JTOG Day 20: Rough Roads in Mexico, Part 1 of Torch’s Saga

Here is what I saw when I first noticed something was wrong with Torch.

When the day started in Ciudad Victoria I had booked the night's hotel room in Mineral del Monte about 60 miles northeast of Mexico City. On Google Maps it was about 360 miles away and would take about 7 hours to drive which was an easy day's drive to me. As it turned out I drove at least another 100 miles and it would take 14 hours to get there. But that was the good news of the day. The bad news was that mid way through the day I pulled into a gas station to fill up and was horrified when I looked down to see my back right tire sitting at an outward angle. The rough roads we encountered, especially a tollway from Tampica to Tuxpan, had taken a toll on Torch, my 1992 Infiniti M30 Baby. It was as much my fault as I was slow to adjust my driving speed to the road conditions. Luckily she was drivable at least as far as I knew as it was my only choice. Hopefully I could make it to an Infiniti dealer in Mexico City and it was a minor adjustment to bring her wheels back into alignment. Hopefully being the key word.

The sun was going down and I was lost in the mountains trying to find my room for the night. Fortunately I did but not until well after dark at 10 pm.

My day started off great with a hearty breakfast and a smooth road, even divided at some points from Ciudad Victoria to Tampica. Silly me I went that way missing the tollway to Mexico City in Monterrey and then thinking why not swing by the Gulf Coast and stop for lunch. Driving along I never did see the Gulf of Mexico and looking back at the Go Pro videos I missed the sign and the turn to Playa Miramar. Then seeing the condition of Torch's back right wheel later in the afternoon my focus was to make the notel in Mineral del Monte by sunset. That didn't happen either because I got lost in the mountains in the dark trying to find the old mining town which sat at an elevation of 9,277 feet. Remember Mexico City is at a high elevation of 7,380 feet which was a major concern for hosting the Summer Olympics in 1968. Unfortunately there was no satellite reception for the Garmin. The day did end happily as I found the quaint town just before 10 pm when they were about to close reception. We did get from Point A to Point B to well position ourselves for an early arrival tomorrow in Mexico City on only our third day in the country. Though instead of the priority being to find a golf course and some Olympic history, it was now to get Torch repaired properly. I had only planned for three nights in Mexico City. That would turn into eight nights needing time for Torch to fully recover from her injuries. More on that in the days ahead.

Driving along with my buddies Jesus the teacher (L) and Roland (R) the student and cologne salesman.

Overall it was a good day with the highlight being picking up two hitchhikers who didn't want to wait for the school bus to take them home. One named Jesus was a teacher and the other Roland was a student. Roland was trying to sell me cologne of all things and I was just trying to communicate with them. Someday I will have to get the full 10-minute Go Pro video translate to learn what they were trying to say to me! CLICK here for the Highlight Go Pro Video of Andy & Two Hitchhikers on the way to Tuxpan. Sometimes, like in golf, an early challenge met and overcome is the trigger and sure sign that a good round is ahead. I was hoping that would be the case as we faced Torch's mechanical difficulties early on in the 'Journey to Olympic Golf.' There are some more stories in the pictures below this request to make a donation to The First Tee... I am looking for 100 new friends in the next 100 days to make a $100 donation (or any amount that you are able to make) to The First Tee. Each day I will be reliving the original “Journey to Olympic Golf” and hope to find a new friend in golf. Is that you? Please join me in giving back to the game we all love. CLICK here to make a donation to The First Tee. Please select ‘Andy Reistetter’s Journey to Olympic Golf’ on the drop-down menu for the question ‘What inspired you to make a gift today? This is for tracking purposes only, Andy does not receive any part of your donation or anything financially from The First Tee organization. There are interesting incentives for making your donation to the First Tee… PLEASE click here to make a donation to The First Tee.

Thank You!

Everything fit neatly into Torch's boot! Note the hickory shaft on the right holding up the lid.

I never felt in danger but there were pickup trucks with armed and ready Policia on the roads.

Tampica seemed like a nice place. Some day I would like to return and have lunch at Playa Miramar on the Gulf.