Way To Go, Richard!

I can’t begin to tell you how proud I am of my husband.  Not only did Richard uproot his comfortable life and join me on my wild dream to travel the length and breadth of the USA, he has jumped wholeheartedly into the challenge of learning how to tow our 36 feet 5th wheel trailer, the Jet, which is as long as a doubles tennis court is wide.  

This is especially remarkable, because, unlike me, Richard has never experienced camping, nor has he ever towed anything.

   

In case you haven’t read the other blogs, the Jet is not an RV, like a bus, nor is it a trailer/caravan, which is pulled by a hitch attached to the rear bumper.  We selected a 5th wheel in order to gain improved towing capacity. A fifth-wheel hitch located in the middle of a sturdy pickup bed, can support more weight in that area, and allows around 80% turning capacity to the right or the left, which makes it easier and safer to turn in tight corners.

To get a feel for that turning capability, Richard has been practicing towing and reversing with a flatbed trailer around the tracks on Lee and Carolyn’s land.  After we both passed our Texas driving tests last Tuesday, Richard ventured onto the roads with the flatbed, to get a feel for how wide to make left and right turns so that the wheels of the trailer don’t go over the curbside or cross onto the other lanes at junctions.

As the weather finally looked to be improving, Lee, who has been guiding Richard in all things to do with towing and managing the trailer, suggested we should go for a couple of nights to a trailer park at Canyon Lake, about 30 miles away, and they would accompany us in their own 5th wheel. We planned to stop off at Camping World to buy some more RV supplies, as well as pay a visit to nearby Gruene, a quaint old town along the Guadaloupe River, first settled in the 1840's by German farmers, which is famous for its old Dance Hall.
http://www.touringtexas.com/gruene/

Richard was a little apprehensive about taking the 5th wheel on its maiden run, but got caught up in the preparations.

These included fitting a hitch into the bed of our monster truck Benny, not an easy job for hands used to the easy life, especially when directions are not read beforehand and the job has to be done twice!

Fingers used to tapping a keyboard were suddenly wrenched, blood blisters grew, cuts and bruises accumulated, as Richard hauled and fetched under Lee’s instructions.  What would we have done without Lee’s expertise?  We owe him eternal thanks.  

Finally the black water (ie toilet) and grey water (other used water) tanks were emptied,  propane gas bottles filled, the shower leak in Lee’s trailer was fixed, the blocked sewerage pipe was cleared (peeeuuw),


and a shiny black tool box was installed beside the 5th wheel hitch in the truck bed.  We were as ready as we were ever going to be.  As I looked in surprise at Richard sitting in the back of the truck, his jacket and jeans covered in mud, I realized that Richard has left office life behind forever and is becoming a Texan!

Moreover Richard now has rough MAN hands.

So the day to leave for our first RV park has arrived.  Surprisingly Richard slept very well considering the mammoth task to come.  All that hard work and practicing will finally be tested.  We rise early.  Lots of things in the Jet where we have been living for a month need to be tidied away, before we can make a start: water hose, electric and sewer pipes have to be unhooked; furniture stowed so the pop outs that make the Jet so roomy inside can be slid back into place; 

Benny plus the hitch have to backed up to the Jet so that the king pin on the front engages; 

the jacks are lowered; 

all chocs removed; before we can hit the road.  

It only remains for me to clear away all the knick-knacks I bought to make the Jet feel like home. Though I have no idea what will and won’t slip as the Jet’s wheels speed and bump along the highways, I will ensure that anything that can move is securely positioned.  As I stow bubble-wrapped breakables in a cupboard, I spy the following:

Soft hands or chapped, I’m still proud of my man!

OK - so he'll have to get himself a proper hat like Lee's!