Subj: River Run 2001
Date: 6/19/01 11:59:25 PM Eastern Daylight Time

Hello everyone!
Last Saturday, Don Gallo hosted the fourth (my second) annual River Run. Don, once again, communicated with the NSX God who provided us with superb weather. My preparation was easy this year. I just had a few bugs to clean off the car and pack the tools necessary to work on Miled's car.

The plan was for Peter and Sylvia Mills to drive a route to a designated assembly point that would allow Miled and Larry B to caravan with him. I would meet Tony at the assembly point, where we would wait for Peter. As I approached I-287, I gave Tony a call on the cell phone. He appeared to be a few miles further out than I, so he said he would step up his pace. I turned on to I-287south, got off at exit 17, and then looked for a place to wait for Tony to catch up. The road that Tony would be coming down runs parallel to the road I was on so I searched for a place that had an "Emergency use only" crossover. I spied one ahead of me and as I got closer, my radar detector started sounding off. Parked in a cove was NJ State Trooper scanning the road that Tony would be coming down at make-up-time speeds. I pulled off the road and tried to give him a call but got his voice mail. As he comes around the bend, I start to accelerate to match his speed so that we would be parallel. Behind him was the State Trooper, lights a flashing. I thought, "Oh no, he got Tony!" But the trooper passed him looking to bag a more feeble prey from the running herd. We stayed parallel in our prospective roads until the exits merged us at the same location. We pull into an auto parts store parking lot and wait for the others.

Shortly, a familiar member drives by and we signal him in. It is Wayne Miller. Wayne is very personable and as we talk I am thinking how it would be nice if he was able to attend more events. The club radio crackles with the voice from the Peter Mills' convoy. Pete/Sylvia, Larry Bastanza, and Miled Salheb/Sharon Fisher arrive followed by Rob Rothberg/Jon Maltz. Rob is commenting on the (cough) "expertise" of his navigator :-)  Miled goes into the auto parts store and comes out stating, "I was looking to buy a drink, but they don't sell any,... it's an auto parts store!" I smile and point to the large letters on the building that read "Car Parts Auto Store" and say, "I know, I think that's what the sign says." "Well, it looked like a convenience store," replies Miled.

It's time to depart for Gallo's house. Tony departs early for gas, and the rest of us follow Wayne's lead. We arrive at Don Gallo's home, back into his yard as directed, and greet other members. keN SaX (who flew out) and Andie Lin (who drove out) have come the farthest distance to join the drive. Don and Dawna Gallo, the hosts for the drive, are very upbeat people; it is always a pleasure to be with them. Don tells incoming guests that they should register immediately, as the name tag is also their meal ticket. Sharon, who is standing beside me, rhetorically asks where she should put her name tag. A visual glance (no I wasn't leering) identifies her dilemma. Her attire, which makes her visually stunning, leaves limited name tag options. I offer to stick on the name tag, realize I'm getting myself into hot water, suggest a spot near her pockets, then leave quickly before I show less class than a new chrome gas cap on a rusted Plymouth Valiant. I proceed to Don's garage to look at his lift. Syl is wondering if they will have the necessary room for the lift and a second story floor in their new garage. I set my sun glasses down, borrow a tape measure from Don, and do a little measuring.  I tell her they will have enough room, especially if she doesn't mind ducking under the lift a little. She states it would be worth it if she can get the second floor she wants.

[Pete doesn't want to put a floor in, at least at this time. Somehow I think my sentence for telling Sylvia it can be done  will be community service performed in the garage with my nail gun. Pete had commented to Miled (referencing the great expense of the wheels/tires he and Tony bought me) that, "It would have been cheaper if you had the service performed at a garage." I think after all the money I'm costing Pete by giving Sylvia ideas about how to renovate their home to incorporate her needs, Miled might say, "It would have been cheaper if you had paid for a motel for Larry." :-)  Yup, I think Pete will be telling me, "Oh ya, when you come up, don't forget to bring your hammer!" No more free room and board at the Mills'. Time to stop digressing and get on with the story.]

Most were gathered on the deck chatting, when Rob saw a hammock supported between two trees and said he was going to try it out. I made some comment about whether the trees would support the load and Rob stopped, turned around, and said that was it; he wasn't going to get in it now. I tried to assure him I was only thinking of his safety, but I don't think I convinced him.

Don gathers us to give his driver briefing. This consists of: It is not a race, drive safely, and......this event is not sanctioned by NSXCA (AKA. you're on your own). Don has decided to break us into two run groups. He takes a vote to see who wants to run in the faster vs the slower group. Don counts hands for the faster group, which included a fair amount. Then he asks for a show of hands for the slower group. I raise mine and maybe a couple others sheepishly raise theirs. I can see this has turned into an "attack against my manhood if I raise my hand for this group" syndrome. Don notices that many did not raise their hands, so he takes a revote. I know from other group runs that there isn't much difference between the mild and the wild groups. Just that we catch up and pass some members of the wild group while they get their tickets :-)

[I remember telling Tony (while Miled and I joined him in the movie theater watching the "Driven" chase scene through the city), "Want to know what the Gallo River Run is like? There it is!"]

The recount found the groups to be more evenly divided. Don will lead the fast group in his silver S-2000. Mitch Shapiro will lead the second group in a yellow S-2000. I will have Pete Baylis as my passenger/navigator. While the first group starts to line up, Pete and I get into my car. I realize I do not have my sun glasses. I search the car, then run back to look on the deck, but no glasses. Andie Lin is waiting for us plus trying to locate a club radio thought to be left on the deck. After several running trips between my car and the deck looking for my glasses and the club radio, I remember I left my glasses in Don's garage....which is locked. I run back to my car and buckle in while listening to verbal harassment over the radio. OK, I deserved it. (It is all done in jest and I enjoy the banter.)

During the drive, Pete and I chat about the NSX and other cars he has owned. He seems to be impressed by the car. I think if he finds the car impressive doing this type of driving, he should see it on the track! The drive to Bulls Island State Park went smoother than the previous year as we were able to stay in sizable groups due to less traffic. Our NSXs take up most of the parking lot. Members chat about the drive and modifications made to their cars. Somebody notices a feather stuck under the parking light on Miled's car. This brings levity to the situation, like: 1) When some companies modify a car they put their name on it like "Saleen." When I do it, I use an animal part.  2) Hey Miled, looks like your paint wasn't "feathered" properly. Miled saved the feather as a good luck charm and we proceed to walk across the bridge from NJ - PA. Don said we would not eat at the store on the PA side this year as he had plenty of food awaiting us at his house. (Last year left the Gallo's with more food than they knew what to do with)
The drive back went equally well, except at one intersection there was a bicycle rider who had taken a spill next to the road. A car had stopped to assist and I slowed to see if everything was OK. I was hoping it hadn't been our group that caused the mishap. This slowing allowed other slower moving cars to get between me and the group. People are radioing me trying to give a heads up on which turns to make to join them. Pete is doing well giving me directions. I start to see the tail of the group, when several turns mask them from view. As we come to a limited sight area I ask Pete, "Which way?" He says straight, but I think I see the tail of an NSX on a road to the right. I continue over the rise, see no NSXs, and then hear Tony's voice saying we went the wrong direction. We quickly turn around and find both groups along the side of the road waiting for me to catch up. (Thanks Guys and Gals!)

We arrive at the Gallo's, back into their driveway, and prepare to eat. I go into the garage and find my glasses exactly where I left them. The meal included different pastas, salads, hamburgers, hot dogs, along with a variety of drinks. Members eat and chat when the announcement comes that Jim Anders has brought Zaino car products that will be raffled off to the person that has the highest last two numbers on their driver's license. I figure that I have a good chance to win because I have many driver's licenses. Auto?......Nope, it is a 3 and 1. Pilots?......Nope, still too low. Driving 101?.......Ahhh, left that one home. Let's see, I have one more if I can find it.....I know it's here?....Ya, there it is, Interstellar Spacecraft.......Drat! Still too low. Well, by the time I've finished looking at all my licenses, the prize has been given out and some people are ready to head home. I see Miled eating alone at the end of the deck soaking up the sun. I prefer the shade, but I decide comfort preferences are not my first priority. We joke about these differences, then move on to other topics. We are joined by Andie and later Wayne. Lunch is finished and I suggest to Miled that we start to work on his car. From a previous episode, a bolt that holds a plastic cover had stripped, and Miled had the appropriate parts to be installed. I back my NSX close to his so that the tools I'll need will be close at hand. I realize this is a small job, but being somewhat methodical, I place the NSX trunk cover on his car, slip on my coveralls, put surgical gloves on, and get the tools I'll need to remove/torque the bolt. Larry B shows up and is curious about what is happening. It's a little funny watching Larry and I work together. The good thing is we respect each other's way to do maintenance. The funny part comes when doing similar tasks. Larry would have had the part off and new installed by the time I finished preparing to do the job. So by the time I would say, "Let's start!" He would say, "It's finished, lets have a beer!" I can see my slowness and use of torque wrench is making him antsy. The torque I am using, although less than called for by the manual, is far above what he would use (He would just snub it up). As I tighten the bolt, he is making the facial grimace that one does when you are waiting for the bolt to........snap! But it doesn't. Miled uses the, "If one bolt breaks, replace ALL associated with that part" philosophy. I replace the stripped one, replace a suspected one, then suggest we install the others, if needed, at a later time. The job is complete and I repack items into my trunk.

[Note: I am writing this story from my motel room while at Ft. Campbell. Because I do not have all the needed information, I am e-mailing people for the missing information. One of these people is Tony. I suddenly realize I have seen this scenario played out in a sci-fi show. Know which one? Quantum Leap! I feel like Sam Beckett, (as in order to write these stories, I have to relive a past event) being transported to a different time; Tony is like Al, who looks up needed information through Ziggy (the computer) so that Sam will have the needed information to leap forward to another time; or in my case, another story.]

It's late afternoon and I feel I should be heading out with the other guests. I say good-bye to guests, host, and head for my car. Tony is talking about stopping at an ice cream shop before going home. I'm invited, but he realizes that I have to pack before I depart for Ft. Campbell the next day. I really enjoy hanging with Tony, so in my mind I start doing this should I, shouldn't I stuff. Tony says that when we get to I-78 I can either head for home or keep following him.

(MS) = Contributions by Miled Salheb

(MS) As we said our good-byes, Larry Gauthier, Tony DeJoie, Peter Mills (and the lovely Sylvia - his wife), and I gathered our things, turned our radios on, and began our journey back to our respective homes.  Some of us live in serene suburbs, others (me!) live in Fort Apache, Da Bronx! LOL! But at that moment, it didn't matter because we were one flight formation of 4 aggressors driving in "peace mode."

(LG) Pete calls on the club radio asking Miled (pronouncing it as it is spelled) if he can use his cell phone........There is silence. Another call comes asking the same question but by pronouncing his name Me-lay. I pipe on the radio stating that it sounds like Pete wants something (referring to the change in name pronunciation). I call Tony, who is leading the pack, to pull over at the next convenient place, as I cannot feel my cell phone that I placed behind the seat. Tony pulls into a housing development and the four cars are parked next to the curb while Pete uses Miled's cell phone and I find mine. I tell Syl that Pete needs to get into the electronic age. We are almost finished when a resident, from a nearby house, comes out asking why we are parked in front of her home. We try to explain, but she still sees us as a threat and wants us gone. We are finished, so we get back into our cars and head off.

(MS) After Peter Mills (wingman) waved us good-bye, Tony (flight lead), Larry (wingman) and I (solo) proceeded on (following Don's 95% accurate directions - LOL!) back to the main highway.  As we continued our drive, I figured this
would be a good time to refuel before we began our long trek on the highway. With that in mind, I pressed the "PTT" (Push To Talk) button on my Uniden radio and asked, "Tony, if you see a Sunoco Station and don't mind stopping, I'd like to gas up."  Tony replied, "I don't think there are any Sunocos around here, but I think there is a gas station right before we enter the highway."  I paused for a moment thinking... "do I want to put anything else in my Polished Razor other than Sunoco's Ultra 94?"  Since Tony (and Larry) were kind enough gentlemen to offer stopping (without asking me to initiate a point-by), I accepted his suggestion and agreed to gas up at whatever station he was referring to.  Sure enough, right before entering the highway, we pull into a Hess Station.  I pull up to the pumps while Tony and Larry park their cars on the side.

As I exit the car to pump my gas (keep forgetting Jersey only has FULL serve -- unlike Nu Yawk where it's "pump your own $...!"  LOL!), a gas attendant comes up to my car (and while waiting for me to pop the gas tank) I ask him, "Would you be ok if I pumped it myself?" and he replies, "Okiee, but rrrrrrrr you paying kesh orrrrrr charrrrrge." I reply "Charrrrrge preeeease." LOL! Relieved knowing that I wouldn't have to worry about hearing that dreadful sound of prrrrrrrrrrrt and slam!!! (I'm referring to when they finish pumping your gas, they snap the gas cap clockwise so FAST
that you get that machine gun "prrrrrt" sound, and what immediately follows that is the quick snap of their hands slamming the gas door shut), I continue pumping the gas and appreciate the fact the price I'm paying (for super unleaded in Joisey) is what it costs for REGULAR in NY!

As I'm pumping the gas, I say "sure could go for some ice cream right now" and Tony replies, "Hey, there's an ice cream place on my way that makes home made ice cream and tastes really good." I suddenly stopped thinking about
the prrrrrt gas cap sound and began drooling from the fact I could have some home made ice cream.  Tony asked if I, along with Larry, would like to join him for some.  My immediate response was yes but I said, "I'd have to ask Sharon (who's a real car enthusiast and luvs the NSX) if she was ok with it." Larry, knowing that he had to get home at a reasonable time (because he was preparing to leave at 0700 the next day on a long trek to Ft. Campbell), was debating whether to go or not.  I peek in my driver's door, look across to my passenger and say, "Oh Sharon, Tony and Larry are INSISTING we join them for some ice cream so... can we go, phleeeeez, oh phleeeeez can we,
huh?  YESSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!  (LG) Now with Miled and Sharon joining Tony, the pressure to attend from within was building. If I attended, I would be up until the next morning prepping for the trip. This wasn't because I failed to prepare, it was because the amount of tasks that needed to be completed before I returned next month were substantial. I remembered Miled transporting my tires back to PA and returning to his house in the wee hours of the morning. Tony?....He has stayed up into the wee hours of the morning working on projects for me. The indecision melted away. I would join them. (TD) He was whining, "But I want to be with you guys!" (MS) Even though we (Tony & I) are Larry's paisans, the determining factor that made him go ALL THE WAY OUT OF HIS WAY was the fact Sharon was going!  (LG: OK, you caught me) Some pal that guy is!  LOL!

With the sun still shining and showing no signs of disappearing anytime soon; the excitement of TREE (that's 3 for you suburb guys - LOL!) grown men acting like little kids in front of Sharon (because we were on our way to some homemade ice cream); I close my gas cap and door (ever so gently), quickly get in my purrrrring Polished Razor, as does Tony and Larry (as if we were just called from the alert pad to intercept some bogies), are off in formation and on our way. Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...

As we take the onramp to the highway, we pick up some decent speeds and I admire my two counterpart's NSXs as they gracefully glide (as if actually flying) on the highway.  With a HUGE SMILE on my face, I reach down my left
side (where the forward/back, recline seat buttons are) for my radio to let them know how great they look, I suddenly realize "Wholly $...!!!!!! MY RADIO???!!!  WHERE'S MY FREAKIN' RADIO???!!! Oh nooooo!!! Sharon, I LEFT MY RADIO AT THE STATION!!!" I suddenly pull on my headlight flashers and begin flashing my colleagues ahead.  As I do so, I'm pulling my car closer to the shoulder to indicate that I was pulling over.  Tony catches my intentions and pulls in front of Larry and immediately pulls over to the shoulder.

I quickly stop my car, say to Sharon "I'll be right back, ok?!", open the door and pull a Michael Johnson (Olympic gold medallist runner with gold shoes) to Tony's car. Before Tony even had the opportunity to ask anything, I say, "$..., I LEFT MY FREAKIN' RADIO AT THE GAS STATION!!! - I'M SUCH AN IDIOT!!!"  Without saying anything, Tony looks at me and I knew it was time for me to jump in his passenger side and head back and see if there were any hopes of me getting my Uniden back. I once again look back to Sharon (patiently sitting on the passenger side of my RUNNING car) and say, "I'll be right back, ok?!" DEJA VU? LOL!

(LG) I ask Sharon if she wanted to sit with me in my car. It was almost as if I caught her by surprise, as she hesitated and was stumbling for an answer which most likely was from trying to find a polite way to say no!  I'm thinking, "You know you're a born loser when: 1) A woman would rather watch cars go by than sit with you. 2) Sitting in a hot car alone is far more desirable than being in a cool one with Larry. 3) A woman would rather chance being stranded alone in NJ than sitting next to you." All right, I know I'm not the pick of the litter, but can I possibly be that bad? (no comments from the peanut gallery) Then an answer finally comes from her lips (I know, the anticipation was killing me too), "Miled left his car running and I'm not sure what I should do?" I walk to Miled's car.......sure enough, keys in the ignition with the tach showing RPM. Hummmm........My evil opportunist mind automatically engages. (Where this ability came from, I have no idea, but it is acutely honed.) "Sharon, you get into Miled's car, I'll take mine, and let's drive around the corner out of sight! :-)" Sharon is not easily corruptible. "OK, you take mine and I'll take Miled's and we'll drive around the corner out of sight!" Nope, she is just too nice. I decide to shut Miled's car off, take his keys, and Sharon returns to my car where we have fun talking about the events.
It wasn't long before Tony and Miled arrive. Miled recounts the story.

(MS) As I'm strapping myself in Tony's 3.2L, 6spd. monster, we both look ahead and see NO signs of any exits that we can perform an illegal U-turn to head back to the station.  We had 2 highways to jump across - each highway with 3
lanes of traffic headed in the opposite direction we needed to go.  Tony takes off (like an F-18 Hornet catapulted from an aircraft carrier) and we begin our trek across the first 3 sets of lanes. Tony accomplishes that rather quickly and now faced with finding a No U-turn (where Jersey Troopers sit and snag cars like ours) so we could head the way we needed to. Sure enough, we see a No U-turn up ahead and Tony pulls to the left shoulder and begins slowing down the car and we agree that, if there IS a trooper sitting in there (the U-turn was hidden by trees), we'll just tell him we're lost. If no trooper, we're GOING FOR IT!!! As we slooooowly approach the No U-turn, to our blessing, there was NO trooper so Tony crosses the road (like a deer leaping across the front of Larry's car) and begin our never-ending Uniden "In Search Of." Everytime Tony would say "I'll take this next exit coming up," someone would block it in a way that we could not get off.  I believe the TRIPLE digit speeds may have had something to do with us not being able to exit in a timely fashion.  But at speeds like that, who cares about fashion!  LOL!  Come to think of it, I had to hold the back of my hair
(with my right hand tightly fisted) in a pony tail due to the air coming in from Tony's opened targa top; and the wind smacking the hair on my face felt like I was sparring down at Tremont Ave.'s Golden Gloves training center.

After missing a few exits, Tony finds a loop that goes under the highway we were just on, and we find ourselves right where we needed to be. Great job paisain!!!  We pull into the station and Tony parks his car right were mine was only 15 minutes ago. To MY surprise, the SAME Indian fella that initially approached my car saw us pull in and before Tony and I had a chance to say anything (with the very tip of his thumb and forefinger, grabs the Uniden radio out of a box by the tip of the antenna) and says, "I tought yourrrr guyz drrrrrivin' doze Ferrrraris left a bomb heurrrrr!!!" Tony and I suddenly plug our ears...LOL!  Tony grabs the radio, turns it over to me, I hug it tightly and we're off to meet up with Larry and Sharon - I'm sure Larry couldn't have been happier to be abandoned on a stretch of unknown highway with 2 NSXs (that his key fit into both) and a pretty lady.  ;)  And this is one time for sure Larry wished Tony and I hadn't returned so damn quickly...  I gotta tell ya folks, that 3.2L, 6spd. sure has a lot of cajones!!! YAWZA!

We now proceed up I-287 at speeds between 70 - 90 MPH, with an occasional triple digit burst. I am not feeling comfortable about the speeds, because let's face it, doing 90 in a 55 MPH area doesn't seem like a $50 fine to me. Tony claims to know all the crossover/hiding areas, so with blind ignorant faith I follow. An Audi kept up with us for a while and became a little bit of a nuisance. But the topper came when this man, trying to keep up with us and impress his blond hottie, blew something on his Jaguar XJ6 convertible. Smoke erupted from his engine and he had to pull off to the edge of the road.

We exit, and as we get near the ice cream shop, Tony directs us to two open parking spaces. He parks in the ever popular, "No Parking in Alley" spot. Inside, we are trying to decide on what dishes to partake in. Tony goes first, Sharon (who is holding up the line waiting for Miled) claims she left her pocketbook in the car and is waiting for........"Keep it movin, keep it movin" as I push her along in the line. "But I don't have any money with me!" she explains as she tries to stay put. But my wanting ice cream is an irresistible force and I have no problem aiding her along to the front of the line. Tony orders some wuss dish, like watermelon sherbet, or something like that. Another server asks what I want. I am not terrifically hungry, as we just left Gallo's, so I think I will order a hot fudge sundae. Tony knows me and suggests a banana split. I tell him I'm not that hungry but he says the magic words..."I'll buy it."  SOLD!

I am asked what I want on it, which is a mistake made by the "maker of delight," as I give specific instructions about the assembly ingredients and construction procedure in making a respectable banana split. With the waiting line backing up, she assembles a creation that is as tall as it is wide. I request from my friends that I get started eating this marvel. They insist!! The conversation at the table is lively. Sharon seems to be enjoying our wacky humor as laughter frequently erupts. My stomach has already covered my belt and feels like it may start sliding the table back. I'm starting to slow up a bit and Tony remarks that there is still more in my plate. I comment that Sharon was supposed to have helped, but seems to have reneged. I tell how I could get banana sundaes in Maine, to which Tony replies, "They could have made what you wanted here!" (We're a little late with that comment, aren't we?) I finally finish and we head for the cars. We say our good-byes and Tony gives instructions for our exit. (MS) We go our separate ways like Thunderbirds
performing a compass burst (where each of us head in a different compass direction). I say another good-bye over the club radio as our NSXs take us in different directions. Tony says good-bye, Miled says good-bye, and finally Sharon. After a bit, I try one more communication, but the airwaves are silent. I sigh a bit as I know this is the end of another memorable time that could have only taken place amidst best friends found in the NSXCA.
Feeling thankful again,
Larry G.

I'M SURE EVERYONE HAS HEARD THE PHRASE, "WHAT GOES AROUND, COMES AROUND." I HAD UNDERSTOOD THAT IF YOU DO SOMETHING MEAN TO SOMEONE, EVENTUALLY SOMEONE WILL DO SOMETHING MEAN TO YOU........SINCE JOINING THE NSXCA, I HAVE FOUND THAT THIS SAYING RUNS RAMPANT WHEN INSTIGATED WITH KINDNESS......I'M GROWING (LARRY G.)