Week 205 - Motorhome Rally Photo Collection - 07-18-2010

Motorhome Rally Photo Collection

Aaaaaaaaaaah! The Motorhome Rally; a meeting place for new and old friends who share a common interest, the joy of motor homing. This travelogue covers the five rallies that we have attended. So, what attracts those who love to travel and camp in the private corners of the USA to pack themselves in like cans of sardines.

Most rallies have everything: Overnight camping, usually 3 to 5 nights; entertainment, music, magic and comedians; RV booths and seminars, everything from A to Z; meals, either for sale or part of the rally fee; RV service; new motorhomes for sale and activities: bingo, dancing, golf, luncheons, day trips and more.

Our introduction to rallies was the FMCA January 2007 Western Area Rally in Indio, California. Pictured below are some of the 1700 motorhomes that were part of the rally. FMCA rallies are very well organized with hundreds of volunteers. The parking staff was amazing. We arrived on the first day of the rally and got in line with hundreds of other motorhomes. The parking went amazingly fast and within 30 minutes we were parked (or packed) into our site. Ours had no electricity so we lived off our generator for the week. With our motorhome, it was easy. We have "automatic generator start" which starts the generator when your battery voltage drops below your specified minimum. And it has a daily clock to not start too early or go too late. So it took care of itself everyday.

After parking we toured the fairgrounds to check out all the activities. Motorhome sales displays, accessory building with a hundred booths, classes, meals, snacks and "mature" people everywhere. We couldn't help but notice that so many of the mature attendees were using canes, walkers, golf carts, wheelchairs, manual and electric. Right then we realized that on the last day of the rally, all of these mature folks would be driving off in 15 ton vehicles. We played it safe and let everyone go before we did.

Next stop was Quartzsite, Arizona, home of the world's largest flea market. During January each year, about 250,000 RV'ers visit Quartzsite during the "RV weeks". This is not an organized rally like Indio, but they have so much stuff. The big tent has the exhibits that change as Quartzsite caters to different groups. Outside the tent are hundreds of full time booths and stores. You can find just about everything for your RV. One of the outside booths was about 20 x 20 feet and just bolts and nuts.

After having just spent four days in Indio, intensely reviewing the RV accessories and new motorhome, we covered all the Quartzsite exhibits and the RV stores and the town in a single day. We were on "looking at RV stuff" overload. On the second day, just as we were about to leave we got a call from our friends Jerry and Judi, fellow motorhomers that we had met in Zion Park, Utah. They were on their way, so we stayed two more days. Funny, how much more fun it was with friends. And for many rally enthusiasts who go to lots of rallies, it is mostly just time to reconnect with friends.

A year later, February 2008, we were headed to the FMCA International Convention in Pomona, California. At Pomona they would have several enormous buildings full of every RV accessory known to man. And 500 motorhomes of every brand, size and price. Dealers at the rallies are of course hoping to sell you a new motorhome.

Sooooooooooooooooooo, the major motorhome manufacturers hold their own rallies the week before the big FMCA rally. And they are hoping you buy a motorhome from them before you see all the other brands at the International. Below is the 2008 Monaco pre-rally in Lancaster, California at the fairgrounds. This was our favorite rally.

1) About 450 Monaco coaches (and 900 owners) attended. 2) Outstanding breakfasts and dinners were served daily.

Ellen checks out the Monaco Signature Series display model. Those who have seen our motorhome, "The Mothership", know how nice it is. We joke about our motorhome calling it the Monaco "junker" model. That is because there a nine levels of Monaco diesels and five of those are fancier than ours. The "Sig" below costs four times as much as the Mothership. To most, about all you notice versus ours is the mirrored and sculpted ceiling. However, to the motorhome "career lookie loo" you will see the dual rear axles, four extra coats of paint and clear coat, the 42" LCD TV, 625 horsepower Cummins engine, awnings that automatically retract in the wind, "Hydro Hot" continuous hot water, radar that tells the driver about close vehicles and objects, air-leveling, yacht finish wood interior, electric controlled window blinds and electric opening bay doors and about a hundred other amazing features.

However, after seeing over 1,000 motorhomes since we bought ours, we have yet to find one the has living room windows or a bathroom as large as ours. But it is still fun to look (ie loo!).

Now, back to the rally. Music and dancing every night. Since most motorhomers were young in the 50's, Oldies are the choice of music for most rallies. Occasionally they might deviate with some Big Band Era Dancing music. Regardless, it is just a nice way to end every evening!

Okay, so we managed to leave the Monaco pre-rally without buying a motorhome or anything! Our RV friends and next door Atascadero neighbors, Ben and Sid joined with us at the pre-rally and in Pomona. We caravaned together from Lancaster to Pomona for the FMCA International Convention.

1) In Pomona, there were 2,600 coaches. While that is a lot, 2008 was an economically down year. In 2007 they had over 7,000 motorhomes. 2) FMCA (Family Motor Coach Association) membership is open to motorhomes but not trailers, 5th wheels or pickup campers (until 2017 when it become open to all RV types). The 5th wheel below belonged to one of the vendors. Hey, Frank, get a truck like this one and you won't have to worry about towing a larger 5th wheel.

1) No, there were not 400 aisles of vendors, but there were dozens of aisles of vendors in several buildings. 2) Other fun activities were line dancing and morning exercise and devotions.

1) Now this awning would be a lovely add-on to the Mothership. It shoots straight out with no support arms, retracts in the wind and has a extra drop-down shade that keeps you cool. Price, around $5,000.00, ouch! 2) This Monaco Dynasty Nottingham is priced around $400,000.00. We liked it.

Why? It has a built-in office, huge kitchen, full tile floor and efficient stacked washer and dryer. Of the 1,000 homes we have seen, this is the only one we would consider and then only if they would trade straight across. No, not likely.

And again, good nightly entertainment.

Our last rally was in September 2008 at the Rocky Mountain Area Rally in Farmington, New Mexico.

This rally, our fourth, was not as fun as the others. It was a good rally with all the usual activities and a car show. But we attended alone and did not meet many others. However, the couple parked next to us lived in Alaska for 10 years. And since we were headed to Alaska in 2009, we were delighted to learn from them. One night they spent about 3 hours giving us all the "local scoop" on Alaska. This proved invaluable on our Really Big Adventure.

Again, the usual drill, motorhomes, accessories, classes, meals and music.

1) Well, the rally is over and now braver, we headed out with all the other "mature" drivers. 2) Being in New Mexico within 30 minutes you go from crammed in sites to wondering if you are ever going to see another vehicle. No matter, we have each other and the Lord is with us and that's all we need.

For information on FMCA upcoming rallies and conventions, click on www.FMCA.com

Many manufacturers also have rallies. To get a list of manufacturers, click on www.BigRigBible.com and click on Free 1 Month Subscription, log in, then click on Choosing a Manufacturer > USA Class A diesel motorhome manufacturer > your manufacturer to get to their website.

Until next week, love Pete and Ellen

Photos from Jan 2007 to Sep 2008