After the big premiere of Jurassic Park, we had a couple of days to relax, visit with old friends and get our loose ends tied up before embarking on the final, and most intense, portion of the tour. The West Coast leg had been a success, not only had we accomplished the feat without passing out thus far, but we'd managed to have more fun than was truly neccessary which resulted in some delays and all-nighters that while in retrospect were wonderful experiences, in reality--it sucked. We had no idea what to expect from the road out there, but at the end of it lie home, and that was the biggest carrot of them all.

A decision was made early on that I wouldn't shave for the duration of the tour, so in each subsequent stop, I'd look more and more like a vagrant. Grizzled and bronzed, I'd show up in Orlando, Florida on the Fourth of July on my hands and knees, Death Valley-ridden.

There were a fair amount of memories and spectacular scenery that kept us entertained when the radio gave up on finding anything that resembled music. Though if anything was learned, it was that the convertible top should be raised to cover our heads from the sun for long periods of time. It may look cool to tool down the road in a black convertible, but truth is, it's anything but. Wind-chapped and coaster-whipped, that's the sign of the serious coaster freak. After wrapping up affairs at the Red Lion Inn in Glendale, we piled everything into that black Chrysler LeBaron and headed south on interstate 5. It was surely going to be a long and grand adventure--and the first thing on our minds was the severe need for an In 'n' Out burger, the last before leaving the west coast and its canny predilection for establishing awesome greasy spoon food chains.

With the nose of the vehicle pointed towards the east, burgers and the treasured In 'n' Out burger sticker in our possession, we prepared for a quick thrill that awaited us a long way past Barstow.

The next leg of the tour promised to deliver more than its fair share of sandstorms, overheating vehicles and surly highway patrolmen. Nevertheless, we piled in and went looking for Coaster Mecca.