Craig did the following calculation as I drove. We arrived in the Golden State on Jan 3, 1984. We lived there for 11095 days, or 30 years, 4 months, and 17 days.
It is a wonderful state, and I know we will return from time to time. But after a long wait to get our house on the market, sell it, and wait our turn at the RV service center for some upgrades we wanted, we are finally heading east.
Our next destination is the Petrified Forest National Park in northern Arizona. We hope that because it is at a higher elevation it won't be extremely hot yet. The weather forecast is for cold nights with temperatures in the low 80s during the day. It shouldn't be too bad. We stopped there for a few hours on our drive from Dallas to our new home in California 30 years ago. We hope to be able to see a lot more of it and the surrounding terrain this time around.
Craig sold most of his high-end audio system to a guy that lives in the Dallas area, and we have been invited to stop for a visit. That should be interesting.
Our Monday drive was very enjoyable. Although we now notice a few small squeaks from the back of the coach that we did not hear before, the obnoxious rattles from around the old TV are no more.
The new tires seemed to make our ride smoother, and our gas mileage a bit better.
[From Craig] For those of you who asked about the Michelin Advantage program through FMCA, four 255/70R22.5 XZE* LRH tires were 469.55 each. Plus county and California taxes and Federal Excise Tax, the Michelin invoice total was $2117.49. Also we had to pay the dealer for his services, which in our case was $327 for dismounting, mounting, disposal, and balancing with traditional weights (not bags). Grand total was then $2444.49. Your cost will differ unless you buy at the same dealer this week. :-)
Someone else mentioned finding a dealer who participates in the program. I have no direct knowledge, but since many people seem to buy tires this way, I think it's not uncommon for Michelin dealers to participate.
![]() |
A PREVOST Rally |
They are amazing. Not quite our style, or price range, but amazing. I understand the base price is well over a million and goes much much higher. Each one has a unique full body paint and a name.
We have not been inside one, but here are a couple of images from the web: