Alaskan Bound - Delivery Road Trip Home in Two New Mavericks

[beckerroth]

Small world of sorts. Live close to Lewisville and have friends living there. Ever know Ernie Grunewald? Catch a few beers in Truman when I pick up some Chinese food to go. Familiar with Jakes Pizza. Happen to know the Greier Family, Keith and Allison(Vogt)? Farm just outside of Lewisville. Soon to be getting my Maverick. Have a good trip.

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[RogueCheddar]

We are taking them cross country through Canada. Had to go through several gyrations to prepare for the border crossings but it should work out. One member of the team of 4 doesn't have the full vaccination protocols so his crossing might be questionable. Hope we don't have to leave him behind!
This will be fun. Looking forward to the giant wave pool in Edmington and then Liard outdoor hot springs when we get nearer the Alaskan Border. Bathing in hot water outdoors with frozen hair!

Edmington? Maybe Edmonton?

 

[Johnkn]

Congrats, great story.


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[Alaskan]

Small world of sorts. Live close to Lewisville and have friends living there. Ever know Ernie Grunewald? Catch a few beers in Truman when I pick up some Chinese food to go. Familiar with Jakes Pizza. Happen to know the Greier Family, Keith and Allison(Vogt)? Farm just outside of Lewisville. Soon to be getting my Maverick. Have a good trip.

 

[Alaskan]

Small world of sorts. Live close to Lewisville and have friends living there. Ever know Ernie Grunewald? Catch a few beers in Truman when I pick up some Chinese food to go. Familiar with Jakes Pizza. Happen to know the Greier Family, Keith and Allison(Vogt)? Farm just outside of Lewisville. Soon to be getting my Maverick. Have a good trip.

I’m not familiar with any Gruenwolds but he might be related. In Germany great grandpa’s family name was Folker. When he immigrated so many Folkers were already here that mail, and other things were getting mixed up. So great grandpa changed his surname to the job he had before he came oversees. He was a grounds keeper for the Kaiser hence my surname is Gronewold (gruen wald or green forest in German.

Yes I knew the Griers growing up. They had a farm right next to my aunt, dads sister. I was scared of them because I was young and unknowledgeable and they were so pretty.

Speaking of my aunt, my son & I had the pleasure of spending the better part of the day with her, and her daughter, Amy, and another cousin, Ken Gronewold. Aunt Kay is 84 years old, a willow wisp of a women with a heart of gold. Spent a long lunch at La Plaza Fiesta in Madelia. It’s the best Mexican restaurant in Minnesota. That’s not me saying so but others. Aunt Kay said the best trip of her life was when she came to Alaska. She got to go to see the bears up close at Katmai wildlife refuge with a guided tour. She moved to the middle of the group when they got close to the bears.

We reminisced about growing up on the farm and Grandpa’s exploits. There were some doozies. We laughed and cried about times gone by. Grandma Gronewold, dad and aunt Kay’s mom, was a special person to me. She doted on me and my brother when we were small. Next to my mom and dad she was the most loved person in my life.

It is astonishing to me how our memories work. Sometimes when a significant event happens you can remember exactly where you were and what you were doing, like when president Kennedy was shot or 911 happened. I was a poor freshman college student sitting in the cafeteria at Moorhead State University in Minnesota when news came of my grandma’s death. It shocked me. Grandma and Grandpa were winter Texans going south each year during the winter. Grandma got out of the car at night to cross the road to look at the address on a mailbox to see where they were. A semi hit her. I was too poor and had no car to make the long trip home for the funeral plus finals were approaching for my first semester. I resigned myself to accepting that I would see her again in Heaven. Because I was so busy I never had time to go through the grief process properly. I never cried over her passing.

Fast forward 20 years. I was sitting at my dining room table in Alaska with my wife out in the kitchen. Aunt Kay had produced and sent a book of Gronewold history and genealogy. I opened the book to a full-page picture of grandma looking exactly like I remembered her, same clothes, same loving smile, everything that I loved about her was right there unexpectedly in front of me. My delayed grief overwhelmed me. It was a guttural reaction. I broke down so hard I couldn’t function. My wife came running over asking repeatedly, “What is wrong, what is wrong?” All I could do was point.

Heaven is going to be great!

If you are interested in a good read check out this book. Six Years in Mozambique- Things I havent told Mom. Amy Gillispie, my cousin and aunt Kay’s daughter wrote it. Coming from small midwest town of Lewisville, it’s a fascinating book.

We had to compare my Maverick with cousin Ken’s recent model Ford Ranger. Surprisingly the Maverick looked good next to a slightly larger truck. I like that I can reach over the side to pull out stuff out of the Maverick. It’s harder for the average adult to pull something over the side of the Ranger.

 

[Alaskan]

Freight is delayed so that gave us time for more shopping and visiting. Scored on Late July sweet potato chips at Hyvee in Fairmont. Picked up some Ford parts in Fairmont for my F350 back in Alaska. They were using a Maverick for their parts truck Dean & JaneCaldwell of Amboy were perfect hosts as we enjoyed staying with them. Great country breakfasts! Customized the trailer. Taking Dad's antlers back to Alaska. He hunted with me on his first trip after retirement from farming in 1984. Moose and bear were taken within 150 yards of each other at the same time. I shot the grizzly first with one shot before he got me at 25 yards. Over 9 feet squared, Griz is in Boone & Crocket. Dad drove around Lewisvlle with the antlers on his truck hood. The full story is rally interesting.
Loaded up with food and got a covid test for the border crossing.

 

[Alaskan]

Freight is a solar thermal panel ready for an installation ready for installation in Alaska. Interior Alaska gets more solar per square meter than the second most solarized country in the world, Germany. Because of shipping delays, we got to enjoy 4 more days in Minnesota. It also changed the schedule, so my friends weren’t able to join the expedition. Dean did go with us to intercept the freight shaving 5 days off the altered delivery time. After loading in the twin cities my son & I elected to take the northern route and headed out.

 

[Fredvon4]

Following this story intently.
Hoping for nightly "trip reports"
How is cell coverage along the route? Using two way radios between trucks?

I spent some quality Army Artillery time testing new Tubes in extreme cold Near Tok and Fort Greely early 70s. Flew into Eielson if I recall despite deliberately being out all day in the cold it was a fun adventure. Back then the Alcan was desolate and mostly gravel very hard on vehicles.

Hope you all have a safe and mechanical free long trip.

 

[Alaskan]

Following this story intently.
Hoping for nightly "trip reports"
How is cell coverage along the route? Using two way radios between trucks?

I spent some quality Army Artillery time testing new Tubes in extreme cold Near Tok and Fort Greely early 70s. Flew into Eielson if I recall despite deliberately being out all day in the cold it was a fun adventure. Back then the Alcan was desolate and mostly gravel very hard on vehicles.

Hope you all have a safe and mechanical free long trip.

From Alaskan- Cell coverage is poor. It's nice to use MacDonalds' and motel's internet. I did buy a paper map. When there is service I copy the route in maps to my home page on the phone with waypoints, then follow on the center screen. Works good! Then I can see and track even without cell service. We stuck to main roads. Little to no snow and good roads so far.


Fort Greely in Alaska has really been built up since installing many missile silos. You wouldn't recognize it. I hitchhiked from Minnesota up the Alcan in October of 73, age 21. Gravel road then. The University of Minnesota had screwed up my registration when I transferred from Moorhead to St Paul. By the time they got it straightened out the classes I wanted to take were already full plus I didn't have a place to stay. Since I had a couple hundred dollars from working that summer, I headed for Alaska to see what I could see. I planned to continue at the U of Minnesota the next semester. Instead I found my new home. Alaska grabbed me and hasn’t let go.
Just on the Minnesota border at Bowbells we got stuck at a train crossing waiting for a half mile train to back up and disconnect train cars. Time for a photo opportunity. Crossing the border was easy. Neither of us had to get out of the truck. The lady agent took my word for it that I had passed a covid test. Couldn’t get cell service on my phone to prove it. We found a Walmart in Sascatchewan to look for an Easter tablecloth for my wife. It's been a challange to find one. LOT'S OF LOOKING IN MANY STORES. I did find an Easter theme table runner. Hope that will keep me out of trouble. Trucks are running great.

 

[Alaskan]

I forgot to mention what wonderful people Minnesotan's are. Just one example. I was shopping for some blankets to wrap the moose antlers. I can buy packing blankets in Fairbanks at the U-haul so I went there to see if they would sell me some. The nice clerk told me no but I could rent some. I said that probably wouldn't work since we were traveling to Alaska. I told her about my late father's hunting trip and what we going to use them for. She had lived in Lewisville about the same time I had and she knew many people I knew. She ended up saying I couldn't buy any but she had so many she gave them to me. That is what my friend Jane Caldwell calls "Minnesota Nice".

Troubles come in many forms but if they are treated like opportunities they can be fun. I also get to learn new things. I got the opportunity to learn a lot about the guidance system on my new Lariat. We had just left developed towns behind heading for the longest loneliest stretch of highway in southern Canada crossing from the Minnesota border to to Calgary

 

[Alaskan]

If you don’t have a trailer license you get to meet new people. The paper permit is temporary.

I got the opportunity to learn a lot about the guidance system on my new Lariat. We had just left developed towns behind heading for the longest, loneliest stretch of highway in southern Canada crossing from the Minnesota border to Calgary. Forty kilometers before Moosejaw the cancel lane assist started cycling “ canceled “followed by failure of the adaptive steering and a host of other warnings. My IT son has been combing the internet along with the new trucks manual and with online forums. It’s code UO415:002f on our OBDII reader. That’s a brake related sensor. What the suspect cause is the constant correction of the system on cruise control compensating for the 2000 + lbs in tow. As I understand it the truck reacts to the trailer movement by sending braking per gallon with the trailer to the wheel opposite the trailer sway. This was common in other Ford models with a weight compensating hitch like our set-up We limped over to Calgary several hours away with no cruise control or lane assist. I say limped but actually it gave me a chance to drive without the luxury of almost driving itself. Before the error the milage was 10.0- miles per gallon, after the milage went up to 12.5 miles per gallon. That seems to confirm what is suspected is going on. Have to find a Ford Dealer in Calgary.
The picture is a size comparison between a full size F350 and us at a rest stop.

 

[Alaskan]

The Great reset

The visor is great. Both me and my son, in the other Maverick, thought the visor was perfectly positioned. Here is a shot right at sunset with the sun directly on the road. We could still drive with good visibility even though the sun was directly in our faces. The same view was a couple minutes later. This will be good for Fairbanks with north/south streets, low sun angles, and long twilight.

Previously the dash told me to "service Advance track". Ford in Edmonton Alberta reset the codes for a half hour fee. They said the trailer was too heavy for the truck but after a good long discussion with the great service manager he acknowledged it was within limits with at least 25% to spare. It’s important to know your weight and get correct weight distribution. My son and I spent an hour redistributing the weight and portioning out some to the single Maverick. Our 10 extra gas jugs went into the open bed of the second truck. That was 400 lbs alone. We have a Tru Tow weight distribution hitch. It has a gauge on the tongue and a software app for setting the correct tension. According to the manual tongue weight maximum for the Maverick is 400 lbs. Trailer tow weight is 4000 lbs maximum. The Lariat’s pedigree papers say its 5,208 lbs from the factory. Add on the Ford accessory topper and aftermarket add-ons to get the total weight plus whatever you load in the back and driver. Find the weight of the trailer and contents. We used the Tru tow guide and app to do calculations. One of the Ford salespeople drove by and commented the new Bronco he was driving won’t pull as much as the Maverick. They haven’t seen any Mavericks yet but said there was supposed to be a large quantity of them ready at some dock. Speculation!

After carefully adjusting the height of the ball and correcting the torsion brackets position and height we then repacked freight and shifted the weight to get less than 400 lbs tongue weight. Using the calculation in the app, the correct torsion could then be applied to the tensioning bolt on the ball. The meter or gauge on the tongue bracket allows you to see exactly what weight or pressure its set at. After all the adjustments it seemed to run a smoother. The mileage improved as well. Maybe because we kept it 65 MPH or less. Ford Maverick manual says 70 is the maximum speed with trailer. I didn’t like it faster anyway. Too much movement. It pulled easily and the transmission shifted smoothly. Running uphill at 4000 rpm the engine noise was a little louder but acceptable. I’m convinced Ford did their homework on this trailer hauler.

However, If I abuse the speed, weight, and tow capacity I will pay for it. Ford said the diagnostic charge and reset was not a factory warranty item. I have a problem with Ford exclusivity on the reset. Ford gets around the law which allows consumers to do their own service by having a high-cost subscription service for activation and resetting of the code. The Ford Pass is supposed to tell you from internet connectivity with the truck what codes are present, but I can’t reset them even if I know what’s wrong.

We’ve seen thousands upon thousands of geese, herds of deer, antelope, and today our first moose except it was dead. Now that we’ve left the plains it is getting cooler with more snow. It’s hard to believe the number and scale of the trucking industry up here. Hundreds of trucks with massive retail facilities for oil, gas, crops, and huge industrial complexes. Makes Fairbanks Industrial area seem small.
Got the XLT Maverick's oil change at 1500 miles and the codes reset on the Lariat. Denny Ford in Edmonton were wonderful. Very courteous and helpful. We went over to the Edmonton Mall while we waited. amazing wave pool was well attended.

 

[Alaskan]

Mavericks Ultimate test

It’s been interesting yesterday and today. The mavericks have been put to the max test's that are possible for an urban/cross country/freight hauler. In one day, in 10 hours every northern road condition I have ever experienced happened. Bright sunshine, flat smooth roads, straight, steep, curvy, uphill, downhill, perfect flat straightaways, hard pack, frozen glare ice, deep slush, heavy whiteout march wet snow we shouldn't have been driving in at night on mountainous roads, snowing so hard I considered rolling down my window to look for the edge of the road. In every condition the maverick surprised me. I didn't experience any slipping at all except once when I hit a puddle of 6" water on top of ice on a curve. I didn't have to react the truck seems to catch itself automatically. I think it had something to do with tow haul mode and transfer of power to a slipping wheel.

I only had my heart in my throat one time. The truck didn't know it and made the blind uphill curve in extremely heavy snow without a hitch. I was expecting a loss of control, but it never happened.

Our plan at the beginning of the day was to get to Ft Nelson and stay overnight. With good roads we decided to push past to a favorite stopping place on the Alaska highway, Liard hot springs. The navigation app told us it was two hours from Ft Nelson. What it didn’t tell us was that a storm front was moving in, the trip was almost all on hardpack rough road, night was going to drop on us much sooner than we liked, and Canadian big haulers seemed to be coming around every bend. What started out as a two hour run for the hot springs turned in to a 3 ½ hour nightmare. My son had trouble seeing me ahead of him to gauge where the road was going to turn. I actually think he was doing more adjusting without a load than me. I never felt there was any pushing or swaying caused by the trailer at any time. One guy at a lodge who has been looking at the Mavericks was amazed to see how large a trailer we were pulling.

It's a 7’x16’ double axle which weighs 1250 pounds rated to 5500 lbs. It is loaded with a total gross weight of about 2500 pounds. Once we distributed the weight properly to get a tongue weight of about 350 pounds and tensioned it to 750-800 on the tongue gauge it acted like it was part of the truck. I did run cruise control on the good sections. Canada has km/hr so I set it to 100 (approx 65 mph) and let it roll. Luckily there is a huge space next to the brake pedal to fully extend my left leg.

The run to Liard Hot Springs late at night was worth it. After crashing into bed, I don’t remember falling asleep. I got up at 5 to go get a bottle of water from the truck. Luckily, I did because I had forgotten to turn the lights off. I wasn’t worried because I could use the accessory charger kit I got as an add-on. I didn’t need it. Two hours later the truck started easily.

Very early, we were the only people catching a soak in the wonderful outdoor hot springs. The moose were there before us. Since the air temperature was 21F you had to tolerate a little bit of freezing on your feet and changing to trunks in the freezing open air. Once in the water you just say AHHHH! Same difficulty getting out. I don’t think my wife would have appreciated the novelty.

One photo shows us helping the fuel companies. Not too much though because the fuel economy has slowly been creeping up for both vehicles. Mine with loaded trailer is averaging 11.1 miles per gallon and the chase Maverick 30.1 miles per gallon. That’s with 400 lbs. of gas in the bed. We top off 50 gallons extra when we get the chance. Only once have we used all the spare gas between stops. Satellites don't work for Siirus radio or phone connection most of the road. we pinned the google maps location to our home page on the phone so it would show travel location and distances when satellite wasn't connecting. My son listened to prerecorded audio books. A set of Midland two way radios allows us talking while driving. Tomorrow will be the big push for home. Barring unforeseen circumstances, it may be my last posting. Thank all of you who liked following. It’s been a great motivation for me.
The lego Ferrari was in a lego store in the Edmonton mall.

 

[Fredvon4]

Thank you very much.
So much of this is bringing many memories of my younger years traveling cross country to new Army Posts. First as a passenger because my dad was a career Army officer in the 50s to 70s. Then my Army career as enlisted.

You are painting a good picture with you words, especially the long snowy night in mountains on less than perfect roads.

My dad was assigned as Commander Twin Cities Army Ammo plant in the late 60s. I have fond 6th and 7th grade memories of Fridley MN. Lots of boating/fishing vacations all over Minnesota and Wisconsin. Dad and I both did assignments in Alaska Wainwright and Greeley.

I am especially impressed that the Maverick is ...so far... are both dealing very well with many extremes on this shake down adventure.

So looking forward to the final trip report.
Stay safe brother

 

[GreenLady]

I forgot to mention what wonderful people Minnesotan's are. Just one example. I was shopping for some blankets to wrap the moose antlers. I can buy packing blankets in Fairbanks at the U-haul so I went there to see if they would sell me some. The nice clerk told me no but I could rent some. I said that probably wouldn't work since we were traveling to Alaska. I told her about my late father's hunting trip and what we going to use them for. She had lived in Lewisville about the same time I had and she knew many people I knew. She ended up saying I couldn't buy any but she had so many she gave them to me. That is what my friend Jane Caldwell calls "Minnesota Nice".

Troubles come in many forms but if they are treated like opportunities they can be fun. I also get to learn new things. I got the opportunity to learn a lot about the guidance system on my new Lariat. We had just left developed towns behind heading for the longest loneliest stretch of highway in southern Canada crossing from the Minnesota border to to Calgary

Like your philosophy about troubles! I also have the same philosophy only I have always called them challenges and yes, learning from them can be fun!

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