The Bad Luck Continues

My mantra has always been " look on the bright side, it could be worse" and it did get worse!

Sadly, we have returned home.  I was apprehensive of heading to the mountains, not knowing if something else was wrong from the blow out that we are unaware of, plus we only have  a short time to get an estimate from where we will get the RV fixed, (which will be back home) to the insurance company.

On Monday morning, we left our campground where we had stayed and headed out.  We spent that night at Cecil Bay campground again.

 

The trip there came with problems too.  All went well for about an hour.  Then we hit several blinding rain squalls.  All of a sudden the dash indicated we had lost the air brakes, and  then it was OK but a little while the a light indicated the batteries were not charging and we began to lose power, but then it straighten out., too. 

Once we got to the campground and turned on the TV, more bad news. The county we were in was under a severe thunderstorm warning until 8:00PM and a tornado watch until midnight.  The campground lost power for several hours but luckily we still had power from the inverter but no AC.

Big Bob checked the fluids before we left the campground Tuesday morning and all was good but once again, problems.  We were one hour in when the coolant light came and we began to lose power and then the motor  shut down.  We happened to be at an exit and we took it and coasted to where we were past the guard rails.  Although the reservoir showed it was above the minimum level, that was the the problem.  So Big Bob added water and the rest of the trip was fine, although nerve racking, waiting for the next thing to go wrong!

This  trip did not turn out as we had planned and this is not the summer trip we had originally planned but at least we spent a little time away. We found out that that Columbus GA is really a neat place with lots of history, and we will try to return when things open up and Covid is a thing of the past.

 And there is much to be thankful for! Because it really could have been a lot worse!

Once we get the RV fixed, I will have forgotten how stressful this all was and I will be ready to head out again!

 

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Lake Pine Campgound

We are trying to make the best of the situation and are enjoying this park, although too much time is being spent on insurance claims. More on that saga later!

Our Site

The Office

Pool

Event Center

The Barn

The Chapel ( I love this little building)

Storage Area 

There a lots of RV's stored here. This a popular place for Auburn fans during football season.

And so it begins

Day 1 - Such a great day to travel

For once we got away from the house at the time we planned,  A great ride with very little traffic.  We only traveled a few hours as we weren't sure how the cat would do on her first motorhome trip.  We shouldn't have worried - she did great in her crate (with a little help from calming spray and treats).

We stayed at Cecil RV Park, just $32.50 with our Good Sam's club membership.  The park is perfect for an overnighter and we had a nice pull through,  We will do a stop over there again.

Day 2 - OH WHAT A DAY!

It started at midnight when I woke up to a beeping noise from the front of the motorhome.  The beeping got faster and louder and I could not find the source.  By the time Big Bob got up to check, the beeping had stopped.  We went back to bed since they were nothing we could do.  The next morning, he figured it out – it was an alarm that somehow had gotten set on the wall clock.

We got on the road around 10:30 for our next stop (just south of Columbus GA).  It was a great ride while it lasted, light traffic on I-75.  We turned on to GA96 at Perry, which starts as a 2 lane road going though acres and acres of peach trees, just beautiful. The road then turns into a divided 4 lane highway with little traffic.  It was an enjoyable ride until…. KABAM!!!  The two back passenger tires blew.  Big Bob did a great job of keeping the coach straight and then getting us to the side of the road!

And then the nightmare really began.  Big Bob called Good Sam’s Road Side Assistance and was on hold for 35 minutes before he hung up.  In the meantime, I called them on my phone and I was on the phone for 20 minutes before I gave up and called the number for billing questions and told them our plight.  They said they were having problems with the phone lines and to keep trying.  I asked him to please transfer me and stay on the line with me so he could see what was going on and he did.  After 25 minutes or so, he got the picture and got his supervisor involved.  They were able to backdoor the call and get a rep on the line and he started working on the problem.  He did call back to assure us he was still trying, just not having any luck.  

Around 4:00 I called the campground and asked for help.  She gave us the name of a tire company (closed) and the number of a mobile RV.  We talked to him and he told us about Goodyear Roadside Service.  We called them about 4:30 and they got right on it!  The only tires available locally (45 minutes away) that would fit were retreads.  The Good Sam guy called back right after that to tell us he was having no luck but would keep trying but we told him to forget it, we had it handled. 

At 7:00, two trucks arrived, got us jacked up and tires changed.  They will get us the tires we need from Valdosta and will install those on Tuesday and fix the damage to the undercarriage (airline to air suspension damaged).

At 9:30 we were finally on the way to the campground.  Big Bob drove the motorhome and I followed.  The owner of the campground came from her home to escort us to the campground and our site.

And at 10:10, we sat down and had a beer!

Oh and I dropped my glasses and the lens fell. out during the ordeal

Obviously, I will be talking to Good Sam’s about the $500.00 Service Call but the main thing here is we are safe!  That is all the matters!  I am so thankful it did not happen on the interstate, that we were where there was little traffic on the highway when it happened, and that Big Bob is the driver that he is!

Life is good! 

More to come once we get to the repair shop.

Welcoming the New Year

New Years 2020 

 We spent New Year's at Lazy Day RV Park in Seffner, FL.  We waited too long to make reservations for the holiday so we decided to go to Lazy Days since they had room.  Good thing we made reservations, because by the time we arrived, they were basically sold out - nothing for the 2 days at the same site

And a good choice it was for a few reasons - to follow

First Reason -  We were in dire need of a wash and wax.  I can wash the motor home, but I did not want to undertake the waxing part and there is no way I can get to the roof. It is way too high on the ladder for me!  We had a 11:00 appointment with Sun Dial, the detailer, whose located on Lazy Day's lot.  We arrived about 10:30 and they took her right in and got started. The company used to wash roofs on sites in the RV Park but a new law says that if they are going on the roof, the detailer must be tethered. 

They did a great job spiffing her up!

 

After we dropped her off, they gave us a ride to the campground, we checked in and rented a golf cart and were all set.  We  had a yummy breakfast at Cracker Barrel and even set in on a RV Beginner class while we waited and learned a few things.  There is always something to learn about RVing!

Second Reason - We camped with our regular camping buddies who got a flat tire on the inside rear on the way up. Since he had no space and it was on the inside, he drove the rest of the way to the the campground.  Once he got set up, we drove him over to the service area at Lazy Days and he was able to make an appointment for he morning he was checking to get a new tire installed.

Reason Three - We ran into a problem with our awning.  It would not retract.  There were winds on our first night there and when Big Bob tried to close the awning, nothing happened.  He suspected it was the end cap was stripped out since it had happened a year ago to the other one.  He called Lazy Days service and a crew was there by 9:00 the next morning. They thought they had one in stock, but not luck, so they replaced the awning motor assembly.  The new motor is updated so it is stronger which will prevent the end caps from stripping out again and it's works great and is a quieter too!

But all the small issues did not keep us from having a great time.  It was fun having the golf cart  through the campground and Lazy Day's lots to look at all the different RV's.

Of course, being southern, we had the typical New Year's Day Feast:  pork, collards, black eye peas, corn bread and rice (which I forgot to bring to the table and later found in the refrigerator - I had made it earlier). Yummy Yummy!

Another great trip with our friends celebrating another New Year.  We are blessed!  Looking forward to a great year of good health and lots of travel!

Next trip:  The Florida Keys in April