TOO BUSY TO BLOG? WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING???

Today was Early Mother's Day. My sister Nancy and I planned a fun day with my mom: lunch out - with gifts - followed by "spa" pedicures (manicure for Nancy, who already had good lookin' feet). I love having a pedicure: the massaging chair, the foot massage, the attentions of a "trained professional" to all the bumps, lumps and wierdly shaped toenails. Clomp in on hooves, glide out on dainty woman-feet.

The other reason I love getting a pedicure: it is such a "girl" experience. Martha Stewart's Living, Oprah's O, People, More, Family Circle... all the women's magazines are there (I opted for the O magazine from August of 2006). The pedicurists chat among themselves in an Asian tongue; the gaggle of girls getting ready for the prom gossip together; friends discuss their kids and husbands. I am rarely in that atmosphere anymore, and it is relaxing to listen to these slices of female life.

Over coffee after our pedicures, my mother mentioned that it had been several days since I posted a blog. All I could say was, "I've been soooooo busy!" My working sister laughed outloud at that, and I tried to think what, what, what have I been doing?? Two things have consumed a lot of time lately: picking out my new glasses, and planning our trip north.

My cataract surgery results are fantastic - I couldn't be happier. I still need glasses for reading and computer work, though, and HATE putting reading glasses on, taking them off, searching for them throughout the rig, digging into my purse for them when I am out, needing to find 'em to read the prices at the grocery store...

So, I want full-time glasses. Put them on and forget about 'em. Prior to cataract surgery, I wore the same pair of glasses for about 4 years: narrow burgundy frames, out-of-style shape. I am sick of them! I wanted something cute, something modern, something that took 10 years off my face and neck. With that tall, tall order in mind, I decided to start looking at frames well in advance of yesterday's "final checkup" of my eye and the resulting new prescription.

Any of you who wear glasses know what it's like to pick out your new frames. Too wide. Too big. Too heavy. Too dorky. Too "cute". Too trendy. When you find a pair you like and set them aside, you don't like 'em anymore 15 minutes and 22 frames later. Brown? Plum? Khaki? Purple? Bling, or bling-free? So, that is ONE of the things I spent time on (I went for brown, narrow frames, as bling-free as possible, semi-trendy shape).

The other is trip planning, and that sucked up ALL of my computer time for several evenings. We are leaving here on Wednesday, 5/20, a few days before the Memorial Day weekend. Fulltimers know this: be prepared for 3-day holiday weekends! The smart move is to be in place on Friday and stay put until Tuesday. If you are staying in a commercial campground or state/federal park, you have three choices: go where there is snow on the ground; go where the temperature is 100+ degrees, or have a reservation.

We have 12 days to move from Sacramento to our volunteer job in Hood River Oregon. Hmmmm...

Up I-5 for the umpteenth time? The driving is easy; we have favorite stops along the way; the mileage is shortest. One of the most beautiful RV parks we have ever visited is on that route (Seven Feathers RV Resort in Canyonville, Oregon), as is one of our favorite free sites (drycamping in the huge parking lot of the Valley River Shopping Center along the Willamette River and the bike trails of Eugene, Oregon).

But how about taking Hwy 101 through the California redwoods and up the Oregon coast? We haven't been that way in a long time; we love Eureka/Arcata (in California); the Oregon coast is beautiful and we have friends volunteering along the way to visit... but what if it is rainy, or foggy? But it is SO beautiful if the sun is out....

And how about Crater Lake - we haven't been there in ages? Oh, the open spaces and blue skies... we'd see some new sights, have excellent hiking... but what if there is still snow on the ground???

Stage One is to make a commitment to a route, and we spent a couple of nights researching and discussing - in impossible-to-describe detail - the pros and cons of the various options. Last night, we FINALLY decided to commit to the Memorial Day weekend in Grants Pass, Oregon. We've never spent time there and several fun events are planned over the long weekend so. Today, Odel called and reserved a spot for us in a highly-rated RV park within walking distance of the Rogue River. After that, we'll check weather.com and decide which way to go!

While I was having lunch with Nancy and my mom today, talk turned to food and recipes (of course). As a former Sacramentan, I still enjoy reading the Sacramento Bee. Wednesday is the day the food section comes out and, a few weeks ago, an unusual recipe caught my eye: White Bean and Shrimp Stew with Dandelion Greens.

I made it a couple of nights ago and Odel begged me to keep the recipe. As always, I made a few changes: I didn't have easy access to pancetta, so bought a couple of strips of applewood smoked bacon (you don't need much) from the butcher counter in Safeway, added more garlic than the recipe called for, and cooked the beans in the morning when I wanted to warm up the motorhome instead of in the afternoon when it was already damn hot inside! I also used kale instead of dandelion greens (not as readily available at Safeway and I wasn't in the mood to forage).

Since I didn't want to type the entire recipe, I googled it to see if I could snag it from the internet. Turns out that the Sacramento Bee's recipe had been printed in several newspapers, including the LA Times - who provided this yummy photo, copied off of their site. Consider that to be official accreditation... I don't want them tracking me down!

A NOTE ABOUT GCWR: GROSS COMBINED WEIGHT RATING

Donna's comment on my prior post about weights brought up a couple more weight ratings that I didn't mention, trying to keep it simple - which it isn't! When you are SHOPPING for a rig, the CCC that I described is very important to know. Once you have made your purchase, you also will want to know:

GCWR is the Gross Combined Weight Rating, the total allowable weight of the motorhome plus tow car (and dolly or trailer, if you choose to use one). It is based on the manufacturer's specifications, and we found ours on the Spartan Chassis website.

Scoopy is built on a Spartan Mountain Master Chassis and has a 350 HP engine. While our GVWR is 31,000, our GCWR is 10,000 pounds more than that - which means we can tow up to 10,000 pounds of car, trailer, boat, whatever. Once you determine what you CAN tow, you need to match your tow hitch to the weight of your towed vehicle - in other words, make sure the hitch is rated to tow the desired vehicle.

Besides the GVWR, there are limits for each axle. On Scoopy, the front axle weight limit is 12,000 pounds; the back axle weight limit is 19,000 pounds (two tires per side, there). A label specifying these weights, along with the size and air pressure requirements for the tires, is posted in Scoopy just back of the driver's seat.

Donna also wondered how we avoid the surprise of an insubstantial bridge on some little back road.

When we are in unfamiliar territory, we often stay on designated truck routes, where a sign like this one is much more common than the "5 Ton Weight Limit" sign I included in my prior post. Trucks deliver goods everywhere, and most towns have designated routes that bypass problem areas, including small bridges, narrow lanes, residential areas, low overpasses, overhanging trees, etc.

Which brings up another consideration: Once you find and buy your rig, be sure you know its height! Write it down on a piece of tape and post it where it can be clearly seen by the driver. Overpasses under 15 feet or so (maybe 16?) have to be posted with the exact height. The first time you encounter an overpass that says 13', you are really going to wish you remembered exactly how much space you need to safely pass under!

Scoopy needs 13 feet, 1 inch to escape a low overpass unscathed. Even when the height is clearly posted at 13'6", we find ourselves scrunched down in our seats, eyes squeezed almost shut. It is particularly scary when you notice the scrapes and gouges on the leading edge of an overpass, made by those unlucky vehicles that either didn't know their height or didn't realize it mattered.

We have never had to turn around due to a bridge weight rating or a low overpass BECAUSE WE KEEP AN EYE OUT for warning signs. We HAVE taken a different route when a sign warned of an upcoming 12'6" overpass. Be sure you know your height!

BUYING AN RV: GVWR AND ITS COUSINS... GRRRRRR!

GVWR, UVW, SCWR, CCC… UGH and GRRR. Taking our self-imposed cram course in Buying an RV in 2002, these acronyms made my head spin.

Don’t overlook them. These numbers are important, both for your safety and for your maintenance and repair budget. Ignore them at your peril - no kidding!

Every motorhome, new or used, will have a sticker similar to this one somewhere in the rig. Ours is on the inside of a cabinet door in the bedroom. If you can’t find it, make the salesperson show it to you (or ask the current owner if you are buying from a private party). Don't take the salesperson's word for it, and don't trust what is printed in a glossy brochure. Find and study this sticker.
The two most important numbers here are the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) and the Cargo Carrying Capacity (CCC).

Start with the GVWR. You know the signs posted on bridges showing the bridge weight limit? The signs you blithely ignore cruising in your car? You can’t ignore them in your RV! You will be in a vehicle that might weigh 10 TONS, or MORE.

The GVWR is the maximum allowable weight of the fully loaded rig. This means EVERYTHING! Fuel (diesel or gas, and propane). A full tank of fresh water and anything in the gray and black water tanks. You. All your food, and personal belonging, and clothes. Books. Tools. The weight of the hitch on the back. Your pets. EVERYTHING!

You CAN go over this weight - you will have the space, and no one will stop you. If you do, every part of your rig will be stressed: axles, wheels, tires. Brakes. Suspension. The engine. This will cost you, perhaps in repair and maintenance, perhaps in safety - likely, both. You really don’t want to go there, so know the GVWR and pay attention.

The next number you want to understand is the CCC, the Cargo Carrying Capacity. This is how much “stuff” you will be able to haul around with you.

To figure out the CCC, subtract these things from the GVWR:

The UVW (Unloaded Vehicle Weight) - the weight of the unit as built at the factory, with full fuel tanks, engine oil and coolants. This is the weight of a “stock” rig - no options have been added by the dealer, and it includes only the fluids required to power/move the rig.

The weight rating sticker will show the size of your fresh water tank in gallons. (In the photo, you can see that I wrote 100 in black marker - our rig was modified to hold 100 gallons of fresh water rather than 85, so we adjust accordingly.) That number, multiplied by 8.3 pounds (the weight of a gallon of water), is subtracted from the GVWR.

The sticker also shows the size of your propane tank, and the weight of a full tank. Again, subtracted from the GVWR

The SCWR (Sleeping Capacity Weight Rating) is the manufacturer–designated number of sleeping positions (in our case, 2) multiplied by 154 lbs. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!! Do you weight 154 pounds or less? I don't, and neither does Odel. Two individuals weighing 154 pounds or less… hmmm. That could be my 5' 2" mother and my skinny teenaged nephew. We’ve seen travelers with DOGS that weight more than 154 pounds.

So, the GVWR minus the weight of the “stock” rig, the fresh water, the propane, the small/slender/fit individuals that will be sleeping in the rig…

That leaves the official CCC (Cargo Carrying Capacity). The weight of everything you add to or carry in the rig needs to be stay within this number.

Have a chest-style refrigerator/freezer in your basement? That’s about 90 pounds. How about a stacking washer and dryer? Pushing 250 pounds. Does your rig have sliding trays in the bay? Add the weight of those.

Your books. Lawn chairs and outdoor tables. BBQ grill. Golf clubs. Computer and printer. Your pots and pans, crockery, all the canned goods you have in the pantry, and the beer in the refrigerator. Your clothes and shoes. Your files, and magazines. Maybe you're planning on solar power... what will your solar panels weigh? What are your hobbies, and how much does all that stuff weigh? Do you have a heavy, multi-drawer tool chest? And… do you weigh more than 154 pounds?

This is how Scoopy stacks up:
GVWR: 31,000 lbs.
Less UVW: 25,000 lbs.
Less 100 Gallons Fresh Water x 8.3 lbs/gallon: 830 lbs.
Less 18.8 Gallons Propane x 4.5 lbs/gallon: 85 lbs.
Less SCWR (2 x 154 lbs.): 308.Cargo Carrying Capacity (CCC) - 4,777 lbs.

That seems like a lot, doesn’t it? And it is. A large CCC was high on our priority list.

We have weighed our rig three times, twice on truck scales and once to weigh the actual weight on each wheel/axle position. We weigh in around 1000 pounds under our GVWR when we are fully loaded - and by that, I mean we are on our way to a boondocking rally and have just fueled up. We'll have the full fuel tank and all our usual “stuff”, plus 100 gallons of fresh water in the tank (we normally travel with it about 1/3 full) and 4 or 5 gallons in bottles, two refrigerators (yes, we have a large chest refrigerator in the basement) packed with food and beverages, the freezer crammed with goodies. Extra wine is stashed under the bed, along with canned goods and grains. Our gray and black water tanks are empty (which could add another 800 pounds if they were full).

We have the chest refrigerator, the stacking washer and dryer and the sliding trays in the basement that I mentioned. Those are all options, not included in the UVW. They add up to around 500 pounds. That means that all our stuff, all Luna’s stuff (and 13 pounds of cat), and our excess “personal” weight adds over 3,000 pounds - and we don’t have any hobbies that require heavy equipment.

The take-away message here: Before you fall in love with a rig, take a peek at the Motorhome Weight Information sticker. It can be a shocking eye-opener.