I've been driving motorhomes since 1969. I can barely remember the first time, but I'm sure I was nervous. Later in the 1970s and 1980s we did a lot of winter driving (some at night)in very snowy,icy conditions going to ski areas in western New York, Vermont, and the mountains of Colorado. Initially I was intimidated doing that, however I became comfortable driving in those conditions, so almost 40 years later, I'm not intimidated by much on the road, but I admit I've given up the extreme snowy and icy travel conditions to the younger generation now that I'm 75.
One of the scariest moments in my life was when the MH salesman bailed out back at the dealership after a short introductory drive. I way sitting there by myself in the driver's seat of this MONSTER (34') motorhome with the highway sitting in front of me waiting for me to pull out into traffic.
Now it is fun to drive and I don't care how bad the traffic is, I can slip it into places a new passenger wouldn't think it could fit.
Great post! My first Class A drive was from rural PA where we live to Atlanta to visit our daughter and her family. Six or eight lanes of fast, heavy traffic in each direction, cattle chutes, etc. ACK! Trial by fire!! By the time we got back home (without a scratch, I must brag), I had driven about 1,500 miles and felt both comfortable and competent.
Ever since that first terrible white-knuckle drive, I LOVE driving my big Class A MH as much as I enjoy ripping around the windy mountain roads around here in my fast two-seater. It’s a very different experience, to be sure, but great fun. In fact, I like the driving as much as any part of a trip.
You’ll get there, too.
2008 Winnebago Journey 39z DP
2004 Jeep Liberty toad
If it'll make any of ya feel more comfortable...then the next time you're in the Tampa FL area, stay for a couple of days at Rally Park in Seffner on I4 at exit 10, which is also Lazy Days RV sales. It's pretty reasonable and they do a lot more to keep you looking around, including a large Bounder DP that they use for a driving class...only thing better is to get yourself a CDL license. Naturally while you're there, you might as well look around, while they're serving you a free breakfast and lunch...really nice resturant too, with a schuttle that picks you up, if you're not in to walking, since it's really a big place. They even deliver a newspaper to your door each morning. This time of the year, a nights stay is about 25 bucks. Not sure if the driving school is a feebee, but I imagine it is.
"We are often so caught up in our destination that we forget to appreciate the journey."
1998 36ft. National Tropi-Cal, with a tag axle and one slide, on a 1997 P32 Chevy chassis....7.4 Vortec Engine
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