For Sale:  SOLD - 2004 Mazda Tribute ES

I’m selling my daily driver.  I can’t justify (or have the room for) two vehicles since I purchased the Ford E-350.  Hate to let it go; its been an outstanding vehicle!  65,600 miles.  Excellent Condition.  Can provide a CarFax report.  Original window sticker pictures (below) describes all the features.  Some of the highlights:

V-6 Engine, 2-wheel (front) drive, automatic transmission, leather interior, power moon roof, rear cargo protector (not in the pictures below), cargo net for rear cargo area, tow package, premium sound stereo with 6 CD changer, air conditioning (works great).

Click on any photo (below) to see a larger image.  You can click-advance through the images when the picture is expanded.

If you are interested in this vehicle and would like more information, click here.  Include your name, reason for the message (interested in the Tribute), and contact information (phone, email, etc…).

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My New Truck

After a couple of months searching Florida far-and-wide, I finally decided to go out of state and get my new T.V.  I had been looking for a 12-passenger Ford E-350 with the tow package (of course).  I would keep finding them outside of Florida, but never around here.  A while back I stumbled across AdventureVans in Charlotte, North Carolina.  They have an excellent selection of slightly used vans at very good prices.  The also had one that was pretty much just what I was looking for.

So I gave them a call and talked to them.  I explained my situation; I was three states away and couldn’t find what I was looking for around here.  They said to let them know when I could come up and look at it and they’d put it aside till I get there.

So I made the trip and ended up driving it home.  The folks at AdventureVans were excellent.  They were very easy to work with and were genuinely good people.  I highly recommend giving them a call if you are in the market for a slightly-used, low mileage van.

The van is a 2008 Ford E-350 with the 5.4L engine.  Axle ratio is 3.73, GCWR is 13,000.  I was very surprised at how well it rides.  Its got front and rear AC, AM/FM with CD stereo and speakers galore, power windows/locks/steering/brakes/etc…, back-up sensors, and a TON of room!  I am looking forward to pulling our trailer with this thing… I expect it’ll do just fine!

By the way… if you do call AdventureVans for a van, make sure you ask for Todd.  He’ll take good care of ya!

Campsite

Just returned from Alachua County Fairgrounds, Gainesville, Florida.  We went up for the weekend, leaving on Friday evening and returning only a couple hours ago.  The weather was excellent; warm all day, and a nice breeze would come through during the evening, cooling off the night just right.  We stayed at the fairgrounds since the local Amateur Radio Club (GARS) was having a Hamfest there, and while Laura and Emily did their thing around Gainesville, I checked out the gear at the Hamfest, and hung out at the trailer.  More can be found on my Amateur Radio Page.

Sandy

Some locals told us about a great pizza place in Gainesville, Satchel’s Pizza.  If you’re ever in Gainesville and get a hankerin’ for some pizza, check this place out.  Great food, neat atmosphere, great service, and the deserts are outstanding.  Definitely worth a stop.

Sandy enjoyed the surroundings.  She rarely gets the opportunity to run around without the chain on.

We’re back from our second trip to Tomoka State Park.  The weather was fantastic the entire trip, perfect for lounging around all day.  Oh sure, on occasion I’d get up out of my chair and go for a walk around the campground, but for the most part ol’ Sandy (our dog) and I just napped the day away.  Now that’s my kind of camping!

I tried my hand at taking some video this time; thought I’d change it up a bit from taking pictures.  So here’s some shots of our campsite, followed by a walk around the park (being towed by Sandy).  You’ll see how dense the vegetation is in this CG, the park area (community building and playground for the kids), and a few animals along the way.

Enjoy!

Update: I, unfortunately, had to remove the video.  There seems to be a problem with the amount of time it was taking to load the web page.  I’m testing some other options for video and when I find a solution I like, I’ll put video back on the site.

I added shelves in one of the two closets next to the bed.  The shelves are in place, but they are not complete.  I need to lightly sand the shelves and apply a few coats of polyurethane for strength and durability.  Plus I want to radius the edge of the support braces.  But for a CG mod, not too bad.  You can see the mod here.