06/30/2026
Last week we took a 3000 mile road trip from Texas to Michigan for our holiday. We brought the whole pack, 6-dogs, a cat and a parrot. We spent a relaxing week in wilderness of the beautiful Upper Peninsula.
On the way home a tire blew on our trailer (caravan). There was no shoulder on the road for us to safely pull over, only front yards to the ranches along this country back road in N.E. Texas, so I did the only thing we could and pulled onto a seemingly flat and well cared for front yard. Our rig is 47 feet long so options were limited.
We were very close to the road. Right after I finish placing safety cones, a Land Rover pulls up. I was certain it was the owner of the property and I was about to receive a deserved earful because I parked an 8-ton trailer on his lawn. But instead, a sharp dressed gentleman asked if we needed help. I thanked him for his consideration and politely declined. He was the owner of the ranch next to where we were stopped. The friendly fellow went on his way. A few moments later he returned in a pristine Ford F250 truck with a bed full of power tools and insisted on helping. We got to work and wrestled the heavy wheel off together working on our knees.
Our working dogs were in the back of trailer, heard an unfamiliar voice and got suspicious which triggered the team barking, which in turn started a conversation around working dogs. It turns out he has a working PSA Malinois and has had bird dogs in the past. After finishing installing the spare tire, we hung out engrossed in talk about dogs for about an hour. The conversation turned to line of work, when I told him I work as an area manager for a national automotive dealership company. It turns out he’s a customer at a Land Rover store in my territory and even knew the names of our people at the store. Small world!
It was such an interesting meeting. Reminded me why I enjoy going on the road whenever we can. Everything turns out to be an adventure even when it looks like there’s trouble, it’s still an adventure. 
