Ah yes...the old "rubber glove over the Lucas distributor trick"....kind of reminds me of the joke about the guy who was explaining to his locker room buddies at the golf club why he took to wearing pantyhose.....something about his wife unexpectedly finding a pair in the glove box of their car one day afte hubby had been late coming home from an office party. Told his wife that it made his tired legs feel better after a game of golf! 

On our last trip to Spring Thing we tried the rubber glove rain guard trick. It didn't keep us from getting washed out. I think we must have been getting the spray into the carbs too. 

Driving a mini in the rain on the highway is the worst.

We are in Mackinaw City, Mich. after a long day from Nipigon, Ontario.  With the flood related instability of the Jackfish Creek Bridge closing Hwy. 1 (Ont 17) we had to take a 327 mile route north on Hwy. 11 and south on 631 to get to White River on Hwy.17 where the Pooh story began in WWI.

In White River we reset the rear ride height under blue skies & sunshine before heading south to Sault Ste. Marie and the International Bridge to Michigan.

Just finished a pub dinner and are looking forward to a good sleep.

ROO is running fine and liking having its rear higher up from the pavement.

Will be off in the a.m. on I75 to Ohio and the track.

PHOTOS from Hwy. 11 (we started at 6:20 a.m.), Beardmore's Snow Man, Long Lac with the Objibway & Cree,  White River,  Wawa's Canada Goose...and on the highway south to the border and into Michigan.

Awaiting your arrival, finished our last leg today about 8:00 PM.

Staying in a hotel in Marion tonight. I can check in at the track at noon tomorrow.

Terry and Renee

Agree, followin every step of the way.  Thanks for the posts Rick.  In my IT maintenance business RA's represent Repair Actions.  Although appropriate based on your posts, I think we will need to change to RA's  = Ricks Adventures.  Keep them coming my friend.  J

Rick

Good reading, we are riding with you and your stories all the way,

BIG AL

My temporary wrap has worked just fine from install...but yes there is no stock shield or any shield...the torrential rains with roads awash were dramatic.

In Regina, visibility dropped instantly to near zero the rain was so heavy.  In Winnipeg, the visibility was nearly as bad but the water flowing on the roadway was wide, fast and deep in some places.  All in all unusual for someone from the Pacific Northwest where rain itself is a constant.

Now 5:35 a.m. Wednesday, June 25th.   Will be off shortly for the Hw. 11/Hwy. 631 detour via Long Lake/Long Lac to White River (where the POOH story began during WWI).

Spirits are good...no other practical options...shame the partygoers woke me at 1:30 a.m. and kept at it.  If I had a fire hose, I'd knock on the door and soak them!

Back to some sunshine today, which should help!!

Rick , you haven't got the stock dizzy cover for a Ozzy  clubman? I must admit they are becoming a little bit hard to get but can be had , is it possible that your dizzy cap is not a very good fit? are you running electronic ignition ? if you can cable tie a piece of square plastic like an ice cream container 5ltr lid behind the grill in front of the dizzy it will help.

Looks like it will add another 100K or so.. but 631 should be a nice winding drive!

Thought we had some latex gloves in the spares bin but noooo...they were a more substantial item with fabric back...we were out of town so no shops from which to fetch plastic dishwashing gloves so the goody bag got used...and has worked.

Today we ran in rain from Kenora to Dryden, to Upsala, to Thunder Bay and on to Nipigon...BUT Hwy. 1 (17 in Ont.) is CLOSED to all traffic because of flood damage to the bridge at Jackfish Creek...13 kms. east of us in Nipigon.

Spotted an XKE (and XK 150 rear end) on a trailer headed from New Brunswick to Alberta for restoration.  Sadly, the exterior paint was all sanded off 30 years ago and the rolling shell was left in a barn.

Impressed as always by the visit to the Terry Fox Memorial just east of Thunder Bay.  A wonderful young man taken by cancer while he was starting a big fight against the hurting he saw in others.  His 'Marathon of Hope' is now the cornerstone of a massive public participation event held annually around the world. 

Have fueled up to be prepared to start the long northern detour via Lon Lac to White River.  Looking in on the Ontario Government site for up to date news on the highway.

I was in Wolseley last year....a very attractive little town...some great houses

Or maybe putting something between the grill and the distributor will help keep the water from hitting it.. the problem with the plastic bag setup as once the moisture gets in there, there's no way for it to dry out..  hopefully this is the last of the rain that you see!  keep on Mini'ing..

I'm surprised to never read about the "old" cure for wetting out a mini's dizzy: one rubber glove, cut the tips off the fingers, feed the wires through and apply electrical tape. Might not look too good at show time. Maybe carry a "Hero" cap and wires just for the shine and show.

+1 . Ottawa is only a few "blocks" east of T.O.

 

Mike, we started out with one extra can of fuel but were so heavyy we drained it and donated a heavy box of brochures to the Info Centre in Hope, B.C.  We have jacked up the rear but I fear the NEW doughnuts are crap because the left rear wants to settle.  Bought some washers in Brandon at Princess Auto yesterday if we need to give the back end more help...and after Regina we are carrying a little extra fuel and have all the heavy bits on the right hand side of the load bay.

Lurch, we got in at dusk to Nelson on Friday, did not do much more than eat and sleep, check ROO over early and head for the 6:30 am ferry at Balfour.  Sun came out would have been good to visit with you on the ride over.  We will likely pass through Nelson on the way home.  This time I will alert you!

Another gem of a day....

Since I had misplaced my card reader and battery charger for the Canon, we wanted to replace these key items and get a spare battery. We left Moosopmin and quickly crossed into Manitoba, fueled up in Brandon and headed east.  A thorough search in Portage la Prairie yielded a card reader but nothing else. So into Winnipeg, which in itself was not difficult since Hwy. 1 rolls right into Portage.

We found a Staples within a few blocks...but only half a store with 2,000 fewer items than the Staples at home...no battery chargers, no batteries. However a delightful lady there referred us to Harry's which had both a charger and battery...but was across town.

DID IT RAIN?? The streets were awash with water and, yes...ROO was again undone by the splash from passing vehicles. Out came the WD40 and we got to Harry's, got the stuff and had only 2 questions..."Can we use your washroom?" and "How do we get to Toronto?" Well, he nearly fell over laughing, let us use the staff washrooms and sent us off to Hwy. 1 east.

On getting to Hwy. 1, we stopped at the first service station for a late lunch, fuel, adjusted the clutch and wrapped up the dizzy...because we could see ominous clouds to the east.

Long story short we got into Kenora in the northern Ontario lake country without incident, in spite of more rain. We are off in the morning for Thunder Bay and beyond...ROO has not used or lost a drop of oil!

NOTE: I used a doubled up plastic goody bag and electrical tape to keep water out of the dizzy.  ROO was stopped dead twice - Regina & Winnipeg - by torrential rain with water splashed up by passing vehicles. 

Who needs extra gas cans when you have a "Surrey Credit Card"....AKA Syphon hose & no taste buds.

Rick, if you stop in Ottawa, let me know!

Good luck with your trip!

Miguel

Rick - Keep up the Adventure!

Ive learned more about Canada with your adventure than ever would have by following your trail! looks like fun and the route you are taking looks perfect for mini travel - I couldnt imagine a back road venture off interstates here in the USA

 

Keep Vannin! 

dang, missed ya in Nelson Rick. The Nelson->Balfour->Creston run is one of my favourites around here.

thanks for the pics, sounds like you're making good time!

JB