Fleetwood, El Monte RV Provide Vehicles for NBC Show

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July 7, 2009 by RV Business Leave a Comment

A new reality television show premiering tonight will put seven families in motorhomes and send them on a cross-country road trip.

NBC is billing its new series, “Great American Road Trip,” as “hilarious and relatable” while some recreational vehicle industry representatives hope the show will make more families aware of the possibilities of vacationing in an RV, according to The Elkhart (Ind.) Truth.

“I absolutely believe it will put RVing in a positive light,” said Joe Laing, director of marketing for El Monte RV. “The beauty of a motorhome is it gives you a chance to get to know your family.”

Headquartered in California, the El Monte dealership provided the RVs used in the show. The families will travel in the Bounder RV, a Class A motorhome built by Fleetwood Enterprises Inc. According to Fleetwood’s website, the unit starts at $113,750.

During the eight episodes, the families will travel to American vacation spots and tourist attractions where they will compete in a variety of challenges.

NBC maintains that the centerpiece of the show is family fun but each week one family will be eliminated based on outcomes of the contests. Finally, the winning family will return home “with a dream prize that perfectly complements their extraordinary and memorable summer vacation.”

NBC contacted the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) with the idea for the show but the association had no involvement in the production, said Kevin Brown, RVIA spokesman.

“We haven’t seen it yet and we don’t know what it might do for us,” Broom said. “We’re certainly hopeful it would put a positive light on RVs.”

The RV industry can use some upbeat coverage after being brutalized by the economic recession. As a sign of the industry’s struggles, the maker of the motorhomes used in the show, Fleetwood, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in March and is in the process of selling its RV division to the private equity group American Industrial Partners.

Although the families competing in the challenges are the focal point of the series, the RVs play a starring role. Previews available on the NBC website show the motorhomes traveling on the road and the families inside doing typical family activities from bickering to admiring the passing scenery.

One clip shows a shower floor covered with water apparently because one of the holding tanks got too full and the driver explaining, “That bubbling you hear, that’s our sewer.”

Laing acknowledged that things can go wrong on an RV trip just like any other vacation but he still contended the show highlights the dream many families have in taking a road trip together. In addition, the show will display the interior of these motorhomes week after week to millions of viewers.

“Get them in the motorhome and the rest is easy,” Laing said, citing the mantra of selling an RV. “That’s what this show will do.”