Coming up for Air

Arrrrrrrrrgggghhhhhh! I am about ready to call this whole thing off! Who would ever have thought that it would be so difficult to check the air in the tires of a vehicle. Well, with this RV, it is a royal pain.

A little before our shakedown trip I decided to check all the air in the tires. Low and behold, the guage I have for my cars didn't work and I had to go to "the Depot" for a special truck tire gauge. (Tires inflated - 0; trips to the Depot - 1). This was only to discover that yes, the tires were in fact a little low. No problem, a quick trip to the local gas station and I would be right as rain. So off I go. The front tires were no problem, but then I came to the rear ones.

The rear wheels on this RV are "dualies". Normally the problem is how to get air into the inboard tires in this setup. Fortunately, the rig came with valve extenders installed on both rear wheels. (Tires inflated - 4 of 6; Trips - 2). The outboard tires are where my frustrations began. Valve extenders are not normally used for these tires, so none are installed. However, the valve is on the inboard side of the wheel. This means that in order to check the air or inflate the tire you have to have a gauge or hose that fits through one of the holes in the rim. These are about 1.5 inches in diameter and of course, neither my gauge nor my fat little fingers will fit through. Nor can my hands fit between the wheels to get at the valve from the other side. Hmmmmmmm......I know, I can put some valve extenders on the outboard wheels just like on the inboard! Not so fast. I got some extenders (Trips - 3, tires - still 4), but I could not get them through the holes either. So, back to the Depot for some different extenders (Trips - 4). These ones fit through the hole, but I could not fit my hand in there to tighten them onto the existing valve stems. Picture me laying on my back half under the rig with my head practically stuck under the wheel cursing loudly.

So finally, I give up and take the whole rig into the service center and have them look at it. Best part was the guy comes out and looks at the wheel and says, "You know, they make these valve extender thingys for just this sort of thing." "Gee," I say, "Really?"

Trips - 5, Tires - 6. Finally!

Shakedown 2010! (Part 1)

When we first decided to take this big trip, one of the things that all of the experienced RVers we talked too suggested was make sure and take the rig out for a couple of trips to figure out what works best for us. When the U.S. Navy takes out a new ship, they call it a "Shakedown cruise"; they take the ship out to sea and exercise all the major systems. For our Shakedown cruise we decided to go camping in the Monongahela National Forest in wild and wonderful West Virginia!

We found a good looking spot on the banks of the South Branch of the Potomac River called Big Bend campground. A hotspot for swimming, kayaking, and fishing; it looked like a great spot for our Memorial Day Weekend 2010.

Since we have the rig at home now, it was easy to pack up and take care of last minute maintenance like getting the tires filled. An interesting note here, it was much more difficult than I thought it would be to fill the tires with air. The rear wheels are dual-ies and require some sort of valve extender in order to be able to fill the outboard tires. Our rig did not have these so it became a chore to find some and then get air into the tires.

Anyway, with that all done we finally got on the road. We almost got more than we bargained for right off the bat. About halfway there it started pouring rain, a good old fashioned thunder boomer. We of course turned the wipers on and wouldn't you know it, we had our first bona fide mechanical breakdown. After a couple of swipes, the passenger side wiper blade came loose from the wiper arm and started scraping across the windshield. Normally and easy fix, just pull over and pop it back in. Trouble was we were on a country road in the middle of nowhere West Virginia with five or six motorists behind us already angry with us for driving too slow over the hills. Now we had to slow down just so we could see far enough down the road to get to the next place to pull over. We finally managed to fix it and got going again, both Janelle and I thoroughly soaked. Then, about five minutes down the road the darn thing does it again! After about two more rounds with the wiper we finally beat it into submission and it stayed put the rest of the trip.

We finally pulled into camp, still in the pouring rain, un-hooked the dinghy and cooked dinner. It sure was nice to not have to go outside to set up a tent or cook on the fire/stove. Plus, we could go potty right there without having to get wet either! Life is good.

The next day dawned bright and clear, as soon as the lovely fog and mist rolled out of the canyon. The campground is at the end of Smoke Hole Canyon and true to its name it was quite lovely in the morning with cool temps and a mist hanging over the hillsides like smoke. We made a quick breakfast and took the dog for her first hike in the woods. Boy was she excited! She actually got away from us when we opened the door to the RV, but she only ran about ten feet before she realized she had no idea where she was and came scurrying back inside. She loved exploring as much as the girls though and the river was great fun. It was pretty muddy the first morning but by evening it was clearing up enough to fish pretty well. John caught a smallmouth bass and Lily caught her first fish as well. Alas, poor Cate. She was determined to fish all night long if that is what it took, but the fish got the better of her this day. I think she would not have been so upset by that if her sister hadn't caught anything.

The next day was even more beautiful and we spent the whole day lounging by one of the calmer spots in the river and swimming. Some nice campers in the site near us even let Cate use one of their inner tubes. Almost made up for the lack of fish.

Monday finally arrived and we packed up our things and headed home. A successful shakedown all around. Be sure to check out this slideshow for some pics of the trip!

See you on the road!