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Houston, TX — I was suppose to be able to enjoy the first sounds of Le Mans today — but with the help of a tropical depression that hit the New York City yesterday and the total ineptitude of Continental Airline management, I missed the flight out of Newark Liberty Airport.

It was not just me, but many, many, travellers and so I stood in line at the Continental Customer Service Center last night while a myriad of other travellers slept on the floor while waiting for server from what I will really call the no service center. That is really a story for another time — but you can see the results in this picture.

Had I remained in Newark, I would have had to wait until 10 pm Eastern time and then fly to Manchester in the UK, and then hop another flight to Paris. By taking the morning flight to Houston, I jump on a 5:50 flight and get into Paris only a day later.

But such is life in the world of international travel. I am a bit heart broken that I lost a day with Joe at Le Man — but I could not help but think of the masses that were corralled in a variety of places after Katrina — compared to them we had a picnic.

Tomorrow is a new day and I am looking forward to the roar of Le Mans.

Houston, TX — Joe arrived in Houston to 89 degrees and humidity that he does not remember — though I am not sure if you ever get use to that kind of mugginess.

His mother and I dropped him at the airport last night around 11 and it was actually pretty easy — no lines at the ticket counter and no lines for security (at left). He got into Minneapolis around two am (we asked him not to call, thank you very much) but he did send an email to let us know he arrived ok.

I thought he might be to Houston by the time we awoke — but he was still in the air. Today it is pretty cool to be able to track the flight in real time. I used Flytecomm which is a pretty good tool for flights within the United States and Canada. For his flight to Paris, which leaves in a couple of hours, I will use Flightstats.com (the link should give you Joe’s progress, if you care.) The image below is from Flytecomm and shows show about 30 minutes out from Houston. Click on it to see the larger version.

North Bend, WA — Well the dream of Father’s Day at Le Mans, France for the 75th Running of the 24 hours of Le Mans will get its official start early Sunday morning when son Joseph gets on an airplane for his three-legged trip to Paris.
Flying on air miles, he had to take an itinerary to get to France that will take him from Seattle to Minneapolis, from Minneapolis to Houston, and then finally a direct flight from Houston to Paris. On the way back, however, he gets a straight shot on Air France, Paris to Seattle.
So far he is nervous as a bride on her wedding day, with a number of issues from his job looming over his head as well as trying to get packed for his first trip — his first off the North American continent.
The plan is for him to spend a day in Paris and see the Louvre and then take a day and see Rouen and Normandy. Rouen is a very historic city, and the place where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. It is also the home of a 24 Hour boat race.
Wednesday he will head to LeMans and I will meet him there and we will officially be race bums for the rest of the week — making pictures and filing stories to amaze and delight you.
Stay tuned.