Tuscaloosa then south...maybe.

We spent a week in Tuscaloosa visiting my sister and helping my mother with daily chores.  I was able to use the FMCA Michelin Tire Advantage Program to buy my mother a set of Michelin tires for her Cadillac.  The program requires you to go through the FMCA office to order the tires and have them delivered to a participating vendor.  You don’t get to see the final price until after the tires are installed, but just as with RV tires, the discount is substantial over normal retail. 

While we were there, I took the opportunity to wash The Bus.  I keep my wash bucket in the side area where the batteries are stored and when I opened the door the latch pin fell to the ground with a chunk of rusty metal.  When I bought The Bus 3 years ago, I noticed corrosion in the battery compartment.  I cleaned it, treated everything to POR15, and added a 16ga metal plate under the compartment.  All of this is very solid.  I did not make repairs under the latch pin and over time, it has vibrated itself to pieces. I took time to do the same procedure under the latch pin and it should hold until I can get it properly repaired.

Outer edge rusted away, cross supports intact

Metal plate installed with stainless steel screws and latch pin attached to it

Metal plate bent 90 degrees to attach to and cover outer edge

During the fall, we must carefully schedule trips to Tuscaloosa, AL and Auburn, AL to avoid home football games.  All the RV parks are in those areas are reserved often a year in advance for home games.  We departed on a Friday morning before the University of Alabama’s first home game and headed southwest to Jennings Ferry Army Corp of Engineers campground.  A fellow RV’er told me this was a nice spot and it really is.  We got set up with 50amp service and water in a location that we could lock onto a satellite to watch our Auburn Tigers play. 

We have had plans for six months to visit Bella Terra RV Resort in Foley, AL and will head that direction next week.  However, we are watching Hurricane Irma’s track and may need to alter our plans.  We remain on alert for possible hurricane recovery response with the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief organization.

Thanks for keepingupwiththejonesrv!

RV Tip:  We use a self-adhering clear frame with a sheet of paper behind it on our refrigerator to keep track of RV routine maintenance items (tank flush, battery watering, gen set run, heater run, etc.) and our grocery list.  We take a phone photo before we go to the store.