Roadside "Assistance"

I ran up the highway to my sister's in Bellevue to get our mother the other day, it took me 10 hours one way. We are sharing her of late. My sister is moving and I am trying to. At the rate I am going, though, maybe my grandchildren will be having their children here. ACK!


Ten hours one way! Me, lead foot. Ask me why, go ahead, I won't bite your head off. Its hailing off and on and I know its going to be a slooooow trip so I decide I want to listen to a movie on the way up. The DVD player in the backseat so I won't get a ticket but I can't hear the volume so I stop to get speakers. I purchase said speakers and they don't do anything except whisper on two sides of me instead of straight down the middle. Okay, I try the head phones that came with the thing. Still can't hear. Crap. Okay, radio. Crappy radio, however I have already spent an hour in the parking lot in Longview. I get more coffee. Now I am on my second or fourth coffee and I have to pull over, again, to, will, purge it. So I pull off once, twice and again in Centralia. In Centralia at the factory outlets I somehow get turned around and go down a side road before getting back on track and back on the freeway.

I am buzzing along when WHAM my wheel starts tugging back and forth, like something has become wrapped around the tires. I can't figure out what is happening. The driver next to me is pointing at my tire. A frigging blow out! Since I am using my father's blazer for this adventure (I am bringing back a garden wagon and a cover for his hot tub) I know he has roadside protection for his brand new tires from Les Schwab in Warrenton so I call them.

Me: "Hello, I have new tires purchased from you guys and one of them have blown out and I'm stuck alongside the highway. Do you have any suggestions?" I was thinking they would tell me which of their affiliates I could call. Sue, their rep on the phone: "I suggest you call your roadside assistance program, triple A or whatever." Me: "What? OH! But is says in this contract that you provide roadside repairs" Sue:"No, it says we provide repairs on tires for roadside wear, AFTER you bring it to us." Me: "Okay, thank-you anyways." I call my dad and tell him what happened. He is livid. Dad: "I bought from Les Schwab INSTEAD of Costco because Les Schwab has ROADSIDE assistance at the road. Costco repairs tires that you bring to them as well." So he calls Les Schwab and gives them an ear full. Meanwhile I call my mother in Bellevue and get Centralia Les Schwab's phone number.

Me: " Hello, I have four brand new Lew Schwab tires and one of them have blown. I am alongside the highway right under the roadsign for Tenino. What can you do for me?" Centralia Les Schwab: "We can send out a repairman right away to put your spare on, bring you into the shop, repair the blown tire and put it back on for you. How is that?" Me: "That would be great." So I sit back and watch my movie for a few minutes. Not even 15 minutes later the Centralia Les Schwab man is there. He puts on my spare and I follow him in. A half hour later I am at the counter getting my keys back and a bill. WHAT? A road service charge. Yes ma'am, the customer service person was supposed to tell me there was a charge of $86.50 charge for service calls made on the the highway. Me: " I HAVE Triple A." THEM: "I am sorry, ma'am. You should have been told and given the option however it is the price." He still has my keys. I weigh my options. I shake my head and give him my debit card. Me: "You know, I have triple A and we could have bought from Costco." HIM: " I know ma'am. The service rep should have told you and given you a choice."

So, I am helping to give you a choice. $86 buys you ONE trip to Les Schwab. OR $86 buys you and one other person in your family a year's subscription to Triple A where you can each have four assists a year and then pay just $25 for each incident after that. Plus get discounts on auto insurance and reservations for trips and hotels and motels. Then, purchase your tires at COSTCO! COSTCO! COSTCO! Les Schwab bad, Costco good. If you want people to buy local, you have to give them a reason to do so. If I am not going to get better service or better care from the supposedly locally owned store and its cheaper from the "big box" especially when I am always treated nicer in the tire department at the "big box" then the "big box" gets my business.

I then hit rush hour. Happy? Not!