Aluminuts Responds to the Environmental Question

CampyLady failed to tell me before buying a 5000 lb trailer that she was morally opposed to driving a truck capable of towing it. This has been a constant debate between us. I am certainly aware of the environmental issues involved, but disagree with CampyLady on this one point. While I concur that driving a gas-guzzling SUV around town as your primary car is a little ridiculous and not environmentally conscious, I feel that it is acceptable if you have a legitimate need. I don’t expect farmers to drive little Volkswagens. The day we bought an Airstream we had a legitimate need to own a truck.

We both take public transportation and ride bikes whenever we need to go places during the week; I feel this more than offsets our owning a larger truck. I also think that if CampyLady feels so guilty about one day driving a truck she could further offset her environmental footprint by taking 10-minute showers as opposed to the 45-minute marathons she presently enjoys.

The Airstream vs. the Environment

One of the things I have struggled with as an Airstream owner is the fact it doesn’t exactly meld with my environmentalist leanings. I’ve prided myself on commuting by public transportation, maintaining a vegetarian diet, driving small cars, camping without leaving a trace, and generally living a modest footprint in life.

When I was considering the Airstream purchase, I read that Wally Byam had manufactured the trailers to be lightweight so that a regular car could tow them. “Great!” I thought, “I won’t be one of those honkies you see on the road with an RV the size of a house pulled by 2-ton truck.”

After we made the deposit, I remembered that a sedan or station wagon in the 50s and 60s had a whole lot more towing power than one manufactured in recent years. I came to understand it’s a matter of safety to pull the Airstream with a truck capable of the job after reading the Airstream forums. Safety consciousness pulls the same weight as environmental consciousness in my head. I didn’t want to put myself, Aluminuts, and others on the road in danger by insisting on an inadequate tow vehicle. After much debate, we’ve determined the Toyota Tundra will be the front-runner when the time comes.

For now, I feel like I can put my environmental concerns to bed. Our plan for next summer is to park the Airstream in New Hampshire and visit it on the weekends shuttled by the Accord. I hold out hope that when or if we gather the funds to take the Big Trip a alternative energy, affordable, tow-worthy truck will be on the market. And yes, I know that’s more a matter of fantasy than hope. On the other hand, perhaps 6+ years of public transportation will earn me enough carbon credits to take the trip without insomnia-inducing guilt.

Above, our nephew peers out the window. Please think of his future, Aluminuts!

CampyLady Responds to the Airdream

I supported Aluminuts in his endeavor for happiness through Airstream—to a point. When he came home with the idea, I was all for it. I didn’t know if we’d actually set off on the long trip, but I thought fixing up a vintage trailer would be a nifty and consuming hobby for Aluminuts. He had never had a hobby, and I’m a firm believer that one needs a hobby to be complete.

As the accountant in our relationship, I knew we didn’t have the funds to stop working and twiddle around the U.S for an extended period of time. There was tension between us during the first year or so of Airstream ownership because Aluminuts couldn’t get the idea out of his head. I drew up table charts and Venn diagrams showing there was no way we were going to save what I optimistically calculated to be a necessary $50,000 (including the purchase of a big truck).

And I don’t think we have to drag the Airstream around the country to get full use of it. We’ll come to a time in our lives when we have a backyard. The Airstream can serve as guest quarters, a studio, or a pool house. If we ever buy property in the great wilderness, the Airstream can be our cabin. And we can always park it in a campground for a summer—whether in the mountains or the beach—and have a vacation home wherever we wish.

I think we’ve come to an accord. We both recently found new jobs and are happier in our careers. We’re not quite ready to leave Boston yet, so some of the pressure is off. This summer we plan to park the Airstream in New Hampshire, and we won’t need a truck for now.

The Airdream

The idea for the Airstream came to me from a general frustration with our lives in Boston. We both were in our late 20s, had jobs that we weren’t in love with, and felt our lives lacked direction. I came to the realization if we didn’t start paying attention we would continue to idle and all of a sudden find ourselves in our mid 30s, facing decisions about children and settling down.

At the time, we were considering moving away from Boston and trying out a new city. We didn’t have graduate school or a reason to move for our careers to help guide our decision, and we felt it was hard to justify moving across the country for no other reason than boredom. It was an easier decision after college. We had friends in Boston, it was close to my parents, and I was familiar with the city; it seemed like a reasonable place to try out. Now that we were older, it felt irresponsible to move again so arbitrarily.

We both had a strong desire to travel. I especially wanted to travel around the United States because there is much I haven’t seen. We could sell our place, quit our jobs, and travel around the country for a while in a camper, until we found someplace we really liked and could possibly stay.

On top of this, I felt traveling in a vintage Airstream added a layer of style. I was thoroughly excited by the prospect of fixing it up as a hobby. These were the romantic ideas I had when we first started looking for trailers.

The Airstream Invades, Part 2

To continue our conversation from yesterday…

Was there a moment when you realized that you may have been getting us into more than you anticipated?
Immediately after we bought it I knew I was in way over my head. I had never towed anything, never been around campers, and had no mechanical experience. I had no way of evaluating the Airstream we bought to tell if it was complete junk or a good buy; I just had to go on gut. On the eve of picking it up, we were still trying to figure out how to get it home and if it was okay to tow without brakes. I almost collapsed from the pressure and all the unknowns. I had a sinking feeling that I just threw away all my savings on a mistake.

Do you still experience romantic swoons when you picture the vessel?
I generally think about it every day, both on and off season. Sometimes I get frustrated with how slowly the project has been progressing, and I have even had to take a few extended breaks. But, I still get really excited every time we see it.

Have your skills as an architect/designer helped during the process of renovation?
Not really. I understand how things work and how different systems are put together. I can approach various problems methodically and try to solve them efficiently; I guess that has something to do with my training. As we start to do more interior renovations, I will definitely be able to make more of a design statement.

Sometimes I fee like the Airstream has become the most interesting thing about us as a couple, and it makes for a lot of pressure because people are constantly asking me what we’ve done with it lately. Have you experienced the same thing?
I have, but it doesn’t bother me. I think what we have undertaken is really interesting, and I love talking about it. I only wish I could have more to report because the renovation has been so slow.

What decisions have you regretted over the course of the renovation? What have you learned?
I regret most not figuring out a way to keep and work on it in Boston. The distance between where we live and where it is stored has been far and away the most frustrating part. I have learned that everything cannot be perfect. They stopped making parts for this thing 30 years ago; I can’t have everything original. I don’t have the skills to make all the repairs perfectly, and I don’t have the time or money to do all the repairs I want to do. I also learned not to put too much stock in every bit of advice on the Airstream forums online. There is some bad information mixed in with the good.

 

The Airstream Invades

Aluminuts, I thought I’d start off this joint Airstream blog by interviewing you. You were the one who came home with this crazy idea, “Let’s buy an Airstream. I want to travel around the U.S.” And I, with perhaps less reflection than was required, said, “Sure, why not?” Because there are many burning questions, part 2 of the interview will be posted tomorrow.

Where’d you come up with the idea to purchase an Airstream?
I originally only wanted a camper, something we could travel around the country in. I had a desire to visit all the national parks in the U.S. because I love to camp and hike. I thought that traveling like this while we were young would make much more sense than after retirement, the traditional time people buy campers.

What drew you to the Airstream? Did you consider other RVs?
I had always known about the Airstream and its iconography. I was interested in them when I was very young, probably because they were a little campy and retro. It wasn’t until we went to that RV show in South Boston that I realized how far above the pack the Airstream was in regards to other trailers. Every other camper looked exactly the same, both inside and out, and lacked the level of quality and design forethought apparent in the Airstream. There was one Airstream at the back of the show, and there was a line to see it. From that day forward I was hooked.

I did research and saw that we could actually afford to buy a vintage Airstream. Further, I found there was a whole community of vintage Airstream owners out there, and I could use them as a resource. The whole idea became intoxicating to me.

How did you think it would improve our lives?
We would be able to camp more because the Airstream allows for a longer outdoor season than a tent. It gives me a project to do, fixing it up. Once completed, we could potentially take a long trip across the country. Also, when we decide to move from Boston, we can use it to temporarily live elsewhere and try out a few different places before making a choice.

To be continued…