Were having so much fun here in Goodyear, AZ at the Alpine SoCal Spring Training Rally that it’s hard to find time to update the blog!  Let me try to bring you up to date with our activities since my last post:

First of all, here’s our rally agenda for the week (below).

On Saturday the 5th, we drove the Urban Escape Vehicle from the “dirt farm” in Casa Grande to our rally site in Goodyear, AZ.  I opted to take the long way around and drive ~20 miles further in order to avoid the Phoenix inner-city traffic.  We took I-8 west to Gila Bend, then turned north on Hwy 85 and east again on I-8 – a total of 98 miles.  If I had taken I-10 north, the trip would have been only ~78 miles (but with heavy traffic).  It’s always nice to avoid those city folk rushing around to and from work whenever you’re running a 33,000 lb. rig down the road with a full-size pickup in tow .

Here we are at Cotton Lane RV Resort (←link).  I think we have approximately 15 Coaches in attendance.  I’ll have to check with our rally host(s) to confirm the number.

We arrived just in time for the pizza dinner:

There weren’t many pieces of pizza left after we got done.

Good times with good people (as usual) at any Alpine Coach Rally 🙂  Stilla and I closed out the evening watching TV outside Frank Krauland’s coach along with our daughter Jennifer and grandson Kaan who stopped by to visit.  Frank has a nice TV setup in his basement compartment and a propane fire pit.  Nice 🙂

Sunday morning was our first group breakfast.  Our rally host(s) Bob & Connie Bowers along with co-host(s) Jim & Stephanie Archer emulated the previous high standard set by Dave & Nicole Guhsé with regard to breakfast.

Here’s Bob (on the right, below) toasting bagels.  We also had hard-boiled eggs along with the standard fare of fruits, yogurts, donuts, etc.,

On Sunday, fellow Apine Coach owner Noel Peck and I went out for a nice afternoon motorcycle ride while Stilla went to the zoo with our daughter Jennifer and grandson Kaan who are now living in nearby Glendale.  You may recall that I left the ATV in Casa Grande and loaded up the Harley for this latest trip.  I downloaded the Harley from the pickup after breakfast with Noel’s help.

In the evening (on Sunday) after “Happy Hour” most of our rally attendees carpooled and/or convoyed over to Waddell’s Longhorn Corral for dinner.  A nice place with a unique atmosphere.  Their menu claims that they have “warm beer, bad food, and lousy service” 🙂  We found it to be quite acceptable.  Check out their website.

On Monday morning, we all gathered again for an outstanding breakfast.  Our rally hosts and co-hosts are doing a super job taking care of everyone’s needs.  Thanks Bob & Connie / Jim & Stephanie!

After breakfast, I played a game of “washer toss” with Jack, Ed, and Noel.  I can’t say who won because it might create some animosity 🙂

During a morning walk around the RV Resort, several of us “guys” were approached by a park resident that owns one of the park models.  She needs help fixing some shingles.  I went back later with Stilla and committed to help her out.

Stilla and I made a trip to the local Home Depot™ to buy a bundle of shingles along with some adhesive and a few nails.  I’ll go back later as time permits to help her fix the shingles.  It’s a good feeling to be able to help others out.  The nice lady (Maggie) that owns the park model is from England and had received high estimates to fix her shingles.  I’ll do it for the cost of the parts and maybe take a small donation for the time.

Many of the rally attendees went to various ball games during the day in and around the Phoenix area.  We attended the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks game on the 3rd with my mom and stepdad, so we didn’t feel the need to go to another game so soon.  Plus, we already have tickets for the Rockies and LA Dodgers on the 13th… we’ll take daughter Jennifer and grandson Kaan to that one.

Around 4:30 it was time for Happy Hour again 🙂  It was a little breezy with a bit of a chill is in the air, but not enough to stop us  from gathering and socializing.

Dinner is “on your own” according to the rally agenda this evening (Monday), but most of us all carpooled and/or convoyed over to Roman’s Oasis to continue our Alpine socializing.

Roman’s Oasis doesn’t appear to have a website I can link you to, but here’s a link to my ‘blogging friend’ GoogleImages® for this interesting hangout.  The food and service were great, especially for a Monday night.  The company was awesome as usual 🙂

After another great evening with our Alpine friends, we retired to our respective Coaches to get ready for more Alpine fun.

Stay tuned…