VALLEY RV SERVICE DEPT

 When we arrived at the border crossing July 02, to enter Alaska, the U.S., the customs agent asked if we had purchased fruit in Canada? I told him we had four peaches from Canada and he told me to pull forward, get the peaches, and bring them for him to see. He said they must be a product of the USA or they could not come in. Okay, I thought, no problem. That is when a major issue began.

 I opened the RV door, to access the switch, to push the street side slide out so I could get to the refrigerator. CRUNCH, POP, GRIND, SQUEAL! You got it. The slide would NOT go out.

 When we got to Tok, we found that neither slideout would work. Both seemed to have the same problem and sounded the same when activated.

 What a "sinking" feeling. We got a new RV so we wouldn't have problems on the trip! Now what?..... What are the options? What would my buddy, Paul do?? Gosh I wish he was here to look at this with me. Well, he's not, so what next? I crawled under the RV and could see the gear and rail mechanism were full of sand and small rocks. That must be the crunch, grind, pop, squeal sound.

Since we were in Tok just over night, I decided to wait until we got to Fairbanks tomorrow to deal with it. Tonight, we would climb over the corner of the kitchen counter and swing our legs through the four inch space between the slideout and the counter. We could get to almost everything, refrigerator, most cabinets, kitchen sink, etc. Not convenient, but workable. Going to the bathroom and bedroom was no problem, not blocked.

 I know, if you are not familiar with RV's, or this floor plan, it maybe difficult to visualize. Basically, when that slide comes in, your house is full of slide out and you have no room in there.

Well, not wanting to tell friends & family that I had torn up my "new" RV on the roads to Alaska... You know..... The "I told you so" factor, I have not blogged about this before. OK, I'll call Paul. He will understand and misery loves company. I need company, I feel miserable.

 Paul, and Brenda, were understanding and tried to offer suggestions and commiserate with us. Bottom line, none of us could believe it and weren't sure what to do. Sharon kept reminding me, "It's under warranty". Ok, tomorrow we will go to Fairbanks, find a Forest River dealer, make an appointment, get them fixed, and go on with our trip. Great plan, right?? WRONG!

 When we got to Fairbanks, we found two RV dealers. One does warranty work for Forest River. Great, right??? WRONG! They could get to us in about five to seven days and they would NOT recommend the other dealer with only one technician. We couldn't wait a week so, I called the other dealer. After a short conversation, I knew I didn't want to use them.

Talked to Paul again. He did web search for "Forest River Dealers in Alaska". Came up with one in Palmer, AK.

 In the mean time, I decided to work on it myself. Hooked up my hose and washed out sand and gravel on both sides, no help. Several "Good Sammers" arrived on the scene, with a plethora of suggestions. Me, I didn't like any of them. I found another mechanic, in Fairbanks, who agreed to look at it but, they would not be a warranty dealer. Okay, worth a shot anyway. Maybe I can send the bill to Forest River?

 To speed this story up, after nearly eight hours, they did get one slideout to work. That was good. However, the one they fixed was not the one we need to slide out so we can enter the kitchen area without climbing over the kitchen counter. We can't keep doing that? Can we?

 I called VALLEY CAMPER and got an appointment during the time we were scheduled at Anchorage. After "climbing" for eleven days we arrived at Valley Camper, in Palmer for an assessment of the problem by Forest River approved technicians. We were assured that their man could fix it but, Not Today! "We are swamped", can you come back Monday morning?? You bet, I will drive the 35 miles back from Anchorage, and Sharon can stay with friends and do the trolley tour of Anchorage. We were excited, finally we can quit this climbing in & out.

 Another disappointment! After 4 hours in the shop, they came to the conclusion that they needed parts and would need to talk with the manufacturer. Sharon was NOT a "Happy Camper" when I told her our predicament. We would have to continue with our current situation and return to Palmer, after our visit to Homer, ONLY another ten days.

 I won't keep dragging this out. We returned to Valley Camper at Palmer, on July 23rd. After another six hours and a questionable outcome, we returned to the shop to find the slide does work. Three weeks we could not have access to the kitchen and living room area of our new rig, without the climbing inconvenience. And of course, as soon as we would climb in, we needed something on the other side or someone was at the door.....climb back.

Well, all is well, that ends well. Both slides work again but, is this the end of the story??? RETURN TRIP!!!!!

 Oh yeah, the peaches were products of the USA and we got to keep them.