We were living in San Diego California at our home in Fallbrook CA
Ryan, our son, was 3 or 4 years old. We had just started Visus Technology with the folks from Pittsburgh and we were feeling pretty good about the future. We decided to trade our Toyota Camry for a Land Cruiser and therein is the beginning of this story.
Of course when you live in Southern California and you drive to work on the freeway, and you are not into hunting or fishing or any of those wilderness type pastimes the need for a land yacht like a Toyota Landcruiser is at best questionable ….. Need …. Well that is one thing …. Want …… A totally different thing …. especially for a Wannabe cowboy!!!
When you drive a Landcruiser it makes you feel like ‘King of the Road’. So any red blooded wannabe macho dude would need to put this ‘land cruiser’ to the test …… So this is, I suppose, a lesson for “wannabes”.
We left our house in Fallbrook CA mid afternoon heading for San Felipe Mexico for the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend. We expected about a 6 hour drive …… heading down through Mexicali and across the border and south from there to San Felipe on the Sea of Cortez. It got dark around 5:30 or 6 pm at that time of the year ….. we kept driving.
So in the gloom of a Mexican evening, imagine our surprise as we crested a hill only to see a row of kerosene smudge pots burning, being used as flares in the middle of the road …… the out of the gloom ….. a dozen Mexican soldiers carrying rifles and machine guns ….. Butterflies in stomach??? Oh ya …… 4 year old in his car seat in the back ….. Oh Ya …….. a rich gringo driving fancy car down a dark country highway ….. Guns …. Yikes …… was my first reaction ….. LOL …..
No worries …… after all the fretting …. The leader/sergeant/ officer in charge asks to see our registration and insurance ….. then asks “are you going to San Felipe for Turkey Day” …. Turkey Day ….. first time I had heard it called that ……. the Mexican way I guess ….. yes Sir!!! …. all good ….. off we went …. on our way!!
So we arrived late …. Maybe 8pm …. And got settled in our room …. Got to sleep, ready for our mini vacation …..
In the morning …… sun is up …… Mexico warming ….. we head for the beach. We drove south along the coast and get to a the turn off where our map said said the beach should be …… well ……. no beach ….. we drive on to the top of this ridge and …… voila ……. beach …… a beautiful sandy beach ……. maybe a hundred yards wide …… kilometers long!!!!
And oh! …….. Look …….. jeeps driving up and down the beach ….. Jeep…… LandCruiser ….. Jeep …. “Heck” says the internal macho wannabe man … “If those Jeeps can do that surely our new shiny TOYOTA LANDCRUISER can do that too” ….. Like …… why not, right?…… so we drive over the edge of the cliff on this dirt track …… Mona almost screetching ….. the road was quite steep! ….. Mona cries nooooooo, don’t …….. From the top of the ridge down to the beach is pretty steep …. Neither of us had ever done anything like this …. Especially in a new shiny vehicle ….. But “Macho Wannabe” (you know who) knows what he is doing ….. Sorta …… and ……. Phewww!!!! …… We make it down without incident ….. Cool …. Lets go!
So we are now driving on the beach and ……. hummmmm ….. something just wasn’t quite right …… There we were driving …… but for some reason the Landcruiser was really slugging it ……. it was anything but fun …. The heavy Landcruiser was sinking into the sand as we drove ….. But why? ……The Jeeps were not sinking ….. Landcruisers are desert vehicles …… they do this all the time ……. Why were we sinking? ……. Oh shoot ….. We are really sinking now …… Worse …… We are stuck ……. The Landcruiser was sitting on its axles …. What …… the ……. heck???
So I get out of the truck and …. Yup …. Houston …… we have a problem!!
Macho Dude turns around and …… OH Jeeeezzzzz …. I think the tide is coming in ……. the tide line was still maybe 100 yards away ….. but this a very flat beach …… SALT WATER …… this is no joke …. Brand new $40,000 Landcruiser ….. I need help …… I need HELP RIGHT NOW!!!!
So I ran as fast as I could down the beach hoping to find the Jeep guys ….. maybe they could tow me out of the hole I was in …….. but …… they were nowhere to be seen ….. I ran toward some tents and phewww …..
There was one of the Jeeps parked under a palapas …… and ….. right next to his Jeep …… what looked like he might have been the driver ……. sitting there at 9 am ….. drinking a beer in the shade ……… The sweat was pouring off of me …… “Excuse me but I have a problem” I said ……. “Oh?” ….. was his response …… the way he said it was just soooooo California ……. “Duuude chill”
So I tell him my story and without moving says “have you let the air out of your tires?” …..ahhhhh what? …… well no ….. “Why would a Macho Dude do that?” I wondered as he continued “You need to drop your tire pressure to around 5 PSI (versus 30 PSI normally) so that your truck can “float better on the sand” he said as though he had read my thoughts ……. ooohhhhh thinks Wannabe Macho Dude!!! “Thanks man!!” …… I am sure he had a chuckle at this Wannabe Macho Dude!!!!
Off I went …… running as fast as I could …… back to the Landcruiser ….. with macho skepticism firmly in place. I could see my wife and Ryan standing outside the truck ……. looking at the stuck truck ……. looking at the incoming tide …….. Yikes …….. thinks the Macho Dude ……. this had better work!!! …… the tide was no more than 10-20 feet from the truck now ……. Salt water ….. Landcruiser ….. electrical wiring and electronics …… not a good mix!!!!!
So I run from one tire to the next letting air out until they look low enough ….. What does 5 lbs per square inch look like on huge macho tires like these?? …… I get into the truck and lo and behold …… BOOM …… The Landcruiser drives straight out of the hole it was in …… easy peazy …… pheeeewwwww!!
To my left where the tide was approaching ….. The water was now only about 4 feet from the Landcruiser …. Another 15 minutes and the truck would have been taking on salt water from the Sea of Cortez …… thank you Landcruiser!!!!
So what is the lesson learned ….. Oh hell just do it !!! ….. like really, Macho Dude Wannabe …… I guess I still learn lessons ….. begrudgingly …. LOL
But in the end …… We had a lovely Thanksgiving Weekend and got home safe and sound!!! …… all is well that ends well!!!
