So, your truck breaks down from a clutch issue, your radiator was mysteriously broken, you booked 6 weeks off from work for an epic adventure only to have your whole pre-booked trip thrown into disarray with no promise of being able to continue at all! What is a tiny one to do??
After suffering two catastrophic truck failures with our brand new truck, we figured we would run through our thought process so others can better plan.
First of all, we always thought the RV would be the part to have issues since new RVs are more known to have issues up front that you work out early and then it is good. Usually a new vehicle is good to go, but not this one. Luckily, our RV was great, at least.
When one of these failures occurs, it is best to diffuse the situation and take away the urgency. Get off the road, make sure everyone is safe, make sure everyone is fed and goes to the bathroom if able, and then start to figure out what is wrong and how to get help. If you don't take care of basic needs first, it adds stress to the whole situation.
During our first failure, we got Jordan snacks and got her back home as quick as we could while Bruce stayed with the truck and got it towed (after being fed as well). She was overdue for her nap, which added some stress. Once we had the chance, we canceled the campground reservation, and again they were very nice about it. Since that was only a weekend trip, not much was lost.
During our second failure, we had just pulled out of our lunch stop so everyone was fueled up, but again Jordan was due for her nap and it was very hot out, so we got a quick opinion on the radiator and once it was clear the trip could not continue as planned, we booked the nearest available site with full hookups and got set up so Jordan could nap. Once we were established there and she was asleep, the frantic stress dissipated, we could think, and the numerous phone calls started.
It was the beginning of Labor day weekend, so of course we couldn't get the truck seen at the dealership until the following Tuesday, at best. We eventually got it towed in, but in the meantime, we used our bikes to make the best out of the situation and explore the area. As we got a better idea of the timeline for the replacement radiator, we kept making adjustments to the itinerary and making cancellations where necessary. A few of the state park campgrounds had $10-20 cancellation fees, but otherwise we were able to cancel the rest without issue. When the second radiator arrived broken and there was only one left in the country, we started to panic more and looked into alternate plans such as storing the RV, going home, and flying to another country for vacation instead. Another option was renting a truck with a hitch that could tow a fifth wheel, which was a big ask. Anjuli looked into canceling her vacation time and working instead. In the end, the third radiator arrived intact and we didn't have to pivot our plans too much.
It seemed like losing 10 days from a trip would ruin it or make it not worth driving across the country, but that was not the case at all. Even being in the Utah national parks for a couple days made the whole drive worth it and the stress of the beginning of the trip was quickly forgotten (except for the continued phone calls to Ram regarding the truck issues - those continued for too long).
The lesson learned: When something unexpected happens, deal with the immediate basic needs, see what the damage is, and be flexible to alternative plans. Our initial trip was supposed to be Colorado and Utah, but turned into Utah and Arizona with a bonus Balloon Fiesta after adding another week to the trip, which was a major highlight, but we will talk about that later. That second part of the trip would never had happened if the truck hadn't failed. Also, we discovered that Waterloo NY was pretty cool with plenty to do to entertain a tiny munchkin.
Ok, back to the trip...
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