2001 Hot Rod Virtual Power Tour - Day Five, May 7

Tornadoes had already touched down the day before in Tulsa, but the Power Tour headed there with a blustery whirl all its own. We left Springfield mid-morning, since this was the shortest leg of the entire tour, only 185 miles, but we welcomed an easy day in preparation for the long-distance drives across the Southwest later in the week.

Our only gas stop was just after the Oklahoma State line. Although it was just a freeway turnout, the Power Tour creates a party wherever it goes, with lots of socializing along the way (which is really what makes the Tour so much fun). It's amazing the things your hear while waiting in the crowded lines for the pumps. We spoke briefly with Jean Rice, a three-time Tour veteran driving a supercharged T-bucket who also flies a Varieze kit plane. She was decked out in the same all-weather suit used in previous tours--one plucky lady. For the tour, she keeps her luggage in a larger companion vehicle, and said she had to change her clothes three times during the wet weather of the day before.

We also looked over the shoulders of Chevy's Motor Medic crew that runs an on-road repair vehicle for the Power Tour. Their 502-powered Trip Truck outfitted with a mechanics' dream selection of tools is also used as a support vehicle for GM's desert testing. The medics helped out several people that day. One guy needed to use the vise on the back bumper to file down a part, while two of the Motor Medics in white lab coats dove under the hood of a vendor's tow truck. They are not particular about makes or models of vehicles, and are ready and willing to help anybody with a problem on the Tour. One of the most challenging repairs in years past was a Pontiac that needed a replacement for its hi-po rearend. An incorrect pinion/shaft angle appeared to be the cause of the problem, and the medics had to hack out pieces of 2x4s as wedges until they could obtain the right pieces.

What's interesting is how the level of hot rods has improved in the seven-year history of the Tour. "Generally the cars have been getting better--we've been seeing fewer and fewer problems as the Tour gathers more hot rods," points out Motor Medic Scott Leon. "People are building better cars as a result of going on the Long Haul."

Upon exiting the Moose Lodge that evening, a number of Power Tour cars couldn't resist peeling out, all under the watchful eye of the Tulsa police department. When the crowds cheering them on got a little too close to the action, though, the officers had to rein things in a bit. Still, this showy display of horsepower was far more "apeeling" (sorry) than the yahoos' foolish stunt in the Effingham hotel parking lot a couple days earlier.