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Generator
On Thursday, December 27, 2012 3:57:23 PM UTC-4, thumper wrote:
On 12/27/2012 5:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. Maybe I'll get to try that someday... Does anyone remember the live-aboard simulation that was posted here years ago? Are you thinking of the slightly exaggerated version posted by Larry in Charleston a while back? |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 11:05 AM, JustWait wrote:
NOTE: I have used several of the Hondas at the track and they use one for the Finish line display at a series I do the finish line for so I tend it all day. ... On the other hand, I know Yamaha and a couple others make competing models, I would trust a Yamaha brand if the price was better and the DB rating was the same or close... Just sayin'. I don't know if this is relevant to generators but my 2006 Yamaha T8 trolling motor is much better behaved than it's 2000 Honda 15 predecessor. It starts better in all weather, idles nicer, runs smoother, doesn't load up plugs, didn't require breaking a factory seal to adjust the mixture to improve the above issues, etc. Perhaps my Honda was an anomaly and/or they've improved since then but that's my sample of two. pardon boating related content |
Generator
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 13:36:57 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:
In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:18:23 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On 12/27/12 11:01 AM, wrote: On Thursday, December 27, 2012 10:15:18 AM UTC-4, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: "GuzzisRule" wrote in message ... Here ya go! http://www.rvwholesalers.com/resourc...aptor_2012.pdf Everything you want in one place. Keep clicking the down arrow. This is what's called a 'Toy Hauler' fifth wheel. --------------------------------------------------- Looks familiar. We had the 377-SE version. Went "camping" once with it and had the most miserable week of my life. My daughter started it all. She and her husband were into camping and were purchasing a new travel trailer. She convinced Mrs.E and I and my older son and his wife to get a trailer as well for "family" camping. I saw it as a good excuse to get a new truck, so I bought the Raptor Toy Hauler along with a Ford 350 Diesel and had the fifth wheel hitch installed. I had a Harley at the time and figured the toy hauler would come in handy. My son bought a slightly smaller fifth wheel and a Ford 250 with the V-10. We all picked up our new RV's the same day at the dealership. My daughter made reservations for all of us for a week at a campground in New Hampshire that they visited often. I forget what the name of it is. I call it "Marty Moose Land". We all had sites beside each other. The trip to the campground was uneventful. The Ford pulled the Raptor with no problem and I thought this was going to be pretty cool. Well, that particular week in the mountains of New Hampshire was the hottest, most humid week I've spent anywhere. Big thunderstorms every afternoon kept us all huddled inside our respective RV's with the AC units running at full blast. When it stopped raining and we ventured outside, the mosquitoes were waiting to draw blood. One humid, sultry afternoon, we were sitting at my son's site trying to have a beer while swishing away the bugs and mosquitoes. His young daughter was playing inside his fifth wheel. As we sat talking, I looked up and saw water seeping out of the storage area door under the master bedroom of the RV. Got up, opened the door, and gallons of water started pouring out. His daughter had plugged the vanity sink in the bedroom and had the faucets turned on full. It had filled the sink and was overflowing everywhere, soaking the carpets and draining into the storage area. I took off to find a hardware store to get a wet vac while the rest started sopping up the water. Gracefully, the last day of our camping adventure arrived. My son and his family left, and then us by early afternoon. My daughter and her husband wanted to stay a little longer, so we said goodbye and hit the road. By 8pm, I had just arrived home and backed the fifth-wheel into it's spot at our house when the phone rang. It was my daughter. They had just left the campsite, got a mile down the road and their vehicle snapped a tie rod. They were sitting on the side of a busy road with a broken SUV, their new, 28' travel trailer and two crying kids. So, dear old Dad heads back to the New Hampshire mountains in his truck to rescue them. Finally got back to their house by 2am, towing the trailer. Their truck was put on a flatbed and taken to a repair shop. The next day I listed the Raptor "For Sale" in a couple of the RV classifieds. Sold it a few weeks later to a buyer in Canada. BTW, that wasn't our first attempt at trying the camping scene. When I first retired and we wintered in Florida, we thought it would be fun to make the trips back and forth in a RV. We tried a 37' Pace Arrow class A motorhome, a Chinook Glacier and a Dodge Sprinter RV. Of the three, I liked the Sprinter the most and we owned it the longest, but we eventually sold the Florida house and rarely used the Sprinter. We ended up selling it to a guy in Missouri who flew out and drove it home. He and his wife still send us email pictures of their travels in it. Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. We've been to Maine a few times. On one of those trips, we rented an RV and loaded it onto a ferry to take us to an island campground for a few days. The RV, the island, and so forth were fine, but the island was infested with biting bugs. They weren't mosquitoes, they were much bigger, and it was hot and humid, too. Misery most of the time. The next time we went to Maine, we stayed he http://mainestayinn.com/ No annoying insects indoors or outdoors, beautiful rooms, great breakfasts, and within walking distance of lots of sights and shopping and the waterfront. My wife was *much* happier! We ate too many meals at Mabel's Lobster House, purportedly where President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush had many meals when he was healthier. Lobsters at the dock were about $2.50 a pound. I braved walking into the water at a local beach and got in about halfway up to my knees before the cold chased me out. I love the Maine coastline. On the way back, we stayed at a B&B in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see relatives and old friends. Nice enough place, but no match for the Maine Stay. No bugs. That spot looks nice. I've always wanted to get down to the Seashore Trolly Museum in that area. I was serious in the summer of 2011 but after contacting the museum found out that the main attraction for me (Birney Safety Car) was judged too run down to put on display or even to fix up in the immediate future. The birney car was the only streetcar used in Halifax from about 1921 until 1949..the year I was born. Kennebunkport can get a little crowded with tourists (like us), but when we were there, in the height of the tourist season, it wasn't that bad. There's lots to see in that part of Maine. LL Bean isn't that far away, and it is worth a day's visit. Yeah, that's what I want to see and do when I go to explore somewhere, shop and go to a mall. If you've not traveled to Maine and seen the sights, you're missing a lot. Kennebunkport is well worth a stop, with campgrounds right outside of town (and at least one, that we were in, allows tents!). http://hemlockgrovecampground.com/photo-gallery If you visit Kennebunkport and you *don't* visit the LLBean store, then you're missing out on a great treat. I've been to Maine on two different occasions. I sure as hell didn't spend my time holed up in a hotel and shopping. And you didn't visit the LLBean store? |
Generator
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 13:06:42 -0800, thumper wrote:
On 12/27/2012 11:05 AM, JustWait wrote: NOTE: I have used several of the Hondas at the track and they use one for the Finish line display at a series I do the finish line for so I tend it all day. ... On the other hand, I know Yamaha and a couple others make competing models, I would trust a Yamaha brand if the price was better and the DB rating was the same or close... Just sayin'. I don't know if this is relevant to generators but my 2006 Yamaha T8 trolling motor is much better behaved than it's 2000 Honda 15 predecessor. It starts better in all weather, idles nicer, runs smoother, doesn't load up plugs, didn't require breaking a factory seal to adjust the mixture to improve the above issues, etc. Perhaps my Honda was an anomaly and/or they've improved since then but that's my sample of two. pardon boating related content I sure don't have any complaints about the Yamaha 150 on the back of my boat. That thing runs like a dream. The only problem is that without my hearing aids I can't hear it idling when I start it. Have to look at the tach to see if it's running. |
Generator
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 14:50:28 -0500, ESAD wrote:
On 12/27/12 1:59 PM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:53:36 -0500, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 12:51 PM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 11:52:51 -0500, wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 08:11:36 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: Absolutely, especially if his was a diesel. There is some time lost driving, but much of this country is nice to drive through. Kansas does get boring, along with Nebraska, Oklahome, most of Texas and South Dakota. But, there are sights to see in every state, if one will slow down and take a peek. Bingo, you hit the nail on the head. We spent 2 1/2 weeks in North and South Dakota alone. That was also our record on the renta car, 2300 miles. Things are pretty far apart up there. After the 420th, I quit taking pictures of wheat stalks. My first real job was with the US Coast and Geodetic Survey, working the Minuteman sites in Sidney, NE and Minot, ND. Neither place was very exciting. I rode through the Badlands with some Guzzi friends from Holland. Very beautiful country. But, I wouldn't want to live there. I kept imagining a couple thousand Indians coming down and attacking our little motorcycle train. Why? Did they hear about your hatred of dark-skinned people? Merry Christmas, ESAD! Hope you have a much better New Year than the past one. I have no complaints about 2012. Oh, well it seemed like it might have been a bad one for you. Anyway, if 2013 is even better, then you should be thrilled all year! |
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On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 14:34:28 -0500, wrote:
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:51:11 -0500, GuzzisRule wrote: My first real job was with the US Coast and Geodetic Survey, working the Minuteman sites in Sidney, NE and Minot, ND. Neither place was very exciting. I rode through the Badlands with some Guzzi friends from Holland. Very beautiful country. But, I wouldn't want to live there. I kept imagining a couple thousand Indians coming down and attacking our little motorcycle train. I agree the Dakotas are mostly a lot of nothing but we had a good time at the Minot state fair. We rented a boat in Beulah at the dam, toured the synfuel plant and took the Air Force tour in Minot. http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Silo%20hatch.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/minute%20man.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/B52.jpg We also checked out Wall Drug and went to the rodeo http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Wall%20rodeo.jpg My favorite area is the Black Hills and on out through Wyoming. There are hundreds of miles of logging roads you can drive with nice hikes along the way. http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/sylvan%20lake.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Danc...h%20wolves.jpg They have real convenience stores in Sturgis http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/convenience%20store.jpg Of course they have this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Rushmore%20profile.jpg We saw most of those, including Sturgis, on the motorcycle trip through the area. We arrived at Sturgis the week before the Harley Rally. All the vendors, or at least a huge number, had their tents up and their wares on display, so we had a nice couple days looking around. My headlight had gone out, and I was shopping for a bulb. Couldn't find one to fit the Guzzi in any of the places. Mt. Rushmore was a letdown. I don't know what I was expecting, but maybe it had to do with the distance from the mountain to the visitors' center. We didn't go on a mule ride or anything. It just seemed small after seeing all the telephoto shots everywhere. |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 4:06 PM, thumper wrote:
On 12/27/2012 11:05 AM, JustWait wrote: NOTE: I have used several of the Hondas at the track and they use one for the Finish line display at a series I do the finish line for so I tend it all day. ... On the other hand, I know Yamaha and a couple others make competing models, I would trust a Yamaha brand if the price was better and the DB rating was the same or close... Just sayin'. I don't know if this is relevant to generators but my 2006 Yamaha T8 trolling motor is much better behaved than it's 2000 Honda 15 predecessor. It starts better in all weather, idles nicer, runs smoother, doesn't load up plugs, didn't require breaking a factory seal to adjust the mixture to improve the above issues, etc. Perhaps my Honda was an anomaly and/or they've improved since then but that's my sample of two. pardon boating related content As much as I hope nobody on my team hears me say this... From my point of view, Yamaha race engines are more durable than Honda, Kawasaki, KTM and even our beloved Suzuki, IN MY OPINION in the last few years. Some other manufacturers such as Gas Gas, a Spanish motorcycle, are now using Yamaha engines... |
Generator
In article ,
says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 13:36:57 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:18:23 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On 12/27/12 11:01 AM, wrote: On Thursday, December 27, 2012 10:15:18 AM UTC-4, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: "GuzzisRule" wrote in message ... Here ya go! http://www.rvwholesalers.com/resourc...aptor_2012.pdf Everything you want in one place. Keep clicking the down arrow. This is what's called a 'Toy Hauler' fifth wheel. --------------------------------------------------- Looks familiar. We had the 377-SE version. Went "camping" once with it and had the most miserable week of my life. My daughter started it all. She and her husband were into camping and were purchasing a new travel trailer. She convinced Mrs.E and I and my older son and his wife to get a trailer as well for "family" camping. I saw it as a good excuse to get a new truck, so I bought the Raptor Toy Hauler along with a Ford 350 Diesel and had the fifth wheel hitch installed. I had a Harley at the time and figured the toy hauler would come in handy. My son bought a slightly smaller fifth wheel and a Ford 250 with the V-10. We all picked up our new RV's the same day at the dealership. My daughter made reservations for all of us for a week at a campground in New Hampshire that they visited often. I forget what the name of it is. I call it "Marty Moose Land". We all had sites beside each other. The trip to the campground was uneventful. The Ford pulled the Raptor with no problem and I thought this was going to be pretty cool. Well, that particular week in the mountains of New Hampshire was the hottest, most humid week I've spent anywhere. Big thunderstorms every afternoon kept us all huddled inside our respective RV's with the AC units running at full blast. When it stopped raining and we ventured outside, the mosquitoes were waiting to draw blood. One humid, sultry afternoon, we were sitting at my son's site trying to have a beer while swishing away the bugs and mosquitoes. His young daughter was playing inside his fifth wheel. As we sat talking, I looked up and saw water seeping out of the storage area door under the master bedroom of the RV. Got up, opened the door, and gallons of water started pouring out. His daughter had plugged the vanity sink in the bedroom and had the faucets turned on full. It had filled the sink and was overflowing everywhere, soaking the carpets and draining into the storage area. I took off to find a hardware store to get a wet vac while the rest started sopping up the water. Gracefully, the last day of our camping adventure arrived. My son and his family left, and then us by early afternoon. My daughter and her husband wanted to stay a little longer, so we said goodbye and hit the road. By 8pm, I had just arrived home and backed the fifth-wheel into it's spot at our house when the phone rang. It was my daughter. They had just left the campsite, got a mile down the road and their vehicle snapped a tie rod. They were sitting on the side of a busy road with a broken SUV, their new, 28' travel trailer and two crying kids. So, dear old Dad heads back to the New Hampshire mountains in his truck to rescue them. Finally got back to their house by 2am, towing the trailer. Their truck was put on a flatbed and taken to a repair shop. The next day I listed the Raptor "For Sale" in a couple of the RV classifieds. Sold it a few weeks later to a buyer in Canada. BTW, that wasn't our first attempt at trying the camping scene. When I first retired and we wintered in Florida, we thought it would be fun to make the trips back and forth in a RV. We tried a 37' Pace Arrow class A motorhome, a Chinook Glacier and a Dodge Sprinter RV. Of the three, I liked the Sprinter the most and we owned it the longest, but we eventually sold the Florida house and rarely used the Sprinter. We ended up selling it to a guy in Missouri who flew out and drove it home. He and his wife still send us email pictures of their travels in it. Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. We've been to Maine a few times. On one of those trips, we rented an RV and loaded it onto a ferry to take us to an island campground for a few days. The RV, the island, and so forth were fine, but the island was infested with biting bugs. They weren't mosquitoes, they were much bigger, and it was hot and humid, too. Misery most of the time. The next time we went to Maine, we stayed he http://mainestayinn.com/ No annoying insects indoors or outdoors, beautiful rooms, great breakfasts, and within walking distance of lots of sights and shopping and the waterfront. My wife was *much* happier! We ate too many meals at Mabel's Lobster House, purportedly where President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush had many meals when he was healthier. Lobsters at the dock were about $2.50 a pound. I braved walking into the water at a local beach and got in about halfway up to my knees before the cold chased me out. I love the Maine coastline. On the way back, we stayed at a B&B in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see relatives and old friends. Nice enough place, but no match for the Maine Stay. No bugs. That spot looks nice. I've always wanted to get down to the Seashore Trolly Museum in that area. I was serious in the summer of 2011 but after contacting the museum found out that the main attraction for me (Birney Safety Car) was judged too run down to put on display or even to fix up in the immediate future. The birney car was the only streetcar used in Halifax from about 1921 until 1949..the year I was born. Kennebunkport can get a little crowded with tourists (like us), but when we were there, in the height of the tourist season, it wasn't that bad. There's lots to see in that part of Maine. LL Bean isn't that far away, and it is worth a day's visit. Yeah, that's what I want to see and do when I go to explore somewhere, shop and go to a mall. If you've not traveled to Maine and seen the sights, you're missing a lot. Kennebunkport is well worth a stop, with campgrounds right outside of town (and at least one, that we were in, allows tents!). http://hemlockgrovecampground.com/photo-gallery If you visit Kennebunkport and you *don't* visit the LLBean store, then you're missing out on a great treat. I've been to Maine on two different occasions. I sure as hell didn't spend my time holed up in a hotel and shopping. And you didn't visit the LLBean store? No, I can buy LL Bean stuff from their catalog. I had better things to do than shop. |
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On 12/27/2012 4:19 PM, GuzzisRule wrote:
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 13:36:57 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:18:23 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On 12/27/12 11:01 AM, wrote: On Thursday, December 27, 2012 10:15:18 AM UTC-4, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: "GuzzisRule" wrote in message ... Here ya go! http://www.rvwholesalers.com/resourc...aptor_2012.pdf Everything you want in one place. Keep clicking the down arrow. This is what's called a 'Toy Hauler' fifth wheel. --------------------------------------------------- Looks familiar. We had the 377-SE version. Went "camping" once with it and had the most miserable week of my life. My daughter started it all. She and her husband were into camping and were purchasing a new travel trailer. She convinced Mrs.E and I and my older son and his wife to get a trailer as well for "family" camping. I saw it as a good excuse to get a new truck, so I bought the Raptor Toy Hauler along with a Ford 350 Diesel and had the fifth wheel hitch installed. I had a Harley at the time and figured the toy hauler would come in handy. My son bought a slightly smaller fifth wheel and a Ford 250 with the V-10. We all picked up our new RV's the same day at the dealership. My daughter made reservations for all of us for a week at a campground in New Hampshire that they visited often. I forget what the name of it is. I call it "Marty Moose Land". We all had sites beside each other. The trip to the campground was uneventful. The Ford pulled the Raptor with no problem and I thought this was going to be pretty cool. Well, that particular week in the mountains of New Hampshire was the hottest, most humid week I've spent anywhere. Big thunderstorms every afternoon kept us all huddled inside our respective RV's with the AC units running at full blast. When it stopped raining and we ventured outside, the mosquitoes were waiting to draw blood. One humid, sultry afternoon, we were sitting at my son's site trying to have a beer while swishing away the bugs and mosquitoes. His young daughter was playing inside his fifth wheel. As we sat talking, I looked up and saw water seeping out of the storage area door under the master bedroom of the RV. Got up, opened the door, and gallons of water started pouring out. His daughter had plugged the vanity sink in the bedroom and had the faucets turned on full. It had filled the sink and was overflowing everywhere, soaking the carpets and draining into the storage area. I took off to find a hardware store to get a wet vac while the rest started sopping up the water. Gracefully, the last day of our camping adventure arrived. My son and his family left, and then us by early afternoon. My daughter and her husband wanted to stay a little longer, so we said goodbye and hit the road. By 8pm, I had just arrived home and backed the fifth-wheel into it's spot at our house when the phone rang. It was my daughter. They had just left the campsite, got a mile down the road and their vehicle snapped a tie rod. They were sitting on the side of a busy road with a broken SUV, their new, 28' travel trailer and two crying kids. So, dear old Dad heads back to the New Hampshire mountains in his truck to rescue them. Finally got back to their house by 2am, towing the trailer. Their truck was put on a flatbed and taken to a repair shop. The next day I listed the Raptor "For Sale" in a couple of the RV classifieds. Sold it a few weeks later to a buyer in Canada. BTW, that wasn't our first attempt at trying the camping scene. When I first retired and we wintered in Florida, we thought it would be fun to make the trips back and forth in a RV. We tried a 37' Pace Arrow class A motorhome, a Chinook Glacier and a Dodge Sprinter RV. Of the three, I liked the Sprinter the most and we owned it the longest, but we eventually sold the Florida house and rarely used the Sprinter. We ended up selling it to a guy in Missouri who flew out and drove it home. He and his wife still send us email pictures of their travels in it. Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. We've been to Maine a few times. On one of those trips, we rented an RV and loaded it onto a ferry to take us to an island campground for a few days. The RV, the island, and so forth were fine, but the island was infested with biting bugs. They weren't mosquitoes, they were much bigger, and it was hot and humid, too. Misery most of the time. The next time we went to Maine, we stayed he http://mainestayinn.com/ No annoying insects indoors or outdoors, beautiful rooms, great breakfasts, and within walking distance of lots of sights and shopping and the waterfront. My wife was *much* happier! We ate too many meals at Mabel's Lobster House, purportedly where President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush had many meals when he was healthier. Lobsters at the dock were about $2.50 a pound. I braved walking into the water at a local beach and got in about halfway up to my knees before the cold chased me out. I love the Maine coastline. On the way back, we stayed at a B&B in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see relatives and old friends. Nice enough place, but no match for the Maine Stay. No bugs. That spot looks nice. I've always wanted to get down to the Seashore Trolly Museum in that area. I was serious in the summer of 2011 but after contacting the museum found out that the main attraction for me (Birney Safety Car) was judged too run down to put on display or even to fix up in the immediate future. The birney car was the only streetcar used in Halifax from about 1921 until 1949..the year I was born. Kennebunkport can get a little crowded with tourists (like us), but when we were there, in the height of the tourist season, it wasn't that bad. There's lots to see in that part of Maine. LL Bean isn't that far away, and it is worth a day's visit. Yeah, that's what I want to see and do when I go to explore somewhere, shop and go to a mall. If you've not traveled to Maine and seen the sights, you're missing a lot. Kennebunkport is well worth a stop, with campgrounds right outside of town (and at least one, that we were in, allows tents!). http://hemlockgrovecampground.com/photo-gallery If you visit Kennebunkport and you *don't* visit the LLBean store, then you're missing out on a great treat. I've been to Maine on two different occasions. I sure as hell didn't spend my time holed up in a hotel and shopping. And you didn't visit the LLBean store? I don't like to shop on vacation.. I don't like spending my time going from retail store to retail store, when I can just as easily go from restaurant to restaurant:) |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 2:57 PM, thumper wrote:
On 12/27/2012 5:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. Maybe I'll get to try that someday... Does anyone remember the live-aboard simulation that was posted here years ago? Probably one of the funniest textbooks I have ever read. |
Generator
In article ,
says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 14:34:28 -0500, wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:51:11 -0500, GuzzisRule wrote: My first real job was with the US Coast and Geodetic Survey, working the Minuteman sites in Sidney, NE and Minot, ND. Neither place was very exciting. I rode through the Badlands with some Guzzi friends from Holland. Very beautiful country. But, I wouldn't want to live there. I kept imagining a couple thousand Indians coming down and attacking our little motorcycle train. I agree the Dakotas are mostly a lot of nothing but we had a good time at the Minot state fair. We rented a boat in Beulah at the dam, toured the synfuel plant and took the Air Force tour in Minot. http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Silo%20hatch.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/minute%20man.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/B52.jpg We also checked out Wall Drug and went to the rodeo http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Wall%20rodeo.jpg My favorite area is the Black Hills and on out through Wyoming. There are hundreds of miles of logging roads you can drive with nice hikes along the way. http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/sylvan%20lake.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Danc...h%20wolves.jpg They have real convenience stores in Sturgis http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/convenience%20store.jpg Of course they have this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Rushmore%20profile.jpg We saw most of those, including Sturgis, on the motorcycle trip through the area. We arrived at Sturgis the week before the Harley Rally. All the vendors, or at least a huge number, had their tents up and their wares on display, so we had a nice couple days looking around. My headlight had gone out, and I was shopping for a bulb. Couldn't find one to fit the Guzzi in any of the places. Mt. Rushmore was a letdown. I don't know what I was expecting, but maybe it had to do with the distance from the mountain to the visitors' center. We didn't go on a mule ride or anything. It just seemed small after seeing all the telephoto shots everywhere. Theodore Roosevelt National Park is VERY scenic. Nice campgrounds too. |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 10:13 AM, GuzzisRule wrote:
If you've not traveled to Maine and seen the sights, you're missing a lot. Kennebunkport is well worth a stop, with campgrounds right outside of town (and at least one, that we were in, allows tents!). In a few sites. :-) http://hemlockgrovecampground.com/photo-gallery |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 1:39 PM, JustWait wrote:
On 12/27/2012 2:57 PM, thumper wrote: Does anyone remember the live-aboard simulation that was posted here years ago? Probably one of the funniest textbooks I have ever read. Textbook? Apparently that's a fairly limited sample. ;-) |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 1:36 PM, JustWait wrote:
As much as I hope nobody on my team hears me say this... From my point of view, Yamaha race engines are more durable than Honda, Kawasaki, KTM and even our beloved Suzuki, IN MY OPINION in the last few years. Some other manufacturers such as Gas Gas, a Spanish motorcycle, are now using Yamaha engines... I had a lot of fun on an RM125 but was always working on it. No experience with modern stuff however. |
Generator
On Thursday, December 27, 2012 4:36:37 PM UTC-5, JustWait wrote:
As much as I hope nobody on my team hears me say this... From my point of view, Yamaha race engines are more durable than Honda, Kawasaki, KTM and even our beloved Suzuki, IN MY OPINION in the last few years. Some other manufacturers such as Gas Gas, a Spanish motorcycle, are now using Yamaha engines... Back in the '70s, if you wanted to have fun you rode a Yamaha dirt bike. If you wanted a better handling, faster bike and didn't mind working on it some (and had the cash), you rode a KTM/Penton. One of the best handling enduro bikes I ever rode was a Maco 250. A bit heavy, but a great bike. The guy also had a Maco 400. It was a beast. |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 3:26 PM, ESAD wrote:
On 12/27/12 3:14 PM, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:51:11 -0500, GuzzisRule wrote: My first real job was with the US Coast and Geodetic Survey, working the Minuteman sites in Sidney, NE and Minot, ND. Neither place was very exciting. I rode through the Badlands with some Guzzi friends from Holland. Very beautiful country. But, I wouldn't want to live there. I kept imagining a couple thousand Indians coming down and attacking our little motorcycle train. I agree the Dakotas are mostly a lot of nothing but we had a good time at the Minot state fair. We rented a boat in Beulah at the dam, toured the synfuel plant and took the Air Force tour in Minot. http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Silo%20hatch.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/minute%20man.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/B52.jpg We also checked out Wall Drug and went to the rodeo http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Wall%20rodeo.jpg My favorite area is the Black Hills and on out through Wyoming. There are hundreds of miles of logging roads you can drive with nice hikes along the way. http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/sylvan%20lake.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Danc...h%20wolves.jpg They have real convenience stores in Sturgis http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/convenience%20store.jpg Of course they have this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Rushmore%20profile.jpg Damned right, Wall Drugs is the home of the famous Jackalope! Needles Highway is a pretty cool drive. I camped outside of Deadwood, it's a really neat town. Then of course, there is Mt. Rushmore, and the Corn Palace made me hungry!! We get good and hungry, lock up the tent, and then walk over to this place: http://rhinocafe.com/ The grilled salmon is terrific, but so are the daily chef's specials. Good prices, too, and fabulous service. We've been going there for about 10 years, and there's hardly ever any changeover in the staff. Across the street: http://www.brigantine.com/miguels_co...-coronado.html Absolutely the best pitcher of margaritas ever. Food is very good, too. Sure is nice to have a wife who takes you places. Is this gig a union sponsored affair like the others? Be sure to take a snap of the rocky shore with your room key and stumpy fingers ruining the shot. Hee hee. |
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On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 16:38:05 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:
In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 13:06:42 -0800, thumper wrote: On 12/27/2012 11:05 AM, JustWait wrote: NOTE: I have used several of the Hondas at the track and they use one for the Finish line display at a series I do the finish line for so I tend it all day. ... On the other hand, I know Yamaha and a couple others make competing models, I would trust a Yamaha brand if the price was better and the DB rating was the same or close... Just sayin'. I don't know if this is relevant to generators but my 2006 Yamaha T8 trolling motor is much better behaved than it's 2000 Honda 15 predecessor. It starts better in all weather, idles nicer, runs smoother, doesn't load up plugs, didn't require breaking a factory seal to adjust the mixture to improve the above issues, etc. Perhaps my Honda was an anomaly and/or they've improved since then but that's my sample of two. pardon boating related content I sure don't have any complaints about the Yamaha 150 on the back of my boat. That thing runs like a dream. The only problem is that without my hearing aids I can't hear it idling when I start it. Have to look at the tach to see if it's running. That's a good problem to have. Yup, except that I don't take the hearing aids while on the boat. Luckily, my wife's got good ears. |
Generator
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 16:40:46 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:
In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 14:34:28 -0500, wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:51:11 -0500, GuzzisRule wrote: My first real job was with the US Coast and Geodetic Survey, working the Minuteman sites in Sidney, NE and Minot, ND. Neither place was very exciting. I rode through the Badlands with some Guzzi friends from Holland. Very beautiful country. But, I wouldn't want to live there. I kept imagining a couple thousand Indians coming down and attacking our little motorcycle train. I agree the Dakotas are mostly a lot of nothing but we had a good time at the Minot state fair. We rented a boat in Beulah at the dam, toured the synfuel plant and took the Air Force tour in Minot. http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Silo%20hatch.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/minute%20man.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/B52.jpg We also checked out Wall Drug and went to the rodeo http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Wall%20rodeo.jpg My favorite area is the Black Hills and on out through Wyoming. There are hundreds of miles of logging roads you can drive with nice hikes along the way. http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/sylvan%20lake.jpg http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Danc...h%20wolves.jpg They have real convenience stores in Sturgis http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/convenience%20store.jpg Of course they have this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Rushmore%20profile.jpg We saw most of those, including Sturgis, on the motorcycle trip through the area. We arrived at Sturgis the week before the Harley Rally. All the vendors, or at least a huge number, had their tents up and their wares on display, so we had a nice couple days looking around. My headlight had gone out, and I was shopping for a bulb. Couldn't find one to fit the Guzzi in any of the places. Mt. Rushmore was a letdown. I don't know what I was expecting, but maybe it had to do with the distance from the mountain to the visitors' center. We didn't go on a mule ride or anything. It just seemed small after seeing all the telephoto shots everywhere. Theodore Roosevelt National Park is VERY scenic. Nice campgrounds too. I would find it hard to plan for a place that won't take reservations. "General Information Juniper Campground and Cottonwood Campground accommodate tents, trailers and recreational vehicles. No hook-ups are available. Individual sites are available on a first-come, first-served basis." Sure would hate to get there in the evening and find them full. |
Generator
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 16:37:35 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:
In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 13:36:57 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:18:23 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On 12/27/12 11:01 AM, wrote: On Thursday, December 27, 2012 10:15:18 AM UTC-4, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: "GuzzisRule" wrote in message ... Here ya go! http://www.rvwholesalers.com/resourc...aptor_2012.pdf Everything you want in one place. Keep clicking the down arrow. This is what's called a 'Toy Hauler' fifth wheel. --------------------------------------------------- Looks familiar. We had the 377-SE version. Went "camping" once with it and had the most miserable week of my life. My daughter started it all. She and her husband were into camping and were purchasing a new travel trailer. She convinced Mrs.E and I and my older son and his wife to get a trailer as well for "family" camping. I saw it as a good excuse to get a new truck, so I bought the Raptor Toy Hauler along with a Ford 350 Diesel and had the fifth wheel hitch installed. I had a Harley at the time and figured the toy hauler would come in handy. My son bought a slightly smaller fifth wheel and a Ford 250 with the V-10. We all picked up our new RV's the same day at the dealership. My daughter made reservations for all of us for a week at a campground in New Hampshire that they visited often. I forget what the name of it is. I call it "Marty Moose Land". We all had sites beside each other. The trip to the campground was uneventful. The Ford pulled the Raptor with no problem and I thought this was going to be pretty cool. Well, that particular week in the mountains of New Hampshire was the hottest, most humid week I've spent anywhere. Big thunderstorms every afternoon kept us all huddled inside our respective RV's with the AC units running at full blast. When it stopped raining and we ventured outside, the mosquitoes were waiting to draw blood. One humid, sultry afternoon, we were sitting at my son's site trying to have a beer while swishing away the bugs and mosquitoes. His young daughter was playing inside his fifth wheel. As we sat talking, I looked up and saw water seeping out of the storage area door under the master bedroom of the RV. Got up, opened the door, and gallons of water started pouring out. His daughter had plugged the vanity sink in the bedroom and had the faucets turned on full. It had filled the sink and was overflowing everywhere, soaking the carpets and draining into the storage area. I took off to find a hardware store to get a wet vac while the rest started sopping up the water. Gracefully, the last day of our camping adventure arrived. My son and his family left, and then us by early afternoon. My daughter and her husband wanted to stay a little longer, so we said goodbye and hit the road. By 8pm, I had just arrived home and backed the fifth-wheel into it's spot at our house when the phone rang. It was my daughter. They had just left the campsite, got a mile down the road and their vehicle snapped a tie rod. They were sitting on the side of a busy road with a broken SUV, their new, 28' travel trailer and two crying kids. So, dear old Dad heads back to the New Hampshire mountains in his truck to rescue them. Finally got back to their house by 2am, towing the trailer. Their truck was put on a flatbed and taken to a repair shop. The next day I listed the Raptor "For Sale" in a couple of the RV classifieds. Sold it a few weeks later to a buyer in Canada. BTW, that wasn't our first attempt at trying the camping scene. When I first retired and we wintered in Florida, we thought it would be fun to make the trips back and forth in a RV. We tried a 37' Pace Arrow class A motorhome, a Chinook Glacier and a Dodge Sprinter RV. Of the three, I liked the Sprinter the most and we owned it the longest, but we eventually sold the Florida house and rarely used the Sprinter. We ended up selling it to a guy in Missouri who flew out and drove it home. He and his wife still send us email pictures of their travels in it. Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. We've been to Maine a few times. On one of those trips, we rented an RV and loaded it onto a ferry to take us to an island campground for a few days. The RV, the island, and so forth were fine, but the island was infested with biting bugs. They weren't mosquitoes, they were much bigger, and it was hot and humid, too. Misery most of the time. The next time we went to Maine, we stayed he http://mainestayinn.com/ No annoying insects indoors or outdoors, beautiful rooms, great breakfasts, and within walking distance of lots of sights and shopping and the waterfront. My wife was *much* happier! We ate too many meals at Mabel's Lobster House, purportedly where President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush had many meals when he was healthier. Lobsters at the dock were about $2.50 a pound. I braved walking into the water at a local beach and got in about halfway up to my knees before the cold chased me out. I love the Maine coastline. On the way back, we stayed at a B&B in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see relatives and old friends. Nice enough place, but no match for the Maine Stay. No bugs. That spot looks nice. I've always wanted to get down to the Seashore Trolly Museum in that area. I was serious in the summer of 2011 but after contacting the museum found out that the main attraction for me (Birney Safety Car) was judged too run down to put on display or even to fix up in the immediate future. The birney car was the only streetcar used in Halifax from about 1921 until 1949..the year I was born. Kennebunkport can get a little crowded with tourists (like us), but when we were there, in the height of the tourist season, it wasn't that bad. There's lots to see in that part of Maine. LL Bean isn't that far away, and it is worth a day's visit. Yeah, that's what I want to see and do when I go to explore somewhere, shop and go to a mall. If you've not traveled to Maine and seen the sights, you're missing a lot. Kennebunkport is well worth a stop, with campgrounds right outside of town (and at least one, that we were in, allows tents!). http://hemlockgrovecampground.com/photo-gallery If you visit Kennebunkport and you *don't* visit the LLBean store, then you're missing out on a great treat. I've been to Maine on two different occasions. I sure as hell didn't spend my time holed up in a hotel and shopping. And you didn't visit the LLBean store? No, I can buy LL Bean stuff from their catalog. I had better things to do than shop. The LLBean store has much more than just shopping. But, I understand your reluctance to engage in such a thing. |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 2:13 PM, thumper wrote:
On 12/27/2012 2:07 PM, wrote: On Thursday, December 27, 2012 4:36:37 PM UTC-5, JustWait wrote: As much as I hope nobody on my team hears me say this... From my point of view, Yamaha race engines are more durable than Honda, Kawasaki, KTM and even our beloved Suzuki, IN MY OPINION in the last few years. Some other manufacturers such as Gas Gas, a Spanish motorcycle, are now using Yamaha engines... Back in the '70s, if you wanted to have fun you rode a Yamaha dirt bike. If you wanted a better handling, faster bike and didn't mind working on it some (and had the cash), you rode a KTM/Penton. One of the best handling enduro bikes I ever rode was a Maco 250. A bit heavy, but a great bike. The guy also had a Maco 400. It was a beast. My older brother raced a Maico 400. I was dangerous on it (to myself and others). You prompted a bit of nostalgia. from http://www.ultimatemotorcycling.com/1973-maico-400 The Bing carburetors occasionally drew small pieces of dirt from the less then perfect airbox, which had a tendency to cause the slide to stick-usually at full throttle. At that point the kill switch was often overridden by the heightened electrical pulse created by the high RPM and all you could do was step off the thing. |
Generator
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 16:38:57 -0500, JustWait wrote:
On 12/27/2012 4:19 PM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 13:36:57 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:18:23 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On 12/27/12 11:01 AM, wrote: On Thursday, December 27, 2012 10:15:18 AM UTC-4, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: "GuzzisRule" wrote in message ... Here ya go! http://www.rvwholesalers.com/resourc...aptor_2012.pdf Everything you want in one place. Keep clicking the down arrow. This is what's called a 'Toy Hauler' fifth wheel. --------------------------------------------------- Looks familiar. We had the 377-SE version. Went "camping" once with it and had the most miserable week of my life. My daughter started it all. She and her husband were into camping and were purchasing a new travel trailer. She convinced Mrs.E and I and my older son and his wife to get a trailer as well for "family" camping. I saw it as a good excuse to get a new truck, so I bought the Raptor Toy Hauler along with a Ford 350 Diesel and had the fifth wheel hitch installed. I had a Harley at the time and figured the toy hauler would come in handy. My son bought a slightly smaller fifth wheel and a Ford 250 with the V-10. We all picked up our new RV's the same day at the dealership. My daughter made reservations for all of us for a week at a campground in New Hampshire that they visited often. I forget what the name of it is. I call it "Marty Moose Land". We all had sites beside each other. The trip to the campground was uneventful. The Ford pulled the Raptor with no problem and I thought this was going to be pretty cool. Well, that particular week in the mountains of New Hampshire was the hottest, most humid week I've spent anywhere. Big thunderstorms every afternoon kept us all huddled inside our respective RV's with the AC units running at full blast. When it stopped raining and we ventured outside, the mosquitoes were waiting to draw blood. One humid, sultry afternoon, we were sitting at my son's site trying to have a beer while swishing away the bugs and mosquitoes. His young daughter was playing inside his fifth wheel. As we sat talking, I looked up and saw water seeping out of the storage area door under the master bedroom of the RV. Got up, opened the door, and gallons of water started pouring out. His daughter had plugged the vanity sink in the bedroom and had the faucets turned on full. It had filled the sink and was overflowing everywhere, soaking the carpets and draining into the storage area. I took off to find a hardware store to get a wet vac while the rest started sopping up the water. Gracefully, the last day of our camping adventure arrived. My son and his family left, and then us by early afternoon. My daughter and her husband wanted to stay a little longer, so we said goodbye and hit the road. By 8pm, I had just arrived home and backed the fifth-wheel into it's spot at our house when the phone rang. It was my daughter. They had just left the campsite, got a mile down the road and their vehicle snapped a tie rod. They were sitting on the side of a busy road with a broken SUV, their new, 28' travel trailer and two crying kids. So, dear old Dad heads back to the New Hampshire mountains in his truck to rescue them. Finally got back to their house by 2am, towing the trailer. Their truck was put on a flatbed and taken to a repair shop. The next day I listed the Raptor "For Sale" in a couple of the RV classifieds. Sold it a few weeks later to a buyer in Canada. BTW, that wasn't our first attempt at trying the camping scene. When I first retired and we wintered in Florida, we thought it would be fun to make the trips back and forth in a RV. We tried a 37' Pace Arrow class A motorhome, a Chinook Glacier and a Dodge Sprinter RV. Of the three, I liked the Sprinter the most and we owned it the longest, but we eventually sold the Florida house and rarely used the Sprinter. We ended up selling it to a guy in Missouri who flew out and drove it home. He and his wife still send us email pictures of their travels in it. Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. We've been to Maine a few times. On one of those trips, we rented an RV and loaded it onto a ferry to take us to an island campground for a few days. The RV, the island, and so forth were fine, but the island was infested with biting bugs. They weren't mosquitoes, they were much bigger, and it was hot and humid, too. Misery most of the time. The next time we went to Maine, we stayed he http://mainestayinn.com/ No annoying insects indoors or outdoors, beautiful rooms, great breakfasts, and within walking distance of lots of sights and shopping and the waterfront. My wife was *much* happier! We ate too many meals at Mabel's Lobster House, purportedly where President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush had many meals when he was healthier. Lobsters at the dock were about $2.50 a pound. I braved walking into the water at a local beach and got in about halfway up to my knees before the cold chased me out. I love the Maine coastline. On the way back, we stayed at a B&B in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see relatives and old friends. Nice enough place, but no match for the Maine Stay. No bugs. That spot looks nice. I've always wanted to get down to the Seashore Trolly Museum in that area. I was serious in the summer of 2011 but after contacting the museum found out that the main attraction for me (Birney Safety Car) was judged too run down to put on display or even to fix up in the immediate future. The birney car was the only streetcar used in Halifax from about 1921 until 1949..the year I was born. Kennebunkport can get a little crowded with tourists (like us), but when we were there, in the height of the tourist season, it wasn't that bad. There's lots to see in that part of Maine. LL Bean isn't that far away, and it is worth a day's visit. Yeah, that's what I want to see and do when I go to explore somewhere, shop and go to a mall. If you've not traveled to Maine and seen the sights, you're missing a lot. Kennebunkport is well worth a stop, with campgrounds right outside of town (and at least one, that we were in, allows tents!). http://hemlockgrovecampground.com/photo-gallery If you visit Kennebunkport and you *don't* visit the LLBean store, then you're missing out on a great treat. I've been to Maine on two different occasions. I sure as hell didn't spend my time holed up in a hotel and shopping. And you didn't visit the LLBean store? I don't like to shop on vacation.. I don't like spending my time going from retail store to retail store, when I can just as easily go from restaurant to restaurant:) Once you get a decent camper, you'll forget about the restaurants! |
Generator
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 11:57:23 -0800, thumper wrote:
On 12/27/2012 5:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. Maybe I'll get to try that someday... Does anyone remember the live-aboard simulation that was posted here years ago? === There a few different versions of Larry's famous simulator but here is one that I was able to find quickly. Larry of course was somewhat prone to exaggeration, and his simulator is oriented towards living aboard in a marina on a small to mid-size sailboat, as opposed to being out cruising the islands on a boat of decent size. Like camping, living on a boat is not the same as living at home with all of the modern comforts, but the rewards are there also. ========== "The Liveaboard Simulator" - Larry Butler, W4CSC Just for fun, park your cars in the lot of the convenience store at least 2 blocks from your house. (Make believe the sidewalk is a floating dock between your car and the house.) Move yourself and your family (If applicable) into 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom. Measure the DECK space INSIDE your boat. Make sure the occupied house has no more space, or closet space, or drawer space. Boats don't have room for "beds", as such. (Ours does, walk around queen size - Wayne B) Fold your Sealy Posturepedic up against a wall, it won't fit on a boat. Go to a hobby fabric store and buy a foam pad 5' 10" long and 4' wide AND NO MORE THAN 3" THICK. Cut it into a triangle so the little end is only 12" wide. This simulates the foam pad in the V-berth up in the pointy bow of the sailboat. Bring in the kitchen table from the kitchen you're not allowed to use. Put the pad UNDER the table, on the floor, so you can simulate the 3' of headroom over the pad. Block off both long sides of the pad, and the pointy end so you have to climb aboard the V-berth from the wide end where your pillows will be. The hull blocks off the sides of a V-berth and you have to climb up over the end of it through a narrow opening (hatch to main cabin) on a boat. You'll climb over your mate's head to go to the potty in the night. No fun for either party. Test her mettle and resolve by getting up this way right after you go to bed at night. There are lots of things to do on a boat and you'll forget at least one of them, thinking about it laying in bed, like "Did I remember to tie off the dingy better?" or "Is that spring line (at the dock) or anchor line (anchored out) as tight as it should be?" Boaters who don't worry about things like this laying in bed are soon aground or on fire or the laughing stock of an anchorage.... You need to find out how much climbing over her she will tolerate BEFORE you're stuck with a big boat and big marina bills and she refuses to sleep aboard it any more..... Bring a coleman stove into the bathroom and set it next to the bathroom sink. Your boat's sink is smaller, but we'll let you use the bathroom sink, anyways. Do all your cooking in the bathroom, WITHOUT using the bathroom power vent. If you have a boat vent, it'll be a useless 12v one that doesn't draw near the air your bathroom power vent draws to take away cooking odors. Leave the hall door open to simulate the open hatch. Take all the screens off your 2 bedroom's windows. Leave the windows open to let in the bugs that will invade your boat at dusk, and the flies attracted to the cooking. Borrow a 25 gallon drum mounted on a trailer. Flush your toilets into the drums. Trailer the drums to the convenience store to dump them when they get full. Turn off your sewer, you won't have one. This will simulate going to the "pump out station" every time the tiny drum is full. 25 gallons is actually LARGER than most holding tanks. They're more like 15 gallons on small sailboats under 40' because they were added to the boat after the law changed requiring them and there was no place to put it or a bigger one. They fill up really fast if you liveaboard! Unless your boat is large enough to have a big "head" with full bath, make believe your showers/bathtubs don't work. Make a deal with someone next door to the convenience store to use THEIR bathroom for bathing at the OTHER end of the DOCK. (Marina rest room) If you use this rest room to potty, while you're there, make believe it has no paper towels or toilet paper. Bring your own. Bring your own soap and anything else you'd like to use there, too. If your boat HAS a shower in its little head, we'll let you use the shower end of the bathtub, but only as much tub as the boat has FREE shower space for standing to shower. As the boat's shower drains into a little pan in the bilge, be sure to leave the soapy shower water in the bottom of the tub for a few days before draining it. Boat shower sumps always smell like spent soap growing exotic living organisms science hasn't actually discovered or named, yet. Make sure your simulated V-berth is less than 3' from this soapy water for sleeping. The shower sump is under the passageway to the V-berth next to your pillows. Run you whole house through a 20 amp breaker to simulate available dock power at the marina. If you're thinking of anchoring out, turn off the main breaker and "make do" with a boat battery and flashlights. Don't forget you have to heat your house on this 20A supply and try to keep the water from freezing in winter. Turn off the water main valve in front of your house. Run a hose from your neighbor's lawn spigot over to your lawn spigot and get all your water from there. Try to keep the hose from freezing all winter. As your boat won't have a laundry, disconnect yours. Go to a boat supply place, like West Marine, and buy you a dock cart. Haul ALL your supplies, laundry, garbage, etc. between the car at the convenience store and house in this cart. Once a week, haul your outboard motor to the car, leave it a day then haul it back to the house, in the cart, to simulate "boat problems" that require "boat parts" to be removed/replaced on your "dock". If ANYTHING ever comes out of that cart between the convenience store and the house, put it in your garage and forget about it. (Simulates losing it over the side of the dock, where it sank in 23' of water and was dragged off by the current.) Each morning, about 5AM, have someone you don't know run a weedeater back and forth under your bedroom windows to simulate the fishermen leaving the marina to go fishing. Have him slam trunk lids, doors, blow car horns and bang some heavy pans together from 4AM to 5AM before lighting off the weedeater. (Simulates loading boats with booze and fishing gear and gas cans.) Once a week, have him bang the running weedeater into your bedroom wall to simulate the idiot who drove his boat into the one you're sleeping in because he was half asleep leaving the dock. Put a rope over a big hook in the ceiling over your "bed". Put a sheet of plywood under your pad with a place to hook a rope to one side or the other. Hook one end of the rope to the plywood hook and the other end out where he can pull on it. As soon as he shuts off the weedeater, have him pull hard 9 times on the rope to tilt your bed at least 30 degrees. (Simulates the wakes of the fishermen blasting off trying to beat each other to the fishing.) Anytime there is a storm in your area, have someone constantly pull on the rope. It's rough riding storms in the marina or anchored out! If your boat is a sailboat, install a big wire from the top of the tallest tree to your electrical ground in the house to simulate mast lightning strikes in the marina, or to give you the thought of potential lightning strikes. Each time you "go out", or think of going boating away from your marina, disconnect the neighbor's water hose, your electric wires, all the umbilicals your new boat will use to make life more bearable in the marina. Use bottled drinking water for 2 days for everything. Get one of those 5 gallon jugs with the airpump on top from a bottled water company. This is your boat's "at sea" water system simulator. You'll learn to conserve water this way. Of course, not having the marina's AC power supply, you'll be lighting and all from a car battery, your only source of power. If you own or can borrow a generator, feel free to leave it running to provide AC power up to the limit of the generator. If you're thinking about a 30' sailboat, you won't have room for a generator so don't use it. Any extra family members must be sleeping on the settees in the main cabin or in the quarter berth under the cockpit....unless you intend to get a boat over 40-something feet with an aft cabin. Smaller boats have quarter berths. Cut a pad out of the same pad material that is no more than 2' wide by 6' long. Get a cardboard box from an appliance store that a SMALL refridgerator came in. Put the pad in the box, cut to fit, and make sure only one end of the box is open. The box can be no more than 2 feet above the pad. Quarter berths are really tight. Make them sleep in there, with little or no air circulation. That's what sleeping in a quarterberth is all about. Of course, to simulate sleeping anchored out for the weekend, no heat or air conditioning will be used and all windows will be open without screens so the bugs can get in. In the mornings, everybody gets up and goes out on the patio to enjoy the sunrise. Then, one person at a time goes back inside to dress, shave, clean themselves in the tiny cabin unless you're a family of nudists who don't mind looking at each other in the buff. You can't get dressed in the stinky little head with the door closed on a sailboat. Hell, there's barely room to bend over so you can sit on the commode. So, everyone will dress in the main cabin....one at a time. Boat tables are 2' x 4' and mounted next to the settee. There's no room for chairs in a boat. So, eat off a 2X4' space on that kitchen table you slept under while sitting on a couch (settee simulator). You can also go out with breakfast and sit on the patio (cockpit), if you like. Ok, breakfast is over. Crank up the lawnmower under the window for 2 hours. It's time to recharge the batteries from last night's usage and to freeze the coldplate in the boat's icebox which runs off a compressor on the engine. Get everybody to clean up your little hovel. Don't forget to make the beds from ONE END ONLY. You can't get to the other 3 sides of a boat bed pad. All hands go outside and washdown the first fiberglass UPS truck that passes by. That's about how big the deck is on your 35' sailboat that needs to have the ocean cleaned off it daily or it'll turn the white fiberglass all brown like the UPS truck. Now, doesn't the UPS truck look nice like your main deck? Ok, we're going to need some food, do the laundry, buy some boat parts that failed because the manufacturer's bean counters got cheap and used plastics and the wife wants to "eat out, I'm fed up with cooking on the Coleman stove" today. Let's make believe we're not at home, but in some exotic port like Ft Lauderdale, today....on our cruise to Key West......Before "going ashore", plan on buying all the food you'll want to eat that will: A - Fit into the Coleman Cooler on the floor B - You can cook on the Coleman stove without an oven or all those fancy kitchen tools you don't have on the boat C - And will last you for 10 days, in case the wind drops and it takes more time than we planned at sea. Plan meals carefully in a boat. We can't buy more than we can STORE, either! You haven't washed clothes since you left home and everything is dirty. Even if it's not, pretend it is for the boater-away-from-home simulator. Put all the clothes in your simulated boat in a huge dufflebag so we can take it to the LAUNDRY! Manny's Marina HAS a laundromat, but the hot water heater is busted (for the last 8 months) and Manny has "parts on order" for it.....saving Manny $$$$ on the electric bill! Don't forget to carry the big dufflebag with us on our "excursion". God that bag stinks, doesn't it?....PU! Of course, we came here by BOAT, so we don't have a car. Some nice marinas have a shuttle bus, but they're not a taxi. The shuttle bus will only go to West Marine or the tourist traps, so we'll be either taking the city bus, if there is one or taxi cabs or shopping at the marina store which has almost nothing to buy at enormous prices. Walk to the 7-11 store, where you have your car stored, but ignore the car. Make believe it isn't there. No one drove it to Ft Lauderdale for you. Use the payphone at the 7-11 and call a cab. Don't give the cab driver ANY instructions because in Ft Lauderdale you haven't the foggiest idea where West Marine is located or how to get there, unlike at home. We'll go to West Marine, first, because if we don't the "head" back on the boat won't be working for a week because little Suzy broke a valve in it trying to flush some paper towels. This is your MOST important project, today....that valve in the toilet!! After the cab drivers drives around for an hour looking for West Marine and asking his dispatcher how to get there. Don't forget to UNLOAD your stuff from the cab, including the dirty clothes in the dufflebag then go into West Marine and give the clerk a $100 bill, simulating the cost of toilet parts. Lexus parts are cheaper than toilet parts at West Marine. See for yourself! The valve she broke, the seals that will have to be replaced on the way into the valve will come to $100 easy. Tell the clerk you're using my liveaboard simulator and to take his girlfriend out to dinner on your $100 greenback. If you DO buy the boat, this'll come in handy when you DO need boat parts because he'll remember you for the great time his girlfriend gave him on your $100 tip. Hard-to-find boat parts will arrive in DAYS, not months like the rest of us. It's just a good political move while in simulation mode. Call another cab from West Marine's phone, saving 50c on payphone charges. Load the cab with all your stuff, toilet parts, DIRTY CLOTHES then tell the cabbie to take you to the laundromat so we can wash the stinky clothes in the trunk. The luxury marina's laundry in Ft Lauderdale has a broken hot water heater. They're working on it, the girl at the store counter, said, yesterday. Mentioning the $12/ft you paid to park the boat at their dock won't get the laundry working before we leave for Key West. Do your laundry in the laundromat the cabbie found for you. Just because noone speaks English in this neighborhood, don't worry. You'll be fine this time of day near noon. Call another cab to take us out of here to a supermarket. When you get there, resist the temptation to "load up" because your boat has limited storage and very limited refridgeration space (remember? Coleman Cooler). Buy from the list we made early this morning. Another package of cookies is OK. Leave one of the kids guarding the pile of clean laundry just inside the supermarket's front door....We learned our lesson and DIDN'T forget and leave it in the cab, again! Call another cab to take us back to the marina, loaded up with clean clothes and food and all-important boat parts. Isn't Ft Lauderdale beautiful from a cab? It's too late to go exploring, today. Maybe tomorrow.... Don't forget to tell the cab to go to the 7-11 (marina parking lot)....not your front door....cabs don't float well. Ok, haul all the stuff in the dock cart from the 7-11 store the two blocks to the "boat" bedroom. Wait 20 minutes before starting out for the house. This simulates waiting for someone to bring back a marina-owned dock cart from down the docks.....They always leave them outside their boats, until the marina "crew" get fed up with newbies like us asking why there aren't any carts and go down the docks to retrieve them. Put all the stuff away, food and clothes, in the tiny drawer space provided. Have a beer on the patio (cockpit) and watch the sunset. THIS is living! Now, disassemble the toilet in your bathroom, take out the wax ring under it and put it back. Reassemble the toilet. This completes the simulation of putting the new valve in the "head" on the boat. Uh, uh, NO POWERVENT! GET YOUR HAND OFF THAT SWITCH! The whole "boat" smells like the inside of the holding tank for hours after fixing the toilet in a real boat, too! Spray some Lysol if you got it.... After getting up, tomorrow morning, from your "V-Berth", take the whole family out to breakfast by WALKING to the nearest restaurant, then take a cab to any local park or attraction you like. We're off today to see the sights of Ft Lauderdale.....before heading out to sea, again, to Key West. Take a cab back home after dinner out and go to bed, exhausted, on your little foam pad under the table..... Get up this morning and disconnect all hoses, electrical wires, etc. Get ready for "sea". Crank up the lawn mower under the open bedroom window for 4 hours while we motor out to find some wind. ONE responsible adult MUST be sitting on the hot patio all day, in shifts, "on watch" looking out for other boats, ships, etc. If you have a riding lawn mower, let the person "on watch" drive it around the yard all day to simulate driving the boat down the ICW in heavy traffic. About 2PM, turn off the engine and just have them sit on the mower "steering" it on the patio. We're under sail, now. Every hour or so, take everyone out in the yard with a big rope and have a tug-of-war to simulate the work involved with setting sail, changing sail, trimming sail. Make sure everyone gets all sweaty in the heat. Sailors working on sailboats are always all sweaty or we're not going anywhere fast! Do this all day, today, all night, tonight, all day, tomorrow, all night tomorrow night and all day the following day until 5PM when you "arrive" at the next port you're going to. Make sure noone in the family leaves the confines of the little bedroom or the patio during our "trip". Make sure everyone conserves water, battery power, etc., things you'll want to conserve while being at sea on a trip somewhere. Everyone can go up to the 7-11 for an icecream as soon as we get the "boat" docked on day 3, the first time anyone has left the confines of the bedroom/patio in 3 days. Question - Was anyone suicidal during our simulated voyage? Keep an eye out for anyone with a problem being cooped up with other family members. If anyone is attacked, any major fights break out, any threats to throw the captain to the fish.....forget all about boats and buy a motorhome, instead. |
Generator
On 12/27/2012 2:37 PM, Wayne.B wrote:
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 11:57:23 -0800, thumper wrote: Does anyone remember the live-aboard simulation that was posted here years ago? There a few different versions of Larry's famous simulator but here is one that I was able to find quickly. Thanks ! |
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Generator
On 12/27/2012 5:21 PM, GuzzisRule wrote:
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 16:37:35 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 13:36:57 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:18:23 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On 12/27/12 11:01 AM, wrote: On Thursday, December 27, 2012 10:15:18 AM UTC-4, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: "GuzzisRule" wrote in message ... Here ya go! http://www.rvwholesalers.com/resourc...aptor_2012.pdf Everything you want in one place. Keep clicking the down arrow. This is what's called a 'Toy Hauler' fifth wheel. --------------------------------------------------- Looks familiar. We had the 377-SE version. Went "camping" once with it and had the most miserable week of my life. My daughter started it all. She and her husband were into camping and were purchasing a new travel trailer. She convinced Mrs.E and I and my older son and his wife to get a trailer as well for "family" camping. I saw it as a good excuse to get a new truck, so I bought the Raptor Toy Hauler along with a Ford 350 Diesel and had the fifth wheel hitch installed. I had a Harley at the time and figured the toy hauler would come in handy. My son bought a slightly smaller fifth wheel and a Ford 250 with the V-10. We all picked up our new RV's the same day at the dealership. My daughter made reservations for all of us for a week at a campground in New Hampshire that they visited often. I forget what the name of it is. I call it "Marty Moose Land". We all had sites beside each other. The trip to the campground was uneventful. The Ford pulled the Raptor with no problem and I thought this was going to be pretty cool. Well, that particular week in the mountains of New Hampshire was the hottest, most humid week I've spent anywhere. Big thunderstorms every afternoon kept us all huddled inside our respective RV's with the AC units running at full blast. When it stopped raining and we ventured outside, the mosquitoes were waiting to draw blood. One humid, sultry afternoon, we were sitting at my son's site trying to have a beer while swishing away the bugs and mosquitoes. His young daughter was playing inside his fifth wheel. As we sat talking, I looked up and saw water seeping out of the storage area door under the master bedroom of the RV. Got up, opened the door, and gallons of water started pouring out. His daughter had plugged the vanity sink in the bedroom and had the faucets turned on full. It had filled the sink and was overflowing everywhere, soaking the carpets and draining into the storage area. I took off to find a hardware store to get a wet vac while the rest started sopping up the water. Gracefully, the last day of our camping adventure arrived. My son and his family left, and then us by early afternoon. My daughter and her husband wanted to stay a little longer, so we said goodbye and hit the road. By 8pm, I had just arrived home and backed the fifth-wheel into it's spot at our house when the phone rang. It was my daughter. They had just left the campsite, got a mile down the road and their vehicle snapped a tie rod. They were sitting on the side of a busy road with a broken SUV, their new, 28' travel trailer and two crying kids. So, dear old Dad heads back to the New Hampshire mountains in his truck to rescue them. Finally got back to their house by 2am, towing the trailer. Their truck was put on a flatbed and taken to a repair shop. The next day I listed the Raptor "For Sale" in a couple of the RV classifieds. Sold it a few weeks later to a buyer in Canada. BTW, that wasn't our first attempt at trying the camping scene. When I first retired and we wintered in Florida, we thought it would be fun to make the trips back and forth in a RV. We tried a 37' Pace Arrow class A motorhome, a Chinook Glacier and a Dodge Sprinter RV. Of the three, I liked the Sprinter the most and we owned it the longest, but we eventually sold the Florida house and rarely used the Sprinter. We ended up selling it to a guy in Missouri who flew out and drove it home. He and his wife still send us email pictures of their travels in it. Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. We've been to Maine a few times. On one of those trips, we rented an RV and loaded it onto a ferry to take us to an island campground for a few days. The RV, the island, and so forth were fine, but the island was infested with biting bugs. They weren't mosquitoes, they were much bigger, and it was hot and humid, too. Misery most of the time. The next time we went to Maine, we stayed he http://mainestayinn.com/ No annoying insects indoors or outdoors, beautiful rooms, great breakfasts, and within walking distance of lots of sights and shopping and the waterfront. My wife was *much* happier! We ate too many meals at Mabel's Lobster House, purportedly where President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush had many meals when he was healthier. Lobsters at the dock were about $2.50 a pound. I braved walking into the water at a local beach and got in about halfway up to my knees before the cold chased me out. I love the Maine coastline. On the way back, we stayed at a B&B in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see relatives and old friends. Nice enough place, but no match for the Maine Stay. No bugs. That spot looks nice. I've always wanted to get down to the Seashore Trolly Museum in that area. I was serious in the summer of 2011 but after contacting the museum found out that the main attraction for me (Birney Safety Car) was judged too run down to put on display or even to fix up in the immediate future. The birney car was the only streetcar used in Halifax from about 1921 until 1949..the year I was born. Kennebunkport can get a little crowded with tourists (like us), but when we were there, in the height of the tourist season, it wasn't that bad. There's lots to see in that part of Maine. LL Bean isn't that far away, and it is worth a day's visit. Yeah, that's what I want to see and do when I go to explore somewhere, shop and go to a mall. If you've not traveled to Maine and seen the sights, you're missing a lot. Kennebunkport is well worth a stop, with campgrounds right outside of town (and at least one, that we were in, allows tents!). http://hemlockgrovecampground.com/photo-gallery If you visit Kennebunkport and you *don't* visit the LLBean store, then you're missing out on a great treat. I've been to Maine on two different occasions. I sure as hell didn't spend my time holed up in a hotel and shopping. And you didn't visit the LLBean store? No, I can buy LL Bean stuff from their catalog. I had better things to do than shop. The LLBean store has much more than just shopping. But, I understand your reluctance to engage in such a thing. Care to enlighten me? |
Generator
In article ,
says... On 12/27/12 12:27 PM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 09:03:51 -0500, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:49 AM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 08:35:15 -0500, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:33 AM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 07:58:17 -0500, JustWait wrote: On 12/27/2012 7:53 AM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Wed, 26 Dec 2012 18:14:53 -0500, JustWait wrote: On 12/26/2012 5:57 PM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Wed, 26 Dec 2012 13:22:47 -0500, wrote: On Wed, 26 Dec 2012 09:05:28 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: They don't have anything like this is North Carolina http://gfretwell.com/ftp/alaska/Glacier%20lake.jpg or this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/california/...big%20tree.jpg or this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/colorado/Ju...kes%20peak.jpg or this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Devils%20tower.jpg Duh! So, what's your point? Are you saying that you can't hike and tent camp in those areas??? I am saying I was not willing to drive to those places and trying to pack your camping supplies on an airplane is not tenable. At that point you are left with camping where you are willing to drive. My neighbor was an RV "camper" . He always had a six figure RV in his driveway or in a paid parking lot facility (most of the time). He always ended up losing about $50,000-100,000 when he traded them. They were a maintenance black hole, got about 4-5 MPG on the road towing another car. The campgrounds were not cheap and he still had to buy food in or out. I can't see the six-figure motorhome. At least I've got something to drive when the trailer's hooked up, and I don't have to tow a toad. We sat down and compared his cost to me and my wife, flying 1st class, staying in suites in nice hotels, renting an SUV and cooking in or eating out. We came away cheaper and we got a lot more actual vacation out of our 2 or 3 weeks (unless driving a bus is your idea of fun). Absolutely, especially if his was a diesel. There is some time lost driving, but much of this country is nice to drive through. Kansas does get boring, along with Nebraska, Oklahome, most of Texas and South Dakota. But, there are sights to see in every state, if one will slow down and take a peek. My neighbor had a software program that calculated costs, given various assumptions, and camping often won out., Unless you actually go camping 4 or 5 times a year, locally, the hotel is always going to be cheaper once you actually add up all of your expenses.. We've been averaging about twice a month since we got the first trailer a few years back. One of the nice things about an RV is that you sleep without other peoples' bed bugs! Well, after all this talk I guess we can morph it a bit... our ideal camper would be a four door pickup truck, with a slide on. For day races, we could throw the bikes in the back of the truck, for weekend/roadtrips, we would slide the camper on and tow the bikes behind in the trailer, during the week we have a pickup truck for around town... What I really need is a commode and a shower, I don't mind cooking outside. I don't want to sleep with the bikes, that's why I don't want a long trailer with two sections, but having a girl racer, I do need two separate sleeping areas. If I could I would have one of those nice ones that squat down for travel:) Here ya go! http://www.rvwholesalers.com/resourc...aptor_2012.pdf Everything you want in one place. Keep clicking the down arrow. This is what's called a 'Toy Hauler' fifth wheel. Sure, that's what Jessi goes racin' in when we roll out with the team. That's what we call a "FunMover" and it's the reason I said "I don't sleep with bikes". I want my bikes in a trailer. Second, I don't know about you but 1200 dollars gas for one weekend from Worcester Mass to Unadilla NY and back is not gonna' cut it for me and Jess on off weekends... Nice, but naaaa, not for a us. Wow, Worcester, Mass - haven't heard that name in a long time. My first assignment after I finished my Artillery FDC training at Ft. Sill, OK, was to Ft. Devens, MA - just outside Ayer. I had to go to Worcester for something, and the guy called it 'Woostah'. I couldn't find the damn town on the map, so I got a little assistance from a local. Anyway, my truck, a diesel, pulling about 10,500 lbs, gets around 15mpg, so the 500 mile trip would cost in the neighborhood of $130 or so. You must be adding in the gas for the motorcycle. When we bought ours, weight was a big factor in the decision process. Shouldn't you be on the road again? March, Pohick Bay...you're welcome to come, but don't call yourself ESAD. Folks will not think as highly of you as you would wish given your status and all. You're pulling your camper trailer to Pohick Bay, which is what, about a half an hour from your house? In March? I get it. You didn't have much to do, so you bought yourself a camper trailer and a big truck so you'd have something to do. Because it's the Christmas season, I'll try to be courteous, ESAD. There is a group of us who meet at the Pohick Bay Regional Park twice a year, in early spring and late fall. The spring get-together is for 'de-winterizing and a spring shakedown'. We do this close to home in case we need something from the house. We do this as a group because if one person needs a special tool or whatever, someone in the group may have it with them. We also do this 'cause we enjoy the camaraderie. Sitting around the campfire and shootin' the **** is fun - even if it's a little chilly outside. We also do a buffet type dinner where everyone brings a dish. Yes, you're right. We bought the big truck to pull the big camper because we're doing something we want to do! Merry Christmas! I suppose when you are retired, you need busy work to have something to do. It does get him out of the house unlike you watching your 350 "movies" that you have on a storage device in your home. |
Generator
In article ,
says... On 12/27/12 11:01 AM, wrote: On Thursday, December 27, 2012 10:15:18 AM UTC-4, ESAD wrote: On 12/27/12 8:59 AM, Eisboch wrote: "GuzzisRule" wrote in message ... Here ya go! http://www.rvwholesalers.com/resourc...aptor_2012.pdf Everything you want in one place. Keep clicking the down arrow. This is what's called a 'Toy Hauler' fifth wheel. --------------------------------------------------- Looks familiar. We had the 377-SE version. Went "camping" once with it and had the most miserable week of my life. My daughter started it all. She and her husband were into camping and were purchasing a new travel trailer. She convinced Mrs.E and I and my older son and his wife to get a trailer as well for "family" camping. I saw it as a good excuse to get a new truck, so I bought the Raptor Toy Hauler along with a Ford 350 Diesel and had the fifth wheel hitch installed. I had a Harley at the time and figured the toy hauler would come in handy. My son bought a slightly smaller fifth wheel and a Ford 250 with the V-10. We all picked up our new RV's the same day at the dealership. My daughter made reservations for all of us for a week at a campground in New Hampshire that they visited often. I forget what the name of it is. I call it "Marty Moose Land". We all had sites beside each other. The trip to the campground was uneventful. The Ford pulled the Raptor with no problem and I thought this was going to be pretty cool. Well, that particular week in the mountains of New Hampshire was the hottest, most humid week I've spent anywhere. Big thunderstorms every afternoon kept us all huddled inside our respective RV's with the AC units running at full blast. When it stopped raining and we ventured outside, the mosquitoes were waiting to draw blood. One humid, sultry afternoon, we were sitting at my son's site trying to have a beer while swishing away the bugs and mosquitoes. His young daughter was playing inside his fifth wheel. As we sat talking, I looked up and saw water seeping out of the storage area door under the master bedroom of the RV. Got up, opened the door, and gallons of water started pouring out. His daughter had plugged the vanity sink in the bedroom and had the faucets turned on full. It had filled the sink and was overflowing everywhere, soaking the carpets and draining into the storage area. I took off to find a hardware store to get a wet vac while the rest started sopping up the water. Gracefully, the last day of our camping adventure arrived. My son and his family left, and then us by early afternoon. My daughter and her husband wanted to stay a little longer, so we said goodbye and hit the road. By 8pm, I had just arrived home and backed the fifth-wheel into it's spot at our house when the phone rang. It was my daughter. They had just left the campsite, got a mile down the road and their vehicle snapped a tie rod. They were sitting on the side of a busy road with a broken SUV, their new, 28' travel trailer and two crying kids. So, dear old Dad heads back to the New Hampshire mountains in his truck to rescue them. Finally got back to their house by 2am, towing the trailer. Their truck was put on a flatbed and taken to a repair shop. The next day I listed the Raptor "For Sale" in a couple of the RV classifieds. Sold it a few weeks later to a buyer in Canada. BTW, that wasn't our first attempt at trying the camping scene. When I first retired and we wintered in Florida, we thought it would be fun to make the trips back and forth in a RV. We tried a 37' Pace Arrow class A motorhome, a Chinook Glacier and a Dodge Sprinter RV. Of the three, I liked the Sprinter the most and we owned it the longest, but we eventually sold the Florida house and rarely used the Sprinter. We ended up selling it to a guy in Missouri who flew out and drove it home. He and his wife still send us email pictures of their travels in it. Camping is great for some people. It's just not for me. I'd much rather live on a boat. We've been to Maine a few times. On one of those trips, we rented an RV and loaded it onto a ferry to take us to an island campground for a few days. The RV, the island, and so forth were fine, but the island was infested with biting bugs. They weren't mosquitoes, they were much bigger, and it was hot and humid, too. Misery most of the time. The next time we went to Maine, we stayed he http://mainestayinn.com/ No annoying insects indoors or outdoors, beautiful rooms, great breakfasts, and within walking distance of lots of sights and shopping and the waterfront. My wife was *much* happier! We ate too many meals at Mabel's Lobster House, purportedly where President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush had many meals when he was healthier. Lobsters at the dock were about $2.50 a pound. I braved walking into the water at a local beach and got in about halfway up to my knees before the cold chased me out. I love the Maine coastline. On the way back, we stayed at a B&B in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see relatives and old friends. Nice enough place, but no match for the Maine Stay. No bugs. That spot looks nice. I've always wanted to get down to the Seashore Trolly Museum in that area. I was serious in the summer of 2011 but after contacting the museum found out that the main attraction for me (Birney Safety Car) was judged too run down to put on display or even to fix up in the immediate future. The birney car was the only streetcar used in Halifax from about 1921 until 1949..the year I was born. Kennebunkport can get a little crowded with tourists (like us), but when we were there, in the height of the tourist season, it wasn't that bad. There's lots to see in that part of Maine. LL Bean isn't that far away, and it is worth a day's visit. Why don't you just go to the store in Howard County. It's not like it is an all day trip. Or you could go the the store in Tyson's Corner which is close to your Korean dentist. |
Generator
In article ,
says... On 12/27/12 2:20 PM, wrote: On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:42:52 -0500, GuzzisRule wrote: You really have to spend more than $49 a night. True, but once you get up to those $300-$500 a night rooms, RV's start looking pretty good! Not unless you spend more than 3 weeks on the road a year. Just the amortization of the cost of the RV was more than we spent on rooms, rentacars and air fare when we ran the numbers with my RV owner neighbor (based on losing 50% of the purchase price in 5 years). That was a conservative guess The last few trips we've been on, we never paid more than $160 a night for first rate hotels, usually smaller very nice hotels. Hotel rates are negotiable. I think we'll be in California twice in the first quarter of 2013, and the northwest perhaps in June. I'd like to get back to New Orleans this coming year, too. Is the Dr.Dr.Dr taking you to the Hotel Coronado again? Are you going to post to rec.boats the entire time while watching "movies" in the hotel room? |
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wrote:
On Monday, December 24, 2012 2:13:42 PM UTC-4, BAR wrote: In article , snip http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_Aspen Because I could. At the time I also looked at the new Honda Accord but was still leery of Japanese cars. Guess I made a mistake there. We had a Datsun 1200 Sedan. It lasted for about 13 years, over 300,000 miles and it had its oil change once or twice. It was tuned up once or twice just keep filling it with gas and it would go forever. Forgot that at the time, Consumer Reports was recommending the Aspen/Volarie. I did get the new fenders for no charge and I had it rustproofed by Bondco but there was a hole in my tailgate before it was two years old. I kept it for five years and becaused I lived about 18 -20 miles out of town back then, the road salt really did a job on the car. Too bad, I did like that old slant six engine. According to this, they were Consumer Reports most recalled car in history. Better do more research to back up your BS, Donnie. http://www.allpar.com/model/fstories.html |
Generator
wrote:
On Tuesday, December 25, 2012 10:00:29 PM UTC-4, Earl wrote: wrote: On Sunday, December 23, 2012 11:32:14 AM UTC-4, JustWait wrote: On 12/23/2012 10:26 AM, GuzzisRule wrote: I just ordered this thing, on sale for $279.99. Anyone ever used or had one? http://tinyurl.com/cz9eobb This will be used primarily for camping trips and, if necessary, emergencies. Oooops, missed he "camping trips" part. Your camp neighbors are gonna' hate you for running a contractors genny at the campsite.. Just sayin'.. I don't think Johnny worries too much about the neighbours. You don't seem to care about your house and yard. I'm sure your neighbors high-five you every time they pass by. B Well, Ditzy...y'all sure do come by your name honestly. What name? I'm Earl and that's all you need to know. You live in a pigsty and your boss, Harry, is a tax cheat. And that's all I need to know about dumb and dumber. |
Generator
ESAD wrote:
On 12/26/12 11:00 AM, GuzzisRule wrote: On Wed, 26 Dec 2012 10:34:38 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Wed, 26 Dec 2012 09:11:40 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: In article , says... On Tue, 25 Dec 2012 17:14:08 -0800, thumper wrote: On 12/25/2012 1:26 PM, Boating All Out wrote: In article , lid says... BS. If available I always take a spot with power/water. I don't get it. Why? When I tent camped I never carried any electrical gear that wasn't battery powered. Didn't carry a shower or toilet either Used the campground facilities. Coleman stove, battery lights, 5 gallon collapsing water jug. Always thought going light weight was what tent camping was about. Besides that, the RV area is noisy. And most of them I've seen have concrete aprons. Real hard to drive tent stakes through that. Never considered for a second buying an RV spot. Are you talking about a tent, or a popup tent camper? See my other response. Perhaps this location and our activities are unusual. The power is convenient for a coffee pot and microwave which allow more time on the river. We use a tent. Oh, so maybe what I said wasn't 'BS'? If you are staying in a place where the tenters are on sites with electricity and water, then it would be unusual as hell from what I've seen. We've been doing a lot of camping, with motorcycles/tents and RV's over the past 20+ years, and I've not seen much of that. While at Bryce Canyon National Park we stayed at a very nice campground outside the part, It had a tent area and RV sites. On one of the RV sites was a Moto Guzzi, with a guy and a girl at the picnic table. They paid the extra bucks for the water and electricity, but they were the only ones we saw doing that. They didn't have anything that took 110 volts, but they liked having the water right there. Let's see, by tent camping, I have a wider choice of beautiful places to camp, I use a LOT less fuel, I can park just about anywhere, I have a lot less hassle traveling, can take my boat, don't have insurance of my tent, can pick up and go in less than a half an hour, and on and on. Yep, tents are horrible! Tents are great! I can't imagine hiking into a beautiful place with a boat. That's got to be difficult! Where did you get that idea? Are you really as stupid as you act here? And, if you're not carrying insurance on whatever gets you to the hiking area, you should reconsider. And, actually, if while you were camping your tent and everything you owned burnt to the ground, I'll bet your homeowner's insurance, if you have same, would cover it, at least past the deductible. I should carry insurance on my tent?? THAT is what I said. It get really frustrating trying to get you to understand the simplest of things. You are really stupid. I cannot understand how you think you have a lot less hassle traveling. Have you ever owned an RV of any type? If not, then you've no idea of what is or isn't involved. Yes, I have. Assumptions again? No, see above. You should read your homeowner's policy. I'll bet it *does* cover your tent and all your other camping equipment. We camped out here for five days last summer... http://tinyurl.com/dynmrev We didn't bring the tent we don't have or a portable generator. Just clothes and suntan lotion. Did you pay your taxes before you shelled out a whopping $59/night? |
Generator
wrote:
On Wednesday, December 26, 2012 6:57:17 PM UTC-4, GuzzisRule wrote: On Wed, 26 Dec 2012 13:22:47 -0500, wrote: On Wed, 26 Dec 2012 09:05:28 -0500, iBoaterer wrote: They don't have anything like this is North Carolina http://gfretwell.com/ftp/alaska/Glacier%20lake.jpg or this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/california/...big%20tree.jpg or this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/colorado/Ju...kes%20peak.jpg or this http://gfretwell.com/ftp/dakota/Devils%20tower.jpg Duh! So, what's your point? Are you saying that you can't hike and tent camp in those areas??? I am saying I was not willing to drive to those places and trying to pack your camping supplies on an airplane is not tenable. At that point you are left with camping where you are willing to drive. My neighbor was an RV "camper" . He always had a six figure RV in his driveway or in a paid parking lot facility (most of the time). He always ended up losing about $50,000-100,000 when he traded them. They were a maintenance black hole, got about 4-5 MPG on the road towing another car. The campgrounds were not cheap and he still had to buy food in or out. I can't see the six-figure motorhome. At least I've got something to drive when the trailer's hooked up, and I don't have to tow a toad. We sat down and compared his cost to me and my wife, flying 1st class, staying in suites in nice hotels, renting an SUV and cooking in or eating out. We came away cheaper and we got a lot more actual vacation out of our 2 or 3 weeks (unless driving a bus is your idea of fun). Absolutely, especially if his was a diesel. There is some time lost driving, but much of this country is nice to drive through. Kansas does get boring, along with Nebraska, Oklahome, most of Texas and South Dakota. But, there are sights to see in every state, if one will slow down and take a peek. My neighbor had a software program that calculated costs, given various assumptions, and camping often won out., Unless you actually go camping 4 or 5 times a year, locally, the hotel is always going to be cheaper once you actually add up all of your expenses.. We've been averaging about twice a month since we got the first trailer a few years back. One of the nice things about an RV is that you sleep without other peoples' bed bugs! Our national broadcaster consumer protection series did a couple episodes exposing germs etc in a half dozen hotel chains...Some considered higher end. It was a bit gross...They had an expert go undercover with the gear needed to go the inspections. Some results are scary. I've always carried the anti-bacterial cloths to wipe door knobs, tv remotes, sink faucets etc but will now include a bottle of Frebreeze to mist the bed after I toss the comforter onto a chair. Nice area you live in. What's the Febreeze going to do other than make the ******** smell good? Did you take your tax cheat buddy Krause with you? He may have been the source of your putrid odor. |
Generator
On Thursday, December 27, 2012 11:03:03 PM UTC-4, Earl wrote:
wrote: On Monday, December 24, 2012 2:13:42 PM UTC-4, BAR wrote: In article , snip http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_Aspen Because I could. At the time I also looked at the new Honda Accord but was still leery of Japanese cars. Guess I made a mistake there. We had a Datsun 1200 Sedan. It lasted for about 13 years, over 300,000 miles and it had its oil change once or twice. It was tuned up once or twice just keep filling it with gas and it would go forever. Forgot that at the time, Consumer Reports was recommending the Aspen/Volarie. I did get the new fenders for no charge and I had it rustproofed by Bondco but there was a hole in my tailgate before it was two years old. I kept it for five years and becaused I lived about 18 -20 miles out of town back then, the road salt really did a job on the car. Too bad, I did like that old slant six engine. According to this, they were Consumer Reports most recalled car in history. Better do more research to back up your BS, Donnie. http://www.allpar.com/model/fstories.html You stupid jackass...I purchased a 1977 model...after Consumer Reports praised the 1st year new Aspen/Volarie models of 1976. All the problems revealed themselves after I bought mine. |
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