So many things to do and places to go!

We had great time travelling from Bloomfield, New Mexico to Page, Arizona yesterday. And we made many stops along the way. Today we are on our way to Gallup, New Mexico.

Since we have been so busy and performing various tasks and missions, we wanted to share with you a few of the things we did yesterday:

This was our Planet of the Apes photo op.

We were fortunate to visit with the Navajo people, and learned about the Navajo code used in WWII, how to create a rug, as well as how to make fry bread.

Although sideways, I got to tee off at the Lake Powell golf course outside of Page. That's Astronaut John McBride's finger in the picture (it's a long story).

Car trouble won't keep us from finding missing kids!

Yesterday was certainly an eventful day for us.

We were travelling from Longmont, CO to Alamosa, CO as part of our day’s events. In the midst of one of our missions that we receive points for, we experienced car trouble.

Car needed a new fuel filter.

It was comical, yet encouraging, as we were pulled over alongside the road with car troubles and other teams passed us by on the way into the community of Walsenburg, where our mission was to end. Many stopped to provide a kind word and root us on.

It turned out that the car broke down in one of the most convenient locations, with the most generous of people. Not only were we quickly connected with Mayor Larry Patrick of Walsenburg for assistance, but the former fire chief who owns an auto parts store jumped in to help.  In addition, the former mayor of Walsenburg, Fred Rodriguez, who owns the local gas station and auto repair shop, Ol Reliable Car Care, was kind enough to install our new fuel filter, and we were soon on the way to Alamosa!

Thanks to former Mayor/Mechanic Fred Rodriquez, his staff at Ol Reliable Car Care, Mayor Larry Patrick, and everyone in Walsenburg, Colorado for their help!

Then Mr. Rodriguez went over and beyond and followed us for 70 miles to Alamosa, with a flat bed truck, to ensure that we did not break down again! It was very kind, and we cannot thank him and all the people of Walsenburg enough!

Today, we are heading to Bloomfield, New Mexico. Hopefully things run a bit smoother.

Speaking at the Longmont, CO Fireball Run Rally

 

Speaking at the Longmont, CO Fireball Run Rally! Other attendees included Longmont Mayor Dennis Coombs, Longmont Councilman Alex Sammoury, State Rep. John Singer and Mayor Rusty Bailey. Thank you for your support!

Helping Coloradans in Need

Today there has been a cars and food trucks show in Longmont. We haven't been at it the entire day, though, because we took our "Smokey and the Bandit" car and teamed up with Meals on Wheels to deliver meals to Coloradans affected by the recent flooding.



Tomorrow is the big kick-off, and then we'll head to Alamosa, Colorado on Sunday. Below is our most recent press release.

Anielski, Grossman Distribute Meals to Colorado Flood Victims in Advance of Fireball Run

LONGMONT, Colorado—State Representatives Marlene Anielski (R-Walton Hills) and Cheryl Grossman (R-Grove City), who are participating as “Team Ohio” in the online reality series of Fireball Run Season 7, have teamed up with the Meals on Wheels Association of America to provide meals to victims of flooding in Colorado prior to the start of the competition.

 The representatives today drove the 1977 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am that they are using for Fireball Run to various locations in Colorado to distribute the meals. The deadly flooding has led to property losses totaling nearly $2 billion in the 17 flood-stricken counties of the state.

“As soon as I heard about the flooding in Colorado, I felt it was important to do something to help while we were out here,” Rep. Anielski said. “With Fireball Run officially starting over the weekend, being here early was the perfect opportunity to volunteer and provide these meals for those who need them.”

Team Ohio is one of 40 teams taking part in the 8-day, 2000-mile competition that will lead them to Riverside, CA over the next week. The event is to raise awareness of missing children, with Team Ohio focusing on Brett Wurm, from Tiffin, OH, who went missing in June 2005. Brett is now approaching his 16^th birthday.

“We came here to bring attention to missing children in the U.S., as well as to promote teen suicide prevention efforts, but caring for the flood victims has been one more way to get involved,” Rep. Grossman said. “It was very humbling to see and visit with the people of Colorado who are in these difficult circumstances. It’s our hope that their lives can be back to normal in a timely manner.”

Supporters of Team Ohio can track them at www.fireballrun.com. The representatives are also tweeting from @teamOHfireball and blogging at TeamOhioFireballRun.blogspot.com.

 

 

Made it to Colorado. Heavy flooding here.

Our competition starts this Saturday, September 20th, but there are some events taking place here in Longmont, CO before Fireball Run officially kicks off.

We flew out here from Ohio yesterday, which means we have a bit of time before hitting the road (in our Firebird!). By now, you have probably heard about the terrible flood conditions that have taken place here. Our thoughts and prayers are with the many affected people.

To help out, we have the opportunity to delivers meals to many of the people who need them tomorrow. We'll be taking our Firebird and visiting various locations and will tell you more about it in our next post! Thanks for reading.

Prepping for the road...

We're greatly looking forward to getting on the road and participating in the next season of Fireball Run. It's for a great cause, and we believe that it will also be a lot of fun. In case you hadn't heard, we will be driving a Pontiac Firebird on the expedition from Colorado to California.

To help us prepare for the drive, Nelson Kohman and Jeff Miller were kind enough to show us the car they house in Lewis Center. They race it quite frequently and have won many awards. We took some pictures with it, and now we are especially eager to start our trip, which kicks off September 20th.

The missing child that we will be focusing on is Brett Wurm, from Tiffin, OH. He has been missing since 2005 and is now nearly 16 years old. Additionally, we are using the trip to bring attention to suicide prevention efforts as well.

In case you missed it, here's the text of a press release sent out the other day...

Lawmakers to Participate in Reality Series and Raise Awareness for Missing Children

COLUMBUS—State Representatives Marlene Anielski (R-Walton Hills) and Cheryl Grossman (R-Grove City) have been selected to participate in Fireball Run Season 7, “All Stars & Movie Cars,” an online reality-filmed TV series. They will be participating under the name “Team Ohio.”

Fireball Run is a gripping 8-day, 2000-mile, life-size trivia game to raise awareness of missing children. To move about the country and score, Team Ohio—one of 40 teams—will have to solve clues and accomplish tasks based on city, points-of-interest, history and culture. The 2013 season will take the representatives from Longmont, CO to Riverside, CA from September 20-28th, with several stops along the way.

“When approached with the idea of doing the Fireball Run, I thought it would be a rare opportunity to highlight the search for missing children,” Rep. Anielski said. “I’m eager to take part, while also drawing attention to the prevention of teen suicide, which is another important issue to me."

Every team is assigned a missing child and tasked with distributing posters. The effort annually distributes 65,000 posters across America and has aided in 38 recoveries since 2007.

Team Ohio will be raising awareness for the disappearance of eight year old Brett Wurm of Tiffin, Ohio, now nearly sixteen years old, who has been missing since June 2005. Representatives Anielski and Grossman hope media attention will evoke someone to come forward with new information for police.

“This is a unique opportunity for us to raise awareness of both Brett and missing children everywhere,” Rep. Grossman said. “Fireball Run has led to children being found since it was started back in 2007, and I’m confident that even more will be found as it continues."

Team Ohio will drive a 1977 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, much like the one featured in the movie “Smokey and the Bandit.” In preparation for the journey, Representatives Anielski and Grossman were fortunate to check out a similar car in Lewis Center, Ohio, owned and raced by Nelson Kohman and Jeff Miller.

Fireball Run is streamed live. Supporters and fans can track Team Ohio via live GPS by TSOMobile at www.fireballrun.com/live, and all 25 episodes will be available online at www.fireballrun.com. The representatives will also be tweeting from @teamOHfireball and blogging at TeamOhioFireballRun.blogspot.com.