First off, I want to thank everybody for the tremendous reaction to the recent Kindle sale on Devil’s Churn. The promotion went better than expected with over six thousand downloads in only a few days!
It’s good to see this thriller experiment has found a solid audience. I’m busy planning the next three books. While I have yet to set a release date for those, Mineral King will be available in October so be on the lookout for more Hindy sightings!
This summer we did the unthinkable with our own Hindy, the motorhome we call Discovery: we put her into extended dry dock.
After five years, it was time to give Discovery some much needed TLC. She’s held up amazingly well given the twenty-five thousand or so miles we’ve put on her and full-time use. But she was in need of maintenance.
New tires came first. Those are always a tough call on a motorhome. The Class A rig “shoes” are not cheap. And since we generally go from place to place and just park, 5000 miles a year is about all they see. (Enough to get from coast to coast, or the Midwest to a coast and back again.)
With such low mileage, even after as long as 10 years, tires can look okay. But the rubber does degrade. And, as I understand it, so much idle time can actually speed up those processes.
Our 8+ year-old tires had some minor cracks forming on the sidewalls making replacement a no-brainer. When you’re driving your house down the highway, last thing you want is a blowout.
This year’s also been about broadening my skillset. The post-pandemic RV craze flooded the market with big rigs like ours. Some diesel repair shops refuse to work on them. And those that do often have extended waitlists.
As part of our pre-trip check, I always pay close attention to the brake system. This year when I purged the tanks for the air brakes, I discovered a bit of an issue.
There are two tanks in the system – a primary and a secondary (three, really, because there’s also a wet tank to keep water out). This is all about redundancy. A backup because, well, it’s your brakes.
Periodically, it’s a good idea to let the air out of those tanks. Check for moisture, leaks, etc. And when you empty one, they shouldn’t both empty.
Guess what ours did?
After lots of crawling around underneath and a bit of YouTubing, I came up with a plan. Several trips to NAPA later, I’d replaced a check valve, the air dryer, and a push fitting for the parking brake that had a slow leak. Back to normal -and safe- operation.
Next came changing the oil and oil filter. All 16 quarts. Could’ve been a mess, but I’m practicing this thing called “patience”. Works wonders. The steer wheels, the ones up front, also have oil in the hubs. I changed that out too and we were ready to hit the road.
Almost…
Remember when I said safe operation? We weren’t quite there yet.
We’d had another problem develop during our travels. This one involved our tow vehicle. Yes, the very same Jeep Grand Cherokee I had to Liam Neeson back into our lives. One of the tow hooks had worked its way loose.
Over time, bolts can loosen. Kind of odd for bolts secured with Loctite and torqued to specification, but, well, stuff happens.
The tow system manufacturer recommends checking these bolts annually. Since that involves removing the entire front fascia of the Jeep, I haven’t been very good about that. But the wiggle in the hook was enough my wife drove the Jeep home on our last outing.
So I really needed to look. And damn I’m glad I did.
The tow hooks are bolted to the frame with four bolts. On the driver’s side hook, I found only two. One in back, the other one, the loose one, up front. Not even three points secured. Exactly why the lonely one up front was working loose.
Now, bolts don’t just disappear. These are hefty pieces of metal. Several inches long. They aren’t going to rust away to nothing and the holes they threaded into were clear. They hadn’t snapped off inside.
That loose one? Didn’t have the nut I’d put on it or the locking washer. It had some sort of fabricated solution. A rectangular metal plate with only a few threads.
My guess? Some asshole, maybe even the same assholes who lost my Jeep in the first place, didn’t put it back together right.
After the theft, we discovered some damage to the bumper and a tie rod on the same side. I demanded they fix that too, no charge. It’s very possible they removed the tow hook to make that repair and slapped it back together.
Now, it’s also possible another shop down the road was responsible. Later on, we did need to have a radiator leak repaired. Another bit of work that could require removing that hook.
Honestly, I’ll never know. But the good news is we won’t be seeing our Jeep pass us on the highway.
Potential disaster averted, we fled another looming disaster with the remnants of Hurricane Lee. No serious impacts, which we’re thankful for. Just a mess of downed limbs and flooded streets we gladly left behind on our trip south.
We arrived at the Delaware Water Gap this last weekend. Last time we were here, it was spring. Beautiful, verdant, and seriously buggy. I think I prefer the fall. A little cooler but that’s always a plus when pushing for a summit.
I’ll be taking it easy this week. I’ve had a chance to go on a few hikes along the Appalachian Trail. But I’m also working on tightening the new series up, tweaking the marketing, and prepping Mineral King for the big day.
I’ll be exploring too. Location scouting for the rest of the series. Plans for the next three books are already brewing.
It’s going to be a fun ride. A safe ride, for us. Definitely not for Kade.
I’m glad you could join us!
Russ
RUSS LINTON 
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