Thread: Ramblings From The USA - 1

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Originally Posted by rspears

jb, they may be cutting out the roadway to reduce the incline, leaving the hillside along the shoulder, well off of the road surface. I can show you places down in SW Missouri, NW Arkansas where the road surface passes between shear rock walls forty to fifty feet high, and similar angled bore holes are clearly visible top to bottom. Drill, excavate on one side, then start shearing off the rock in sections. Don't know if they may use small, precision directional shots to speed the process, but I could get the full story with a phone call.

Here's a picture of a deep, terraced cut as an example of what I think you may have seen. Not sure of the location....

Attachment 64389

It's hard to say definitively; but I'm pretty sure you've nailed it Roger.
It appears that the strata is horizontal and the drill holes upandicular, i.e. angled back from the roadway; but straight up and down within that plane.

I'm picking it was done (as you intimated,) so that the excavator operator could shear the face off more accurately; like tearing stamps off a serrated sheet.

It's just I've never seen that done before.

Originally Posted by johnboy

It's hard to say definitively; but I'm pretty sure you've nailed it Roger.
It appears that the strata is horizontal and the drill holes upandicular, i.e. angled back from the roadway; but straight up and down within that plane.

I'm picking it was done (as you intimated,) so that the excavator operator could shear the face off more accurately; like tearing stamps off a serrated sheet.

It's just I've never seen that done before.

It's seen a lot in the US, where they attempt to reduce sharp grade changes on major highways to improve trucking efficiency and allow more consistent speed without overly affecting efficiency. A civil/structural buddy that I worked with for years offered:

My personal thought whenever I see those bore holes is that is what is left behind after the blast. I’ve always assumed the holes were drilled near a free edge and the majority of the force of the blast chose the path of least resistance, leaving a half circle behind. I’ll see if anyone around here has a better answer.

I haven't heard anything more from him.

Originally Posted by Bob Parmenter

Well jb, since I have apparently become your culinary guide on this trip, I hope you enjoyed the Black Butte......one of my favorites. It's made just south of us in Oregon so I hope they "export" the good stuff back east.

Is the Pope a Catholic?
Hell YES!
The Negra Modelo I had t'other day tasted like watered down possum pee after the Arrogant Bastards I'd been sucking on previously.
But that Black Butte was bloody gorgeous.
Sir: I admire your good taste!
(I have to; it's the same as mine!)

Originally Posted by Bob Parmenter

Ah tamales!! Yummy stuff, though a lot of joints get the ratio of filling to wrapping off.............probably for cost control.

Yeah...well...this bloke got his ratios wrong...by the time I'd skinned and gutted it I was left with about 25% of carcass weight...where your average beefy weighs out at around 55%.

Not to infringe on Uncle Bob's culinary advice, but you might give Chiles Rellenos a try - Mexican Stuffed Peppers. No pastry to fight, just a hollowed out sweet bell pepper (or two) filled with your choice of savory meat in a sauce. Tasty! A side of rice & beans, either refried (mashed) or black and you've got a nice feed.

The bore holes you speak of are drilled and then filled with the blasting medium....sometimes ammonium nitrate (blasting grade) or whatever.... ANFO is ammonium nitrate and fuel oil. The charge is set off to cause the rock wall to break off and fall.....Usually the waste rock is used to make a fill in a low spot so the volume blasted out is used elsewhere on the roadway. Similar process is used in open pit mining. The blasting medium has a "speed" associated with it....military blasting of a building requires a different speed of blasting medium. The speed is the speed of the shock wave thru the material. In open pit mining they will blow a wall at the end of the shift to let the next shift remove the debris and drill another set of holes. The location and spacing of the holes is relatively scientific nowdays....in mining, the destination of the rock is known (either waste or to the crusher) since the bore hole material is analyzed as to makeup.

Originally Posted by robot

The bore holes you speak of are drilled and then filled with the blasting medium....sometimes ammonium nitrate (blasting grade) or whatever.... ANFO is ammonium nitrate and fuel oil. The charge is set off to cause the rock wall to break off and fall.....Usually the waste rock is used to make a fill in a low spot so the volume blasted out is used elsewhere on the roadway. Similar process is used in open pit mining. The blasting medium has a "speed" associated with it....military blasting of a building requires a different speed of blasting medium. The speed is the speed of the shock wave thru the material. In open pit mining they will blow a wall at the end of the shift to let the next shift remove the debris and drill another set of holes. The location and spacing of the holes is relatively scientific nowdays....in mining, the destination of the rock is known (either waste or to the crusher) since the bore hole material is analyzed as to makeup.

Okay...I think I've got it now.(I've got a brain like a computer; information has to be punched in.)

Thanks robot and Roger.
It's just that it was entirely new to me.

Thursday 3rd September.

Arrived USAF Museum, 1100 Spaatz St., Wright Patterson AFB OH 45433 at just before nine o-clock’
Went to look at the display aircraft parked on the tarmac first, the day is only going to get hotter; so we’ll do these now rather than not do them later because it’s too hot.
But that put us about a mils from the entrance, (well it wasn’t, but it sure looked it!) so we started to walk Got about a quarter of the way there when some nice fella with an elongated golf buggy yelled “Do you people want a ride?”
Hell yes! Even at 9:00 it’s too hot to walk too far…seems he’d come to help a tradie carry his tools into the Base…and we were lucky.
We walked out again a bit after 1:00…completely airplaned out…and we hadn’t seen all of it.
A truly fascinating place; I don’t have enough superlatives for it.
Magnificent…we’re going to have to go back on our next trip over here…that’s a given.

But…the battery in my watch is playing up; and the strap has suddenly started to fray.
Bloody Murphy!
Back home I’d have it sussed in thirty minutes…not so over here.
The chain stores, selling cheap watches have made it cheaper to but a new one than replace a battery or strap, and they’ve driven the family jewellers out. As they have with the majority of all Ma and Pa stores.
But there’s sentiment attached to this watch.
Ronny Oxenham gave it to me thirty years or more back when he left my employ.
“You’re the hardest boss I’ve ever worked for,” he said, “ but also the fairest, and the best. And the easiest to get along with. But you’re still a hard bastard.”
And we’re still good mates.
So I want to keep this watch.

We eventually found a jeweller, and $31 later we’re back in business with a reliable time-piece…all good.
At 3:45 it’s too late to go looking for the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery so headed for the Motel 6 as recommended by Ken Thomas to overnight.

Boonshoft tomorrow!

Disclaimer: be aware that the views and the opinions expressed by the author of this missive are bloody good ones.

I think I've been to the AF museum 5 times and ain't done yet-they keep changing and adding stuff-at least its free parking and entry and if you happen to have race car trailer behind your crew cab-you just got to park a little farther out

It far exceeded my expectations Jerry.
You said to expect to spend all day there; and we could've.
But there was just too much to assimilate...information overload!

Johnboy, the last time I was in Bowling Green for a race, there was a national corvette convention at the plant and museum. We drove my vette there and parked next to some "rare" corvettes. It was really amusing listening to the purists, and the non purists going back and forth. Those purist corvette people are in their own mind. That's all I have to say about that.

Originally Posted by rspears

Not to infringe on Uncle Bob's culinary advice, but you might give Chiles Rellenos a try - Mexican Stuffed Peppers. No pastry to fight, just a hollowed out sweet bell pepper (or two) filled with your choice of savory meat in a sauce. Tasty! A side of rice & beans, either refried (mashed) or black and you've got a nice feed.

I welcome the help Roger.....but...........BELL peppers?!?!(must be a Kansas thing)
Poblano or Anaheim...........not bell (yuck!)

jb, glad the BB met with your approval. I suspect you feel "..you're still a hard bastard.." is a compliment..........I agree.

I think the old nachos plate, chips and salsa, and a bowl of chile verde or chili colorado with a few warm tortillas makes a mighty fine meal, or just a super buritto with guacamoli sour cream, and steak !

Friday 4th September.

Okay…the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery, 2600 De Weese Parkway, Dayton OH 45414.

We didn’t have a clue as to what we were heading for; the google search I’d one wasn’t terribly forthcoming.
Soon found out!
It’s aimed at school kids eight to ten years old…dealing with concepts of physics in their most basic of basic forms.
I’m not the brightest crayon in the box but that’s a little bit too basic even for me.
We stayed about half an hour.

Ah well; truck on to the Blair Museum of Lithophanes, 5403 Elmer Dr Toledo 43615.
Here’s another one I don’t know much about; once again the google search was not overly explicit..
My understanding of lithophanes is that they’re etchings of some type done on glass in the mid to late 1800s, and are very attractive objects.
But we’ll never know.
We arrived, pulled in to the car park, and read the sign that said: 1 to 4 pm Weekends May to October.
It’s 10:45 on a Friday.
I’m not waiting that long.
So we meandered north, just playing; stopping in at junk shops…just gawking at ‘stuff’.

So I picked a couple of dud bunnies…bit of a bugger…but them’s the breaks!

So here we are overnighting at a Baymont Motel in Munro…within easy striking distance of Dearborn for to-morrow.

Disclaimer: be aware that the views and the opinions expressed by the author of this missive are bloody good ones.

Originally Posted by Bob Parmenter

I welcome the help Roger.....but...........BELL peppers?!?!(must be a Kansas thing)
Poblano or Anaheim...........not bell (yuck!)

jb, glad the BB met with your approval. I suspect you feel "..you're still a hard bastard.." is a compliment..........I agree.

My sincere apologies. I said "Bell" solely based on the appearance, not from any recipe, nor from any experience. I was simply trying to recommend something that jb might find to his liking, since he's such a picky culinary connoisseur. I mean, unwrapping a burrito and bypassing the flour tortilla as "pastry"? I'll leave the recommendations to the rest of you guys.

Here's the last itinerary you posted, jb. Looks like you had planned to hit the Dearborn, MI places on Monday, and you're two full days ahead of that schedule. You might want to do a little bit of Google research on things to do? For example, River Rouge is open 9:30am to 5pm M-S, Closed Sundays; while the Henry Ford Museum appears to be open the same times, but seven days a week as is Greenfield Village? Also, the hotel likely has one of those walls of brochures from all of the places in the region that are interested in keeping some of your money local. Pat McCarthy is up in that area - you could drop in an visit with him, and get a tour of his shop?

We arrive in LA 22nd August and fly to OKC 23rd . We plan to spend a couple of days around Billings/Perry, If we assume departing Thursday 27th. that gives us 30 days, driving to Boston Logan on the 31st day which is Saturday, 26th September. With that, consider, day...

Thursday 27th August.
1. Joplin-Springfield-Lebanon
(Munger Moss Motel - are we wanting to stay there, or just see it? Assume staying...)

Friday 28th Aug.
2. Rolla & Stubby Stonehenge,
Address: State St., Rolla, MO Directions:I-44 exit 186 onto Hwy 72/US Hwy 63 (N. Bishop Ave./old Route 66). Drive south about a mile. You'll see a Chinese restaurant on the right; turn left onto the University of Missouri campus and immediately bear right into the parking lot. Follow the walking path to the Stonehenge.

On to St Louis & City Museum:
750 North 16th Street
St. Louis, MO. 63103

Saturday 29th Aug.
3 St Louis area stuff…
St. Louis’ Festival of Nations, August 29-30th....

James S. McDonnell Prologue Room
100 Airport Way
St. Louis, MO 63134

Sunday 30th Aug.
4. Head to Memphis.

Monday 31st Aug.
5. Memphis sites,
Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum.
Address: 191 Beale St, Memphis, TN 38103

Beale Street itself.

Tuesday 1st September.
6. Head towards Nashville.
Nashville sights:
Musicians’ Hall of Fame and Museum.
401Gay St, Nashville TN 37201
And:
Lane Motor Museum
1. Address: 702 Murfreesboro Pike, Nashville, TN 37210,
Phone:+1 615-742-7445
Monday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Tuesday Closed
Wednesday Closed
Thursday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Friday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Saturday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Wednesday 2nd September.
7. Head towards Bowling Green
National Corvette Museum
350 Corvette Drive
Bowling Green, Kentucky 42101
I-65 Exit 28Nashville sites, head towards Bowling Green.

Mammoth Caverns National Park.
Mammoth Cave National Park
1 Mammoth Cave Parkway
Mammoth Cave, KY 42259

Thursday 3rd September.
8. Louisville Area, towards Cincinnati

Friday 4th September.
9. Cincinnati area?
There's a lesser-known dish, that many natives to the region enjoy. This dish is known as goetta (get-uh),

Premium Outlets.
400 Premium Outlets Drive
Monroe, OH 45050
Towards Dayton, OH

Saturday 5th September.
10. USAF Museum, 1100 Spaatz Street
Wright-Patterson AFB OH 45433
(near Dayton)
(937) 255-3286
And:
Boonshoft Museum of Dicovery
2600 De Weese Parkway
Dayton OH 45414
(937) 275 -7431
head towards Toledo.

Sunday 6th September.
11. Toledo area, Blair Museum of Lithophanes, Address: 5403 Elmer Drive, Toledo, OH 43615
and on to Detroit

.
Monday 7th September.
12, Dearborn, Ford Rouge Plant, Henry Ford Museum The Henry Ford
20900 Oakwood Blvd.
Dearborn, MI 48124-5029
,
Other?

Tuesday 8th September
13. Flint/Lansing area, then down to I80/90 towards Cleveland.
Flint Buick Automotive Gallery’
Address: 303 Walnut Street, Flint, MI 48503

Wednesday 9th September.
14. Cleveland Area, then to Erie.
Erie Canal Museum
318 Erie Boulevard East
Syracuse, NY 13202

Thursday 10th September.
15. To Buffalo. Buffalo Naval and Military Park, One Naval Park Cove
Buffalo, NY 14202 & Niagara Falls

Friday 11th September
16. Rochester, South to I76 towards Philly. National Historical Areas

Saturday 12th September
17. Williamsport.
Peter Herdic Transportation Museum
810 Nichols Place, Williamsport

Sunday 13th September.
18. Harrisburg.
Harrisburg Civil War Museum.
1 Lincoln Circle at Reservoir Park, Harrisburg, PA

Monday 14th September
19.Charlottesville.
Jefferson’s Monticello.
931 Thomas Jefferson Parkway
Charlottesville, VA 22902

Tuesday 15th September
20. Richmond.
Virginia Holocaust Museum.
2000 E. Cary Street Richmond, VA 23223, Richmond, VA 23223
And:
The Museum and White House of the Confederacy.
1201 E. Clay Street, Richmond, VA 23219
Phone Number: +1 804-649-1861

Wednesday 16th September.
21. North to Baltimore
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum.
1201 E. Clay Street, Richmond, VA 23219
Phone Number: +1 804-649-1861
And:
Geppi’s Entertainment Museum.
301 W Camden St, Baltimore, MD 21201
Phone Number: 410-625-7060

Geppi's Entertainment Museum is a 17,000 square foot pop culture museum located in Camden Station at Camden Yards in Baltimore, MD, a few blocks from the city's famed Inner Harbour. This unique exhibition of Americana and comic character collectibles spans the 1700s to the present, with nearly 8,000 items including comics, toys, dolls, games and memorabilia of every conceivable category. The exhibition entertains and educates visitors about the role of pop culture in our lives

Thursday 17th September.
22.Philadelphia.
The Franklin Institute.
271 North 21st Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
And:
The Liberty Bell.
6th St & Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19106

Friday 18th September.
23. Newark. One thing you should do if you are in Penn Station, is walk out the main back entrance of Penn Station, and take a walk on "Ferry Street". It is composed of entirely Portuguese and Brazilian restaurants and businesses, and is a gem, you are missing out if you don't check it out, here you are safe at almost any hour and the restaurants and pubs offer some incredible food and atmosphere.

And on to Paterson.
The Paterson Museum is located in the Thomas Rogers Building at 2 Market Street in Paterson , N.J.
Phone 973-321-1260
Hours of Operation:

Tuesday thru Friday 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM 
Saturday and Sunday 12:30 PM to 4:30 PM 
Closed on Mondays and Holidays.
• Admission: 
Adults $2.00 
Children are free. (See also ‘The Great Falls.)
Saturday 19th September
24. Hartford.
The Mark Twain House and Museum.
351 Farmington Ave., Hartford, CT 06105
And:
Harriet Beecher Stowe Centre. (Next door.)
77 Forest St., Hartford, CT 06105
Phone Number: 860-522-9258

Sunday 20th September.
25. Springfield Museums.
21 EDWARDS ST. SPRINGFIELD, MA 01103 | 1.800.625.7738
Four Museums in one block.
And:
Gillette Castle State Park
67 River Rd
East Haddam, CT 06423

Monday 21st September
26. Cape Cod area.
Sandwich Glass Museum.
129 Main Street, Sandwich, MA 02563
And:
Heritage Museums and Gardens.
67 Grove Street, Sandwich, MA 02563 (Formerly Heritage Plantation)
Phone Number: 508 888 3300

Tuesday 22nd September.
27 Cape Cod area.
New Bedford Whaling Museum
18 Johnny Cake Hill, New Bedford, MA 02740
And:
Veteran’s Museum.
1000 Rodney French Blvd, New Bedford, MA 02744

Out to Provincetown, meet Mike 34_40....

. Wednesday 23rd September
28. Expansion day.

Thursday 24th September
29. Expansion day

Friday 25th September
30. Expansion day.

.Saturday 26th September.
31. Saturday, September 26 - Drive to Boston Logan, silver bird for San Francisco.
Last edited by johnboy; 08-12-2015 at 10:45 PM.