Going Nowhere

We've heard that the process of manufacturing a motorhome doesn't end at the factory. Nope, it happens on the road.

Ain't that the truth?

We were up and about early this morning, ready to head east and meet our friend Hembree for breakfast in Lebanon. Then, we were gettin' the heck out of Tennessee and overnighting in Paducah.

Well, that was the plan.

We got ourselves up and dressed and packed the big moose for travel. At just after 8, we fired up all 400 horses and were ready to roll. When the not so friendly brake warning light and buzzer wouldn't silence, we looked at the air pressure gauges. We didn't have enough air pressure to release the parking brake. We may be newbies at this diesel game, but we're pretty quick. We were going nowhere.

A phone call to our chassis manufacturer was our next move. The friendly, helpful Freightliner man asked if we heard any air leaks. From inside? No. We checked outside. Oh yeah! Paul crawled under Big Bull's belly and reported back. The preliminary diagnosis: a valve was shot on our air dryer.

We're 100 miles away from a Freightliner repair facility, so the man from Gaffney, SC, gave us the names of three local roadside repair companies. The first wouldn't take checks or credit cards from "out-of-towners". (Um. We've only been here in Crossville for a few days, but our guess is that most of the folks who need truck repair in these parts are out-of-towners.) So, we passed on them and dialed the second. He said he'd be here in two hours.

At least three hours later, Stan the truck repair man arrived. He quickly diagnosed the problem: a faulty pop off valve on the air dryer. He had the part and made a rapid replacement. We fired up the moose and the pressure built up quickly. We would soon be on the road again! But, first we had to pay the man. And, as must be the custom here in Crossville, he didn't take checks or credit cards either. So, we pointed the Jeep at the nearest ATM, emptied it out and paid off Stan the man.

It didn't take long to get the squirrel hooked to the moose. We were definitely ready to hit the road! We fired the Big Bull up and the air pressure was up to par in a moment. As we pulled out of the RV park, we heard the now familiar hiss of an air leak. By the time we were a quarter of a mile down the road we knew we were in trouble.

(Insert expletive here.)

We pulled off into a small parking lot and placed a quick call to Stan. In a little under an hour he was back at our side. The problem wasn't the valve. It's the dryer. So, Stan replaced the original valve and started surgery. The process: An air dryer bypass. Just as the man at the Freightliner help desk had advised, an air dryer is an important though not essential element of a truck chassis. About 30 minutes later the bypass was complete. Bullwinkle fired up and had the pressure he needed to get rolling. But, by now it was time to be coming off the road. We opted to turn around, return to our campground and save our travel for tomorrow.

The Big Bull is patched, not repaired. So, we need to get ourselves to a Freightliner facility ASAP. There's one about 100 miles down the road in Nashville. And, the good news is they are open on Sunday. So, provided we have pressure, we'll hit the road early and get everything taken care of.

As we sit here in the same site at the same park we left earlier today we are very thankful. If you're going to lose air pressure, this is the place. We weren't on an interstate, which would have been much, much worse. As we were waiting for help we were as we are now -- safe, warm and comfortable. We don't have to be at work tomorrow, the next day or any day after that. We're 700 miles away from a date with a turkey. That's all. And, we'll get there - eventually. No worries.

Meanwhile, our fingers are crossed that the construction of our motorhome is just about complete. Here's hoping this is the last bug we need to work out, for awhile anyway.