Cross-posted from a comment on the Overlanding for the Poors group on Facebook (IMO, one of the last remaining graces of Facebook):
I started my first build in a $1400 electrician's van.
Only trip I went in it, beyond stealth camping at work after mid-week concerts*, was to take it to the Salt Lake Olympics. When hotels were starting at $200+/night, this thing paid for itself in 1 week.
I do remember it would get stuck between gears (manual). Coming down from some event in Park City, Utah, it wouldn't move and there were hundreds of cars lined up behind me. I crawled under it, gave the shifter a few taps with a hammer I kept for just this purpose and I was back and moving in < 1 minute.
Some part of the transmission did go out on my way to the Curling event . . . this was just post-911 and my rusted white van parked along a major thoroughfare got the attention of some national guard in their humvee with ARs. Once they saw a white guy/hippy with car problems, they didn't worry too much . . . but they hung out until the tow truck got there.
- I'm an EDM fan and the most famous DJs always played midweek in Denver/Boulder from 11 pm - 2 am. Not the most conducive for those of us that have to be at work by 8-9 am. I wonder if it's because they played larger coastal cities on the weekends and were traveling from out of country for the week . . . whomever was booking talent for SOMA in Boulder had connections and was punching way out of their league, but not enough sway to get a weekend show.
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