Back at the motel to unload and letcha know what's going on out at the salt. Here's what I saw today:
Geez, tourists -- mellow out a little. You are NOT required to mark your visit.
Here are some pics showing the salt a few miles out. It's pretty firm everywhere, but still a tad moist beyond the five or so. In one pic you can see the markers for the lights at the end of the course -- I'm guessing that the location you see is at the six and those are just markers in case the course needs to be moved down a mile. The others show the texture of the salt and so on.
Here's the course layout, sorta. The long course 1 mile is about 250 yards off/to the right of Land's End, with the Start being a mile back from there, sorta. The start is still a mile or so from where the course would intersect I-80. The Village/pits are at about the 3 mile and the pits end about the 4.
Courses 3 & 4 (well, short and rookie/short/short, and we don't have a second long or combo course this year) start with #3 just around the bend in the dike - maybe only a few hundred yards from the corner. The last course start line is a few hundred yards farther around the bend. Yes, there's going to be the long tow from the end of the short courses around the start line and then back to pits/impound, but as of now the salt is way better than a few years ago - you probably won't shake your false teeth loose while driving the return roads.
The speed limit is 45, kids, remember that. 45 on the paved road to Land's End, and 45 on the salt unless posted lower. Let's have a safe meet off the race track, too. Oh, yeah - gas is about $2.959 ++ here. So is diesel.