It certainly has been a week of ups and downs around here. First, Nacho the Van was stolen last Wednesday night/Thursday morning. While there was a lot of uncertainty that we’d ever see Nacho again, we received a call from Portland Police that they had found it Sunday night. But that’s not the end of the story …
Why am I taking the time to write an article about our sketchy-looking van? Honestly, it’s because I had no idea so many people loved and cared for Nacho. When I first posted about Nacho getting stolen, I was humbled and blown away by the kind of response we received across our various social media channels. From comments to shares to reposts, it was encouraging to see. Even other coffee brands jumped in to help to share and repost. I heard from many of you how much you love Nacho and wanted to know if the van recovered.
So, thank you. Thank you for your support and sharing. More importantly, thank you for caring.
What’s the update? Nacho was towed to a secured location the night it was found. Since that night, it was towed again to an auto body shop to get an estimate for repair costs. The passenger window was broken out, which is not that big of a deal, but unfortunately, the thieves also took a crowbar and wrenched on the door/window frame. That’s bent. Beyond that, they tore apart the steering column to hotwire it and ripped out the center console. The other bad news was that our Yakima roof rack and retractable awning were stolen as well. Luckily, they could not steal our Yakima trailer hitch bike rack.
I’m waiting on an estimate from the auto repair shop. Unfortunately (or fortunately), Nacho isn’t worth as much as a 1995 Chevy Sportvan. If the repair costs are too much, the insurance will consider it scrapped and give us money for its value. Then we’d be left to do what we want with Nacho … fix it or scrap it. I’ve been upfront with the insurance company and the auto body shop. I intend to keep Nacho. I have grand ambitions to continue slowly fixing it up and converting it into the ultimate coffee and camper van.
I’ve served coffee countless times to trail builders and mountain bikers. Everyone loves the coffee setup and the overall vibe. I still have aspirations to buy an old Atari 2600 set up for people to play while waiting for their drinks. Who doesn’t want to play a game of Frogger or Pitfall while waiting on their pourover?
Lastly, this van has a lot of sentimental value for me. I’ve traveled all over in it and spent innumerable nights camping with it. All of those memories of adventure and coffee are tied to Nacho. Nacho must live on. Nacho will live on. I don’t want or need a $100K+ Sprinter Van. I love Nacho. Nacho represents and embodies the Loam Coffee brand well.
