Date:         Fri, 21 Jun 1996 12:00:00 -0400
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Erick Sowder <eSowder@rfmd.com>
Subject:      2ND DATE,  LOVE AND HELL


 Well I had my second date with the girl (Suzanne)  I met from busses on   
the blue ridge and It is a saga that has to be told.
  We decided to take my 74 westie (Moby) and not her 70 weekender   
(Sunshine) for only the fact that I have a popup and can accommodate the   
two adults a great 2 and a half yearold boy and a 4 month old black lab   
puppy with ample sleeping space.  It started around 1pm, I left   
Greensboro NC and headed to Raleigh NC, a 1hour and 45min ride to pick up   
my girlfriend and her son Alex and the puppy.  In a hurry we threw   
everything in the bus and headed out to the Cape at around 4:00 and got   
into the usually heavy Raleigh Friday traffic.  We picked up a sub to eat   
on the way.  On the way Alex got a tummy ack and we had to pull over   
several times for bath room breaks.  We arrived at the Camp Hatteras camp   
ground just after 10pm and met my cousin from Va. Beach and his wife and   
son of 3 yr. old.  Everyone was tired and we made up the bus for bed.   
 Could not find anything, so we stuffed all non essential in the front   
two seats and finally got to sleep.  The next morning I awoke with the   
sun and the puppy whimpering so I got up to let him out of the bus.  Went   
back to sleep and when we awoke my cousin was already fixing breakfast.   
 I got up and started to put my Bus side tent up.  Had to get help from   
my cousin and a friend of his that had shown up that morning.  Suzanne   
started to get sick, probably the same thing Alex had the night before.   
 I tried to make pancakes and start a new Coleman stove In about 30mph   
winds.  Thank god for my cousins wife because she took care of Alex and   
her son that were playing together while I was trying to make breakfast.   
 Started to put all Items in the tent and organize the bus and feed   
everyone.    By now my cousin and his friends and wife were ready to go   
to the beach,  we were not even close.  So I told them to go on.  20   
minuets later Suzanne felt better and were off to the beach.  Turned the   
key  THE BUS BATTERY WAS DEAD!  ARGH.  Suzanne got behind the wheel and   
after 2 tries we got Moby running!  Well off we went.  Drove down to a   
jeep beach access and I ( for unknown reasons maybe thought the sand was   
harder)  drove the bus to the beach ramp about 200 yards in verry very   
soft sand.  Gave it some gas and it went right to the wooden ramp on the   
sanddune.  Saw my cousin and his friends with there 4 wheel drive trucks   
about 600 yards away and waited for them to see me and come and give me a   
ride to there beach spot.  My cousin came buy and I turned around Moby   
and proceeded back to the parking lot to park.  Well the sand got even   
softer and my bus got 50 yards and stoped in the sand.  OH NO I DON'T   
WANT TO GET STUCK in the sand,  so I got out just like I do in MY VW   
THING and let the tire pressure out in the rear to about 17 lbs.  Got   
back in and dropped it into 2nd gear and Gunned the throttle.  MY MOTOR   
must have been going 60 mph but the bus went only 2mph.  I looked back   
and a big cloud of smoke poured out of the back of the bus.  I looked   
like a drag racer burning a clutch out.  Got out of the sand and back to   
the parking lot.  The bus reaked of clutch and the clutch felt really   
hard.  The park ranger saw the smoke and came over to me and told me   
there was a guy who fixes Vw's just a mile away.  I said thanks to the   
ranger and loaded my cousins truck up.    Drove on the beach in the back   
of a Ford F150 4x4 and pulled up next to his friend in a jeep Cherokee   
with the same size tires as my Thing 235 75 15.   Had a hot breezy day on   
the beach, and I even saw a Thing driving down the  beach, looked really   
cool.  Later after about 4hours on the beach Suzanne and me were baked   
out and decided to go back to the campground.  My cousin stayed with   
there friends and we walked back 600yrds in very hot sand.  I carried the   
puppy and Suzanne carried Alex.  Loaded up the bus and drove back to the   
campground, the clutch was grabbing very hard.
 Suzanne went to take a shower and I watched Alex and the puppy while I   
proceeded to adjust the clutch.   It was so tight that I couldn't budge   
the wingnut.  Suzanne got back and I told her to push in the clutch.  I   
put a small crow bar against the clutch lever on the transmission and   
told her to release the clutch, this took  pressure off the clutch cable.   
 I adjusted the wing nut and every thing SEEMED fine. 
 That evening we finally were able to enjoy ourselves and had a good   
meal.  The little boys played  together and It was a enjoyable evening   
except for my cousins 3yr old having a serious temper tantrum.  Met some   
nice people next to us and there three older children played with the   
puppy and Alex, letting me and Suzanne to talk and get to know each   
other.
 Next morning (fathers day) we got up early and slowly packed up the bus   
and ate.  We were going to drive south through the southern parts of the   
outerbanks taking about 2 ferry rides and then back to Raleigh.  Got   
about 2 miles when my clutch peddle went soft and I couldn't shift any   
more.  Pulled over and fiddled with the clutch adjustment to no avail.   
 Coaxed the bus to the mechanic the ranger had told me about.  He was   
open on Sunday, Hurray!! 
Got stuck in his sandy yard and he had to pull me out.  Then he said he   
couldn't get the parts until Tuesday.  So I called around for a Rental   
car to drive my newly acquired family back to Raleigh.  No luck, we are   
so far out the nearest place is 30 miles away and they won't let you   
drive the car out of the county.  I tried to call my friend that is   
staying at a campground south of us and the range said he checked out   
that morning.  Suzanne said she had AAA and so we called a wrecker.  The   
wrecker service was only a couple of miles away and they took AAA.  AAA   
covered the first 100 miles free but we still had to pay for 125 more   
miles at a cost of $250.  The wrecker arrived, a flatbed and the cab   
didn't have enough room for Suzanne, Alex and me.  The wrecker guy said   
we could ride in the bus on the truck. 
 Well Suzanne, Alex and the puppy got in the bus and I jumped up in the   
cab.  I gave Suzanne the camcorder to document the event. We drove 4.5   
hours like this.  Stopped every so often,  Suzanne would honk the bus   
horn when she needed to stop.  Alex slept on the bed most of the way.   
 She said It rode pretty well on the flatbed truck and It had a good view   
from up there.  With the camcorder you couldn't see the truck the bus was   
on so it look like the bus was going down the road all by its self.  Got   
to Raleigh that evening and unloaded the bus at Suzanne's house.  What a   
trip! WE were both exhausted and it was the most expensive 2nd Date I   
have ever been on. After all of that Suzanne and me are going really   
strong!  We don't know what we will do if we have a date that goes right   
for a change.  But there will be more bus adventures in the future for   
us. Stay tune.   Erick