Sioux Falls trip

We've now had a week or two to relax and to take advantage of working only on weekends.  The days are getting shorter, and the evenings are getting a bit cooler, and overall we're enjoying our time here at Adventureland.  Its also been a great time to get to all of the tasks that have been piling up over the summer -- and we've been able to put a pretty good dent in them also:

• Motorhome service and recall resolution
  
• Honda service
  
• Insurance changes
  
• Generator oil change
  
• Cleaning the motorhome roof, including under the vent covers
  
• New sewer hoses, connections, and storage tube
  
• Bike maintenance
  
• Installing propane hook-up for our radiant heater

This week we took advantage of a few days off to take a quick trip up to Sioux Falls, SD with Mark and Sue.  We needed to get our absentee ballot request submitted, and they needed to complete their establishment of their residency -- getting drivers licenses and doing their voters registration. 
We went to one of the last presentations of the Laser Show at the Falls Park in Sioux Falls on Wednesday night, and it was pretty impressive, giving the history of the area and presenting a music-synchronized laser show for a finale.  The nightly shows close down for the season after Labor Day weekend, so we just made it under the wire.  Unfortunately, the pictures we tried to take of the laser show didn't turn out, but here are a few views of the falls at dusk.
 

We also went out to dinner at one of the local establishments -- food and service was good, but there were some pricing inconsistencies on the menu that left a bad taste in our mouth -- and that they were unwilling to address.  We'd advise you to think twice, if you're in Sioux Falls, about going to the Timber Lodge Steakhouse.
However, on the way back to Des Moines, we had a great time visiting the Blue Bunny Ice Cream Museum in Le Mars, Iowa -- Blue Bunny in Le Mars bills itself as the ice cream capitol of the world -- and I'm sure it is (see more at www.bluebunny.com).  We had some delicious treats in their old time Ice Cream Parlor, and learned more than we wanted to know about how good ice cream is made.


While we were gone we left the motorhome at the local Freightliner dealer for its IM and M2 service -- basically an oil change, and a check of all its chassis mechanical systems.  In addition they took care of a couple of minor recall issues and replaced/updated the LBCU -- the digital driver information display in the dashboard.  So far it appears to be working well -- the previous one could not handle the date or time correctly and we'd been waiting for an opportunity to get it fixed.  We were pleased that the overall service only set us back a bit over $600 (including a differential lube change), and we're set for another year.  However, once we got back to the campground the refrigerator went on the fritz, and of course it happened over a holiday weekend, so we'll have to wait until Wednesday for the part to come in.  We're back to using an ice chest and stealing space in neighbor's refrigerators until then.
We're now getting into Labor Day weekend, one of the last big weekends here at the park.  We'll be working Saturday, Sunday, and Monday this weekend and then we move on to Saturdays and Sundays only until the end of September.  The RV park is pretty full, and we're expecting that the Amusement Park will be also.  We also are expecting some pretty significant attendance figures for some of the upcoming weekends, as the local businesses have their "employee appreciation" days.  Some estimates for the last weekend of operation are in the ballpark of 15-16,000 attendees!  After that, we'll be glad to hit the road and head south to Red Bay.
Saturday was Mandy's 61st birthday -- only 12 more months to go before she's eligible for Social Security!  Mark and Sue and Vicki and Bob organized a picnic last night to celebrate, and we were happy to have our friends (and neighbors) Rose and Larry come over also .

That's it for now -- we're planning on going to the employee party at Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino next week, and are looking forward to a good time.  Hopefully we'll also have our refrigerator fixed by then too.

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

It has come to our attention that a gang of despicable and dastardly desperados is currently terrorizing the midwest United States -- however we believe that they are very mobile, and could unexpectedly show up in any jurisdiction within a matter of days. 
We have no idea of what their real names are, but they are currently going by the aliases of "Shorty" and "Beaudreau".  Our most recent information indicates that they have teamed up with two floozies (obviously of dubious reputation) who go by the names of  "Mandolin" and  "Suzieque". 
The only additional information we can provide to assist you in identifying (and avoiding) these misfits is the grainy photograph below, which was taken during a recent drunken orgy at a local saloon/bordello.

If you have any additional information which will aid in putting these no-good nomads where they belong, please pass it on to your local authorities.

If you have any additional information which will aid in putting these no-good nomads where they belong, please pass it on to your local authorities.

Iowa State Fair

After getting back to our normal work schedule at Adventureland and recovering from our RAGBRAI ride, our next Iowa event was the annual Iowa State Fair.  Its held each year on the huge 400 acre fairgrounds here in Des Moines (160 acres of which are camping spots, with most passed down from generation to generation of Iowans).  In many respects it is the quintessential "state fair" and has been depicted as such in several movies and books.  Many travel guides list it as the event to not miss in Iowa.  Obviously, it was something that we had to see!
The fair celebrated it's sesquicentennial year (150 years) in 2004 and also set an attendance record of over a million visitors.  We were pretty impressed with the number of visitors on opening day this year, but could take only about 3-4 hours of it -- we're not sure how many people were there, but it was crowded! 
One of our main interests -- being amateur carnies ourselves -- was the midway, with the rides and games.  We managed to snap some pictures of some real carnies . . . . . .
 

Mandy talked with this lady in the midway, who said that she has to work a 12 hour shift out in the hot sun on the black asphalt -- it makes Adventureland look a bit better!


It wasn't  long before the need for State Fair food hit -- we had to have a corn dog so Mark and Sue led the way.  We also stopped and had a few $5 beers and some really good nachos -- you can have the corn dogs!






 All that food required a quick stop -- this was all that Greg could find with the crowds being so large.












One of the famous items at the Iowa State Fair is the cheese sculpture - life-size sculptures of people and animals made entirely from Iowa butter.  As you can see, she was only half way through this one.
















From butter sculptors to ice sculpture -- the State Fair has it all!!


















The fair also gave Mark and Sue a chance to try out a Select Comfort sleep number bed, which they will be ordering in their new 2009 Phaeton.









And no State Fair would be complete without the animals, and swine are the state animal in Iowa . . . .



Horses were big too -- here are a couple of the famous Budweiser clydsedales -- you should see their traveling accommodations.  When I die I want to come back as one of them.


Three or four hours were enough for us -- back home for a beer and a barbecue!