The RV Trivia Challenge 9. Are You Up To It?

Welcome to the first Lug_Nut RV Trivia Challenge of 2010. The Lug_Nut RV Trivia Challenge No. 9 series will test your skills on a variety of RV related topics.  As usual whenever a broad base of topics are presented, it becomes difficult to know the answers for all the questions.  Please remember, this is trivia, requiring some guess work on occasion.   Get a pen and paper so that you can record your answers.  Upon completion, you can check your answers with those shown at the bottom.  Good luck. So, Let’s go! Read more  Read More →

Cost Effective Weekend RV Fun

Sometimes spending your weekend at home is just plain boring. There really isn’t much to do, but on the other hand you don’t have much of time before the weekend is over and it’s back to work again. How about a weekend RV getaway close to home? Not only can a quick RV trip alleviate the boredom, but it is cost effective too. A 200 mile, or less, round trip from home won’t cost much in fuel, food or campground fees and it might be just what the doctor ordered for some well deserved relaxation and time to recharge. Read more  Read More →

The Mystery Camper Challenge Is Back. Can You Solve It?

Where is the Mystery Camper today?  We haven’t heard from him for some time and this one will not be easy.  In the past the Mystery Camper has sent us photos of his surrounding.  These have been solved quite quickly by our smart members and readers.  Well, he has not forwarded any photo clues this time, only some words and images.  Your challenge is to name the location and campground.   So here’s all we have right now.  Clues will be added if needed every few days.  Who will have the bragging rights to solving this one?       “Something about the park’s name reminds me of Hawaii.  What would that be? The Mystery Camper                                                          Well, that’s it.  That’s all we have currently to work with.  Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments section at the bottom.  If you think you have solved it, let’s hear the location, campground name and how you figured it out.   With The Challenging Question    -     Lug_Nut    -     Peter Mercer  Read More →

Who is that driving the motorhome?

Over the weekend we started planning for an RV trip we are taking later this summer. It’s about 6,000 miles roundtrip. We are on somewhat of a timeline and I wanted an idea on average of how many miles we would travel each day, based on our schedule. It seems like more often than not we are on a tight schedule, forcing us to put in more miles per day than I would like. I want this trip to be more leisurely when it comes to how many hours you are behind the wheel each day. Admittedly I am one of those people who likes to do all of the driving myself. I just feel better if I know I am behind the wheel. I know my wife, Dawn, is a competent driver (she even has her CDL) but I still prefer to do the driving. Don’t get me wrong, I think it is extremely important that both individuals are capable of driving or towing the RV. You never know when your wife or husband will need to drive the RV and they should feel comfortable and confident in doing so. As we were planning the trip it brought back a memory of a past trip we took in the RV. We were stopped in traffic because of an accident, and had sat in the same spot without moving for at least 30 minutes. I told Dawn that I was going to run back and use the bathroom and if traffic started moving to just get behind the wheel and drive. The boys were in the back bedroom playing X Box. The motorhome started moving about the same time that I came out of the bathroom. Both boys looked up at me with their eyes wide open and... Read more

RV Cooking Show – Grilled Cuban Sandwiches, Cuban Cowboy Caviar & Cortez, FL

If you ask me, there’s nothing better than a warm weather getaway by the beach. Bonus points if it’s a stay in a thriving town with a terrific RV resort, lively dining and entertainment in walking distance, and fresh fish right off the boat. Well, that’s just what I stumbled upon when I pulled into Cortez, Florida. This little town is tucked away on the land side of Anna Maria Island and is often eclipsed by its big neighbor to the south – Sarasota. But don’t be fooled, you could easily while away many memorable days and nights in this West Coast of Florida paradise. In our latest RV Cooking Show –Grilled Cuban Pressed Sandwiches, Cuban Cowboy Caviar & Quirky Cortez Florida – we’ll show you around town and, with a special guest, make a mighty tasty meal. I’m especially excited to bring you Paulette’s Cuban version of an old RV-standby – Cowboy Caviar. Take a look – you’re gonna love it. Don’t miss the “From my RV kitchen” section on my website’s show page – I share many of my favorite Cortez “locals’ haunts” with you. I hope you enjoy watching this episode of the RV Cooking Show as much as I enjoyed making it! Evanne RVCookingShow.com   Read More →

Some Interesting RV Poll Results

The outcome of any poll depends on several factors like; what type of poll it is, how the questions are worded, who is asking the questions and of course who does and does not participate in the poll. Each week we conduct an RV poll in our e-newsletter. The RV poll is not a scientific poll, a political poll or a marketing poll. It is basically used to give me some idea of what our newsletter readers are interested in, how they use their RVs  and just for the fun of it. I  thought it would be interesting to look back at some of our past RV polls and see how the participants responded. Here’s what I found out. 85% travel with the refrigerator on and 15% travel with it off 53% prefer diesel and 47% prefer gas 79% eat more meals in the RV and 21% eat more meals out 89% conduct a spring check-up on their RV before using it and 11% don’t 67% said the recession won’t change plans to use the RV and 33% said it will 72% said their average RV trips are one week or less and 28% said their average RV trips are two weeks or longer 54% own motorized RV’s and 46% own towable RV’s 91% plan two or more summer RV trips and 9% plan only one 63% store the RV on their own property and 37% make other storage arrangements 82% check the tire pressure before each trip and 18% don’t 24% said a hybrid RV chassis would affect their buying decision and 76% said it wouldn’t have any affect 90% said they use environmentally friendly holding tank chemicals... Read more

Free Boondocking on BLM land

By Bob Difley In the early developing years of  the new country of the United States of America, the government promoted expansion into unsettled lands, partly to accommodate settlers, but primarily to settle the land before other governments–Mexico, Spain, France–could grab the land first. In the east the land was quickly gobbled up by railroads, cities, and whoever could get some of it. By the time settlers reached the Wild West, this fear of other nations’ land grab no longer existed, and most of the land was retained in Federal coffers. Lucky for us. Now all that land–or much of it–is what is called public land–which means that we, as voters and citizens, own it, and we designate various Federal agencies to manage our land for us. The agency that manages the most land west of the Mississippi–and most of the desert land–is the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The BLM administers 260 million acres—about one-eighth of the nation’s land mass–in the twelve western states, including not only the vast stretches of desert that are home to snowbirds in winter, but also wildernesses, monuments, and 38 wild and scenic rivers. The BLM has over 400 campgrounds, most large enough for RVs of all sizes and with low or no fees, with some more developed sites that carry higher fees. In addition you can boondock anywhere on BLM land, unless specifically prohibited by signs or fences, for up to 14 days within a 28 consecutive day period,... Read more

So, Are You As High Tech As Your RV Is?

GPS navigation, cellular phones, Bluetooth technology, what did we ever do before these became common place in our lives?  I remember when one could take a road trip for several hundred miles without the thought of a need for any of these things.  Read more  Read More →

Update: My Predictions for Future of the RV Industry

In February of 2009 I wrote an article titled “My Top 5 Predictions for the Future of the RV Industry”. I thought that since nearly a year has passed this would be a good time to take a look at how my predictions faired. In the original article I mentioned that the RV industry has endured many hardships in the past; recessions, high interest rates for consumer lending and dealer floor plan payments, the high cost of fuel and that it has always rebounded. To come back stronger than it was before requires innovation, change and forward thinking on the part of its leaders in all sectors of the industry. To read my first article go here Now let’s take a look at my past predictions and current conditions. My #5 Prediction: The weak will not survive. Whether it is a manufacturer, dealer, campground or aftermarket supplier only the strong who are committed, determined and willing to change with the times will survive this current downturn.  It will require downsizing operations, inventory, and making good solid business decisions. Back to the basics! In the long run this will make the remaining companies better, stronger and more adaptable to change. #5 Update: The list of U.S. RV manufacturers that are no longer in business or have filed bankruptcy has exceeded 20 since the recession began. As of June 2009 approximately 160 RV dealers across the country closed their doors for good. The remaining 95 or so U.S. RV manufacturers and 2,900 RV dealers have done what was necessary... Read more

Young Fulltime RVers – Keep or sell the house??

Dreams, goal setting, and action plans play a starring role at the turn of the year. You may be considering the full time RV lifestyle. Good for you! If you are a home owner that’s a piece of the puzzle that must be in place before you hit the road. In this short Young Fulltime RVer video I’ll share with you a few questions to ask yourself when pondering this issue.  Happy New Year everyone! Be safe and dream big!! Evanne www.RVCookingShow.com PS – Explore the Young Fulltime RVer page for more fulltime insight.  Read More →

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