In 1994, my band hit the road and started touring the country from one end of I-40 to the other. We rode around in our lead singer's 1982 Nissan station wagon and our drummer's 1993 Ford F-350 crew cab dually, which pulled the 16' trailer. Yeah, not exactly a Silver Eagle or Prevost, but it got us around. When we went on the road, I would leave my 1993 Ford Explorer at my parent's house. All was fine and dandy until January 1995, when Michael and I fired 2 of the members of the band and replaced them. Our drummer lost his motivation after this move, got cold feet, and decided to quit while we were on a 3-month tour. We happened to be in Phoenix, AZ, so getting around without the truck posed a problem. In the midst of this dilemma, I called my dad to see if I could swap my Explorer for our 1987 Ford Dually. He agreed, and Michael's brother, Marty (who would be our new drummer) would drive it from Mississippi to Arizona.

Much to my surprise, dad bought a 1995 Ford E-350 van (with the 7.3L Powerstroke turbodiesel), and sent Marty out in it. I gave dad my Explorer in trade. I ended up on the better end of the stick. One of the coolest things my dad ever did for me...

The van would prove to be a dependable beast of burden, lugging 6 long-haired gypsies and their musical crap from coast to coast, racking up over 160,000 miles in 4 years. There were, of course, some interesting moments. The fuel gauge proved to be rather optimistic, and I managed to run out of diesel on 2 separate occasions: in downtown Nashville, and on HWY 82 in Eupora, MS. Running a diesel out of fuel is a major no-no, because you have to bleed the fuel lines to get rid of the air. This involves taking apart a good portion of the stuff under the hood to access the bleed valve. A major bitch the first time it happens, but not as tough the second time.

However, the most memorable moment came in January 1996, leaving Nashville, TN on a Tuesday night after a week-long gig at the Wildhorse Saloon. Tired and hungry at about 3AM, we stumbled into a Waffle House off of I-40, about 15 miles east of town. It was a cold, cold night...after finishing, I went to warm up the van and wait for the crew. I cranked the van up and turned on the lights. Unfortunately, some dude that was wigged out on crack in the Waffle House got pissed when I turned on the lights. He stared into the headlights for several minutes as the rest of the band got in the van one-by-one. Once we were all loaded up, I began to back out. As I backed out, he gave me the finger. I graciously returned the salute, and in doing so, backed into a car...he immediately sprang out of his booth and came charging out of the Waffle House like Bruce Lee on coke, and karate-kicked the passenger side door of the van where James was sitting. Yeah, good morning to you too. After he went back in the Waffle House to resume his meal (or whatever), we called the cops and had the dude taken in. It got really fun after I took him to court in Nashville and won a few months later, collecting $400 to fix the door. He apologized. : )

After the band went belly-up in 1997, I hung on to the van and used it as my daily driver on the farm. I added a set of black fender flares, tinted the glass, and painter the rocker panels black. Mr. T would have been proud. Once I got into grad school, I realized something smaller would be more practical, so I ended up selling it in 1998 to a preacher from Mississippi who used it to make trips to Mexico. I ended up leasing a 1999 Ford Ranger.

Highs:

1) oh-so dependable
2) seeing the country with 5 friends year-round
3) scoring a few times in the rather accomodating backseat...
4) 20 MPG on .99¢ diesel

Lows:

1) running out of fuel twice
2) getting karate kicked
3) smelling Rosebud's (the soundman) feet when he took off his shoes to sleep
4) not stopping for restroom breaks and pissing in Gatorade bottles.
5) getting caught "pants-down" by security with a cutie in the parking lot of the Boomtown Casino in Biloxi, MS