I am a Vanaholic and my name is Melissa.

My first Vanagon Westy was a 1985 GL that I purchased in 1989 from an RV dealer, who referred to it as a "coach" during our test drive. It had 65K on the clock and I had no idea what I was in for in the way of repairs in the future. For the time, I was in love. I installed a new overhead door on my garage so I could just barely get the van into the garage. Here's the romantic, fun part: I used to pour myself a scotch, and go into the garage and sit in my Westy. I was so crazy in love with the thing. Not to mention the fun times jet-skiing, camping etc, etc.

That van went to graduate school and back with me and then I sold her to a German man with a nice fedora in 1995. Life circumstances dictated that I need a different vehicle. I won't bore you with the details of my struggles with maintaining that van prior to the existance of an online Vanagon community.

I bought an air-cooled '81 Vanagon Westy from my brother 3 years later because I couldn't stand it anymore and he gave me a good deal. I explored the USA with that Westy for over 10 years. Then I kicked her to the curb in a fit of frustration one day in May, 2009. Too much money to maintain, air-cooled tough in hot Sacramento summers, etc…I thought I would enter a new world of travel through bed & breakfasts and proper hotels.

That lasted 8 weeks. I found a beauty of a Westy ('84) in So Cal in July, 2009 and plunged right back in. No stopping me now. They don't call me Westywoman for nothing.

Cheers, fellow addicts! Celebrate, do not apologize! May the wind be at your back and the turbulent buffeting from the trucks be minimal!

Melissa
'84 Westy Honey Bee
Sacramento, CA
www.westywoman.com