Things I figured out in Denver

We feel that we're finally settling in a little and finding a little time here or there, now that we're stationary for a little while. I've had a few posts in my head in a note on the bulletin board since we stopped in Denver, but hadn't really had the time to put it all down in the blog. I had a lot of long, quiet time on the trek West, these thoughts went along with that drive... I'll post bits and pieces of them over the next couple of days.

Go for a little trip before going for the big one.

While we aren't unhappy with how we took off, and as I've written before that each journey is its own, and this journey wouldn't be the same if we'd done it any differently, in hindsight I'd have to recommend that if you're planning on taking off on any long-term, full-time RV trip, it would be a good idea to take a short trip or two first. Originally, that was our plan, but for one reason or another those small trips never materialized. I think what those small trips would have helped was not having to learn everything all at once, all at the same time. There's a lot to know and a lot to adjust to living like this. Doing a small trip or two first would have given us a little less to learn right off the bat. At the very least, camp for a little while in one location that you know - and try to do everything you can and/or think you will on your trip while you are there. That way you'll have a little safety net before you set off. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that we did things the way we did. It's just a hindsight recommendation for others.

Buy the right rig up front.

I'm very x10¹³⁴ happy about our purchase. What we bought seemed to be the right choice at the time, and I can only say that it was the right choice 100%. Sure, I'd love to have a class A with three bedrooms, but I don't particularly want to spend what I would have had to spend to get it. I'd rather put those resources into museum visits, fishing equipment and other niceties on our trip. By saying "buy the right rig", I'm essentially saying - don't buy expecting to trade up - you won't, and even if you do, you'll lose money on the deal. Buy a rig with a good reputation too - quality is one thing you can't fix after the fact. Full-timing is very different from vacationing, so look at a rig with the features/quality you need up front. Having the kids sleep on the couch in the kitchen might be great when you're all running around on the beach for the weekend, but doing that day-in, day-out will cut into your alone time, their sleep time, and everyone's happiness-in-general - even if it saves you $15,000 in rig-cost. We researched and bought the very best I could find, and I'm not only glad I found what I wanted, but spending what I spent (considered pretty expensive for a fiver) has been worth every penny.

Those Class A Guys

I'll admit it. I have ClassA envy. I'd love to have the kids with me when we are driving down the road. I'd love to be able to pull into a spot, press a button and have a sturdy, 100% electronically levelled RV at the push of one button. The kids would really enjoy having Satellite TV that tracks as we're driving down the road, giving them 140 different choices of what they could watch. Really, those rigs are generally built very well and would probably not need some of the fixes, upgrades and detail work that our trailer has needed. Class A people are generally better-regarded at parks, and may sometimes get a better shake about things than us trailer-folk (remember the million-dollar motor home in RI?). Besides, how slick would it be to roll into a place in the rain, never have to get out to get any part of things situated and have everything just how it should be, not to mention packing up to leave goes from 2 hours to about 8 minutes... so yeah - I have class A envy.

That being said, I'm very happy with what we've got. The rig cost about 20% of what we'd have needed to spend to get a comparable class A. There was only one made that I've found that had the kind of setup we'd need. Most of the rest would have put the bunks in the master bedroom, and that's no way to live full-time ;) (for us). It also would have been tough in Elkhart and Iowa where I had to have the rig taken away to be worked on. While we could always go get a hotel room - I just like having my own bed at night.

I guess what I'm saying is that just because someone doesn't have a class A doesn't mean they aren't serious about what they are doing. We could have bought one, and afforded doing so, but there were reasons we went the way we did - and everyone just needs to make that choice for themselves for their own reasons. Next time you see an RVer, ask them why they bought that rig specifically, if you're interested. You might be surprised how much thought was put into that particular one - maybe even more thought than most people put into their house.

The *insert word here* RV trailer you ever did see....

Well, I've been absent of late, and I'm sorry about that. Jill's been covering the blog just fine, and I've not really had much extra to contribute lately. Plus, I picked up an unintended 2nd job, but all is well - just a little busy. :)

Anyhow - what drives me out of hiding? What makes me need to post? Seriously, the funnest trailer I've seen yet. Unfortunately, it seems to have had a short life span, seems to have hit the market during the downturn, and is a little hard to find now - but I had to share.I mean really - how cool is that? We went to an RV dealership in Bangor (http://www.webbsrvcenter.com/) - a town that I'm not outwardly fond of, but if everyone there were like the guys in this dealership, I'd say everyone should move there - they were pretty great. They even gave the kids RV toys - Erika picked up a nice Jeep/Travel Trailer combo - Victoria grabbed a nice European Class C - and Madelyn hit the motherlode with a classic, reconfigurable Class A. Needless to say they were happy! I only wish I could have bought more there.:) If you're interesting in this fun little cabin - I know where you can get one - http://www.webbsrvcenter.com/19006.html

Bluegrass RV

OK, so I've decided its been too long and planning this stuff is just too daunting - so here it is, raw, real, and flowing.

I took the girls shopping on Sunday. I'd hoped Jill would nap - heck, I had hoped the girls would nap and I wouldn't have to go, but they got caught up, like ya do... and I found myself on the North side of town looking for a project. Why not RV shopping right?

Bluegrass here I come. As Jill noted earlier, we'd opted to go across the street last time, because this place look used-car to me. BOOOYAH - I can read... I got there at 1, they opened at 1, and it seemed like they weren't sure they wanted to be there. We parked, got out, went into an RV that was open (what a boon actually) and when we came out were treated to a guy that asked 3 questions, decided we weren't ready to buy that day, and quickly shuffled us to 'visit me in the office on your way out and I'll get you a brochure'.

Regardless it was an good trip. We got to see another version of a bunkhouse, and I finally got to see what a loft was all about. The problem is that all these trailers were 30 / 31 feet. OH what I can do with another 8 to 12... Clearly these are not FT'ers. Though, they did teach me a lot about space, adjustments, and what I might be able to do for a desk.

On another note, I haven't researched it yet, but I think I might just be comfortable in a 6'6" or so Travel Trailer. No saying now that I can just throw that out. We went, we saw, I stood up, and it wasn't overwhelmingly small... Not the most ideal, but if it includes everything I want to have, I can take 6'6"....

Highlight of the day is that I asked the girls - Do you think you could do this, sleep this way and have fun - and they enthusiastically said yes not knowing they didn't have a choice. Its not a matter of if - it is entirely - when.

More Research.

I kept thinking about the right post to get back into this blog and figured - what does it matter - just blog... so here it is:

I started giving a little thought to a travel trailer over the weekend. I could probably find a nice 40' and either tow it with the Dodge or pickup a new/2008ish 450 or something. There are benefits to it mostly in sleeping arrangements (best I've seen yet is a separate room and bathroom for the kids up front, and all the other amenities we'd been looking for). However I'm still not sure its the best arrangement. Point is that we aren't planning on driving more than living, unlike some people, and sitting in the car/truck during travel just might not be that bad. I'll have to do research - I love research... :)

The thing that brought this about is that the one motorhome that looks genuinely perfect will not tow what I need it to tow. I'm not sure if that's because they only want to rate it at 5,000 pounds but it can handle more, or if that's really all it can do physically. Again, more research to see. I think looking at other bunk models will help, but I haven't seen a bunk model that truly has the family in mind. Most of them look like they are built for occasional sleepovers, not full-timers with kids. More Research.

So far I'm still on the fence about new/used. There are just so many things that come into play here. I really need to go look at a dealer inventory to get an idea about what 'used' really means and what types of things they might have. I guess a wandering of ebay probably would help too. Used Pros: Price, possibly a layout/towing that I can't find in a new model, probably can still get a warranty if its new enough - largely price. Used Cons: used - meaning mechanical expenses, but if I save enough up front and put that in an account, that might not be too bad. Non-Manufacturer warranty - but still, that should be able to be gotten around. Feel - I'm not sure about driving someone else's rig, but if I find the right one, maybe... Financing - we'd have to play by the rules to finance an older rig.

OK - well, nice to be back in the saddle blogging, and I'll just have to do it more often. I'd been hoping to get Jill doing the blog by now, but - well, we'll just have to wait for that.

Back to the Drawing Board

Jill's Journal: After researching what seems to be hundreds of floor plans to find the one that would fit our needs best, Rob thought he’d found our future RV. Until tonight. We want to pull a trailer behind the RV to carry our minivan, but we just learned the model we had our eye on doesn’t have the towing capacity we need. So, it’s back to the drawing board.

Rob had another thought as well. Perhaps a travel trailer might also suit us well. It still gives us 40 feet of living space and the spare vehicle we need, as we’d have to tow it with a truck. That truck could then be unhitched and the trailer left in a park…that way Rob could still work uninterrupted while I’m off exploring with the girls. There’s just no way around it – we need some kind of vehicle and some living space. So maybe this is an option. We shall see.

We really believe we’d prefer a conventional RV instead of a travel trailer, but the latter is far more economical and may be the smarter way to go. Again, we shall see.

We’re also constantly on the lookout for great ideas to help us through that year or two and we found one recently! Space Bags, the kind where you suck the air out of the storage bag with a vacuum. We bought some a week or so ago to see how they might work and it appears they’ll suit our purposes quite nicely. We’re planning to live in quite the minimalistic manner, but with three little kids and two adults, we’re going to need at least a few pieces of clothing! Our big concern is winter clothes vs. summer clothes. We plan to follow the seasons for the majority of the time, but how nice will it be to be able shrink our jackets and blankets when we’re in a hot climate?