Jay Honeck
Touchdown! Greaser!
After 12 years on the line as our hotel courtesy van, today we traded "The Behemoth" (a 1995 E-150) in.
Since 2002, that van has been used by hundreds (thousands?) of pilots who have stayed at our aviation themed hotels in Iowa and Texas, and needed a vehicle to use after flying in. It was 6,000 pounds of honest American steel that never let us down.
It was getting a wee bit scary to drive, though. About a year ago, I forbade it from being used off-island, simply because I made the mistake of looking at the frame and suspension components. Suffice it to say that 15 years of Iowa winters, followed by 4 years of island salt, had taken its toll, and I was afraid of something catastrophic failing on a rough road! Still, it worked great to get from the airport to the hotel, so long as pilots remembered little things (like not leaving the lights on!).
Then, the brakes went out. The brake lines had corroded all the way from front to back, and had to be replaced. Just this morning, I paid $200 to fix power steering lines that were completely gone.
So...it was time to say farewell.
But all is not lost. In its place you will now find our Lexus ES300 for your convenience, a mighty fine automobile that has served Mary and me well for the last 10 years. It's still the quietest vehicle I've ever driven, even with 120K miles on it, and will certainly rank as one of the nicest courtesy cars around!
To my knowledge, we are still the only hotel in America with a courtesy car for pilots to use. I am happy to report that we NEVER had to add gas to the van, in 4+ years on the island, thanks to y'all being kind enough to replace whatever you used!
Since 2002, that van has been used by hundreds (thousands?) of pilots who have stayed at our aviation themed hotels in Iowa and Texas, and needed a vehicle to use after flying in. It was 6,000 pounds of honest American steel that never let us down.
It was getting a wee bit scary to drive, though. About a year ago, I forbade it from being used off-island, simply because I made the mistake of looking at the frame and suspension components. Suffice it to say that 15 years of Iowa winters, followed by 4 years of island salt, had taken its toll, and I was afraid of something catastrophic failing on a rough road! Still, it worked great to get from the airport to the hotel, so long as pilots remembered little things (like not leaving the lights on!).
Then, the brakes went out. The brake lines had corroded all the way from front to back, and had to be replaced. Just this morning, I paid $200 to fix power steering lines that were completely gone.
So...it was time to say farewell.
But all is not lost. In its place you will now find our Lexus ES300 for your convenience, a mighty fine automobile that has served Mary and me well for the last 10 years. It's still the quietest vehicle I've ever driven, even with 120K miles on it, and will certainly rank as one of the nicest courtesy cars around!
To my knowledge, we are still the only hotel in America with a courtesy car for pilots to use. I am happy to report that we NEVER had to add gas to the van, in 4+ years on the island, thanks to y'all being kind enough to replace whatever you used!
