Texas T Party Day 4 Museum, Tractor Show, and Ratibor Country Grill
The final day of the 2021 Texas T Party had us driving our T’s from one place to another where it seems we always had something to eat. T people liked it – a lot.
At the driver’s meeting this morning in the portico of our hotel were two Model T’s that had been stolen the first day of the tour. They had been recovered by the Temple police department and returned to the owner. The runabout even went on today’s tour. Both T’s suffered some cosmetic damage. The trailer was damaged even more around the doors.Our first destination of the day was the same destination as on day one – except this time we would go inside and see the museum. The Temple station was the headquarters for the ATSF Railway in the southern United States.This TT was equipped with a period correct cook stove and coffee pot. They worked, particularly with cream and sugar. The museum asked us not to mark up their pretty tile driveway so we put plastic tarps under the Model T’s while they parked there.Inside the restored (and still functioning) station were items from the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway such as this model box car that was about 5 feet long.A 1963 safety award was still on display in the former operations office.The Texas Early Day Tractor and Engine Association holds its annual show every year in Temple. This year’s show started today – so we had to stop by. Tractor pulls, a flea market, hit and miss engines, and rusty old combines – what could be better?The Ratibor Country Grill is about ten miles outside Temple city limits. It’s a typical Texas honky tonk at night. For lunch they grill up some mighty fine burgers. The two ladies in the picture were our waitresses and they worked hard to please.Of course they had the Texas vs Texas Tech game on every TV. What did you expect?
After the stop for burgers we cruised Texas back roads for about 35 miles. The roads were smooth and mostly empty except for our old cars.
The closing banquet was the best in recent memory. We had pot roast, vegetables, mashed potatoes, gravy, mixed green salad, with cheese cake for dessert. I had a glass of wine along with tea.Standing is our tour leader Mike, who was also the main speaker for the evening. This one’s a wrap but we hope to go to the Texas T Party next year!
