Instead, his buffoonish breakfast-time antics always brought smiles to our faces. It certainly wasn't because of his 'powers' (which were non-existent) or any actions that were even remotely heroic. Clad in red, white, and blue regalia, 'Supe' (as he was dubbed) stood out from the cadre of kooky characters making up the cast of the legendary local kids' show, which aired weekday mornings on KPHO from 1954 to 1989. But in the minds of native Phoenicians such as ourselves - whose embryonic years included a daily dose of The Wallace & Ladmo Show - Captain Super was one of the more memorable übermenschen of our collective pre-pubescence. You won't make up much time on this shortcut, but the time you do spend will seem to go faster.Īdmittedly, he won't go down in meta-history as the most super of superheroes. The road is much hillier, twistier, and more narrow than most highways around here, giving a more intimate and fun Sonoran Desert experience. We took it once at night a few years ago, before it was paved - let's just say it was the first time the wife was ever happy to see Gila Bend. The 238 veers off of the 347 just as you get to Maricopa, coming from the north. After a jillion times on the latter route, we got the itch to start heading west as soon as possible, just for kicks.

From Chandler or Mesa, you can do the 10 to the 85, or you can choose to head south on State Route 347 (Maricopa Road), jog right at State Route 84, then get on I-8. But East Valley residents have more options. If you live on the west side of the Valley, starting your trip to San Diego is a no-brainer: You take Interstate 10 to State Route 85, then head west on Interstate 8. But it's a beautiful drive and a nice change of scenery for vacationers like us, who have made the Phoenix-to-San-Diego-and-back trip so many times that we could do it with our eyes closed in a dust storm. State Highway 238 is only sort of a shortcut - honestly, we're not sure whether it's a time-efficient shortcut.

The Gay-Cat by Patrick Casey