Day 8, Saturday, July 5

My wife Nance called Saturday to tell me that my mother was slipping fast. I decided to make the trip from Flagstaff to Albuquerque mostly non-stop after bidding good bye to the Wrobels. This worked out well and Mom was lucid and very glad to see me -- and the rest of our family who arrived from all over the country.

The I-40 segment from Flag' to Albuquerque was light on traffic. No doubt the high cost of gas was taking its toll. This is a pretty route, with red sandstone cliffs and mesas punctuated with multi-colored volcanic inclusions. It was still plenty warm, but nothing like the sauna in Arizona. I made very good time, covering the 325 miles in about 5 hours. I put the Healey away for a next few weeks. I was quite impressed with its performance, it ran like a train through some severe conditions.

Still, I did generate a short Healey squawk list:

Oil leak, the rear main leaked constantly, just like it always has. I had hoped my engine rebuild with fix this, but it was not to be. Healey leaked about 1 quart every 300 to 400 miles. It made quite a mess at gas stations and hotels. I was able to fix this when I got home, but that's another story.

Carburetor leak, I discovered a gasoline drip from the foward SU carb, right onto the exhaust pipe. This generated some fumes and fear of fire, but it should be easily repaired with a gasket kit. I had not rebuilt the SU's since the mid 70's.

Wandering idle speed, at sea level the idle sped ended up from 1000 to 1500 RPM each time I let off the gas. It works OK at high altitude, this quirk will be hard to fix without returning to sea level.

The cowl and transmission cover were full of small air leaks that really heat up the interior. Some duct tape needed here.

One broken and one loose short spoke on the RF wheel. These are easy to fix and a common failure with 48 spoke wheels. It has been a few years since the last broken spokes, but I still carry spares.

That's about it, looks like Healey 100 and I will be ready for another big trip soon. Maybe next year. Meanwhile, thanks for following along. Take care and drive safely on your next road trip.

Day 7 Friday July 4

This post is long overdue. My mother's health took a bad turn on July 5 and I needed to speed up the trip home. She passed away at age 93 on July 9. Her passing was very quiet and both my brother and sister were there at the time. I found comfort in making it back before she died, I am sure it was helpful for Mom to see all her children while she was still lucid and aware of what was happening. It was important for me to be there, so I am glad the Healey came through for me.

I will continue later with the denouement of the Healey trip.

I are back (7/30/08):

The other Bill Sullivan was not able to return home with me. He decided to stay for a few days in San Diego to help out Joyce who was recovering from a broken arm. We said goodby and I joined Judy and Doug Wrobel who graciously agreed to follow me home with Agatha Healey riding along in her rock star trailer. We also had the Lee's and Kell's taking the same route in their RV's, so there were plenty of recovery options should Healey 100 act up.

We wound through San Diego's freeways to end up on I-8. Traffic was light once we got to the edge of town. Few vacationers (this was July 4th holiday weekend) flock to the Imperial Valley deserts in July and we could see why. When we descended into Octotillo, CA, the temps were around 105F at 11AM.

We continued on I-8 to AZ 85 headed to Phoenix. We stopped often for gas, the Wrobel's rig only had about a 150 mile range. I appreciated the breaks, it was getting hotter and hotter in the Healey. A ton of air leaks around the firewall turned into tiny blowtorches. I thought I should try to track these down and plug them when I get home. Things peaked around the bleak and brown Sunrise, AZ on the 101 Loop road north of Phoenix. Judy said it was 113 F on their indicator. The Healey was running hotter, sitting around 210 F. There was a SW tailwind, this tends to cut of flow through the radiator.

We motored onto I-17 N towards Flagstaff. They we began the longest ascent of the entire trip. This is a very long climb, probably 6000 ft over 10 miles or more. We started hot, with the engine around 210 and the cockpit around 150. There were passing lanes and turnouts on the hill, and quite a few trucks were pulled over with steaming engines, a bad sign. I continued up at about 60 mph, slowly pulling away from the Wrobel's. I did not want to slow down or stop, if I did I was sure Healey would boil and vapor lock. I did crest the hill with the engine at 220F. This was as hot as she ever got and the engine kept running OK. At the top of the hill we were drenched with a late afternoon thundershower. This cooled things off so fast I thought I would crack. My pitiful wipers swiped meaninglessly at the storm, but I could still see and we made it to Flagstaff, rather cold and tired. What an oasis after dealing with Arizona's deserts. Cool weather, cool pines, and incredible mountains, Flagstaff is a treat.

Doug generously provided a frequent flyer room at a brand new Hilton Charter hotel. What comfort and luxury! We crashed early after dinner, satisfied that we managed 450 miles of very hot driving with few problems.

Day 6, Thursday July 3

Today was relatively slack, just a delegates meeting and the awards banquet.

I tried the delegates meeting, it took just an hour or so. The club has lost about 200 members out of 4000. The 2009 and 2010 conclaves will be at Kingston, Ont. and somewhere in Illinois, respectively. 2011 and 2012 are currently open. A couple of members asked me if we would yet consider holding a conclave in Taos or elsewhere in NM. I said it it was not likely, our club is too small to handle it.

I took a break from the event and drove up I-5 to Mission Viejo to visit my Aunt and Uncle Barrett. I was about a 70 mile drive. Lots of traffic, the $4.50 gas in California has slowed them down but folks are still out there. My return was pressed, it took two hours to crawl through holiday beach traffic to get back to the hotel.

Our little club did fairly well for awards. Agatha took a first and Bob Lee took fourth in the Gymkhana. He was in a big class (100-6 and early 3000) with plenty of competition. I didn't see anyone faster, but apparently there were some.

We were stunned to get the Conclave participation award for highest percentage of attendees. We had five registrants out of 14 members. We got to go on the stage and our club will get an official plaque. Bravo!

Joyce Sullivan showed up for part of the banquet, but she was still hurting and needed to keep her legs up to stop swelling. The arm is on the mend, but it is still tender. Bill H decided to stay in SD for a day or two with Joyce. I will be coming home with Judy and Doug. The Kells and Lee/Sprague will be behind, so we have plenty of support if anything goes wrong.

Day 5, Wednesday July 2

Today was RALLY day. Bill S and Bill N entered Healey 100 for a wonderful day of Healey rallying 'round San Diego. We were joined by Bob Lee and Ross Kells in Bob's Healey 3000.

Sorry folks, it didn't work out too well. Bill S and Bill N practically ran over the first check point but did not see it. They spent about 20 minutes retracing steps to discover that they had already been there. No problem, they continued merrily towards the next checkpoint. Unfortunately, they reached an intersection that trapped us like a bad Soduku puzzle: every direction we took from this intersection led to a conflict with the next direction.

Bob and Ross apparently figured out the puzzle, but we wondered. We saw them here and there with a lost and confused look on their Healey.

Bill and I decided to kiss it off and had a nice drive north on San Diego -- taking in La Jolla and Torrey Pines golf course. This is beautiful country folks, we were impressed.

Still, I wondered for a day or two how to solve the rally problem. It had something to do with chinese diagrams, a cryptic tool handed out with the instructions that we could not figure out how to use. Oh well, next year.

Meanwhile, back at the hotel we noticed an angry crowd looking for Rally Master Udo Putze. Apparently he was lost on route and nowhere to be found.

The day ended on a much happier note: an evening dinner cruise around the harbor. Great food and lots to see from this large vessel. Passing by the naval yards south of the Coronado bridge was the best. This city has beautiful lights too, plus a few pre-July 4 fireworks....

Day 4, Tuesday July 1

Today was car show day. The San Diego club secured a beautiful downtown harbor park. This area is surrounded by lush grass, spectacular buildings, deep blue water, and the Coronado Bridge. There were about 120 cars here, arranged by model on the grassy knolls in the park. We had lots of shade and spectators, an idyllic setting. I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Bill and John spent part of the day on the nearby WWII carrier Midway. They reported that it was well preserved and interesting. I might try to make that tour myself on Thursday if I can.

The big news is that Agatha A Healey won first in the 100M class. This was no small accomplishment, there were about 10 very nice 100M's there -- though none were quite as red as her! Naturally, Judy and Doug were delighted, they had their trophy signed by Gerry Coker, designer of the Healey 100.

The best of show went to an immaculate 1953 Nash Healey coupe, on of two at this show. It was well deserved, this was a very fine car and a standout amongst so many excellent Healeys.

After the show there was a nice Sprite Beach Party at the hotel. Gerry Coker, who designed the first Sprite prototype just before he parted from Healey Motor Company. His prototype had no "Bug Eyes", just a smooth hood with flush retractable headlamps. He talked about how horrified he was to see the production car with the bug eyes -- but now he appreciates the compromise that ended up making the car more special than ever.

Day 3, Monday June 31

Today was Gymkhana and Funkhana day at the Conclave. The organizers had an outstanding venue for these events: the vast, smooth paved parking lot of Qualcomm stadium, home of the San Diego Chargers. This event was jointly run by the Conclave and the local Porsche Club. They put out thousands of cones on a course that was probably a mile long. It had lots of tight turns but also straights that certainly had speeds over 60 mph.

I stayed away from the event, since we needed our car to make it home -- but it was very tempting. Spectators had a great shaded viewing area and catered barbecue. The barbecue was delicious and good idea, no restaurants were within walking distance. About 50 cars participated. In our group, Ross Kells and Bob Lee entered their Sprite and 3000 respectively. The Sprite was fussy in the morning, she didn't want to idle. But after some aimless fiddling, Ross decided she ran OK at higher RPM and off they went to the races. Judy and Doug Wrobel tried out the Funkhana.

Bob Lee seemed to have the fastest time of our group. I think he probably placed, his racing experience did not hurt. But Ross and the misfiring Sprite looked good too. There were some timing glitches.

After a day of racing and talking, we retired for the evening. I met for dinner with my Aunt and Uncle Barrett and my cousins Kathleen and Paul Duke and their kids JJ and Lauren. Once I managed to find the restaurant (this problem does not bode well for the rally on Wednesday), we had a too brief reunion. They enjoyed seeing the Healey, but mainly we enjoyed each other's company. We must do this more often....

Day 2, Sunday June 29

Today started early, we left Casa Grande at 4 AM sharp. It was very dark but still around 90 F. The Healey and I ran cool for the next few hours, the early start was a good idea. We stopped for a hearty breakfast at a truck stop in Yuma at around 7 AM.

After that it started to get hot, especially when we left the Colorado River cooling effects around Yuma. At El Centro, I am sure it was over 100, and likely over 110. West of El Centro the Imperial Valley is a vast sand dune pierced by I-8. This dune adds to the dramatic effect of the heat. The dunes are a major recreational area for off roaders, but it is empty in the summer.

After the dunes it got fiercely hot and the road climbed dramatically by 4000 ft. This is a 10 mile climb, grade is 6% or more. The Healey ran the hottest of the whole trip here, it started at the bottom at 190 F and finished at 212 F. After the crest, we descended gently into San Diego and it cooled off considerably as we picked up ocean breezes.

Finally saw a few Healeys on their way to the Conclave here. It was hard to keep track of them, congestion got major as we approached I5 and the Airport where the Sheraton is.

It was a great end of the day to find this gathering of Healeys. They motored in all day, some in trailers but many driven. It was time to relax and share stories, all had a few adventures to talk about. We saw several Healeys that were driven from S and N Carolina, by the way, what a journey.

Day 1, Saturday, June 28

The first casualty for our Conclave trip was Bill H's Healey 3000. Bill had installed a new engine several weeks ago, but several nagging problems with the engine kept him from feeling comfortable with the car. So out comes the rental car, a very nice and new Nissan Sentra. Considering the hot weather ahead, having a modern car along is a pretty good thing.

We got an early start, Bill S's Healey 100 arrived in Belen about 7:30 AM. We continued south on I-25 to Socorro. From there we headed west on US 60. Out goal was Casa Grande, AZ, about 400 miles from Albuquerque.

This was a very lovely day on an outstanding route. US 60 is rural but wide enough to make reasonable time. Most of the speed limits were 65 mph, traffic was always light. This road goes through the antelope laden plains of San Agustin, home of the Very Large Array radio telescope.

We had a great brunch at the Safire Cafe in Springerville, AZ. Temps were mostly in the mid 80's. Bill and John hardly had to tweek up their air conditioning.

US 60 runs through the spectacular Salt River Canyon. This is a pure sports car road, lots of up and down and left and right.

After Globe, a working mining town, we descended into the plains between Phoenix and Tucson. The temperature went over 100 here, but not all that much. The Internet said it was 107, but I'm not sure. The Healey handled the heat well, but it was getting uncomfortable for me with the sun coming through the windshield. I had enough and we stopped at a comfortable Holiday Inn in Casa Grande. Total distance traveled, about 420 miles.

News: We heard by phone that Bill H's wife Joyce broke her arm in California. She was packing to meet us in San Diego. She had surgery today, and we heard she is fine. Bummer!, more on this later.

Bill

Healey Trip to San Diego

The crazed Bill Sullivans are at it again. Another Healey adventure, this time a relatively short one: Albuquerque to San Diego for the 2008 Conclave.

If all goes well, we should be off on Saturday, June 28.

This trip is a lot shorter than our last one in 2007, see http://home.comcast.net/~wsullivan711/healey.htm

We are using the same 1954 BN1 and 1960 BN7 Healeys. Both have rebuilt engines this time, they did OK on the Vermont trip but all of them were pretty well worn so we spent the winter with a rebuild. Bill H. put a previously rebuilt BJ8 engine in his while Bill N. rebuilt his original engine. This required sleeving the bores back to the original size.

The rebuild took longer than expected, so we are off on this trip with just a few hundred miles on each engine. Wish us luck driving these unproven beasts.

We should leave on Saturday, June 28, so we will probably not post anything until the weekend. We are allowing two days to make this 800 mile trip, that should be no problem as long as the Healey's keep running an no one gets heat prostration.

Our wives are smart enough to pass on our ride through the hottest deserts in North America. Joyce Sullivan will meet us in San Diego. Nance is staying home to take care of the house, dogs, and also my mother who has not been well. Bill H's son John Sullivan is riding with us, so we have plenty of company.