Winhall, VT LA/XC-2 SUMMARY Total state tally LA/XC-2:  26 (Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, Nevada, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware) Total state tally LA/XC-2 + LA/XC-1 (combined): 31 (additional states from LA/XC-1:  Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Utah, South Dakota) Up in...

Anyone watch the whole debate last night?  I listened all day to the analysis on CNN and Fox News (I like to hear what the elephant-guys are thinking) — and then I fell asleep one minute in,  right after Mitt wished Barrack and the Mrs. a happy anniversary!  Damn!  I do enjoy my sleep:  I probably average about 23 hours a day when we’re on the road.  But I really wanted to watch last night (the zingers!  the knockout punch!), and my timing couldn’t have been worse.  So I...

Westport, CT LA/XC-2 DAYS TWENTY-THREE, TWENTY-FOUR, TWENTY-FIVE, AND TWENTY-SIX:  LEAVING AUSTIN; LOUISIANA-MISSISSIPPI-ALABAMA; ATLANTA; DELAWARE Day Twenty-three mileage:  453 Day Twenty-four mileage: 457 Day Twenty-five mileage:  260 Day Twenty-six mileage:  676 Total LA/XC-2 mileage: 8,060 (FINAL!) Weather leaving Austin Friday morning:  84 and cloudy Weather arriving Westport, CT this morning at 2:10 AM:  55 and drizzling Road...

It’s a good thing we’re almost back in CT, because I’m just about at the end of my leash.  I think by now most of you have recognized my Roof Rack Reports as an attempt to establish my independence, and to distance my astute political commentary from Beagle Man’s numbskull ramblings about sports, music, and touristy sight-seeing.  So what does B-Man do when we’re in Atlanta and I have my one chance to meet a true political rock star?  He leaves me with Allison the Dog Sitter! ...

So there’s this item about Nikka the Drug-Sniffing Dog in the Huff Post “Weird News” section on Wednesday.  I didn’t see it until a couple of days later, because Beagle Man was hogging the laptop.  Turns out this Nikka lives in Vaughn, New Mexico.  We passed through Vaughn on Wednesday — probably just about the time Nikka was being photographed for the feature!  B-Man managed to miss this story, even though it was right under his nose; he was too busy taking...

LA/XC-2 DAYS TWENTY-ONE AND TWENTY-TWO:  SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO; AUSTIN, TEXAS Austin Day Twenty mileage:  333 Day Twenty-one mileage: 376 Total LA/XC-2 mileage: 6,214 Weather leaving Santa Fe:  75 and brilliant sunshine Road Music: Texas favorites, in honor of Austin, “Live Music Capitol of the World”:  Trish Murphy, Pat Green, Robyn Ludwick, Janis Joplin, ZZ Top; “All Songs” from iPod Two-day state tally: 2 (New...

Santa Fe LA/XC-2 DAYS NINETEEN AND TWENTY:  CALIFORNIA; SEDONA (ARIZONA); ROUTE 66 Day Nineteen mileage: 486 Day Twenty mileage:  413 Total LA/XC-2 mileage: 5,506 Not just any corner. THE corner. Weather leaving San Francisco:  77 and sunny Road Music:  XM Radio regulars; Adele (21); Singles playlist; Monday Night Football, Packers vs. Seahawks (I could see on the radio that was a terrible call!); Eagles Two-day state tally:  3 (California, Arizona, New...

We’re heading back east!  I get to see Luz in less than a week!  Although, honestly, they didn’t treat me too shabby in the Loews Santa Monica.  Everybody made a huge fuss over me — even though I made them shampoo the rug in our room at least once a day.  Wear a purple bandage on your paw, and you can get away with anything.  You know, there’s one thing that happened last week in Santa Monica that I found really, really confusing.  Everyone was making this huge,...

LA/XC-2 DAYS SIXTEEN, SEVENTEEN, AND EIGHTEEN:  SANTA MONICA, L.A., SAN DIEGO Let me set the stage for you.  It’s 45 minutes before kick-off . . . Falcons vs. Chargers . . . on a sunny, super-hot Sunday in San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium.  We’re enjoying all sorts of access to the Falcons via our pre-game sideline passes, courtesy of our friends Rich and Terrin.  It’s all very Santa Monica Sidelining with the Falcons: B-Man, Carol, Terrin exciting. ...

Santa Monica LA/XC-2 DAYS FOURTEEN AND FIFTEEN:  LAGUNA BEACH; SANTA MONICA;  LOS ANGELES The first time we stayed in Santa Monica back in the spring of 2010, when Robby was in town for his first look at USC, I pegged Big Dean’s “Muscle In” Cafe as my perfect “home” beachside bar and hangout.  Right on the Santa Monica/Venice Beach promenade, a couple of blocks from our hotel, in the shadow of the Santa Monica Pier, within eye-shot of the rings where...