finally getting to spend time on the road and loving it

[encantotom]

hi all,

i have been working on restoring my coach for most of the past year. now i am on a 5 week trip and have been out for 5 days so far. it is so much fun! i love driving it. my wife asked me why i dont get tired when driving and i told her it is like driving a go kart. it is just plain fun.

have driven from phoenix to montana and am on the way to vancouver. it is driving great and now i am learning really how things operate. i have become very good at fixing and restoring things, but have had very little time actually using it. i call michael day frequently and say is this the way it should be? and so far the answer has been yes. my engine temp gauge sure is inaccurate as i run the silver leaf engine monitoring system and it is totally accurate. makes it much easier to drive it up and down the long grades in the mountains and be sure i am not overheating things.

tom and darlene in montana.

[chockwald]

Tom...I totaly get what you are saying. I love driving my Newell, and I never get tired like I used to driving my Class C. I'm really looking forward to an extended trip like you are doing. Be safe and enjoy Montana and all of your travels!

[fulltiming]

Continue to enjoy your trip Tom. Everything seems to be working as designed so far. Newell's are great coaches and getting there is at least half the fun.

Keep us up to date on your experiences my friend. Say hi to Darlene and Heather for us.

[Wally Arntzen]

Hi Tom,

Glad to hear how much fun your having. I also enjoy driving the coach more that sitting in it.
The greatest thing in doing a long trip like your doing is having a Newell, a good wife and duct tape. The three of them will get anywhere.

Have fun my friend.

Wally

[HoosierDaddy]

Hi Tom,
I'm glad to hear everything is working smoothly...You have worked hard to assure a trouble free trip. Be Safe!!!\
Dean

[encantotom]

now almost 3 weeks into my trip. i am really loving it. newell is running great. have gone about 2500 miles so far and getting close to 7 mpg. have learned that driving in downtown vancouver bc, and downtown seattle is not really for our big rigs towing cars....got honked at alot. we put the newell on a ferry and i have a cool picture of the gps on my laptop showing us in the water between ports. am at mount saint helens staying at a campground with the best view in the world.

thanks to all for their moral support over the past year as i have learned about my coach and did my updating of it. i am glad for everyones help. it has turned out great with only a few things to tweak. the granite floor is holding up well with no cracks though i have parked on very unlevel sites and leveled it many times. will head towards the oregon coast tomorrow.

we put the POI's for the Guys diners and dives from the food channel in our garmin mobile pc gps and have started stopping at the diners. yesterday we were at Voulas in seattle and it was incredible and the owners hung around and talked to us for almost an hour after they closed at 3pm.

thanks again,

tom

[chockwald]

Tom....so glad to hear your adventure is going so flawlessly. Enjoy your meanderings down the coast....you are in for some amazing scenery. Hope you will have time to post a few pictures soon.

[Wally Arntzen]

Hi Tom,

Sounds like your having the best of times in your new/used newell.
I was just thinking what are you going to do when you get back home with just about everything done on your coach and nothing to do.
You really put a lot of energy and thought into doing a great job, so enjoy it as much as you can

Happy travels, Wally

[encantotom]

i am making my list up. to name a few things, i need to redo the gas shock mounts for my bay doors. also, i need to reupholster the door and make the black corian pieces around the entry way where it meets the granite. i put the old ones back up when i ran out of time. i have some tweaks to do for my A/V setup, though it is working great.

i have a manual cable shifter, and may try to convert it to a electronic shifter.

i also want to do the headlight mod that michael and richard have done.

so, still a few things to do...but all not necessary, just that i want to.

we are in tillamook oregon tonite.

i stopped at penninsula glass today and they helped with my windows.

actually ran the heater for a little while to take the chill off.

later

tom

[zcasa]

Hey Tom:

Sounds incredible. We are about three weeks behind you. From Glacier we are heading up to the Banff/Lake Louise area for a week, then on to the central part of BC and down into WA and over to Anacortes for the Rally. Then down the coast to SF and over to Lake Tahoe. Our adventure is one week old and another seven to go. I'm sure that I will need to speak with you and Michael a few more times, hopefully with nothing major. I can't wait to see the part of the country that you are now enjoying. Looking forward to seeing your pictures. Please let us know how the trip down the OR coast is with your tow vehicle. We are 42.5' and we will be heading from Newport to Brookings and hope to be able navigate that stretch and to enjoy the scenery.

Safe travels.

David