TrackTown, USA: So today, Dear Reader, I share the simple functioning of my brain. Today, we hitched the new Jeep behind the motorhome and towed it two hours south on I-5.
Of course, we had a late start as My Driver had meeting downtown Portland. We didn't get to our RV storage garage until 4p. We spent just a few minutes loading our belongings (clothing, food), but it took us a full four times to test the towing procedure found on pages 169-171 of our Jeep Cherokee Limited owner manual.
There are 15 listed steps to go through to prepare the Jeep for towing. Simply, it requires disengaging the transmission completely (through the Jeep Active Drive IIfeature). Un-simply, it requires the previously-mentioned 15 steps! (I was so missing my Honda CRV: warm the car, shift from Drive to Neutral and flip the key to "accessory".) The Jeep Cherokee Limited is towed with the shift lever in PARK and the car completely turned-off! I know, I know... it's freaky. Every Jeep Cherokee owner we have met promises it will get easier, but every Jeep Cherokee owner we have met reports still relying on the owner manual every time they prepare the car for towing.
It's a process. Miss one step and you have to start over. At one point, I was so frustrated, I suggested to My Driver that I simply follow him to Eugene.
Finally, I figured it out. And I say "I", because for 16 years, preparing the car for towing has been my responsibility. I will get better. I will get familiar with the 15 steps.
And so we arrived to Premier RV Resort well after they had closed the office for the evening. Our reservation was waiting for us outside the office and we happily unhitched (and were extra happy to find the Jeep still had a working transmission) and settled in the for the evening.Knowing I was technologically-challenged and had reached the limit of my patience, the DirecTV dish popped right up and found the satellite. Amazingly enough, so did the internet satellite.
A cork was pulled.
No lasagna tonight. I made so much mushroom risotto last night, we had leftovers. Good thing too, pretty sure I was too exhausted/frustrated to cook.
Mushroom Risotto, garnished with caramelized fennel.You know, basic camping food.
We are in Eugene to attend the USATF track meet at Historic Hayward Field. This competition is for the big boys and girls - the professionals. Top three finishers in each event will represent the United States at the World Championships in Beijing this August. There are many ex-Ducks competing this week and we are very hopeful for excellent conditions and excellent results.
Until my next update, I remain, your methodical correspondent.
RV PARK: Premier RV Park. I-5, exit 199. Large paved pull-throughs. Back-in sites line a small lake. Laundry, fitness center, club house, bath house, recycling, small store. 50 amp, free wifi. This park is very popular with campers in the area for repairs/maintenance at the many nearby RV facilities. We paid $51 per night (and had one night free via our frequent-flyer punch-card).