DAY 2

10 a.m.
Mile 337

LaHood Productions is on the road! We had planned to leave San Francisco at 2 p.m. yesterday and drive all the way to Elko, Nev., but last minute preparations kept us in the Bay Area until close to 7 p.m. The lights of Reno were ablaze in all their neon glory to welcome us around 11 p.m. Lila insisted on taking a tour of the city before settling in for the night at Travelodge.

We slept well and received an unexpected but well-timed wakeup call from Baltimore at 6:50 a.m. (Lila’s colleagues for another project calling to confirm details for an upcoming event.)

By 8 a.m. we were on the road again. First, a quick stop for coffee at Jack in the Box, then to Walgreens for a few necessities: water; Red Bull; AA batteries; shampoo for Mike; and blotting paper for our soon-to-be interview subjects.

Much, much later . . .

This was our big day of driving. We stopped in Elko for lunch and then drove to Salt Lake City where we made a quick stop at Wild Oats Market for dinner and to buy healthy snacks for the road. After dinner, we drove all the way to Cheyenne, Wyoming, where we checked into the Wingate Inn just before midnight. A note to our cross-country driving friends: this is the nicest, best-value business hotel we’ve ever seen. The new plush carpet, raised beds and luxurious linens made us feel like we were staying in a four star hotel. As it turns out, this particular Wingate Inn has only been open for one year, which is probably why we felt like we were the first ones to sleep in our room. Add to that free Wi-Fi, a gym, breakfast and unlimited printing and copying. Justifiable enthusiasm!