Monday, August 16, 2010

Road Trip!





Ok so call me crazy, but as you know for the last 4 years I have been searchin for a vintage trailer, one we could take to my son's college football games. I thought how much fun it would be to tailgate in a cute little trailer?! Well in May I finally found it, it wasn't as old as I wanted it to be, but it suited my family well, a 1969 Aloha. It was a little bigger than I wanted, but that's cuz it has a bathroom (toilet only). Thank Goodness for that bathroom...do you know what it is like to get up in the cold of the night and try to run to the bath house to use the facilities? Let me tell ya'll, I have to stop and cross my legs a few times before I reach my destination, eeekkk! Alright, now back to my story...

I was so lookin forward to takin her to Pocatello,Idaho where my son goes to school. This past weekend hubby and I did just that. We drove the 700+ miles from Puyallup to get there. Hubby drove most of the way, he always makes it look so easy. I wasn't afraid of drivin it, after all I brought her home on the backroads all by myself.

After a few hours it was my turn to drive, hubs was gettin tired. We couldn't drive normal freeway speeds cuz it would sway if you went faster than 55 (this made for a very loooong trip). So I took my place behind the wheel and began my section of the trek. Holy Crap! BERNEICE SWAYED ALL OVER THE PLACE!!!!! We were comin down the hill into Pendelton, Oregon when I thought I was gonna lose it. After tons of shoutin and screamin at hubby and him at me...I was ready to drop her and leave her there. Even after all that dreamin and searchin for 4 years, I was done and couldn't handle pulling it anymore.

Flashes went through my mind of puttin her on Craigslist and the difficulty of tryin to sell her when she was 5 hours from my home. Finally I calmed down and remembered that there were these things called sway bars (I have since found out that they are called weight distribution stabilizers). I needed one of those fast, in a town I wasn't familiar with. GOOD LUCK! We didn't have alot of time either cuz son had a scrimmage the next day and we still had to drive 7 more hours.

I got on my trusty I Phone and started searchin for an RV place. Finally I called Thompson RV and a nice man answered the phone. I explained to him that "I have this vintage trailer and it was pullin me all over the place!" Most men think I am crazy when I start talkin about "vintage" trailers, I expected him to be no different. But what I heard was, "I know just what you need my daughter and wife have vintage trailers! Bring it on in." He gave me directions to his establishment and told me to hurry up cuz his crew was gonna go to lunch in 20 minutes. Once again I pulled out my trusty I Phone and used the GPS to track Thompson's down. We made it just in time.

While Berneice was having her new accessory installed I got a chance to talk to Corrin (daughter) and her mother. And guess what...their cute little trailers were on display in the showroom of Thompson's RV. I was in heaven and took some pics to show you.
Corrin's trailer is a 1967 Aloha and is cute as a button.



Both mom and daughter are "sisters on the fly". Needless to say I enjoyed my little visit there, the sway bar was installed quickly and we were on the road again! I should also tell you that little bar made all the difference in the world. Now Berneice is a breeze to tow and I can keep her!!

P.S. Dixie did a fabulous show this past weekend, so we'll have pics of that for ya'll soon!

Happy Junkin Adventures!
Linda

8 comments:

  1. What kind of vehicle was towing the trailer? When hubby moved "Connie" from grayland to our house, hubby had no "pulling" but he had borrowed a Ford F150 to move her. We plan on buying a truck next spring for when the old gal is ready for camping (still being restored) and I want to know if we will need one of those "sway" bars too.

    XOXO

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great story, I can only imagine what it might have felt like swaying all over the place. Yikes.

    ReplyDelete
  3. That story sort of reminded me of Lucy and Desi's The Long, Long Trailer. LOL Glad you got a bar! And I do love the camper. I'm not a camper person myself. I prefer to be waited on and cleaned up after in a hotel. Doesn't even have to be a nice hotel. But I've always thought I'd love to have a vintage camper. That's the only way I'd consider not staying in a hotel. ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. when my kids were young we bought and old 1950s era travel trailer. it was a mess when we found it but we fixed it up. i have some great memories of camping trips. enjoy!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a darling story! You crack me up!! I am glad you found a trailer and got the sway bars and enjoyed your game! ;)
    p.s. I loved that you named her Berneice. It reminds me of Sandra Bullock's daughter from "Hope Floats"!
    ~michelle~

    ReplyDelete
  6. Phew! What a hair raising event! As I read this, I thought "Oh, she needs to read "Sisters on the Fly" for tips on driving whilw towing a trailer, then you mentioned meeting them at the RV shop! Too funny! I'm really glad that Berneice made it safely and doesn't have to be orphaned at the side of the road =:) Leena

    ReplyDelete
  7. Love the cute RV, and your great blog!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I love your story! We just had our "dear girl" dropped off in the parking lot today and I can't wait to get her fixed up and on the move. We have a 1976 Town and Country Station Wagon to tow her with so I am sure we will have many stories of our own to share with you :). My girlfriend Jana let me adopt her. Jana is so amazing and creative but didn't have the time to undertake a restoration project. You should check out her blog as I am sure you would just love all of her pics and projects. Her blog is twigdecor.blogspot.com. Thanks again for the story :). Carrie

    ReplyDelete