Getting ready!

[Roger450]

Over the next few days we met a lot of other people, and everyone was so nice. I got to meet Bob and was glad he had a few moments to spare and talked with me awhile. We met the folks from Technomadia. They are cool. Peter put on a great soup dinner. James and Kyndel sorry if I misspelled your name, were so nice and had a great story to tell. I met Nancy , Glenn and Lisa too. I know I'm leaving a few others out and I apologize for that. There were a lot of people there and a lot going on but hopefully I will meet you again soon.

 

[rvwandering]

Hi Rodger and Cindy! I'm so glad that you made it to the RTR and had a good time. It was nice meeting both of you even though we didn't get to talk until the last day.

 

[Roger450]

Hi Tony and Karen, it was really nice to meet you both and yes , I wished we had met before the last day. Hopefully we will get the opportunity to meet up again this year down the road. Y'all take care and travel safe!

 

[Roger450]

After leaving the RTR we stopped for the night in las cruses n.m. Awoke the next morning to snow, several inches on the ground and blowing in very wet. We left as soon as we could get ready by the time we got to el paso, the roads were clear, it was still snowing lightly but manageable. The rest of the trip was light snow untill Midland. Then it turned to light rain until we got to Dallas. Made it to my parents house about 8pm. We are hanging out here for a week to visit them and other family and friends. I will get some dental work finished that I started last year and get the Tahoe serviced. Planning on using this time to check on more trailers.

 

[Iggy]

Hey, Roger and Cindy, I'm glad we had a chance to get acquainted. I'm happy that Kevin and I got to be the greeting party for you guys. Lol This was my first RTR and I'll definitely be back next year! Enjoy your travels!

 

[Roger450]

Good morning folks! It's a great day already. Cindy and I went trailer shopping again and have found what we think is the perfect setup for us and Bear. We are very excited about it and can't wait to get on the road to new destinations and adventures. So the penciled in plan for now is to finish off the week in Dallas and head back to Iowa to spend the rest of winter with Cindy's dad. that alone could last till Apr or May. Then we have a graduation in May, then have to come back to Texas in June for another graduation. After all that, we are free and clear. Even though they say are Tahoe can handle the trailer fine, we feel a truck will be more suitable, so the hunt for a good tow vehicle is on. Hope all are doing ok. Enjoy that desert warmth as we are heading back into the polar vortex.

 

[Seraphim]

So what type of trailer did you find?

 

[Roger450]

It is a 2015 North Trail 27lrss by Heartland. It seems to be a solid built trailer, aluminium frame construction and lots of insulation. It's small enough for the Tahoe to.pull and big enough for the three of us . We were not going to buy new, but after discussing all the options especially the warranty we felt that it was the wY to go for us. Can't wait to be on the road.

 

[akrvbob]

You're wise to get a bigger vehicle. For a full-timer, you want a tow vehicle (TV) that easily handles the weight, not struggles with it in any way. I'd get at least a 3/4 ton and would recommend a 1 ton as better. The bigger the engine the better, Fords V10 is a very strong engine as is the Chevy 8.1. The Chevy is discontinued but is a great engine.

If you're going to boondock, you'll be glad you got the truck. It can carry bikes or scooters as daily drivers. But more importantly you can get a 30 or 55 gallon drum to carry fresh water and set it up with a Blue Boy and a macerator pump for your black/gray water tanks. That way you don't have to move the trailer every time you need to dump or get fresh water. You'll also need a pump to pump the water from the drum into the RV.

When you buy the trailer, use those as negotiating tools, try to get them to throw them in for free.

You're in for a great life!!
Bob

 

[Simran]

I don't know anything about the Chevy 8.1 but I've heard from others that the Ford v10 is both good on gas and reliable.