The Draplin Design Co., in association with the “trek-tracking” services of Coudal Partners, is proud to announce the ambitious “Gary Across America” North American Fall Tour.

AROUND HERE, AT LEAST: Also known as, “60 Days On The Road With The DDC,” this tour is our second extensive roadtrip of this nature—an “annual” event from here on out. Last fall we did a little over 50 days. This time around, we’re proud to “add another 10 days on to the whole deal,” just in case we get a little lost or find a nice hamlet to settle down in for a couple days. Free and easy.

THIS IS “OUR” TIME: The fall is “our summer,” more or less. The last 100 days weren’t ours. They were for the clients. You had yer beach blanket barbeques and slip-n-slides. We had had clients throwing us projects from every angle and saying mysterious things like, “It’s perfect! Here are the changes.” Long, long days were spent on the DDC Factory Floor, and all to clear up some autumn time and get a little jump on the winter season. We are very proud to have been able to handle the load we took on.

WHAT PART OF “MOBILE COMMAND UNIT” DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND?: Sure, we won’t be on the DDC Factory Floor doing business, but not that this sort of circumstance has stopped us in the past. We’re still “open for business,” but, with a bit of a limited reach. We’ll be utilizing a nationwide circuit of truck stop “wifi hotspots” to handle our email correspondence, Draplin.com website updates and the ever-crucial receiving/shipping of files. Trust us. Armed with a souped-up laptop, external hard drive and an iron will, all projects that “haven’t quite been wrapped up” will be dealt with on the road, in some sketchy Motel 6 hotel room somewhere.

GARY IS MY COPILOT: This is Gary’s first foray across the nation. Much work has been done concerning matters of “potty training,” “barking amplitude” and “general niceness to others not in our circle,” to mixed results. Plain and simple, the little sonofabitch is kinda unpredictable, so, we’ll just let the chips fall where they may. Stay strong, Gary.

HOW WE DO IT: We get up early and drive all day. We stop for things worth stoppin’ for. We take pictures. We chat with locals. We purchase little things most people would consider, “junk.” We wonder about scenic vistas and ranches far off in the distance. We do our best to eat square meals. We sleep in truckstop parking lots and at the occasional Motel 6. We drive 1/10 over the speed limit, on the average. We fight hard to “make good time” while “taking it all in.” We never pass on a hill or play “chicken” with oncoming motorists. We cross out fingers that the long arm of the law will “leave us the fuck alone.”

BIG, BIG PLANS: We’re gonna “cut the nation in half.” We’re gonna spend some time with our parents in Michigan. We’re gonna explore the western side of the Appalachians. We’re gonna swoop down and volunteer for a couple days in the New Orleans area. We’re gonna drive all the way up the Mississippi River from New Orleans to Duluth, Minnesota. We’re gonna fly out to Milan, Italy to design up some snowboard bindings. We’re gonna do a pitstop in Amsterdam. We’re gonna dig the fall colors in the Midwest. We’re gonna “kick back” at Ryno’s place in Minneapolis. We’re gonna hang with friends in New York City. We’re gonna go wayyyy up to Thunder Bay, for the hell of it. We’re gonna do “perimeter tour” of those Great Lakes. All of them, mind you. And for the way back, we’re gonna “throw a dart” and pick a western route unconquered by our grubby driving hands.

OUR FINGERS ARE CROSSED FOR THINGS LIKE: Smooth sailing, as we whip all over the nation. Safe flights when we go abroad. Safe flights when we fly domestic. Good weather. Good miles from Big S.

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