The Long and Winding (and apparently too bumpy) Road

If I were to say that yesterday was one of the most tiring days ever, I wouldn't be lying. I woke up at 7am and went into work at 8. The morning was relatively quiet as people were doing various other tasks. We were supposed to leave Oak Ridge by noon, but we still had to disassemble all of the meteorological towers that we had assembled previously to see that everything functioned correctly. We didn't actually start until about 11 or so and we also had yet to pack a single trailer for the trip. Working in 90 degree heat, we took down all five of the towers (30 feet) and packed them away into the trailer. We also had to take down and pack all of the instruments, data loggers, and tools that we would need in Gulfport. By the time we got everything packed, it was 5:00. We didn't actually get out of Oak Ridge until 5:30.

Having already logged a nine hour day, we still had a ten hour drive ahead of us! The first half of the trip flew by pretty fast as we drove through Tennessee and into Alabama. This was the first time I had ever been in Alabama, and lets just say, no great loss. If you like trees, and nothing, then Alabama is the place for you.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. At about the halfway mark of the trip, the tire on one of our trailers decided to completely blow up. I was riding in the vehicle behind the trailer and we were talking to the other guy on the phone. He was saying how something didn't feel right, and then the tire just exploded. After a few seconds, the fender was torn off and went flying 100 feet in the air (okay...that was an exaggeration, but it was still pretty awesome). So, for the next half an hour, we changed the trailer tire on a highway somewhere in the middle of Alabama. For the next six hours, we kept our speed at 60 and stopped frequently to check on the spare that we put on. We didn't actually arrive in Gulfport until 5 am.

Tomorrow we will actually start the installation process at a nearby airport. Understandably, we weren't in the best condition today to do much of anything. I'll make sure to have a whole bunch of pictures up tomorrow.

As for today, we drove around for a little bit trying to figure a few things out. Downtown Biloxi is basically a small Las Vegas with casinos lining the shore. You can also see the obvious effects of hurricanes on the city with downed trees and sand everywhere. Overall, its a nice little tourist spot. I'll definetly visit these places over the next few weeks. Right now all I want to do is sleep!

This is also the first time i've been in another time zone (I know...I'm lame), so thats pretty cool!
Well, I think it's time to get some rest and get ready for another long day tomorrow.