As RVers, we all find ourselves in strange towns, wondering where the good places to eat are located. One good resource for us is Road Food, both the book and the website. We have discovered some real delights there, from the Brick Pit Barbecue in Mobile, Alabama, to Don’s Drive-In in Traverse City, Michigan, which has the best strawberry milkshakes we have ever tasted.
Yesterday, my cousin, Berni Frees, sent me a link to the Wheel of Lunch website, and just for giggles, I tried it out. Since we are in Tucson, I entered the zip code of Tra-Tel RV Park, and the first choice was one of Miss Terry’s favorite places, La Fuente Mexican Restaurant. I gave it a second spin and it came to another place I’ve enjoyed in the past, the Bum Steer. Then I entered my daughter’s zip code in Show Low, Arizona, and it came up with El Rancho, one of our favorite Mexican restaurants in the country. Cool! I know it’s only an advertising gimmick, but what the heck, it’s fun.
Speaking of lunch, today we’re having lunch with a couple of very good friends, Jerry and Suzy LeRoy, who are driving up from their place in Benson to meet us at Mimi’s Cafe. Jerry and Suzy were not able to make it to our Yuma rally this year, so we’re looking forward to seeing them.
We’ve been having a frustrating time trying to get the recall upgrade for our Norcold refrigerator done. We got a letter from Norcold a few weeks ago, along with a number to call for a referral to a shop that could do the job. We were in Las Vegas at the time, and headed for Kingman, Arizona from there, so they gave us the name of a shop in Kingman.
We called, and the shop’s owner told us that he didn’t have the part in stock, but assured us that by the time we got to town he’d have it. As soon as we got to Kingman I called him, and was told it would be in the next day, and he’d call me as soon as it arrived. Of course, no phone call came, so I called late that the next afternoon, and got the same story. Tomorrow for sure. This went on for several days, and finally I called the day before we left town, and was assured the part would be there that afternoon, and they would call me the minute it arrived. Of course, no call came in, and it wasn’t until three days after we left Kingman that they finally called to say that it had arrived before we left, but they forgot to call us.
When we arrived in Show Low, Terry called Norcold again, and they gave us the name of a repair shop there. We called, got the same story (the part is out of stock, but I’ll call and get one right in), and we never heard from him again). Over the next four weeks, Terry called back several times, and the story never changed.
So yesterday, Terry called Norcold again, and asked if RV Renovators in Mesa, Arizona is an authorized shop to do the recall work. We have heard good things about this company, and our friends Tom and Barbara Westerfield had a lot of work done there just before our Yuma rally. Yes, RV Renovators is an authorized shop, but guess what? They don’t have the part in stock. They promised us they will get it in and be able to do the upgrade on Friday of next week. We are cautiously optimistic at this point.
Another frustration has been my search for an Apple 3G iPad. The only shops in Tucson that carry them are the Apple store and Best Buy. But nobody has one in stock, and they sell out the minute they arrive. They all have the WiFi model, but not the 3G. I guess the gadget is just too new yet, and everybody wants one. I’ll just wait until the big rush is over, and eventually I’ll locate one.
I’ve heard from several blog readers who have found them, and all are very pleased with their performance. The only negatives I have heard are about the poor service on AT&T’s 3G network. We left AT&T years ago for Verizon’s faster, more reliable service, but since the iPad only works on the AT&T system at this point, and I don’t want to invest in a secondary MiFi device to get online with Verizon when we’re away from the motorhome, it is what it is.
Thought For The Day – Time is the best teacher; unfortunately it kills all of its students!
Click Here To Register For Our Eastern Gypsy Gathering Rally!
Not to sound too simplistic, but can the guy in Kingman who now has the part, ship it to you or RV Renovators? (Tell them to get Norcold’s shipping account number so neither one of you have to foot the bill as part of the recall.)
-Judy
Well, Nick, I hate to say it, but when you are dealing with Norcold. . . that seems to be a big part of the problem. They don’t know what customer service is. I don’t know many places who stock Norcold parts which means they all have to be ordered. Even when we are at Tiffin, we have to wait for Norcold parts. . . or come back. We are currently waiting (in Elkhart) on two new doors from Norcold. They just authorized them yesterday. We will see how long it takes. The service people aren’t optimistic about getting them quickly, but at least we are where we can wait.
Maybe the Android Tablet will be out before you find an available iPad! Check it out at http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/04/adobe-shows-off-prototype-android-tablet-running-air-and-flash?icid=sphere_blogsmith_inpage_engadget
Nick,
I was in the same situation with the Apple iPad but discovered (when I went in, they did not mention this on the phone!) that you can be put on the Apple store’s wait list for a unit. I went in on a Saturday and on Monday they emailed me to come pick up the unit. You only have 24 hours to get back to the store to get it… I got one and it is wonderful.
When I was picking up the unit, the sales rep said that this was the only way to get one and they had not sold one to a walk in customer since the first day…
John.
We had the same problem with Norcold. Lots of promises but no results. Finally had it taken care of when we were at the FMCA rally in Albuquerque, NM. Norcold was at the rally and one of their techs took care of it.
You might have to wait until you are in Elkhart this summer!
Thanks for the link to us, Nick. We’ll thank you again at Mimi’s!
Nick,
If anyone can help you, with the Norcold problem, it will be RV Renovators. They are great to work with.
Hi Nick & Terry!!!!!!!
I verified again this morning about the part coming in. We are at the mercy of Norcold, but I think between Joel, Bob and I the ball won’t get dropped . Looking at this website…..I don’t want to upset anyone! I will do my best!
Cheers!!!!
Cinda 🙂
Nick, we had ours fixed last fall in TX and the repair shop said that until they send Norcold all your serial numbers they will not ship the parts. They will not allow the dealers to stock them. We called our numbers to the shop, they ordered the parts from Norcold and then they were waiting on us when we arrived 4 or 5 days later.
So you might try this call ahead method for a future stop.
Good Luck!