So I'm pulling Schroedinger to Altus; traveling on 40 west of OKC. Around mile marker 70 I start to see big huge windmills in the distance. As I get closer there are more and more, then a whole farm of them - maybe a hundred. I start thinking, "Hey, these weren't here the last time I was through this way." Then I get to trying to figure when the last time I actually WAS through here was - on 40 west of OKC. Seems it was while I was in the Marines going to El Toro, driving a friends Volkswagen van, with four bald tires, in the middle of a huge winter ice storm. Back in.... 1984. Time flies when you are having fun. I think I need to get out more..So I'm pulling Schroedinger to Altus; traveling on 40 west of OKC. Around mile marker 70 I start to see big huge windmills in the distance. As I get closer there are more and more, then a whole farm of them - maybe a hundred. I start thinking, "Hey, these weren't here the last time I was through this way." Then I get to trying to figure when the last time I actually WAS through here was - on 40 west of OKC. Seems it was while I was in the Marines going to El Toro, driving a friends Volkswagen van, with four bald tires, in the middle of a huge winter ice storm. Back in.... 1984. Time flies when you are having fun. I think I need to get out more... <grin>
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With the "mountain" in site, on a two lane road, I have a blowout. With only a couple thousand miles on these tires and with the weight of the trailer well within the weight rating. Last time I buy tires at Pep Boys. Second blowout, actually, but the first one was caused by a roto-tiller hidden in the grass, so I can't hold that against them.
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Go to jack up trailer and scissors jack won't fit under axle. Pull forward to a more level spot and it will then fit under axle but it won't even begin to lift up the trailer. Break out truck jack and use it on frame of trailer to take some of the weight, then use scissors jack to lift axle up enough to get wheel off. Need to weld me up one of those funny looking "stick under axle and pull forward" trailer jacks.
Go to put on my spare (which is brand new, from previous blowout) and guess what. It doesn't fit on the hub. The center of the hub (which I replaced years ago because the bearing races were loose in the hub) is just slightly too large for the rim.
And I'm in the middle of BFE so, of course, my cell phone doesn't work. With fortuitous foresight I had tossed a 3lb hammer and 1-1/8" thick piece of round stock in the bed of the truck instead of putting them up properly before I left. I bent over the new wheel and pounded on the hub center in a circular motion for about 10 minutes till I "persuaded" it to be a little bigger.
Nice wind for sailing when I get there but I just came off a night shift and a long drive, so I sleep
Next day the wind is real light but we go out anyway. Decent sail.
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I pack up and head back, trip is uneventful.
