Dance Dialogue - Wyoming and Indiana (Part 1)

Wind. Back when we rode Harleys, every time we found ourselves in Wyoming IT WAS WINDY! Laugh out loud windy. Head jerk windy. White knuckle windy (well Bob maybe).

So we only had a few days to get from Oregon to the Heartland Rally in Gillette, WY.
We left our great boondock site on the Hood River with almost a 1000 miles to go. The way we travel that means 3 more days. First stop KOA in Deer Lodge, Montana.

Somewhere in Montana...

Now you may not know this but KOA's have a reputation for being overpriced for what you get in addition to normally being close to train tracks and/or an interstate. I like them for over-nighters because I can get 50 amp full hook-ups and they're usually big-rig friendly. There is something to be said for easy freeway access! Besides I had point discounts to use and there weren't any Passport America parks around. (Those can be really cheap). Low and behold the park was next to the train tracks. Right on! Never heard the train after our heads hit the pillows... Next stop, Hardin, MT. Trying to go cheap, I booked a dry camp site for a mere $19+ tax. Bob couldn't believe they charged THAT much. My point (finally) is they included a warning in their rules not to leave the awning out at night or when leaving the park. This, and we weren't even in Wyoming yet. And yes, it was windy...

Check out the clouds!

Arrived in Gillette to howling winds. It continued to gust off and on the whole time we were there! Everyone was complaining. I guess it didn't help that the RV park was a fairground type affair. Minimal amount of trees, lots of gravel roads (dust) and super dry grass. No watering here. They just wait for the rain. The other weird thing was our site fee was included in our rally fee and we never checked in with anyone other than Heartland Owner people and never received any rules. No dog rules? No quiet time rules? How can that be? No "no RV washing" rules? (Was that a double negative?)

North American Heartland Rally 2012

Well we had a good time. Rode the bicycles, took Willie for long off leash walks, went to seminars, met up with people we'd met from previous rallies, participated in a potluck for 250+, had a couple of good catered meals, had the rig weighed (rv-dreams.com/rv-weighing) and went on a coal mine tour. Apparently coal mining is big in the Gillette area. Really big! Who knew? For more information on surface coal mining start here: Eagle Butte Coal Mine Tours

The following pictures are of the Energy Equipment Exhibit at the Cam-Plex.

We sold quite a few items at the owner to owner sale table and bought a stained glass replacement for our RV door window. We like it A LOT!

But the best part of the whole affair was Heartland's service department. They had a large crew on site to do planned minor repairs but they did them so quickly they had time for lots of other repairs. And all at no charge. And they were so nice! This should be every Heartland Owner's number one reason for attending a North American Heartland Rally.  The next one is in Goshen, Indiana June of 2013. 

From the rally we stopped in Box Elder, South Dakota to check our mail. Well, and to establish our residency by spending the night. We had hoped to get our SD driver licenses too but their DMV was closed on Mondays. So we made Sioux Falls our next stop and got them there. 

On to Elkhart, Indiana to have independent suspension installed on the coach. Going to all these rallies just make Bob think he needs to spend more money on improvements! 

Mor/ryde is another highly respected company who is very customer focused. We were encouraged to arrive the day before our appointment and dry camp in their large back lot. They promptly began work on the rig the next morning. They had a waiting room with comfortable chairs, snacks and drinks plus a TV! Alas they didn't allow dogs so we can't rate them a 10! But we were able to spend the night inside their shop in our own rig so we didn't have to get a hotel room. It was a little weird being indoors inside the coach, but it was much cooler without the sun shining on us. Quieter too. I have to say Bob was very excited about this upgrade...He took pictures and some video too!

Old axles off!

New 17" wheels & tires

Guess I need to get back to movie making. Ah, so much to do so little time!
Enough for now... Next post soon!!!