The RVs We Drive – Woodall’s Bloggers Discuss their Personal RV Choices

The RVs We Drive | This Week Only at Woodall’s Campgrounds, RV Blog and Family Camping Blog! This week in the Woodall’s Blog – The RVs WE Drive! Read our expert bloggers as they share the pros and cons of various camping units – from their own personal experience. These posts are about their favorite RVs! What is your RV of choice, and why do you choose that vehicle for your camping trips? Tell us by submitting a guest blog about it at http://blog.woodalls.com/authors/guest-blogger-submission/ . Here’s what one blogger had to say: Looking for Fun with the Fun-Finder How did we select our current RV? Well, I’d like to report that we had unlimited funds and time to select nothing but the very best that satisfied our every whim and need. I’d like to tell you that, but it wouldn’t be true. Instead, I’ll tell you what is probably a common story. We had camped for ma… READ MORE  Read More →

Adventurer LP Introduces Double-Slide Camper

Yakima, Washington-based Adventurer LP announced Tuesday (September 6) it had begun shipping its all-new Eagle Cap 1160 double-slide truck camper to dealers. The first two dealers to receive the 1160 were George Sutton in Eugene, Oregon, and Lacombe RV in Lacombe, Alberta. According to Adventurer, most of their dealers have the 1160 on order and will be receiving them as soon as they are completed. The Eagle Cap 1160 is a redesigned above-the-rails truck camper that allows for increased interior room in its 102-inch wide-body design and features a rear sofa and dinette in separate slide-outs to provide maximum interior space. The 1160 is also a side entry unit allowing room in the rear of the unit for a large Class A-style rear storage bay. 2012 Eagle Cap Series According to Adventurer, Eagle Cap truck campers feature the company’s exclusive “hybrid aluminum superstructure,” a construction blend of welded aluminum framing and fiberglass shell design (full front and back one-piece fiberglass caps), essentially utilizing the best construction designs in the industry. Another Eagle Cap exclusive is the “EC-MAX,” which is a four-season insulation package, providing R-values of R-17 ceiling, R-11 walls, and R-22-plus in the basement/floor. Eagle Cap also features rear sofa and driver’s side dinette slides providing RVers with the type of room typically only seen in trailers and motorhomes, according to Adventurer. Adventurer LP Eagle Cap 1160 double-slide truck camper.... Read more

Coming soon to a Community near YOU?

Rarely a week goes without a media story about some community somewhere in the United States or Canada imposing restrictive rules, regulations, ordinances, and general hassles on owners of recreational vehicles. Parking restrictions on RVs Rusty Powers stands with his son-in-law, Anthony Lyles, by his RV, that is in violation of a city bylaw because it is too big and will have to be moved elsewhere. Image courtesy Maple Ridge News Here’s a typical article that appeared in The Palm Beach (Florida) Post News: For years Wellington has enforced its laws so that a recreational vehicle or boat must be parked on the side or rear of a lot and behind a 6-foot wall, fence, or landscaping—the maximum height village rules allow. But, perplexingly, village rules also say that the vehicle must not be “clearly visible” to drivers or neighbors. “If it’s 15 feet high but behind a six-foot fence, then I’m sorry, but my sight says it’s clearly visible,” resident Donna Weaver said. Are RV Parking Restrictions out of Control? In British Columbia, Leeann Costa lives on a quarter of an acre and stores her 12-metre (39-foot)-long recreational vehicle at the side of her house. Last month she received a letter from the Maple Ridge bylaw department and learned she must remove her RV by April 20, reported Maple Ridge News. “We’ve lived here for 25 years. We’ve had an RV ever since we lived here,” said Costa. “All of a sudden because somebody complained,... Read more

What’s That Big Thing in Your Driveway?

 By Monique & Barry Zander, the Never-Bored RVers  What is an RV?  Easy question, since you either own one or are considering which type will best suit your RVing lifestyle. But is it all that easy?  For instance, the Good Sam Club Buyers Guide lists the following types of RVs (and who would know better?): Non-motorized versions include travel trailers, fifth wheels, folding camping trailers and SURVs, which is like an SUV.  Then there are the Motorized RVs, which the Buyers Guide breaks down into Class A Motorhomes, Class B Van Conversions, Class C Motorhomes, Truck Campers and Custom Coach/Bus. But is that all … and are non-motorized vehicles RVs?  On the Wikipedia website, there is a good argument made for 4-Wheel-Drive vehicles being considered RVs.  There was the night when Monique and I were tent-camping in Joshua Tree National Park – the wind picked up dramatically and blew live embers from the campfire into our tent.  The temp dropped into the 30s, so we “camped” in our SUV.  Apparently SUVs are often used as RVs in Australia. Then there is another entry in Wikipedia arguing that park models on wheels are RVs.  Well, maybe. I bring this up to open a forum in the Comments Section below about what you consider an RV, but first, I’d like to share a few experiences. Our home is in a 28-foot travel trailer*.  We parked in front of our son’s home in Huntington Beach last November, where we were cited for parking on the street on a street-sweeping day. ... Read more

RVIA Expo 2010 Wednesday Dec. 1

Greetings from Louisville, Kentucky! Wednesday, Dec. 1.  Today was a very busy day at the RVIA Expo here as we prowled the aisles of the show for about 8 hours, looking at an amazing array of RVs and RV accessories.  Yesterday I posted some photos of a recent innovation from Monaco using a telescoping slide to provide a wider floorplan on their motorhomes.  Today I took a photo of the outside of the slide which I think, shows the operation of the slide a little more clearly. The slide depth totals 50 inches, consisting of a 32″ main slide and an 18″ second section.  When coupled with an 18″ slide on the curb side, the total slide width measures 68″, which I believe is the widest in the industry. Read more  Read More →

RVIA Expo, Nov. 30, 2010

Greetings from Louisville, Kentucky! Today was the opening day for the annual RVIA trade show here, and our initial impressions are that the industry is very upbeat about the future.  The day started off as usual, with the opening breakfast and industry presentation by the RVIA.  The reports indicated that all segments of the industry, motorhomes, towables, etc, experienced a significant increase in sales compared to 2009.  Of course, 2009 was by all reports, a disaster, so beating that sales level wasn’t too difficult.  Forecasts for future sales do indicate future growth, and hopes are high that will in fact be the case. Read more  Read More →

RVIA Expo. Monday Nov. 29

Greetings to all from Louisville, Kentucky!  Linda and I are parked at the Expo center campground.  (Under the topic of “name dropping”, we are next door to Bob Tiffin’s son’s motorhome)  It is nice to see that at least some of the manufacturers actually “go rv’ing”! Since  the actual show doesn’t start until tomorrow, we went over to the center, registered, and then went on a tour of Louisville, and our main objective was to visit the Louisville Slugger factory and take the factory tour.  If you are in the Louisville Ky area, and if you have ANY interest in baseball (and what good American doesn’t?), this is the place to go.  The factory, museum, and gift store are all located together, downtown, near the Ohio river.  The downtown area is very clean, and parking in this area is plentiful.  We parked right across the street from the museum, and of course took the requisite photo of the world’s largest baseball bat. Read more  Read More →

RVIA EXPO, LOUISVILLE KY

Linda and I are getting the motorhome ready for our annual trip to Kentucky to attend the RVIA show in Louisville to gather information on the general state of the RV industry, and to view new products at the show.  We will be reporting on events as they occur, here on RV.net blog. Read more  Read More →

Tips on choosing an RV dealer

Would you purchase a recreational vehicle from any RV dealer? Does the dealer make a difference? You bet it does! Not all dealers are reputable or have good customer service records. Ardell Brown RV Camping World, Draper, Utah. Photo courtesy KSL Choosing the right RV dealer is important both at the time of sale and later down the road when you have your RV serviced or repaired. Following are seven things to look for when choosing an RV dealer: 1. Customer service Unfortunately, a common complaint in the industry is that RV dealers are more interested in selling you a product than keeping it serviced after the sale. Finding an RV dealer with a proven track-record of customer service is of utmost importance. When you spend thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars on an RV you want to ensure before the sale that the dealer will provide outstanding customer service. After your RV breaks down is not the time to learn that the dealer is more interested in your money and getting you off the lot than providing quality service. One way of determining an RV dealers value is by finding out if they’ve received any manufacturers’ customer service awards. Do your homework before the sale and choose an RV dealer with a proven track record for quality service. 2. Dealer’s history Secondly, taking time to research the background and history of the RV dealer could save you money and heart-aches in the long run. The longer the RV dealer has been around, better! If a dealer has... Read more

The Headlight Flash. What Does It Really Mean

The flashing of one’s headlights is something we have seen for years throughout Europe.  It was, and is, used to generally signal the intention to overtake another vehicle.  Kind of a heads-up and to ensure the vehicle being passed was aware of this action.  For this use, nearly all the vehicles sold in Europe for the last forty plus years were equipped with a momentary headlight switch built into the directional signal. Read more  Read More →

Next Page »