Matt's New Mexico (Formerly Airstream) Adventure

[Matt]

This is a bat fence.  It keeps people out but let’s bats come and go to protect their habitat.  They have Indiana Bats here but they suffer from white nose caused by a fungus brought in by people’s shoes.  You have to clean your shoes on the way in and out of the cave tour and they recommend you don’t wear the same clothes into any cave twice…

[Matt]

[A Former User]

What great pics and indelible memorable moments. And that’s the whole point. You beasts have taken on the full load, but if you can maintain the momentum and value added experiences, y’all are gonna be real happy when your kids grow up! Bravo a thousand times

[Matt]

Thanks!

Day 2.  Cave day…

[Matt]

[Matt]

The cave was used to make saltpeter for gunpowder during the War of 1812.  These are trees that they bored out by hand to use as piping for that process…

[Matt]

Dr John Croghan bought the cave for $10,000 in 1839 to see if he could use it as a tuberculosis hospital.  Obviously that didn’t work and people died but not before living out their final days as mole people living in stone huts like this one…

[Matt]

There was also an attempt to grow mushrooms here but a mysterious saboteur  destroyed the crop bankrupting the company before the first harvest…

[Matt]

This is called the water clock because the dripping water that slooooowly carved it out sounds like the ticking of a clock…

[Matt]

Jr Ranger badges…

[Matt]

National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green…

[Matt]

[Matt]

Some guy in Maine bought a brand new Vette and drove it for a few years then when his wife got tired of riding in it he decided to entomb it in a brick wall.  This is it after being pulled out in the 90’s…

[Matt]

[Matt]

[Matt]

Race cars…

[Matt]

Roy Orbison’s Vette…

[Matt]

Concepts…

[Matt]

[Matt]

I found this one to be particularly interesting.  GM’s president at the time, John Delorean, wanted to save weight by making the body of a Corvette  out of aluminum.  He contracted Reynolds to fabricate the body but the car was ultimately extremely cost ineffective to make.  You’d think this important lesson would have precluded the Delorean we all know and love today but I guess tenacity won the day..

I especially love the aluminum colored interior…