Hockey Season Is Back - Maybe New Seats For Next Year ?

So our local hockey team season started up again in October.

We had not been to a live game since the AHL shut down the remainder of the 2019/20 season in March of 2020.

Although we renewed our season tickets for 2020/21 and 2021/22 we did not attend any games. There were severe fan attendance restrictions, no interactions with players, many players were in taxi squads for their NHL parent teams, and mask requirements were not enforced once you passed security and got inside the arena. We were able to carry over most of  the cost of 2020/21 into the 2021/22 season. But there was no carry over allowed for this 2022/23 season as the AHL had lifted all of the restrictions on fans, players, and staff.

We have had our current seats since the inaugural 2016 season and like them a lot ... but we are seriously contemplating moving to different seats for next season. We are currently in the fan zone ... first row and  isle seats behind the goal we attack twice. We are close to the door where our team enters and exits the ice and don't really have anything in front of us except a small, 5-6 seat handicap area at ground level up against the glass. We get great views when the action is on our end, but not so much when they are on the other end of the ice.

Yesterday we tried sitting in different areas at the arena to get a feel for how the view and feel is in different levels. Our observations are ....

1. Sides - Upper level

Funny how one always thinks the 'upper level' means nosebleed seats. Not the case here. The seats we had were at the very top of the section about even with the blue line on the side we attack twice. These seats were great albeit much further away than our current seats. The two most notable things were that we could actually hear and understand the announcers as we were practically level with the audio system suspended from the ceiling. And we could follow the game quite well and we ALL of the sounds coming off thee ice as well ... every stick hitting a puck, every chirp, every player calling or yelling for the puck. It was also very easy to leave from our seats and go right to the concession stand, bar, coffee cart, or to the outside smoking area. There were also no stairs to climb during intermissions. All very convenient. The final note here is that the very top row is also handicap and/or wheelchair access. Two seats, then two open spaces for wheelchairs or folding chairs ... down the line. To get a handicap spot (which I qualify for), you also need to purchase a companion seat next to that spot. Interesting. 

2. Sides - Middle level

We tried a couple of seats in the middle level. The first one had a nice concrete retainer wall which normally would be prefect to put drinks or food. But there was a heavy duty handrail built into about 8-10 inches high that literally obstructed the view of the ice/game (unless you sat perfectly straight and upright for the entire game). There were also the penalty and scorekeeper boxes that kind of blocked out a bit of the ice from that location.  

3. Rinkside    

The first row right against the glass and the most expensive seats available. We tried them and lasted less than 5 minutes despite more legroom than the upper level seats. Although it is awesome to see the players up close while they skate, battle for pucks, or fight less then a foot away ... the view was weirdly distorted. Again, we were located close to the blue line on the side we attack twice ... but whenever the action moved to the other side of the ice we had to kind of lean forward and to the left to follow the action ... but the glass distorted the view from that position and made it a bit difficult to follow the game. The second thing we noticed that since you are sitting so close to the ice it is cold AF down there. You can actually feel the cold flowing up from the floor into your feet and hands. 

So there is a game this coming Tuesday where, since it is a school/work night, the attendance will be lower than usual. We might travel around the arena some more and check out some other seats.

Saying Farewell To The RV Lifestyle

 Well, it had to happen eventually, we made the decision to sell the Lance toyhauler and trade in the Ram 3500 dually. After both of us having pondered this situation internally/privately (like ... "What if we get rid of the RV ? Do we still really need the truck ?" or "we only use it a couple times per year") we had a frank discussion ... only to find out we had both been thinking the same thing ... only not out loud.

The discussion we had hit many valid points and below are the main ones from out point of view:

1. The main reason was the we only used the RV two or three times since we had it (same for our previous two RV's) ... our plan to go on a full time one year RV road trip to the east coast and back got derailed after Sue's company jumped off the 'full time remote work' train and decided to go with two days per week in the office (including cameras & badging in to verify presence). Then, they decided that in January 2023 it will bee three days a week in the office ... it's now just a matter of time before they switch back to full time in the office.

2. Diesel prices are crazy and the truck had a 32 gallon tank. When we were in San Diego a few weeks ago, $7.29 was the average price we paid. We saw $8.00 and up in some places. Fueling up and additionally buying the required DEF fluid was more expensive than a hotel.

3. Getting reservations was becoming a hassle ... so many places were booked out months in advance and and the prices had increased drastically since we started RVing. Even the military camp we stayed at last time in SD went from $30 to $58 per night. Anything else in San Diego even semi-close to the kids was $125+ per night. .

4. We were paying for the truck to basically sit in the driveway. We used Sue's Jeep Renegade to run errands or go shopping, it was too expensive to drive the truck around and parking was always a PITA. We were also paying for storage of the RV since we moved, it was fine while it was parked in the driveway of our old house .. but after downsizing and moving it became an additional expense.

5. Servicing an RV was becoming expensive too ... bringing the RV in for a generator service, or having the bearings packed, water system flushed and sanetized was costing us hundreds. And that was only if you could even get an appointment to bring in the RV. Places here like Camping World or Freedom RV have you bring it in to see what it needs, give you an estimate and then have you take it back home and bring it in weeks later when they have an opening.

6. The truck also needed new tires ... six of them at $200+ per wheel. The RV tires were probably good for one more season, then we would also need four new ones. A few months down the road the truck would have needed the 24k mile oil changee and service. Estimated cost was between $250 and $500 for the diesel engine (they use 16 quarts of pure synthetic).

7. And one final thing ... I'm fucking old ... the setup and breakdown of the hookups at the sites was starting to get to me. At the old house we kept the RV plugged in to the 30Amp I installed and loaded it up over a few days before a trip. Here, we are only allowed to leave the RV in front of the house for 72 hours before and after a trip to load and unload. 

So basically ... get the truck and hook up to take the RV out of storage, bring it to the house park it unhook and load it up with our stuff for the trip, then hook back up and depart ... upon return it was unhook and drop the trailer, empty it out, clean the fridge, bathroom, and floor, hook up the trailer and bring it to the storage lot. 

Overall we are happy and satisfied with the decision we made. We sold the Lance back to the dealership we bought it from. The truck got traded in and we almost got back what we paid for it. The money was used on a down payment for a brand new Ford Bronce Sport Badlands Edition and I couldnt be much happier. 

"No Ragrets"

"Not even one letter"

Cargo Bed - Toolbox or Not ??

 So in preparation for our first outing with the Lance we have been running through our checklists and made a couple of discoveries. 

1. We can't decide whether to use the bed in the front bedroom or the bed in the garage. Both of them are queen beds. For the first run we will try the garage bed.

2. The final decision will be if we want to move the queen mattress on top of the sofa, and use the bed box as storage. Or do we want to leave the mattress in the bed box and remove the pins so we can lower the bed to the bottom. Neither of us wants to even contemplate trying to use the ladder to get in/out of the bed in the middle of the night !

3. We need to get a couple of jackstands for the ramp in order to make it into a deck. Buying and installing the cable set doesn't seem to be the answer as there is nothing stopping the ramp/deck from bouncing when standing or walking on it without something underneath to support it ... especially for this 250 pound body ! LOL !

4. Do we remove the second sofa and move the swivel chairs around so there is one on each side of the large table ? It seems to be the most logical thing since it will just be us two ... and even if we have guests we have a couple of the Costco folding chairs with side tables that can be used. 

5. We fired up the generator this weekend. Didn't really like the exhaust fumes hovering around the trailer at all. Looked up the Camco Gen-Turi exhaust system that extends the exhaust pipe up to the top of the trailer. It was on sale at Camping World with 34% off the original price. Bought it, read the instructions and configured the pipe fittings. Tested the fit and installed the hooks to keep it slightly lifted and close to the trailer. It's supposed to sit for 24 hours before actually setting up all three pipe pieces. Will do the final test this week.

6. Need to crawl under the trailer and get the DOT numbers off the tires so I can check the mfg dates. So far, on the front side, I can only see 'DOT AQHH....' the last four digits indicating month/year of manufacture are missing. I assume the full DOT number is on the backside of the tires.

7. The cargo bed on the truck is 96" (8 ft) long. I have a bed extender installed on it ... (LOL as if you need to extend and 8 ft bed another 2 ft). I tend to always travel with more tools than I need because ... well ... you never know what you will need to fix something on the road. I have two fairly large tool bags and will bring a couple of my Ryobi 18V tools (drill, vacuum, light), batteries and charger. Technically, there is very little storage in the trailers except the plastic bins we purchased. So I think I need to get one of those crossover/crossbed toolboxes for the truck. Starting price for a full size box is around $360 +tax at Lowes and Home Depot. Tractor supply has one at $279. I am struggling with the prices and think I might have to go with a used on from Marketplace or Craigslist. I am also pretty particular about getting one that opens from the sides (single or gull wing doors are fine) because it would make it somewhat unnecessary to climb into the truck each time I needed to unlock/open/close/lock the toolbox. A side opening toolbox would allow me to open the box, jump on a short stepladder and take out or replace whatever I needed from outside the cargo bed. 

8. The Pioneer stereo installed in the Lance wasn't reassembled very nicely. The bezel is missing and there are some wood chips missing around the opening. Fortunately, when we were checking out car stereos at the local audio store, the tech had a box full of new but unused bezels that were leftover from various installs so he gifted us one. I'll post another pic once I have filled in the chips and installed the bezel.

Friday morning - Massive changes

 So two days ago we picked up our 2015 Lance 2612 Toy Hauler with our 2018 RAM 2500 6.4 Hemi truck and brought her home. 

Thursday my wonder wife sent me a link to a local Buick/GMC dealership that had a really killer deal on a pre-owned RAM 3500 Cummins 6.7 Turbo Diesel Dual Rear Wheel truck. Fortunately our favorite salesman, that we have faithfully purchased vehicles from since about 2006, now worked at this dealership. We have him on speed dial on our cell phones so a quick text message exchange verified that the truck was still available and he would pull it up front for us to look at it. Since my better half was still working she sent me to the dealership on my own to check out the truck.

When I arrived the salesman, let's call him George, was waiting for me. He simply handed me the keys and a dealer plate (I'm telling you, he knows and trusts us quite well!) and told me to take it home and show it to my lovely wife. 

Now ... this thing is a beast and practically brand new. It's a 2019 with 14,200 miles on a Cummins 6.7 Turbo Diesel engine ... that's just barely broken in kind of mileage. Laramie Edition 4x4, leather, a ton of options, 10 speaker Alpine stereo, 8' cargo bed, heavy duty class 5 hitch, five cameras (tailgate, cargo area, front facing, L & R mirrors) and together they create the "Surround View", all of the safety features like lane departure, cross path detection, blind spot monitoring, power everything. The love of my life took it around the block and also agreed that getting this would alleviate a couple of future concerns like ...

1. Lance tongue weight, total weight -vs- the RAM 2500 limits. 

2. The possibility of a bigger trailer or toy hauler in the future.

3. Dragging anything through mountain ranges like Mount Shasta, Grants Pass in the west, the Rockies, or the Appalachians in the east would never be a problem with this truck.

So, on Friday we pulled the trigger and traded in the Omaha Orange RAM 2500 6.4 Hemi for the Delmonico Red Pearlcoat RAM 3500 6.7 Turbo Diesel. As we were transferring the last couple of items from one truck to the other 'George' asked if we wanted remove the AMP BedXtender and put it into the new truck because it looked like it would fit ... we measured real quick and it fits fine. He even topped off the fuel and DEF tanks before we drove off with the new truck.

This Truck

                                                        Will Be Pulling This Toy Hauler

 

Bringing The New (To Us) Lance Home

 So on Wednesday we completed the inspection and walk through, did the final paperwork, and hooked the Lance to our RAM 2500 to bring her home.

Since we only live a couple of miles from the dealership we were home in a few minutes. Backing this bad boy into the driveway was slightly harder than the clipper ... mainly because A) It's about six feet longer and several inches wider. 

Fortunately, we had a rear view camera/monitor on the Lance to assist. Actually, it was our camera/monitor off the Clipper we traded in ... they could not find the monitor that went with the camera that was already mounted on the back of the Lance. So they removed the camera and replaced it with the wireless Furrion camera I had installed on the Clipper and the matching wireless monitor. 

Our Husky Centerline TS Weight Distro System had also been properly transferred onto the Lance frame. 

*Note To Self* I really, Really, REALLY need to demolish that stupid brick and block mailbox that sits in the driveway and put up a new mailbox by the center sidewalk.

We seriously debated taking the Truck and Lance to the local CAT scales to get the numbers for our new setup ... but it was getting late and we decided it would probably be a better idea to load it up with our standard stuff that we removed from the Clipper before we traded it in, then fill the truck fuel tank, and make sure we had at least 75 gallons of water in the fresh tank. Also, the trailer fuel station was under 1/4 tank, it could probably use a fresh top off. Then hit the CAT scales on the weekend.

Those plans totally blew into the wind by Friday morning because ... 

Today is the day we pick up the Lance !

 I stopped by the dealership yesterday to verify that we were still on schedule for the 3pm PDI/Walkthrough of the Lance toy hauler. Everything looks good and nothing has changed.

I saw the Lance getting a hand wax job in the bay (it's looking great !) and took a stroll around it with the tech. He tells me he looked but did not find any solar plugs or pre-wiring in or on the TH anywhere. The off brand weight distro brackets have been removed and my Husky brackets are going on today. He is still looking for the monitor that goes with the rear view camera, but if he can't find it he says he will just pull our Furion camera and 7" monitor off the Clipper and put it on the Lance. 

It's 9:00am and I actually have to go out and clean up the driveway this morning. Pull some weeds, cut down a smallish Palo Verde tree, and cut back two oleander bushes. Then rake the gravel so it is acceptable for the leveling jacks. 

I went to Camping World yesterday too ... but OMG their prices are becoming ridiculous ! It's like they believe that this RV boom in the time of a pandemic gives them the permission to jack up the prices so that the newbie 'suckers' that are just starting out (and everyone else that buys their inflated products) are getting robbed. Comparatively speaking ... Amazon is my friend. For example:

Well damn ... I just tried to make a couple of obvious price comparisons and the first three immediately proved me wrong and that CW prices were actually slightly lower (less than $2) than Amazon ... without factoring in a Good Sam discount.

Good thing I have not ordered anything yet ... which I won't do anyway until I get the TH into the driveway and see if I need any additional leveling gear or better jack pads. Pretty sure I still have some good 2x8 chunks out back that I can use to level if needed. 

UPDATE >> 12:50pm >> Well, that little driveway cleanup project was a bit larger than it looked, it took almost four hours to complete. I ended up filling up two large city trash cans with all of the greenery I chopped down. The stupid Palo Verde tree was one evil SOB !! They have thorns that snag on pants & shirts, will punch through leather gloves, and up through the soles of your shoes if you step on some of the larger ones. They will scratch you deeply and make you bleed profusely if you manage to walk past a branch and not pay attention.    

The Toy Hauler

 So we looked at dozens, or hundreds (I lost count) of trailers, RVs, gas, diesel, 5th wheels, everything. And went back and forth about the pros and cons of each one ... 

The only way we were getting a good diesel pusher Class A would be to massively go into debt for it ... that was a big nope.

Sort of the same for a good gasser ... less money, but also less tow capacity for a TOAD. Maintenance cost for both was very high ... our first Class A cost us $1,800 just for tires !!!

Basically, no combination really worked in our favor until we saw Lance Toy Hauler. 

Now this thing was actually really pretty .... 26 feet long (33' tip to tail) dual pane frameless blackout windows, rear ramp for the trikes, two sofas that opened into beds, and extra queen bed in back over the bunk. Bedroom and bathroom with large shower and toilet space galore. But the price was kind of high considering the size.

Well, it is a 50 year anniversary special as well as an insulated four-seasons edition.

We bookmarked that one for later.

Strangely enough, every single trailer or 5th wheel, every other toy hauler we looked at ... got compare to the one we first saw. 

But it was the brand that tossed us for a loop ... never having had anything to do with a "Lance" we did some research. 

Well damn ! They've been around a while ! Making camp boxes for truck beds mainly, but also travel trailers and a few toy haulers. The reviews are pretty positive and good, quality seems to be superb, although the company was recently purchased by the REV group ... they are heavy hitters in firetrucks, ambulances, buses, and luxury/high quality recreational vehicles. 

We kept going back and looking a the pics of the Lance ... it was their biggest toy hauler, the 2612, and we finally went to the dealer to take a look at it. 

Well, we ended up putting a hold deposit on the Lance because we didn't want to let it get away.

We will be dropping off the Clipper Cadet tomorrow as a trade-in. After they remove the Husky Centerline TS Weight Distribution system from it and put it on the Lance and also put our current (newly bought in July) memory foam mattress in the Lance, we will be pick up the Lance on Wednesday after our walkthrough with the technicians.