2 RV's to Greer SC

... spending the night at Cedar Falls IA

BB is up before the alarm, again.

At breakfast the eggs were cold so I just had sausage and yogurt.

We were up early enough and the sun was already up so we could have gotten going earlier but we headed out at 7 AM.

1st stop was the rental car place in Davenport IA, we were over an hour early. I dropped BB off and went to get fuel.

2nd stop was the BP on the other side of the SouthPark mall for final fuel for the first rental car. Fuel was a lot more here but we need to deliver the car full of fuel and we also still had two BP gift cards to use up.

3rd stop was back at the rental car place. BB is still waiting. She/we waited about a half hour before they got to her and had a car ready. Then three miles to the airport to return the other car.

It's a 2-door Dodge Charger, red. We wouldn't have picked it and sure would not have paid extra to get it but it is what they gave us so we took it.

4th stop is the Quad Cities airport. I wait in the cell lot until I see the receipt for the car show up in our email. I then pull up front and wait for BB.

We are leaving town at 9:15 instead of 10 AM. Things are looking good.

But ... with this car I am not going to go over the speed limit even by one mile. This is the kind of cars the cops are looking for and they stand out. :(

5th stop is the Love's in Waterloo. We need fuel, fuel is cheap and they also have good food. We guess on how much fuel we will need based on the current mpg and the total trip miles. Plus a little extra. Our mpg has been going up since we got in the car and from here on the speed limit is lower so we should be leaving extra fuel.

:(

The forecast has changed and we saw snow before getting to Clear Lake. Snow was in the forecast yesterday but it had been removed this AM so BB thought we were in the clear.

Once we pull off the freeway we realize the roads are not good. And this car is made (?) to fish tail and do cool things ... on dry pavement. Not as much fun on slick roads for a 60+ year old.

BB refused to drive the car to the rental car place because of how badly it handles in the snow.

6th stop is at the shipper for us to pick up our personal car and switch luggage.

7th stop was the Fleet Farm in Mason City. By the time we got to our car, the rental car's fuel was where it needed to be when we dropped it. By the time I got 20 miles down the road the gauge was below where it should be. But as I sat at a stop light the gauge slowly bounced back to over where it needed to be. I wasn't taking any changes and put in one gallon before dropping the car.

8th stop was the rental car place in Mason City. BB takes care of the paperwork and I wait in the car. Today she asks about dropping a second brand at their location and they are OK with it. That will save us a few hours every time we decide to use that option.

By the time leave Mascon City it has quit snowing. We decide to go back to Forest City on the main roads and they are in much better shape already.

9th stop is back at the shipper in Mason City. The boss sees me and comes to hand us our paperwork. Then says he and someone from the shipper looked at the issue I told him about yesterday and the shipper will be contacting the chassis manufacture. So this is NOT some little issue. No idea how long ago this change was made, but not a good one.

When we are in the office I see someone is getting trained today. Later I see that person walk out of the office with someone but the person being trained is carrying their suitcase and starts walking down the road. (If they would have waited, someone could have given them a ride.)

I'm watching for the person between the buildings and then see them waiving their phone at me ... like they think they are calling me. I motion for them to come back and then drive closer to the road. By that time he is back. He thought he had to walk down the road to find his RV.

Saw him again because he couldn't unlock his doors. Somewhere in there I talk to our yard person. And then talk to someone else who had been standing in the office.

The person who wasn't having the issues is a brother of the other driver. This person had taken take an RV to St Cloud while his brother was in training today. Usually he runs trash trucks but all that dispatcher has today is short stuff. Stuff I would do if we were in town, four out of five are short enough that I would do them.

Today the brothers are heading to Seffner FL.

Plan was to fuel at Loves in Floyd where fuel is cheapest, but my low fuel light came on before we got to Garner so we stopped short. The thrill of cheap fuel is not worth walking to get it if I run out.

10th stop is the Pilot in Clear Lake.

The weather, the bad weather is dropping and we may end up driving in it tomorrow. We wanted to get south of it tonight. We thought Cedar Falls would be far enough. Then we talked about Cedar Rapids, but that is another hour, all after dark. And the forecast then is the warnings are going to be all the way to Davenport. We decide Cedar Falls.

Shortly before we get to the drop, I notice that two police cars have a side road blocked and they are directing all traffic from the cross street onto the freeway. Then I look down that street and see that their are police at the next to cross streets about a quarter and half mile down ???

Somehow I missed this. BB said the sunset tonight was the most beautiful red she has seen. Not sure how I missed it.

11th and final stop is the Comfort Inn in Cedar Falls. We walk next door to The Kwik Star/Trip for food. Lots of choices. I get BBQ rib sandwich and soup. BB gets BBQ chicken. All good. Better than some of the fast food we get. Thought about getting a dozen donuts or a few cheese curds but went for health(ier) food.

The hotel. We check in, BB asks what time breakfast is and the clerk say's "it's on your key card" and then does tell us the times. We get to our room and there is already a 'do not disturb' sign on the door. But rather than walk back down to the desk, I know ... and disturb them. When someone opens the door, I show them my key card that has their room number on it.

Back down to the front desk and they give us a second set of keys. Now I'm realizing that I want the room numbers changed in their computer. Just in case the other person does some damage or steals something.

Load board

US - 247

IA - 113/99

MN - 5

WI - 15

Leaving at 7 AM or before. The storm warnings start at 9 AM so we will be most of the way through by that time. But they are likely to change.

Plan is to do 500 miles tomorrow and 500 the next and we will be within miles of our drop. ... also when I was talking to the boss. It sounds like the shipper will dump 'hundreds' of RV's on our lot by this weekend ... if the storm doesn't stop them. So we will likely be heading straight back from SC to grab more. Maybe we will then head west ???