I don’t live “on the road,” though I suppose that I do sleep there. I’m based out of Salida, CO, and I use a few amenities at work like the microwave, sometimes the sink for dishes, a hot shower, and an outdoor outlet for some meal prep. These are a few things that I feel make living in a truck topper full time more feasible, if you’re going to also go into a workplace five days a week. Working remotely, definitely possible, but a drop in camper like one from Four Wheel Campers, or a van, would be the way to go if you can swing it. No bathroom necessary, but being able to sit up, run a diesel heater, and cook on an induction burner would practically be a studio apartment without the rent payment as far as I’m concerned.
Typically though, I try and spend as much time away from my workplace as I can, just for mental health—that separation of worlds. This does pose some problems, as furthering oneself professionally (and personally) by pursuing matters that largely revolve around the guarantee of a comfortable seat and reliable internet, is just, well, tough. Throw in poor weather + Covid, and it feels impossible. There’s a reason why “the rich save money and the poor save gas”.
A typical Monday will look like me going to work from 8am-4pm-ish, doing laundry at the laundromat, cooking dinner on my tailgate with a propane stove, and cleaning up with antibacterial wipes. The laundromat has good wifi, and the wipes save on water. Once those chores are done, I’ll head back to work to shower, spend a little time online, then pack up and find a spot to sleep for the night on some nearby public land, or if it comes to it, at the far reaches of the Walmart parking lot. I mean, if the executives at Walmart are going to squash local economies, hoard wealth, and pay inexcusable wages, the least they can do is let me park my truck out of the way. The worst thing is that I do shop there, especially for certified gluten free stuff, because they carry it.
Most weekdays resemble this, except for the laundromat part, which I gladly substitute for an hour long run! Running is probably the only reason I’m still here in town, and that is a big ask from my body and mind. I’m making half of what I did in NY, and all my friends have moved away. I’ve never been one to associate my identity with my job, so all things considered, there’s not a lot invested. I have a recurring issue with my left calf, which stems from a mobility issue around the achilles, likely due from a serious ligament injury from skateboarding when I was 17. After going to the doctor for that injury nearly 13 years ago, my dad said that he’d cover the cost of the MRI that was needed to diagnose me if I would quit skating, and if anyone knows me from my skating years, that wasn’t going to happen, so we went home, and I nursed myself back to walking without crutches after three months. Very blue collar, and probably quite foolish. It probably didn’t help that they were borrowed crutches that were too short for me. It was eight months before I was able to skate again. A full year before I felt like I was skating without reserve. Since my current health insurance is for emergencies only, I tend to this ongoing issue by doing weekly strength training, and daily stretching. Not some plan I pulled from the internet, which I don’t recommend if at all possible, but from my days of cushioned living under a free, work-provided health insurance plan with access to top physical therapists in Brooklyn, NY. Turned out my particular issue at the time, which was IT pain, was caused by me having some weak hips, and I needed to put in several months work with the PT’s and at home, plus a cortisone shot right before the Pacific Crest Trail in 2018 to knick the remaining pain. I’d already given up a job that many people would find life-changing, me included, so there was no turning back, and the sports doctor that I went to see understood this.
On the weekends, I try to skip town for the best weather if I’m up to it. One weekend, Salida practically froze over, and I was mentally over it after a week of snow flurries and sub-freezing mornings, so I spent the weekend on the western slope of Colorado, which is lower elevation, and tends to get a different weather patterns. You might be familiar with its more well known neighbor, Moab, Utah. The week before that, I took a couple of days off of work, and spent a night in Durango, CO, then to the Grand Canyon to pursue a big run objective. I managed to run the Rim to Rim to Rim (Double Crossing), which ended up being about 46 miles and 11,000ft of gain. Really, a story of its own, but I will say that one advantage was being able to stealth sleep in the Visitor Center parking lot. It appeared that overnight parking was allowed, and that folks with backpacking permits for the canyon would use it, then take the shuttle. I didn’t see how parking there and sleeping in the truck was any different, so I passed out in the back, parked under a tree as out of view as possible, and woke up at 4am sharp to drive the one mile to the trailhead for a day of heat, unmatched beauty, and a bit of nausea. I mean, the that place is one of the great wonders of the world, and I got to run across it and back carrying about 3,000 calories and a wind shell in a waist belt, and a couple of handheld water bottles.
After schlepping up the South Rim on the South Kaibab trail, and returning to the truck in the dark, I got myself fed, and drove to Flagstaff. This was the first night that I didn’t spend in the truck. I got a room, and I have no regrets. The only other time that I haven’t spent the night in my truck was the night after my second Covid shot. I was leveled, just sick as I can remember being in a while. Add 20mph sustained winds at 35°F all day and night. Again, no regrets.
Something like the Grand Canyon, or a weekend running along the west rim in Mckinnis Canyon in Fruita, CO, is an ideal truck living weekend, one which gets all the attention. But there are others when I just need to stay put and rest. I clean the interior my truck daily to keep things where they live, neat and tidy, but sometimes a deep clean is needed. So far, once a month looks like it will do. I typically wash the outside twice a month. It’s not absolutely necessary, but a clean truck just drives better 😉 Driving is taxing, and I wouldn’t call work exactly a breeze, so I’m going to hit my limit just like any of us would living in a house. Also, when the weather’s good, my local trails are absolutely amazing, and keep me grounded. Sometimes it’s cool to run long routes where you don’t need to use a map, and you can truly hit that flow state, too. New places are unfamiliar, and while I’m all about that, true R&R is not an exception when it comes to the truck. It probably requires even more rest than living in a house, because my mind rarely puts down the guard. The less secure your home, often the less secure your mind. There’s always something to tend to, whether it’s staying clean, fed, finding a place to sleep, it takes a lot of time and coordination. It’s not even a guarantee that someone won’t steal your stuff while at work, or that the truck will start, but I try not to live my life in fear on what if’s. When most everything’s public, obviously very little is private, and true privacy is one of the ultimate luxuries of a human life.
At this rate, I guess I’ll go ahead and make it online public as well.
The weather is finally improving, and though there will be rain to hide from, a bike tire pass thru to occasionally add air to, bathroom emergencies, difficulties finding a place to sleep, unforeseen vehicle related expenses, bodily injuries, and many other small challenges, I’m glad to be finally be able to jump in the back, close the hatch, and chill. Here’s to May, and to the promise of high country pursuits.
I think it’s about warm enough for a truck tour.
Trey French 