Well……I knew that this was eventually going to have to happen, but I thought that perhaps I could manage to not have to until we returned to Missouri. Yep……..my problem??? I went out to double check the air pressure in the truck and trailer tires…..and I noticed on the front right tire of the truck that there was a couple of small splits and indentations on the sidewall!!! OMG…….my stomach sank……after all it was SUNDAY morning….and where does one get new tires…besides WallyWorld….on a Sunday morning?????????????????????????
I waited until the 1st Lady woke up…..and told her: “1st Lady…..we have a problem”. She agreed that the front two tires should be replaced, BUT……we had to leave by noon from this cg…..and we had reservations for four nights in Williams, AZ….just an hour south of the Grand Canyon. Sooooo, I went up to the RV Park office…..looked thru the yellow pages and found….BELIEVE IT OR NOT…..a tire “store” that is open on Sunday from 9-5!!! Soooo, it was only about 4 miles from where we were camping….and so off I went attempting to get there by the time they opened. AND…..I DID!!! So, I looked and talked about the kind they sold…..just what I wanted to replace these huge tires….and told them to replace the front two.
Well…..guess what???!!! As the looked at the rear tires once they had the truck in the air……there was another one that had some of the same problems!!!! SOOOOOO, after conferring by cell phone with the 1st Lady, I told them to replace them all……….the cost????? $733.00!!!!!! DAMN!!!! NOT the type of unexpected bill I wanted after having just spent the last 5 days in Las Vegas……hahaha. Especially without any winnings to cushion the financial blow. But what does one do????? Have a blow-out…..or two of them….and then end up in God knows where????
This exchange of truck rubber took about 1.5 hours….even tho I was first in line when they opened. By 11am we were pulling out of the RV Park….and on our way to Williams, AZ. And across the desert we went, not crossing the Hoover Dam as they have tooooo much backed up traffic….and so we went south, the way we came up to Vegas. BUT…..instead of going to Needles, CA…..we turned east and went to Laughlin to cross the Colorado River.
OMG…..thank God I had had a modified exhaust brake installed two years ago. It was about a 5 mile descent to the river…and down a 5-6% grade on the highway!!! The 1st Lady was a bit uptight as we headed down with 6-7 tons pushing us down the steep descent…….but the exhaust brake held us right at 50mph ALL THE WAY down!!!!! WHEW……..that was the longest time I have had to use it….and I am sooooo happy that I found out about it on the Ford Diesel webpage….as it is just a inexpensive modification to the “butterfly” valve in the exhaust which already exists in the 2001 F350!!!!! It cost me $170.…..vs….about $1000+ for a real exhaust brake. WHAT a lifesaver it is/was!!!
Then….after crossing the river, I made a wrong turn and after about 9 miles I began to realize that we were headed south and NOT east…..soooo, I turned around in a not sooo good place and as I came back on to the highway the approach was sooooo humped up that as I went over, something drug as it crossed. Well……..I had to keep going to get out into the turn lane….and then with a red lite, I stopped and jumped out to inspect the cause of the not so good sound. Couldn’t see anything, so I jumped back in and took off for the intersection where I had missed the all so important turn to get to Kingman.
Making the turn correctly this time, I realized that we had to get out of this Colorado River valley….and UP and UP and Up and UP we went…….it was a HARD, HARD pull up a 7% grade for just over 10 MILES!!!!! No leveling off spot anywhere…..and all we could see was about every mile someone had placed three plastic milk jugs full of water for cooling overheated engines!!!!! NOT a good sign….huh????
I turned off the A/C…..it was soooo damn hot in the valley with an elevation of just 500 feet in the desert…….and I kept watching the temp gauge….and for that matter…..ALL gauges!!!! Had we needed to make a stop there is no way ever that we could have started forward up the 7% grade again!!!!! Guess we would have had to just stay there until I could have called for assistance. But…….the F350 just kept whining and chugging and pulling the 6-7 tons of TheHowserHouse at about 40 mph. I think I was about to lean through the front windshield as I was physically trying to push it harder to the top!!!! HAHAHA……I am sure for those going down in the other lanes that I looked like some little old man with a curved back as my chin was almost on the steering wheel!! And…..my butt muscles have never ever been soooooo damn clenched and tight…..ha-ha!
When we reached the top of the 10+ miles ascent……I realized just how tense I had been…….hmmmm, will I ever go to Laughlin again???? Well, I will not make a firm decision TODAY….hahaha!!
In about 12 miles we reached Kingman…and I-40.….ahhhhhh!!!!! But, we decided to top off the gas tank…..at a TA truck stop. WHAT a MISTAKE!!! Of course, the length of my rig does not allow me to go into the regular diesel rv pump…..and so I have to go the trucker line of pumps. And….then you have to take your credit card inside….they check it out…and then they keep it until you pump your diesel and return to sign the bill!! Well….it took me 10 minutes before I could get to the counter to leave my card. Then I had to pump it…and then return to get in line to pay….another 15 minute wait in line!!! Oh well……..
And soooo, about 4:30pm we reached our rv park in Williams, AZ. It is nice…..but after a walk around the park I was sooooo out of breath I thought I had a problem!!!! Then….I remembered we are up at about 6000+ feet in altitude……just a natural shortness of breath in the higher altitude after being in the desert for sooooo many weeks. A couple of glasses of my dark red medicine and I am relaxed and SOOOO EXCITED about going to the Grand Canyon tomorrow!!!!!
And sooooo…..after a day of many trials, tense butt muscles, and now shortness of breath…….plus $$$ spent that I hadn’t counted on spending……..as always…..
LIFE IS GREAT!!!!!! And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!!!!
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