As Karen mentioned in the last post, we decided on a longer day than usual for us to get all the way home yesterday. Yes, we did make it. But it took a bit longer than expected.
We were up early and heading out from Iowa City just before 7:00 a.m. Our travel mugs were filled with freshly-brewed coffee for the last time on this trip. The skies were thinly overcast which made diving east into the rising sun much more pleasurable.
The majority of the drive was uneventful. That’s very good! When Karen was driving I was able to lay on the couch to get my feet well over my heart. I drove more than the day before, giving Karen a respite. Even the Chicagoland drive was relatively easy.
And then Indiana happened.
If you’ve never driven Route 80 through Indiana, you are missing out on one of the truly horrendous roadways in the U.S. It makes detonated minefields look level. And that’s only mild hyperbole. Just understand that it is a bumpy mess.
Gary, Indiana, in addition to being a super depressed and unattractive area, also boasts some of the worst of I-80. The next worse area is the last 30 or so miles before crossing into Ohio. We banged around a lot, but everything seemed to be intact when we entered the Buckeye state.
Karen was taking a turn, and we made one last stop on the Ohio Turnpike for a bathroom break and to top off the fuel. Upon walking back to Livvy, I saw something that made my heart sink. The outer tire on the rear driver’s side was squashed lower than it should be. And that could only mean one thing – the inner tire on that side was flat.
Sure enough, somewhere in the Indiana Minefields another valve stem was damaged. For those of you keeping score at home, that takes our total for 3 during this trip (Pueblo, Moab, and now Toledo).
What the hell do we do now? It was 4:00 on a Saturday afternoon. Any reputable tire center would be near closing. Besides, we could not exactly go any direction we wanted because we were on the Turnpike. And we were 81 miles from home (on highways, mind you). Our options were thin.
After making a few fruitless calls to “nearby” tire shops, we decided our best course of action would be to get off the Turnpike at the next exit (5 miles), proceed south to Route 20, then head home carefully. All the while not exceeding 50 miles per hour, including on the Turnpike. Flashers on!
Taking the roundabout way we needed put our trip home at nearly 100 miles and more than 2 hours. Many a driver was pissed at us along the way. We succumbed to nervous eating and late-day cold brew nitro. Neither of us said anything about the surviving tire, scared to jinx it into bursting just to spite us. It was truly nerve wracking.
In the end, everything worked out fine. We got home to Bay Village safe and in one piece. We unloaded only the basics, leaving the rest for today. Of course, we had to ease our minds with martinis after much-needed showers. That was something we do not want to repeat.
Tomorrow I will be in contact with a local shop (reputable and trustworthy) to figure out a solution for this ongoing (and well-known) problem with valve stem extensions on Sprinter dually tires. I am sure they can get us set up with something that will be more reliable. And that will likely include a tire pressure monitor system. Seems strange that these have been standard in cars for many years yet Mercedes has not made it a default on the Sprinters.
Today we spent a big part of the day unloading, cleaning (inside and out), putting away what we can, and taking notes to prep for our next trip. Oh, and we leave for that in just 8 weeks that will FLY BY.
This last trip had much bigger highs and lows than any other we’ve done. There was a part of me last night almost ready to cry uncle. Call it a day. But sleeping on it made me remember why we embarked on this journey. I remembered the amazing things we’ve seen and places we’ve gone. And the time together on the road, just sitting together in our home on wheels, is what makes this so special. I am not really to give up just yet.
There is so much more to see. Until we meet again on August 6th, enjoy your summer!
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