Today I go behind the scenes to show what I discovered while using digitized maps of I-15 between California and Arizona.
Maps copied from Google Maps and edited using MS Paint.
Other images are sourced as noted.
TL;DR
Introduction
Current State of #GHAWG
#GHAWG by End of Year 2023
Fun with Maps
5️⃣ Paradise, NV
4️⃣ Enterprise, NV
3️⃣ Glasgow, CA
2️⃣ Goffs, CA
1️⃣ Zzyzx, CA
More Fun with Maps
Introduction
Maps are a vital part of GHAWG, not just for the characters but also for me as the storyteller. As much as I want to have scenes take place at certain locations, the ultimate decider if the map: If the location doesn't make sense for the story, then I can't use it for that story. On the other hand, the map may show me a location I hadn't considered before but makes perfect sense both for utility and symbolism.
While reviewing digital maps, there are times I find locations which get me scratching my head and scruff or get me laughing. This post features one of those instances.
Current State of #GHAWG
As of Halloween 2023, Our Heroes are riding through Northern California on their way to San Diego, where The Mongols led by Harry Hoqualogue are based. From there, the crew led by David Guardia need to ride east:
- Rhonda Bella is an independent trucker from Davenport, Iowa;
- The Marchenko Twins (Hank & Frank) are from elsewhere in Iowa;
- Sanjay Rampersad and Lionel Odunsi are foreign exchange students studying at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill;
- Lindsay Etxeberria is another denizen of Iowa, although her point of origin is unknown;
- David Guardia himself began his ride from Bayonne, New Jersey, but he isn't going back.
#GHAWG by End of Year 2023
By that point, Our Heroes will be without The Mongols, just David's crew. Unlike David's ride from Bayonne to STURGIS, which was essentially seat-of-the-pants mapping by me, much of the ride back east will take place along the roughly 2,000 miles of Old Route 66.
It doesn't exist anymore thanks to replacement by the Eisenhower Interstate System and upgrades in state roads, Route 66 (which I call "Old Route 66" to differentiate the road from the songs about it) is as much part of American culture as the Empire State Building and Yellowstone and the Golden Gate Bridge.
Music artists and composers have been singing about this road since the end of World War II. Iconic singers and music artists such as Nat King Cole, Perry Como, Chuck Berry, The Rolling Stones, and Depeche Mode (who sing my preferred version) have turned Route 66 from a squigly line on a map into one of the most iconic roads in the nation's history.
Unlike in the song, the smaller version of Our Heroes will ride Old Route 66 in reverse. After reaching Chicago, they ride first to UNC at Chapel Hill before swinging back to Iowa. By EOY 2023, they will have left Los Angeles (actually, Santa Monica) for San Bernardino.
Fun with Maps
The song names 3 places in California (Kingman, Barstow, and San Bernardino), but other noteworthy locations exist on this stretch of Old Route 66. It was while reviewing what was between Barstow and Arizona ("Flagstaff, Arizona / Don't forget Winona") when the map screamed at me to give it a closer look.
As I scrolled the map up it brought Nevada into view. This is what I saw in the part of California where Interstate 40 connects Barstow to Las Vegas, NV:
Las Vegas is so easy to spot I didn't bother noting it. I added the labels CALIFORNIA and NEVADA to make the state lines pop on the map. Then I highlighted 5 locations. Here they are in reverse order of interest:
5️⃣ Paradise, NV
I shouldn't have been surprised to see a place with that name located near Las Vegas, yet I was. If anything, the town is a paradise for people who have money, and it's hell for people who don't. After all, who wants to go to Las Vegas without money?
4️⃣ Enterprise, NV
It goes back to Star Trek and the legendary USS Enterprise (NCC-1701). The prototype Space Shuttle takes its name from this television series. The first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier (CVN-65) was named Enterprise. As I discovered in the namesake series from the early 2000s, the name goes back centuries (when it was spelled "Enterprize"):
Source: Memory Alpha
However, it's relevant to GHAWG because at least 4 characters are small business owners: David Guardia owned and operated Guardia Courier Services back in Bayonne; Rhonda Bella is an independent trucker with her own company; the Brothers Marchenko run their own motorcycle garage. The spirit of free enterprise is alive and well with #GHAWG.
3️⃣ Glasgow, CA
The original Glasgow is in Scotland, and it's represented in locations around the world. I may have seen a Glasgow or two during the early stages of the zapfic serial, but I wasn't tracking them and they weren't on the routes Our Heroes were riding. So it was a surprise to me to see a Glasgow in California. @tengolotodo.leo would get a kick out of this detail.
2️⃣ Goffs, CA
Although it's not mentioned in any version of the iconic song, Goffs is a stop along Old Route 66. Much of Old Route 66 in California is along Interstate 40, but a remaining fragment of Old Route 66 connects with I-40 northeast of Essex, CA. That part of the map didn't make it into my edited screen capture, but I made sure to note Goffs.
1️⃣ Zzyzx, CA
| ❓❓❓ |
|---|
| WTF is this?? |
That was my reaction on seeing this unusual name on a map of California, since expected names tend to be of English, Spanish, Chinese, or Native American origin. This looks like a name better suited to the Area 51 section of Nevada.
To confirm that I wasn't seeing things, and that Google Maps wasn't playing around with me, this is what it showed me on mouse hover:
I didn't bother learning more about this place since it doesn't fit anywhere in my plans or in The GHAWG Universe (at least for now; I can always change my mind upon further review).
If I go down the rabbit hole while studying maps to find story content for GHAWG, it's usually for reasons like what I wrote about here.
More Fun with Maps
The zapfic serial began from Bayonne, New Jersey. Although the focus of the story was STURGIS (in South Dakota), the ride taken by David Guardia went all the way to the Pacific Ocean (first to Seattle, Washington before ultimately reaching San Diego, California). That's over 3,000 miles of riding west across 4 time zones (plus another 1,000 miles south).
The story will take Our Heroes back east to Chapel Hill, North Carolina-- about 2,900 miles-- and also across 4 time zones. Then they swing back to Iowa, yet another 1,000 miles across 1 time zone.
That's more or less 7,900 miles of motorcycle riding. 2,000 of that ride will take place on various roads built over the iconic Old Route 66.
I had fun with maps while composing the early stages of GHAWG, and things got more interesting even after leaving STURGIS. Over time, I'll alternate the Fun with Maps subseries between places covered in the Weekly Summaries and those noted in my zapfic entry queue (currently reaching 2024-January-18).
As more posts in this series are published, they will be added to the pinned post "GHAWGnav: Navigating The GHAWG Universe". Thanks for taking time to see how this part of The GHAWG Universe is being built.