Day 17, 18, 19 - Chehalis, WA - TT

Monday (17) - Another ham radio test this morning and one scheduled for later this afternoon. I don’t mind doing these as I used to proctor the “in person” tests in Fairbanks. But those were generally scheduled for once a month. Now, they are random with those taking the tests are from all over the country as are the proctors. It was nice to be able to sit outside during the test this morning. The kennels are put together since the dogs will be dog-sat for a couple of hours tomorrow. The RV is getting four new tires and a glass shop wants to take a look at the RV before they’ll take on the job. Russ, from a couple of sites down, used to own a glass shop and we got the glass seated and mostly sealed. Enough so it won't fall out on the road. 

The test session in the afternoon had four taking tests and around ten proctoring. We used a combination of Zoom, an IRC chat room for the proctors to communicate during the test, and exam software written specifically for the ham radio exams.

Tuesday (18) - Today’s field trip was to Superior Tire in Longview, WA. I purchased four Michelin XZE2 through the FMCA tire program directly from Michelin and needed to find a shop that had the tires in stock. Finding someplace that had four of the right size and model of tire proved to be a little challenging. These are G rated tires, so I put them all on the rear. The front needs H rated tires. The date code on all the new tires is 3020 i.e. manufactured in the 30th week of 2020.

They took about 2½ hours which included balancing the front tires. Les Schwab was unable to balance the front tires last year due to lack of suitable equipment. It turns out the the front wheels are different from the rear since the coach has front disc brakes. Now, I know.

Afterwards, I took the RV to Twin City Glass also in Longview. They wanted to take a look to see if they wanted to tackle the windshield job. They called back and quoted $690 unless the glass breaks. Then it’s $2,500. So, do we risk it again?

Wednesday (19) - Traveled to Port Orchard for a family barbecue.