Oklahoma Facility Prepares to Host RV Rallies

Recreation vehicles currently fill the parking lot of the Heart of Oklahoma Exposition Center in Shawnee, Okla.

Expo operations manager Michael Jackson expects more than $19,000 in lot rental fees from hosting the Good Sam Club RV rally this week. The center also will host a Fleetwood RV owners rally this summer.

Meanwhile, board members for the Expo Center are discussing repairs and upgrades to the parking lot, the Shawnee News Star reported.

“It would be nice for the parking lot to be fixed and the amenities upgraded,” Charlie Belew, RV owner from Wichita, Kan. said. “We come to several rallies here every year.”

Community Development and Planning Director Justin Erickson and City Engineer John Krywicki presented three landscaping options for board members to discuss.

Krywicki said the parking lot at the Expo Center would cost $1 million to resurface.

• The first option, including extensive landscaping to the entire parking lot and a grand entrance to the show barn complete with a decorative statue, would increase the cost to $1.4 million. “Just to replace the existing lot with no frills will cost $968,000,” Krywicki said. “I would not recommend just overlaying the properties.”
• The second option would landscape the parking lot south of the convention center and would increase the cost to $1.18 million.
• The third option would landscape the lot east of the convention center.

“After meeting with city commissioners we felt that the first option would hinder the functionality of the area,” Erickson said.

Kyrwicki said the landscaped areas would create natural buffer zones throughout the parking lot and would reduce the overall cost by reducing the amount of asphalt needed for the project.

The Expo Center parking lot was listed as the first priority in the capital improvement projects developed by city staff and commissioners.

“It’s amazing to be here and to see how many RVs are here,” City manager and board member, Brian McDougal said. “This is what I call economic development. We are currently working on a study to see how these conventions directly help our community.”

McDougal said the Good Sams rally attracted 300 RVs, with the larger rallies attracting more than 900 RVs.

“These are people eating in our restaurants and shopping at our stores,” McDougal said. “We have to be thinking about this facility over the next 20 to 30 years. Some of these plans would only add 20% to the maintenance cost to beautify the property. This can be done in phases and will bring people into the city.”

Jackson said the Expo received $45,000 from lot rental fees during the Family Motor Coach Association (FMCA) rally, that is scheduled to return to Shawnee in 2012.

“This facility adds to our overall economic development,” McDougal said. “We want a facility that everyone will want to come back to. We have that now, anything we do will only improve the facility.”

Good Sam Club Hosting Nationwide RV Party

The Good Sam Club, world’s largest organization of RV owners, is throwing the biggest RV celebration in its history this week with a nationwide celebration in appreciation of its U.S. and Canadian members, including a new high-profile celebrity spokesman, a new racing affiliation, new club benefits and the opportunity for great savings on RV accessories at Camping World.

The celebration kicks off with the announcement of country music superstar Tim McGraw as a spokesperson for the Good Sam Club and the club’s support of McGraw’s 2011 “Emotional Traffic Tour,” according to a news release.

As part of the new partnership, McGraw will lend his image and voice to Camping World Retail SuperCenters through store signage and messaging. He will also be featured on the cover of the upcoming edition of the Camping World and Good Sam Club magazine, Highways. Camping World and Good Sam will offer their members and customers VIP ticket giveaways to McGraw’s “Emotional Traffic” tour and the chance to enter and win an exclusive meet-and-greet opportunity in an upcoming sweepstakes.

And in another announcement, Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne and his Wood Brothers Race Team will carry the colors of the Good Sam Club in the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday (April 17) and in the NASCAR Sprint All Star Race on May 21. For the sport of NASCAR and for the legions of fans of Bayne and the Wood Brothers, the sponsorship from the Good Sam Club fits right in with the spirit of the camping club, whose members join together for outdoor excursions.

“I’m thrilled to have Tim McGraw, Trevor Bayne and the Wood Brothers on board for the national celebration weekend,” said Marcus Lemonis, CEO of the Good Sam Club and its sister company, Camping World.

Founded in 1966, the Good Sam Club is based loosely on the biblical Good Samaritan who offered to help a traveler in need. Good Sam’s now-iconic halo and wide grin still signify camaraderie among members and their willingness to offer aid to fellow RVers. Today, the Good Sam Club offers benefits including a 10% discount at thousands of Good Sam Parks nationwide. The Good Sam Parks are inspected and rated annually according to an exclusive Triple Rating System to ensure each park is clean, safe and comfortable plus meeting quality standards.

Good Sam Club is currently working to offer additional savings at Good Sam Parks as well as increase the number of quality parks in the network. The Good Sam Club is adding some great new benefits in the coming months in addition to members’ exclusive savings on RV insurance, road service, accessories, repairs, RV publications and more. Visit www.GoodSamClub.com for details.

“These additional benefits are designed to give our members even more ways to enjoy their travels and RV living,” said Sue Bray, Good Sam Club Member Benefits director. “We looked at ways the RV lifestyle has changed in the last few years, at how RVers are finding new ways to use and enjoy their motorhome or travel trailer. We wanted to find new ways that the Good Sam Club could help our members enjoy their RVs even more by making RVing more affordable, as well as to help new RV owners get into the lifestyle.”

Good Sam Club members will also enjoy special savings from Thursday (April 14) through Sunday during National Good Sam Club Days at Camping World, America’s largest retailer of RV and outdoor accessories and services plus new and used RVs. This year, the annual Good Sam Club Days has been extended for an extra day so RV, camping and outdoor enthusiasts have more time to take advantage of all the great savings!

National Good Sam Club Days will be celebrated at all Camping World locations nationwide and will include 4-Day-Only Coupon Specials, FREE daily seminars, FREE snacks and FREE lunch on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Good Sam Club members can also take advantage of additional money-saving offers on the purchase of a new or used motorhome, Emergency Road Service, installation fees and more. Plus, attendees can register to win a free year of Camping at the 1,700 Good Sam Club RV Parks nationwide. Coupons and additional information for the 4-Day Only Specials on products and services can be found in all Camping World retail stores and online at CampingWorld.com/goodsamdays.

“This week is a chance for Good Sam Club members to celebrate their lifestyle, for us to show our appreciation and for America to learn about how RVing with the Good Sam Club is second to none,” said Lemonis.

CW’s Lemonis Promotes RV HOF Salvation Plan

Camping World Chairman Marcus Lemonis has a plan that he believes will help ease both the short-term and long-term pain for the financially strapped RV/MH Hall of Fame in Elkhart, Ind.

And Lemonis, following his Sunday night “Celebrity Apprentice” appearance on national TV, is preparing to present that plan to a handful of industry players in a Tuesday (March 22) conference call.

In an effort to help the Hall meet its current financial obligations while also guaranteeing the facility’s long-term viability, the Chicago-based executive is essentially pledging a combined total of up to $325,000 — an amount that, in the final analysis, would make Camping World and the Good Sam Club one of the hall’s larger supporters.

“For starters, I propose a $100,000 grant from the Good Sam Club for naming rights for something at the hall that we would determine at a future date,” he said. “Additionally, we would contribute one-half percent of the Good Sam Club membership revenue going forward as an annual contribution from Good Sam members.”

As Lemonis noted, this contribution — driven by the Good Sam Club’s membership base — would fluctuate. But he also placed a minimum on the dollar amount. “It would be no less than $75,000 annually,” he added, noting that the Good Sam Club currently has a roster of approximately 880,000 members.

Lemonis also proposes the addition of a Camping World accessory store as a tenant of the hall, with its annual rent equal to the facility’s projected 2011 operating budget deficit, “not to exceed $150,000.” As envisioned by Lemonis, the Camping World retail outlet would be housed inside the hall’s existing infrastructure, not in a separate building, and would encompass only the company’s accessory items. “It would not include any portion of the RV sales business,” he said.

In order to ensure other revenue streams for the hall in addition to the Camping World and Good Sam Club contributions, Lemonis noted that his proposals are not without a few caveats.

“First, I would like the annual pledge by the Go RVing Coalition (to the Hall of Fame) to be paid on time, as promised,” Lemonis noted. “Also, I would like to see $2 from every Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) seal to go towards the operating budget of the hall. I believe that RV dealers across the country see the value in the Hall of Fame, and it’s the dealers who actually pay for those seals.”

The cost of the seals, lowered as of the first of the year to $20 per RV regardless of type, help to finance the Go RVing Coalition’s media and promotional buys for the year.

Lemonis also suggests adding more members to the Hall of Fame’s board of directors. “I’m not dictating who they should be,” he said, “but I think the board needs some fresh, new members who would provide business oversight and direction.”

Lastly, he pointed out the need for a show of support from the rest of the RV industry. “I’d like to see the Hall be able to raise on its own — from other manufacturers and suppliers — $250,000,” he continued. “I’ll do everything I proposed. But others also have to bring something to the table to help ensure that the Hall becomes and remains viable.”

Keiva Column No Longer a Fixture in Highways

After 15 years, Joe and Vicki Kieva’s popular column “RV Insight” will no longer appear in Highways, the monthly magazine of the Good Sam Club. The final column will appear in May, the RV News Service has reported.

“We got our pink slip,” said Joe Kieva.

Highways editor John Sullaway would not comment, but said an announcement in a future issue of the magazine would explain.

The Kievas began writing the column in February 1996. “Vicki and I were teaching classes about RVing at 11 Southern California community colleges back then,” said Joe. “Sue Bray of the Good Sam Club heard us speak and asked us if we wanted to write for the magazine. After three requests, we said yes.”

The Kievas spent the next 15 years writing their column and speaking at RV rallies, where they were often the headliners. When the RV economy hit hard times a few years ago, invitations to speak became few and far between.

In each column, the Kievas would separately answer a question from an RVer in a “he says, she says” style, most often about the RV lifestyle rather than technical issues.

Now, with no speaking engagements and plenty of time on their hands, the Kievas are preparing to hit the road for four months in their 36-foot Country Coach motorhome. “We’ll just bum around the country practicing what we preached through the years,” said Joe. “We’ll stop at places we didn’t have time to stop at before.”

The Kievas will continue to write a weekly column “RV Notebook,” which is part of the RVtravel.com blog network.

Affinity Events to Run 25 RV Shows in 2011

Affinity Group Inc.’s (AGI) Affinity Events division has added three new RV shows to its roster in 2011 for a total of 25, including management of the RV component of the prestigious Chicago Boat and RV Show Jan. 12-16 at McCormack Place.

”The RV side of that show has really gone down hill,” said Tom Gaither, AGI Events senior vice president. ”We are taking over the RV pavilion side of the Chicago show, which is a new venue for us. They realize we can make a difference.”

Other new shows include the South Carolina RV and Camping Show March 11-13 at the Greenville Convention Center and the New Mexico RV and Travel Show March 24-27 at the Albuquerque Convention Center. Both shows previously had been organized by local dealers.

In 2010, more than 225,000 consumers attended AGI’s 22 RV shows which spanned the nation from coast to coast.

”We had a 24% increase in attendance at all of our shows last year,” said Gaither, a manufacturers’ rep for 15 years for Fleetwood Enterprises Inc., Pilgrim Inc. and Georgie Boy Manufacturing Inc. ”During the recession as customers went shopping on dealers’ lots, they saw a lot fewer floorplans. At our shows, people can look at all the RVs under one tent so they can compare.”

Gaither predicted that with RV sales on the rise coming out of the recession, show attendance in 2011 will be up across the board. ”I think dealers are finding pretty good leads at these shows — sometimes more than they will see on their lots all year,” he said.

The largest shows are the January Chicago Boat and RV Show, which draws in excess of 35,000 people, the Minneapolis/St. Paul RV, Vacation and Camping Show that brings in some 25,000 attendees and two Denver shows, the Colorado RV Adventure Travel Show in January and the Colorado RV, Sports, Boat and Travel Show, where attendance is in excess of 20,000.

Special programs are available for dealers, including posting RVs in a ”Screamin’ Deals” section on the website set up for each individual show. ”As consumers walk around the show site, they can look for the ‘Screamin’ Deals,” Gaither said.

And dealers participating in shows also can post 30 RVs for free on AGI’s rvsearch.com website for up to 30 days. ”I tell dealers to do it after the show so that they can carry the momentum over,” Gaither said. ”It’s another incentive to help the dealers sell.”

Primarily, AGI shows are staged almost weekly — sometimes more than one each week — between January and early April, and then kick in again in August through October at a somewhat reduced pace.

”The shows are mostly divided between spring and fall,” Gaither said. ”We do the shoulder seasons so that dealers can get a boost. We typically don’t do shows in the summer because dealers usually are busy with their lot traffic. The spring shows set up the summer season and the fall shows help dealers clean out inventory to help them get ready for spring.”

Two types of consumers attend AGI shows, Gaither said. ” There are people looking for RVs and people who have RVs who are looking for things to do with them,” he said.

For consumers buying RVs during a show, Affinity Events awards an ”RV Getaway Gift Package” valued at $500 that includes a one-year membership in AGI’s Good Sam Club along with a six-month membership in the Good Sam Club Emergency Road Service; a dry-camping site at AGI’s ”The Rally;” a one-year membership in Camp Club USA; a copy of the Trailer Life RV Parks & Campground Directory; and a subscription to Trailer Life or MotorHome magazines.

”It’s a nice starter package for somebody who just bought an RV,” Gaither offered.

Also for consumers attending a show, AGI presents educational seminars and activities that promote the RV lifestyle, including the Ultimate Camp Cooking Show with comedians Mike Faverman and Pat Mac; travel adventurer John Holod; and Dave Solberg, the ”RV Handyman” who advises consumers on what to look for when buying an RV, all of whom appear occasionally.

”We want to get people to want to use an RV,” Gaither said.

Here’s a rundown of AGI’s 2011 RV show lineup:

• Jan. 7-9 — 22nd Annual North Carolina RV & Camping Show, Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, N.C.
• Jan. 12-15 — 21st Annual Colorado RV Adventure Travel Show, Colorado Convention Center, Denver, Colo.
• Jan. 12-16 — 81st Annual Chicago Boat, RV and Outdoors Show, McCormick Place, Chicago, Ill.
• Jan. 14-16 — 25th Annual Washington Camping RV Expo, Dulles Expo Center, Chantilly, Va.
• Jan. 21-23 — 44th Annual New Jersey RV and Camping Show, New Jersey Convention Center, Edison, N.J.
• Jan. 27-30 — Mid-America RV Show, Bartle Hall, Kansas City, Mo.
• Feb. 10-13 — 44th Annual Minneapolis/St. Paul RV, Vacation & Camping Show, Minneapolis Convention Center, Minneapolis, Minn.
• Feb 11-13 — 26th Annual Richmond Camping RV Expo, Richmond Raceway Complex, Richmond, Va.
• Feb. 17-20 — 57th Annual Kansas Sports, Boat & Travel Show, Kansas Coliseum, Wichita, Kan.
• Feb. 18-20 — 22nd Annual Las Vegas Sportsmen’s RV & Travel Show, Cashman Center, Las Vegas, Nev.
• Feb. 25-27 — 21st Annual North Carolina RV & Camping Show, Charlotte Convention Center, Charlotte, N.C.
• Feb. 25-27 — 16th Annual Atlantic City RV & Camping Show, Atlantic City Convention Center, Atlantic City, N.J.
• March 3-6 — 54th Annual Colorado RV, Sports, Boat & Travel Show, National Western Complex, Denver, Colo.
• March 4-6 — 18th Annual Rhode Island RV & Camping Show, Rhode Island Convention Center, Providence, R.I.
• March 11-13 — 7th Annual Virginia RV Show Hampton Roads Convention Center, Hampton, Va.
• March 11-13 — South Carolina RV & Camping Show, Greenville Convention Center, Greenville, S.C.
• March 18-20 — 22nd Annual North Carolina RV & Camping Show, North Carolina State Fairgrounds, Raleigh, N.C.
• March 24-27 — New Mexico RV & Travel Show, Albuquerque Convention Center, Albuquerque, N.M.
• April 7-10 — 6th Annual Pomona RV & Travel Show, Pomona Fairplex, Pomona, Calif.
• Aug. 12-13 — Colorado RV Liquidation Super Sale, INVESCO Field at Mile High, Denver, Colo.
• Aug. 19-21 — 17th Annual Summer Boat & RV Super Sale, Richmond Raceway Complex, Richmond, Va.
• Sept. 9-11 — 10th Annual North Carolina Fall RV Show & Sale, Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, N.C.
• Sept. 23-25 — North Carolina Fall RV Show & Sale, The Park, Charlotte, N.C.
• Sept. 30-Oct. 2 — 14th Annual Fall Rhode Island RV Show, Rhode Island Convention Center, Providence, R.I.
• Oct. 28-30 — 18th Annual Fall Atlantic City RV Show, Atlantic City Convention Center, Atlantic City, N.J.

RV Samborees: ‘The Best Medicine in the World’

The Missouri Good Sam RV Club’s annual Samboree festival brought people from across the country to the Boone County Fairgrounds in Columbia, Mo., this weekend, where they ate, played games and visited with as friends while dressed like Jethro, Granny and Elly May Clampett, the Columbia Daily Tribune reported.

“How many times do you see people in their 60s to 80s put costumes on, let their hair down and just be silly?” asked Jane Huddleston of Springfield.

Huddleston has been attending Samborees, annual festivals sponsored by Good Sam RV Club chapters, for the past 16 years. Each year, she says, the festivals feature a theme, and this year’s is the Beverly Hillbillies.

But it’s not the themes that keep Huddleston coming back; it’s the friends she’s made. “The people really make it wonderful,” she said.

The Good Sam Club began more than 40 years ago when a group of RV owners put Good Samaritan bumper stickers on their vehicles. Today, the club boasts nearly 1 million families.

Maggie Brantley, an RV owner from St. Joseph who said she has attended 312 Samborees, agreed that making connections is the main event of each festival.

“It’s the people you meet from all different states,” she said.

“I think I know more people from different states than I do in my own hometown.”

Brantley, 75, has been to Samborees in 28 states and Canada since 1989 with her 89-year-old husband, Art.

Although Art no longer can drive the RV after suffering from numerous strokes, the couple still travels to three Samborees each year to see the people Maggie says are like family to them.

Don Woodard, a “Sambassador” from Texas, says most RV owners come back each year for that exact reason. “It’s like a family reunion,” he said.

The festivities at Samborees are fairly similar from town to town and typically include food, games and live entertainment.

“What people enjoy most is the fun, food and fellowship,” said Jean Gardner, director of the Missouri Good Sam RV Club.

The Missouri club also makes an effort to reach out to first-timers with meetings that include Q&A, refreshments and door prizes — such as gift certificates to local restaurants.

“Merchants have learned that when we give a free meal away, that person will bring three or four or 20 of their friends, so most of them are very willing to give away a free meal,” Gardner said.

Gardner said local merchants benefit a great deal from the event, which she said brought about 570 people to Columbia. By the end of the event, she estimated the RV owners will spend an excess of $40,000 at local businesses.

Gardner said that although food and fun are big attractions, building relationships and helping one another is the most important part of the event and the club.

“If you have tragedy, these are the people that will step up and be there for you,” she said.

Woodard nodded in agreement.

“These people are the best medicine in the world,” he said.

Affinity Group Inc. (AGI) is the parent company of the Good Sam Club and RVBUSINESS.com.

Travel Writer Experiences the Joys of RVing

A portion of the RVs gathered for the 2010 'The Rally,' destination for New Jersey travel columnist Jill, Schensul.

Editor’s Note: Jill Schensul, a travel columnist for North New Jersey’s The Record, wrote the following story after her 10-day trip in a motorhome in July, which included visits to the RV/MH Hall of Fame and “The Rally” in Louisville, Ky.

I’m getting one.

This was my fourth trip in a rented recreational vehicle, and at the end of every one I come to the same decision (only more decidedly each time): RVs were made for me (or, OK, probably that should be vice versa).

For anyone who loves the adventure of travel, the process of going, the freedom to follow your own schedule, to go where you want and leave when you’re finished and head off to the next oh-I-always-wanted-to-go-there place, what could be better than a house that moves with you? No packing, no stopping the mail, no begging someone to sit your dog (“she really has stopped chewing furniture …”).

Of course, it’s not quite that simple, living in what is basically a box — even a big box — on wheels. One of the missions of my recent 10 days on the road – spending three nights with some 10,000 RVers at The Rally (an annual gathering that was in Louisville, Ky., this year), visiting the RV Hall of Fame and Museum in Elkhart, Ind., and stopping overnight at campsites and other RVer hangouts – was to get advice and insight into RV tripping and the whole mobile lifestyle.

I met historians, RV manufacturers and accessory-sellers, and guys who organized group RV tours. I met “full-timers” whose only home is their RV, people who hang out wooden signs announcing their names, roll out welcome mats, set up their satellite dishes and flagpoles, and get around on everything from Smart Cars to Harleys to motorized scooters. There were also dabblers, like me. I learned a lot, including information about some basic things I never knew I needed to know. I also got a look at the advances in technology that have made life pretty cushy for RVers who want to go that route.

I don’t need a lot of space. In fact, the “open floorplan/great room house feature” makes me nervous. So a compact rig like my 19-footer was perfect. While many RV manufacturers tout their models as the “widest in the industry” (that being 102 inches, the legal limit or you’d be knocking fellow drivers out of your way), my RV was a foot narrower, which made fitting between the lines easier at parking lots (where you’ll be stocking up on all the basics for your little home on wheels, from garbage bags to coconut ice pops).

There are drawbacks, of course; especially for the overly carefree (or scattered). As Mary Reynolds, whose husband, John, is president of the Watchung Hills chapter of the Good Sam Club, points out: “You do have to be organized because you don’t have a lot of room for clutter.”

The technically challenged or perpetually distracted – as well as the first-timers – will have to deal with all the life-support systems: plumbing, water, electricity. And it’ll probably take a few incidents in which a turn of the wheel results in the flying of paper towel rolls, forks or books from shelves before you start looking at the effects of centrifugal force on your mobile digs.

And on this particular trip, I discovered several new, well, situations I just couldn’t have orchestrated in my car:

• Having the side door of your rig fly open at 60 mph, and only noticing because, looking into my rear-view mirror for Mere, the pregnant beagle rescue dog I was bringing back to New Jersey, I noticed her lying, paws over the steps down to that door, smile-panting and enjoying the breeze.
• Pumping so much gas (do I hear $80?) into my tank I had to switch off hands, because they started to hurt.
• Hooking my sewer hose to the wrong drain opening on the RV (it was just a round storage area), setting everything up to empty the tank, and when I turned the valves to open, releasing the actual tank contents in a different direction.
• Enjoying a peaceful dawn moment, only to have the silence broken by a monumental, two-minute hissing of gas from the propane tank.
• Gripping the steering wheel so hard and bracing for an accident every time you change lanes, despite the major-league size mirrors.
• Speaking of the mirrors, resigning yourself to losing one occasionally – as I did at a sudden narrowing of the road for construction.

But nobody died, or even fell out, or had to go to the emergency room; however, I did seem to acquire more than the usual travel-related bruises. And, most important, I never left anything in a hotel room (or caught anything in a hotel room, for that matter).

And of course if I practice, I will not continue to make such mistakes. I’ll make new ones.

Then again, being in an RV opens up an entirely new world of possibilities and ways of enjoying travels, from meeting like-minded people at campgrounds to being in your own little hermetically sealed nest, unplugged if you want, anonymous, taking a nap, stopping for an hour because you noticed all the stars in the sky and — let’s not forget — not having to pack and unpack (much less pay for each piece of luggage you bring with you).

I sat behind the wheel of my just-rented RV with the air conditioning on the Gale Force setting, blowing dry my sweaty face and wet hair. I’d finally transferred everything from my little car to my big rig in the furious heat. I’d put clothes in drawers and books and maps away, set up my GPS, organized my cameras in the passenger seat, popped in one of the books on CDs I’d rented.

Louisville, here I come.

Still, I sat.

The sun edged lower. The light bathed even this bland square industrial park in Harleysville, Pa., in cinematic light. The last employees got into their cars and pulled away. I remained. Looking out the windshield. Thinking about the next 10 days. Where I was going. What I needed to do for work. How fast I had to drive to get there. Hoping I’d get to provide rescue dogs a ride to new homes.

But mostly I thought about what would happen when I shifted into “D” and began to roll. I had just two definite places to be. I knew the stretches in between would be filled with possibilities. I live for these trips. The motion, the blur of images and signs, quirky attractions and ever-changing skies.

Which may have been why I was just sitting in that parking lot. My inner wheels turning as I looked out the windshield. The anticipation before the movie began, wondering what sort of film it would be. “Ben Hur” or “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World”? “National Lampoon’s Vacation” or “Easy Rider”?

Over the next 10 days, the memorable scenes mounted. Here are some of the stellar RV moments:

Bedroom with a view

I awaken my first morning in the loft bed over the driver’s area of the RV. It’s not much for headroom, but I find it perfect for a cozy sleeping place. It even comes with two little windows. Which have curtains I didn’t bother to close when I pulled into the KOA Kampground in Allentown, Pa., late last night.

So all I have to do is turn my head a little to peer out the teardrop-shaped window three inches from my head. And am hit first by … green, everywhere. I am closer to the trees, which are abundant here. But quickly my gaze goes to my neighboring campsite, occupied by a small trailer pulled by a big SUV. A trailer made even tinier because standing beside it is a boy and his … well, without my glasses I could have mistaken it for a horse.

But it’s a dog. I think a Great Dane. It sits obediently by the open door of the trailer, and at least from this angle it looks like the dog will need to duck to clear it. And then, when he’s inside, how will the boy, a strapping tall kid, fit in with him and what I assume will also be a parent or two?

I climb down from my bed, fast. I have to ask the kid what happens when the dog wags his tail. But by the time I remember which drawers I used for which categories of clothing, encountering boxes of cereal and piles of maps and USB cables stored everywhere and pop open my camper door to step into this first full day on the road, boy and dog have both vanished.

Every dawn, in fact, broke upon a new scene out my windows. And, given the early morning light, the views were usually at least a bit magical, even if my overnight spot was a Walmart or highway rest stop. I remember when The World cruise ship debuted, and people bought cabins and lived year-round aboard the ship as it sailed around the world, how amazing it would be to have those ever-changing views when you woke up. Well, I might not be privy to the minarets of Istanbul in an RV, but then again, I didn’t have to shell out $2 million for my changing views.

Surprise museums

The new America on Wheels Museum just happened to be in Allentown, and I figured it would be an auspicious first stop on my trip. The GPS first sent me down one-way streets so narrow I feared getting stuck or at least clipping the big mirrors that stuck out like cat’s whiskers on both sides. Not to mention the neighborhood was getting progressively more seedy. A museum here? Yes, actually. A big hulk of a building, gray white against the blue sky. An amazing collection of all sorts of things on wheels, not just a lot of cool old cars, but bikes, soap box derby cars, electric cars, a Stanley Steamer (I know, I thought it was a vacuum cleaner, too), and a big exhibit on Mack trucks, which were manufactured in Allentown (lots of bulldog memorabilia).

Leaving the museum when it closed at 4, I found more arty inspiration in the vicinity. America on Wheels is set on a bluff overlooking a wide stretch of the Lehigh River, with a small waterfall spanning its width. And right in the middle of the cascade was … a tire!

The museum is on the site of a former slaughterhouse, a section of which – with a cow’s head sculpture over the doorway – has been incorporated into the new building. The neighborhood features lots of abandoned warehouses (slowly being renovated or torn down) and if you’re into the aesthetics of disintegrating walls and peeling paint – especially in golden end-of-day light – you can have a field day in the area.

I got to the Roadside America exhibit in Shartlesville, Pa., only 45 minutes before its closing. Not enough time I suppose to really appreciate the incredibly detailed miniature world created by one man, Laurence Gieringer, who spent the better part of his adult life putting together what is now some 66 village scenes in a huge sort of model-railroad setup. Then again, spending too much time looking at everything would probably be one of those head-exploding experiences.

An enormous Amish couple – statues that might have been Muffler-Man knockoffs – sit with the sign out front pointing to the miniature attraction. Kind of an ironic touch.

Best of the rest stops

I had so many other things to think about I’d almost forgotten one of the best aspects of road trips. The rest stops and truck stops.

While I had to eschew back roads for main highways to get to Louisville in three days, the big highways meant plenty of rest stops. Each state had its own style of take-a-break-before-you-fall-asleep-and-kill-someone oasis. Some were major commercial affairs, some wanted you to rest no longer than two hours, and not overnight. Then again, some of the stops in Ohio not only permitted overnighting, but offered electrical hookups, as well as fresh water etc. for RVers for $15 a night. One also had gorgeous views of farms and crop fields.

But my favorites were the simple ones in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, with a little building for vending machine snacks, air-conditioned restrooms, a wall of brochures, and picnic tables out back. One stop in Pennsylvania provided the most beautiful sunset of the whole trip. Another, in West Virginia, was particularly cozy, probably because I had just picked up two rescue dogs, and we all dozed off together (they snored, I didn’t) in the quiet night, the soft glow of interior building lights providing perfect illumination for a mobile scene of domesticity with passengers of the panting, shedding and tail-wagging variety.

The Rally

Seeing 4,000 RVs in one place is kind of a surreal experience, especially if you’d been in the 102-degree, swim-through heat of Louisville all day.

Everything about The Rally was a little overwhelming, from the schedule of events to the more than 120 seminars on RV-related topics to the size of some of these rigs. In future stories I’ll be getting into the ins and outs of RVing and all the stuff that’s available and what you should know. Not that I could possibly sound like an expert.

What was really coolest about The Rally (well, cool is probably the wrong word) was the amazing variety of RVers and the peeks I got of their lifestyle. My first night, having arrived too late for a campsite, I drove through I don’t know how many parking lots packed with Rally attendees, and under the big halogen lights groups gathered on makeshift patios, with folding chairs set up on big square sisal rugs, the pullout barbecue still smoking, the ladies in shorts and the men in their polo shirts talking and laughing and fanning themselves with paper Rally paddles.

The Tennessee Traveler display in the RV/MH Hall of Fame

RV Hall of Fame and Museum

Yes, they really do get 60-plus antique RVs spanning the history of the beasts into this big museum in Elkhart, Ind. The entrance puts you on a literal black two-lane road wending through a century of motorized vagabonding, from a 1915 Model T with 1916 telescoping apartment, bed, drawers etc. included, to tiny tin can-esque Airstreams and variations of the famous Winnebago.

Leaving the museum just before closing, I noticed a display of information on tours offered to various RV manufacturing plants. But I knew I didn’t have the time. I was going back East, along Lake Erie in Ohio, back to Pennsylvania. Time to call it a wrap on this adventure.

Attendance/Sales Soar at AGI’s The Rally

Thousands of recreational vehicle enthusiasts from every state and province in North America celebrated the RV industry’s centennial at The Rally, a four-day extravaganza at the Kentucky Exposition Center, July 22-25.

An estimated 10,000 attendees – including those staying onsite in 2,867 RVs and 5,000 day pass visitors – demonstrate a boom in the RV industry with consumers showing their commitment to the lifestyle they enjoy. The event also pumped more than $11 million into the local Louisville economy, according to a news release.

Attendees browsed the latest and greatest RV models from 42 RV manufacturers and dealers and enjoyed 350 product booths displaying the newest RV products, gadgets and services.

Fleetwood RV Inc., one of the largest motorhome manufacturers in the country, significantly exceeded sales projections, while Lazydays, a leading RV dealer, sold 20-plus units. Pat Terveer, national sales director for Newmar Corp., another leading RV manufacturer, said the company had good results that included selling six of the seven motorized models it displayed at the show, including its luxury new amenity-packed, 2011 Essex diesel motorhome, a $650,000 model. Camping World, which was an exhibitor in both the RV Sales and RV Accessories areas, reported strong sales results as well.

“All in all, we exceeded expectations and The Rally couldn’t have gone better,” said Mike Schneider, CEO of Affinity, parent company of The Rally’s hosts. “Our exhibitors came to Louisville hoping to have a good show and they had a great show. When you put these folks together with our consumers, it gives us a powerful buying group that spends money on the lifestyle they love.”

For more than a decade, the annual Rally event has been hosted by Affinity, the nation’s largest provider of outdoor recreation clubs, services, media and events. Affinity’s family of affiliated companies, including the Good Sam Club, and Trailer Life and MotorHome magazines, works to enhance its customers’ recreational experiences and build the communities that share and promote their fun and adventurous lifestyles. Headquartered in Ventura, Calif., Affinity is leading the industry’s rebound by connecting consumers directly with manufacturers through The Rally and its 34 other consumer shows held annually across the country.

“The Rally demonstrates what we talk about everyday – we enhance the outdoor experience through connecting our partners with consumers,” said Terry Thompson, vice president of sales for Affinity Media/RV and a key organizer of The Rally. “We provide invaluable services to our members and, in turn, help advertisers connect with their target audiences. We produced a wonderful event for attendees, which created fantastic sales for exhibitors.”

The Rally celebrated the 2010 RV centennial in two big ways.

• A special living display of 20 vintage RVs was organized in “Vintage Village,” showcasing models from 1937-1978.
• Bob Livingston, senior vice president of Affinity Media, took 50 families on a sold-out pre-Rally Centennial Caraventure, which gave RVers an inside look into RVs, past and present.

Rounding out The Rally’s extensive event schedule, RV industry gurus presented more than 150 educational seminars, while stand-up comic Bob Newhart and legendary country music artist Tanya Tucker performed during its nightly entertainment program. New this year was “The Rally’s Got Talent” contest featuring a wide variety of acts and interesting talents on Sunday evening, July 25.

The Rally Dog Show, “Kentucky K-9s!” returned for the seventh year. Pet adoptions were also held with the Louisville Metro Animal Services where 12 pets found new homes as a result. Both are popular, recurring events in which Rally-goers showcase their love for their beloved four-legged co-pilots.

For updates on The Rally 2011, taking place in Redmond, Ore. July 14-17, visit www.therally.com, Twitter at www.twitter.com/therally, and Eons by clicking on www.eons.com/groups/group/the-rally. Information and pictures can also be found on The Rally Facebook group page at www.facebook.com/therally.

The Rally is hosted by the following Affinity companies: the Good Sam Club, Trailer Life and MotorHome magazines, Trailer Life and Woodall’s Campground Directories, Camp Club USA, Coast to Coast Resorts and Camping World President’s Club.

ELS Debuts Non-Toxic Holding Tank Product

Within two to three weeks, Equity LifeStyle Properties Inc. (ELS) plans to begin marketing Nature-ZYME, a highly effective environmentally responsible RV and marine holding tank product that eliminates odors and liquefies waste without the use of formaldehyde or other toxic chemicals.

Nature-ZYME is ELS’s private label holding tank product, which is manufactured by BiOWiSH Technologies, a Chicago-based company that has established itself as a world leader in creation of fast-acting, environmentally friendly wastewater treatment products, according to a news release.

“RVers and campground operators across the country have been quietly testing this product for months in a wide range of temperatures and weather conditions and have been amazed at its performance,” said David Kozy, vice president and director of operations of RSI RV, Home & Marine Solutions, the ELS subsidiary that is marketing the Nature-ZYME holding tank treatment product. “We really think we have identified a solution to one of the most challenging environmental problems in the RV and marine industries.”

Kozy said the fundamental problem with most holding tank products is that they use microbial inhibitors, such as formaldehyde and other chemicals, which prevent natural biological processes from breaking down human waste as they would normally do. As a result, chemical-based holding tank products can cause septic systems to overflow, potentially contaminating groundwater supplies.

He said ELS distributed 4,500 samples of Nature-ZYME last week to RVers attending The Rally in Louisville, Ky., and was subsequently inundated with requests from consumers who wanted to purchase the product.

“There is a lot of pent-up demand for environmentally friendly holding tank products,” Kozy said. “People increasingly recognize that chemically based holding tank products can pose various risks to themselves and to the environment.”’

“The new line of products we have developed in conjunction with Equity LifeStyle Properties could revolutionize the RV market and marina industry by reducing the environmental impact of wastewater discharges by these vehicles,” said BiOWiSH Technologies President Rod Vautier.

Nature-ZYME has been tested by more than 100 RVing consumers, including Thousand Trails members, since last fall in addition to being tested at 14 different ELS RV parks and resorts. A second test is underway involving RVers affiliated with the Good Sam Club. ELS also hired an outside firm to test the effectiveness of the BiOWiSH product against competing biodegradable and chemical-based holding tank products and was pleased with the results.

“We’ve been trying to gather as much feedback as possible, both from RV park operators and from consumers, and all of it comes back positive,” Kozy said.

While ELS does not plan to launch a full-scale consumer marketing campaign until this fall, the product will be available for purchase online by late August. For more information on Nature-ZYME, please visit www.Nature-Zyme.com.

Chicago-based Equity Lifestyle Properties is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that owns and operates RV resorts and manufactured home communities throughout the U.S. and Canada, including the Thousand Trails campground membership club. For more information on ELS and its subsidiaries, visit www.equitylifestyle.com and www.thousandtrails.com.

Formerly headquartered in Sydney, Australia, BiOWish Technologies recently relocated its corporate offices to Chicago in an effort to be closer to its key markets in North America and Europe. BiOWiSH Technologies owns exclusive and global intellectual property rights to the development, manufacturing, sales, marketing and distribution of BiOWiSH products that serve the needs of consumer, wastewater treatment, agriculture, aquaculture, agronomy, solid waste management, soil and water remediation and industrial cleaning industries. The company maintains international offices in Sydney and Bangkok, Thailand. Additional information about the company is available at www.biowishtechnologies.com.

Good Sam Club is Circulating Tire Issue Survey

The Good Sam Club, the world’s largest RV owners’ organization with nearly 1 million member families, announced today (July 12) that the Good Sam Club RV Owners’ Advisory Council (RVOAC) has just deployed its annual survey.

This year, the council hopes to gather empirical data concerning RV tire safety. The survey was sent to approximately 250,000 randomly selected Good Sam Club members and will seek to determine the frequency of RV tire failure and RV owners’ knowledge about RV tire selection, care and maintenance, according to a news release.

“We’ve had quite a number of members write to us to express their concern about RV tires. The failure rate of RV tires is simply not known at this point, because there is no data available to confirm or refute those concerns,” said Tom Gonser, RVOAC chairman. “Our survey will involve an extremely large sample size, and should begin to provide answers as to whether a problem with RV tires exists; and, if so, what types, sizes, and brands of RV types might be most involved. Separately, we’ll be collecting significant information pertaining to RV owners’ understanding of issues pertaining to tire safety, and to the need for owner diligence in tire care and maintenance.”

In preparing the survey, the Good Sam Club Council consulted with other interested parties such as the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) and the RV Safety and Education Foundation (RVSEF). The survey results will be published in the Good Sam Club’s Highways Magazine. According to Sue Bray, director of member benefits for the Good Sam Club, information collected concerning the state of RV owner knowledge about tire safety issues can also be used by the club to help design future education programs for its members.

To learn more about the Good Sam Club, log on to www.goodsamclub.com or call (800) 234-3450.

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