Comments on: If You Can Drive a Car, You Can Drive an RV

By: Jan gould

Jan gould — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 00:44:33 +0000

Please can someone refer a motorhome driving instructor to me or tell me a school where I can learn to drive a class a….I am 63yrs old, became a widow recently and now want to hit the road and enjoy a new life,,,, can anyone help me with a referral for this please….I am in California….
And can u tell me if anyone knows of rv clubs that I could travel with and enjoy,,,,thk u all so much
Jan

By: Bob

Bob — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 19:12:04 +0000

Do you know of a manufacturer that makes a class C on a F-series Ford Chassis? I don’t like the snub-nosed van chassis. Thanks.

By: Hap

Hap — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 20:45:26 +0000

Actually, I would love to share the driving duties, but my wife is not a real attentive driver! She’s not a huge fan of the RV either. Perhaps if I could get her in a driving course it would help.

Honestly, everytime I think about considering it, I think of those narraow cement freeway constraints that suddenly pop up on the highway where you only have a few inches on either side of the coach..Yikes.. I can imagine taking a nap and waking up to my wife bouncing off the side of those barriers!

By: Debby

Debby — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 14:58:24 +0000

We are now on our 4th 40ft. motorcoach and I have driven them all….for about 10 minutes while switching seats on the open freeway.(My hubby is a trucker, so technically, he’s an expert!) I have always been a nervous wreck. I know it’s a mental thing…either the size of it or the fact that it cost more than the house I live in full time! I know…it’s insured. But I want so badly to learn and be comfortable! I am ordering the “Drive Your Motorhome Like a Pro”!

By: Cindy and Randy

Cindy and Randy — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 02:22:50 +0000

Your blog is inspiring me to resume driving our motorhome. I quit after a stressful experience while picking it up from the seller and it has always bothered me. We look forward to reading the remainder of this series.

By: Alice Zyetz

Alice Zyetz — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 23:17:52 +0000

It’s wonderful to hear from so many men who enjoy sharing the driving with their wives. Ty, will it help if your wife tried a driving school at your next rally? Many other women will be sharing the same experience. Backing up a trailer is tricky and I’m sure that will be covered and practiced at the class.

Dennis brought up an interesting point that I didn’t have time to cover when he talked about both being intimidated by the Class A. Women don’t think about a man being awkward at the beginning. He usually keeps it to himself. When we first started, there were a number of mishaps due to inexperience. My husband learned from them.

Keep your comments coming. Jaimie and I are collecting stories about real life RV experiences for a new book. I’ll publish the request for contributions in my next blog entry. These comments from all of you so far would make a great addition to the book.

By: Dennis & RoseMary

Dennis & RoseMary — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 12:41:03 +0000

RoseMary grew up on a farm and learned to drive trucks and tractors pulling hay wagons. In truth, she probably drives our diesel pusher better than I do. When she had a delivery business, she drove the truck many times when our regular driver was out. Some of the installers commented that she drove better than our regular driver.

We’ve always shared all the driving. Many years ago, before we even thought about RVing, we lived in upstate NY, but our families were in northern Utah. In the days before the double-nickel we could drive the approximately 2400 miles in 40 hours or so. We would switch drivers about every 4 hours.

When we first got our class A, we were both intimidated by it. I tell people that the first 25 miles were sheer terror – talk about buyers’ remorse. The next 100 miles were diminishing feelings of fear and now, except for fuel prices, I’d rather drive the motorhome than the car. We atilll respect the motorhome, and do our best to practice safe-driving. In fact, driving the motorhome probably makes us better drivers all the way around.

We each have our own “specialties”. She likes mountain driving and I don’t mind driving in traffic. I usually back the motorhome into sites, but I depend on her guiding me in.

We recently took a trip with 7 of our grandkids (that’s why we have a motorhome) from our home in the San Francisco Bay area to Tillamook, OR, over to Yellowstone, down to Utah and finally back home.

I fell on some rocks on the Oregon coast and injured my knee. After an emergency room visit in Portland, RoseMary took over all the driving for the rest of the trip. That included a one-day drive from Portland to Idaho Falls – a little over 700 miles. If she didn’t drive, we would have had some very disappointed kids and she would have had one GRUMPY old husband.

By: MovinSue

MovinSue — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 10:57:36 +0000

I had always passively “allowed” my DH to drive the rig, convincing myself that he enjoyed it and I do the hookups AND the inside stuff and that was certainly “enough”. In reality, I was thoroughly intimidated by our 40′diesel + toad. However, my husband became very ill and the choice became–I either drive and do the hookups or we no longer travel by RV. When he realized that this meant the end of our trips, he was heartbroken and depressed. It made me realize that I had been ill-prepared to RV, despite the fact that I could do ALL the hookups. What people have been saying about both partners knowing how to drive is much more true for me today than 2 yrs ago! If I had done this, I could have saved us both much anxiety and we would not have missed a big trip we had planned. We are now preparing to trade to a tricked out motorhome that has adjustable gas/brake pedals!

By: Jim

Jim — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 05:09:34 +0000

We recently rented a 32′ Class C. We are investigating the possibility of doing extended road-trips (> 3 months). Not only did my wife handle the RV but so did my daughter. I have to admit that I’m a lousy passenger and would much prefer to have a second set of driving controls. My wife and daughter did just fine; especially going through some of the mountain passes that were on the route that we took in northern Arizona. They assisted in hooking up the RV and doing everything outside except for the gray and black tank draining. They both were curious about how to do it. Just a bit shy in the actual execution of that phase of RVing. We intend to purchase a 5th wheel. My wife and I will both take a driving course.
– Jim

By: Ty

Ty — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 00:12:48 +0000

About 10 years ago my wife and I rented a class C to move her disabled mother from Reno to Denver area. It was fantastic for her mom. I talked my wife into driving when we were near Salt Lake. It was Sunday thank goodness. A detour took us through down town. They were working on I-80 for the winter olympics. She did very well. It was great to take a little nap in the above cab bed while she drove. We now own a small trailer (24′) and pickup and she won’t get near the wheel. I hope someday to talk her into giving it a try at least on the open road. Thanks for the article.
Ty