Camp Day

Our last day in Wisconsin, and east of the Mississippi, began with rain, hard rain, and then really hard rain......and for good measure lightning and thunder......now all we needed was lions and tigers and bears, so I could have said "OH MY!!"  It rained until about 9, and then the sun came out.

Since we knew rain was forecast for Wednesday so we had planned to spend the day in camp doing those chores that make the rest of our life work, like laundry, repairs to equipment, etc.  

After writing the blog, and eating a 4 star breakfast prepared by the loving hands of  TLE I headed to the "garage" (trailer) to do some work on TLE's Cannondale F600.  On our 22 mile ride Tuesday she was noticing her hydraulic disc brakes were not working very well, and got worse as the ride went on.  Sometimes the hydraulic lines get an air bubble in them, but it is rare for both to get one at the same time.  In the past I would just taken the bike into an LBS (local bike shop) to have the brake lines bled, but since I finally learned how to do this myself, and had the necessary tools, I decided to do it myself.  The rear brake, which was the worst of the two, was an easy fix, but I struggled with the front brake line for about an hour trying to get all the air out of the line.  Finally I was successful.  Okay, one job down!  I realized that I hadn't taken an updated picture of my license plate wall since I've added 7 in the past week, so here is a current picture.

While I was busy with the bike TLE was throwing quarters at the washers and dryers at the laundry building.  I puttered around in the trailer for a while, waiting for TLE to return as I wanted to take advantage of the lull in the rain to crawl under the coach to remove the speedometer signal generator to do some trouble shooting.  I have not talked often about crawling under the coach, because I don't do it often.  As my Newell, like all Newells, has air suspension it is necessary, for me at least, to have a 2nd person present in case the worst happens.  What is the "worst" you ask?  Well, air can suddenly, without warning, escape from the the system, lowering the coach down on top of whatever is under it.  People have been crushed by this.  What I do is stack several large 12" X 12" blocks of wood under the frame on the side I am entering from.  This should protect me if the "worst" happens, but I like to have TLE there just in case.   She can get in the coach quickly, start up the Detroit Diesel and air up the coach again.

My trouble shooting plan was to rule out several things all at the same time.....the signal generator, wiring between same and the speedometer, and the speedometer.  There is a slot on the bottom side of the generator, the side interfaces with the transmission housing, into which a small paddle shaped shaft slips when the generator is attached.  This small paddle, or "generator key" is about 2 inches long and turns when the coach is underway, thereby spinning the mechanism inside the generator resulting in a signal being sent to the speedometer, and my cruise control.  I used a battery powered electric drill with a flat head screwdriver attachment inserted in the slot of the signal generator to spin the mechanism while TLE was in the coach observing the speedo.  She came out quickly advising she was getting a 25 mph reading as long as the drill was on.  I tested it again with the drill on high, and got a consistent reading of 50 mph, so that was good.....the signal generator is the most expensive piece, and now I know it is good, as well as the wiring and the speedometer.  Next I pulled out the "generator key' and found it to be intact....sometimes they break, but that was not the case.  I will need another tool, which I do not have to remove one final piece to see if the second generator key is intact.  So, at least I have confirmed my suspicion, and am closer to getting it fixed.  I believe the problem is the second generator key, just as it is with the tachometer.  Being under the coach guarantees you will emerge very dirty, which I did, so after putting stuff away, I headed for the shower.

Here I am all scrubbed and clean

By this time it was time to bring home the laundry, and begin to think about dinner.  TLE's dinner plan was to BBQ the filets we had bought at Woodman's on Tuesday, as well as two chicken breasts for dinner Thursday.  I got the BBQ out, and set about my assignment just as it began to rain again.   I had the outside radio on playing 50's music, and as I tended the meat on the BBQ I sipped some Scotch while enjoying the sound gentle rain on the patio awning cover.  

It took about 30 minutes for the chicken and steaks to come  to perfection.  I started the chicken first since it takes close to 30 minutes to cook it, and then threw on the thick filets at about the 18 minute mark.  Everything was done at just over 30 minutes.  As I sat down to eat I noticed the white handled steak knives TLE had put on the table.  It occurred to me that we had received these steak knives almost 42 years ago as a wedding gift from the Egbert family (friends of my parents).  We still have all 8 of these knives, and as far as I know these knives are the only remaining wedding gift we have with us on our journey.  I have liked these steak knives from the moment we unwrapped them, and I marvel that I still remember who gave them to us.  TLE sauteed some mushrooms to pour over the steaks, and made some mashed potatoes.......the delicious meal was capped off with a nice bottle of Blue Fin Pinot Noir from Trader Joe's.

Later in the evening we watched Master Chef while tuning occasionally to the Black Hawks vs. Bruins Stanley Cup finals game.....the Black Hawks won in the 3rd 20 minute overtime.  I know my good friend Keith from Highland, IN is happy this morning!

Thursday we pull anchor and cross the Mississippi into Minnesota.  We'll be in Minnesota for a few days before arriving in Sioux Falls, SD on Sunday.

Thanks for stopping by!