HYSTERICAL JOURNEY TO HISTORIC PLACES

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SEPTEMBER 9, 2014

I made it through the hurricane okay, although the remnants of it provided some fairly brisk rainfall between Beaver and St George. Interstate 15 was open through Arizona, but still closed near Moapa, NV where those cars floated off. We all got detoured off through Loganville and Overton and had to make our way onward as best we could. There were several places between Mesquite, NV and the detour where the interstate was flooded. Helluva rainstorm. I am glad I didn’t get stuck in it down at Robbers Roost, but am disappointed that I did not see the hideout. Perhaps I can try again sometime when there is no hurricane. Am spending the night in Kingman at the Best Western King’s Inn. Nice enough room for $111.15. The whole place is being remodeled, but it is right beside the damn railroad tracks. Had supper at a mediocre Italian joint on Beale Street called The Garlic Clove. Kingman is noted for jive-ass honkeys with swastika tattoos. I saw one of them at supper. Tim McVeigh, the nut that blew up the federal building in Okie City spent some time among friends in Kingman. I have never found a good place to eat here. If you wanted to go someplace nice for supper on your anniversary in Kingman you would probably be stuck between Jack in the Box and Burger King. There are puh-lenty of fast food joints all over the place. Maybe everyone is in a big hurry to go do something racist or otherwise silly. Home tomorrow.

BUTCH CASSIDY

Enough already has been said about his well-known misdeeds among the Wild Bunch and of his many joyous days on the ranch in Bolivia where he learned to go straight. What remains in controversy about him is how and where he went up the flume. Many believe that Butch and Sundance were both killed by soldiers in San Vicente. Others of us believe that nobody knows who those two bandits were that the soldiers killed, and that Butch and Sundance used that incident as cover to go straight. There is convincing evidence that Butch returned to visit his family in Utah in 1925. They were still living in Circleville. Butch has a great-grand-nephew named Bill Betenson who has written a dandy book called Butch Cassidy, My Uncle. Bill, as it turns out, is a former colleague at the Bureau of Mines in Salt Lake City. Read his book and decide for yourself about who might be buried in San Vicente.

HOME



I arrived back home about 12:30 in the afternoon on October 10 after a trip of three weeks that covered 5857 miles. It is great to be home. In 2012 when I purchased the Jeep the Chrysler Corporation began putting the Pentastar V6 into those vehicles. It is the same engine that is used in the Chrysler 300s, but some cheap engine parts were used in the Wranglers. They used regular valves on one bank of the engine and cheap-ass valves on the other bank. After about 30 thousand miles the cheap-ass valves have begun to float on many of the Wranglers. Their solution is to replace the valves and the cylinder head. Fortunately it was a repair covered under warranty. As I was driving along through those heavy rainstorms one thing I noticed was that my tires which had 32 thousand miles of wear were no longer holding the road as well as once they did. The new set of tires has cost about as much as the engine work would have. Perhaps they will be the last set of tires I ever have to buy, but I sure do enjoy going on these trips.

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Photos

BEAVER, UT
Butch was born at his grampa's house in Beaver, UT and spent most of his childhood there. I looked carefully though town for that old house. It is still standing no doubt, but did find it. Next best thing might be this court house where young Butch was held to task as a juvenile delinquent.

PHILO T. FARNSWORTH
Butch is not the only notable who was ever from Beaver. Philo T. Farnsworth also hails from thereabouts. Philo is best known for the invention of the cathode ray tube which made TV possible.

CIRCLEVILLE, UT
This is the old Parker Ranch about three miles south of Circleville, UT. It is right beside Highway 89. Butch spent part of his adolescence here before he ran off to become an outlaw.