Stepping Up to the Plate for Our Baseball Road Trip

Good morning, Baseball Fans! Greetings from Tejon Pass outside of Los Angeles, the second stop on our baseball road trip. We’re on our way to the first stop on our Baseball Fan Grand Slam: 30 MLB games in 30 MLB stadiums in one season!

We left Edmonds a day later than expected due to some last minute repairs. Unfortunately, it looks like this will be a theme during our trip! More on that later.

First Up to Bat: Ryan’s Last Tournament of the Season

Our first few nights on our baseball road trip were at Roamers Rest RV Park in Tualatin, Oregon, where we watched Ryan play in the GSL Tournament with his select team. Ryan is a left-handed pitcher and an outfielder with aspirations to play college ball. During the school year, he plays for the Mountlake Terrace Hawks varsity baseball team. I might be slightly biased, but these could be my favorite stadiums of the trip!

Ryan’s final game was late on Sunday afternoon, so we decided to leave early on Monday morning to travel to Los Angeles for the first game in our Baseball Fan Grand Slam: Dodger Stadium!

Strike One for the Airstream

We were up at 5:15 a.m. on Monday morning and headed out at 6:00 a.m. as planned. After a quick stop at Starbucks, we were on our way south on I5. Our goal was to get as close to Dodger Stadium as we could without driving when we were too tired. Fortunately, there are three drivers in the truck!

We wound our way through the wheat fields and grapes of central Oregon, through the thick trees of the Umpqua National Forest in southern Oregon, and into California. We admired the Table Rocks of Oregon, and California’s Mounts Shasta and Shastina. In California, we passed olive trees and pistachio trees, undulating golden hills, and lots and lots of potholes.

It was all lovely up until that point.

As it turns out, our 19 foot home on wheels, the Airstream we call Sapling, does not like potholes. The first sign of problems was just south of Stockton. Brad observed that it looked like something was leaking. And it was getting worse.

We found a wide spot on the freeway and pulled over. By that time, there was water streaming out from under the door. When we it, water gushed out. One of those potholes was enough to slam the paper towel roll into the water pump switch and turn it on. Another was just enough to bounce the faucet in the sink into the on position. Since we close the drains while traveling, that created a waterfall. Fortunately, we had extra towels on hand and were able to get everything mopped up. The hot weather and three more hours of driving helped dry things out a bit more.

Strike Two for the Airstream

We arrived at our overnight “camp,” the rest area on Tejon Pass, at about 11:30 p.m., and pulled in between a Peterbilt and a Mack truck and climbed into the trailer to check on the water damage. That’s when we found the second pothole-inflicted injury in Sapling.

The vanity in the bathroom (above the sink that we found overflowing) has a medicine cabinet. Above that is a second mirrored cabinet. During one or more of the I5 pothole bounces, that upper cabinet broke free and was perched over the sink, mirror down. Fortunately, it was wedged between the walls and had not fallen completely. The mirror and cabinet are intact. Brad pulled the cabinet out, and we emptied the contents and stowed them.

Finally, just after midnight, we were ready to crawl into bed. In California, you can stay for up to 8 hours in a rest stop. Unfortunately, the Peterbilt and Mack both snored ferociously all night long, making sleep somewhat elusive!

Next Up: The Trip to Dodger Stadium!

Our first game in the Baseball Fan Grand Slam is tonight at 7:10. Blue Jays versus the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. We’re looking forward to taking a tour of the stadium, watching the game, then driving on to San Diego for the night! Stay tuned for more updates on our baseball road trip tomorrow.

To see our full schedule, check out the Follow Our Trip page.