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My Big Move to Michigan with Penske Truck Rental

I’m so proud of myself that with Penske Truck Rental’s help I was able to move from Des Moines, Iowa to Ann Arbor, Michigan without a hitch (well—I did have a car hitch, but nothing went wrong!)

My moving adventure started by saying goodbye to my amazing friends and professional contacts in Des Moines—a city I’ve grown to know and love over the past nine years. Then, on Friday afternoon, the true adventure began as I picked up the Penske rental truck and worked with movers to load it up. I was nervous about the whole experience but everyone was super helpful, and the Penske rental staff let me come back to pick up my car hitch after the truck was loaded.

Then, I was off and running to my first stop – the Chicago suburbs, to pick up some items from my parents’ house. Overall, everything went really smoothly. I simply stayed in one lane as much as possible, and let people pass. I’m used to driving a Toyota Corolla so a 16’ truck with car trailer was a huge step up for me.

Gradually, I got more comfortable with the vehicle and found that the side view mirrors actually worked quite well. I passed a few people but mostly kept at it slowly and steadily. My only big hiccup was a road detour that got me confused. Fortunately, I could call my mom, and she rescued me. I so appreciate her map navigation ability!

Driving through narrow construction lanes in Chicago wasn’t much fun, but I made it without mishap and a nearby church allowed me to park in their lot overnight. I appreciated not having to navigate and most of all back up in my parents’ cul de sac.

Saturday morning, I was up bright and early. This time packing up the last of my belongings with my mom before heading to the car mechanic to get a sensor checked out. Fortunately, the mechanics were able to walk over to the truck and check out my car without me having to undo the harnesses and chains.

Then, I was off on the last leg of my journey. When I was within 100 miles of Ann Arbor, I started to count down the miles. I was so eager to end my 12 hours of driving and to get settled once again. I called the Penske customer service reps during my journey, and they were so wonderful. They helped me find out that I could drop off my car hitch at the return location before taking the moving van to be unloaded. The timing worked out perfectly with me arriving at 4:30 p.m. and the rental place closing at 5 p.m.

A crew of really service-oriented guys helped me to unload everything out of my vehicle, and my landlord set up my desk so I could start to settle into my new home. It was box chaos everywhere, but at least everything was in the house.

I really appreciated how the Penske return spot had after hours drop off. Even though it was a Saturday, I was able to go back that night and drop off the truck and retrieve my car instead of having to go Monday morning.

All in all, the move went really smoothly, and I was so excited that I made it successfully in a big truck even though I’m a little lady. To continued moving success!

Submitted by Elizabeth Grace Saunders