Made just for us

I have been meaning to post a couple of nice shots of our new set of wheels, yet updating my blog is on the bottom of my to do list with the summer projects in full swing. Traci and I are strong believers that manual transmission vehicles are for the elderly and disable, which is perhaps why the American youth are only capable of driving automatics. I'm not sure where I am going with that last sentence, however I do know that vehicles with manual transmission are becoming obsolete with each new year. Although our Civic was a great car, it only had two doors and placing Ben in the back seat is quite an adventure as he gets bigger. So our search began with the need for a four-door car. We enjoy driving manual transmission cars so that crossed out 85% percent of new vehicles and we also wanted an American made car so that didn't leave us with much choice. Our options came down to the following: Dodge Dart, Ford Fusion, Chevy Cruze, Jeep Patriot, Jeep Wrangler, Jeep Compass, Cadillac CTS-V WAGON and a 3/4 ton Ram Truck. One neat advantage to a Patriot or Compass is the versatility of carrying our Yakima Skybox and ability to get more cargo area by folding the rear seats. Personally, we think the Patriot looks better than the Compass so the decision was made.

So why did we factory order a car from a dealership in Montana? Well, dealership order cars that they believe will sell and they much rather sell a car they already have than to order you a car. The guys at Yellowstone Country Motors are low hassle and they don't mind ordering a car if it's not on their lot. Of course Patriots are everywhere to found at dealerships however a 4x4 manual transmission are actually quite rare, believe it or not. Since the decision was made to order a car, why not just personalize it to our pocket books extent. The few upgrades include: 17 inch Aluminum rims, front and rear tow hooks, air conditioner, rubber floor mats, power windows and engine block heater for when we traverse the Yukon.

A Memorial Weekend

This year for Memorial Day we headed to Montana to spend the weekend with Traci's folks. Traci took Friday off from work so we decided to not waste time and get on the road on Thursday evening. We enjoyed a wonderful sunset as we began our journey east and even got a chance to see the glow of Friday's sunrise over the Bridger Range. I was wasted by the time we arrived to Bozeman yet somehow after getting out of the car I was filled with energy despite being awake for 20 hours. After chatting for about an hour I marched myself to bed where I laid awake wondering how easy it was to fall asleep as a young kid and how difficult it is to shut my mind down as an adult. Regardless, after taking a much needed nap we got ready for the day and jumped into the Professor's 1971 Plymouth Duster to pick up our brand new Patriot. Back in the 70's people were not thinking baby seats so that meant that Ben's car seat couldn't fit on the back seat and barely fitted in the front. Since the Duster was not equipped with airbags, placing Ben on the front seat was not a problem in my books so Traci, Mrs. Starkebaum and I sat in the back row.

We arrived to Yellowstone Country Motors in Livingston, MT and after promising to go into debt, they handed over the keys to our factory-ordered Jeep Patriot Sport. I pulled the car forward and parked it in front of the dealership to document the moment then the car drove itself down the street to Dairy Queen with little assistance from yours truly. From there, Traci drove the car back to her folks house while I drove back in the Duster to snap a few photos of the Patriot on the highway. That evening we drove the Patriot to one of my favorite places near Bozeman, Hyalite Lake and enjoyed the scenery that Bennington Lake lacks. Since the sun in Montana is never overwhelming, on Saturday we enjoyed a picnic with the in-laws and the Patriot's liftgate provided shade for the head of the table. On Sunday I joined Traci's dad on his weekly tire kicking route and stumble upon a Corvette-only rally races. It was nice to see corvettes unleash their stored up energy and smoke rubber as they competed for the fastest time. Meanwhile at the Dodge dealership I found out that the 3/4 ton trucks have a four link suspension in the rear and a long arm suspension in the front. That's the suspension that many jeep fanatics have been fabricating in their garages for years for maximum articulation off road and on road performance. I know it's not that exciting except that it really is.

On our way back home we made a quick stop by Bonner, MT to see an old Milwaukee Railroad caboose parked alongside the highway. After taking a few photos we had lunch in Missoula and continued on our journey west. It has been our tradition to have a picnic on Memorial Day whether it rains or shines. This year was no different, so we enjoyed a picnic along Lake Coeur d'Alene beside Veterans Memorial Centennial Bridge. Ben took on the role of entertainer during our meal with some help from his audience member to assist him walking along the bike path and climbing on top of the logs along the lake. I'm sure he will be walking on his own fairly soon and my gray hairs will start growing the following day. Anyhow, after feasting on hotdogs, chips and grapes we got back on the road and enjoyed our first sunset in our newly acquired Patriot.