Almost there!

[Posttoasties]

Hi all!
I've been a "lurker" on this site for several years now and it's finally time to introduce myself. I'm Paul and my wife is Clara. We, (really "I"), decided 4 or 5 years ago that, when we retired, we would buy an Escape trailer and go see this great country we live in. Then last August we got extremely lucky when I just happened to log onto this forum one night (after not having been online for several months) and saw Tammy's post that their 2015 Escape 21 demo model was for sale. It was late in the evening (10:00 or so central time) but I emailed the forum and asked some questions about build and possible add-on's to an already manufactured trailer. (By this time we, (really "I"), had a list of "must haves" and "would like to haves - but could maybe live without"). A lady named Cathy "Floating Cloud" (thank you again Cathy) emailed me right back and suggested that the trailer was probably gone by now (I think she said they might have sold it while I was thinking about it...) but if I was serious I should email Tammy directly at ETI. So I did. Imagine my surprise when at 9 am the next morning my cell phone rang and the caller id location said "Chilliwack, BC". That was 7:00 am in Chilliwack! Tammy told me I was the first in a long line of responses (I think she said 9 or 10) to her email and then proceeded to answer the questions I had asked in my email. Then she told me if I was interested I had till noon their time to make a decision. I called Clara, told her to skip out of work and meet me at home. We talked it over and we (this time it was really "we") decided, "Let's do it." However, we literally "put the cart before the horse" - neither of us was retired yet and our tow vehicle (a 1998 Nissan Pathfinder) was 18 years old and had over 200,000 miles on it). Short story about a LONG process: after way too much, way too in-depth research, and way too many test drives in 1). Volkswagen Touaregs, 2). Toyota Highlanders, 3). Volvos, and 4). Jeep Grand Cherokees, and 5). Dodge Durangos (research which included lots of reading and learning from all the great posts on this forum - thank you all!!!!) - we FINALLY last month purchased a 2015 Dodge Durango 3.6L V6 with a factory tow package.

We still haven't retired, but we're now planning (around our work schedules) our trip to Chilliwack for an orientation scheduled for Tuesday, May 2, 2017 at 11:00 am (33 days and 13 hours from right now) and the trip home with our Escape 21!

I hope that, in the future, I can become a more active member of this forum - I want to thank all of the active members who take the time to post and share the benefit of their wisdom and experiences. Thanks all!

[Rossue]

That is awesome; congratulations! The Durango should be a nice stable tow with its long (119.9") wheelbase. Is it 2 WD or AWD? You are going to have a lot of fun I bet.

[Posttoasties]

Thanks Ross. Being from Minnesota it had to be AWD. After all when the Escape is in winter storage we'll need a vehicle to drive around on the frozen lakes.

I hope the long wheelbase will be a good stable tug. That was a big part of the decision to go with it.

[Marry]

You might not be retired yet, but you might want to call yourselves lucky!
Congratulations!! Enjoy the trip west, and make sure to post some pictures.

[float5]

Posttoasties! Was wondering if you ever picked up that trailer. So glad to hear that you will have it soon. I just happened to get on now, after not looking for a few days, and saw you right off! Hope you have a fantastic trip back and, of course, we have to see that 21'! Know you are excited to finally be getting it.

[cpaharley2008]

Welcome Paul, a small suggestion. If you could delay pickup another 3 weeks you could attend the annual Escape Rally in Osoyoos, BC, about 3 hours east of Chilliwack and sort of on the way home for you. That way you can meet owners, see their modifications, place a face to a name and go home with ideas floating around. Just a thought....

[Posttoasties]

Hi Jim,

Thanks for the suggestion. I got the ETI 2017 Calendar and noticed right off that the annual rally in Osoyoos happens at the end of May. Unfortunately since I am not yet retired I need to plan around my work schedule. I own a newspaper which is deadline driven and I am committed the last full week of each month and trying to do both (orientation and Osoyoos) would put us under more pressure than we are willing to take on. We also need to be on the North Shore June 2 & 3 for a granddaughter's high school graduation. Ah... prioroties....

I'll be thinking about you all thought!

Paul

[Mike & Donna]

Great story. Know you must be very anxious to take delivery of your trailer. As others have suggested please take plenty of photos and be kind enough to share them with this forum. Safe travels.

[emers382]

Originally Posted by Posttoasties

Hi Jim,

Thanks for the suggestion. I got the ETI 2017 Calendar and noticed right off that the annual rally in Osoyoos happens at the end of May. Unfortunately since I am not yet retired I need to plan around my work schedule. I own a newspaper which is deadline driven and I am committed the last full week of each month and trying to do both (orientation and Osoyoos) would put us under more pressure than we are willing to take on. We also need to be on the North Shore June 2 & 3 for a granddaughter's high school graduation. Ah... prioroties....

I'll be thinking about you all thought!

Paul

Hi Paul

You can't make Osoyoos but maybe you can get it to the Mississippi rally September 29th to Oct 1, only a little over seven hours away for you.

Adrian

[Posttoasties]

Hi Adrian,

I sent my contact information to Paul and Janet a couple of days ago, so I should be on the list and getting the updates. As with Osoyoos it will depend on work schedules whether we can get away during that time weekend or not. We'll sure try.

Paul