July 31st, 2022

Homeskoolin’ Road Update….”Old Fumes”

Chapters
00:00 - Bus troubles on tour


Notes
This little video journal displays the ups and downs of typical road life.

The bus that The Amazing Dawgs have been touring with on this last run was lovingly nicknamed “Old Fumes” by the band and crew, sometimes shortened to just “Fumes”.

A bit of history….when Old Fumes rolled off the Prevost assembly line in 1991 I'll bet she was quite the sight….45 feet of shining glory with one of the most ergonomically perfect tour bus bathroom lay outs i have personally ever witnessed.

But alas, time, and about 3-4 million miles took a toll on Old Fumes….as the great boxer Rocky Balboa once said “time is undefeated”…so, after a long faithful 30 plus year tour of duty safely delivering Ricky Van Shelton, Holly Dunn and many others to countless state fair gigs, she was retired by her owners and deemed a “parts bus”.

But then, the “great 2022 summer touring bus shortage” took place.

Suddenly Old Fumes was cast back into service carrying the Amazing Dawgs around the narrow streets of the great Northeast, with a driver who had never left the state of California…. sure, her generator, air conditioning, air bag suspension, sewage grey water system, and interior cabinetry weren’t quite what they once were….but valiantly she rolled on through the scary dark night…. carrying bunks full of 12 sleep deprived sweaty band and crew guys desperately trying to breathe through the burning oil and leaking diesel, mixed with raw sewage smell that permeated the vehicle….

The following footage shows some of Old Fumes final hours before finally being abandoned and laid to rest in Floyd, VA on july 30th 2022.

Fun facts:

After Fumes overheated at the Maryland border, our beloved Ebo crawled out of his bunk at 4 in the morning and replaced a belt on the bus motor with limited tools while semi trucks whizzed by on the pitch dark highway at 80 MPH. Miraculously, we somehow ended up actually making it to the Floydfest gig in Floyd, VA and even though we were all beat to shit and team morale was at all time low, we went up on stage and had the most magical Ann Wilson show yet….absolutely amazing crowd.

https://youtu.be/_BE5naUVU_0

The power of music trumps all Thanks for watching guys