The summer of 1999 passed quickly. We had ordered the new truck in the spring knowing it would not be ready for delivery before we would leave on the first of the "big" trips. It wasn't, so we used the current truck, the F350. We took delivery on the finished F450 in August. We had no plans for another trip in the near future, so there was no hurry to get the new one "seasoned". We had a lot of after-market items installed, and assumed we would have some bugs to work out. Boy, were we right!
We picked up the truck at the dealership and took it for a test drive. About two miles down the freeway we hit a very rough stretch of road, and thought we had lost something major underneath. An extremely heavy thumping was heard approximately where the auxiliary transmission (AT) was positioned. We did an immediate about face and headed back to the dealership. The service manager put it on the rack and found where the noise was coming from. In order to install the AT it was necessary to raise a small portion of the floor of the cab. The transfer case was hitting the floor occasionally, causing the noise. We immediately took the truck back to Escondido to be adjusted. It didn't take long, a big hammer did the trick!
On the way home from Escondido on another trip, I decided to try the exhaust brake on a pretty good down grade. "Bam" and a tremendous roar! I pulled off and we looked underneath -- the exhaust brake had blown loose and was just hanging there! Terry got on the cell phone (fortunately it worked from our location) and Bob said to come right back. It turned out that the person who installed the brake had used clamps instead of welding the brake to the system, and when I applied it, the back-pressure blew the brake off. Another problem solved, but more would come.
The next one came from the AT. Because it was added to the truck, the computer was not set up to recognize the upper gear. We found that if we stopped while in the upper range it would throw off the computer and when we turned off the engine, it would race before shutting down. It took several months of detective work on our parts to finally figure that out. Apparently the computer sensed the need for extra power (it thought), and gave it to us at the most inopportune moments! What a learning experience this truck has been! We had decided to accept these problems as challenges to our minds and have a sense of humor about it, but sometimes that gets strained! Several others have reared their heads, but all were fairly minor, and are now solved, we hope.
Back to the first trip home after picking up the truck -- I had a niggling doubt about the height of the hitch, it just seemed a bit higher than on the former truck. Of course the measuring stick I was using was an eyeball and hand, so you couldn't say it was accurate. Naturally, the first thing we did when we got home was to hook up the trailer. Yup, the hitch sat about four inches higher than the other one, which translated to a whole lot more when that long fifth wheel was on it. We had quite a slope, much more than was recommended. We had committed a cardinal sin -- we had not taken into account the height of the four wheel drive when we ordered this truck! Well, we couldn't do anything about it right now, so we would take it for a drive and see how the truck handled it. What a difference! It handled like a dream, no comparison to the 350. This truck had the power and the weight we needed. We also found that the turning radius was about eight feet more than we were used to, which took some getting used to.
When we got home, Terry raised the pin box on the trailer and lowered the hitch as far as he could, but the coach was still high. We called the service center for advice. One fix they had was to flip the axles on the coach, but we wanted to avoid that, if at all possible.
It was now October, and time for the yearly trek to the R V show in Pomona. Alfa had come out with a new model that we wanted to check out. We would also see what was available in low profile hitches. After spending the day, we found nothing that seemed to fit our needs, so back to Bob we went. After explaining our problem to him, he said bring in the truck, he would see what he could do -- and do, he did. Bob simply took out the extra height of the hitch, lowering it by several inches. It would not be adjustable anymore, but it was the perfect height and far stronger than before. We had an appointment at the service center for some warranty work, and had scheduled the axle work, if we needed it. When we got there, they were pleased at the job Bob had done. Problem solved. It had taken a while, but we finally had the rig we had hoped for, and were ready to start enjoying the time we had left until Terry's retirement, nearly two years away.
When we first contemplated full timing, the plan was to retire the summer of 2001, when Terry would be eligible for the maximum benefits, 55 with 29 years on the patrol. That time frame fit in nicely with our plans for disposing of the farm and the store. In the area we live, Borrego Springs, property and businesses average about two and a half years from listing to sale. We figured it would take at least that long to sell the farm, less to sell the store. Terry would probably be retired long before the farm sold, and we were trying to come up with alternatives for having it taken care of while we were on the road. We really didn't want to lease it, and were not comfortable with the idea of a caretaker, just too many things to worry about with that size operation. At least we would have the time to think about it.
About the time we were to take delivery of the new truck, August, rumors started flying about a new retirement formula for the CHP. If the rumors were true, Terry would be eligible to retire a full two years earlier than we had planned for-- oh, boy -- wouldn't that be great? Now we were in a real quandary, do we put everything on the market now, knowing how long it may take to sell, or wait until the powers-that-be decide the fate of the retirement system? We decided to wait. In late October the vote was in, and the Governor signed the bill. Now our decision was made. We put everything on the market, and settled down to wait, patiently, we hoped! That was going to be the hardest thing we had done so far. When we decide on something, we want everything done yesterday, but that certainly wasn't going to happen!
The decision to make the change from "landed" business owners to full time RVers was based on the assumption that we had plenty of time to make the transition. Remember the old adage "The best laid plans"? Well those were shot to #*!*# and back! Three weeks after putting the farm on the market, it was sold, and the store and all the equipment--literally everything we owned, with the exception of the truck and fifth wheel-- all to the same people. I didn't even get to have a garage sale! Not only did they buy everything, they wanted us to live in the house until we were ready to hit the road, in exchange for training all the new help that would be hired. We agreed and all the worries and plans and contingency plans could be set aside. Our course was laid -- we would be fulltimers much sooner than we anticipated.
The sale took place on Christmas day, with a closing date of Feb 29, 2000. Terry's retirement date was June 30. In April we took the coach in to have some major work done. We had decided now was the time to add solar panels, and inverter and a receiver for the bicycle rack. By May, everything was done and we moved into the coach. We would spend a very hot four weeks and then move to a park 70 miles away, near Terry's office. He would spend his last 30 days driving a desk, rather than a black and white.
Once we had laid our course for certain, we had to decide what to do about the little things like mail, banking, telephone, etc. Because I had accumulated information on these problems, I was fairly certain we could accomplish them in a reasonable amount of time. In preparation for our retirement, I had set up for Internet banking with our credit union, and we have used electronic deposits for years, so I was comfortable with it. We would not have to deal with mail service for checks, and could keep track of banking with the Internet. I eliminated all but two credit cards, one being Visa, which is issued through our credit union and I keep track of it electronically as well. Most bills I pay with a credit card, and pay this off completely each month. One other thing I did, which may prove unnecessary in the future, was to set up a joint bank account with my parents. Because we are using their address for our permanent address and mail for the time being, this is an ideal situation for us in case anything comes that needs immediate attention. So far this is working just as we had planned, besides my Mom loves to spend our money! There were more little puzzles to solve and I love puzzles, so these would keep my mind busy while I adjusted to a life of leisure.
Footnote: As sit here, working on the latest installment of our adventures, it has occurred to me that Terry and I must have an angel somewhere. This whole saga sounds like a fairy tale, and we have accepted the fact that dreams can and do come true. There are so many changes coming about that it could very well be overwhelming, but we won't let that happen. It is all part of the road to fulltimimg....
Dianne