We arrived in Red Bay on Monday, Labor Day. If we had been planning a little better we could have gone to the Coon Dog Cemetery Annual Celebration like we did last year. That was a hoot. But we we glad to arrive safely.
We left a nice overnight stop in Forrest City Arkansas. While packing up, our Driver Side (DS) slide did not want to retract. I got a couple of neighbors to help me push it in while Pam pressed the 'In' button.
We pulled out and I thought better about it and we stopped in the big parking lot nearby and we cut up a piece of 2" x 6" that I had and used it for blocking. That prevented the slide from moving out as we drove down the road. Not sure we needed it, but we felt better with the preventive safety steps.
Once in town, we found the spot we had reserved was occupied so we went over to Downtown RV Park and called Vickie. She indicated or favorite site #3 was open for a couple of nights and we took it. We had learned earlier friends Bob and Marty were at the park and we ended up right beside them as we had done last year about this time. Turned out great.
Our satellite dish worked fine and we enjoyed some U.S. Open tennis. The matches this year on prime time have been really good.
That done, we went by Deaton's and the Roadrunner was finished. That was quick! I am guessing it may have taken then less than 30 minutes to change out the window.
While we waited to be seen by Jason or Norris, we had time to replace the water heater anode rod. That is a fairly simple process and needs to be done about every 12 months.
We were up at 5:30 AM and rolled out shortly after 6:00 AM. Early yesterday morning we drove from Red Bay to Simmons Tire near Tuscumbia AL. It is about 35 miles away and we wanted to be there when they opened at 7:00 AM.
We bought our Michelin tires through the FMCA Advantage program and saved some money there which was nice. Got our paperwork all squared away, left the keys and then found a Cracker Barrel for breakfast in Florence a few miles away. Some nice friends gave us a gift card and this was the perfect time to use it.
After a leisurely breakfast, we made a stop at Aldi and then also one at Publix (home of that incredible Key Lime pie).
We wanted to stay at Downtown RV Park but the only space available was #2. Our Winegard Trav'ler was not locking on. The large tree was in the way. So we packed up and moved over to Deaton's RV park and set up and it all worked.
I ran out to Brannon's for a couple of parts and on the way back I got a red light on the dash indicating the Electrical System was not charging. Uh oh.
We thought about what to do and talked with Deaton's and they suggested Red Bay Body Shop. Really? I did not know they had a garage. Sure enough. They jumped on it
Chances turned out to be good in fact!
They ordered a part and said it would be there at 9:00 AM on Thursday. I went over this morning at 8:30 and it was already there. I left the car and William worked on it for a couple of hours. It was a beast to remove. We were in no rush so we told him not to hurry and we'd pick it up before they closed.
Meanwhile, shortly before 11:30 we were notified to report to Bay #10 for our Express Bay Service call. We were told by the mobile maintenance the slide gears were slipping and we'd probably need a new motor.
We drove the Roadrunner back over to our spot at Deaton's campground and then I walked over and picked up the car. William did a fantastic job. 24 hours after being 'out of airspeed and ideas' -- we had a fixed car! Not only that, William and used Purple Power degreaser on the whole engine and it looked like a new car under the hood.
And the total bill for a new alternator: $246.98. Another nice surprise! I was expecting $400-$500 but didn't quibble over that bill either.
So that means we're done this time in Red Bay. We got to see some friends who work in different places around town.
And we also had the good fortune to meet up with Linda/Bill, Bob/Marty and Carlene.
We're planning on leaving tomorrow morning for Maynardville, TN where will be staying at the Roadunner RV Resort and Campground (aka Joan and Mikes place.)
Its been a quick four days, but we got everything done and time to move on down the road.
Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!