Monday, March 31, 2014

News from the Road -- written by Devin Bayly on the First Day of the Epic Bus Trip!

Monday the 31st.

Departure time 7:37pm. Things are settling into position.

Stay tuned for information on the saga as it unfolds.


The first day of driving consisted of cruising through the desert on I-10 with two forced stops on the way to Las Cruces. The only issues being filter related, we made it to our overnight home not too far from the school. Honestly, the whole piece of night is a haze from the strange town beginning with an A (we don't remember the rest) to where we went to sleep. Surprise, I had peaceful dreams in a bouncy armchair with ear muffs on.

On the morning of the 31st, the veteran roadshow'ers delivered two shows at the Valley View elementary school. The 4th grade class came in, and I had the chance to check out the new set of demonstrations and educational prose. By the time Mr. Chavez's 5th grade group visited us, I was in deep into my appreciation of the act that Shane and my Dad had created.

Departing from Valley View, the bus turned prow to the next destination: a lunch meeting with none other than Stephen Wolslager. Stephen has played an active and critical role in the history of the Physics Factory, and I was excited to have another chance to meet him. Out at El Sombrero, Stephen took us for some New Mexico fare with the assistant director of the Las Cruces Boys and Girls Club (location of our next show in 2 hours time).

After enough time to digest comfortably, the cart full of demonstrations rolled out of the bus and into the multipurpose room at the Club. About an hour later, we were done with our set, and had once more used the peer pressure of children to convince their teachers/caregivers to ride the hovercraft. For some reason all of these passengers show uncertanty on their faces, which shrinks away as a perma-smile sets in.

Off again and into the mysterious East, and about an hour after dinner of Shane's famous wraps (recipe to follow), we arrived in Texas at the relatively luxurious, although whimsically named, Gaslight Trailerpark. Shane's showering, my Dad's snoring ebbs and flows, and I am ready for bed.

More Shows more Schools tomorrow. The time is 10:08pm, and the headlight is turning off after this.

Stay tuned for information on the saga as it unfolds.

------------

P.S. Tasty bits:

Shane is still mystified by the beautiful orchard rows of deciduous trees that grow in the small front yards of La Mesa, NM. There is a barn that boldly displays the imperative "EAT MORE ICE CREAM, DRINK MORE MILK!" 15 miles east of the Texas border.

Arizona Mathematics Road Show is really on the road!

Follow the trip on the blog!

The math bus heads out to points east and north and finally west again, traveling during April and May. Here's the itinerary, subject to change and additions, of course. The past week was spent fixing up the interior (great work by Shane and Bruce) and repainting the exterior (Dolly spent a couple days writing "Arizona Mathematics Road Show" in pretty gold paint along both sides) before the big day.

Las Cruces NM/El Paso TX 3/31, San Angelo TX 4/2, Houston TX 4/4-5, New Orleans LA 4/7, Mobile AL 4/9, Gainesville FL 4/11-12, Charleston SC 4/14, Durham NC 4/16, Washington DC 4/18-19.

They'll be in DC for the USA Science and Engineering Festival Week from April 21-27, which will involve a mixture of school presentations and public events.

After DC they will continue north to Newark DE 4/28, Philadelphia 4/29-30, NYC 5/1-3, Boston 5/5-6, Troy NY 5/7, Ithaca NY 5/9-10, Pittsburgh 5/12, Ann Arbor MI 5/14, Chicago 5/16-17, St Louis 5/19-20, Kansas City 5/22, Denver 5/23, Colorado Springs 5/24-25, Albuquerque 5/27-28.

Back to Tucson 5/30!

The crew (Bruce Bayly, Shane Passon, Devin Bayly) promises to send photos and blog contributions as they travel along.