Day 1:I am a thirty year old professional woman who has very little experience driving large vehicles. No actually I have experience, when I was a teenager I drove my family’s campervan in a ditch and almost off a cliff due to my poor perception of corners.
So now, my family and I are going to rent an RV for a week long vacation. We have always camped in a tent so RVing was definitely going to be a new experience for us! As part of the authentic experience I wanted to drive the motorhome to comprehend the joys and perhaps challenges that can occur. As I drove to pick up our RV I couldn’t shake the little feeling of doubt that fluttered around in my stomach!
As I strode confidently towards the doors of Fraserway RV with family in tow, I tried not to let my nerves show. Somehow I managed to calmly complete the necessary paperwork and then we were led to a beautiful shiny luxurious 29’ motorhome that came stocked with everything: TV, DVD player, shower, microwave, air conditioner… it was unbelievable. The RV rental representative gave us an orientation of the vehicle and a binder for future reference, which I knew would be my bible for the rest of the trip.
After packing our gear into the motorhome we were off. As I pulled out of the RV dealership fear started to escalate in my throat restricting my breathing as we were being swallowed into the thick rush hour. I quickly realized that there was no other option but to learn to drive a big huge rig where rear view mirrors and shoulder checks do not exist and the side mirrors are my only tools for seeing! As the stove rattled away I held my breath merging onto the congested bridge praying to myself that we would get to the ferry unscathed. After a few dodgy lane changes we arrived safely at the Tsawwassen ferry terminal.
When the cashier told us that we could board an earlier ferry a round of YAHOOS bellowed out of the RV, which was then followed with even a louder YAHOO amplified by my husband when we received a 30% discount for travelling during mid week. As I drove onto the ferry my heart raced when the controller directed me to the far lane forcing me to park between the wall and another motorhome.
I drove off the ferry without too much difficulty and arrived at Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park campground in Parksville. At the beginning of my journey I had told myself that the ultimate driving test would be parking in our campsite but somehow I faltered at this point. The sheer darkness and huge surrounding trees caused me to lose my bravery. I ended up chickening out and asked my husband to back into our campsite. There is always tomorrow!
2 comments:
While my wife and I were packing our gear into our truck I was sizing up my wife’s driving experience with large vehicles, which equalled zero+the time of day (rush hour), so I asked my wife if should would like to me to drive the RV. Her reply was a flat no without hesitation.
My wife’s dodgy lane changes provided me with an understanding of how she sometimes gets when I drive completely fearful.
As I read my wife’s blog about my sweet voice when she runs over the pylons, I had to laugh to myself because she has obviously a different interpretation of what this voice sounds like. This is the voice I use with my children when I am very angry and want to scream.
While my wife and I were packing our gear into our truck I was sizing up my wife’s driving experience with large vehicles, which equalled zero+the time of day (rush hour)= not a good idea for her to drive! So I asked her if she wanted me to drive. Of course being stubborn she gave me a flat out no without hesitation. Her dodgy lane changes had me on the edge of the seat and crossing my fingers that we would make it to the ferry.
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