Six Words About Your RV Life

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Have you heard of the six word memoirs project from SMITH Magazine? In 2006 the fine minds behind SMITH Magazine offered aspiring writers, poets, those with something to say, and plain ole witty folk an opportunity to tell their story in six words. It’s said that Hemingway did just that when challenged to write a six word story. He came up with this: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” 

And this got me thinking about my own six word memoirs…stories about my life on the road, as an RVer. My motto and the RV Cooking Show’s tag line is a mere six words – “Love to travel. Love to eat.” I quickly realized we all have a story to tell, a short ditty to share – especially when it comes to our RV and camping travels.

So, with much anticipation and excitement I am delighted to introduce a special six word series – Six Words About Your RV Life. Think about your adventures and see if you can craft a six word memoir about your RV vacation, lifestyle, camping experiences. Leave your six words on my RVCookingShow blog or right here on this RV.net blog posting – Six Words About Your RV Life. Sign in or don’t. Leave your name or not. Contribute as many single six word comments as you’d like and check back often to see what others have contributed.

I’ll start the project out with a couple of mine:

Get the map…we’re going camping

And from my songwriter friend George Gesner:

Beautiful campground whispers to me…stay

31 feet is all I need

Movies are great…trailers are better

Give it a go. I think you’ll find it addictive and a blast! As the SMITH folks say…Everyone has a story. What’s yours?

Safe Holiday Travel Tips

Forty thousand people in the United States die each year on the road! With the peak RV travel season here I thought this would be a good time to discuss getting to your RV travel destination safely. Getting there can be half the fun, as the saying goes, if you take a few precautions to make your trip safe.

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RV Weekly Round-Up (May 2-8, 2009)

Check out these hghlights of RV-related news, events and video from this past week.

1. Dreams of a Truly Efficient RV: Fulltimer and resident blogger Bob Difley describes what he’s looking for in the RV of the future, touching on the pros and cons of towables vs. drivables. Is alternative fuel really capable of powering an entire RV?

2. Stay Safe During Wild Weather: Sometimes bad weather is unavoidable while you’re out on the open road. No matter how tame the forecast may seem, it’s best to take precautions and get out of the elements. Blogger Nick Russell shares his first-hand tips for staying safe in your RV during bad weather.

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The Rally 2009 – Day Two from Albuquerque

More great video footage from “The Rally” in Albuquerque a including Neil Sedaka’s performance.

RV Travel – A Healthier Choice for 2009

by Guest Blogger, Ted Kasper

The most popular New Year’s Resolutions for 2009 involve getting more exercise, eating healthier, and spending more time with family and friends. Those resolutions are easy to keep, if you own an RV.

RV travelers do more than just hit the road in their vehicles. RVing families get outside and walk, bike, jog, rollerblade and hike—whether it’s down small-town streets, over miles of trails, or through landscaped campgrounds.

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My First Real RV Adventure

Happy New Year Everybody

Another year has gone by and looking back I reflect on how I got hooked on this thing called RVing. Thirty-three years ago I towed my first travel trailer. Of course at the time, like most teenagers, I thought I knew everything. I tent camped for years and had experienced camping in travel trailers and motor homes with a friend of mine and his family, but this was my first real RV adventure, out on my own. I had recently graduated from high school and was working for an RV dealership in Pennsylvania. I started out washing campers and eventually worked to the position of an apprentice technician. I was always mechanically inclined and had an interest in how things worked; from age twelve when I disassembled our perfectly good lawn mower to see how it worked, to age sixteen when I rebuilt my first VW engine.

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Destinations & Sightseeing – Part 1 – Bernice’s Tips

Genealogy, rock hounding, race cars, nature, sightseeing—every RVer has a passion for something that takes him or her on the road. The destinations are many. Here are some terrific suggestions that will make pursuing your passions more pleasurable.

• Motorhoming genealogists know that their mobility affords them unique opportunities for family tree research. They can plan trips to research areas, taking photos of ancestral homesteads and church sites and cemetery tombstones, and gather “obits” and other pieces of family history from the pages of local newspapers. Contact local genealogical societies in your area and let them know your routes and destinations. You may find members, unable to travel themselves, who will pay you to act as a researcher/photographer for their family tree needs. Plan your trips so you arrive on a day when civic offices are open—not weekends. – Bruce Allsen, Moreno Valley, CA
• Before photographing an old gravestone, wet it with water so the lettering will show up better.
• When planning a trip, leave some free time to see whatever museums or other places that interest you as you go along.
• Be alert for unusual wildlife, flowers, and scenic beauty. Enjoy nature—touch it, feel it, smell it, listen to it, and look at it.
• To see the Grand Tetons at their best on the eastern side, approach them from the north.
• The most dramatic way to see Sedona and the red rocks is to approach from the north. (From Flagstaff, take Exit 337 off I-17, turn left at the stop sign, and follow the signs to Route 89A. Turn left again to Sedona on 89A South. Travel 23 miles to Sedona on a two-lane, paved road through a forest of mostly pine trees. Descend a winding road along mountain rocky walls.)

Next week in part 2 of Destinations and Sightseeing, I’ll pass along a couple of tips related to maps, coping with altitude sickness, plus more.

Bernice Beard

Getting Along – Part 3 – Tips from Bernice

Today I am completing my top tips for making RV travel more enjoyable when traveling in groups. My hope is that by following the tips listed here, as well as those in Part 1 and 2, you’ll be able to confidently RV for extended trips with your loved ones.

• It seems obvious, but tell your traveling companions about your telephone conversations that involve them. For example, when you call a friend that you all will visit, tell your traveling companions and give them any details they need to know. This way, everyone will be on the same wavelength.
• Try to stick to your budget, but don’t get upset if your companion spends money on something you think is frivolous—the item could have a lot of meaning to the spender, now or later, or it could just be a “mad money” expenditure. You are already saving money by RV travel, so relax about what is spent on the trip.
• Go where you and your companions want to go. The trip is an adventure, so if you think rock hunting is boring, but someone else wants to do it, try it.
• Offer options instead of making demands. Instead of saying to your travel partner, “We have to go to the grocery store after breakfast,” say something such as, “Can we discuss when we can go to the grocery store next?” That way, you both have a voice in the decision.
• I discovered that friendships flourished on the road when we (1) talked freely with one another about plans, routes and wishes; (2) were ready to depart on time; (3) looked on the positive side of what could be taken as negative words or incidents; (4) thanked one another for courtesies or work; (5) were willing to sightsee or follow a route that others chose; (6) helped to research places to see and things to do; (7) shared expenses willingly; (8) laughed or saw the funny side of words or happenings; (9) were willing to jump in and help with knowledge or labor as needed; and (10) accepted the other persons as they were, not as we thought they should be. The idea is for all to share in the jobs and joys of the trip together.
• Remember that in the RV lifestyle, domestic duties know no gender. Everybody pitches in wherever necessary.

It’s the differences between all of us that make life interesting. Hopefully, if you follow these tips, you’ll be able to celebrate the diversity that exists between you and your traveling companions and thereby create a more joyous journey!

Happy travels!

Getting Along in RV Travels -Part 1- Tips from Bernice

No two people look alike, think alike, or travel alike-at least most of the time. It’s a wonder that we get along at all! Yet when traveling in an RV, we must try to maintain smooth relationships with all of our fellow travelers because we’re “stuck” together for the duration of the trip. The tips in this article will hopefully help you to avoid turning little annoyances into big problems.

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