Caravanning can be enjoyable if you have the right mix of cars,
people, and agendas. Some folks are more prepared than others and
tend to have their cars more prepared for long trips by doing the
preventive maintenance...newly packed wheel bearings, properly
inflated tires, cooling system maintenance, etc.... and carrying spare
parts that can't be had at a auto discount store such as fuel pump,
water pump, heater valve. Others will take off with no more prep than
they would for a 1- hour cruise and when something goes wrong are not
prepared to do much more than wait for AAA to show up. If your
schedule is flexible enough to spend 5-6 days traveling to an event
rather than 3-4 then its not a problem but I usually have a certain
number of days allocated (usually dictated by SWMBO) for long
(3000-5000 mile) trips and don't have the luxury of stopping for the
almost certain problems, stops, and delays that crop up with 10-20
other cars.
I have cruise control on my 6 and it makes it difficult to caravan
with others who don't as the inevitable yo-yo ing back and forth as
speeds change on the hills and valleys defeats the purpose of the
cruise which is to keep my right leg rested and off the gas pedal for
hours on end. There is also the different agendas that people have
with wanting to stop and see things along the way such as the world's
largest ball of string or something of that sort that others don't
really want to stop for. And trying to balance the stomach and
bladder requirements of a bunch of 50-60 yo people can mean lots of
stops that you would never make on your own. Caravanning does have
the benefits of having ready and experienced help if there's a
problem... Brad Kahler and I fixed a hose on Dave Massey's TR8 pretty
quickly going to VTR 2000 in Portland... and having company at the end
of the day is always fun.
As with anything there's trade-offs and everyone has to decide the
costs and benefits of caravanning. I've done it both ways and they
both have their advantages but most of the time I prefer the much
needed mental therapy of mindlessly cruising along until I get hungry,
need gas, or need a bio break. Having said that I'll probably hook up
with Brad and Susan Kahler in Kentucky to caravan to Jekyll Island in
October.
Bud Rolofson
71TR6 CC57365 (Good 6)
66TR4A CTC57806 (The Wreck-Almost parts)
66TR4A CTC57529 (The Project)
71F-250 Camper Special (Triumph Support Vehicle)
Z-50A Hardly Davidson 1977 Honda Mini-Trail Bike (Triumph Pit Bike)
levilevi@comcast.net
On Aug 2, 2010, at 6:53 PM, Gary Nafziger wrote:
> One issue for me is the distance to summer party. I hesitate
> driving my triumph
> because of the distance (and wife's comfort, a/c yadda yadda
> yadda). However,
> it might help and be fun to have various caravans from different
> parts of the
> country driving to summer party. People could connect/join the band
> all along
> the route culminating in one group in Pa.
>
> Might be more security in numbers with the possibility of plenty of
> tech. help
> in times of trouble.
>
> gary n.
>
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