Date: Fri, 26 Nov 2010 10:15:31 -0800
Reply-To: Matt Thyer <matt_thyer@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Matt Thyer <matt_thyer@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: [WetWesties] Early Fri. Element pop top little vangaon
content.
In-Reply-To: <107b01cb8ce6$d257b080$6401a8c0@PROSPERITY>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
When I started looking for Zeno all I had was a list of requirements for a
vehicle. My wife and I moved to Central Washington about four years ago to
get out of Seattle and into some sunshine. We landed in Ellensburg because
it didn't have shore-to-shore traffic, it had plenty of days of sunshine and
because I was able to obtain a long term telework contract with my company.
Last year my management changed pretty significantly and I suspected that
the new folks would dislike the idea of someone in a key role working from
anywhere other than directly in their line of sight. Driving 200 miles a
day is out of the question and we're not moving unless and until we find a
better place to settle.
"Ok," I thought to myself, "what are my options." Well, I've lived in a lot
of what most people would consider weird conditions. Six months in a
tee-pee, out of a backpack, out of the back of a Chevey S-10, hotels,
friends' couches, fox-holes, etc. Most of these living arrangements were
the result of a) not having very much money and b) not having very much time
to adjust. This go around I had a little of both so I decided I wanted to
find a life-long solution for mobility that would fill my basic needs on the
go and add a little comfort to the mix for good measure (there's nothing
like losing sleep because you're staying awake all night to stoke a fire in
blizzard conditions).
I actually didn't start looking at VWs. I started by considering the newly
on the market set of options. The Element conversions were a leading
contender as well as a car-top mountable clam shell tents that are out
there. I tried a lot of different options including the cost prohibitive
GMC full size and Sprinter Class-B conversions (used and new). I found Zeno
while browsing eBay and I haven't had cause to look back.
Like most good things we've had to work on our relationship. There's still
more work to be done, but I don't have any plans to get rid of that vehicle.
There's nothing else out there that fits my needs so well. Yeah it's a pain
in the ass when your fuel gels or when your CV assemblies start clacking.
But I get 32 MPG in a vehicle that can crawl up and down untraveled forest
roads the world over and at the end of the day I'm pretty comfy when I crawl
into bed.
Just like the ol Man in Black I walk the line for VWs.
MT
From: wetwesties@yahoogroups.com [mailto:wetwesties@yahoogroups.com] On
Behalf Of Scott Daniel - Turbovans
Sent: Thursday, November 25, 2010 1:22 PM
To: 'Don Hanson'; 'vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM'; Pat Sloan
Cc: 'WetWesties'
Subject: Re: [WetWesties] Early Fri. Element pop top little vangaon content.
you're right ..
there hardly is any substitute for the vanagon and VW camper community ..
There are other useful vehicles..
but often not in the same configuration ..
a portable living room/kitchen/bedroom.
They rock, there's no way around that .
and thus they are very worth caring for.
