Satiated Beaver Tour Update & Photos!

DAY 2
FRIDAY JUNE 15

ITINERARY
TRAVEL:
Fort Stockton to Tempe (661 miles / 12 hours)

EVENTS:
8:00a Bus time
8:00p Arrive Tempe
9:00p Kangaroo Court @ Team Dinner

Day 2 … according to Meredith “Bags” Bagley

Fort Stockton to Tempe (661 miles)
A truly monumental day of travel: three states, 661 miles, one continental divide and three time zones. Writing this I can barely remember the motel in Fort Stockton where we began our day…was it just this morning or last week? Despite the daunting distance, the intrepid beavers began our day early by checking da‘ Bus’s fluids — a process that was going smoothly until Krafty nearly started the massive engine while Rocky was standing on top of it!! Cooler heads prevailed, and we hit the road…

Thankfully the scenery was gorgeous, sagebrush plains and rocky mountaintops made our first leg to El Paso downright enjoyable.

Indulging in a lavish lunch — at Julio’s where tank tops are not allowed (except on the artwork, which was clothing optional) — our delicious meal was capped off by T-Hole’s lovely rendition of the Beaver Song to the entire dining room. To check out Rocky’s videotape on YouTube CLICK HERE!!

Granted, she was bribed by a promise of free dinner, but Tiff overcame her anxiety, said a little prayer (thanks to the suggested pre-meal prayer card provided by Julio’s) and busted out with “Hello El Paso!!”

The afternoon stretched on and on, with da‘ Bus chewing up miles of asphalt under the scorching sun. Shalay proved to be our resident off-road specialist, guiding the Beavers on an up-and-down roller coaster ride along a frontage road for some 15 miles before finding an on-ramp to the freeway. Dunkin‘ Donuts, truck stop showers, card games & even some on-bus calisthenics helped pass the time. At one memorable rest stop, flanked by rusty red rocks piled high on all sides, we utilized Meg’s paint markers to inscribe the following messages on da‘ Bus’s back windows: “Vegas or Bust,” “Beaver Love,” and “Honk for Beaver.”

As night fell the Beavers grew more excited about progressing towards Vegas and a reunion in Tempe with everyone’s favorite Carrabbamigo, Amanda! Luckily Amanda had the night off and could join us for a fashionably late 11pm dinner…

The Beavers were in full party mode, however, revved up after a rousing game of Never Have I Ever* followed by dancing on the bus (props to Shay for driving this whole time), marveling at the genius of New Kids on the Block videos and other treasures saved on Rocky’s laptop.

The highlight of the evening, however, had to be our first session of Beaver Court!!! Everyone on tour was bought up on charges (already!), including da Bus and our members in absentia. Judges Bags & Rocky dispensed fair & wise penalties which will no doubt entertain us all the way to Vegas tomorrow. Yo Ho Ho anyone? Grab your Beaver!! And who the hell is Debbie Gibson?

Late night swimming & umbrella hijinks blended into early morning swimming as the Beavers embarked on the final leg of the travel-intensive portion of this trip. Ahead of us are the bright lights of Las Vegas and the promise of Saturday night in Sin City. With five Vegas-Virgins on da Bus, nothing less than epic adventures await us…

*Beaver Tour Rules preclude me from sharing any of the information divulged during this contest: after all, What Goes on Tour Stays on Tour.

And that was Day 2 according to Bags.