Day Three took us from Birmingham to Atlanta, with a stop for a museum tour and lunch at Talladega.

The Runners pulled into Talladega for a late morning entrance. A huge motorsports enterprise in a rural location, Talladega is big enough to rate two exits on the Interstate.

It’s day three of the Smokey and the Bandit Run. Word came late last night that the scheduled appearance of Burt Reynolds is not to be.

Our morning started at the Tupelo Automotive Museum, a huge venue with a good collection of automobiles. We hit the road after lunch, and made our drive in perhaps three hours, including a rest stop.

Our breakdown was a textbook case of bad luck turned good. We assumed that we had a flat tire, and quickly turned into the gas station at an intersection perhaps 1000 yards from where we were driving.

We are in Tupelo, Mississippi after living with a number of breakdowns.

If you never saw the movie Smokey and the Bandit, or, like most of us, you saw it so many years ago that you have forgotten the storyline, it might be wise to hit Blockbuster or Netflicks up for a copy right about now.

The faithful are gathering. At our hotel in Texarkana, as many as 20 Firebirds, Trans Ams and others are here, and the numbers are expected to grow throughout the week.

I purchased this car just three weeks in advance of the run — which starts Tuesday in Texas. Bought at a collector car auction in Branson, MO.

Next week, the first ever Smokey and the Bandit run will start in Texarkana, Texas and roll into Atlanta, Georgia three days later.
I will be there.