Since my last post, we have had some excitement. After packing up in Nebraska, we headed for home. We knew it would be a long drive, we just didn’t realize it would take as long as it did.
As we were driving down Interstate 80, I looked in my left rear-view mirror to check on the trailer. As I did, I felt the right trailer tire run over what felt like truck tire debris. I thought to myself, “I don’t remember seeing any debris on the road, but maybe I missed something.” I kept driving.
A minute or so later, I felt another bump, and I decided to pull over to check my tires. I’m glad I did!
The right trailer tire had lost about 70% of its tread. The tire was still inflated and riding smooth, but it was definitely no longer safe. Cam pulled out the spare as I pulled off the old tire.
The new tire looked as if it had never touched pavement, much to my delight. I inflated it to the proper pressure, I mounted it on the trailer, Cam packed away the old tire, and we were on our way once again.
About two hours from home, we were passing Paducah, Kentucky. It was just after 10:30 at night, and I felt the trailer no longer pulling smoothly. Since there are often miles between exits on this stretch of interstate, I pulled onto the shoulder. Our like-new spare was apparently not like-new. The tire had shredded and was half off the rim.
We tugged the trailer about a mile or so to the next exit, then off onto the shoulder to remount the old tire. We then towed the trailer to the nearest parking lot, where we decided to leave the camper overnight. We crammed as much stuff as we could into the car, including the two bad tires. I left only what could be left in the hot sun in the trailer until I could return with new tires to get the camper home.
We rolled into the driveway as the clock struck two in the morning. We unloaded Cam’s instruments and sent him on his way. We then unloaded all of our gear, I showered, then crawled in bed around three.
Monday morning hit us like a ton of bricks. I got up and started calling tire shops looking for the small trailer tires. I found a place that had them, and set off to drop off the rims. They said they would have my new tires ready this afternoon.
I went to the office to check in after being gone and prepare for a the week ahead. After lunch, the tire shop called to tell me the tires were ready. I took off to get the tires and started the journey back to Paducah.
I made it to Paducah about seven in the evening. I got the new tires mounted and the camper hooked up to my truck. I stopped to fill the tank, and then I headed for home.
The camper made it home just fine on the new tires. I arrived back at the house around ten Monday evening beat like a rented mule. Now the whole family is back home.
The rest of the week will be spent catching up on sleep in between pressing more CDs and hopefully making some new Jessie Smith tank tops in preparation for several more shows this month. The fun never stops!
P.S. I apologize for the lack of pictures. In my exhaustion and working to keep on the road, I neglected to take any pictures of our distress.
Bradley Minnigan 