Autoweek America Adventure: Thar be treasure out there

OK, truth: It's kind of hard to not care. Yeah, yeah, that's the Honey Badger credo (and for those who think I've just spouted some kind of odd Mutual of Omaha Wild Kingdom gibberish, please go to YouTube and check out the Honey Badger video.) But being competitive sorts, Team Honey Badger--Tommy Kendall and I--do care.

I have to say the second day of rallying is starting to bring out the competitive spirit. And not just with us but with other competitors, too. So you know, the route took us from Newport, Ore., south along Highway 101 and into Winchester Bay. Never heard of Winchester Bay? Neither had the Honey Badger's navigation system but that's part of the stuff we have to deal with: Improvisation on the fly.

Before getting to Winchester Bay, however, there was a stop at Sea Lion Caves; just in case you thought this was all high-performance driving, there is the occasional viewing of basking pinnipeds… and there's time to look at seals and sea lions, too.

From the ocean view to the sand dunes--and it's time to climb aboard ATVs and dune buggies to look for buried treasure maps! Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves at Winchester Bay's sand dunes; in a "mission" that was timed to take 30 minutes, competitors were out cruising along in the sand for 45. Some of them couldn't be dragged off the two-stroke machines; some competitors would make great pirates--they know where and how to look for a buried treasure chest to pull a clue (and five lockers were buried in these dunes).

The next leg took us along Oregon Highway 38, one of the most scenic roads I've encountered. Maybe it was the time of year with fall leaves changing, or it was carving inland through extraordinary stands of pine trees and along a wide, glass river, or maybe it was the exceptionally smooth asphalt begging to be driven well? To cut back to Interstate 5 was no hardship for this Honey Badger.

We aimed south--got to get to Vegas somehow--and stuffed our foot into the throttle, catching up with each other and catching up with emails and YouTube videos. Oh, yeah: I may have mentioned this but each competitor car is fitted with a device called Autonet, an Internet router for the car. It is ingenious. Just plug it into a lighter, put the satellite receiver in the rear window and enjoy the comforts of your home office on the road. That's not so good for the driver except when his co-driver must find the answer to our next clue….

Which was the Klamath Basin Brewery in Klamath Falls, Ore. A great place to land, relax, watch Game 7 of the World Series and dine.

It's an early morning for the Autoweek America Adventure, on Saturday. We launch at 7 and, I imagine, point south in a big way. Stay tuned for more of the adventure.

Look for us at:

-- @11_HoneyBadger

-- @Autoweek Racing

-- Facebook

-- Autoweek America Adventure.

By Dutch Mandel