2/16 This is the 4th year in attending and I always walk down the aisles in awe as I take in the enormity of the industry. The place was packed! Though I have attended on weekends in the past, this was truly the most crowded I’ve seen, especially in the morning when it’s less crowded.
First, I combed to vendor booths and picked up an assortment of camping grounds including public, private, and everything else. Some felt like a good fit and others not. My favorite was a campground near my family that would allow me to be a seasonal renter and accommodate my van. Runner ups were in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula!
There were the other booth vendors, hawking pots and pans, knives, heating pads (which I bought) and other food and outdoor items for the serious RVer. Most of this stuff was either tacky or impractical, but fun to look at. Can you believe a woman was selling fake “quilts” that were just printed and not pieced together? I’m a sewist and that really blew me away. I always enjoy talking to the campground folks because they always offer great information. Imagine the Army Corps of Engineers having a booth. They are the first I’ll visit when I start travelling.
I started to roam the vast aisles of ginormous vehicles and stood there looking at how many were being sold. A lot of folks are doing the same as me: selling their homes and hitting the road full time. But they have a budget a thousand times bigger than mine, but it was still fun to see. My favorites are the park models that I might live in permanently someday, the teardrops, vintage and a new one called Holiday House that was vintage inspired with the coolest curved window. And finally, the ATV’s by Cricket and my fantasy Airstream. I also inspected the brand new 2020 Class B’s by Winnebago and my heart almost stopped. These are truly luxury vehicles and demand the high price that was listed.
I was talking to an insurance agent and we thought that the RV industry should start including buyers with smaller budgets so we don’t have to build our own. In my opinion, as well as others. buying an RV at a show will give you the best price if you are willing to make a split second decision to buy.
Can’t wait to make my travel list for the year!
urbanvanconversion 