Sunday – May 16th, 2021
The next day, we packed up all of our stuff and ran back to the gas station. We grabbed some more food, topped off the truck, and began our journey of touring other filming locations. You know, its funny, on the worst days of your life you never wake up thinking something bad could happen. But on this day, little did I know, that a lot more than bad would happen…
Wakita, OK – N2820 Rd.
First up was the filming location for the opening sequence where Jo’s dad dies. Ironically the farm at this location was destroyed by a real tornado back in 2010. The owner said the path of the tornado was eerily similar to the one shown in the movie. All in all, 2 houses, five barns, two silos, some equipment and a horse were lost. All that remains today is a single silo, nothing else is left.
Woodland, OK – Wulf Rd.
The next location we were heading to is one of my favorites, the ditch run scene. En route to the location, I guess word got round that a group of replica trucks were running around. I am not joking when I say, there were literally people sitting it their front yards waiting for us to pass by. Phones in hand, ready to record. I even managed to find a recording online.
photos.app.goo.gl
As we approached the location, we were stopped in the middle of the road by a truck that pulled out in front of us. Some guy got at and started talking to the lead truck. Come to find out, it’s the landowner for the ditch scene. He invited us to his property and offered to show us the tractor that sat on the little bridge that the Jeep hits before getting sucked up into the tornado. It’s not much to look at, but cool nonetheless.
The guy went on to tell us that they created the ditch and subsequent bridge specifically for filming. They needed a tractor and the property owner offered up theirs. They even offered him a cameo driving the tractor on to the bridge, but he declined. After the filming was done, the production crew filled in the ditch and destroyed the bridge for liability reasons. After a brief chat about their experiences during filming, we followed him over to where the bridge was. Looking around the location, we actually noticed there were still several large pieces of the bridge left on the ground, albeit mostly rotted away. We had stated how cool it would be to get a piece for a souvenir, he said go for it. So we hopped the fence and went down to collect our prize.
Fairfax, OK – Where Wulf Rd turns into E 100 Rd.
At this point it started raining. The next location was the turn the Jeep makes just before dropping into the ditch. We each ran through it while Leo filmed with the drone trying to recreate the following of the truck through the turn. Not too exciting, but hey, when in Rome. That sound from before is still noticeable…
photos.app.goo.gl
Burbank, OK – OK19 (between Co Rd 5920 and Remington Rd.)
After that, we visited a few more less exciting locations. But the one that stood out the most was the road that Jo and Bill were arguing on.
We opted to try and recreate this one as well. Due to the rain we weren’t going to push the truck and we certainly were not going to take it off the road like in the scene. We like to have fun, but we aren’t stupid.
photos.app.goo.gl
Watching the towards the end of the video, you will notice a silver car on the right side of the road. Little did we know who was inside that car. I turned around and pulled in behind the other trucks. There was already someone over there talking to the person in the car. One of the guys walks up to my window and says “you may want to go over there and talk to that guy”. So, being curious, I did just that.
As I approached the vehicle I saw an older gentleman sitting in the driver seat. The guy who was already talking to him turned to me and said, “this is Mel Wright, the guy who built the Jeeps for the movie”. I was completely stunned, what are the freaking odds that we would run into this guy while driving around?? So we got to talking, getting details and such on how they were built and painted for the movie. At some point in the conversation he mentioned that he stopped when he saw the trucks on the side of the road and thought a couple of them were the actual ones from the film. Flattering, but I had to let him down gently. He was a wealth of information and I wished I had gotten his number. I did try reaching out on Facebook shortly after, but he hasnt been active on it in some time.
Kaw City, OK – E. Ferguson Rd. Bridge
We had a few more stops planned for the day before breaking for an Aunt Meg’s style meal. However, fate would have a different plan for me that day. We made our way down to the bridge that was used during the “sisters tornado” scene located in Kaw City on E. Ferguson Rd. Not even a minute away I get a phone call from my wife. Her mom just died… Unfortunately, at the exact same time, one of the Rams’ driveshaft bearings went out and had to pull off the road. I pulled over and let the guys know we had to go and would be missing out on the rest of the day. I apologized for not staying to help, but we had to get back to Florida ASAP.
This was the last video I filmed as we went over the bridge to head home. You can hear Lee talking in the background about the driveshaft on the Ram.
photos.app.goo.gl
By this time the rain is coming down pretty hard, we find the nearest gas station, the Diamond Shamrock in Shidler. We filled the truck back up, grabbed some snacks and drinks and went back to the truck. Lee suggested we try to find out what that noise was from under the truck. I get down on the ground and have him put it in drive, I noticed the front driveshaft jumped a tad when it went in gear. Being an NP229, this should not even be moving since the front hubs are disengaged and the transfer case is in 2 High. At least, that is what all the signs showed. We decide to get back in the truck and start heading out. Unfortunately we did not record mileage and fuel usage on the way back for obvious reasons. My mind was elsewhere.
Phillips 66 – Porter, OK
1217 Miles from home
6:36pm, Make it another 118 miles before we need to fill the truck up. We pull in to the Phillips 66 right on the Muskogee Turnpike. At this point the sky is very ominous and the rain is brutal. After topping the truck off we run inside for some food and get back on out way. We get a few miles down the road and the weather just turns worse. There is zero visibility on the road, the winds are insane, and it feels very much like a tornado is in the area. The antennas on the truck are going nuts and banging against the roll bar and body. We ended up pulling over under an overpass to remove them for our sanity. We check the cargo in the bed of the truck one last time and get back on the road.
Love’s Travel Center – Ozark, AR
1079 Miles from home
8:47pm, 113 miles down and we stop to refuel. Truck seems to be running ok, still overheats if we leave the AC on, and we are still limited to 60mph or so to keep the truck cool without the AC. Mostly an uneventful stop.
Pilot Travel Center – Russellville, AR
1032 Miles from home
9:51pm, only 47 miles this time. Something felt off with the truck, we started noticing that the voltmeter was registering less than 12v while driving. As a precaution, we shut off all non-essential items in the truck to reduce battery draw. We pulled into the gas station, top off and start checking the truck over. Oil is still blowing out of the filler tube making a huge mess, oil is still leaking out of the bottom of the truck. We get everything cleaned up, clean out the filter element in the filler cap, top off the oil and gas and are back on the road.
Shell – North Little Rock, AR
965 Miles from home
11:22pm, 68 miles more, something is wrong with the truck. We started noticing intermittent losses in power and that damn noise from the drivetrain, voltage is still low as well. We pull into the gas station and give the truck a once over. Nothing seems to be out of place, rolled under the truck and nothing is loose. Everything seems solid. I triple checked the transfer case to make sure it was still in 2wd High. We topped off the oil and gas and got back on the road.
Monday - May 17, 2021
Exxon – Brinkley, AR
859 Miles from home
12:47am, only 64.5 miles. We pull off again. I rolled under the truck to check everything again. This time I accidentally brushed up against the transfer case and burned the hell out of my hand. The case was HOT. Something is wrong, but at this point not much could be done. The gas station was closed and we needed to get back on the road, so we chanced it.
Blues Highway (just before the bridge into Memphis) – Proctor, AR
833 Miles from home
2:10am. Well, this is it. We were driving along and the loss of power comes back a few more times, very spotty. Then BANG, followed by the sound of broken bits rattling around. Well, ****. I look over to Lee and say that’s it, we are done. I assume the transmission became a box of neutrals, after rolling off the side of the road and stopping I try to put it in park and there is just a grinding sound. I shut the engine off, then put it in park, then restart the truck. Tried to go into drive and it just grinded. At this point I was beyond frustrated. I’m 833 miles from home, my mother in law just died, and the truck that I spent the last couple of years putting together with ALL BRAND NEW parts just left me on the side of the road. Fortunately, I am one of those people that always keep a level head, I sat there for a minute in silence, then grabbed my phone and called Hagerty.
While we sat and waited for the tow truck, we arranged to stay at a hotel just over the bridge. It would be almost 3 hours before they could to us… Around 5:01am, the truck finally arrives and loads my broken beast onto the flatbed.
We finally get the truck unloaded at the hotel. Exhausted, we just collapse into bed trying to not focus on how the rest of the day is going to go down. We manage to get a few hours of sleep, got up, showered, and immediately got to work on how we were going to get home. I got back out to the truck now that I’ve gotten some rest and I begin diagnosing. I eventually come to the conclusion that it is the transfer case and not the transmission that decided to eat it. I jumped on every FSJ facebook page Im on and put out an APB on a replacement 229 case, or anything that will fit in its place. We gave it a couple of hours, got a few replies, but nothing that could help at the moment. One reply was very promising, Daniel Van Doren over at Jeep Heritage. He offered to send me a new case, but it was gonna take a few days. A few days was way better than the several month lead time from other vendors. I put this in my back pocket and kept searching. I eventually came up with the idea of renting a U-Haul with a trailer and just dragging it home. I called a few places in the area and finally found one that would let me do a one-way haul with a trailer to pull a “Toyota Corolla” to Florida.
Once the truck and trailer were reserved, we set up an Uber to get to the rental place. $1400 later, we secured the ridiculously overpriced truck. While we were waiting for the paperwork to be completed, I walked around the store looking for things we may need. I see a come-along on the wall for $30 and grabbed it. I have loaded this particular truck on to this type of U-Haul trailer about 3 times before this and I know how much of a pain in the ass it is with the 33x12 tires. We jump in the truck and head back to the hotel to get loaded up. About 30 mins in to trying to get this thing on the trailer, a Police Officer pulls up. He gets out and asks us who we are and what we are doing. We explain the situation and ask how we can help. Apparently, they were looking for a stolen U-haul with a trailer that was last seen on that particular street. I **** you not, there was another one the next block over pulling away, we point it out and he jumps in the car and takes off. We shake our heads and get back to work. About an hour later we were on our way.
For the next 16 hours, the trip was uneventful. The U-haul got significantly better gas mileage than my truck… who would have thought. We finally pull into the house around 5:21am the next day, unload the truck, and pass out.