We’ve just started receiving regular updates now that Keystone has brought our unit back onto the line, and let’s just say – they are being THOROUGH. We are hella grateful for that as it seems like we’ll almost be getting a brand new camper at the end of all this work.
We sometimes think it may have just been easier for them to total this one and offer us a new one to save on the cost and manual labor, but that’s their choice – not ours as we should not be seeing any bill for the fixes they’re doing.
From the sounds of it – they’ve basically stripped down the camper to it’s bare bones and are going piece by piece, combing through it with a fine toothed comb.
Since hearing that it’s been brought into the warehouse in Mid-October here’s what they’ve done:
November 13 Update:
Disconnected the entertainment cabinets
Removed the front cabinets
Removed the door side sidewall interior panels at the front and rear slide out openings
Repaired the front interior step squeaking
Removed the bedroom slide out
Prepped the door side and off door side front sidewalls for the KSB repair.
Removed the off-door side front fiber glass filon (fiberglass shell)
Removed the rear wall
Replaced the rear wall with new
Removed the slide out toppers
November 19 Update:
Replaced the axle shackles
Replaced the axle bolts
Replaced the lug nuts
Replaced the off-door side leveling leg pad
Replaced the door side and off-door side fender skirts
Replaced the off-door side center leveling leg
Completed the door side and off-door side KSBs
Rebuilding the front deck cabinetry
Replaced the slide out carpets
Installed the slide out mechanisms on the slide outs.
November 26 Update!
Rebuilt the entertainment cabinets
Installed the lighted crown molding
Installed the front knee wall
Removed the dinette slide out
Replaced the dinette floor
Replaced the dinette slide out woven carpet
Insulated the upper deck floor
Replaced the passthrough wall
Now, some of these things, we didn’t even know needed fixing. So we’re feeling pretty good that the Keystone team has pretty much stripped the camper down to the framing and is catching all these little pieces.
Slide out carpets? Didn’t even ask for that – just took the janky fix that Camping World offered and went with it. The challenge here was that when they replaced the furniture from the previous owners, they didn’t replace the front futons with the same model item, so the new futons sit up on top of the slide out and all the wiring on the front of that step is showing and rather unsightly. When we purchased the unit, we asked them if there was a way to cover those wires up so we weren’t looking at them all day and their fix was to take a short piece of different carpeting (close enough only works for horseshoes and hand grenades) and affix it over top of the wires, which then pushed out the framing around the slides and some of it fell off…. We’ll see what it looks like when we get her back!
All the emails have ended with “The technicians are working as quickly and efficiently as possible to complete your unit with quality and safety in mind.” Which we totally appreciate.
We’d love to have a return date, as we’ve found an adults only RV park in Hendersonville, NC for the winter that DOESN’T ALLOW the camper skirts, one less project for Austin and mom! Our reservation starts on Dec 1 (we had a previous spot, but when we visited to actually see it in person….. it wasn’t great, so we swapped) but with the holiday next week, I’m not too optimistic that we’ll be getting her back by that first week of December. They have to finish all the fixes, and then still pull it down to Camping World in Hendersonville where we can then pick it up and park it till May.
Nov 26th update: NO chance of getting this camper Dec 1, as expected. With my guesstimate and the updates we’re getting, they’re about halfway through rebuilding the whole thing. Im guessing they still have to check the Kitchen appliance slideout (oven, stove, microwave & residential fridge), the half bath, and then they get to the back where our bedroom slideout, the washer/dryer, and the full bathroom are. The RV park’s team and management has been so incredibly kind to allow us to push our reservation to January 1 now without penalty (even though we are within the 2 week cancellation period).
I’ll take the little wins though! 4 more weeks with Mom, Dad, BigSeester, Niblings and more!
We’ve been bunking with mom & dad in VA for the month of October while we awaited Keystone’s driver to pick up our rig. While we did have the space in A. Bay until October 13th, we had a wedding in Lancaster, PA I had a work trip, and then our Jamaican Vacation was scheduled so it was time to pack it up (yet again) and make the moves down south.
The wedding in Lancaster was a hit! And we had been able to repack (for the umpteenth time) the camper into those black & yellow Lowe’s bins that we’ve come to love so much… With items at Mom & Dads, In condo 4 at A. Bay, and leaving one of the trucks parked at Grandma’s house in Syracuse we just about emptied the entire unit!
September 26th Austin flew back into Syracuse and rented a car. We headed to Grandma’s house (I had breakfast with her that morning!) to pull all the stuff out of the Tacoma in her driveway, reload into the rental and start the 6+ hour drive to VA. I had the F-350 loaded down bed to roof with all the last bits & pieces and we caravaned down 81. We passed quite a few accidents on the way down, but came through unscathed.
The driver was supposed to pick up the camper the week of Sept 29th. We waited, and waited, and waited for the driver to let us know he was on his way/there to pick up the camper – and he finally showed up Oct 3rd. Apparently he tried a few excuses with Austin to say he wasn’t sure he could pull it because of a “toolbox in the bed of his truck” and “he couldn’t find the camper” (it’s kind of hard to miss…) and Austin set him very straight. So the camper was picked up and driven the 12 hours across NY and into Indiana where we waited for more updates.
We have no idea what the camper looked like once it made it to Keystone – they didn’t send any photos but we did get an update (finally) while in Jamaica that it had arrived and they were doing their own inspection of all the elements as they don’t rely on Camping World’s reports.
We were hoping to have the camper back by November as we have a space reserved in Hendersonville, NC Nov 7- mid May…. but that was obviously wishful thinking. We are glad they are doing their own full blown inspection and not relying on Camping World, they’ve already noted that they’re replacing pretty much the entire fiberglass exterior sheeting, interior wallpapering/walls that were cracking, the front entertainment center cabinetry, and a new back ladder (apparently it’s bent?!), and they’re adding flex adapters to the front area that will actually allow the unit to flex as it should when on the hitch. We’re hoping we get the update that they’ll be re-welding all the connections that we saw were broken as well once they get that front cap off again for those flex pieces… It sounds to us like there have been MANY issues like ours with this particular model and they’ve had to fix more campers than expected which is why we have not paid a penny out of pocket for fixes past 2 new tires. When it’s all complete which sounds like another 6-ish weeks…. (3-4 weeks before they get it IN to the production line, and another 2 weeks working on it) they’ll then tow it down to Hendersonville’s Camping World for us where we’ll pick it up.
After the Pennsylvania Wedding, I had a trip up to Ohio to cover some events for work where I presented and met with new advisors and got more interest for diving at the resorts! Because it was just a 2 nighter, I packed myself in my backpack and caught a quick flight from Dulles.
It’s been great to be around close family – as it allows us to get to the nibling’s sports games and take advantage still of walking into town for experiences. We celebrated our house sale & the money being deposited – which we then turned around and wiped out some debts, and invested with our financial advisor! We also finally decided on an eBike and it arrived for Dad and I to put together!
Mom also called Dad and I to jump into some Pickleball at the local gym they’re members of as they needed a few extra players. It’s only my 2nd time actually playing games and I’ve got to get my swings under control – I tend to hit it long A LOT. BUT I’m running my butt off getting to stuff and burning ALL the calories haha!
It was just about Jamaica time!! So we packed our suitcase (and Austin’s backpack – because he’s weird) for a 6-night stay at Sandals Negril with friends! It was Austin’s & our friend Sandy’s birthdays, what better way to celebrate!
We were immediately spoiled on arrival in Jamaica – the resort team (who I emailed ahead of time and told them we were coming) put us in a beautiful butler villa (without the butler service) that had it’s own backyard and pool!! We figured out in Antigua back in 2020 that we are definitely room pool people, Austin gets uncomfortable just sitting on the beach in the heat and either has to have something fun to do, or be in the water.
I, on the other hand, am perfectly fine with a book and a beach chair soaking up all the sun…. I finished that book on the 2nd afternoon and had to steal Austin’s book for the next 3 afternoons. Thanks Babe!
We also got some diving in!! I finally talked Austin in to completing his Invasive Species Tracker Certification which “legally” allows him to hunt lionfish!
He’s a natural and got about 5 on the follow up dives we did! We also got to do a super cool dive called the Throne Room where you descend through a crack in the coral formation and come out in a opened coral cavern.
Hangry Austin – Happy Austin!
We had a fabulous time on a worry free vacation in beautiful Jamaica. Did some professional resort photos (our first since our wedding), and I even got to practice my bubble rings on dives 🙂
We had planned to fly back into Syracuse for Punkin Chukin weekend in Clayton, NY but plans changed and we swapped our flights to fly into Charlotte to spend time with Austin’s family instead. It was fun to watch him & his brothers run around like kids again, especially when they caught glimpse of a black bear running across the ridge! (its black bear hunting season and they all SPRINTED off to try to get it).
After stopping by the Tennessee storage unit and seeing if we could cut the locks off (we couldn’t), we headed over to see Mamaw & Papaw and of course Charlie. He’s a happy pup there and has gained probably 15lbs with Mamaw’s cooking.
A 6.5 hour drive from Marshall, NC back to Leesburg had us arriving back at our current home base just around 11pm. Austin was headed out on a flight to Canada for the week Monday and I was back in office to follow up on all the vacay emails that came in. Plus prep for DEMA Show which is the largest trade dive show of the year! This year it’s in Orlando and is only a few weeks away!
Mom & Dad arrived back home from Punkin Chukin to a full house – Meg & the Niblings were riding bikes and it was the perfect fall day to kick the training wheels off Knox’s bike and get him riding like the big kids. He was a little nervous to start but had a whole fan club cheering him on and he GOT IT!
I’m super grateful to be here for moments and memories like these. He was so excited to be a full blown bike rider that we all took our first big family bike ride up to the park across the street!
It’s been a trying year for me and Austin – but we are so lucky to have family support everywhere that is open to helping us. We’ve had so many good moments among the craziness and I wouldn’t want to trade any of them.
One final happy update for me – I finally applied for my Master Scuba Diver Certification with PADI! While this isn’t necessarily a “certification” in the same sense as most – it does have a few requirements:
Complete your Rescue Diver Certification
Complete 50 Dives
Complete 5 Specialties
Submit application with all those elements & receive a new card!
So I did!
Rescue Diver Certification completed 2022
214 Recorded dives to date
Specialties Completed: Deep Diver, Peak Performance Buoyancy, Emergency Oxygen Provider, Digital Underwater Photographer, Boat Diver, Enriched Air Diver, Full Face Mask, Invasive Species Tracker
We are super excited this process is finally OVER!
After months of packing, trips to storage, projects completed, and dealing with a terribly unorganized Law Firm…. We Closed the house sale September 17th and the new owners have a new home!
To say it was a process is an understatement. While the listing was fairly simple, the anxiety of the showings and waiting for feedback and offers was grueling. We were on the market for just over 45 days.
We had a few rude, lowball offers from investment companies that we immediately turned down. But were finally able to get a decent enough offer from a new family. Lower than we’d hoped for, but thats the market these days. We like to think that if we had hit the original project deadlines we would have been in a better spot, but the sale is done.
I dont understand how some people become “law assistants” when they cant even read. We had so much frustration with a non-preferred firm through this whole contract that it made you want to grab that persons shoulders and shake them to see if there was any kind of rattling in their head. We would ask questions that went unanswered, we were given blank paperwork on Law Firm letterhead that wasn’t editable and told to “just sign it, we’ll fill it in later”.
HUGE NO.
And when we told them we couldn’t edit, it was another month (just before the closing date) till they actually updated the form. Still uneditable, still wrong, and when I voiced those concerns about my signature on a blank legal document, I was told “its not actually a legal document”. Now, I’m no lawyer, but Judge Judy would see that as a contract/legal document FOR SURE.
We had to constantly remind the firm that we were doing a mailaway closing and were coming up on that closing dates without receiving any paperwork. Plus, hubby and I were both traveling, so we had minimal time to get things done and return by the deadline. We apparently had to pay an additional $100 for this service that was seriously lacking.
We FINALLY received emailed documents on Sept 11th and had them printed out on the 12th to sign & notarize. We then were told to fax them in before UPS-ing them back to the firm. We faxed at 4:11pm that Friday and emailed asking for confirmation that it went through. No response. So we sent the full paperwork anyway, we couldn’t wait any longer for the Sept 16th closing date.
Get this, we got an email on MONDAY from this assistant saying “our office was already closed when you faxed it, but it looks okay. I see you’ve already mailed it, we should get it soon.”
We told you we were out of the COUNTRY (me this week) and out of town (Austin)… we couldn’t wait
it was 4pm on a Friday…
Good thing we didn’t wait for the actual paperwork to arrive in the mail for signing… that didn’t show up till MONDAY. THE DAY BEFORE THE CLOSING DATE.
Im just glad the whole thing is over and we can tape this project box up and toss it in the memory bank.
Now we’re just repacking the entire camper and waiting for Keystone to tell us what day they’re picking it up!
Dive Week is going GREAT by the way. Super excited that our inaugural event is being met with such enthusiasm!
It’s been a few weeks for us being back in our actual home and we are loving it!
With the one minor detail, that we’re living around a bump out that’s fully closed in the living room, everything else is working perfectly (knock on wood). We’ve been able to enjoy our evenings and weekends again without feeling like we’re on borrowed time. I especially love having my own washer & dryer, although the loads are smaller and I have to empty the grey water tank every 3rd load.
Since moving back in, we have kept busy – I headed to the Bahamas for work and introduced 4 colleagues to Scuba! They got to try Discover Scuba Diving with our team at Sandals Royal Bahamian and enjoy all the resort amenities.
We ate all the sushis, soaked up all the sun, and even got to see a Shark on their first ever dive (at a Shipwreck)! There’s just something about floating in the sea that warms your soul.
After the Bahamas Trip I came home for a quick weekend to welcome BigSeester and the Niblings (Nephews & Niece) before I had to take back off for Ohio.
That weekend happened to be Pirate Weekend in A-Bay! I had some portions of a costume already in the camper (some of my favorite shirts, by Migdalia – I found her in a booth at the Hendersonville Apple Festival a few years ago!)
Is it giving Pirate? or more Kid Rock?
I tried to swap the dates on the Ohio trip so I’d get more than 3 days with the family but sadly that wasn’t meant to be. Watertown has a teeeeeny tiny airport, the photos below are both the check-in counter, and baggage claim. And most flights take off at 6am, so you’re there around 4:30a to check bags and head through security. The actual gate waiting area is on the other side of this wall, but they do have donation coffee and a vending machine!
The Ohio trip went really well! We had about 3 days to connect with Travel Advisors from Cleveland through Columbia and the BDM did a phenomenal job on our itinerary. While there wasn’t time for a visit to the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame, we did take a drive around Cedar Point! Both add on’s for the next trip for sure.
We ended up meeting 41 Travel Advisors and opening up their travel opportunities to SCUBA in those 3 days. Here’s hoping for more visibility soon!
Austin had been pulled from his Syracuse job that week as well, so he was back on the road in Texas. By the time I got back to NY, the fam had been having a fun week leading up to a very special 7 year old Birthday Celebration! I was glad to not have missed that day.
Oma and Daddo treated us all to mini-golf, digging for treasure, and bumper boats! I had to jump out mid-day to coordinate a virtual meeting from the car, but it was buckets of fun for everyone!
As the weekend approached, it was time to get everyone “home” and back on the boat, into the water with C&B and Adopted Uncle Dave & Aunt Judy. I managed to pack all the dive masks & snorkels and got all the kids snorkeling around the boat with Austin – they FLOCK to him and he’s so great with them.
The Niblings’s final night was spent on a foam mattress with blankets for everyone, outside stargazing till late in the evening – on BigSeester/mom’s approval. We even downloaded some stargazing apps for each kid to look for constellations. We had so much fun pointing out the big dipper, and all the satellites streaking back and forth across the night sky.
With Keystone still planning to collect our camper at the end of September for fixes, we’re looking forward to spending some time in VA with everyone. It’ll allow us to get to fall practices and games and just be with family a little bit longer.
Austin was able to get the trolling motor all situated on my kayak like he’s been wanting all summer. So now it’s a true fishing kayak and he took the big kids out on a ride before they packed into the car to head home. I took it out myself (without using the motor, because I didn’t realize it wasn’t hooked to the battery) as a core/upper body workout the other windy day and it got my heart working!
It’s been extra windy this last week so I haven’t ventured back out with it again.
That next weekend we decided to head into some of the local dive shops and grab some new, and some rental gear to check out the 1000 Islands dive experience. It’s COLD.
BUT I’m obsessed with my new Halcyon backplate & wing BCD. It’s a discontinued color so we got a hell of a steal deal on it. It was also time for my regs to be serviced and good thing, the shop said they were gross. Somehow I managed to wedge a small piece of metal into a spot where it shouldn’t be and it punctured another spot and had been rusting! The Dive Shop is fixing all that now ahead of my next 2 trips in September.
Did I mention that the water is COLD here. Well, colder than I’m used to so I also bought a 5mm wetsuit, but we got Uncle Chris hooked – sorry, not sorry! Welcome to the cult… I mean Club! Next up is Uncle Dave!
It’s been nice to have our own space back as I noted before. The cat is a happy camper on his spot on the couches, and I’m able to finagle my work schedules a little bit so I can enjoy some early morning fishing some days.
I caught my first Walleye this past Monday!
As we get into our final month of time here at The River, we’ll start unpacking the camper for Keystone. It’s been helpful as I’ve always been an over-packer so we’ll be able to actually get some of the things we didn’t use the last 6 months out and have a better understanding of the basic necessities for our future trips. We’re also planning to be back here next summer so we’ve been graciously offered to keep the summer necessities stored here at Grandma’s our C&B’s houses.
I like my stuff. D&J have figured that out with us as we’ve used their address here for our Amazon deliveries… sorry, and THANK YOU!
This first week of September brings another 2-week out of the month travel month for me. It’s Labor Day weekend here at The River and should be an exciting bit of fun. Then I’m off to host some divers in Antigua, do some dive training webinars for Travel Advisors, and help host our Inaugural Dive Week in Curacao!
I’m so excited for Dive Week – we have an awesome itinerary scheduled and some of my favorite people partnered with us.
We’re still trying to fit visits in with the rest of the family in the area – our plans were just so thrown off by this camper debacle that we feel terrible it hasn’t all happened yet and now we’re running into a time crunch.
The plan is to head back towards NC/TN area for the winter (once Keystone tells us we can have our house back) but we’ll see what happens! The house closing is still on for September 16th – we’re just waiting for the closing lawyers to get paperwork together and sent out to us. They originally tried to get us to sign blank documents which I absolutely was NOT doing, and it seems to be a challenge getting them to understand why… You’re a law firm! You should know better! We’ll be doing a mail-away closing so we’ll also need to connect with a Notary up here.
Good news! Camping World Cicero was able to fix the leaf spring and replace TWO tires (apparently they’re only ordered in pairs) and Hubby was able to pick up our house on wheels last Wednesday. Things are finally starting to feel normal again.
Uncle Chris came up and helped Austin move the temporary camper we were borrowing, Austin backed our baby in and set it all up. He said it pulls like a totally different camper with those two fixes and an adjustment to the pin box. It didn’t beat him up as hard on the hour-ish pull up 81.
Now we have to move all the stuff I packed into the other camper over the last month back into our camper for 2 months.
While we cant use that right side living room bump out because the track is broken, its so nice sleeping in my own bed, and knowing all my stuff is right where I put it.
We’re a bit of a mess still as I was traveling last week, will be in the Bahamas this week and Ohio next week… But little by little we’ll reorganize and settle back in.
The plan now is to enjoy our camper through the end of September until Keystone heads over to pick it up and haul it back to Indiana. We’ll then be waiting again for fixes and updates as they comb their way through the flexing, welds, slide, and anything else they break on the road back.
We’d like to be back in Tennessee for the winter near Hubby’s family and are already ready to claim our summer 2026 spot up here in Alex Bay. We both recognized Friday evening that we’ve never been so happy/excited to come “home” than when we’re up here. Having our house was nice (and what I wanted 6 years ago) but the freedom we have currently to come home, have no projects or yard work, and be on a boat fishing within 20 mins of parking the car is *chefs kiss*
We are toying with the idea that we could find a nice catamaran to winter on in the Keys, and then summer in NY… maybe plot the sail up, but depending on size we’d have to find a different marina so it fits. We’ll see!
Right now I’m very happy to have my washer & dryer back so we’re not stopping at the bank each week for rolls of quarters. I’m taking in all the moments here and prepping for Pirate weekend next weekend!
Good things always seem to happen around Shark Week! We’ve had a very promising week and a half!
First Up – we decided to order Starlink for our new internet provider while we’re mobile. It seemed to be the best option that we saw, and we heard first-hand after the devastating hurricane that hit the North Carolina Mountains last year – the people with Starlink were the ones getting information in and out of the area. That was good enough reason for us! It arrived July 16th and it’s made SUCH a difference in my work week to not be kicked off the WIFI every 3 seconds.
Where did we leave off on this camper debacle, ah yes, that Keystone was scheduling a date to come pick up our unit for the major structural repairs. We were told that while the “manufacturer’s warranty expired in 2023 and we know you’re the second owner of the unit, but none of this qualifies for manufacturer warranty repair… BUT out of GOOD WILL, we will come get the unit and complete the fixes.” YOU CERTAINLY WILL WITH THE PHOTOS WE HAVE OF WELDS MISSING AND SHODDY WORK. This is a structural issue, and clearly the quality control inspector was off the day our unit came off the line – so they’ll come get the camper from our summer campsite at the end of September. They’ll tow it from here to their corporate headquarters in Indiana, and then we’ll wait some more to hear when we’ll get it back, and where we want it delivered. We do have to clear everything we “would be upset losing” out of the camper for them… so it looks like we’ll be visiting Lowe’s for a few more storage bins.
The next order of business was to get Camping World Cicero to FINALLY submit our requests to warranty for the leaf spring diagnosis (which they told us about first on June 21st) and surprise surprise…. we also have to replace a tire because it’s ” seriously damaged, bald” from the leaf spring issue. Cool, thanks for tossing that one on top of the pile. Can we just get this sh*t ordered/submitted already?! You’ve been holding our camper hostage for a month with no fixes or movement…
Hubby has thankfully been working about 2 hours away from our summer setup for the last 2 weeks so he’s been able to come home every night and enjoy longer weekends. He’s a bit of a motor head, so we took one Friday afternoon to enjoy the Syracuse Nationals Car Show at the fairgrounds. All while monitoring email waiting for the warranty approvals to come through and liason-ing between CW and Keystone.
Keystone says we can’t move our camper until that leaf spring is fixed, CW doesn’t know what warranty will cover… it’s been a Catch 22. BUT we do know (and got approval from Keystone) that once the leaf spring IS fixed, we could take our camper with us and use it until they come get it. We just can’t use the front room/living room bump outs because the track is broken on one side. CW also told us that for some odd reason, now the driver side living room bump out is also not operating correctly. So I’ve got 3 couches that we’ll just be sitting REALLY close together on. Whatever – I get my camper back!
CW tells us that the leaf spring is covered by warranty, but the tire is not. At this point, I DON’T CARE ABOUT A DAMN TIRE – JUST ORDER IT AND I’LL PAY FOR IT. Although, we did also purchase the tire and wheel coverage as part of the insurance/warranty package… weird. We go back and forth more on “do you want to buy the tire and bring it to us? the install will be $102.60”…. for a 10 minute tire change, that we could do ourselves because the dang camper has hydraulic feet/lifts attached to it. Also… do they not have tires available for purchase in service?! It seems like a regular need to just keep in inventory, but what do I know.
On July 21st, With the leaf springs being approved and ordered from Keystone, there was one sentence of CW’s email that really set me off “It is estimated to take a few weeks to get there”. A FEW WEEKS?! Not okay. At that tidbit of information, I suggested we call our friend Alan at the Statesville CW location and ask if he could help us expedite that shipping through his Keystone contact. Turns out, he hadn’t heard back AT ALL from Cicero about what was or was not going to be covered and he called CW directly. It was a good call because Statesville decided to cover the tire for us! Bonus!
We’re also told that “a few weeks” is ridiculous, and there is expedited shipping that can be requested. So another call to Keystone tells us that the leaf springs are “already on the truck, not sure why they would tell you a few weeks. And here’s the tracking number.” FABULOUS.
Hubby is checking the tracking number and as soon as he sees that DELIVERED notice on July 24th, he’s emailing CW to check on install times. We get the typical runaround “I haven’t been told they’ve been delivered, if they went to retail instead of service… blah blah blah” so we nip that in the bud and Hubby Says “It says it was received by Matt if that helps”. BOOM go find it. “I’ll ask him when he returns from lunch”…. that was at 1:12pm… we ask AGAIN for an update at 4:30pm – quite the lunch – and are told (no surprise) “they’re here – I have to find out when we can bring the unit into the shop”, and then she’s gone by 5pm. So we waited till Friday Morning to find out they can bring the camper in on Monday the 28th. Ideally they’ll fix it quickly Monday and I can bring the F-350 down to pick it up that evening, or hubby will drive the truck to work Tuesday to swing by on his way home (I’ll be traveling for work the rest of the week).
We spent the weekend out on the boats taking in the 1000 Islands Poker Run which was a blast to see then a tour & history lesson around Singer Castle on Dark Island with Captain Dave. We headed over to a local bar after, Hurricane Joe’s, for a beer or two and make our way back to the Bay for a relaxing evening.
Mom & Dad also came up for the week and we visited Clayton, had a fabulous meal at Bella’s where we found a citrus Corona, wandered a little farmers market, and played a lot of Farkle. Aunt & Uncle have their little tiki bar space setup right in front of the boat dock so we’ve been getting a lot of jealous stares all week. They also added a sun shade on a few posts to keep us cool and comfortable while we enjoy that outdoor space. We cooked up some fresh caught Walleye and Perch Sunday night and I’ve been testing out a few white wine sauces.
In other news – while we had received 2 (terrible) investor offers on the house in the last month or so, $100k under asking price, we finally received a real person offer that we chose to accept! We still had the Ring doorbell attached to our internet service so we could confirm showings arrived – and a new family with a 16 month old put in an offer! Albeit was a lot lower than we were hoping for, it’s time for us to move on. I’m happy to get a new family into this home to make it their own. The due diligence period starts Monday, 7/28 for 15 days. Then we’ve scheduled closing for Sept 16th (to work with their requested schedule). Hopefully everything sticks and they don’t walk away from it – because we’ve taken so much off for the offer, we’re not contracted to do any concessions, fixes, or closing costs.
I’ve also been celebrating the 10th birthday of one of my favorite companies – Stream2Sea! They are fantastic people who I absolutely adore, and they’re doing a 20% off with free shipping! I am OBSESSED with their shimmer sunscreen, leave in conditioner, and their mask defog – those are staples in my dive/water bag. They sent over a collab box with a bunch of their amazing product that I’ve been incessantly shoving into friends/families faces all summer. sorry not sorry!
I also made a Canva template for my travel advisors to use Stream2Sea’s information on their own business card! I think they came out pretty cute! The company is also really great about partnerships and co-branding. I can’t wait to bring them on resort for Dive Week!
The rest of the week will include one more wait for a camper pick-up time/date, a trip to Florida for work, and sweating out the Due Diligence period of the house. Anybody need a 2023 Samsung Washer & Dryer? The new buyers don’t want them so we’re either putting them up for sale or taking them to the TN property for future use.
Recent Wins:
It was SHARK WEEK!
Starlink Internet was delivered and is working fabulously
Keystone Corporate is coming to Cicero, NY to pick up our unit and tow it to their headquarters for fixes.
Does that make me incredibly nervous? YES – MORE SH*T COULD BREAK. But we’re being told anything they break in this tow, they fix – no questions asked. We still haven’t been given any type of figures on cost to us out of pocket for the past 3 weeks, with warranty and insurance, we’re hoping it’s minimal if any. Cicero keeps saying they’ll be fighting for us to not be out of pocket at all.
In the last week we have been back and forth talking to Cicero, and Statesville (finally got a hold of the GM). Cicero says they left a couple messages for Statesville, Statesville says they never got any messages so New York Missy had to be polite but firm that this needs to be dealt with.
After finally getting a hold of Alan Good, Statesville’s GM on July 10th, I was not taking “he’ll call you tomorrow” for an answer. We’re going on Week 3 without our unit, or any information on fixes happening anytime soon. I’m losing my patience. After confirming to Satesville’s team that yes, I know I called North Carolina, that’s where we bought the unit. Yes the camper is in New York…. Alan, upon hearing of our struggles, jumped into action by calling Cicero – sadly, Kim (who we’ve been working with here in NY) had already left for the day. Service guys leave at 6pm, but the front desk workers in service leave at 5 – explain to me how that makes any sense…
Anywho’s…. Alan calls me back at both 5:22p and 5:50p to note that he’s 100% on the issue and calling back to get the full details as soon as Cicero opens the next morning as he’s now playing catch up. He did speak to hubby when all this originally happened but apparently didn’t take any notes about it/couldn’t remember all the details. By 9:25a the next morning (July 11) Allen calls me back saying he’s tried Kim twice with no luck and his Director of Service was also going to connect with Cicero’s DOS for updates. At 10:09a we get a call that Statesville now has all the updates they need about our unit (he’s also pulled our service records from November since he wasn’t the GM there yet – I bet that was fun for him to read about, his new team dropping the ball and all). He’s calling his Keystone contact directly to expedite this process for us now that he understands this is our summer accommodation in a campground… He reiterated that he’s in the office all weekend and is “on it” for us. It’s nice to have some backup. He’s also told Kim that anything warranty or Keystone rejects – to please send him the quote so he can “see what he can do”. As much as I appreciate that, I don’t know if that will happen or what could happen. So it sounds like another weekend of waiting it out for Keystone to respond.
Hubby and I decided to visit our poor, broken down camper that Friday evening after work – take photos of the broken welds, broken wood supports, etc. for our own records and pick up the last few things we absolutely need for an extended outplacement.
No big deal – we’re getting used to quiet weekends with no yardwork. We have not completely become lumps on a log though we helped build a tiki bar/shed at the river this weekend! I also finished another book, that’s 9 for 2025 – how many do I need for a pizza party again?!
We’re also thoroughly enjoying having our Kayak back and an easy launch point in and out to do some evening fishing and a decent workout. We honestly haven’t been in the kayak but twice since we bought it in 2020 during Covid. The Gander Mountain near us in NC was going out of business and we got a helluva deal on it.
It’s so smooth. Plus we’ve been spoiled with friends & family boat access. Bring on the Perch, Bass, Walleye, and Pike!
No news on Monday as I’m sure Keystone had to go over the full report of issues and she’s not just broke. She BROKE broke. I’m no welder (hubby is, surprise surprise), but FOR THE LOVE OF METAL…. WHO WELDED THIS?! Because… they should be fired.
Also, these should not be pinched….
Thankfully hubby is in the area for work this week – so he’s only an hour or so away from CW and was able to chat with the team Tuesday. We got the update that Keystone was coming to GET our Unit and take it back with them. Nothing has been fixed, but the cap has been put back on the front for transport. So it’s in Keystone’s hands now… whatever they break – they fix in that tow. Misty from Keystone HQ connected with hubs on the next step – she has to figure out WHEN they can get the camper in. It could be this week, and in reality – it could be MONTHS from now.
More Waiting. Great, my favorite thing. Hubby is being annoyingly level headed about it. I’m wonky brained because “HELLO – I’VE BEEN WITHOUT MY CAMPER THAT MY WHOLE SUMMER LIFE IS PACKED IN FOR ALMOST A MONTH NOW. I WOULD LIKE IT BACK SO WE CAN ENJOY IT.” And this jerk’s logical brain comes back with “well, we’re not the only ones with a camper in for problems….”
Me:
So we’ll just be here waiting for more updates. Will they get our camper in quickly? Will they offer us a temporary replacement while we wait? Will it be fixed for sure? Will it be returned to us sometime before the end of the summer when we head back to NC?!
The old saying is “no news is good news” but is that really true?
For some instances, like working from home and not hearing from your boss, sure no news is good news – “the squeaky wheel gets the grease”. That’s where you don’t want to be the squeaky wheel… But knowing our camper (with the wonky wheel and the cracked leaf spring already) has been at the Camping World in Cicero since June 21st and WE keep having to call in for updates – not so great.
We are in a temporary solution currently – Aunt & Uncle’s old camper (that they sold to their neighbors) needed a place to be stored, and we needed a place to stay here in Alex Bay. Win-Win since we already paid for the whole summer in a permanent RV site up here! We’ll be able to utilize this camper for a few weeks until the owners are ready for their vacation in it.
After we dropped our unit off on that Saturday and waited a few hours – we had no great update. We finally called the following Monday (June 23rd) to be told “we’re going to do a flex test this week” requested by the manufacturer, which in non-mechanics terms is to determine just how much the frame is moving from point A (not being hooked up) to point B (when the hitch is fully attached). And they asked if there was anything we wanted to grab out of the fridge/freezer since they were keeping it hooked up for us (its a residential fridge – the freezer was full). So we came back down the 1.5 hour drive and grabbed a few more things hoping it would only be another week or so.
By June 25th hubby emailed again asking for an update and we were told the flex test would be performed on the 26th (5 days after drop off). So we waited… It worked with our itinerary as we would be headed back into the Syracuse area for Uncle’s retirement party that Friday – we also commandeered a room in their house for that few days.
33 years in the Sheriff’s Department! Well done Uncle Chris! We joined Aunt Becky and the rest of their family to surprise him on his final morning outside the department with cinnamon buns and mimosas before the big party that evening with all family and friends.
We love a celebration! Especially when the WHOLE crew gets together.
Since we had to drive past Camping World on the way back up to the river that Saturday, Hubby and I left early so we could stop to get an update. Mind you, it’s now June 28th and they’ve done the initial diagnostic and a flex test – no fixes. We get a little bit of information that day and start packing up more items from the camper that we need for basic living. They talk a little bit about the flex test and as a non-engineer, I can’t tell you what is “acceptable” frame flex, but when they told us that our frame’s flex was a 1/2 inch change – they didn’t say it with a smile or upbeat attitude.
We grabbed more items out of the fridge and freezer, it’s been “no problem” keeping it plugged in out front for us and we head back up to the river for a weekend of boat lounging and relaxation. Brother, Sister-in-law, Big Sister & the kids were up for the party so EVERYONE got to do some fishing!
Now it’s June 30th, and at 5pm-ish we get a snarky email from Camping World telling us the manufacturer wants additional inspection of our camper and that means they’ll need to move it from the front of the building (could be that day, could be a few days from now). No problem – had we been communicated with about that ahead of time, we would have taken care of everything, but after hubby’s rough Monday travel day (3am alarm, flight delays & cancellations, a 9+ hour drive instead, and luggage that made the plane but not him….) we were in NO mood for the tone perceived within the email – you be the judge and tell us if we were too sensitive –
“You will have to clean out the remaining food that is in the fridge and freezer in the event we have to unplug it for an extended period of time. We technically do not allow customers to keep food in their camper as we have to unplug it and move it from time to time. I was being nice under your circumstances but now that we have to run further inspections, the fridge and freezer will need to be properly cleaned out.”
The first email drafts back were NOT polite. Husband, while usually a teddy bear himself – has no-fluff in his emails – that’s an engineer for you. But we finally came to a seething with sweetness re-write of “no problem, be there tomorrow” response. So I drove down again to remove all the freezer & fridge contents and pack more long-term needs, you know – the cases of wine, a bottle of tequila, my bag of brand new books, work brochures for sales calls, laundry baskets, two right shoe only black sneakers…. essentials 😉 With them being SO nice to keep our camper plugged in this whole time, it was frustrating to open the fridge to see no light on, and walk around the camper to confirm that it was NOT actually plugged in, and that the batteries were most likely dead from the extended power outage.
I clearly didn’t check to make sure I had a full pair… I just grabbed the sneakers that were next to each other in the closet.
A quick stop at WalMart on the way back up set us up for the rest of the work week ahead of the 4th of July holiday. With more friends and family coming to the river, we were able to donate some of the freezer food anyway to the weekends festivities!
So here we are, 16 days after the initial camper drop-off (which we DID have an appointment for, mind you) and no good news. I did happen to ask during our visit “is this going to be a one test a week kind of thing? Because while we do have a temporary solution, if it’s going to take more time we need to find a longer term solution” and was told that they have explained to their manager & techs that we are a “rush” due to our circumstances. We’re only here till September and if I don’t get to be in my OWN, 8-month-new-to-me camper (or a replacement), it’s going to be a frustrating pill to swallow.
They’re telling us (as of Thursday, July 3rd) that they’re going to have to remove the entire front cap of the camper to asses the welds on the frame, how long that’s going to take – another question for the universe. We figured it’d be a skeleton crew for the holiday but we’re about at that stage where we’ll start calling every day or every other day for updates until we get a solution.
Our house is still on the market in NC, so as a worst-case scenario we could always move back in there but we’re VERY much enjoying the freedom we currently have. With the occasional heart rate spikes – everyone’s blood pressure here is pretty relaxed.
That break I was hoping for – nope. WHOLE lotta nope there in nopeville.
We pick back up after we’ve brought the camper back to Mom & Dad’s house for 24 hours on Friday to load up and get ready to start the haul to NY… No issues there thank goodness (no complainer either) but 2 unmarked police cars did happen to drive by….
So we pull out of VA just before 6am and work our way up to I-81 to stay on the straight and narrow for our drive. GPS keeps saying 81 is closed so It’s trying to take us a different way which was just fine. We had our 3pm appointment at Camping World of Cicero so we still had plenty of time to keep the speed limit (usually under) and stay in the right lane.
A couple stops for fuel and bathroom breaks and by 1:25pm we were pulling into Camping World Cicero. Unfortunately… this is where the bad news begins to pile on.
Since leaving VA with our back drivers side camper wheel still at an odd angle – I noticed this when we left NC on 6/14/25. When we pulled the camper to the house November 9th, 2024 (yeah it took them that long to work on the items we asked for) the camper has not moved and I was in the truck with hubby originally. So we didn’t know anything was amiss until this first pull.
Also, that crack in the front wood at the entertainment center that we asked about in October and were told “It’s fine, there’s nothing that can be fixed with that” so it wasn’t written down on the ‘We Owe’…. is worse, and the OTHER side is now cracking. This points us to thinking there is frame flex.
The above annoying/unsightly but something I could look past crack, Now looks like this….
This crack was the reason we reached out for a service appointment in the first place and spoke to Keystone Corporate. We attempted to schedule mobile service from Keystone’s contacts – but all 3 were unavailable.. Our first attempt at a service appointment was in Manassas, VA – but their first appointment availability was July 20th, the first mobile guy was a little curt on the phone and said “I’m not doing that right now”, and the second mobile guy was “unavailable”. We tried.
When we pulled around at Camping World Cicero, we checked-in noting that we were early, but had an appointment. They asked if we were okay leaving the unit until Tuesday to be diagnosed which made us gulp. In talking to Kim originally in their office the previous Monday, we had been back and forth on appointment dates, so the note that Saturday’s they don’t do same-day diagnosis for waiters, was missed. They were able to squeeze us in and we headed out to the camper to take some photos….
We were met with the right side slide-out somehow having wedged itself out… the slide portion of it is supposed to be on the INSIDE.
Not sure how that happens on the far left corner of the slide out while we’re headed down the road with no bumps…. physics isn’t on our side for that one and the wind keeping it in line. That back wheel? Oh yeah, the leaf spring is broken…. (We’re asking them if they can investigate to see if it’s been broken for a while or within the last 2 weeks – hubby says you can tell by the amount of rust that may be on it). Then we noticed all down the drivers side of the camper, the gaps at the bottom of the storage compartments that were flush originally, now have almost an inch of space between the door and compartment outer. There are cracks INSIDE the camper now on the corners of both front living space bump outs (significant cracks – 6+ inches long). The silicone seals around a lot of the storage compartments and water sealant spaces are cracked – Kim noted that these “fixes” were not done properly because they’re not even lined up with how the original camper should be. There’s a weird wiggle in the frame/fiberglass directly behind the ladder at the back of the unit that wasn’t there before, oh and the 3 self-tapping screws that were under the tongue holding the fiberglass around the brand new installed hitch were rolling around in the bed of the truck…. did I also mention that the original water pump was leaking when we first took it home?
I cried.
Our whole current life is packed in that camper. Thankfully we have family here and we have help (which is hard for me to accept – but 1000% appreciated).
Our next steps were to get all the photos taken, parts priced out, and submit it all to the elite coverage warranty we purchased through Camping World/Good Sam originally. We also purchased the full/maximum coverage insurance through Camping World/Good Sam so we SHOULD have two options…. ideally speaking. The wait is what’s killing me the most – we have no control over what’s happening next. Hubby did call the Statesville location on Saturday before they closed to give them a heads up that we are facing some BIG problems and that we may be calling back much more heated. He’s keeping a level head, I’m all up in my emotions. That GM appreciated the call. for now.
So that’s where we are – waiting to hear back from warranty and Camping World. To then decide if they will fix everything, or if we have to submit through insurance. It sucks. I am emotionally exhausted. But it is totally out of our control.
On the positive side – we got river time on Aunt & Uncle’s boat so that took our minds off of the shit-show for a little while. Hubby got to fish (and caught some bass!), we floated, relaxed for the weekend, and are picking up the workweek fresh.
Please send positive energy. We are in dire need of it.
We’ve done it – our first road trip longer than 30 minutes with the Camper! I’m affectionately calling it the Marshmallow – because it just… wobbles round…
Originally we bought this camper on a whim-ish… We decided back in September 2024 to just stop in to Camping World Statesville, NC to see what they had so we could get an idea of what we wanted. The minute we get out of the truck I look at my very determined husband and ask, “Are you ready to purchase today?” and the answer is a very strict “NO. We are JUST looking”. Guess how long THAT lasted….
So we sit with Gabriel, a new sales guy, and he shows us a few options. We know we definitely want a 5th wheel with a gooseneck hitch, and it needs to have space for us to actually live in, and work in for me. We saw a couple that had weird setups, like a half back room with bunk beds that would need us to build a desk, and another with bunk beds in a closed off room in the middle until we landed on the Montana 3761FL (front living).
We walked back inside to talk numbers… to get an idea of what kind of prices we’re looking at. We were given the specs sheet, and my husband the negotiator went back and forth on the price point we were looking for. “Let me go talk to my manager”, Gabriel comes back with another number.
Husband: “I gave you the number I’m comfortable with, we don’t need a camper right now so we’re in no rush to buy”.
G: “let me talk to my manager again”…
Sales Manager comes in…. more talk. Manager: “we have people coming in to look at this one tomorrow – a $500 deposit will hold it for you” (bullshit. I know your sales tactics… I’m IN sales too.)
Husband: no, I’ll call you when you open at 9am with our decision if you can meet our number.
Finance guy comes in… more talk. GM comes in, looks at us and goes “What’s it going to take to get you guys to sign paperwork today?” By this time it was closing time 6pm-ish. Husband reiterates the number for the umpteenth time – GM looks at his guys and says “do it”.
And that’s how we ended up buying a camper. Real pushover hubby is. But Rodney their finance guy is AMAZING. We really hit it off with him and he was incredibly helpful during the paperwork and additional meetings.
BUT that was just the start of the fun. We went home after depositing and going through all the finance paperwork with no camper (a Tacoma doesn’t pull 13,000 lbs). We left the camper to be serviced with the team and expected to come back in a week or so to pick it up with our 1999 Ford F-250 Super Duty. It also gave us some time to put airbags under the bed of the truck to help lift the weight of the camper so win-win.
We finally get back in to Camping World after our first return that showed they totally dropped the ball and didn’t even look at the thing to start any work… then we came back and did more investigating/ filled out a “we owe” so they would fix other cosmetic things… and we FINALLY hooked it up to tow it home. After figuring out the correct trailer brake settings…. yikes. Hubby pulled it into our driveway and wiggled it back and forth to fit on one side so we could still park the rest of our 900 vehicles at the house… Seriously though, at one point we had the 250, a Hyundai Elantra, an Audi A4, a 1970 C-10 Pickup, a Tacoma, a Mazda…. WE’RE ONLY TWO PEOPLE!!
We also found out the gross fact that Camping World never emptied the previous owner’s black water tank… so we’re litearally towing someone else’s shit around… blegh.
Now the idea was in motion… that meant it was time to start cleaning up/packing up the 4 bed/4 bath house we’d accumulated a ton of crap in over the last 6 years. It took FOR-EV-ER.
We started slowly trying to figure out what to do with all the furniture, luckily one of our friends was moving to military housing and was getting a bigger space than they had so we were able to donate a lot of pieces to their move. The rest was being carefully packed into Lowe’s totes and labeled to be taken to the storage unit down the road. We decided it was time for us to find our perfect land to build our dream home so a lot of the “moving” aspect is very up in the air.
After a few months of slowly moving, and my brain getting the best of me. SERIOUSLY how did we get this much stuff?! I just kept looking at it every day and it was making me anxious, annoyed, overwhelmed…. sometimes all at the same time. We also had quite a few projects to do around the house to get it to what we thought would be a “sellable” state. Don’t ask how much longer THAT took *insert eye roll* but thanks to my parents for coming in over Memorial Day Weekend to knock out the remaining projects so we could get carpets shampooed, house staged, and listed. 4 months… it took 4 MONTHS.
But back to the camper. I like my stuff. It brings me joy. My husband? He’s a minimalist (unless it comes to his tools). So It’s been very difficult for me to whittle down all 4 closets of clothes in the house to one tiny closet space, 4 drawers, and 2 cabinets in the camper. I left him some space too. But here’s the thing – he travels Monday-Friday for work, I’m going to be IN the camper the whole week if I’m not on the road… so I need more space for my stuff! I separated stuff into bins, so in the camper’s under-storage there’s Missy Swim, Missy Scuba, Missy Summer all labeled. AND we were able to fit Missy’s Kayak through the middle! Win!
The camper kept getting heavier and heavier and I was not allowed to bring as many mugs, tumblers, water bottles, etc. as I wanted. I love cups. Husband sees cups all the same – no matter what type it is. But who wants to drink water out of a coffee mug?! weirdo.
So we’re packing, and unpacking, and taking things to storage, and landscaping, and painting, and building stairs, and mopping floors, and resealing the driveway. And then the bright idea comes that we should just buy one of those 40 ft. shipping containers as hubby’s parents have graciously offered for us to park the camper on their land in Tennessee for a while until we find what we want. Great! So now the packing gets into full swing, rest of the furniture that was up on Marketplace gets loaded and stored 3.5 hours away.
After multiple trips with covered trailers, trucks, and emptying the storage unit. We were finally ready to LIST the house! I will say, the last 3 days at the house were balls to the wall crazy. We both took off the end of the week and I had just returned that Wednesday Morning from a work trip (at 1am mind you), slept till 10a and then we got up to finish house projects… Well that went until 1am Thursday morning. A quick nap… because the alarm went off at 5:30a, loaded us into the truck pulling a small trailer up to storage 3.5 hours, with a stop at hubby’s dad’s house, the grandparents house to drop the dog, and then to storage. So it was more like 5 hours. We unloaded and turned right back around to load up the remaining items from the shed and drove BACK to Asheville 2 hours to arrive at a hotel by 2am and shower/sleep. 5:30am alarm Friday we drove the remaining hour & 20 mins to storage, unloaded – wrapped up the car, and stopped back at Mamaw’s for breakfast before heading back to the house. We still had last minute projects and thankfully a friend showed up that evening to help. So another late night with last minute cleaning (fridge, freezer, vacuuming, final touches) meant bed around 1am.
We expected to get up early again Saturday morning, hook up the trailer and haul off by 6am but we didn’t quite get everything finished the night before so we were about 4 hours behind. We finally got on the road to VA where we would park the camper outside my parents house in their neighborhood for a week and finish our trek to NY for the summer. It’s important to note that the town code we read for VA states that campers can be parked in residential areas for a maximum 10 days. Remember that for later…..
A slight snafu in a gas station with a tight turn and only being able to go 65mph on the highway turned our 5 hour 40 minute drive into 7 hours. But we were SO glad to finally be in a comfortable place. Hubby pulls the camper while I follow behind with a rental U-Haul filled with leftover goodies to take to my sister, and a very anxious kitty traveler. It’s a family affair!
We finally arrive, park, setup, and unload the small U-Haul – returning it was a debacle when one place says 24 hour drop off but then has a “no drop-off after hours, you will be towed” so then having to search for another one 45 mins away… but all seems well.
Some neighbors just can’t mind their own business… We receive a knock at the door on Monday evening from a local police officer who asks if this is our camper… umm yeah, it’s parked in front of our house…. and says there’s been a complaint about it. He asks when it arrived, and we tell him it’ll be gone by Saturday (literally 1 week). He repeats 3 times that “it is parked legally, and can be there for up to 10 days.” He just asks that we pull the bump out that’s hanging over the sidewalk by 6 inches back in so there’s no overhang (mind you, this bump out is hosting the cat’s litterbox, water & food since momma is allergic to cats). We say no problem, and he’s on his way to explain to the complainers that the camper is allowed to be there.
Well that didn’t last long – Tuesday evening the same officer comes BACK to the house because the complainer has complained AGAIN – and now he says the town lawyer has interpreted the very vague code to include a tag-along camper in the “motorhome” category and we can only have it parked there for 24 hours. Cue the search for a place to park the Marshmallow for the next few days nearby, transferring fridge/freezer contents to mom’s garage fridge (because we were plugged in), hiding the cat in mom’s basement bathroom, and making sure everything inside was secure for a move… We were seriously contemplating pulling it to Walmart for 24 hours and bringing it back for 24 hours just to piss off the complainer. Every 24 hours it resets right?! I want to argue the “very vague code” and say if it’s open to interpretation, then why do I have to move it? But I was shot down and now it’s time for me to figure out how to hook up, and pull this behemoth for the first time ever. Hubby is already headed to Canada for work… First time for everything right?!
Tangent/side quest story – we ended up switching trucks to pull the camper. On March 23rd we had just completed another trip up to TN for storage unloading, and unhooked the small trailer from the Ford. We had some supper, and I suggested we take the truck to the shop for some small upgrades hubby wanted on it. For some odd reason we can’t figure out, the truck would not start… So we had the fun challenge of towing an F-250 Super Duty with a Toyota Tacoma a few miles down the road to the mechanic’s shop. It’s now June 18th… THEY STILL HAVE NOT LOOKED AT THE DANG TRUCK. So we went into crisis mode of “how the heck are we going to pull this camper?!” Thankfully, hubby’s dad offered us the use of his old F-350 Super Duty, and so here we are.
Since we’re at my parent’s home that they’ve lived in for the last 30 years, and they’re both retired, mom called around to some friends to find a parking spot, and dad helped me back up the truck/hook up the camper. Did I mention that this F-350 has no backup camera, and has a toolbox blocking the view of half of the bed? I’m reversing blind towards the camper’s gooseneck hitch and praying I’m sort-of close. To dad’s and my surprise, I only had to try it twice! I was about an inch off the first time so that brought some confidence! I had also mentioned to hubby that there was no way I was ever going to pull the camper by myself, I’ve driven the Redskins RV way back when we started Training Camp in Richmond… but that was 10+ years ago, I’ve never pulled anything that was 40+ ft. attached to a truck!
No time like the present to get over your nerves and pull a 13,000+ lb trailer for the first time… Nobody else was going to do it. I will say, I was pretty proud of myself to get it hooked up, and SLOOOOOOOWLY down the road. I only clipped 2 curbs (barely) on right turns. Not bad for a city girl!
So here we are… half way through the first week of pulling our camper and it’s parked at a local church (with a sign of approval for parking in the window). We have a call in to Camping World in Cicero, NY for a few diagnostic checks before we end our first journey in Alexandria Bay for the summer. The awning motor went out, so hubby will have to work on that before we take off as it’s the only thing actually holding the awning closed to to the camper. We’d like to check out why one of the back wheels is tilted in at the top, there’s a little dent/scrape in the aluminum by the wheel well due to our gas station snafu, and the original cracking we saw in the entertainment center wood has gotten worse with this pull (which could be a frame issue).
Because hubby was not allowed into Canada for work (somebody from his company didn’t put in the work permit….. again), he drove to Indiana instead. Which coincidentally meant he was 8 minutes away from the Keystone Corporate office (the manufacturer of our camper)! So he stopped in to ask some questions and show some photos – we’ll see what comes of that on Saturday when we get to Cicero.
One more thing to add – since leaving NC on Saturday with our house staged and the for sale sign in the yard…. Somebody hit our mailbox AND trash cans and continued driving… Great. Our neighbors called to tell us what happened and they thankfully picked up the trash for us as we were scheduled to have a showing on Wednesday the 18th and wouldn’t be able to get back down before then. Add it to the list of things to finalize on hubby’s trip next week back to Charlotte… I’d love to catch a break soon!
missylouniverse 