First mountain run: Winter Park

First real test: Winter Park. 67 miles, 4,000 feet of elevation gain, empty van except for tools and a floor.

I wanted to know what the van does on mountain grades before I load it with a bed and a kitchen and 200 pounds of gear I haven’t bought yet. Also I wanted to see the Adventure Van Expo at the base of the resort because I’m building a van and apparently that means I go to van shows now.

The drive

The Transit handles mountains better than I expected. The Ecoboost doesn’t hunt for gears on long climbs. The all-wheel drive feels like insurance I didn’t use but I’m glad it’s there. The brakes work, which is apparently something you’re supposed to verify before you load a tall vehicle and point it downhill.

The fuel economy

20.9 MPG, measured at the pump. Mix of highway and mountain grades. About what the sticker claims and better than the Subaru I traded in.

Also I didn’t die on the descent and the van still drives straight so I’m calling this a win.

The expo

Walked past $200K Storyteller vans and $80K Winnebago Ravels and a bunch of conversion companies that’ll do a full build for more than I paid for the van. Took notes. Took photos. Left with a list of bad ideas and one good one that I’m not sharing yet.

Next: detour to a bakery.