Lead Foot

Before I even get started I want to thank all my dedicated followers (maybe 2 or 3 people if I am lucky) who have stuck with me through thick and thin of me blogging about social media for the past 3 months. Now, like I had promised, your hand will be in and out of the cookie jar enough to make up for lost time. The best part about this cookie jar is that no one is watching and there is no spoiling of your dinner because this is the main course. So I hope you are hungry because there is plenty to go around. Start feasting.

I need to give a little background first before I go into my main topic. Think of this as the appetizer before the steak comes out. I am from Hinton, IA which is in the Northwest portion of the state. I go to school up in Minneapolis, MN. The drive according to mapquest or google maps is supposed to take me 5 hours and 10 minutes. Lets just say I would have a heart attack if it ever took me this long. Now to the steak!

This morning I planned to leave my house around 11 AM and was hoping to arrive at the N Dubs by 3:15. I hit the snooze a couple more times than originally intended but was still on the road by 11:25. This of course was no big deal. The only reason for the 11 AM planned departure was to avoid traffic in the cities because it starts to get fairly heavy by 4. Of course being from Iowa (or the boondocks whichever you prefer), the worst traffic I saw as a kid was when a combine was going around a long corner or up a hill and there was a 2 or 3 car pile up waiting to pass.

The 11:25 leaving time was absolutely perfect because I needed to fill up which takes about 5 minutes, which essentially makes the leaving time 11:30. This nice time allows me to time the trip to a T, and trust me I know all the benchmarks to see if I am on pace or not. My fastest time ever is 4 hours and 6 minutes and no matter the circumstances I always see if I can top it. It is my version of the driving olympics. Just like Humans vs Zombies is the olympics for homeschoolers at NWC. Right now there is some frustrating construction in Worthington, MN that causes me to back track slightly, which makes it nearly impossible to beat the record. Nevertheless, I won't let construction be an excuse and still try to knock off the top mark.

The drive is going swimmingly minus the occasional old drivers and "left hand lingerers." By 1:30 I have realized the record is most likely not going down today because I have missed the 2 hour bench mark by enough time that not even the heaviest of feet could make up for it. By the time I reach the 1 hour from NWC marker, I am on pace for a 3:40 ETA. This is fantastic considering the construction and would be my best time with the current detour I am forced to take.

The next thing I know I am being passed by not 1 not 2, but 3 cars (that was kinda the opposite of the LeBron speech for me) Me being passed is a rarity. When I am driving I see myself as the pace car during a caution in NASCAR. Yet, I am glad to give up the reigns every once in a while, especially if it helps me avoid a ticket from the fuzz. Once they had all passed, I let off the cruise and pushed ahead to keep pace with the leaders. The way I was pushing the old Buick during this stretch I still had some hope of pulling out the record books.

I would have to humbly say I am easily in the upper 99th percentile of good drivers in America. I am also fairly convinced nearly all traffic jams would be avoided if everyone drove like me. Every driver has a lead foot I just happen to use the lead foot on the accelerator. I would reckon to say all drivers who use their lead foot for the break (which is almost everyone) are the first to blame for pointless traffic jams. 

I reached Bloomington, which is home to the best athlete at NWC (interpret that how you want but I know who is getting my vote and his initials are RF). My foot has loosened slightly but no need to panic yet. I exit onto 494 and traffic is fairly clear and the record is about 2 minutes out of reach. Then all of a sudden I go from 70 MPH to stopped. The record vanished like a fart in the wind (Shawshank Redemption quote). My mood quickly changes and my iPod goes off and KTIS comes on. To make matters worse, I have been in the car for over 3 hours and the tall glasses of orange juice I downed before I left are catching up on me real quick. I am a little antsy and I am at a complete halt.

For the next half hour I am between 0 and 70 fairly frequently. I have no idea who is at the head of this pack but I am frustrated. I finally reach NWC at 3:52. A 4 hour and 22 minute drive. Not bad but I had been so close to the record. Thus my frustrations. Like most stories, this one has a happy ending as well. I finally walk into the beloved MoTown and am able to relieve myself before going over to Ericksen to put in a few alley-oops.

I end on one of the best quotes and all credit goes to my eldest brother Dan. If you adopt this saying I know I have accomplished more than enough through this post. "If you are driving at or below the speed limit you are lost." Remember this quote and may your lead foot be on the accelerator and help us all out.

Keep Rolling Yahtzee's