Stronghold Wrap up
Oct. 6th, 2008 03:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
revchrisLast weekend we were in Oregon, IL, for Stronghold's Olde English Faire.
Getting there was an adventure in itself. We take the camper with us so that we have a place to sleep and an easy way to haul the tent poles (8' poles don't fit well in a 6' truck). Friday morning we loaded the truck with all the booth stuff and the camper with sleeping bags, garb, clothes, food, and the tent poles.
Then I went to switch trailer hitches (the vending trailer is an 1-7/8" ball, the camper is 2"). I haven't had to switch hitches since Stronghold last year, so it really wasn't surprising that the lock on the hitch pin was sticking. After about 10-15 minutes and some TriFlow, I got the key to rotate far enough to unlock the pin, but not only didn't the lock release, the key wouldn't rotate back. So I got out the sawzall and removed the lock.
Then the receiver post wouldn't pull out of the receiver body. Coercive attempts with a 12# sledge hammer were unsuccessful, so we drove over to U-Haul and bought a new hitch pint (just in case it ever loosens up) and a universal post kit (you permanently mount the post and then it has both sizes of interchangeable balls) and had them install it.
A quick stop at Badger Welding Supply for a new small oxy tank, and it was back home to hook up the camper. The camper hitch wouldn't open far enough for us to get it over the ball because the surge brake cylinder had finally failed and the actuator was jammed in the "full brakes" position. So I got out the sawzall and I cut that out of the system (actually, it took a 3/8" wrench to snap the four mounting bolts off and let the cylinder drop out of the hitch, but it really seemed like a good place for a sawzall). I'm not worried about not having the cylinder in place, since it's never been functional since we got the trailer, you just have to pay attention and stop early because it's an extra 3,000# pounds of rolling load).
Finally, we've got the camper hooked up and everything loaded, and we're on our way. Unlike the way this post is trending so far, we actually got to the faire site without any other problems, other than the fact that we're now a few hours later than I had hoped, and it's getting dark.
Fortunately, we've put up the tent often enough that we can do it by flashlight if necessary. We got the tent set up, set up all the tables, and piled everything into the tent, closed all the sidewalls, and went out to get dinner. We then hung out in the camper for a while and read, and went to bed around 10p. Friday night the temperature got down to 36F. Saturday morning, we both were awake before the alarm clock, hoping that the other one would get up and make heat happen (the heater in the camper was dead when we bought it, but we've got a Coleman lantern and a camp stove, both of which put out a fair amount of heat). I got up first and made fire and then headed off to the privy. By the time I got back the fog was thick enough that you couldn't see the next campsite.
After breakfast we drove back to the faire site and set up the tent. Every time we set up it's a little different as we've got an ever-changing set of stuff for sale. Saturday was about normal for sales (in the "very good show" range), and then we closed up, had dinner, and went back to the camper for the rest of the night.
Saturday night was warmer (~44F), but Sunday morning it rained on and off until ~12:30. Sundays normally are slow in any small outdoor fair in the midwest because you've got to wait for most of the people to get done with church. Of course, when it's still drizzling after church, they mostly stay home instead of going out to the fair, so Sunday's sales were only about 30% of Saturday's, but were also about what we expected out of a rainy day. Overall we took in enough that even with the roadshow expenses, we made more than a Farmer's Market day would (our normal guideline for whether or not to keep doing a road show), and we made enough to pay for getting the cats' teeth cleaned (our other goal for this weekend).
We got home around 10p on Sunday and left the camper and truck on the street. It's much easier to back the camper up the driveway on Monday morning after I've had a full night's sleep and it's light out. After I parked the camper I did some errands and then took Marley to the vet for blood tests they needed to go to make sure she'd probably survive the anesthesia during the dental work. Then it was off to work for the afternoon.
Getting there was an adventure in itself. We take the camper with us so that we have a place to sleep and an easy way to haul the tent poles (8' poles don't fit well in a 6' truck). Friday morning we loaded the truck with all the booth stuff and the camper with sleeping bags, garb, clothes, food, and the tent poles.
Then I went to switch trailer hitches (the vending trailer is an 1-7/8" ball, the camper is 2"). I haven't had to switch hitches since Stronghold last year, so it really wasn't surprising that the lock on the hitch pin was sticking. After about 10-15 minutes and some TriFlow, I got the key to rotate far enough to unlock the pin, but not only didn't the lock release, the key wouldn't rotate back. So I got out the sawzall and removed the lock.
Then the receiver post wouldn't pull out of the receiver body. Coercive attempts with a 12# sledge hammer were unsuccessful, so we drove over to U-Haul and bought a new hitch pint (just in case it ever loosens up) and a universal post kit (you permanently mount the post and then it has both sizes of interchangeable balls) and had them install it.
A quick stop at Badger Welding Supply for a new small oxy tank, and it was back home to hook up the camper. The camper hitch wouldn't open far enough for us to get it over the ball because the surge brake cylinder had finally failed and the actuator was jammed in the "full brakes" position. So I got out the sawzall and I cut that out of the system (actually, it took a 3/8" wrench to snap the four mounting bolts off and let the cylinder drop out of the hitch, but it really seemed like a good place for a sawzall). I'm not worried about not having the cylinder in place, since it's never been functional since we got the trailer, you just have to pay attention and stop early because it's an extra 3,000# pounds of rolling load).
Finally, we've got the camper hooked up and everything loaded, and we're on our way. Unlike the way this post is trending so far, we actually got to the faire site without any other problems, other than the fact that we're now a few hours later than I had hoped, and it's getting dark.
Fortunately, we've put up the tent often enough that we can do it by flashlight if necessary. We got the tent set up, set up all the tables, and piled everything into the tent, closed all the sidewalls, and went out to get dinner. We then hung out in the camper for a while and read, and went to bed around 10p. Friday night the temperature got down to 36F. Saturday morning, we both were awake before the alarm clock, hoping that the other one would get up and make heat happen (the heater in the camper was dead when we bought it, but we've got a Coleman lantern and a camp stove, both of which put out a fair amount of heat). I got up first and made fire and then headed off to the privy. By the time I got back the fog was thick enough that you couldn't see the next campsite.
After breakfast we drove back to the faire site and set up the tent. Every time we set up it's a little different as we've got an ever-changing set of stuff for sale. Saturday was about normal for sales (in the "very good show" range), and then we closed up, had dinner, and went back to the camper for the rest of the night.
Saturday night was warmer (~44F), but Sunday morning it rained on and off until ~12:30. Sundays normally are slow in any small outdoor fair in the midwest because you've got to wait for most of the people to get done with church. Of course, when it's still drizzling after church, they mostly stay home instead of going out to the fair, so Sunday's sales were only about 30% of Saturday's, but were also about what we expected out of a rainy day. Overall we took in enough that even with the roadshow expenses, we made more than a Farmer's Market day would (our normal guideline for whether or not to keep doing a road show), and we made enough to pay for getting the cats' teeth cleaned (our other goal for this weekend).
We got home around 10p on Sunday and left the camper and truck on the street. It's much easier to back the camper up the driveway on Monday morning after I've had a full night's sleep and it's light out. After I parked the camper I did some errands and then took Marley to the vet for blood tests they needed to go to make sure she'd probably survive the anesthesia during the dental work. Then it was off to work for the afternoon.
