Date:         Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:40:20 +0000
Reply-To:     joe trussell <vanagongl@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         joe trussell <vanagongl@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject:      xmas Trip Report
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Greetings all,
 
Wanted to post my comments about our Xmas trip from Denver to Shreveport.  (previously posted on TheSamba.)  It was the first really long trip with the 2.2.  I've done stuff mostly around Colorado up until now, so after 20 months with the Subie engine, it was time to see if I did everything right....
 
We loaded up and headed out for the 1000 mile trip to Shreveport, LA. I put all of the luggage in the way-back and stacked it high above/behind the bench seat due to a pet barrier bar system I bought on Ebay for $15. Worked perfectly. For larger gift items, I wrapped the boxes in garbage bags and used my new rooftop cargo bag purchased from danfromsyr on TheSamba. In the cabin, we had a jumpseat-mounted DVD player for my two daughters, whose carseats were on the back bench. We left Denver on Friday night, December 21, in the middle of a raging snowstorm, and headed for Hayes, KS to spend the night. The weather was atrocious...The northwest wind was bouncing me all over the road, and even with stiff BFG 14's, newer springs, and one year-old shocks, I could make about 50-55 MPH tops the whole way. What should have taken 3 1/2 hours took six. My wife, who usually drives a 4Motion Passat Wagon, acted as flight attendant, walking back to hang out with the girls when they needed her.  She loved being able to do that. Saturday morning, Hayes looked like the surface of an alien planet--the snow was a super-fine mist blowing sideways. We headed east for 90 miles to Salina through horrible conditions...Same northwest wind with blowing snow, although the road was in good shape. When we headed south, we got the tailwind I'd been hoping for, but we soon were in complete blizzard conditions. There was about 3-4 inches on the road surface and near-zero visibility. I had my Tom-Tom GPS unit and basically drove by watching the GPS for curves in the road, or by tailing a semi when I could find one. Escalades, Tahoes, and Expeditions would fly by us at 60 MPH as I crept along at 35-40. Eventually, we would see most of these cars either flying off of guardrails, stuck in the median, or wrapped in barbed wire on the side of the highway. I kept it slow and easy and had good traction and a lot of patience. We did see a transport truck full of Cadillacs upside down in the median as well. The weather stayed this way all the way through Kansas. Wichita? I think we drove through it but I have no way to know for sure--everything was white. We finally reached the Oklahoma border and thought that the weather had relented, but instead we were in an ice storm. More wrecks, more cars sliding off, and me going slow, slow, slow. In Oklahoma City alone, we counted 11 wrecks that took place on overpasses as we were driving. The cabin was nice and warm due to a new front blower and rear heater, and the DVD player kept the girls very happy. It's an odd sensation driving through weather like that with Finding Nemo playing in your ears... Finally, we hit Texas and the weather relented. The Vanagon was completely covered in ice. I stopped at a gas station and two guys pumping gas next to me said, "MAN! Where did you get THAT weather??" We made it to Shreveport with a nice tail wind from Dallas. The Vanagon performed flawlessly. The trip back to Denver was happily uneventful... What I take away from this is: --Never trust the Weather Channel. Flurries? Not what happened. 
 
--How did I live without GPS?  Best toy EVER.--The fact that the Vanagon is such a manual vehicle works to your advantage in bad conditions--You can have all-wheel automatic everything, but sometimes it's necessary to feel the road and be driving a vehicle that requires you to think constantly. I'm obviously very proud of my conversion. The 2.2 Subie motor hummed along without a problem. 
 
The utility of the Vanagon proved itself time and time again over the course of the trip, with my wife able to deal with the girls whenever they needed anything. I wouldn't have made that drive had I known what was in store, but again I was very proud of my Vanagon. I think I even hugged it when we got to Shreveport. Oh--the rooftop carrier went through the most extreme conditions I can imagine and came through perfectly. Thanks Dan! Also wanted to mention that fuel economy was horrible in the crosswinds on Friday night--maybe 12-15 MPG? With the slow speeds through Kansas and Oklahoma, up to 22 MPG. With a tailwind, 22 MPG. The trip back averaged out to around 20 MPG. And I cannot believe the difference in power at sea level. Amazing. I had to adjust my shifting habits because the thing got up and went so much better!
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