|
A couple days ago we posted our Oregon Trail blog, in which I related everyday RV challenges to the hardships faced by our distant kin as they made their way across the frontier. If you haven’t read it yet, please check it out HERE! Naturally it was written with some tongue-in-cheek embellishment; however I simply can’t help but see the parallels during every day of our journey! Case in point: Today.
If you’ve been following our journey on social media (Facebook, YouTube, Instagram) you likely know that we’ve had ongoing issues with our power generator. Today we dropped our beloved home off at the Onan/Cummins dealer in Manassas, Virginia. As they went to work diagnosing the issue, we made an impromptu trip to Washington, D.C. (skipping our religious Wednesday laundry day) for some family time. It was great!
We love D.C. Carter had only been here when he was about 2 years old, so it was awesome seeing his and Edith’s reactions. The wild part about this trip compared to my past experiences with D.C. is there were no people! The COVID lockdown meant everything was shuttered. No Smithsonian museums, no food vendors. Minimal auto and foot traffic. The bad news: We couldn’t get into one of my favorite buildings in the US: The Air and Space Museum. The good news: We didn’t have that much time anyway, and the lack of traffic made for a great day of sightseeing from the truck, just driving around.
After several hours of sightseeing we still hadn’t heard from the Onan dealer with a diagnosis on the genny. We had originally planned to get the RV back the same day, whether it meant the generator was pulled out or we picked it up completely fixed and healthy (super-optimist-mode engaged!). A quick phone call to check in with the service guy, and any optimism turned to frustration. Not only was the genny unrepaired, it wasn’t even diagnosed. They hadn’t even pulled it from the RV. 
We returned to the shop and packed a suitcase, sorted out the quote for diagnosis (UUUUUUUGH), then we left our home at a repair facility for the first time during this journey. Everyone was beside themselves. Edith didn’t want to leave her bunny. Carter didn’t want to leave his bed. Tosha didn’t want to leave AT ALL.
The biggest issue with all of this - besides leaving our home and all of our belongings (including our pet) in a strange place - is that we were supposed to be at a racetrack for work this evening! Instead we are now at the mercy of the warranty company and the repair shop. We lost a day! Just as in the game, unforeseen circumstances come up weekly during our travels and sometimes result in a lost day… or two. Here’s to hoping it’s no more than one! Stay tuned and see how bad this one hurts us, and how we overcome this latest challenge! 
0 Comments
Remember the video game Oregon Trail? If you’re between the ages of say, 20 and 50, chances are you played some iteration of the educational Apple video game in grade school. For those robbed of this wonderful schoolhood privilege, here’s a brief synopsis: You are the leader of a family making the trek across the Oregon Trail. You must keep the rest of the family healthy and, well… alive. Oh, and the oxen. Gotta keep them healthy and living as well, otherwise your trip stops and the family dies. You begin the game by selecting the supplies you think you might need along the way: food, ammo, clothing, water, medicine and spare parts. The numerous challenges faced by those on the Oregon Trail are there to greet you in digital form via the video game and in many cases they lead to the sudden loss of life - especially if you aren’t equipped with the proper supplies. Because you name your family at the start of the journey, you feel a little tinge of emotion every time the game displays a little digital tombstone complete with the family member’s name and cause of death.
The truth is, Oregon Trail is a perfect game in the sense that it puts into perspective the hardships faced by those travelers while teaching the player about the importance of planning ahead, being prepared, and dealing with sudden hardships. These days you can get Oregon Trail on emulators and online, but there is also a card game version. In fact, we carry the card game on board the RV during our travels! I’d recommend checking either game out, both are a lot of fun but most importantly they make you realize just how easy we’ve got it these days. As a full-time RVer the Oregon Trail games hit a little closer to home. Let’s walk through the parallels of driving a motorhome across the US in 2020 and driving a digital wagon across the US in the Oregon Trail game. 
Supplies
In the Oregon Trail video game, supplies are limited due to weight and space. In RV life, loading the rig up with all the necessities while staying under the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) is truly a balancing act. Our Class A coach has an overall GVWR of 30,000 lbs. When we are full of fresh water and fuel and towing the Ranger, we weigh in at about 29,700 lbs! Talk about cutting it close. And that’s after we unloaded about 500 lbs of weight during our last stop in Oklahoma City. In the Oregon Trail games, if a hardship arises and you don’t have the supplies to handle the situation, your entire party can perish in just a few turns. Wagon axle breaks and no spare parts? You’re stranded and everyone starves. While the consequences are not typically that dire, RV life is pretty similar. Balancing our on-board water for instance (@ 8.3 lbs per gallon) with a large load of groceries might mean we dump 30 gallons of fresh water in a WalMart parking lot. Speaking of food, we can only bring so much since our fridge and cabinets are in no way “residential grade”. As the primary driver of the coach, I am responsible for repairing and maintaining our “wagon”. When something breaks or needs general attention, I better be prepared. Some items that have proved their weight in gold: tire plug kit; tool kit(s); electrical connectors and tools; fuses; spare oil and other fluids; tire pressure monitors; electric impact wrench; RTV silicone sealant; silicone lubricant; rubber roof patch tape and the Dremel tool. Obviously that’s a lot of stuff but, really, I’ve used all those items more than once in the past year. Some, weekly. What’s the tradeoff? All those things take up space and add weight to the vehicle. For me, the pros of being able to diagnose and repair in the field outweighs the cons of space and weight. Beyond the needs of maintaining the RV, truck, generator and motorcycles, Tosha and I also need to consider that little thing where we keep the kids comfortable and alive. Food, drinks, entertainment, clothing, learning tools and medicine are all crucial. Again, lots of things there but all are necessary. Carter in particular has Type 1 diabetes, which means we always have insulin on board which must be refrigerated. If we lose power, we better have propane on board to run the fridge. No power and no propane? We’re in trouble. By the way, we have to work out logistics for ordering and restocking these meds as we travel across the country! Keeping tabs on propane, gasoline, oil level, fresh water, medication, spare parts, food, ammo (yes ammo is a necessity), waste on board, generator/coach maintenance and 10 different tire pressures can feel like a full-time job in and of itself. Losing tabs on any one of these things can put us in a predicament that sends our stress level skyrocketing. 
Calamities
In the Oregon Trail games, those predicaments are referred to as calamities. Sure that sounds dramatic, but I can relate. Over the past few months we’ve experienced a flat tire, an exploded electrical system thanks to a short in our power hook-up cord and various generator issues. In fact we’re currently living without mobile power since our generator completely went out last week… but that’s a story worthy of it’s own blog. The key is being as prepared as possible for any foreseeable issue while not overloading the RV. Non-tangible things that can still bail you out of a sticky situation include roadside assistance plans, vehicle/RV extended warranties, and the best insurance you can afford. These don’t add weight or take up space, but they do provide protection and peace-of-mind.
Hunting when times get tough
When you run out of food on the Oregon Trail, it’s time to load the gun and go hunting. Assuming that you have ammo on board of course! In real life I would equate this to hustling for a few extra bucks. This can be done remotely depending on your primary sources of income (and again, assuming you have wifi reception!), but you can also forage for some extra income via a workcamping gig or using your toad vehicle as an Uber. When times get tough, rolling your sleeves up and hunting for those extra dollars can really save the day! 
The oxen
Like oxen, the RV is one of the most important things to monitor during your travels. Without a healthy yoke of oxen you are stranded, and you better hope you’ve got roadside assistance. The thing about RV’s is there are SO MANY THINGS to tend to! Of course you have the running gear; engine, transmission, tires, axles, brakes, suspension, steering and cooling system. But you also need to remember the coach elements; plumbing, electrical, structural, air conditioners, appliances, generator and exterior sealant! Neglect any one of these items and a small inconvenience could quickly become a big big problem. I use a couple different apps to keep me on schedule with all the RV maintenance needs. A logbook works as well. Oh, and don’t neglect your toad vehicle! 
Camping overnight in strange places
Just as on the Oregon Trail, you sometimes find yourself in a strange place with no other choice but to stay overnight. We generally try and scout our surroundings ahead of time using various crime mapping websites, but even that isn’t foolproof. Only a few times have we been truly sketched out, but we can take a little solace in the fact that we have home protection on board. When parked in less than desirable areas we simply pull the shades down, lock all doors and compartments, and we all sleep in the mid/loft area of the RV away from entry doors. Again, it doesn’t happen often but you do need a plan and protection for the times it does.
Arriving at the next checkpoint and resupplying
When you’re low on supplies or have an ongoing calamity in the Oregon Trail game, seeing the next sign of civilization on the horizon is a huge relief. In the Oregon Trail game, it’s a fort or a town. In RV life - for us anyway - the equivalent “sigh of relief” moment would be an RV park with full hookups. Electricity without the restrictions of our generator size! Water without worry of running out! And draining our showers and toilets without worry of overflowing the holding tanks! Living in an RV, you quickly start coveting things you once took for granted. As I mentioned earlier, we’re currently grappling with generator issues. For the past 24 hours we have done a delicate balancing act of conserving every watt of energy while still making food, running the water pump, etc… We also completely filled our waste tanks which meant dirty dishes stacking up, and no one being allowed to use the toilet. This morning Carter woke up with high blood sugar (again, diabetic), and unfortunately he was sick and throwing up. We ran out of water flushing. Worse, we had no water for him to drink in order to reduce his sugar levels! Finally, at noon today we rolled into an RV park for the first time in over four days. We plugged in 50 amp electric and the sewer dump as soon as we arrived, we put the slides out, kicked the AC units on and emptied the waste tanks. Let me tell you, it was nice. It truly felt like we were back in a house. Just as comforting: Leaving the RV park with full batteries, empty waste tanks, full water reserves, and - if I’m lucky to find the time - a freshly-washed rig! RV parks truly are an RV’ers equivalent of civilization on the Oregon Trail. 
Fording a river
I debated putting this one in, but it’s relatable. In Oregon Trail, when you come across a river you have a few options presented to you: You can ford the river, attempt to float the wagon across, or at times pay a ferry. The RV equivalent? Low clearance things like bridges, power lines, trees, etc., or a dead end road that you can’t turn around on. Maybe a steep incline that could cause you to rip the entire rear cap off your rig. In these instances you have to make quick, sometimes stressful decisions. I’ve attempted to clear low bridges and crushed my roof elements, and I’ve been stuck in dead ends that made for time-consuming turn arounds. It’s not fun and it can cause everyone in the wagon (RV) to hurl stress-induced comments at one another. Essentially, when navigating an RV you have quick decisions to make around every turn. Assuming you’re going to clear that low bridge without knowing your actual height? Better have the budget for a new satellite dome! But hey, most of the time you’ll only make a mistake once. That being said, I’ve repaired our satellite dome three times now. Take better mental notes than me. 
These are all first world problems
In the end, everything aforementioned - aside from keeping medication stocked and refrigerated - is not a big, life-threatening deal. These are truly “first world problems”. In the grand scheme of things, whether you live in a big sticks-and-bricks home or a little travel trailer, a day or two without electricity or water is nothing compared to what our forefathers endured. More importantly, it’s nothing compared to what others experience even in these times. We must remind ourselves of this. Perspective is very important. Hopefully if you’re new to RVing or considering it, this blog opens your eyes to some of the everyday challenges you may face. For those of you already familiar with all the things I described above, my hope is you got a smile from this and you’ve been reminded to keep your cool when times get tough. But regardless of how you relate, reading it all the way through means you’re now rewarded with this: A fully playable web-based version of the original Oregon Trail game! Have fun, good luck and… make those supply choices wisely!
Last weekend we attended another race event at Blackhawk Farms Raceway in South Beloit, IL. We were excited to return to the race track for the second time during the Wisconsin stint of our trip to hang out with friends and build our business. We did enjoyed spending time with our new friends of the north but quickly learned that it would not be a great weekend to build our business.
On Friday, our first day at the track, we discovered an issue with the generator in our RV. We had been having some issues with it off and on over the past few weeks but thought that we were in the clear when we went to the race track. I'm not great with details so I'm not going to share all of the details of what went wrong and what he did to address it but I will say that Rob spent most of the weekend diagnosing and attending to the generator with no success. We were all so frustrated with the situation by Sunday (Rob was understandably the most frustrated) that we headed out a little early to get to our next destination - an RV park with full hookups just outside of Madison, Wisconsin called Whistle Stop Campground. 
We spent the next four days enjoying the beautiful campground and exploring the surrounding area while we waited on a local generator expert to come to the campground to diagnose the issue with the generator. The repair man arrived on Thursday, spent a couple of hours checking out the generator and informed us that he would need to take the generator to their shop to have it pulled out of the RV (the issue was apparently in the back of the generator).
And that leads me to the most important factor of full-time RV living. You must remain flexible to live this lifestyle. If we would have had a place to be this week, we would have had to change our plans and, possibly, not been able to arrive at that destination. Because we've kept a flexible schedule, we've been able to adapt to our situation and make adjustments as necessary. 
Broken generators (or similar situations) arise all of the time in the full-time RV life so be prepared. Be willing to make adjustments as necessary. Don't be surprised when situations outside of your control arise and you have to make adjustments to your schedule. Be flexible. Be adaptable. Flexibility is what we asked for, after all. Enjoy!
Today was a bad day.
We started our full-time journey nearly a year ago. When we started our journey (and still today), people are envious that we get to live this life. Now, I'm not going to lie. We've had some pretty amazing days. We've had days where everything just went right. We've had days where we didn't do much work, got to spend quality time together as a family and enjoyed some pretty spectacular sights. But that's not every day. Today is not that day. 
Today I woke up to discover there was something wrong with my eye. It's 5 pm and I still don't know what's wrong with it. It's gotten progressively worse. I either have something caught in it, I've scratched it or I have pink eye. All I know is that I can't function very well today. I can't be in the light because it really irritates my eye. I thought it would get better throughout the day but it hasn't. Now I get to decide if I need to go to the doctor and, if I do need to go to the doctor, where do I go? We're in Illinois - hours from home and my normal eye doctor.
On top of the issue with my eye, we've got a generator issue. Rob has been working on it all weekend (for weeks actually) and I think it finally crapped out on us. Thankfully it was fairly nice out today but we were still without a way to eat, charge electronics and cool the coach. We're currently on our way to an RV park strategically placed near the best Cummins technicians in the area so we can (hopefully) get it fixed in the next couple of days.
To top of our day, the person (people) that stayed at our house the past twelve days completely trashed the house. They didn't break anything but they did access areas of the house they shouldn't, left filth everywhere in the house and left three completely full dumpsters outside of the house that started attracting flies. Needless to say, my afternoon was spent on the phone with cleaning and handy people to resolve the issues. It's tough to be so far from your home without any way to resolve the issues personally.
So, no, it's not all perfect. Each day comes with new challenges that we have to address right then and there to be able to function. We don't have family near by to just go crash with if there's an issue. We have to problem solve and make concessions.
Despite all of this, I wouldn't change our lives for anything. I think it's made us independently and collectively stronger. We're becoming better versions of ourselves because we have to figure it out. Today was a bad day but I still loved today.
|