Day 6 – A Wrench in the Works

Narration Here.
Today was an early rise of 7am to get coffee and walk the dog in anticipation of a call from the mobile repair guy, Charles. He had promised to call the place that was to receive the part (Suspension air bag) at 7am when they opened.

The Part

After lots of pacing Kevin called Charles the owner of TN mobile truck service at 8:20 to inquire on the status. Charles hesitated and said 'Oh yeah let me call him now'. Kevin's concerns that left him virtually sleepless, the night before, were unfolding.

At 9:30 Kevin called again, left a voicemail reminding Charles of the invoice required by the extended warrantee co and also requested a call back with the status.

At 10:30, another call was placed by Kevin. The report was that the part was not in, but Charles did dispatch somebody to go to the location where the part was going to be delivered and be there to pick it up as soon as it arrived. (Overnight really means it gets there when it gets there and you pay hundreds of dollars for it to arrive when all the other parts arrive). Charles confirmed with Kevin that after they got the part it would take an hour to get to the campsite and then a half hour to one hour to install. This put the best possible completion slightly past the campground noon check out time.

At 11:30 Kevin calls again. Charles reported that the part was retrieved and they were on the way to he campsite but no ETA.

Kevin and Theresa were keeping the fellow campers as well as the campsite office informed of the progress. Jimmy and Cheryl (ones who swapped spaces with us) had also talked to the office and said they were willing to park in the parking area somewhere and be plugged in just so the refrigerator could work if that would help alleviate the overcrowding issue caused by the Smitanic's in ability to move. The park office also called the arriving campers who needed the site, to let them know of the situation and asked them not to arrive before 4:30.

At 12:15 the repair truck arrived with the same driver as yesterday (the secretary) and a young mechanic who was not completely aware of the entire situation but was sent to the job site by Charles.



Kevin briefed the Youngster on the situation and walked him thru the entire diagnosis including adding air pressure to hear the source of the leak. Kevin raised the front end with the jacks as high as they could go, so the newbie could assess what was needed. He identified the same issue as Charles and now had a better idea of the challenge ahead. He struggled for one hour just to try to get one bolt off of the existing airbag.

Using a hammer he struggled with the second upper bolt tapping on the monkey wrench. The wrench was just not big enough to give him enough leverage and this method would risk rounding off the bolt.

The Newbie talked to himself a bit and was frustrated that Charles had taken the Service truck with all the tools in it to a different job site. And the Newbies truck, with all his tools, didn't start this AM, so he came in the same truck that was there the previous day which did not have all the tools he needed to do the job. Kevin's premunitions again were unfolding.

Theresa thought maybe the park maintenance would have something that would help, so she went up to the office to ask. The camp host summoned a ranger to site 116.

Ranger Eric pulled up and the Newbie told him what size of wrench was needed. Ranger Eric noted the size and hopped back in his truck and went to the maintenance shop for the park to see if they had anything that met the criteria.




Ranger Eric returned with four different choices. The newbie tried each choice. One was close but no-cigar! Off by an eighth of an inch. Ranger Eric retrieved one more wrench from his truck but alas that had the wrong angle for the very limited space under the RV.

The Newbie explained the limitation of the wrench and Ranger Eric took one more trip the the camp maintenance toolbox to see if he could find an alternative that met the more precise criteria.

The ranger was back in 10 min with yet another wrench that hit the mark. It was now 2:30 and after an additional 40 min of struggling, the newbie was able to get the final bolt loosened and the failing air bag removed. Once removed the group was able to see clearly the damage that had been bestowed upon the air bag by interstate 40. Pictures were taken to document the carnage. Kevin picked up the bent frame of the air bag and estimated that single piece weighed more than 20 lbs. The damage done could only have been supplied by a roadside IED or a series of I-40 Potholes.

At 3:15, the Newbie now started attaching the new part. With the proper tools the new air bag was attached. Then it took multiple tries to get the airline reattached. At 3:53 the RV was ready to test to see if the air pressure would make it over 100psi.

To Kevin's, Theresa's, the campground neighbor's as well as the repair staff's delight all systems were deemed a GO. The Smitanic was cleared for departure!

The RV was carefully guided out of site 116 and into a staging zone in a nearby parking area so the Toad could be attached along with the finicky Break Buddy. This time it only took 2 tries to get the desired “Ready” message on the Break Buddy's display screen.

The original destination of the Tom Sawyer RV park was entered into Nora (gps), however with Jimmy's sage advice to opt out of that site, Theresa cancelled those reservations completely and began a search for a recommended KOA just west of Memphis in AR. Jimmy and his wife and son-in law were fun to spend time with. Jimmy was a great story teller and he even admitted that some of them might have been true. They brought great camping Karma to the day and we expect they will receive it magically in return when needed.

The route to Memphis was back on the 1-40 mine field. Kevin cringed and cursed as he tried to navigate the unavoidable construction zone explosives. Theresa lost stiches in her crochet project with each shattering impact.

Once across the Mississippi river and into Arkansas the route was a short 14 miles north on I-55. It was a welcome relief to be finally off I-40! Kevin was worn out from the 1-40 fight! He felt as though he had been 10 rounds in the boxing ring with Mohamad Ali !

The KOA had a pull-thru site that would allow the Toad to stay attached for a quick exit in the AM, that would be after enjoying breakfast at the Kamp Kafe!

The route from this point west will never return to I-40. The team hopes the worst roads are behind them. Stay tuned to see if it is smooth sailing from here on out.

Day 5 - Unable to move.

Narration Here.
As the team settled in for the evening they were serenaded by a gentle, un-rhythmic, tapping of small twigs, pine cones, and branches hitting the Smitanic roof. This symphony was then joined by the pidder-patter of small rain drops that would crescendo and subside with the pattern established by the earlier instruments. Theresa lay there realizing she had set the lawn chairs out earlier in the day and had not folded them and stowed them prior to battening down the hatches for the evening. Just as the team was adjusting to the sounds of the symphony there was a THUMP on the roof of the Smitanic. It was either Santa Clause crash landing his Sleigh in July atop the Smitanic, or a much larger tree part that had lost its grip on life. In the morning Kevin will need to climb the ladder to inspect the debris/damage that may have happened to the roof of the vessel. Soon the team was fast asleep and resting for the next days events.

Zinfandel made it known at 7:20 am that the team needed to rise and greet the day. She sneezes, flops her ears, beats the end to the bed with her tail, whines, and then finally climbs up on the edge of the bed to asses if the occupants are dead or alive.

The team gathered themselves up, brushed teeth and prepared the first cup of coffee.

Zinfandel was walked while the first cup of coffee is consumed. Kevin took that time to climb the ladder and inspect the roof. No large branches were spied, just lots of twigs, pine needles, and pine cones. The forest sheds more than a sheep dog during the summer months.

Plenty of time remained to leisurely break camp. The process began at 8:20 am and lasted only 15 minutes. The water was disconnected, slides pulled in, engine started, jacks stowed, wet lawn chairs packed, and shore power disconnected. Kevin then began his normal walk around the vessel looking and listening for anything out of the norm. All was looking good as he circled the RV from drivers front wheel around the back of the bus to the passenger’s front wheel. It was at that location that Kevin stopped, listened, and placed his ear closer to the tire. HISSSSSSSSsssssss………. . Kevin told himself it was just the air compressor topping off the pressure line to the air brakes or to the air suspension. Give it time he thought and it will stop. As he waited for the noise to subside he entered the Smitanic to inspect the air pressure gauges. Rear Pressure was at or slightly above 100 psi (safe to drive), Front air pressure gauge was struggling to reach 100 psi. Rev the engine to encourage the air compressor to speed the build up of pressure. No change noted on the gauge. Kevin then exited the vessel to determine if the noise had subsided. Nope. Immediately Kevin began to stress and surmise that the roads the day before had indeed done damage to the front end of the vessel. Either the brake line or an air bag on the passenger front end had been damaged by the poor road conditions. All the air suddenly escaped Kevin’s body as he realized this is not going to be an early start for the day.

Plans were made by the team to call road side assistance and the extended warrantee companies to put them on notice of the situation and to start the long drawn out processes of initiating claims and calls for service.

Road Side assistance was quick to respond and was ready to dispatch a mobile repairperson immediately. Roadside assistance typically covers simple items like jump starting, delivering fuel, and changing tires. They would pay the service fee for the mobile repair company to visit the RV and assess the true damage. That would then need to be relayed to the Extended Warrantee Company to gain approval to complete the repairs and to have some of the expense of the repair covered under the limited terms of the policy.
The phone calls were made to the extended warrantee company to see what if anything they would cover. Time elapsed as the team was on hold and the check out time of noon was looming. Finally Kevin had an opportunity to speak with a representative to explain the situation and to seek approval for a mobile repair service visit. This was approved but did not provide for approval of repairs. The mobile service person would have to assess the situation, get full costs of parts and labor to repair and then call that into the extended warrantee company to get an authorization number before proceeding with repairs.

Kevin called the Roadside assistance service to request they go ahead and dispatch the mobile repair personnel. Kevin was informed of the name of the mobile repair service and that they would be there within the hour. It was now 10:30 am check out time is 12 pm. The only hope is that the repair can be completed before 4 pm, which is the earliest check in time for those scheduled for the campsite currently occupied by the Smitanic.

The team elected to plug back into shore power and turn on the air conditioners as they waited for repairs. A call was placed to the State Camp Ground staff to warn them of the situation and to ask if the Smitanic can stay in port till repairs are made.

The response from the staff of the TN state campground was one of no sympathy. You must move that vehicle. It was explained that the vehicle can not move because the suspension will not raise up high enough for the front tires to clear the wheel wells which means the front tires can not be turned right or left. WE DON’T CARE, THAT VEHICLE MUST BE MOVED, SOMEONE HAS YOUR SITE TODAY, and the campground is full for the weekend.

Kevin and Theresa elected to spend the next hour waiting for the dispatched repairperson to arrive by listening to Kiehl’s latest “MR. Opinion” Podcast, conversation #9. An hour passed. Kevin gets a call from the Road Side assistance company to ask if the repair had been completed or if it is underway. No the repair person had not yet shown up to start the repair. Kevin was placed on hold while they tried to locate the mobile repair service. Kevin was informed that the Mobile repair team was within 15 min of getting to the location. Time is now 11:40 and the Smitanic will not be able to shove off by noon.

15 minutes passed and no mobile repair person, 20 minutes passed and a call came in to Kevin’s Phone. “We are at the entrance to the park were are you?”. Kevin gave them the site number and camp loop name to help direct them to the Smitanic. Theresa ran up to the road to help direct them to the spot. 20 minutes passed. A call to Kevin’s phone. “We drove all the way down Highway 70 and to Highway 46 and could not find you”. “You drove passed the entrance to the park which is off of Highway 70” replied Kevin. “You will need to come back on 70 and the park entrance will be on your left”.

After another 15 – 20 minutes a pickup truck (not a mobile repair vehicle) entered the campground and rolled up to site 116. It was now 12:30 pm and new campers began to circle the campground in search for their weekend sites.

The Mobile repair service was a husband and wife team. She drove the truck and he assessed the repairs that would be needed. There were NO TOOLS in the truck so there would be NO repairs completed on the site.

Kevin explained what he had heard and what the roads were like the day before. The mobile repair person smiled and said the highway disrepair is his best friend. His business is booming with truckers all breaking down due to the poor road conditions of the nations highways.

Kevin and the Mobile repair person worked as a team to pinpoint the problem. The air leak was coming from the passenger side front air bag. It was blown out due to the various potholes encountered over the last couple of days.

Just as the diagnosis was being made the campers who had site 116 reserved for the day arrived and wanted to know why were not gone. Interesting that check in time is 4 pm and they were there about 1 pm. Theresa explained the situation and the new arrivals agreed to take a spot across from 116 and hope they do not have to move the next day when the campers who have that spot reserved arrive. Hopefully the Smitanic will be able to vacate site 116 before others arrive the next day. The new arrivals were very sympathetic to the plight of the Smitanic and seeing the struggle even grabbed Theresa’s hand to offer a short prayer. Amen.

Calls were made to find a new air bag that would fit the Smitanic. Timing is the issue with the Smitanic at risk of being towed by the state park if not out of the site by check out next day.

Parts were found but not locally. The parts would need to be shipped over night at a cost of $450 to be available the next day. The cost to overnight parts is not covered by any warrantee. Kevin had to pay upfront all costs by check not credit card before the parts would be ordered. Kevin requested that the Smitanic be the first item on the mobile repair teams agenda the next morning.

“We sure will do the best we can” was the reply along with a wink and a grin. After the repair guy left, proper introductions were made to the new arrivals, Jimmy and Cheryl from Memphis, here for the weekend with their family.

That was the start of day 5 of the Smitanic Northern Exposure.

Later Jimmy came over with fresh picked cucumbers as a good RV neighbor. RV people are truly the nicest!

Day 4 – BB challenge !

Narration Here.
The mileage today would take the upward side of 5 hours, which called for an early departure of 9 AM. All proper departure tasks had been completed by 8:40 am and the team was set to meet the 9 AM departure goal. Kevin pulled the Smitanic into a empty pull thru site so the Toad could be attached and breaking system (Break Buddy) properly configured. It had taken only 20 min to disassemble the RV and all it's systems, but another 1 hour past to get a successful test on the Break Buddy. Why so long you ask?? The BB is a device that hooks onto the break pedal of the car and then is wedged on the floor of the front seat. When engaged, the BB will protrude the arm that is attached to the break pedal while using the front drivers seat for leverage. This must be a fail-safe motion, all moon and stars must be aligned properly so that when needed on down hills or extreme breaking situations the tow vehicle will break as well as the RV, making less strain and effort for the RV thus reducing the total breaking distance for the Smitanic and its Toad.
The BB set up is all about precision! The unit must be precisely aligned so the breaking is ensured in 3 modes, soft, medium and OMG! A test is preformed to ensure proper alignment in all 3 modes. The first day it took only 1 try (about 10 min), day 2 took 45 minutes, day 3 no driving and today 1 hour to get a 'Ready' on the BB 3 cycle test. Not a good way to start a very long day. Both Kevin and Theresa were totally drenched in sweat by the end of the BB challenge. 

The course for the day initially took the Smitanic and it crew on a back track thru the Pigeon Forge fair grounds for about 1 hour (18 miles) and back on to I-40 West. Construction was underway in 4-5 spots and there were sudden jolts each time a bridge was entered and exited. Pans crashed and glasses tinked as well as several items fell from their stowage. Theresa would investigate and report damage back to the helm. With each pot hole and bridge bump the Break Buddy System interpreted the jolts as the Smitanic breaking and would apply the breaks on the Toad. Kevin wondered why he ever invested in new shocks and a front-end alignment on the Smitanic! It would undoubtedly need to be redone. The bumps and jolts, and dodging of potholes reminded the two of a bolder infested mountain biking trail named 'The Rubicon Trail' in Lake Taos. That too jolted every bone in ones frantic body as each bolder field was survived. The team is expecting a smoother road is part of the I-40 ongoing repairs, with Congress holding up the Transportation bill, trips on our nations highways may get worse not better.

The jolts continued to send articles flying about the RV thru Knoxville and then Nashville, TN. Kevin was warn to a frazzle as Nora (name for the voice of the RV GPS, doesn't everyone name the voice?) announced a route up and around then back east to find the entrance to the state park. The route took the Smitanic 15 miles off of I-40 and onto two lane country roads. These roads were smooth and well maintained.

As the Smitanic slowed to make the entrance to the park, Theresa misjudged the entrance to the park office, and soon the Smitanic was faced the wrong direction in the welcome center parking. After visiting with the park staff in the office, the Toad was unhooked so there would be more maneuverability out of the parking lot going against the traffic flow. Theresa drove the Toad and led Kevin to the camp ground entrance. The campground was a labyrinth of trees and other non-RV friendly obstacles that Kevin navigated like a true captain in one with his vehicle.

The temps were at the 95 degree mark with extreme humidity and no breeze allowing the insect population free reign on any exposed skin. The temp inside the RV had risen to the 90+ mark as the dash AC just could not keep up. Finally the Smitanic was docked next to a stream that resembled the Swamps of the south complete with the foliage and stagnate water pools. Theresa did see a school of small rainbow colored fish in the river seemingly waiting for a handout or maybe just a hand...Piranha?

The AC was started and with in 30 min there was some relief to the over heated day. A few libations and munchies were served to keep the appetites at bay until a time-zone delayed dinner. Leftovers are on tap to reduce clean up and deplete the refrigerator congestion.

Tomorrows trek will be shorter only 194 miles to Tom Sawyer's RV Park in West Memphis, AR, for a 2 night stay.

A new state has been added, to the 'Been There' map on the driver side slide out of the RV, for TN, yeah!

Please also note, Theresa will be marking the BB positioning with tape in hopes to reduce future set up time... hopeful that it works!

Day 3 - There's bears in them there woods!

Narration Here. 
This was a special day as it marked Theresa's 61st b-day. She requested to commemorate it with a 6.1 mile hike up to Rainbow Falls.

The route to the trail head guided the adventurers thru Gatlinburg then up into the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. The team arrived at a reasonable 9:30AM and found that the trail head parking was fully booked, as well as any available spaces within the next .25 miles. Alas an unofficial parking spot was found that would suit the commander (Kevin) for the estimated '3 hour' tour. All accoutrements were gathered, Boot laces where threaded and knotted on ever-aging hiking boots. Onto the trail head, to begin the assent, 1500 ft of vertical climb over 2.7 miles. Kevin strided out with steps that doubled the distance Theresa took with each single step. Within seconds he was yards ahead forcing him to pause every quarter mile for Theresa to come into view. The hike continued with this tortoise and hare rhythm that seemed to accommodate both hikers styles of assent on the path.

One of the earliest groups headed down the hill that crossed paths, was a young couple with the Dad carrying a yearling in a back pack! This brought a smile to both Kevin and Theresa as it reminded them of similar treks with Kassel in the backpack and Kiehl foraging thru the Virgin River of Zion! Very fond memories! Families doing adventures together build life long memories. 

The trail paralleled a falling stream for most of the trail and on several occasions traversed the river either by stepping stone or 'log bridge'. After 2 + hours of steady climbing, the renown Rainbow Falls were reached! A brief stop enabled Theresa to off-load some of the ballast she had carried all the way to the top . Traditionally she has elected to carry food supplies that would have saved the Donner Pass Party. On todays trek she packed a grocery bag that consisted of apples, grapes and a full box of granola bars. She begged Kevin to consume the nutrients to lighten her load. Kevin was still full from the morning breakfast that was prepared by Theresa in her attempt to fend off any risk of starvation on the days climb. Kevin kindly agreed to nibble on some apple slices to make her feel as if lugging a grocery bag of goodies was indeed necessary for the short climb, and to lighten her load on the way back down.

As the team headed out there would be no more climbing, so one would think the down hill was easier??? Think again! Blisters had already formed on both of Theresa's heals and her knees where starting to wobble at each step downward. Kevin would stop and wait every .5 miles or so to allow Theresa to catch up. 

One stop Kevin reported that a black bear was on the trail in front of him! The Bear was observed by Kevin as it walked down the path only to stop due to a group it encountered on their way up. The Bear then turned towards Kevin who was busy reading his camera. The Bear then looked down the trail and again up the trail in an effort to determine the best route to take. Just as Kevin got his camera aimed towards the bear it elected to dash into the trees and down the slop out of site. Theresa was a bit jealous as she did want to see a bear in the woods! The decent continued with Kevin separated from Theresa by at least .5 miles. Theresa rounded a bend to find 2 young men heading upward waiting for the rest of their party. She bid them a howdy and then looked up to the oncoming trail to see a BIG BLACK BEAR around the next curve! She whispered back to the 2 dudes “Bear “ and pointed! She then got her phone out to take evidentiary pictures. The pics were not that good so please just take her at her word there was a BEAR! Or maybe it was Kevin mooning her, so she could see a Bear in the woods.

The downward slope continued with many more hikers headed both up the trail and down the trail. Some clearly not outfitted with proper boots or grocery bags filled with a weeks supply of nutrients and water. Finally a parking lot was spotted indicating the trail head was emanate. 

The last .3 miles was on the road now fully lined with parked cars for hikers making a similar trek. It was great to see this much enthusiasm for hiking such a strenuous trail!

At the car blisters where assessed, gear (cameras, hiking slicks, water bottles, hats, and a partially consumed grocery bag of goodies) were placed in the vehicle, and the car AC was turned on in preparation for the return to home base!

Upon arrival at the Smitanic, Zin was impatiently awaiting as she was not allowed on this Great Smokey Mountain park trail. She greeted the adventurers with her rawhide bone and a wagging tail.

Sweaty cloths were thrown into the Smitanic washing machine. Birthday Wine was pored. chairs were positioned in the shade, and the team took a full accounting of a great day.

As evening approached Kevin prepared a fantastic dinner of steak, corn on the cob and broccoli for the birthday feast, that was consumed while gazing at the flowing Pidgeon River! 

Tomorrow is a lengthy trek (249 miles) drive to Montgomery Bell State Park, TN.

Day 2 – I would drive 100 miles...

Narration Here
Today was 100 miles of continuous Mountain Roads. From Black Mountain, NC to Pigeon Forge, TN. No less than 40% of the road was under construction the other 60% had several spots, always on a mountain curve, that blew the front tires due to potholes deep enough to sink the TOAD. Interestingly enough once the Tennessee border was crosses the road became smoother and gas prices dropped dramatically, diesel prices were $.50 a gallon less. One would think that some of that North Carolina gas tax could be spent on road repair! Oh wait the gas tax is used for specific political party pork belly projects. Which party is in control of NC legislature? Got to love it!

Soon after entering Tennessee, Theresa spotted a sign declaring the road was named after Albert Arnold Gore Sr., who was a senator from Tennessee. We all may recall that his son, Vice president, Al Gore, was the self proclaimed creator of the Internet. This historically named road twisted and descended the west side of the Great Smoky Mountains with rapid switchbacks as if it was a snake attacking a cheetah. Theresa hung on for dear life as Kevin skillfully managed the engine break, calculating the proper time to engage and disengage it while threading the construction barricades. Gradually the terrain changed to more oscillating hills and the tension at the helm eased. Command Central then lowered the threat to defcon 3.

Expectations of Pigeon Forge were of a quaint rural country town. What was observed was a continuous stream of state fair carnival rides, games for kids and buffet eating establishments lining both sides of an ever-congested main drag thru the highly commercial Vegas want-a-be vacation mecca. The Smitanic took an hour to navigated the 10 mile stretch of State Fair Grounds traffic, parking lots and attractions known as Pigeon Forge.

One saving grace of the day was the campground that was recommended by Alfredo!. The location is along the Pigeon River, and the Smitanic was able to dock next to the water. Jacks were dropped, water and sewer connected, Cable TV and 50 amps plugged in. Kevin kept checking the switch-over to the campsite electrical service. 

Time passed and the systems on board the Smitanic were not responding to shore power. Upon further review Kevin noticed that the 50 amp surge protector was only registering line 1 and not line 2. With 50 amp there should be two lines of power to the surge protector. After debugging the campsite electrical issues the team reported their findings to the front office. The office dispatched someone who confirmed the diagnosis and replaced the 50 amp circuit breaker. All systems came online.

In need of some supplies, a trip to the grocery store was emanate. It was around 4:30pm, an with every other vacationer under a similar mission, it was crash cart bumper cars in the isles. Kevin and Theresa skillfully navigated the cart to retrieve all items on the list.

Dinner of chicken wraps were prepared and put on the grill which allowed for time to gaze at a family navigating the water in tubes floating down the river.

The TV was turned on after dinner to discover that no stations were being received. Back to the office to request someone to have a look! After several attempts.... there is still no cable TV. No great loss.

Tomorrow's plans are focused around Theresa's 61st birthday. The plan is to hike Rainbow Falls which will result in a 6.1 mile arduous hike to celebrate the birthday. Followed by 6,100 happy Birth Day wishes from her Face Book Friends. Do not disappoint her folks!

Day 1 -- The Departure

Listen to Narration

It did not take long to load up the final electronics, diddy bag and misc items into the RV, unhook the water and electric from the home port, raise the Jacks and bring the slides in and ready the vessel for departure. The GPS was set for the days destination of a KOA near Black Mountain, NC. The Toad was attached and a few final photo opps were snapped as Jack was abandoned to hold down the Tasman Fort!

Departure was at 9:47 and progressed directly West on I40. After 40 miles into the trip a stop was made for fuel at the Mebane Pilot station for the Smitanic's inaugural pit stop. The Smitanic left home port with only half a tank of diesel. The familiar I-40 route headed west past Greensboro and would normally lead the duo to Snaggy Mountain Retreat near Boone NC, however this trip would remain on I-40 and miss the turn off on 421 towards Boone. The Smitanic would now be pointed further west to Hickory and on into the high country. The elevation changed dramatically about 60 miles east of Asheville. Kevin felt like Chris Froome on stage 20 of the Tour de France picking his optimum assent path up Alpe d’Huez calculating speed and matching effort to make a smooth effortless climb with the Smitanic. The assent began to strain the Smitanic engine as Kevin's observed the engine temperature climbing ever so slowly from 200 to 203, then 204-207, now 213. Around the bend there was a semi truck up ahead with four-way flashers illuminating to warn of a slower speed. Kevin thought there was plenty of time to make a lane change, so the turn signal goes on, then a car in the distance behind the Smitanic rushes forward and traps the not so nimble vessel behind the semi truck! 

The Smitanic quickly looses all momentum dropping to 30 mph and putting the engine in a lower RPM. Just as the passing car clears the right shoulder of the Smitanic driver he throws the helm hard alee, the Smitanic responds by yawing left and is forced to swerve to avoid the semi truck. Then the dash board lights up, the computer starts blinking --- maximum engine temperature reached 220° with just a half a mile to go to the crest of the hill there was no choice but to back off, keep going, engine lugging at a lower RPM resulting in even higher engine temp … damn the torpedoes! Once the crest of the hill was reached (which happened to be the Eastern Continental Divide), the pressure was taken off the gas pedal, the RPMs returned to a higher rev, and the engine temperature began to decrease back to normal. Yikes, what will the Rockies be like?

Since the destination was going to be in Black Mountain area the team texted Steve Cope, to see if he was in town. Steve was a Founding Father of the Thorns N Roses Bicycle group. In that group Steve was known as the Chipmunk. Unfortunately he had just left the day before so they have to catch him on the switchback.

Camp was set up by 2:15, and much to Kevin and Theresa's delight the first train rolled by 15 min later blowing its horn to announce its arrival not more than 100 feet of the campsite! Got to love campground logistics.

The park was a nice KOA with a stream running through it for tubing as well as a lake for some of the tent sites. The Smitanic was docked poolside, nice!

Lots of shade and the convenience store was just steps away. Upon check-in an additional $2.50 was paid for 50 amp. To make for a quick exit in the AM, just water, electric and cable were hooked up! No sewer was connected, so the team will hall all their (shxt) with them to the next port.

Dinner/lunch was centered around a bag, discovered during the refrigerator clean-out, of 'freezer surprise' that Theresa thought was precooked ground turkey, but instead was 1year old + BBQ pulled pork from the 2014 KASMAD fund-raiser last June. Theresa thought for only a moment about the risk of eating year old BBQ, but the hunger prevailed ! It was awesome between some miscellaneous hamburger buns also cryogenically frozen for some indeterminate time period. A salad would round out the meal fit for a king & his queen.

What an awesome first day!

Kevin was exhausted from the drive and Theresa promised a very short drive the next day of just around 100 miles to Pigeon Forge, TN. The quest is afoot.

T -1 Day - The Preparation and send off

Listen to narration here

The conundrum and configuration was discussed over lunch with Ron & Tracy Clanton, soon to be full-timers. As the RV aficionado, Ron offered some alternate configurations using some spare bike racks and such that he was not currently using. It was worth a try. After hours of trying out the various configurations it was discovered that none of the combinations were going to work with the bikes that were going. Ron and Tracy even made trips to stores in Garner to see if there were parts that would help solve the tight clearance issue. Thanks for the valent effort ! Back to Plan B.

The main challenge in getting ready for the trip is not the route nor were to stay as that was planned months ago with the help of Good Sam's Club Trip planner. The real challenge is how to get all the Stuff into, on top & behind of the Toad and it then hooked to the RV. This year a new car top carrier was acquired to hold biking, airplane and other non-heat sensitive paraphernalia. This freed up lots of space in the RV 'basement' storage as well as the Car. With the journey including 9 months away from the base camp more stuff was desired. Kevin had his new Drone with accompanying electronic support devices, the original smaller drone, 2 planes, all cameras (for wedding) and video tape transfer project equipment. Theresa had a closet full of cloths (summer, fall and winter), crochet project and several picture albums for a scanning project. Together there were 4 bikes, 1 dog trailer, several boxes with wedding presents to be delivered, file bucket for taxes and other paperwork, as well as wine and other libations for the trip. The packing list was quite lengthy! 

The bikes were the biggest issue. Kevin wanted to see if they would fit on a bike rack that was hooked into a 'Y' hitch along with the tow bar for the CRV. This required a test to see if there would be clearance between the bikes on the rack and the CRV (Toad) specifically when making sharp turns that would have the car at a tight angle with the RV. The test result was a very obvious failure! So plan B was that all 4 bikes would be transported using a Yakama rack that was attached to a hitch behind the CRV. This extended the length of the Toad by almost 4 feet.

After that struggle it was time for a final Tasman cul de sac happy hour before the Sunday departure. Chairs where circled on the shady side of the Smitanic which occupied a large portion of the space for it's pre-trip staging area. Tours were offered, toasts were made and hugs were exchanged amongst neighbors for this final send off!  See Kevin's Drone video here...


One last day of packing remains then the Smitanic will shove off.