A drive across half of America in a Jeep Wrangler in February 2009.

I flew from Orange County (Santa Ana – John Wayne Airport) to Little Rock, Arkansas, stayed the night, picked up the hire car and headed east on the I49 to Memphis, Tennessee.

The drive train/suspension on the Jeep was a revelation. I wasn’t comfortable. If I hadn’t already turned onto to the interstate I would have returned it to the rental agency for another bucket of bolts.

But I was stuck with what I had. I drove out of Mississippi, through Alabama and Georgia, and into South Carolina, trying to stay on the back roads.

I encountered torrential rain in Alabama. The ride on the highway was hazardous and after an hour or so of dodging death with maniac motorists I retreated to some anonymous motel off the highway.

The journey finished at the Atlantic Ocean in the hamlet of Pawleys Island, South Carolina. A distance of 1410 kilometres.

I flew out of SC back to Santa Ana (John Wayne Airport) without the courtesy of a ride to the airport from my indebted, dishonest, conman ‘host’, JP McLean. A crook. Takes all types of criminals to make this world but it takes a special type of low life to appeal to your friendship to inveigle money from you. Arsehole!!