Road trip starts tomorrow morning

[awitzke]

After a week of prep at packing, road trip starts tomorrow. Leaving Vancouver, starting in Alberta and moving east as needed. Hoping to find something by the time I hit NW Ontario at the latest. Long list of operators to check out. Wish me luck.

[DanWEC]

Have fun! Make sure you keep a record with names and notes of every operator you visit. Makes it easier to keep following up with everybody once the trip is done.

[Chuck Ellsworth]

Not aviation related, crass and unnecessary.
Bandaid

[xsbank]

Break a leg! Take lots of Costco trail mix and bottled water. Don't take new work gloves and take a good sleeping bag.

Let us know what happens!

[Liquid Charlie]

if you get as far as Sioux Lookout pm me - beers - good luck

[awitzke]

Thanks for the advice boys. Should be a fun trip. LC if I make it that far I'll drop you a line.

8 hours Vancouver to the Jasper Alberta border. It's been a long day still 240 km to go to Edmonton.

[snoopy]

Dude!. You need to resize your photo!!!. The Protege5 is an awesome car - I have a 2003, manual transaxle with leather interior and sunroof. I love it - now I know why the Mazda commercials all go zoom zoom.... Let me know if you need the factory service manual, parts manual and/or wiring diagrams - carry them with you everywhere on your phone/tablet/laptop and never be stranded!

I decorated mine with Yakima Whispbars, Load Warrior & Rocky Mount fork mount. 205L dive bags from MEC provide all wx protection - this all replaces big redneck Ford F350 but sooooo much more affordable

Good luck on the road trip!. Don't forget to use Nav Canada FSS/Towers as a valuable source of local knowledge and resources. They always love visitors!

Cheers,
snoopy

[awitzke]

Resized just for you Snoopy . I posted it from my phone so I didnt realize how big it was.

I agree, it's one of the best cars I've owned. Tons of space, super reliable (once I got a few things fixed after I bought it... wheel bearings, tie rods, timing belt and brakes). With the box on there its still cruises comfortably at 120kph and gets good mileage. So far it's doing exactly what I wanted it to on this trip.

I should grab those pdfs from you, can't hurt. I brought the majority of my tools with me so I can deal with roadside repairs if needed but the manuals would be good to have.

[Vern]

I didn't know there were any Protege 5's still on the road. In southern Ontario they all completely rotted away, especially around the rear quarters.

Good luck with the rest of the trip

[awitzke]

Haha, well this one has just started a tiny bit in the quarters. But it's a west coast car so rust isn't really much of an issue. They are really bad for that though. Can't complain for what I paid for it.

[snoopy]

There are thousands of them in southern BC & NW US...at least it seems like it... Only manufactured for a year and a half but one of their most popular models. I just love this thing... Zoom Zoom...

Awitzke pm me your email address and I'll send you the goods. Note these are all for 2002 but it's the same car - these were free but I was going to pay for 2003 (paper) until Mazda parts/service talked me out of it. Just be careful to select the correct details in each section - FS or ZM - not obviously defined in manuals. FS is 2.0 L commonly found in NA. ZM is 1.6 L - you probably don't have this.

Parts pictures not always exactly as depicted - not due to the publication date - apparently it just happens sometimes (blew a clutch line once - that's how I found out). BTW if you've got a manual the clutch/brake systems are one. If you get air in the system shifting will suck too. And the manuals are very intolerant of intake air leaks (shifting will suck).

Cheers,
snoopy

[bandaid]

Please keep responses G rated. I think if I was a female pilot in the north I would be somewhat insulted by some of the insinuations being made.

[North Shore]

if you get as far as Sioux Lookout pm me - beers - good luck

I'll second that. If you are going through Winnipeg, drop a PM, and I'll get lunch or dinner. Good Luck!

[awitzke]

I have made it to the Promised Land.

[GreenStar]

Hear the new gold mine is hiring there. Big money, buy your own plane.

[Chuck Finley]

Please keep responses G rated. I think if I was a female pilot in the north I would be somewhat insulted by some of the insinuations being made.

How about we let the female pilots in the north let us know if they are somewhat insulted or not. Damn ppl and their feelings these days.

Are you the kind of person who is offended by the Washington Redskins football club?


Sigh...

[awitzke]

Hear the new gold mine is hiring there. Big money, buy your own plane.

Funny you say that... I'm staying at a guys house (from couchsurfing) that works at one of the gold mines.