 
The 5th graders put on a charge this week, lead by their
teachers who took them outside to get some more distance in.
As a result, the 5th grade has closed the gap a little
between them and the 4th graders. This week the 5th grade
runners and walkers logged 74 miles compared to the 4th
grade's 20 miles. Although the 4th graders are still in the
lead, the 5th graders are only 94 miles behind them. The
race for the finish is on!
The leading 4th graders are currently in Essex, California
and are only 249½
miles from the finish line! About 90 people live in Essex.
The story goes that Essex came into existence after a
motorist had a tire go flat and there was no where within
miles and miles to have it fixed. Where the tire went flat
is where Essex was built. Bell's Towing and Cafe sprang up,
a post office was built, and the town still survives today -
although it does not get nearly as many visitors as it did
before the Interstate bypass was built. When Route 66 was at
its height in popularity, Essex would offer travelers free
water... which was actually quite a treat! In those days gas
stations typically charged 10 cents for a glass of drinking
water or 10 cents for a gallon of radiator water. So, for
Essex to offer "free" water was certainly a good reason for
many people to stop there.
The 5th graders are currently 9 miles from Oatman, Arizona.
They only have about 30 miles left before reaching
California! Oatman, which is just in front of them, is a fun
place to visit – an authentic old western town with burros
roaming the streets and gunfights staged on weekends. The
burros are tame and can be hand fed. Oatman's "Wild" Burro's
are the descendants of burro's brought here by the miners
late 1800 hundred – when the miners no longer needed then
were turned loose. Each morning they come into town looking
for food. They wander the streets and greet the tourists.
Burro pellets and carrots are for sale at many of the shops,
the burros will eat all day if you feed them. Shortly before
sunset they wander back to the hills for the night. Overall,
the 5th graders only have 343½
miles left on this Route 66 journey.
Both grades are closing in on the finish line. Who will get
there first? It won't be too much longer until we know
whether the 4th grade or the 5th grade will virtually see
the ocean first. Stop back by next week to see if the 5th
graders are able to close the gap even more between the 4th
graders and them. This is shaping up to be a close finish!
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5th Grade (42 students): Added
74
miles.
Their total is
1,934½
miles.
They have 343½
miles left and are 85% done with the trek.
