Ian McGee

Dan & Josie drove this truck 2500 miles from Oregon to Springfield, Ohio to sling steel from their tailgate like old time preachers with a gospel to sell. Except the good word was . There’s something special about folks who don’t just collect vintage rigs, but live in them.

Somewhere between a thunderstorm and a s’more the size of a catcher’s mitt, we became explorers. We bivouacked under leaky tents (morale stayed high, socks were damp). We wielded pool noodle sabers against Sith Lords of questionable rank. We scaled ancient rock formations en route to a place ominously called Devil’s Kitchen. It was glorious. In the forest, we studied limestone and dolomite like junior geologists with clipboards (imaginary, but real in spirit). We memorized canopy and understory trees...white oak, sycamore, maybe a black walnut if you squint just right. We ate Yoda ears. We consumed Ewok grahams. We constructed Tie Fighter s’mores. Han-Sandwiches were... controversial. Slingshot droid hunting was highly effective. Jedi vs Sith capture-the-flag was a chaotic masterpiece. We studied rainbow trout and the mysteries of Roaring River Spring, the 20th deepest spring in the country, and, crucially, the deepest unexplored one. Somewhere down there, a secret surely sleeps. By the end, our friendships were stronger, our knowledge deeper, our secret handshake game was stronger, and our socks only slightly less wet.
.america

Shut your eyes just as tight as you can.