Roadtrip . M5 up Pikes Peak. Completed it M8

[hairnet]

my record is from when i visited @PhilA

wanted to go from birmingham AL to beach at kittyhawk

apart from 3 miles out to I20

it was next turn 645 to the local road to the hills and even then it was 99 miles 

i gave up and decided to head for charlotte to get the plane - even from there it was 400 miles

didnt have the time

record before that was 200 ish till next turn

[motorpunk]

Well aufwiedersehen, M5. You did 17.1 American MPGees, fixed your own warning messages, killed a million insects and spent huge amounts of time at a steady high speed. There is not a better car for the job of making places like West Kansas go away so quickly, nor get us to the top of a mountain with such hoof.

[motorpunk]

In five and a half days we have driven the same distance across America as from my house in the English Midlands to Iraq. We only retraced our steps for 27 miles, every other road was new. We saw farmland that stretched hundreds of miles, Native American land, clean and modern cities, desolate half-dead towns, homelessness and incredible wealth. There were deserts with rattlesnakes and roads above the clouds (sometimes on the same day). It’s staggering how little litter there is and how prosperous some places are, yet how wretched (but interesting) some hick towns in places like Kansas and Nebraska are. We saw almost no Police and I didn’t feel bad about driving exceptionally quickly in such empty landscapes. Am now waiting for a flight home, a ride in a shagged old Golf, and the last leg in my beloved Elise. Before we go, here’s a house Ronald Reagan lived in, and a pointless replica of the leaning tower of Pisa. Thanks America. 🇺🇸 

[reb]

Fear And Loathing In West Kansas

[mintwth]

On 25/05/2025 at 19:28, motorpunk said:

Crap local attraction. Small Statue of Thingummy.

The Lawnmower Man? 

[Sunny Jim]

15 hours ago, motorpunk said:

Am jet lagged, knackered, and hugely confused by the road signs…

You're confused? I thought the M5 went from West Bromwich to Exeter.

[EyesWeldedShut]

5 hours ago, Sunny Jim said:

You're confused? I thought the M5 went from West Bromwich to Exeter.

Nah - he's talking about the M8, isn't he? There's a Moscow up there too (well kind of, bit East of Kilmarnock and South of the M8). M9

[motorpunk]

Home and done. Elise was a joy getting home from Burton even though the roads were horrible and wet.  I am wrecked. 
 

Might upload some proper (camera) pics from the summit as Pikes Peak is utterly mind-blowing.

PS - Next job, finish writing my book on Red Robbo!

[motorpunk]

[Schaefft]

Awesome, still want to undertake something similar at some point (although more likely in a clapped out Roadmaster or similar). One of those holidays you'll still fondly remember in 30 years time (when cars like the M5 will be long gone from the roads).

[Matty]

Forgive me for being nosy, but how did you manage to get a lend of a manual v10 m5 over there? What a machine to do it in!

[motorpunk]

1 hour ago, Matty said:

Forgive me for being nosy, but how did you manage to get a lend of a manual v10 m5 over there? What a machine to do it in!

A good mate owns it. A Brit who now lives over there 👍

[Matty]

57 minutes ago, motorpunk said:

A good mate owns it. A Brit who now lives over there 👍

Yeah need to start making these mates myself. I've got a Ryan who lives 2 streets from me with a Transit. I can borrow it anytime 😁