The Blast’s Maiden Voyage
Having fun with my grandchildren in our new RV called The Blast!
When you are first time owners of a brand new RV there is a steep and I mean steep learning curve. In fact, while I had some idea, when we actually began the process of buying one, it almost became too daunting. Maybe it’s the Army wife in me, maybe it’s the Italian in me, I dunno, but this was a challenge I was going to take on and conquer or (almost) die trying!
We finally accepted delivery of our brand new Jayco Greyhawk 2021 Prestige 31FP in April. That’s the model with the bunk beds. We affectionately call our RV “The Blast”. Our little dog Levi goes with us on our trips and has settled down on his “My Pillow” bed where he is safely tethered down when we travel.
Our plan was to park it first at our home and learn it stem to stern before ever taking it anywhere. My husband read the book Jayco gave us and read it we did. He studied it too. We also installed an RV electrical hook up next to our home and then began our use, at home of our new rig. We tried to go through the motions of testing everything we possibly could before taking it out on our first trip. I think we really did a good job of it. We used it nearly every day.
As a military family, we take it seriously when it’s Memorial Day— Those who gave All.
We live in Michigan and chose our first trip to be Iowa to visit our grandchildren. This way, we could give the rig a good shake rattle and roll, have a destination we were familiar with in case anything went wrong, and be “moochdocking” and not paying for a campsite for our first use of the camper. Moochdocking is when you use someone’s home for electric but not other hook-ups. We had an adapter for our camper and checked ahead of time with my son-in-law that he had the required wattage/amp power to accommodate our rig before we arrived.
We have AAA as our roadside assistance, our insurance is one that The RV Odd Couple recommended and believe me, I did a lot of research and their recommendation truly was the best. Watch out for RV Youtubers who rip you off or are out for only themselves. These two are the real deal.
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I get zero for saying this. I not only used the insurance company that they highly recommended, but I learned so much from them. I credit them with saving us from making a huge mistake with a nation-wide dealer we almost bought from because of something they said to watch out for in the contact. Sure enough, there it was, in the fine print and it was something that could have cost us tens of thousands of dollars. We walked out and never looked back. This and so much more from John and Mercedes, a fantastic, selfless couple. Check them out.
So, before our trip to Iowa, we topped off the propane, partially filled the fresh water tank before embarking and off we went. My husband drove.
Two drawers immediately would not stay shut and there is a minor problem with the cruise control we found out is actually common with the 2021 Ford engine in RV’s and it only happened once.
Overall the trip there was uneventful and I loved having my own bathroom and ability to use my own kitchen for tea and snacks while at rest stops. It was everything I dreamed it would be!
Upon arrival set up with the auto levelers was a breeze. I have to say I am extremely impressed with Jayco so far. I mean, as someone said, it’s a house on wheels that goes through essentially an earthquake whenever you go on the road and it really does it hold up!
Our grandkids loved The Blast and my grown kids did too. We were there for a combination birthday celebration and Memorial Day remembrance. As a military family, it’s not just a long weekend. It’s a time to reflect and remember those who gave all so that we can enjoy our God-given rights. We celebrated but we did not forget.
It was a blessed and amazing time and we loved the time we shared with family.
I can not tell you how thrilled I was to have my own toilet (huge plus for me, my own kitchen to make my own tea, use my own Almond milk that I like in my tea, have my own Stevia/Monk fruit sweetener blend, be able to sleep in my own bed and even sneak away for a few moments of quiet time when needed. The list goes on.
Not all is perfection I will admit. Moochdocking will take some practice I found out. I do not have the showering thing down yet for one. You can’t let the water just run and I don’t like that. So I am going to have to not shower when we moochdock or boondock (no hookups at all) and I’m not sure that is a solution for me given all circumstances. We filled that fresh water tank up fast and we only stayed for three days.
Overall though I ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY ADORE OUR NEW RV. I am enthralled with most every aspect of the experience of having a mini-home on wheels accompany us wherever we go. I can not see us traveling any other way any time in the near or distant future. And this coming from a very prolific traveler both stateside and overseas.
The trip back to Michigan was great and equally uneventful. My husband thinks he can fix the drawers and we are ready for our next real camping trip to Manistee, which is in northern Michigan where we’ll have full hook-ups and really give ourselves the full camping experience in style! It’s only 3 hours from home and it is a place we are very familiar with so we are taking baby steps in our camping experience before going to our next stop to a Navel base on the east coast.
Until next time!
Duty, Honor and Seeing the Country RV Style!
