# 10F Ann and the Van - Driving Lessons

Hello, All,

When we left Mena, back in June, it was meant to be a challenging adventure.  For Marvin, the challenge would be physical. He has been a runner for years, but had no idea what to expect when he switched to riding the ELF, his 3-wheeled "sissy bike", with battery assist, home from Virginia. It has been a learning experience all the way! He learned how to use his battery assist, how to conserve the power, and manage the re-charging. His average day's run has been 46 miles per day, and the longest daily distance so far has been 80 miles. We are generally on the road by 7 a.m., and try to reach our destination around noon. He has admitted to feeling "pretty tired" a few times, but doesn't appear to be straining; he's certainly not complaining. 

As expected, the heat and humidity have been significant factors. Marvin has sweat buckets, and gulped gallons of water and Gatorade to stay hydrated.  Any excess body fat has melted away. It is possible that by the time we get home, he will weigh less than I do; he only had about 10 pounds on me to start with. All I can say is that he looks as good in his Speedo as when he was 50 years younger!

My personal challenge was to be more psychological and emotional than physical. I did myself no favors when I allowed Marvin to do all the driving for us all these years; he enjoyed it, and I did not. Now, though, it was time for me to challenge my inexperience, face my fears, and grow a little. Of course, I know HOW to drive, I just haven't done very much of it. When we started out, my mantra was "HE THOUGHT SHE COULD DO IT, AND SO SHE DID."  When we reached my cousin's in Claremont, VA she shared one of her personal affirmations with me:

 

 

 

 

Early on in the trip, I was doing a lot of whining about the narrow roads. Yes, some of them were too narrow to rate a center stripe, but most were standard state highways. I felt a proper fool when I realized one day that they were exactly the same width as Hwy 8 that I drive from home to Mena regularly in my little sky-blue Subaru. The van IS bigger, bulkier,...but I'm getting used to it. I only flinch when I meet a vehicle obviously bigger than me.

I had less help from technology than I expected. It never occurred to me that we couldn't count on using our two cell phones to keep in touch when we were not together...and, I know I complained--- A LOT --- about the lack of AT&T service the first half of our trip. With no phone service, I was dependent on finding public WiFi, rather than having my own hotspot for email. And, neither of my pet phone apps for GPS would work.  My favorite app, Road ID, which tracked Marvin's phone and showed me in real time, on a map, on my phone, where he was at any time, of course, didn't work either. 

I was so concerned about not having the detailed directions that Marvin's satellite GPS provided, that I would copy out his step-by-step route, and tape it to the center of my steering wheel. I needed constant reassurance that even if I managed to get lost, we still would reach the same destination in the end. 

Pathetic... but, hey!, you do what you have to do...

I've described myself as Marvin's "Rear Guard and Bed'n'Breakfast". I'm also the charging station for the 2nd battery. He starts out with both batteries fully charged. After about 20 miles, we find a place where he can switch to the second one. The first one won't be exhausted --- often only half,--- so it doesn't take so long to re-charge on the van's inverter. We can utilize our rather long lunch stop to switch batteries back to #1 and begin re-filling #2. We have almost always been able to find an overnight stop with electric service, so we can finish charging on 110 shore power, ready to set off again the next morning with 2 full batteries.

I do play the part of Rear Guard on the busiest highways. If it is multilane, my following him with my flashers going is no problem, because there is a second lane that can be used to pass us both. On busy 2-lane highways, the same maneuver results in traffic backing up, leaving me hoping for either a passing zone or a place I could pull off. With the ELF being so much smaller and narrower, it is easy for drivers to see beyond him and zip around, double yellow line, or no. When I'm guarding his rear, I leave space enough between us for cars to duck back in line, if necessary.  Best of all is to find a route where travel on these highways is as short as possible.

Sometimes I have followed behind him on the back-country roads, just enjoying the early morning ride through the country. Bicycle speed is not a bad way to see the country. I can hear the birdsong and note the flowers in the ditch. I have the fun of watching the dogs race toward him, the chickens squawk and flap frantically, and the horses wheel and gallop to the back of the field. The cows mostly just stand there.

There were 3 sections of what I came to call "buffered" driving: The Blue Ridge Parkway, the Cherohala Skyway, and the Natchez Trace. The total lack of commercial vehicles, lower speed limits, and plenty of pull-offs to let traffic pass made these stretches my clear favorites. On these sections, I was quite comfortable going ahead  and waiting for Marv to catch up. In the later days of the trip, that same "bunny hop" procedure worked okay as we used state highways to make our way across Tennessee and Mississippi. 

I've definitely pushed the limits of my comfort zone back a little. I am still going to be driving 5 to 10 mph slower than the driver behind me wishes I'd drive, and I still will go to great lengths to avoid high speed and city traffic, but, "YES, I CAN." I've advanced in both competence and confidence; after all, with almost 1500 miles behind me, how could I NOT?