Aug 6th, 2008 by toryssa
When I was fourteen I went to Montana for a week with my aunt. I think we had a good time, I can’t actually remember the time we spent there. What I do remember is that we brought home a kitten with us. And that I drove the entire way. En route from Montana to Western Washington there are three notable mountain passes that must be crossed. On one of them, in all my fourteen year old wisdom, I down shifted her old mini-van into second. You know, to maintain the speed that was so important. After successfully crossing to the other side, I promptly forgot about it and continued on my merry way, driving for several hundred miles more miles at approximately eighty miles per hour. This, well, it caused the little van to overheat.
At some point, near the small town of Cle Elum I realized my error, put it back into the appropriate gear and oh-so-casually mentioned that it appeared to be getting rather hot. Maybe we should stop.
Overheating rapidly leads to expensive consequential damage. It can easily crack head gaskets. If not repaired, a cracked head gasket can let non-compressible water into the cylinders, which can accumulate and break the starter and flywheel. Radical overheats can bend heads and other parts. A single serious overheat can require an engine rebuild AND repair of the initial cooling problem.
That folks, is exactly what happened.
My aunt called my parents and they were irate. They were pissed off that she was so irresponsible that she’d take an unreliable vehicle out of state. They were pissed that she hadn’t thought ahead and planned for the unforeseeable incident and brought enough money for a mechanic and a hotel room. And all this with their precious daughter!
And I? Said nothing. I didn’t fess up to being the one driving (to be fair, neither did she, because who lets a fucking fourteen year old drive seven hundred miles?). And I never said that perhaps, MAYBE, I had been responsible for the overheating and eventual ruining of her car.
Until now.
I was reminded while I was doing the same drive home last weekend… only, this time there was less cracked head gaskets and more intimidating Transformer cops in Idaho.
7 Responses to “a confession”
HAHAHAHA!!! Had you asked to drive?
Oh wow. I didn’t drive until I was 18 and even that was too early for me to behave responsibly.
You aren’t the first person to do that, and MANY full grown adults have blown an engine the same way, having left the trans in 2nd gear for MILES, and had NO CLUE that the engine reving that high was ‘abnormal’…. if nothing else,your aunt should have known by the rapidly draing gas tank! You made it, alive, and what a GREAT experience for a 14 year old!!
besides that, HOW WAS THE TRIP!!?? was this Duncan’s first trip to Big Sky country? I love that part of this country, and the incredible geology.
LMAO! I love it!
The question is, Was he hot?
SS - I’m sure I must have asked… or at least mentioned that it would be SUCH A GOOD IDEA. I don’t remember for sure though.
Alex - Duncan was born in Montana, obviously he doesn’t remember that though. We moved back to WA when he was 3 months old. We usually visit every summer. He calls it “Bontana” and he’s a big fan.
Christie - Meh. He wasn’t anything to write home about.