White Lightning has been nerdarized!
The plates went on just before noon this morning. White Lightning is now fully registered, paid off (taxes), and ready to roll. I opted not to replace the plates for newer ones for two reasons; first of all, I didn't want to wait the 6 months I waited last time I relaced them; second, I wanted to leave a tribute to the 'Storm Tracer' by doing my best to bend the front plate straight and leave it on the front of the van. I may opt to replace them out after the season ends, but til then, thye'll do just fine. I also stuck Chris Rozoff's "Free Convetion" bumper sticker which mocks the free Tibet (sp?) stickers you see everywhere. That'll mark the first tatoo for the new ride.
Also, I went ahead and pulled all my gear together to get it ready for tomorrow's installation up at Verne's. I went to Radio Shack and Ace Hardware to gte the last of the items I might need, including the triple lighter adapter which made a beautiful fit beneath the cup holders. The issue is trying to get a drill in there to mount it still. Perhaps Verne knows of a better, more creative way. Ace's visit was for some more mounting screws, namely for the HAM radio which I want to mount beneath the glove box. Everything has been stuffed into its plastic container and will be heading up the Canyon tomorrow morning to get installed.
I also went through all my photography gear to take inventory and make sure every piece of equipment had all its parts. Amazingly enough, I found everything pretty well together, including all my compact flash cards, power adapters, and lens adapters. I need to stock up on Rayovac rechargables and 8mm tapes, but other than that, I'm pretty much set up and ready to go.
Speaking of ready to go, my thoughts on chasing next week remain about the same as they were upon first discovering the setup. Models remain somewhat consistant according to chaser conversation, but I'm still waiting another couple of days before I start really considering the venture. However, in preparation, I'm going to take my van in for its preseason maintance on Wednesday. A tune up, oil change, and transmission flush are all on the list of things to do to her while I'm in class Wednesday. Apparently the tune-ups for this baby are a bit more than the car because the labor involved. Not the happiest news on earth, but none-the-less, it'll be done. Between the gear installation, gathering of my photography stuff, and getting the van into the shop, I would be ready to go if the end of the week pans out. I'm still not holding my breath, but definately keeping my fingers crossed.
