Community Forums

Lady Nyrtle · 05-02-2005, 04:13 PM

The cool weather is warming up and turning humid. There are more love bugs in the air every day! Time to think about heading away from Florida if you can. The Bracketts are already on their way, and Joe and Isabel, too, I think. Bill and Jan leave soon, as do the Mitchells, and we're aiming to leave around June 1.

I hope these and other Florida Boomers will use this thread through the summer to let us know where they are and where they're headed next, along with adventure updates, links to websites or blogs with pictures and more details, etc.

Looking forward to being able to keep track of our new extended, footloose family!

Lady Nyrtle · 05-02-2005, 04:13 PM

The cool weather is warming up and turning humid. There are more love bugs in the air every day! Time to think about heading away from Florida if you can. The Bracketts are already on their way, and Joe and Isabel, too, I think. Bill and Jan leave soon, as do the Mitchells, and we're aiming to leave around June 1.

I hope these and other Florida Boomers will use this thread through the summer to let us know where they are and where they're headed next, along with adventure updates, links to websites or blogs with pictures and more details, etc.

Looking forward to being able to keep track of our new extended, footloose family!

tmitchell · 05-02-2005, 04:38 PM

Could you please go over the steps again as to how I can send you a private message.

Newgma · 05-03-2005, 03:20 PM

As many of you know, we are preparing to take our first BIG RV adventure. This trip will be the longest voyage we have ever done -- both of us have never been west so we are really excited. The only sad thing is that as the day nears for us to leave it will also be the day our daughter and grandson leave to go back to Germany.
We are really in our glory right now - we have been at our daughter's home in Fort Lauderdale. We had both of our daughters under one roof with both of their children -- it just don't get any better!!!!!
We have created a website that we will update during our travels. It is billandjan.irv2.com We have upgraded the site so there will be no ads popping up. We are hoping to post to it often depending on the availability of the internet.
Take care and see you in a couple of months.

Mr. Brackett - Mrs. Brackett · 05-03-2005, 06:07 PM

Hi Everyone,
Linda and I had a very busy TOPS Convention in Daytona and both of us continued to get sick...actually Linda was sick before we left our rally...and she decided it wasn't fun being sick alone, so she gave it to me.
We left Daytona on Monday, as I didn't feel well enough to leave on Sunday. We drove up to Hilton Head, SC...we both have wanted to check it out. It was nothing like we thought it would be. It was very nice. We left there early this morning stopping at Fort Bragg, NC. I'm not feeling too great today, so will stay here a couple of days just to relax. The camp site is small, but is very nice...it's on a lake which we will check out later. I forgot, on the way we stopped at "South Of The Border"....Linda had a fun time looking around, but I've been there many times before.
We plan on heading north on Thursday, stopping in Richmond, VA to visit with our old pastor. Then off to visit with a nephew of mine, whom I have never met...about three months ago, he won a Millon off of a scratch ticket. So it will be interesting meeting him as well as his sisters and brothers. Then I have a friend of mine (from my old youth group I helped with in Maine) who I will see in Lowell, MA...and finally head on to my brother's house in Etna, ME. We haven't had any trouble to speak of so far....although, I don't think the Safty-plus stablizer was worth the money....I actually think it has made the way the coach handled much worse. Maybe I had some misconseption of what it was suppose to do....whatever it is, it sure isn't.
That's about all from the big trip thus far...thank goodness we got out before the LoveBugs could do much mess.
Love To All,
Richard and Linda

Newgma · 05-11-2005, 02:03 AM

Hi Everyone,
Just wanted to check in to let you know our progress. Right now we are in a Passport America park in Beaumont, Texas with FREE WIFI so I am taking advantage of it. We have spent the last three days driving approx 300 to 350 miles per day and have survived I10 through Louisiana. We have had to stop several times to clean the love bugs off the windshield -- they are just as bad here as they are in Florida.
We have had no problems what so ever with our motorhome -- thanks to Lou for helping Bill with this buying decision -- I think it was the right one. We are parked next to someone here who also has a 99 Chieftain with the exact same floor plan but a gasser. He is very happy with his too and what a coincidence == he is on his way to Titusville, Florida from Arizona. So they are just doing the opposite of us.
Well, today we are hoping to get to San Antonio for a couple days of sightseeing.
Love to all,
Bill and Jan

LouRobin · 05-11-2005, 03:45 PM

Glad to hear all is well.
I would imagine that I-10 in Louisiana is the worse you will have to face.
Glad all is well with the Chieftan, ahhh Jan you didn't mention how much driving you have done????
Enjoy, be safe, and keep us posted......

Janice & Ralph · 05-12-2005, 02:08 AM

Yeah, c'mon Jan...tell us how many miles you drove, or are you waiting until I can teach you? Do I sound cocky or what?! Geesh, put a gal behind the wheel and see what happens. So glad that you guys are enjoying your trip so far. Hope you and all the others out on the road have a great time...y'all come back with plenty of stories!!

Janice

Lady Nyrtle · 05-12-2005, 08:21 AM

Hey, Boomers!

We've been at the Florida State Fairgrounds since Monday at the Good Sam safe driving rally. The Fairgrounds has full hookups now, but only 20/30 amp service. We're getting along just fine on 30 amps - one air conditioner keeps the whole coach cool just fine, and it is mid to high 80s. I even used my hair dryer this morning with no problem. (Just turned off the air for five minutes). Have the fridge and hot water heater on propane.

I wish we had known this rally was going to be so informative and it would have been a great place for the gals to take their driving lessons. I've learned more than I learned from the Lazy Days lessons. Didn't sign up for their one-one-one RV driving lessons, since we'd taken the Lazy Days course, but the newbie females are as excited as Jan and I about gaining the confidence to drive. We've spent four hours in automobiles learning how to control skids, and take evasive action with and without braking. Quite exciting and stuff I had been taught but never had a chance to practice, except the skidding, which turns out to be just like driving on ice. Then we spent four hours in our type of RV learning the same things, though they didn't let us skid it.

They weighed the coach on each wheel when we pulled in and then gave us individual feedback about our results, plus a terrific lecture on tire inflation. Turns out we're underinflated in front and overinflated in back, so we'll be fixing that. It's also amazing how different the weights are on the axles, and mostly because of the way they manufacture them, not the way we load them. I've been busy moving books around this morning to adjust what we can, based on our results.

Zillions of other good safety tips, a whole lecture on propane, fire prevention, etc. etc. All stuff we either needed to learn or to hear again. We still have an Ask the Expert session and a Braking and Towing session and then we will be going back to Lakeland tomorrow.

They are only able to do this rally once a year for about 75 rigs; I can't recommend it highly enough. You might want to keep an eye out for the next one - anyone can attend, you don't have to belong to Good Sams.

I am going to feel so much safer as we start out in June.

Newgma · 05-12-2005, 01:12 PM

AAAHHHHH - the answer is NONE. Bill is just having too much fun driving -- maybe when we leave San Antonio. Take care

Tom & Dee · 05-12-2005, 02:12 PM

Hi Mary,
Sounds like a great course. We did not see it advertised. It sure would have been a good rally to attend. Since you teach maybe you could teach us all.

Dee

Lady Nyrtle · 05-13-2005, 01:32 AM

Better ask Larry to teach - he's the one who got straight A's in driving, not me. I knocked over cones with abandon and the teachers didn't like having to get out to set them up again.

We tried to mention that we were going to this rally to everyone but we really didn't push it because we didn't know it would be SO good! We were hoping some other Boomers would keep us company. As it was, we had to buy our own Mexican Train game and make more new friends. (Guess those are good things, too.) But, if all us females had been here, we would have had a ball, and they provided breakfast and lunch, too.

We're packing up today, heading back to Lakeland, and expecting the tmitchells to visit over the weekend. They want to see the Lakeland area in more detail = liked the ambiance.

Have a great weekend, everyone...

Gary RVRoamer · 05-14-2005, 05:24 PM

Nancy & I left Florida well ahead of the rest - on Aprl 13th. We've been slowly heading north, trying unsuccessfully NOT to outrun 70 degree temperatures. Have encounter a lot of chilly and windy days and plenty of rain as well. Even had a freeein Lewisburg, PA a couple days ago. North of central PA, its still early spring and the trees are still opening their leaves.

We are currently in central NY (Rome) where we have family. Mediocre weather here, too, though late afternoon has been nice. We will continue on to Rockport, ME, by Memorial Day weekend and spend the summer there workamping at Camden Hills Rv Resort. Come on up and visit!

Xeroid · 05-15-2005, 06:39 PM

Jan and I visited Carlsbad Caverns today. We went back tonite to watch 450000 bats exit the cave for their nightly feed and I swear that a couple of them looked familiar. I hesitate to say who they looked like; let your mind do the wondering....down the road. Me Jan and the road. And, oh yea, the wind......