A Tire-ing Day--Bum Ankle and Cracked Tires

When you own an RV, you know that those big expensive tires are going to need to be replaced long before the tread gets thin. We had planned to replace our six big motor home tires when they were seven years old--the normal recommended replacement time. But after our two-month stay in Kansas City, Mark noticed some serious cracks around the lettering in the side walls of our front tires.

Doing some research, Mark found that cracks up to 2/32 of an inch deep can be safe. When ours were measured, they had suddenly blossomed to 6/32 deep! There were cracks on some of the other tires as well, so it looked like it was time to buy new tires. Mark did hours of tire research, looking for the best tires for our situation. He also had to find a good place to have the new tires mounted. This was a big investment and Denisa is so glad he took on this big task (while she lay on the couch with her sprained ankle elevated). As the side-wall cracks were expanding, so was her ankle.

We were lucky to find a well-reviewed big tire shop in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. After Mark made phone calls to Michelin's customer service department, they agreed to help with the cost of the early replacement because of the severe cracking issues.

After the rain on the Fourth of July, we are finally getting some cool weather. But because of Denisa's sprained ankle and the appointment for new tires, we spent the lovely weather sitting inside a tire shop. Notice that the only shoes that will fit on Denisa's swollen foot are those stylish crocs. Also notice that her hiking pole has now become a much-needed cane.

After a long day at Allied Oil and Tire Center our billfold is much lighter. But we feel much safer with the new tires, and they even seem to ride a little quieter. As we pulled onto the highway, we were directly behind a very shiny truck. That's our motor home in the reflection of the truck in front of us! We're happy to be back safely on the road with our new tires. (Now if Denisa could only get a new ankle so easily.)

Just a few miles outside of the city, we crossed the state line into another state--Minnesota. We're pretty excited about this state line, as this has been our destination for the summer. We were so excited that we pulled into the Minnesota welcome center for future touring information, and that caused us to by-pass the state line sign on the highway. Denisa was really disappointed that she didn't get a picture of the Minnesota sign for the blog! So the announcement on the phone GPS has to be our best pictorial proof that we have in fact entered a new state.

After a tire-ing day for all of us, we rolled into a campground in Pipestone, Minnesota. This is officially our fifth campground in a row in five different states. In the past five camping stops we have stayed in Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, and now Minnesota. But we're planning to stay in Minnesota for a while now, exploring some of those 10,000 lakes they brag about.