Yosemite, CA
If you haven't been to one of America's finest National Parks lately, well, the Half Dome Hijinx Rally was just
the right prescription. Despite soaring temperatures, nothing could temper the enthusiasm of a vintage Nick-Neff-Cough rally.
Camping within a stone's throw from the main gate, the park itself served as a magnetic force that drew NNC'ers
to the park, battling heat, crowds and traffic. But as Neff said, "go to Toulumne Meadows young man, it's not as crowded."
Wherever you chose to go, whether it was the tourist infested valley floor, the unpretentious south side, the glorious meadows
or one of its lofty vistas, the Yosemite experience is a lesson in humility. The grandeur of the park is simply too vast,
too beautiful and too extraordinary to comprehend.
The Yosemite Rally lives up to one of the best things about Nick-Neff-Cough, in that it opens up a selection
of first class destinations and what you'll find at the other end are always the warm welcomes, the familiar jokes & laughter
and those unmistakable trailers/village that seem to travel together as if tied together by a giant rubber band.
Every rally seems to take on its signature quality, and for the Saturday night potluck, Joan's birthday was our
excuse to party. After the birthday song was sung, the single candle birthday cake devoured, and timidity was cast into the
wind, the Karaoke session proceeded to serenade Joan way beyond her heart's (and ears') content. Perhaps, to the uninitiated
and to our poor unsuspecting neighbors, it sounded like a cocaphony in a distance.
But for Al Cohol and those that were there, Nick sounded so much like Frank Sinatra, Mustang-Mike like Phil Collins,
Margaret incredilbly close to Faith Hill and Donna as Tina Turner, no one argued much about each performer's personal styles.
And all this mass hysteria was happening under the watchful eye of General Coughing who after all these years, finally showed,
much to the delight of the NNC'ers.
So, a hearty toast to the Wagonmasters (Thousand Trail members), Sal & Joan, for making a wonderful event
possible that brought good friends together again. And if we can borrow and mangle an old passage, it's become a sort of NNC
creed...
"neither rain, heat or a stinkin' job would stay us from making our appointed rallies."
"Surfcal"
