Well, for the first time in 20 days I spent the night outside the RV.
No, I wasn't sleeping in the street — I was enjoying the hospitality in the beautiful and cozy home of Bill and Connie Whalen. I had met Bill briefly when we rendezvoused with him and Connie in Flagstaff, Arizona on the way to St. Louis, Missouri. He had been very helpful with figuring out how to get the RV's pilot light lit for the fridge and a few other things I was having difficulties with. After spending a few hours last night with him and Connie, I soon found him to be a great guy, and I appreciate the hospitality he and Connie showed me and the boys while in Phoenix.
I was awakened very early by my youngest pup Eddie. He was whining by the bedroom door, apparently wanting out. Not wanting an accident in Connie's house, I thought I better get up and oblige. He led me straight to the front door, then bolted outside and went straight for the RV. I opened it up for him, and he jumped in, sniffed around, and looked at me like, "Okay, let's go!"
I couldn't believe it. Apparently he had grown so accustomed to the RV and traveling that he felt more at home there than in the house. I, however, had other ideas — I picked him up, reassured him that we would be back on the road soon, and headed back for the guest bed inside the house. Although the boys and I have been on cross-country journeys of three days before, I wasn't exactly sure how they would react to this extended road trip.
But apparently Eddie is a born traveler!
The event at the Wells Fargo History Museum was to take place in the late morning, so before heading to downtown Phoenix, I dropped the RV off at Bell Ford 
for advisor Joe Hough to take a look. Along with all the other before mentioned problems I'd had with the RV, over the last day and a half it had started to shake and sputter a bit when I accelerated. By the time I got to Phoenix, the problem had become very noticeable, and I knew it would not be safe to continue without it being checked out.
I hoped it would be something a good oil change and fuel line cleaning could resolve. However, not knowing anything about the mysterious workings of a motor I was wrong.
Way wrong.
When Joe opened the cap and put his nose to the transmission fluid dipstick, he could smell it — burnt transmission fluid! Unfortunately, he couldn't tell the extent of the damage until he looked at it further, which meant the RV had to stay. Advertisements for the Phoenix event included the RV, but there was nothing I could do. The transmission was in trouble, so the event would have to go on without our branded RV.
You can imagine my mindset upon hearing the news. Here I was on a journey whose schedule was important to its success. Much like that first journey overland, I had a time table to keep, and there was not a lot of wiggle room. But we did have a little time to play with. There was the event today and not another until Saturday, October 4, when we had to be in Yuma, Arizona , for a Wells Fargo store grand opening, complete with media. Needless to say, my mind was not completely on today's event. Even so, I put on a happy face and (ever the professional) joined the festivities with all the smiles I could muster while anxiously waiting on a call from Joe.
The event at the museum was a big hit. We had nearly 500 team members and visitors. And I must say, if you've never been to the Wells Fargo History Museum in Phoenix, you have to go! The museum has an amazing Western art and gun collection, and Connie has done a terrific job with the displays. I especially loved the simulated mine shaft, complete with gold. Her staff, Amanda Bohn and Chris Adix, did a great job setting everything up, and they had many team member volunteers come and help out.
One of the things that everyone really enjoyed was the stagecoach races. Using tiny radio-controlled stagecoaches, they let visitors race along the Butterfield Trail — the trail being a gigantic trail map in the entrance way of the museum.
Since Connie was finished following the Butterfield Trail with me, I was joined again by Juan Colato of the Wells Fargo History Museum in Los Angeles. He was such a great help during the Ike and leaking RV debacle on the way to St. Louis that it was good to have him back — especially now that I was again faced with RV problems.
Juan was there when I finally got the call from Joe. Luckily, I was sitting down for the bad news — the transmission was shot and would have to be replaced. Then Joe gave me even worse news. It would be a minimum of 3 days, but up to 5, before he could get a new one and have it installed.
I was not a happy camper, literally! I put in a call to the RV rental company, and it was decided that first thing the next morning they would drive a new RV to me so I could complete the journey with the hope of reuniting with our branded RV before San Francisco. After all the money and time we put into designing the wrap and having it installed, it was just inconceivable that we would finish the journey without it. But I had no choice for now. I was at the mercy of an RV that had been branded but was not rented in good working order.
So, feeling a little defeated and drained, Connie, Juan and I headed back to Connie's home to meet up with Bill for dinner. After a good meal we retreated back to Bill and Connie's for another night.
What a great night it turned out to be! Bill and I broke out our guitars — the first time I have been able to find time to play on the whole trip. Although I should have just kept mine in the case as Bill is a much better player than I. While Bill mostly played, Connie and I sang country and gospel song after country and gospel song. She has a great voice, and I'm not half bad myself (if I may say so), and together we did some great duets. At times we were a quartet when Bill and their bird Sugar would join in. Connie and I had sung along to the radio and CDs on the trip, but tonight we were jamming! It was so much fun and such a release after another stressful day of RV problems.
With the mail in the shop and all the songs sung out of me, I settled in for another night outside the RV. Tomorrow is going to be an eventful day, as we're getting up early for a ride along the Butterfield Trail near Gila Bend in an actual horse drawn wagon!
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