Hey, you guys remember ThatRVgirl? Well, in honor of all the fun posts you guys made here about RV travel, I thought I might throw in a bonus video.

It's not about anything in particular, but you'll figure it out.

Today is F-150 pickup day. Also my 79th birthday. Happy birthday to me!

I always wanted one of those things. Only my initial lust was for the Raptor. This version has a bit more hulk, lol.

Here is the next step up from my RV. Designed for 2+. Mine is more like designed for 2, period.

(08-18-2026 04:36 AM)TripleA Wrote:  Today is F-150 pickup day. Also my 79th birthday. Happy birthday to me!

I always wanted one of those things. Only my initial lust was for the Raptor. This version has a bit more hulk, lol.

Happy Birthday! And may you at the very least be a happy Octogenarian, if not a Centurian! For those on the left that last line means and many more.

(08-18-2026 04:36 AM)TripleA Wrote:  Today is F-150 pickup day. Also my 79th birthday. Happy birthday to me!

I always wanted one of those things. Only my initial lust was for the Raptor. This version has a bit more hulk, lol.

Happy birthday AAA, I have this week also.

That's a pretty nice trailer. I hope you get to enjoy it a lot and happy birthday or what we used to call it when we were younger because we would celebrate to the max, "Happy Barfday".

Ha, you guys are funny. Birthdays are cool when they're for other people. But getting older beats the alternative. Thanks for the well wishes.

Lots of irons in the fire today. Getting my new home address in South Dakota, which I need to pick up my truck. Also having upgrades done to the trailer. Have parts ordered for other upgrades to the truck.

Getting ready to store my sedan today until a replacement title shows up in the mail so I can sell my car to Carvana. Don't need the little fella any more.

Happy Birthday!

I'll send you the thought a friend sent me in a card on my last birthday.
Imagine a picture of Mr. Rogers sitting calmly.
"Another birthday and you don't look a day older.
It's fun to make believe."

Then she added, You know you're getting old when the candles cost more than the cake!

Well you're soon off on your not make believe journey through the states. Have a great trip. Had a friend whose dad was still driving from Texas to Colorado to California every year by himself up to age 89.

Okay, latest. Picking up the F-150 at Landers Ford in Collierville at 9 am tomorrow. Then driving to Tupelo on Thursday to pick up the trailer, then back to Collierville to load up. A little practice at Walmart on turning and backing up on Friday, then off Saturday on Bogey and Pokey's big adventure, first to South Dakota.

Or "South Potato," as my sister now calls it.

(08-18-2026 05:00 PM)TripleA Wrote:  Okay, latest. Picking up the F-150 at Landers Ford in Collierville at 9 am tomorrow. Then driving to Tupelo on Thursday to pick up the trailer, then back to Collierville to load up. A little practice at Walmart on turning and backing up on Friday, then off Saturday on Bogey and Pokey's big adventure, first to South Dakota.

Or "South Potato," as my sister now calls it.

Do us a favor Trips, and I don't want this to sound dark. Leave a little note with a loved one and if God forbid anything happens to you, they know to let this group know. I don't give much of a **** about anyone on this forum, but if you go dark on us I'd like to know what sites you got to see before it happened.

(08-18-2026 07:46 PM)bobdizole Wrote:  

(08-18-2026 05:00 PM)TripleA Wrote:  Okay, latest. Picking up the F-150 at Landers Ford in Collierville at 9 am tomorrow. Then driving to Tupelo on Thursday to pick up the trailer, then back to Collierville to load up. A little practice at Walmart on turning and backing up on Friday, then off Saturday on Bogey and Pokey's big adventure, first to South Dakota.

Or "South Potato," as my sister now calls it.

Do us a favor Trips, and I don't want this to sound dark. Leave a little note with a loved one and if God forbid anything happens to you, they know to let this group know. I don't give much of a **** about anyone on this forum, but if you go dark on us I'd like to know what sites you got to see before it happened.

Well, since you're talking about me, it sounds more than a little dark, lol. But yes, my sister Nancy keeps up with my whereabouts daily, and so does one of my best buds, who posts on other forums here.

If I croak, Nancy will tell him, and he will pass it along. Meanwhile, while I'm still above ground, I will post as I go and also post pics, so you guys can follow along.

I'm leaving Saturday morning for South Dakota, to Sioux Falls, to get my driver's license, register my vehicles, register to vote, etc. I already applied for my SD residency address and have that.

Wish me luck.

(08-18-2026 08:00 PM)TripleA Wrote:  

(08-18-2026 07:46 PM)bobdizole Wrote:  

(08-18-2026 05:00 PM)TripleA Wrote:  Okay, latest. Picking up the F-150 at Landers Ford in Collierville at 9 am tomorrow. Then driving to Tupelo on Thursday to pick up the trailer, then back to Collierville to load up. A little practice at Walmart on turning and backing up on Friday, then off Saturday on Bogey and Pokey's big adventure, first to South Dakota.

Or "South Potato," as my sister now calls it.

Do us a favor Trips, and I don't want this to sound dark. Leave a little note with a loved one and if God forbid anything happens to you, they know to let this group know. I don't give much of a **** about anyone on this forum, but if you go dark on us I'd like to know what sites you got to see before it happened.

Well, since you're talking about me, it sounds more than a little dark, lol. But yes, my sister Nancy keeps up with my whereabouts daily, and so does one of my best buds, who posts on other forums here.

If I croak, Nancy will tell him, and he will pass it along. Meanwhile, while I'm still above ground, I will post as I go and also post pics, so you guys can follow along.

I'm leaving Saturday morning for South Dakota, to Sioux Falls, to get my driver's license, register my vehicles, register to vote, etc. I already applied for my SD residency address and have that.

Wish me luck.

More worried about the crazies out there on the road. God speed sir, I hope you and the spirit of your wife have an incredible adventure

(08-18-2026 08:10 PM)bobdizole Wrote:  

(08-18-2026 08:00 PM)TripleA Wrote:  

(08-18-2026 07:46 PM)bobdizole Wrote:  

(08-18-2026 05:00 PM)TripleA Wrote:  Okay, latest. Picking up the F-150 at Landers Ford in Collierville at 9 am tomorrow. Then driving to Tupelo on Thursday to pick up the trailer, then back to Collierville to load up. A little practice at Walmart on turning and backing up on Friday, then off Saturday on Bogey and Pokey's big adventure, first to South Dakota.

Or "South Potato," as my sister now calls it.

Do us a favor Trips, and I don't want this to sound dark. Leave a little note with a loved one and if God forbid anything happens to you, they know to let this group know. I don't give much of a **** about anyone on this forum, but if you go dark on us I'd like to know what sites you got to see before it happened.

Well, since you're talking about me, it sounds more than a little dark, lol. But yes, my sister Nancy keeps up with my whereabouts daily, and so does one of my best buds, who posts on other forums here.

If I croak, Nancy will tell him, and he will pass it along. Meanwhile, while I'm still above ground, I will post as I go and also post pics, so you guys can follow along.

I'm leaving Saturday morning for South Dakota, to Sioux Falls, to get my driver's license, register my vehicles, register to vote, etc. I already applied for my SD residency address and have that.

Wish me luck.

More worried about the crazies out there on the road. God speed sir, I hope you and the spirit of your wife have an incredible adventure

Thanks. Well hopefully, the crazies can avoid a truck pulling a similar length RV, doing 60 in the right hand lane of an interstate. That's my general game plan for getting from one major destination to the next.

Well, like most old people, I am up early at 3:30 am today. Of course, I was so tired yesterday that I fell asleep at 8 pm last night, so I'm good.

Today is a big day. It feels like my adventure is about to be real. I am picking up my new F-150 this morning. Then tomorrow, I am driving to Tupelo to pick up my new RV trailer and hook it up for the first time.

Then packing all my worldly possessions into it either Thursday night or Friday morning. Then headed to Walmart to practice turns and backing up, lol.

Then on Saturday morning I'm off on the real Day 1 of the adventures of Bogey and Pokey. I'm Bogey (ex-college golfer) and Pokey, the travel trailer, along with his F-150 hauler, my steed, so to speak. Slow but hopefully steady, moving from one adventure to the next, with all that entails, good and bad, easy and hard.

I'm looking forward to it. Let's hope I am up to the task, lol.

For the latest update, I am re-posting the following from one I just made on my own private board that I run for Memphis fans.

Here goes:

I am now a week past the closing, so it's all happening, like a snowball rolling down a mountain and gaining momentum.

TBH, I have been through a lot in the last 4 months. I lost my dear wife of 43 years, I oversaw thousands of dollars in repairs and upgrades to my then-current home, went through the usual house selling drama (actually got the eventual contract only 12 days in, but lots of drama leading up to that, and lots of potential buyers involved), continued posting here, directed the distribution of most of my possessions to friends and relatives (which in itself was a bit traumatic), said goodbye to all my in-laws living near me at the time, and drove to Memphis to see my sister on my way out west. Then I bought a new truck and a new travel trailer.

And my sister also just sold her house and has yet to decide whether to stay in Collierville near her son, or move to Maryland to be near her daughter, who is suffering from severe Rheumatoid arthritis, and needs help now, even beyond her fiance with whom she lives. And she is just in her late 40s.

Meanwhile, I'm here in Collierville now, finishing up my tasks while also helping my sister get her tasks done. Well, actually watching her dog for her while she works on her stuff, lol.

Back to the subject at hand. I still have not finished my own move, as today I pick up the trailer in Tupelo, bring it back to Collierville to load it up with my remaining possessions, then head out Saturday morning for South Dakota.

At the outset, I am really happy with my new F-150, but we'll see how it goes, lol. I'm old enough to know that car ownership is a process, not by any means a singular event. And I am about to put it through paces that most new cars or trucks never encounter.

As for my new home, the RV trailer itself, I'm looking forward to that today, but even more so than vehicles, travel trailers have their own set of potential problems, not the least of which is being hauled all over the US as I visit all the sights I want to see, for the first or some subsequent time. We'll see how that goes, too, lol.

I'm actually less concerned about the RV, b/c it's just a big box with a few comforts of a traditional home, but no motorized version, which would have made it much more complicated. Now, if something fails with it, I can just leave it somewhere safe for repair, and continue to operate with my truck and whatever Plan B would be at the time.

And I expect some issues, as RVs have a well-earned rep for being pains in the butt at times, but if I'm not depending on it for mobility, only for shelter, and am instead depending on a brand new Ford truck for my ability to move around, I certainly put more faith in the new truck to be reliable.

It can always get me to temporary shelter, and in fact, just to be prepared, I plan to purchase the gear I need to camp out (to save money) if I have to leave the RV somewhere for repairs at times. Also, before I worry about weather, my new motto is to follow the sun, but not into the dang heat the south has suffered recently, lol.

My general plan is to winter somewhere warm from January through March each year, with little to no travel involved (maybe Texas or Arizona, with Florida having restricted their few free national forest lands, and thus being too expensive for long term stays at hotels).

Then back to travel the first of April each year until Thanksgiving, stay close to relatives through Christmas, then start the process again with my next snowbird location starting the following January. And so on...

Anyway, the emergency gear if I lose the services of my RV for any time, would be a tent, a sleeping bag and cooking gear, essentially, with the F-150 fully able to carry whatever other essential gear and clothing I would need, temporarily.

My biggest concern now is actually my own health and ability to continue to live this lifestyle into the future. I just had a full physical with my GP, who declared it an "A++" result, and I had a similar result with my cardiologist's exam, as some of you are familiar with my struggles with congestive heart failure a few years back, and my subsequent surgeries.

Ironically, I am in great health now, as the heart failure was almost certainly caused by a virus I caught at a Memphis football game in 2017, and not some ongoing structural issue that would continue to cause me problems.

But at my age, one cannot take health for granted, so I will continue to get regular checkups on the road wherever possible, and try my best to do the things I can to help myself along the way.

At any rate, this has been one helluva difficult few months, but today, I can see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. At least as far as getting this party started, lol.

Wish me luck. I imagine I can use as much of it as possible. :)

Nice, good luck.

For your tent camping gear a sleeping pad can make or break things. You want something with a decent R factor that insulates you from the ground and is comfortable vs the ground pulling the heat out of you with an Uninsulated air mattress. Check out the exped megamat in a long / wide is great, warm and comfortable. I’ve had really good luck with it being durable.

https://www.expedusa.com/pages/megamat-2025

I moved to hammock camping with an underquilt the majority of the time now, all of the time if I’m car camping, so I gave the megamat to my son and it’s still kicking along after 8 years.

(08-20-2026 07:44 AM)U_of_Elvis Wrote:  Nice, good luck.

For your tent camping gear a sleeping pad can make or break things. You want something with a decent R factor that insulates you from the ground and is comfortable vs the ground pulling the heat out of you with an Uninsulated air mattress. Check out the exped megamat in a long / wide is great, warm and comfortable. I’ve had really good luck with it being durable.

https://www.expedusa.com/pages/megamat-2025

I moved to hammock camping with an underquilt the majority of the time now, all of the time if I’m car camping, so I gave the megamat to my son and it’s still kicking along after 8 years.

I actually had 3 really good sleeping pads, but they missed the cut in my move, when I ran out of room in the only vehicle I had not sold at the time, the one that I used to get to Memphis to buy the truck. My car is now in storage, awaiting arrival of a replacement title so I can sell it, with the help of my nephew who also lives in Collierville.

I think my tent also missed the cut, but I haven't sifted through my stuff to see yet. When I get back tonight with the new trailer, and start loading, then I'll know.

My sister just asked why I need camping gear when I have a trailer, and I reminded her that not only did Camping World once keep her motorhome for several months to do repairs of things they screwed up, they actually lost it. Not kidding.

For some reason, they moved it to a different dealer, but the original store couldn't find the record, and they actually had no idea where it was until they spent a good bit of time trying to locate it in their system.

Which means I don't trust dealers to do any dang thing right, so I need to be prepared for the worst, since I no longer have a house to retreat to.

Seems like I need a tent, sleeping gear and something to cook with. I mean, I don't anticipate show-stopping problems out of the gate, but it's always better to be prepared.

Any ideas on the best thing to cook with when camping out, if it ever comes to that?

(08-20-2026 08:26 AM)TripleA Wrote:  

(08-20-2026 07:44 AM)U_of_Elvis Wrote:  Nice, good luck.

For your tent camping gear a sleeping pad can make or break things. You want something with a decent R factor that insulates you from the ground and is comfortable vs the ground pulling the heat out of you with an Uninsulated air mattress. Check out the exped megamat in a long / wide is great, warm and comfortable. I’ve had really good luck with it being durable.

https://www.expedusa.com/pages/megamat-2025

I moved to hammock camping with an underquilt the majority of the time now, all of the time if I’m car camping, so I gave the megamat to my son and it’s still kicking along after 8 years.

I actually had 3 really good sleeping pads, but they missed the cut in my move, when I ran out of room in the only vehicle I had not sold at the time, the one that I used to get to Memphis to buy the truck. My car is now in storage, awaiting arrival of a replacement title so I can sell it, with the help of my nephew who also lives in Collierville.

I think my tent also missed the cut, but I haven't sifted through my stuff to see yet. When I get back tonight with the new trailer, and start loading, then I'll know.

My sister just asked why I need camping gear when I have a trailer, and I reminded her that not only did Camping World once keep her motorhome for several months to do repairs of things they screwed up, they actually lost it. Not kidding.

For some reason, they moved it to a different dealer, but the original store couldn't find the record, and they actually had no idea where it was until they spent a good bit of time trying to locate it in their system.

Which means I don't trust dealers to do any dang thing right, so I need to be prepared for the worst, since I no longer have a house to retreat to.

Seems like I need a tent, sleeping gear and something to cook with. I mean, I don't anticipate show-stopping problems out of the gate, but it's always better to be prepared.

Any ideas on the best thing to cook with when camping out, if it ever comes to that?

It’s hard to beat the basic Coleman propane stove for car camping. You can get an adapter hose and hook it directly to the propane bottles from the front of your trailer, that you could take off when it goes in for service. They also have refillable 1 pound bottles (fuel keg) that you can refill with an adapter taking the 20 pound bottle off the trailer and flipping it upside down on the tailgate of the truck.

You can slap a cast iron griddle / grill pan on it, or do two things at once with the two burners. And they are cheap and available anywhere.

I use a blackstone 17 a lot camping, but it is heavy and while it can do a lot you would need some way to boil / simmer. When you have the trailer to have a way to boil / simmer / microwave the blackstone is your perfect outdoor cooking option. But on its own as the only thing when the trailer is in for service the two burner Coleman stove is probably the best option.

Make sure you pack a can opener.

(08-20-2026 09:11 AM)Redbanksdog Wrote:  Make sure you pack a can opener.

Believe it or not, I was packing the kitchen last, and I think I actually left that behind (and a few other things).