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moments....

close down the year

it has been a wonderful journey so far. we started in june in Fort Smith / Arkansas and went about 6000 miles so far. only minor repairs. perfect cruising. unbelievable landscapes. wonderful people. funny stories. more friends. concept of the book is growing in the very right direction. lots of scanning ahead when back in New York. decided to leave the B. in Moab again. with Chris. to make sure the B. will be happy on the upcoming travels south and later north again. we need new brakes, wiring, steering, and other improving details. there are another 15.000 to 20.000 miles ahead of us and this needs preparation. the B. never let me down, so I have to take care that the B. feels excellent ! driving alone for a longer period of time teaches you to understand the car and its little personal needs... it has been such a fun that I will go on the whole next year to explore the USA , the landscapes and the people.. hope you liked it so far and will join me again in january 2010. cheers !



first checks at chris's shop. like a race car at pit stop. and still looks cool.

B specs

found out more about the engine of the B. its a 318 LA . which means it is a "light A engine" with 230 hp at 4400 rpm. a V8 with 5.2 liters. It says that this 318 was the most produced and most reliable engine in it's time that even the police cars had it built in. all that in the 60's and 70's. with a few modifications it ran until 2002 !!! insane !

for more tech specs about the 318 engine click here



New York City Plymouth Gran Fury police cruisers were equipped with the 318

VW Bus and beetle resting area.

only VW bus and beetle at this repair shop . never seen something like this before !! very unique place.

Utah kinda last time...

nobody can escape the beauty of the landscape in Navajo country...


B with Monument Valley behind...


B facing fisher towers in Professor Valley. at 6.45 am.


B looooong shadows in the morning

everyday things

B-smile


Navigation system B-style

Grand Canyon

simply breathtaking

Las Vegas... nothing more to say ..

....at the New York


...twilight


...curbcardladies

hommage to otto !

ok people out there, let me tell you something :

I have a friend in Germany who always helped me to find the right classic car and also when in trouble with it. His name is OTTO and not only is he a wonderful friend, he also is a true genius. Before I bought the B. I did send him all information and images of the B. and he instantly said : buy the B. ! when I have a problem on the road I would call him day or night and describe the problem I have and the noise that it made and he would tell me exactly what it is. That happened several times now. This time when stranded in the woods somewhere near Bakersfield he again told me exactly what it should be. and when I arrived at Wayland's shop I could give Wayland a hint what just happened to the B. the starter broke. So, thanks you so much, Otto for being a wonderful friend and a classic car genius !! cheers mate !

life is beautiful..

.. starting in Bakersfield in the early morning to get to Las Vegas the B and I made it about 30 miles, than a terrible noise interrupted our wonderful cruise. I pulled over and realized that the journey is over for now. nobody in sight I waited a bit and then found a guy who was on the phone in his truck. Asked him for a tow company and he chatted with his friend on phone to find out what is best for the B. he sent me to Wayland in Baklersfield. Turns out that this was the best ever happened to the B ! This wonderful insane mechanic who races dragsters with 1300 HP loved the B and took a closer look. Not only did we change the starter, he also found all the little things that bothered the B. for a longer time. Since he couldn't get a pulley part for one of the belts he search in his yard and found some old shitty looking thing, sand blasted and painted it and it was like new. and matched perfectly. some fix ups here and there and the B never sounded that cool and smooth and calm. we spend the whole day there and Wayland explained everything I wanted to know about mechanics of the B. to me. just so cool. Thanks so much !!! I am sure one day I will be back here!

Wayland explaining the B mechanics to me .


quick sand blast action to create a new part ....


Front view of Wayland's 1300HP monster drag race car

California without the coast..

...after spending two days in San Francisco meeting many friends and enjoying to hang out with them I learned that the Bay Bridge was closed due to falling parts.. ! for me it meant a detour but it was a beautiful one... passing the bay of Richmond and Oakland was really cool. driving south again there was a bad smell in the B. so i decided to check and it turned out that the battery was about to blew.. Lucky me there was a repair shop across the street and the owner just finished restoring a 1965 Mustang ... we changed Battery and Alternator ( had minor problems here before ). And we met Police officer Marcus who had a flat tire and borrowed tools from the shop to change the flat himself. turns out his dad used to have a barracuda and he remembers sleeping in the back as a kid. beautiful !


Officer Marcus changing a flat tire .

..thoughts on the road ...

.. while driving and being flooded with all these wonderful impressions and situations one can't help but think about life and it's deeper meaning. it just comes naturally. I mean, living in New York, the capitol of fast pace and strange city habits, one does loose contact to the real world. being out here on the road confronts you with how beautiful and meaningful life really is. the slow and steady feeling - so important - comes back and makes more sense than ever. it's not about surviving life, its about enjoying life. every single minute. I always tried to live my life that way, but sometimes one keeps forgetting about it while wrapped up in daily hectic life.
I am very grateful that I can afford to travel across this country and at same time doing what I love to do most : creating unique and touching imagery. photographing with this classic 4x5 linhof analog camera asks for a calm but yet very alert approach for the situation that unfolds in front of one's eyes. it's so wonderful to just go with the instincts and let things happen. even though I can't show the images taken with the linhof camera on the blog, I can tell that these images are totally different and peaceful in many ways. the idea of the book following this epic journey is growing more and more in the right direction. and that makes me very happy.
it takes a while to calm down and get into the Barracuda mode once one returns to the road trip from a job, but it is so wonderful to get this feeling back again, that it's hard to find words. both the classic car and the classic camera are taking you to a totally different energy level. priceless. I think I will start to do my drawings again. even while on the road trip.

winding road ...

taking the 1 north towards Monterrey one can only go 25 miles/hour due to winding roads along the coastline and breath taking views all over .. a must have seafood feast at fisherman's warf in Monterrey. Pelicans watching me... good long day.

endless energy source !

I always like to stop to get fresh fruit directly from the framers. of course I had to stop for fresh , sweet strawberries. Robert was very amused about me driving a 60's car across the country. he rather would like to have a brand new car instead of doing that... well honestly, I don't. driving the B. and eating the Strawberries at same time ...

Strawberry Robert looking at the B.


fruits involved on the back seat.

California dreamin' ..

fog coming and going while driving .


St.Barbrara beach promenade.


Beautiful beach view for the B.

after meeting some friends and clients in LA, I started heading north on the 1 .. just enjoying the beautiful coastline of Cali.. that is simply amazing ! with fog coming and going and the sun out at the same time ... grilled fish waiting somewhere with a cold beer to wash it down ... of course I had to stop for all that at legendary Duke's restaurant/bar in Malibu. and the valet guys did let me park right in front of it. perfect ! Thanks

.. mean monsters in the garage....

came back to LA to get the B from a friends garage. excited to see and feel the tune ups and the clean carburetor performing and than discovered that some mean monsters did hit the B.'s rear right side quite hard and took off.. so there is a dent and some severe damage which doesn't look much, but will be when I fix it.. it might not be too easy to find a part for replacement... well that's all part of the journey , isn't it ? the B. is performing excellently and drives wonderful and smooth !

lots of work, lots of fun . now back to the B. !

it has been quite some time since I left the B. in Los Angeles. ( check out :www.pobyworld.blogspot.com ) Tomorrow I fly back to the B. and will be on the road again end of the week. Ready for new adventures to come. The B. got the carburetor totally cleaned, a new muffler and the whole machine has been fine tuned again. All is ready. See you soon !

life is fast

Los Angeles. the B. the sun.
all could have been sooo easy. cruisn'. chillin'. enjoyin'.
then I got a phone call at 4.30 am from my german rep dagmar. a job is confirmed. have to fly out to europe asap. now all is even better !!! hey, a quick flight over to germany and I even have the chance to see my family and hang out for a bit.
chillin'. enjoyin'. no complaints here !! in the meanwhile the B. will be serviced and then parked at a friend's place ( thanks Rhona ! ) until I am back. it might sound crazy, but I am really happy and can't ask for more. this is only the beginning of a year long journey. the journey in time and space across the USA.

night paintings

all "picture paintings" done in darkness. the lights in the back are from a truck.

crossing the mojave desert

only few cars pass when one drives through mojave desert at night. this actually is just one car.

when I started at 3.30 am to head towards LA it was still 100F/ 37 C ! wide open windows, clear sky , half moon, loud music , almost no cars and the mojave desert in front of me ..... wonderful. trusted the B. to bring me there. and the B.sure did ! when I passed by in Los Bernadinos the B. did spit out another belt .. so I had to replace that, otherwise the engine is overheating. had a spare one with me of course and after 45 minutes we were on the road again. the B brought me that far without any mayor problems and I know there wont be any in the future. nevertheless the B seems like to have a cold. carburetor is clogged. So I will have this replaced this week. Nice treat ... very well deserved.

desert does have water

perfect information when driving through the desert.


empty beach at colorado river near Needles


...was here...


crystal clear water.

starting early to avoid the heat in the desert seemed to be a good idea. only sometimes you just want to get lost in time . the whole idea of a road trip, right ? the B. runs sooo smooth and cool so no need to rush. spent some time in Williams and Seligman. bought an extra carb kit in Kingman for a small touch up on carburetor later in LA. then left for the desert, of course way to late. so the 83 miles to Needles/California were pretty extreme. Thought it would be a good idea not to drive on when temperature is 116 F/46 C at noon time. would be better for the B. to rest and go at night. well, to be honest the B. didn't have a problem at all, in fact the B. did run totally perfect and seemed to enjoy it. the one who had problems was the driver ! it was like driving towards a huge blow dryer. very hot air right in the face from everywhere. so I checked in a Motel in Needles and cooled off a bit. realized that Needles has a huge water sports community at colorado river! found the most beautiful beach with crystal clear water I have ever seen on a river ! and yes, desert does have beautiful waters.

scenic is only a word

wonderful to drive at dawn


early morning shadow


the B. approaching Monument Valley


leaving Utah behind

scenic, this word can't describe how it really is or how it really feels when one sees this amazing landscapes.... started at 5 am in Moab this morning followed by a thumbs up of a truck driver at gas station. no more questions asked... drove south. sun rising and chilly. saw 4 deers chatting ON the road, 2 horses literally graze on shoulder of the very same road, two suicidal gophers trying to get hit by the car while screening the scene , and -no kidding- a huge spider crossing the road. I saw it from far away in full speed approaching. phew. I think it was the size of my hands. passed monument valley. unbelievable beautiful and touching as always. and then pure desert again in Arizona. indian country of Hopi and Navajos. after 7 hours I arrived in Flagstaff. looked for a motel and repair place. wanted the B. to get new rear shocks and some pro looking at my flasher and water gauge issues. found super 8 motel across from goodyear repair . got a discount at motel due to repair at auto shop. brilliant. now the B. is ready to cross the desert tomorrow morning. 5 am. and I am ready for a drink.

monday morning on road going west

little details ...

somehow my blinker / flasher system went nuts.. worked perfectly fine last night and now its acting very funny. with Mike's help here we at least could locate the flasher relay which we thought might be the cause . before that I checked the light bulbs and wires ( as far as I could follow them.. ) went to the local checker auto parts and got something similar , now all is fine except for the one front light.. i might have damaged it when i put it back in ... these little things are keeping you busy for the whole afternoon...