RV Olympics

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our E-mail Digest or RSS Feed. We will then send you the stories that are posted each day in an e-mail digest. We use a service called Feedburner for delivery of these emails. You will receive an e-mail from Feedburner after you subscribe and you must click on that email to activate your subscription. Thanks for visiting and enjoy all the information! RV.Net Blog AdminBy Bob Difley The Olympics are upon us, the opening celebration kicking off the 30th Olympiad, and the third time the Olympics have been in London–more than any other city. And this year more women than men will be participating on the American teams, with women competing from some Arab countries–Saudi Arabia among them–that have never had women on their teams before. But, unfortunately, there is still discrimination. Not against women so much any more, or Asians, or Blacks, but against RVers. Where are the athletes competing in RVing events, like backing up a motorhome with a dinghy in tow, or best approach to a gas pump in a crowded gas station. We as a minority group have been overlooked again, as you can see there are obviously no RVing events in these games. They have a guy (a 400 meter sprinter) who is a double amputee who runs on “blades” instead of legs, but do you see any Fleetwood or Winnebago drivers taking corners on two (or maybe 3) wheels on the oval track in front of thousands of cheering spectators? As hard as I looked... Read more

Social Network? Why?

  Here’s an interesting Lug_Nut thought. Communication is a very important to most, if not all RVer’s  With all the latest wireless technology , internet, smart phones, GPS location devices, etc, I think we are pretty well equipped. After all, we can contact and keep in touch with friends and relatives regardless in the world they, or we, are. Our family and friends network is complete.  Not so, according to the multiple folks that Twitter and Face book off.   What’s up with them?  If they really want to let friends know something, why can’t they e-mail them?   You can do it in a multiple recipient if it is many contacts you would like to advise.  Instead, these lonely folks seem to need to post their life, perhaps in hope that they will be discovered as not a social dweeb! Don’t these people have friends?  Are these people in that need to reinforce their popularity?  Are they insecure with their personal status?  I guess so.  There is no other reason why people would feel obligated to post everything they do, or are going to do, on any public site.  Oh yes, they will tell you it is secure only to those “Friends”, (Many of which they have not seen for years or may be never).  Hello!  Hacking your information is probably “Internet 101, to break into any or all of this gibberish. This social networking is supported by commercial enterprises, and probably for good reasons.  If you owned a business, you would want to reach everyone you can.  Why... Read more

S’MORES! Tips, Recipes, and SECRETS

I’ve been watching my weight lately. In fact, I’ve been on a diet. This means, sadly, a summer with no beer. In the old days, I’d down a couple of 300-calorie pale ales before crawling out of bed. Now I receive my daily mouse-sized serving of low cal, low carb wine from an eye-dropper. My wife just dribbles a few drops onto my tongue to go along with my evening rations. At least she tells me it’s wine. It’s probably just sugar free grape juice, or maybe just purple water. Click the photo to join us around the Facebook campfire! We're roasting marshmallows and talkin' SMORES! In the old days, my “veggies” were breaded, deep fried, and often paired with “veggie based” condiments like tomato ketchup. (What do you mean, a tater tot isn’t a vegetable?) Now my vegetables are green and steamed. Sometimes, if I’m lucky, they get misted with a hint of zero calorie fake butter spray. I can lose weight simply by looking at them. Yes, I’ve made many culinary sacrifices in the pursuit of baggy clothes. But there’s one camping food item that I will not give up. You guessed it: S’MORES! There’s something about that combination of graham crackers, chocolate, and roasted marshmallows that screams CAMPING to me. As the legendary admiral Farragut (or was it Whatagut?) once said: “Damn the calories; full speed ahead!” Sorry, health nuts. This ain’t no fruit salad. When we camp, we like to make... Read more

Let’s Talk NOOK !

Let’s Talk NOOK ! Recently I wrote an article about the Amazon Kindle (one appropriately if unimaginatively titled Let’s Talk KINDLE !). The crux of my essay was that e-readers are the best thing to hit RV’s since flush toilets. There are many e-readers available for your purchasing pleasure. One of the most popular rhymes with “book.” Why did I choose to focus on Kindle? Conspiracy theories abound. Am I biased? Have I loaded up our investment portfolio on AMZN? Or am I merely an Amazon fanboy who wears Jeff Bezos pajamas? Nah. While I may be a bit of an Amazon fanboy, I wrote about Kindle because Amazon is currently KING KONG of the e-reader world. Yes, if recent sales figures are to be believed, Amazon is now perched on a skyscraper high above E-Reader Metropolis with Fay Wray sitting on its lap. Or is that Jeff Bezos in a dress? Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in a dress? This is wrong on many levels. Anyway, with Kindles selling faster than mouse ears at Disney World, it’s good to be King Kong. But if there’s a pesky swarm of biplanes on the horizon, it’s the Barnes & Noble NOOK. The author's book on his wife's NOOK. The Nook is a series of e-reader devices sold by everyone’s favorite brick-and-mortar bookstore behemoth. These range from inexpensive e-ink readers (Nook Simple Touch) to more robust tablets (Nook Color & Nook Tablet). You can buy Nooks online, in 90,000-square-foot bookstores, in shady back alleys,... Read more

New RV Camping Book on Amazon Kindle – Only $2.99!

A few years ago, I did something that previously I never imagined myself doing. And I’m not talking about getting married (although that development was quite surprising as well). I bought an RV. Specifically, my wife and I bought a 25-foot Airstream travel trailer. It was her idea. I never saw myself owning an RV, mainly because I am 6′ 2” and fear hitting my head on low ceilings. Not having grown up with RV camping, I didn’t “get it.” But then one day, we got our Airstream. Then we got hitched. Then I got it. Boy, did I ever… We started an ongoing adventure of sorts. We blogged the fun in a website called “Long Long Honeymoon,” donned pith helmets, wrote pithy articles, and shot three trillion videos. So far we’ve hauled our rig throughout the lower 48 states. Alaska? We’re still making plans for Alaska. At the moment, we’re waiting for diesel prices to stop resembling one of those national debt clocks. As for Hawaii? We’ll see it someday too, though we’ve no intention of testing the seaworthiness of our “land yacht.” We’ll likely book a flight – anything with a lei greeting will be fine. But before we move forward, we must look back. Yes boys and girls, it’s time for a book! An ebook, that is. I hope you enjoy it. “Long Long Honeymoon – Living Large in a Small Tin Can” is now available on the AMAZON KINDLE platform for the rock bottom price of $2.99! Check it out now – before... Read more

Next-Gen Dodge Viper Motorhome Revealed

Have you ever wondered what a motorhome would look like if it was based on a more glamorous prototype? DriveSRT(Street & Racing Technology) recently released the world’s first supercar motorhome—a possible reincarnation of the Dodge SRT-10—on its Facebook fan page. Automakers and RV manufacturers frequently reveal future products online, sometimes on purpose while other times supposedly by accident. Next-gen Viper camper van. (Credit: DriveSRT) But what do you do when your Facebook fans clamor for insider information on the upcoming 2013 Dodge Viper? You give the people what they want. Yet, sometimes stupid questions beget stupid answers. In response to numerous requests for early looks at the next-generation of the Dodge Viper, the DriveSRT Facebook page gives us…a Dodge Viper motorhome. Yes, it’s a Viper SRT 10 three-axle camper van, and yes, it’s still sporting the old Viper front-end. No, it’s not a great photo. DriveSRT’s statement: “Like many of you, Twitter user @DaveOrrSales asked for a taste of what’s to come at SRT. We dodged death to sneak you this top-secret photo. That’s all you get, crew,” said the team revealing the Viper SRT-10 with more than a hint of tongue-in-cheek. Whilst the Viper SRT-10 may do a top speed of 202 mph, the Viper was always renowned for its erratic handling, although the Chrysler team appears to have fixed that by adding an extra axle and two extra wheels. We’ll all have... Read more

Has the jittery economy put a crimp in your camping budget?

By Bob Difley With camping season now  fully underway but the economy struggling to get a grip, joblessness refusing to fall, campground prices reaching motel levels, and gas moving above three dollars again, you may be thinking about cutting back on your camping trips this season to save money. But, you might be able to find ways to stretch your camping dollar, do just as much camping as you would like to, while not breaking the recreational piggy bank. And . . . explore some places you haven’t been to yet. Some of the ways you can cut your camping expense are: Camp closer to home to save on fuel and to spend more time camping than driving to the campground. Keep your speed down to 55 mph to conserve fuel–10% to 15% savings from 65 mph. Search online for camping or boondocking possibilities in local, regional, and county parks, on public utility and water district lands, at fishing access points,  fish and game department recreational areas, state parks, wildlife refuges, national grasslands, and at Bureau of Reclamation and Army Corps of Engineers properties that you may have previously overlooked. Pull out your maps and search online for national forests and BLM locations near your home that you haven’t yet explored. Try boondocking to save on campground fees. Start camping in popular boondocking areas where there is help and advice if you need it. Remember that boondocking areas do not have advertising money to let you know they are there. You have to... Read more

Camping Journal: Lessons Learned

Many years ago, when I served in the Navy, we’d finish up a cruise and put together something called a “lessons learned” log. Mind you, we enlisted types didn’t really read it, we just showed enough interest to avoid any extra duty back in the home port. Oddly, something from that experience clung to the inner linings of my brain. If you look in my camping journal (what…you don’t have one?!?), you’ll see little notes at the end of each entry. I don’t call them “lessons learned.” I’ve called them many things, most of which cannot be repeated here, but they share a common goal: if I write down my mistakes, I won’t repeat them, or so the theory goes. Here are some of the lessons I have learned: Always check to make sure you electric cord and hose will reach the appropriate outlets before unhooking, lowering the stabilizer jacks, setting up the awning, and cracking open your first beverage. The temperature can drop 30 degrees between southern Michigan and northern Michigan during the three hour drive on Labor Day weekend. An unprepared family of four will spend about $113 at Wal-mart for warmer clothes. While a Dodge Durango 4×4 is a great vehicle in the mud, a Dodge Durango 4×4 with a 32′ Coachmen strapped to its bumper is almost useless in the mud. A Hensley Arrow is great for allowing you to tow a 32′ Coachmen with a Dodge Durango, but provides little assistance for getting un-stuck from... Read more

The Lug_Nut RV Whacky Glossary. The Real Meanings

Ever wondered the real meaning of some of the common RV phrases and lingo? If so, you need to read the Lug_Nut Whacky Glossary for Recreational Vehicles.  It isn’t quite the “RV Language for Dummies”, but should help you in understanding the real meanings of some of the more common words and phases associated with RVing. Read more  Read More →

On the Lighter Side, Buying an RV!

I thought a little humor in your day would be good. Here are some RV buying scenarios you should try to avoid! If you ever hear an RV salesperson say this…RUN! 10) I won’t even be able to buy my kid a new pair of shoes on this commission. 9) I can’t believe my sales manager agreed to this price. Uncle Sam will make more in taxes than I will in profit at this price. 7) This price is ONLY good for today. 6) Because I like you so much, we’re going to sell you this unit at our cost. 5) You’re truck can tow anything on this lot! 4) Sure the tires on this used RV are 9 years old, but look how much tread they have left. 3) If I can get your monthly payment where you want it, will you buy the RV today? 2) Trust me, everything on this used RV works. 1) Your trade-in is only worth $10,000, but we’re going to give you $20,000 for it. Happy Camping, Mark Polk RV Education 101 RV University Become a Fan on Facebook  Read More →

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