Day 4

08:15 Day in the office today. Eldon is off to Home Depot to buy some spare tools for robot maintenance & Locktite. Every nut & bolt is going to be double checked then Mitchell is going to practice with the new basket configuration.

PS: [We forgot to mention on Day 3 that the Apple Store was robbed while we were there. We were talking to the staff and suddenly alarms go off and a young guy sprints through the front door & disappears down the street. No one seemed concerned - guess it was cheaper to lose two iPhones rather then risk personal safety.]

13:45: Every screw, bolt & nut has been removed, checked and thread locked. Very worthwhile exercise although incredibly time consuming. [As an aside Mitch has just come in after finishing the clothes washing]. Still to refit the final basket assembly.

16:06: Basket back on - looking fantastic. Tipping angle much improved. Chassis rigidity now awesome.

20:17: The first test drive! Fantastic speed both on the ground and basket loading & unloading. Slight basket modification underway as we write.

We had wings for dinner tonight (another local meal we can tick off the list). Just got takeaway (takeout in local lingo) so we can continue on the robot. Ben & Anthony had "Atomic Hot" - even Ben the self confessed chilli junkie struggled on these - Anthony was the star of the feed.

We are booked in for a full tour of the Houston Space Centre tomorrow including lunch in the astronaut cafe. The trip is 4.5 hours each way so a lot of time in our SUV tomorrow.