As you may remember from yesterday, we've sprung a leak in our brake line and, as a result, have no brakes. You may also remember from yesterday's post that we spent the night in a roadside rest area at Lake Durant so we would be able get towed directly to the Dodge dealer to get service today.
After waking early, we had fresh-brewed coffee and listened to the loons as the mist rose in the hills beyond the lake. It seemed like it would be a good day, so I got out my bike and pedaled to the store at Blue Mountain Lake, about a mile-and-a-half, where Coach-Net was to call me back. At about 8:30, they called and said that I didn't actually have to go to the dealer and they had contacted a closer shop that could do the work. A tow truck was being dispatched which would arrive in an hour to hour-and-a-half. Sounded good ...
It all went downhill from there. Two hours passed and no tow truck arrived, so I unpacked the bike again a went back to the store to call Coach-Net. The new person told me that the tow truck would arrive at 12:30, two more hours away. I mentioned that I was originally told 9 to 9:30 and he replied that they had to get a heavier truck from Saratoga Springs, 80 miles away. I told him that we had a 19-foot van and all that was required was a flat-bed truck. He said that he understood that and the service tech had asked for the correct vehicle. So back to Ellen and Speedy with the disappointing news. At least we now had time to make lunch.
Promptly at 12:30, the truck showed up. It was, as I feared, one for towing 40-foot Class A RVs or tractor-trailer rigs, about twice as long as Speedy. After some discussion as to whether Speedy was big enough to fit on the equipment and how long it might take to get another tow truck. We finally decided that it could fit on the truck's front wheel dollies. So the driver mounted it up, got in and off we went to Old Forge, NY, 35 miles away and deep in the heart of the Adirondacks.
Ellen and I rode in Speedy since we had to run the engine in order to power the transmission oil pump so the transmission wouldn't get fried. It was a rather bumpy ride but at least we had AC and snacks. We could look out the side windows but, of course, there was an enormous tow truck two feet in front of us.
When we got to Old Forge, the driver had a hard time finding the shop. This was because it was a tiny garage which was actually a trailer sales company. Coach-Net had sent us to a place that repairs trailers, not vehicles--and it was 35 miles from nowhere.
So it was back down the bumpy road to Blue Mountain Lake and then another 45 miles to the Dodge dealer in Warrensburg, where we originally wanted to go. We arrived at 4:55, just before the service folks closed up shop. They will service it in the morning, we hope, and we can stay overnight in their lot. Let's be kind and just say that there is not much of a view.
Another day and we are further from our destination. What's more tonight we get the sound of highway traffic instead of the loons on Lake Durant. Coach-net is definitely Coach-not.
Photos -- Day Two
Location:Krystal Dodge, Warrensburg, NY
yikes!!
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