When we bought the Wildebeest three years ago, we got a fourteen year old rig that seemed to run OK ... but gave Doug a few repair "challenges." I continue to be amazed and grateful for his "fix-it" talents as he repaired the water heater, furnace, leveling jacks, interior lighting, and window leaks ... to name a few.
But he decided that his super-powers do not extend to the chassis of our 40 foot diesel pusher ... that is, the framework which our RV home is built on. Since we would rather not discover a problem with the cooling system or air brakes while driving down the road, Doug decided it was time to check in with Spartan Motors, the original manufacturer of our chassis.
Located in Charlotte, Michigan, the facility has it own parking lot "campground" where we hung out for a few days with rigs much more elite than ours. Since it could take two ... or in our case ... three days to do the "routine" maintenance and fix any problems that they discover, we had plenty of time during the day to explore ... so let the Michigan meanderings begin!
Biking around Lansing, Michigan
Spartan Motors is appropriately named as it is just down the road from the Spartan territory of Lansing, Michigan. The Lansing River Trail runs along the Grand River making it easy and enjoyable to meander by many of Lansing's sites like Old Town, Potter Park Zoo,
the Michigan State Capitol building,
and the beautiful campus of Michigan State University including the Spartan Stadium and the Spartan Dairy Store.
Not sure about the green Spartan Sesquicentennial Swirl ice cream choice ...
... but then again, can it be any worse than their rival University of Michigan's Blue Moon?
Back at Spartan Motors, we found out that this was going to take a little longer and be a little more expensive than just "routine" maintenance. Ugg ... glad we discovered on our evening walk that Charlotte Brewing Company currently had not one, not two, but seven IPAs on tap as we were going to be hanging around this cute town a little longer than originally planned.
Biking Around Battle Creek, Michigan
Exploring Battle Creek, home of the Kellogg Cereal Company, kept us busy during day two of repairs. From the moment we got out of the car, the heavenly aroma of Rice Krispies greeted our olfactory senses. We hopped on the Battle Creek Linear Park bike path that meanders around the city and along the Kalamazoo River.
I loved the fact that we could get a little history of the city as well as enjoy beautiful flowers along the way. Monuments in the city park commemorated Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad's role in city history,
as well as Sojourner Truth's influence on Battle Creek and our nation.
Bell's Brewery Tour
As our repairs extended into the third day, our meanderings progressed to Comstock, Michigan, the "home" of two of Doug's favorite IPAs ... Bell's Two Hearted and Hopslam. Our tour guide, Joe, was happy to show us the magic that transforms water, malt, yeast, and hops into Bell's finest ales ... as well as add to Doug's coaster collection!
Time to "Pay Up" In Order to Continue our RV Meanderings
Our technician, Kyler worked through some long hot days to get the Wildebeest's repairs done by the weekend. The air system, transmission, and brake repairs, steering adjustments and new radiator are definitely giving us a smoother ride down the road. But as you can imagine ... three days in the repair shop as well as the miscellaneous new hoses, valves and motors can not be cheap.
Let's just say that I am very glad that Doug sets aside a portion of our budget for future RV repairs. Buying an older RV may initially cost a lot less than buying new, but things will wear out over time and need repairs in order to keep running smoothly.
We are grateful that we took the time and spent the money to keep the Wildebeest humming happily so that we could continue our meanderings south ... to Elkhart, Indiana. We enjoyed "camping" in the backyard of Doug's sister and family and hanging out with their cute shih-poo, Penny.
Don't you think that Penny would like to become an RV dog?
Until next time ... meander with those you love ... and enjoy the adventures in your life!
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| Penny is looking a little sad that we can't take her along as we head south to Louisville! |
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