RV Podcast Ep 227 – The mistakes RV Newbies Make

Lots of interesting RV information is in this episode of the RV Podcast, including a fun – but instructional – account of a newbie RVer. And in our interview of the week, we’ll meet a man who is following his life’s passion of engineering and building luxury Class B motorhomes, gorgeous custom-made campervans that start in price at a quarter million dollars a year!. Plus the RV news of the week, your questions, comments and a great off the beaten path RV report. Show Notes for Episode #227 Jan 30, 2019 of The RV Podcast: WHAT MIKE AND JENNIFER ARE UP TO THIS WEEK MIKE What a week this has been! JENNIFER It sure has. We talk about change the RV Lifestyle blog and our decision to end our role as brand ambassadors for Roadtrek and to return the RV the company provided as we rebrand ourselves under the RV Lifestyle banner (see https://rvlifestyle.com/announcement-why-we-have-changed-from-roadtreking-to-rv-lifestyle/ ) JENNIFER So we have ended one chapter that we have enjoyed very much as we are looking forward to this new chapter that will expand our horizons. Bottom line, though, is nothing in our reporting will change except maybe that we will reaching a lot more people who previously thought we were only about one brand of RV… Really, we’re not about any brand at all…we’re about the lifestyle. In fact, I call an RV an “Adventuremobile.” That’s what they all do… take us to great adventures. MIKE Thanks to the many who sent us encouragement and well wishes and support as we continue what we have been doing in reporting the RV Lifestyle and traveling North America. In fact, we’ve been doing that. We’re in the midst of visiting various RF manufacturers around North America, learning about new technologies and RV features and seeing their different build processes. It’s been really fascinating. There is so much innovation out there. JENNIFER We’ll have a video released tomorrow on our RV Lifestyle Channel on YouTube about one such company Advanced RV near Cleveland. We spent some time at their factory last week and I think you’ll enjoy seeing the beautiful custom Class B coaches they make. The CEO of ARV, Mike Neundorfer, will be our special guest in this podcast episode’s interview of the week, coming up in just a few minutes. MIKE And tomorrow, we’re off to Elkhart, Indiana for another factory tour of another manufacturer, Elkhart of course being the RV Capital of the world where so many great RV manufacturers and accessory companies are headquartered. JENNIFER As we explained on the RV Lifestyle blog in announcing our rebranding here under the RV Lifestyle label, we are shopping for our next RV and taking our time. Maybe we’ll buy a used one. Or a new one. Or get one from a rental fleet. Or maybe we’ll become brand ambassadors for another company. We really don’t know yet. It’s pretty exciting, really. There are so many wonderful machines out there. MIKE But we will have to do something soon because a lot of RV events and stories are on our schedule over the next few months and we are going to need an RV to do them. But we doi want to get away, preferably to a warmer climate. Right now, our home state of Michigan is gripped by the arctic vortex. Today’s high… the high… is supposed to be no more than minus 4 degrees F. That’s the air temperature…four below. With the stiff winds blowing out there, the wind chill is supposed to be 50 below. JENNIFER Hmmm. Florida does seem to be beckoning quite assertively doesn’t it? RV LIFESTYLE NEWS OF THE WEEK JENNIFER Couple and two dogs rescued by helicopter after becoming stranded by a snowstorm that hit when winter camping A couple and their two dogs were airlifted out of a remote, snow-covered road north of Los Angles last week some two weeks after they became stranded. The man and woman were pick-up truck camping on a mountain when a severe snowstorm hit. They stayed warm by turning the truck on occasionally but after running out of food and fuel they knew they needed to find help. The couple hiked several miles for cell service, called 911, then hiked back to the truck to get their dogs. MIKE RV shipments slip for 2018 for first time since recession, but still second highest total on record RV wholesale shipments slipped by 4.1 percent last monthin 2018, the first slip since the 2008-2009 recession. But the year, which started with strong numbers in the beginning before dropping toward the end, still can boast the second strongest shipment total on record. So that was good news.The news is even better for Class B (campervan) and camper truck shipments. Both continued to increase from 2017 to 2018 with no slowdown in the fall months. Class B shipments for the year were up 12%. Truck Camper shipments were up nearly 21%. JENNIFER North Dakota judge supports decision to allow oil refinery near national park An oil refinery that will pump 55,000 gallons a day from a location three miles outside the Theodore Roosevelt National Park is closer to opening after a North Dakota judge upheld a state permit for construction. The move deeply upset environmental groups who argue the oil refinery will cause major pollution and is too close to the popular national park. The park is the state's top tourist attraction, drawing 700,000 visitors a year, and is one of Mike and my favorites that we visited just last year (see our report here.) My guess is environmental groups may try another appeal, but right now the oil refinery is looking more and more likely. MIKE Banff visitors and residents urged to travel in groups and carry bear spray after several cougar sightings If you're planning to head to Canada's Banff National Park any time soon, be sure to keep an eye out for hungry cougars. Parks Canada issued a warning last week for the town of Banff, saying cougars in search of food have been spotted more than once around the town. So anyone heading out at dawn or dusk should be especially cautious and travel in groups, carry bear spray, and be on the lookout, the Parks service warned. Bear spray is something anyone heading into true wilderness should have with them at all times. Here is a link to an interview with a bear spray expert that aired on our podcast some time ago. JENNIFER 'Champing' - camping in a former churches - a growing trend in United Kingdom Lastly for our news of the week segment, I came across a camping story out of Europe last week that I found fascinating. Apparently a trend is spreading in the United Kingdom called champing - camping overnight in an abandoned church. The trend started as a way to help pay for upkeep of the beautiful, now closed former houses of worship. And the trend has taken off so much, now other churches used only periodically by dwindling congregations are thinking of getting into the camping business, setting up "sleeping pods" with heat, comfortable furniture, etc., for those who like the idea of "camping" in a rarely used gothic church building. To read more, click here. This part of the podcast is brought to you by RadPower Bikes,an electric bike manufacturer offering direct to consumer pricing on powerful premium electric bikes. Now with free shipping LISTENER RV QUESTIONS OF THE WEEK First, we played a nice message of encouragement from one of our readers which was typical of the overwhelming support we have received from so many in this past week. Then, in what we hope will be an ongoing series, we played a voicemail message in response to our appeal to the audience for stories about newbie RV mistakes. We like to think of mistakes as educational and improvement opportunities. Hopefully, after hearing about these as we share them over the next few weeks, you will learn from the mistakes of others. Please share your newbie mistakes by calling our special Google Voicemail number at Great info at 1-586-372-6990. RV INTERVIEW OF THE WEEK JENNIFER Advanced RV in Willoughby, Ohio, has a worldwide reputation for making high quality, luxury Class B motorhomes that feature customized interiors, innovative designs and state of the art engineering. MIKE We’ve known owner Mike Neuendorfer and his wife Marcia since they started the business in 2012 and consider them good friends. Advanced RV is a custom upfitter known for great engineering and expert craftsmanship. No two ARV coaches are exactly alike. They are also expensive, starting at around a quarter of a million dollars. They typically take over a year to build. JENNIFER But until last week, we had yet to visit the 85,000 square foot factory, located on 6 acres of land near Cleveland. You can see a video of that tour tomorrow on our RV Lifestyle YouTube Channel at https://youtube.com/rvlifestyle But right now, Advanced RV’s Mike Neuendorfer is our interview of the week. We think you’ll find his insights fascinating. Mike and Marcia Neundorfer of Advanced RV Here’s a full transcript of the interview: Mike Wendland: Well first Mike, thanks so much for making us feel so welcome at Advanced RV today. We really enjoyed seeing this place. We've heard so much about it and we've met you and Marsha many times on the road, but it's really great to actually see your beautiful vehicles. Mike Neundorfer: Well thanks Mike. It's a pleasure. Since we first talked and we met on the road a few times I wanted you to visit, so I'm so pleased and honored that you're here today. Mike Wendland: Well, tell us a little bit. You certainly serve a very special niche in the Class B, these are not for everyone as you have always said. They cost ... While everybody would like one, they certainly cost a lot. Who is the typical customer that spends upwards of 300,000 dollars on a Class B RV? Mike Neundorfer: It's quite a range, our new RVs that cost a quarter of a million dollars are not all we do. We do have clients that come in and we do a lot of upgrades on their do it yourself ones,