WHAT NOT TO DO AT A

PUBLIC SERVICE EVENT

Photos by Tom, KE7TM

Reality provided by Ed, K9EDK

Let’s paint the picture.

• London’s Run is a Half Marathon in Queen Creek.

Let’s paint the picture.

• London’s Run is a Half Marathon in Queen Creek.

• Much of the course was through the farm fields surrounding Schnepf Farms.

Let’s paint the picture.

• London’s Run is a Half Marathon in Queen Creek.

• Much of the course was through the farm fields surrounding Schnepf Farms.

• There was heavy rain during the weeks prior to the event.

Let’s paint the picture.

• London’s Run is a Half Marathon in Queen Creek.

• Much of the course was through the farm fields surrounding Schnepf Farms.

• There was heavy rain during the weeks prior to the event.

• The roads, if that’s what you call them, were narrow and most were pretty wet.

Let’s paint the picture.

• London’s Run is a Half Marathon in Queen Creek.

• Much of the course was through the farm fields surrounding Schnepf Farms.

• There was heavy rain during the weeks prior to the event.

• The roads, if that’s what you call them, were narrow and most were pretty wet.

• The Ham here (me) does not own a 4WD vehicle.

Let’s paint the picture.

• London’s Run is a Half Marathon in Queen Creek.

• Much of the course was through the farm fields surrounding Schnepf Farms.

• There was heavy rain during the weeks prior to the event.

• The roads, if that’s what you call them, were narrow and most were pretty wet.

• The Ham here (me) does not own a 4WD vehicle.

• Did I mention the heavy rains a week prior?

Let’s paint the picture.

REMEMBER that I touched on the fact that there was rain a week

prior to the event.

The long and narrow road.

If Murphy’s laws ever prevailed, it was on this last weekend in

January of 2010.

In the beginning.This was not the

first time I got stuck on this day, but since there is no

photographic evidence of

anything happening before this picture, it

must’ve never happened.

In the beginning.This was not the

first time I got stuck on this day, but since there is no

photographic evidence of

anything happening before this picture, it

must’ve never happened.

WIDEVEHICLE

In the beginning.This was not the

first time I got stuck on this day, but since there is no

photographic evidence of

anything happening before this picture, it

must’ve never happened.

NARROWROAD

In the beginning.This was not the

first time I got stuck on this day, but since there is no

photographic evidence of

anything happening before this picture, it

must’ve never happened.

NARROW-MINDED DRIVER

Let the fun begin

The first to arrive to help was Gary, W7TXR.

Let the fun begin

The first to arrive to help was Gary, W7TXR.

We hooked the winch up and freed the Suburban. WOW! That was easy.

Let the fun begin

The first to arrive to help was Gary, W7TXR.

We hooked the winch up and freed the Suburban. WOW! That was easy.

And then Murphy took over.

It’s all about Murphy now.

As we pulled it backwards, the front end just kept sliding further

and further from the road.

Can it really get any worse?

…and further and further and further. Remember the rain we had just before the event? Did I

mention that Murphy showed up?

Newly founded Lake Edward

Let’s try something new

Let’s attach this come-along to the

power pole and pull the truck sideways and back onto the

road.

Let’s try something new

Let’s attach this come-along to the

power pole and pull the truck sideways and back onto the

road.

On second thought, let’s try something

else.

Hey, look! Another Jeep

Hey, look! Another Jeep

Instead of hooking up to the power pole, let’s try using the

winch on this other Jeep.

It really was THAT BAD!

OOPS! No recovery hooks.

Since the idiot didn’t buy a truck with recovery hooks, where should we attach the cable?

Slip sliding away, but not alone.

Slip sliding away, but not alone.

I didn’t think it could get worse. Remember, Murphy is now running the show. To keep the second Jeep from being pulled into the ditch, Jim’s truck was tied off to the Jeep… and then

both were pulled towards the ditch

It’s crunch time!Do you know what you’re looking at now?

It’s crunch time!It won’t take you long to figure it out.

This truck stopped.

It’s crunch time!I guess someone was busy watching what we were doing.

This truck stopped.

The Jeep didn’t stop

What comes next?

About a half dozen cop cars and a BIG RED truck!

The long story gets shorter.

After repositioning the second Jeep and pulling from a different angle,

progress is finally made and the Suburban slowly makes it’s way back onto

what is referred to by some as a road.

On the road again!

Who put that ditch there?

After being successfully freed from the muddy

grave on the right side of the road, Murphy wasn’t

done with me just yet. See that ditch

on the driver’s side? Let’s aim for

that now.

Finally on the road for good.

With a little guidance, I was able to drive in a straight line, something I

thought I was capable of doing before. I guess I was wrong.

Safe at last.

I can’t give enough praise to those who stuck with me (pun intended) and

who helped get me back on solid ground. You’re all the very best…

THANK YOU!

Paula, KD7TNB

Gary, W7TXR

THANK YOU!

Jim, N7QVW

The other Jeep owner.I apologize for not

remembering your name.

THANK YOU!

The two volunteers from London’s Run who we later learned had been

stuck several times in the previous week while

setting up the course.

THANK YOU!At the very beginning someone said that if this were someone else stuck in the mud, that I would be out there taking pictures. But since it was me that was stuck, the camera never came out. Whoever said that was

right, so in all fairness I handed my camera to Tom, KE7TM.

Unfortunately, Tom was on the other side of the camera, so we don’t have a picture of him to show here. Thank

you Tom for the great photos.

?

If you haven’t learned from my

experience, you’d

better keep looking

over your shoulder because

the guy in the grey

Suburban is likely to be taking

pictures of YOU!