{"id":1497,"date":"2017-06-26T09:14:48","date_gmt":"2017-06-26T16:14:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cowlesmountain.com\/Travels\/?p=1497"},"modified":"2017-06-26T09:15:40","modified_gmt":"2017-06-26T16:15:40","slug":"salt-lake-city-layover","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cowlesmountain.com\/Travels\/2017\/06\/26\/salt-lake-city-layover\/","title":{"rendered":"Salt Lake City layover"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>We used Salt Lake to refit and resupply.\u00a0\u00a0 On the way from Moab, heading up US 6 around Soldier Summit, we heard an earsplitting “THWACK”.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We looked around and didn’t see any rock chips, so I assumed it must have hit the front side of a mirror or it poked a hole thru the front fiberglass.\u00a0 Those thoughts were incorrect as about 10 minutes later Kathy said she saw a crack.\u00a0\u00a0 When I looked over to my left, I could just see a little crack.\u00a0 Stone hit the windshield. Bummer.<\/p>\n

Coming down the other side of Soldier Summit toward Provo, I started calling windshield shop, found one that said they could drill the crack to stop it from getting longer.\u00a0\u00a0 In a bit we found the shop and circled it a couple of times to figure how to get into there.\u00a0\u00a0 On the second circuit, I saw a way to pull all 65′ into that small space.<\/p>\n

The shop owner had a look and that 1″ crack was now 6″ long and growing.\u00a0\u00a0 He tried to drill it, but the crack immediately bypassed where he was starting to drill and he gave up, \u00a0told me I needed to replace it.\u00a0\u00a0 Oh, well, we reattached the car and headed toward the campground.<\/p>\n

I was not aware how smoggy Salt Lake City (SLC) is. \u00a0It rivals the old days of LA.<\/p>\n

The KOA in SLC was very nice,\u00a0 much better than expected.\u00a0\u00a0 Lots of shade,\u00a0 which is important where its painfully hot.<\/p>\n

On Friday I took the coach over to a chain truck lube shop outside of SLC, \u00a0had them replace the 8 gallons of oil & filter, and I also had them replace both the fuel filters.\u00a0\u00a0 I figured the old diesel fuel must be completely gone now that I have run about 700 gallons of new fuel thru the tank.\u00a0 I wanted the filters replaced prior to them fully clogging and leaving me for dead somewhere in the middle of nowhere.\u00a0\u00a0 I also wanted them to replace the air filter, but they didn’t have one to fit.\u00a0 The manager mentioned it was an odd size and I would probably need to buy one online.\u00a0 Getting online purchases delivered are not easy when your house moves often.<\/p>\n

He mentioned there was a Cummin’s dealer and a Freightliner shop across the street from it on the way back toward Salt Lake. \u00a0As our coach is built on a Freightliner XCR chassis, I stopped there and asked service about getting one installed.\u00a0 They said it would be about an 8-hour wait.\u00a0\u00a0 I walked over to the parts department.\u00a0\u00a0 $110 later I had a very heavy box with an air filter in it, \u00a0which felt more like it was filled with rocks,\u00a0 weighed orders of magnitude more than any air filter I have ever purchased.<\/p>\n

I opened it to see what the heck was inside that box.\u00a0 Turns out it’s the whole thing, metal housing with the air filter mounted inside.\u00a0 No wonder it was so heavy! \u00a0 That’s when I realized it would be a bear for me to install it back at the campground.\u00a0 I scoured the coach for the campground pamphlet as it had lots of ads on it. \u00a0 \u00a0I started calling the mobile RV mechanics listed.\u00a0 Turns out, none of them work on the chassis,\u00a0 just the house stuff: \u00a0appliances,\u00a0 plumbing, electrical, etc.\u00a0 One of them gave me the name of the diesel truck shop, where I called and talked to the foreman Ricky.\u00a0 By then it was around noon and he didn’t want to get involved on some lengthy issue on a Friday afternoon.\u00a0 I assured him it would be a simple job. \u00a0 So he said his minimum was a half hour labor,\u00a0 $45.\u00a0 I said I would be right over. \u00a0 I was currently in the queue at Blue Beacon for a wash of the coach.<\/p>\n

Once that waste of money was done, I headed over and they had me pull it inside immediately.\u00a0\u00a0 Ricky had one of his mechanics crawl under it, and I pointed out it was easier to see what was needed from above thru back engine doors.\u00a0\u00a0 He looked and agreed.\u00a0 Within about 20 minutes, he had the old one off and the new one installed.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I went back to the office to pay the bill.\u00a0 Ricky said, “No charge. \u00a0 The mechanic wasn’t doing anything anyway.”\u00a0 Then he said to have a safe trip to Yellowstone.\u00a0\u00a0 I was shocked. \u00a0 Can’t say that has happened to me before, unless they just looked at something and said they couldn’t do the work or it was a two-second thing.<\/p>\n

After that I drove over and filled the tank, squeezing another 100 gallons in the tank for the trip to Yellowstone. \u00a0I asked Ricky if he knew anyone who would fix my windshield. \u00a0 He gave me the name of the guy they sent glass work to.\u00a0\u00a0 Called him around 2 pm and he said he would meet me at the RV park when he finished his other jobs.\u00a0\u00a0 Around 6 pm I called to see if I should still expect him.\u00a0 He said yes, that he was stuck at Guardsman Summit for a bit longer.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 At 9:45 pm\u00a0 he called and said what about 8:30 the next morning. \u00a0 I agreed. \u00a0At 8:45 he texted to say he couldn’t make it as he was taking his dad to the emergency room.\u00a0\u00a0 What can I say to that? \u00a0 So we battened down the hatches and left SLC.<\/p>\n

We are in West Yellowstone now, and I am glad to see the crack hasn’t gotten any longer.\u00a0\u00a0 The insurance company is looking for someone capable of replacing that huge piece of glass.<\/p>\n

Footnote:\u00a0\u00a0 Blue Beacon Truck washes…\u00a0 a true waste of money. \u00a0 The coach was still filthy after I got it back to the campground.\u00a0 They just walk around the coach with spray wands like you see in those coin-operated wash bays.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 No sponge or brush ever touches the vehicle.<\/p>\n

I guess if you offroad in your RV, then it would probably get that mud off.<\/p>\n

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We used Salt Lake to refit and resupply.\u00a0\u00a0 On the way from Moab, heading up US 6 around Soldier Summit, we heard an earsplitting “THWACK”.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We looked around and didn’t see any rock chips, so I assumed it must have hit the front side of a mirror or it poked a hole thru the front … <\/p>\n

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