10 days. HUGE! We have turned the Carlton Arms into our HQ where we have shot video for the documentary and worked ferociously at the remaining logistics (shipping ahhhh), routes, website, press, etc, etc.
The guys at the Carlton Arms have themselves also been touched by cancer, sadly losing a very good friend to a rare and bizarre form of cancer. When contacted by FTFE John Ogren said “The Macmillan nurses were angles sent by God to care for him in his last days. Also we love all firemen everywhere. So of course we want to offer the rooms at no charge.” Legend. Read more →
High point : The first rocket to land on the moon in Washington space museum
Low point : Losing my voice and sounding like a cross between Pat Butcher and Madge Bishop
No point : I don’t know about you but I’ve never seen actual real life people, using actual real life segways, to actually get from A to B. Really, what’s the point?
A wise man once said ‘’life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get’’. Well today we got rain, and lots of it. Being British we love to talk about the weather and we love to complain, so it goes without saying that complaining about the weather is one of our nations’ favourite past times. If lost for conversation complaining about the weather being too hot or too cold is always a banker. On stage 8 we haven’t had much to complain about. The snow in Arizona turned into an adventure, the vicious winds in Texas were a treat, and now rain in Washington meant an opportunity to stay indoors without feeling guilty.
High point: Meeting the Hoover Fire Department and being escorted out of town
Low point: Crossing a time zone and losing an hour on a drive that was already way too long
No point: Being in a rush
Pen point: Whilst purchasing cab snacks we picked up a copy of Lock Up Magazine which features the latest crims that have been thrown in the can, it’s a riveting read I can assure you, and great for our new game ‘guess the crim crime’.
High point: being greeted by a wonderful Wild West reception in Bandera
Low point: only having four tumblin’ tumble weed moments on the road (I’m not talking about James’s jokes)
No point: no time to stop for lunch on stage 8, we just keep on trucking
Dust devil count: 9
Best Borat moment: Steve’s definition of a Mardi Gras when talking to Patricia from Bandera Tourism
Stage 8 (Phoenix to New York) is all about BIG miles and today was no exception. The 616 km from Fort Davis to Bandera took 12 hours. We left early but had to make an unscheduled stop off in Alpine as Martha was in need of some TLC. While the boys had new flag poles made (thanks to McCoys) and erected the FTFE flags donated by Hand Waving Flags http://www.handwavingflags.com the girls popped next door to pick up some cowboy boots (when in Rome). McCoys also managed to come up with an alternative fuel cap that works much better than the polystyrene cup we had been using since stage 7, fancy that. Thanks guys. Read more →
High point: Reaching Bill Caskey’s farm after eight hours negotiating dicey roads through blizzards and ice on one of the most tricky drives in FTFE history. Thanks to Troy Caskey for being our guide and Guardian Angel
Low point: Leaving our new friends at Phoenix Fire Station and saying good bye to stage 7 crew legends Rob and Ben, we miss you already!
Snow point: Getting back into the cab and Martha sliding 5 inches down hill, icy conditions or too many burgers?
No point: Stocking up on cookies, Shelley from station 35 sent us on our way with enough cookies to feed a football team, for four weeks. Thank you!
High point: Stopping off on Route 1 to see hundreds of mammoth elephant seals chillaxing on the beach
Low point: The temperature
No point: Putting your foot down, take in the view
Sleeping under the stars, being at one with nature, telling secrets around the fire; I’m quite a big fan of camping, or I was. Waking up at silly o’clock in the morning freezing cold, despite sleeping in a ski jacket, wooly hat and a four seasons sleeping bag (apparently comfortable at temperatures of –15) is not ideal. It took nearly all day for the crew to properly defrost after our night in the Big Sur. Despite the weather, I’d like to say a big thank you to the Big Sur Campground and Cabins for their generous hospitality http://www.bigsurcamp.com/ you guys rock!
