POG II - The Aftermath

Well since the governor called and I got a stay of execution (didn't have to fly to Libya today), I thought we needed to start the post rally thread and let the lying begin.

I will start by saying what a great time Rae and I had driving from Oklahoma with Chris, Debbie and MangoMike. I had never traveled in mass with other coaches, so that just added to the fun. I can only imagine what the California guys went thru.

Tom (truk4u) really helped us out at the Balloon Fiesta and that was worth the two days spent there. Plus, AP bought a coach cleaning company in the process, so I feel better about the meager amount of money I contributed.

As we have always said, people make this work and without the folks in attendance, it would not have been as good a time. It was good to meet the new folks (except Dale) and A1 and Mike both gave very nice presentations. Harry's dent repair was exceptional (except the part where Dale helped)

Changes from POG I

Sante Fe Skies was pretty nice (thanks ColoradoBus) and the folks were very helpful.

The meeting room was great, but almost too small for the 50+ that we ended up having. This is a nice problem, but the projector and screen helped a bunch.

The food was good (if you like spicy Mexican food), so good thing Lew and his weak stomach were in Florida. And I appreciated the hot breakfast.

The Bling Contest was a hit, but I can't do it more than once a year. MM is a bling monster, so I don't want to invest thousands of dollars in R&D to compete with him :rolleyes: If Roger or A-1 put anything else on their coach, it will start looking like an Art Car (Google-Art Car Houston)

The name tags were good, but why did everyone of them have Jon A-1 on the back?

Chicks at the spa? We need to hold POGIII far from retail shopping and spa territory. This cost us some LewBucks. :(

I know there is more, but I also missed Helen Raymond, "The Sled Dog" and I will never forget Nancy's name again :o

Jan - You are a saint. (Dale's wife) :D

Changes for POGIII

The Newbies from POGII to handle arranging the technical sessions for POGIII

Kevin Erion to clean everyone's coach as they arrive at the rally.

Dale to photograph each couple with their coach for Christmas Card quality prints

Ken Z will hold a sautee and camp cooking workshop (complete with coordinated chef's hat and apron)

Ray Davis' seminar will include "Multiple Uses for Your Sat Dish" including Controlling the Mars Lander From Your Coach, ICBM Interdiction, Staging Laser Light Shows and my favorite, "Fuel Mileage Improvement - Using Your Dish as a Sail"

Also, Chris "AP" Yates will handle the seminar, "Random Buttons in Your Coach - Push them Wisely" followed by "CB Etiquette - When to just turn it off.."

JW,

Good suggestions, as always.

I'm thinking Ken-a-Zitter (now know as KAZ or Kazoo if he's excited) should hold the "Sautee those vegetables w/ your Webasto" Seminar.

Tuga and Karen can hold the "How to Disguise your Newell and Have a Great Time at a Prevo Rally"

Karl can hold the "Bring the Best Toy to the Rally - but Never Unload It"

Kevin E - is such an easy target at this point, but since I'm feeling so bad for him I won't mention his seminar. However, I'll make sure Corona Kelly sends him a get well card.

Truk4U - "Watch Your Back" seminar.

MM

One more suggestion for a subject for a seminar at POG111.
Formerly Fast Roger can talk in great detail on almost any subject.
He was able to demonstrate this ability when he explained where he got the empty Viagra bottle to stick on top of the Anal Award. "Oh no it's not mine, you see we stopped at a Wallmart pharmacy and there was a nice young lady pharmacist and we told her that we needed a bottle of Viagra (empty of course because I don't need that stuff) and it was for a practical joke. So you do see don't you that it is not mine, and it was empty when I got it. And I did mention didn't I that it's definitely not mine.
Methinks he protesteth too much:D

Thanks or the concern, all is doing better now, lifted the bedroom carpet and bed, placed a fan in the room and will have the carpet installer back in the morning to reinstall. Never let your gaurd down when flushing the "black" tank.
I had a great time in Santa Fe and the group is awesome, hope to make POGIII with Amy. I will volunteer for the Clean Up seminar at POGIII.
Kevin(Flood Victim)

This is our story of our trip home… Lets see where to start.

I was visiting with Brian E the day before we were to leave home from POGII, I wanted to see his coach when he was telling me about his 8V92 giving out on him going up a hill, it apparently got to hot and was ruined. He was telling me all the details about it when I said it better not ever happen to me. I was always told you can run those 8V’s as hard as you want.

Well Jan and I had just gotten out of the RV park and was headed up the first hill when I looked back and it looked like a freight train going through the mountains chugging away. My exhaust was bellowing black smoke just like a train. :eek: Brian’s story raced across my mind so I quickly looked at the temp gauge, fine. I then looked at the rpm gauge, then the rest of the gauges. I thought what’s going on, I know, Jdub and Mango put some sort of potion in the tanks of all the newbees, sort of a initiation. Jan said that would be pretty bad if that’s what it is. Anyway being Sunday and nowhere to go, I puffed black smoke 500 miles, mainly pulling up hills.

We got to a Detroit Allison in Colby KS. Monday morning, I drove a lot in the dark :cool: so people couldn’t see all the smoke. They told me it was an injector, one must have gone bad. I had just had the engine serviced in Omaha back in April. They had put a new set in, so they were still under warranty.

Now the bad news…:( I had left the engine doors open after the service mgr. and I looked it over. He told me where to unhook and leave the trailer while they worked on the injector. So while backing the trailer in its spot I seen the left door pop off the hinges when it hit the trailer, oh my! What else…:confused: they didn’t have the right injector so we had to leave the bus for a few days and drive the remaining 185 miles home in the car.

I can say though, we are so much looking forward to POGIII.

PS. I printed all the service centers out so just in case something like this happens again.

http://www.detroitdiesel.com/Service...or/details.asp

Dale and Jan,
We are truly sorry to hear of your misfortune, Debbie and I enjoyed meeting you both and hope that the repairs are swift and don't cost too many Lewbucks.

See you at POG111

Chris (AP)

Dale and Jan,
Hang in there, it will all work out in the end.;)

Good suggestions for POG111, here are a few more:

Activities for the Lady's
A wine tasting
POG roster with names, addresses, phone, e-mail, etc. (prior to the Rally)
Cater the whole Rally (relieve poggers from any cooking)
Make breakfest at 9:00 and dinner at 7:00

What day is it? Yikes, I gotta make smoke and get home...:eek:

PhotoBoy & Jan,

JDUB and I would NEVER mess with your engine. Finger Paint your coach - maybe.

Sorry to hear about your tribulations. Hope to see you at POG III.

MM

We had a great time with all of ya'll. Mango, I had such a great time I forgot to unload yellow. Denise and I are planning on being at the next one.
Tom and Ray left us Monday at Amarillo while we decided to stay another night.
Tuesday we made it to Oklahoma City, fueled up and noticed oil on tow vehicle. The inspection showed transmission leak(where is Jon). Universal Engines scheduled us for Wed am and looks as if its just a seal and filler tube leak.
Kevin I won't complain (it could be worse.) Will post the results tomorrow.

Dale & Carl,
I am not complaining, it's just hard when it is self inflicted. I am learning with all things dealing with the bus to just take it as a learning experiance. I have yet to make the same mistake twice, I just hope the school leasons slow down.
Kevin

A link is posted on the Information Sharing page where you can link to a higher resolution image of the POG II group photo from Dale and Jan Juranek.

Once the image comes up, right click and save it for printing and viewing in a larger size.

Thanks Jan and Dale for the great group shot!

Well for those still on the road here is the benefit of my experiences after leaving POG2.
Check engine light on- check water level, I checked a number of coaches at the rally except mine! Added fluid and corrected it.
Snow and blowing wind gusts of 44mph at Williams Az - bus starts but would not move. TPS failure low. No fast idle. Turns out had to make a run to Flagstaff in the toad to get a Throttle Position Sensor (screws onto the fuel pedal) sends an electronic signal to the engine to control the throttle. $95.00 and 60 miles round trip, back in action- On to Phoenix visiting relatives that haven't been seen in 35 years. Spent the night in Tucson Az (78 degrees) came in the cover of darkness, will slip on down the road tonite to somewhere in West Texas.
Kevin: glad to hear you are dry. (education costs)
Karl: Next Pog you win Bling Prize for your Toad!!
Mango: Jon says you are speeding!
AP: Was that your bottle?
Truk4U: Did you see any UFO's ( I got a cousin in Phoenix with pictures!)
JDUB: I'll let you rest this post
MikeSimmons: Any more tranny shift mysteries?
over and out

Hi all, we had a great time at POG 2 and have officially joined. I had emailed Jim with a couple of ideas about future POGS and will put them here too. If you agree or not, I would enjoy hearing from you on it.

POG 1 and 2 and 3 are all going to be 6 months apart , October and April. If we keep this up it will lead to:

1. All POGs will be in southern areas where the weather is decent in April and October

2. POGs will never be in places like Yellowstone, Maine, Upper Michigan, Glacier National Park Montana, etc.

3.Some of us who live in northern latitudes will always have to drive a long ways.

4. People who live in warmer latitudes will never have the opportunity to head north to cool off in the hot time of year.

5. We will soon tire of going to the same places over and over.

6. People with children in school will always have to find a way to deal with that to attend a POG.

I think a schedule of a POG every 8 months will automatically rotate the POGs through the calendar and provide more variety and solve all the problems above.

Also, I think Santa Fe Skies Park was perfectly adequate. The meeting room was fine, the food was fine, the company was excellent, the opportunity to do some fun things in the area ( Santa Fe and the Balloon Fiesta) was great, and the technical discussions were fantastic. If we evolve the POGs into fancy deluxe resorts like Outdoor Resorts, and have all catered meals, and add live music, etc; well then I think we are starting to act a lot like FMCA or the Marathon Club. Personally, not my style. I certainly do not mind a deluxe resort once in a while, but I do not think it is a necessity. I think fun things to do in the area are a must.

OK, now you know my opinion, I hope to hear yours too.

Future POGs might include an award for the greatest distance traveled to attend?

Does anybody who attended POGII have photos of Roger's bling:eek: Bob-00 is dying to see what he missed! Roger That(previously known as Fast Roger) and his lovely wife Mickie are not home yet so hopefully one of you will take pity on those of us who were unable to attend and share?? Then again, maybe I should just ask Lew he always has the inside scoop:D

Thanks,
Debi and Bob-00

I seem to be following Peter's comments today, but that is OK because unlike some of us he makes sense.

To Peter and all, April and October are not cast in stone. In fact nothing is cast in stone. This is not a club or organization so as soon as someone thinks of a neat place or date for a rally or event they can make it happen. A case in point was OSH. It seemed like a neat idea so several of us did it.

If after the rally in April someone thinks a rally in Maine should take place in July, and there is sufficient support in the form of folks willing to do a little to make it happen it is a done deal. Personally I do not want to see POG evolve into something that has formal annual rally dates or seasons, but is just a bunch or Prevost lovers (not necessarily owners) that make rallies happen.

As the number of POG members grows it must be recognized that a lot of advance planning is necessary to reserve sufficient campground sites or to gain access to some events.

POG II was a special event. It's timing was dictated by the balloon festival, its location (thanks Jim and Chris) was dictated by avaialbility of sites suitable for our coaches, and the western location was meant to expose the west side of the country to the type of rally we had in FL. As the membership grows it is probable there will tend to be regional rallies and they will likely occur throughout the year allowing members to choose dates and places that work best.

The key to addressing concerns such as Peter's is to increase the number of members so there is always something in the works Until we get big enough we have to continue to get ideas out in the open.

But one thing....no structure, no fancy stuff, just fun relaxed rallies where everybody is a participant and nobody feels the group is just a bunch of cliques.

As ole Bob pictured below illustrates, a POG rally without Jeff and Helen sucks.

Well, it's 5:00pm and we are leaving Oklahoma City with a replaced transmission seal.

United Engines was great to work with.

Headed to Memphis, then Nashville, then Georgia !"home"

Good new Carl, just follow the bread crums I left for you!:D

For those of you that weren't present, the following pictures go above and beyond the normal Rally maintenance seminar. Our own A-1 pulls an axle on his Liberty so poggers can understand the process needed in the event of being towed.:eek:

Were else could you find a more dedicated member.
Thanks Jon.......;)

Attachment 310

Attachment 311

Kevin:

I can sympathize with you buddy, the same thing happened to me in Zion RV Resort in Utah.

I was talking to the guy next door while I hooked up the sewer hose and I failed to open the valve. As we used water the tank filled up. Before leaving to go horseback riding we started a load of clothes washing. My friend, who stayed behind with the coach noticed the liquid gold coming up thru the shower drain( lowest point on the coach). He quickly realized what had happened, ran outside and opened the valve. Fortunately, the marble floor was the only area that received any water.

Don't feel bad; we've all done stupid things. I'll bet there are some other stories out there if some of the POGgers want to fess up. I'll bet the wives can enlighten us with some funny stories that the guys would rather not hear about it. How about it gals!

Debi & BOB-00,
Formerly Fast Roger was over the top with Stainless Steel. Covering every inch of his engine compartment and other areas of the bus. Combined w/ high intensity LED's

Attachment 312

Attachment 313

Attachment 314

More Rog Bling

Attachment 315

Attachment 316

Attachment 317

Honestly Pixs don't do it Justice. Roger and Jon both worked real hard to bling up their machines.

MM

Thanks Mango, very impressive with all the added stainless and LED's. Sorry to have missed you and Donna this time but maybe the next one?? I appreciate the pictures;)

Debi and Bob-00

I will admit to being a little over the top by polishing the air supply pipe to the turbo and stringing the (non LED) lights, but I tried to limit my "bling" to practical, but showy.

I do have to relate that on the way home a truck with more LED lights than I ever saw in one place went by. I told him I was impressed with his bling. He made JDUB's bus look like understatement.

He did not have a surface that wasn't covered with lights and when he turned on his signals the ones lined up like an arrow flashed and blinded anyone looking at his truck. He was from Memphis.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jon Wehrenberg

I will admit to being a little over the top by polishing the air supply pipe to the turbo and stringing the (non LED) lights, but I tried to limit my "bling" to practical, but showy.

I do have to relate that on the way home a truck with more LED lights than I ever saw in one place went by. I told him I was impressed with his bling. He made JDUB's bus look like understatement.

He did not have a surface that wasn't covered with lights and when he turned on his signals the ones lined up like an arrow flashed and blinded anyone looking at his truck. He was from Memphis.

---

http://www.orgsites.com/ca/johnwayne...THDAYelvis.jpg

Roger,
How did you know you needed a Throttle Position Sensor? Is this a part we should carry in our Ace Hardware bay? $95 and 60 miles isn't a huge price to pay, but still a pain in the bling.

Forum-ly I want to thank you from all the POG I' ers for taking the time and initiative in producing our own personal Anal awards.

Note to self in Truck Stop Overnite parking - Avoid sleeping next to Reefer trucks.

Peter - Well thought out comments - please keep the contributions coming.

MM

Well, I don't know what was more fun, the trip out ( Caravaning with 6 other Prevosts), The Prevost Rally (Meeting a really wonderful group of fellow Bus Nuts), or getting up at 4:00 AM to willingly FREEZE , and watch the Balloon Fiesta. Lise, Conner and I had such a great time. No problems (Thank the Bus Gods!) traveling home. (2 days)

Peter had some very good observations. I would only add, it would be nice to have an 'Open House' day where we could tour everyone's Bus. It was hard to get to everyone's Bus with so much going on.

Don't change the informal Dynamic, if it aint broken, don't fix it.

Kevin, my biggest faux paus, was attempting to go off roading in my Monaco several years ago and sinking the front end up to the front axles in mud. That cost me 14 k. We've all had our moments, just ask our wives!:o

Gary I like your idea of a open house. One of the things that Jan and I thought we could get at POGII was ideas on how to decorate our coach on the inside, we are starting to plan the redo of some parts i.e. captians chairs, dash, shades. We feel bad asking to see others coaches since they are really their homes.

I would also like to see at least one new coach from a convertor, would really like to see at least three. Just to see all the latest technical stuff.

Dale, Re: Open House.

Many years ago I belonged to a very large group of MH owners and our coaches were discontinued as far as production was concerned. ( GMC )

At each rally we listed on a large card what we were willing to show and put it in the front window. Certain times were set aside for tours and we all picked up some super ideas.

I would like to show a couple things I have done (not including the dash laminates) at some POG rally if it's not too far off. That's super fun. I had a wine and cheese party while showing my coach (GMC) when I did a major remodel. (hint: no wine allowed into the coach) .

Lew

Wow! A lot has happened since we pulled out of SF Skies. We've been in the woods for almost a week and mucho has happened. Dale, thank goodness it wasn't a blown engine. Sounds like the door damage was worse than the injector problem, ouch.:( Kevin, I too had a tank incident, luckily it just gave me a bath and didn't ruin the inside of the coach. Others had their tribulations also. Hope everyone made it home safely and didn't break the lewbank. Tuga's right, we need an "I learned about Bussin' From That" forum. Our wives could definately make it look bad for many of us. Beverly and I had a great time and would like to thank all who made it happen. The POG I folks especially that took the time and made the effort to head west were the glue that stuck us together. We'd also like to echo Peter's and Jon's comments about future gatherings. This is a great bunch of folks and being flexible, having fun and sometimes going "off the wall" can separate us from other groups.

BrianE
94 Liberty XL

Hi to all my new POG ll friends,

Jean and I are back in Laguna Hills. We had a gremlin in our transmission in the hills of New Mexico when we were running with Ken Z and Roger. No power going up some of the hills...seems to have gone away...no doubt it was some form of operator error....the grelim showed up a day later when it would not go into D...but did after I pressed the mode and diagnostic arrows...all went well as far as the tranny goes after that.
We stopped one night in Outdoor Resorts in Las Vegas....seems they might want to sell me a concrete pad for a large sum of money ( not going to happen). They arranged for a free night stay to check out the place. All went well until we decided to leave. I went to dump the black water and the sewer was blocked and brown smelly fluid appeared around the hose....you can imagine what happened after that...although not as bad as the scene in the RV movie....picture this...an unhappy Mike holding a black water hose with the drain open of a full tank of black water and the drain blocked...it was not a pretty sight !!!
Jean and I could not have had a more enjoyable time in Santa Fe meeting all the POG ll folks...thank you to all.

As far as POG lll , I am keeping track of all the fine suggestions and Ray is at the site as I write this. We will keep you posted.

Mike & Jean Simmons

simmonsmj@aol.com
j1simmons@aol.com

I've got a few suggestions:

Don't confess anything, especially about the nasty stuff. Now that Mango, Kevin and you have all publicly admitted to having issues with that stuff, there may be an award at POG III.

Gremlins don't go away. Even self inflicted ones. I suggest you try to figure out what is going on, because transmission problems are expensive, and very expensive when a tow truck is involved.

I also suggest you keep stirring the pot with respect to the POG III. Whipping up the excitement (ala bling contest) makes for a great party atmosphere.

Yep Jon, I see an award for POG III here....."Royal Order of the Mango....With AP Cluster" for anyone who has endured self inflicted bio hazard contamination of the first order.

And it would count;

If your dog hit the dump switch
If your wife hit the dump switch
If you hit the switch then looked up the outlet to see why there was no honey flowing
If the switch inadvertantly moved itself and you got a little nectar on you
Or if you tried to wash the crapper tank out and caused Old Faithful to rise up in your coach.

See a trend here?

Mike
AP
Mike
AP
Kevin

Well I brought the baby home afrer the injector fouled, the Doc said to have a couple of Michlelob Ultra's and call if any thing changes. Jan and I are headed to Phoenix nest month to our nephews wedding so we can see how it really preforms.

JW,

You're way too gracious, as I feel that there is plenty of Mango Awards already floating around the POG.

I'm thinking the Annual Kevinator Award. Kinda like stirring the tanks on Apollo 13.

MM

Not to break thread, but since we are talking about KE, that Corona Kelly pixs are appearing soon.

JW - Is that a flying Prarie Dog? (or gerbil if AP is watching).

Jim: What information sharing page? Where is it found?
Thanks
Harry

Mike:

Gee - Outdoor Resorts maintenance crew had a big Vacuum Pumper out on Monday to remove debris from the sewer line in the new lot section.

Guess I'd better have words with our maintenance supervisor and see to it that this kinda sh## doesn't happen again.

Just want to say thank you for driving us down to Dawn Patrol - glad you stayed awake for the trip.

Good to meet you and your wife - hope to see you again.

Lee

Could've swear I saw Ray Davis in Big Red over the horizon with the Sails flying.

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MM

Mike,

That's what happens to a prairie dog at 300 yards when he intercepts a 22-250 round at 4300 feet per second.....

Yes they do fly. Generally into pieces.

Harry,

The information page is on the "Home Page" of the POG site.

Word is that Ray is looking to install one of these on his way home from Texas.

http://www.nrao.edu/imagegallery/images/VLA729_lo.jpg

Hey POGers,

Janet and I wanted to thank everyone for a great few days in Santa Fe. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed meeting all of you. The food and fellowship were outstanding. Tom truk4u with my generator, Mango and JDub on my Webasto, and Jon A-1 for basic bus chit-chat, thanks guys.

The California Contingent is going to put on a good ralley next spring!!!

Ken Zittrer
"bluevost"