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Saturday, March 18, 2023
Members edition
Featured articles
Own the world’s fastest motorhome! Only $95,000
This is not your average motorhome. Not by a long shot! This 1977 GMC LSR is, in fact, the official World’s Fastest Motorhome, and it’s totally street legal. Beneath the “MoHo’s” hood lurks a 700 horsepower engine. So go ahead and buy it, then drive it over to Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats, where it’s right at home. Maybe you can beat its current record of 121.5 miles per hour which was set there. Read all about it, but if you want it, you’d better get a move on. It could go fast!
Satellite-to-cell service by SpaceX and T-Mobile planned for this year, will end ‘mobile dead zones’
By Randall Brink
Starlink for RVs has changed its name to “Roam” and added a “global roaming” service at an increased price—$200 per month. The regional roaming price for Starlink RV remains at $150 per month. … Also, SpaceX and T-Mobile will begin testing their joint venture satellite-to-cell service this year, according to Jonathan Hofeller, SpaceX vice president of Starlink Enterprise Sales. The service will offer space-based data services directly to smartphones and other devices on the ground. Learn more.
Dash cam catches dramatic travel trailer crash
This happened last week in Colorado. Watch as the travel trailer suddenly goes out of control and rolls over repeatedly while being towed on I-70 across the Rockies near Loveland Pass. Watch it here. Yikes!
Lightship self-propelled RV – or self-aggrandized RV – leaves too many questions
By Russ and Tiña De Maris
Last week RVtravel.com readers responded to a piece published about Lightship RV company’s L1. The company puffs it as an “Aerodynamic, battery-powered travel trailer and the first purpose-built travel trailer with a self-propulsion system that enables near zero range or mile-per-gallon efficiency loss for the vehicle towing it.” Readers, on the whole, reflected plenty of skepticism, and the promoters left many questions in our minds, too. We set about trying to get some answers.
Company files motion to dismiss Recreation.gov lawsuit
By Randall Brink
RVtravel.com reported on a lawsuit filed in February against Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc. pertaining to its contract operation of Recreation.gov on behalf of thirteen agencies of the U.S. federal government. On March 10, 2023, Booz Allen filed a Motion to Dismiss the lawsuit, along with a 48-page Memorandum of Law supporting its motion. Continue reading.
Senate to again consider gun legislation that affects RVers
By Randall Brink
The U.S. Senate Traveler’s Gun Rights Act, S.741, was reintroduced in the 118th Congress to protect the rights of lawful gun owners who travel full-time and remove roadblocks that prevent individuals with no fixed physical residence from completing an instant background check before a firearm transfer. The new act would clarify “state of residence” and “resident” to overcome various residency-related issues facing full-time RV travelers, individuals with multiple physical residences, active-duty military personnel, and military spouses. Learn more.
Tainted pharmaceuticals found. Is it safe to buy prescription drugs in Mexico?
By Russ and Tiña De Maris
Earlier this week, multiple news outlets “broke” the story that Americans who cross the border into Mexico to buy prescription drugs could be in danger. Lawmakers quickly reacted, urging the U.S. State Department to publish a travel advisory. “The State Department needs to warn Americans traveling to Mexico of the danger they face when purchasing pills from Mexican pharmacies,” urged Senator Edward J. Markey and Congressman David Trone in a joint letter to the State Department. What’s the basis of the screaming headlines? Is it safe to buy prescription drugs in Mexico or not? Learn more here.
Campground Crowding:
Costs have risen, and this RVer’s spreadsheet is solid proof
As usual, many readers weighed in this week on campground crowding and the costs for campsites. In fact, Diane M. keeps a spreadsheet of costs and it proves what we have all been feeling. Mark S. reports on rates doubling at their favorite KOA. And Dawn H. sees prices rising and people with no camping etiquette. (Sounds too familiar!) But Darla B. just completed her first snowbird trip and had no problem finding campsites.
That was the RV week that was
March 11–17, 2023
Recent surveys conducted by the Texas Association of Campground Owners (TACO), Florida and Alabama RV Park and Campground Association, and the Campground Owners of New York (CONY) indicate that campground operators are expecting higher occupancy rates in 2023 than last year. Among the survey’s key findings:
• 54% anticipate better occupancy in 2023 than 2022; 39% about the same.
• 60% are basing their answers off advanced reservations for this year; 44% off inbound calls and inquiries.
• 60% said guests are booking at about the same time as they were in 2022; 25% said earlier than in 2022.
The annual Southern California RV Industry Show, once an industry staple, is returning to the Pomona Fairplex Oct. 25-29, and will be billed as the 68th Annual Pomona RV Show. The plan is to have the RV’s displayed so all the motorized units will be in the same block, all the toy haulers in another block, trailers in another and so on, said show spokesman Tom Gaither.
Yosemite National Park will begin its reopening process today with restricted access and hours after being closed due to severe storms in the region. The park received more than 15 feet of snow at Tuolumne Meadows and 21 inches of rain. Almost two dozen rockslides and debris flows impacted park roads and facilities, but most have been cleared. Some smaller roads and their corresponding areas remain closed. The park will be open from sunrise to sunset this weekend, with limited overnight lodging starting on Monday. Visitors are advised to bring warm, waterproof clothing and vehicle chains.
Glacier National Park (MT) continues to be in the top 10 most visited National Parks in 2022, hosting 2,908,458 recreation visits for the year. Glacier has consistently hosted around 3 million visitors each year for the last 5 years, aside from 2020 due to the pandemic.
A new Love’s Travel Stop along I-295 in Jacksonville, Florida, has 5 reservable RV hookup sites and a dog park. Learn more.
The RV Dealers Association (RVDA) has updated its position on new model introduction to align with the RV Industry Association’s (RVIA) voluntary best practice. The RVDA recommends that RV manufacturers adhere to the RVIA’s recommended best practice of introducing annual model year and major product design changes between July 1 and August 31 each year because consistency in model year changeovers benefits consumers, reducing confusion in the marketplace. Model year changeovers outside the recommended timeframe can create problems for consumers, financing, inventory planning, and the credibility of the RV industry.
Camping World Holdings has announced it will acquire Pan Pacific RV Center. The French Camp facility is located at 252 W. Yettner Road along I-5 south of Stockton, California. The Morgan Hill location is south of San Jose at 16695 Condit Road on Highway 101.
Here is your lesson for the day. When towing a trailer (or anything) in snowy conditions, do not try to pass a snowplow. What you see in the photo above is what happened on Highway 195 near Spangle, Washington, shortly after the pickup driver passed the plow. We do not know if there were injuries.
Kampgrounds of America, Inc. (KOA) will revamp its long-running loyalty program, KOA Rewards, to simplify point-earning and redemption. Before, KOA campers could only redeem their points when checking in in person, but now campers can track and apply their rewards during online check-in, and use their points for discounts when booking stays virtually through KOA.com and the KOA app.
After decades of maintaining the same price, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will increase overnight camping fees at six campgrounds in eastern Oregon. The new rate for the Page Springs, Fish Lake, Jackman Park, South Steens Family, South Steens Equestrian, and Chickahominy Reservoir campgrounds will be $16 per night for the first vehicle and $5 per night for each additional vehicle. This change will take effect on April 1.
Montana’s Glacier National Park is reopening Avalanche, Two Medicine, and Many Glacier campgrounds for the 2023 camping season after closing due to COVID-19 in 2020. The park will require advance reservations through Recreation.gov to better manage visitor flow and improve the camping experience. Two Medicine Campground will open on June 5 and Many Glacier Campground will open on June 9. Avalanche Campground is set to open on July 17, or potentially earlier if the full length of the Going-to-the-Sun Road opens sooner.
Congress may vote to make Chiricahua National Monument a national park. The monument is famous for unique volcanic formations created 27 million years ago. If approved, it would become Arizona’s fourth national park.
Rocky Mountain National Park’s largest and most popular campground will close for a year beginning this summer. Moraine Park Campground, with 244 campsites, will undergo a $19 million restoration project to replace wastewater and electrical systems. Electrical hookups will be added to 60 RV campsites.
Same-day reservations will now be available at all New York State campgrounds. Reservations will be required and patrons can now book a camping reservation as late as 5 p.m. on the desired day of arrival. The public will also be able to book a one-night stay at any state campground beginning April 7, so gaps between reservations will be filled earlier than in previous years
The Bureau of Land Management will implement an online reservation system for two campgrounds in Colorado’s Upper Colorado River Recreation Area on April 3. The Pumphouse Campground fee for a single campsite will be $10 per night and the Radium Campground fee $6 per night.
Popular camping app The Dyrt analyzed federal data to find the hardest reservations to snag in the state of California, which has the most national parks and the second most national forests in the country. The report found that Twin Lakes Campground in Inyo National Forest is the most-sought-after reservation in the state. The park is fully booked 97.2% of the time. Good luck getting a spot there, though it sure looks beautiful…
J. Cubas Holdings LLC plans to develop The Palace Resort, a luxury RV resort near Goodyear Boulevard and Jenny Lane in Virginia. The resort will feature 333 RV sites at 7.2 sites per acre, some with private casitas, as well as amenities such as pools, spas, a restaurant, bar, clubhouse, gym, tennis and pickleball courts, and more. The resort will complement the upcoming Caesars Virginia casino project. According to J. Cubas Holdings LLC, The Palace Resort will be a truly customized, upscale community.
And finally… a very accurate observation from the National Park Service.
[Diane’s dog would yawn when she did. Does your dog (or cat) yawn when they see you yawn?]
CONTEST
Is this your RV?
Win a $25 Amazon gift certificate if today’s RV photo shows your rig
Every day we post a photo of an RV either submitted by its owner or by our editors and writers as they move about the country.
Click here to see if your RV made it into today’s issue.
Saturday Giveaway!
How would you like to win a Stanley Classic Insulated Thermos?
How to win
We’ll select a winner at random out of all entries we receive today (March 18, 2023) by 7 p.m. Pacific time. Remember, you can only enter once and after we notify you by email via RVcontests@gmail.com that you won, you have 24 hours to respond or we’ll give the prize to someone else.
Click here to enter or see last week’s winner!
Reader poll
Did you ever own a car with fins?
Oh, the good ol’ days, when cars weren’t boring-looking like they are today. No, back then, cars had fins! Man, were they cool and so (in theory) were their owners? Did you ever own a car with fins? That’s our question today.
HAVE YOU SEEN THESE STOLEN RVs?
This 2021 Keystone Arcadia travel trailer took a powder just east of Warner, Oklahoma. The Muskogee County Sherriff says it vanished sometime between the evening of February 24 and the morning of February 25. Contact the sheriff at 918-577-6906 with any information.
Tomfoolery in Tomball, Texas: The Montgomery, Texas, County Sheriff says they think two guys with two trucks thieved a travel trailer in Tomball. The ripped-off rig is a Reflection by Grand Design, model year 2021. The pair of purloiners used a Ford F-250 or F-350 to pull the rig away; one man drove the Ford, another assisted and used what may be a Dodge Ram with dark wheels, and had a bum passenger side brake light. It all came down on March 1, 2023, at around 7:30 p.m. at a business in Tomball. The Reflection bore a Texas plate, B550773. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office would like to have information. Call them at 936-760-5800.
The case of the purloined Phaeton is nearly Sherlock Holmes-worthy. Not only did someone break the lock on the gate, they somehow overcame the alarm system for the garage in which the 2016 Class A Tiffin Phaeton was snoozing. It all took place in Lakewood, Colorado, last Monday, March 13. The big motorhome was wearing 2016 South Dakota license plates, 1BW-049. Know something? Got a tip on the Tiffin? Call the police at 303-980-7300.
Did someone rip off your ride? Let us post information on your stolen RV. Email Russ (at) rvtravel.com.
Latest fuel prices
Here are the latest U.S. average prices per gallon of gasoline and diesel fuel as of March 13, 2023:
Regular unleaded gasoline: $3.46 [Calif.: $4.73]
Change from week before: Up 7 cents; Change from year before: Down 86 cents.
Diesel: $4.25 [Calif.: $5.31]
Change from week before: Down 4 cents; Change from year before: Down $1.00.
Brain Teaser
It’s in the church, but not in the steeple; it’s in the person, but not in the people; it’s in the oyster, but not in the shell; it’s in the clapper, but not in the bell. What is it?
(Answer in tomorrow’s Sunday RV Travel newsletter. And please don’t spoil it for other readers by posting the answer in the comments.)
Upcoming RV shows
Click here for a directory of upcoming shows.
Recipe of the Day
Corned Beef Hash
by Tammy Bovender
We loved this rustic corned beef hash recipe. It has crispy potatoes, deliciously seasoned corned beef and caramelized onions. Everything cooks together until the flavors marry beautifully. It’s a savory dish that’s made even better with a fried egg on top. Delicious comfort food! If you have leftover corned beef from St. Patrick’s Day you can use that.
The Perfect Scam Podcast
Every Saturday we present a podcast from AARP about scams and how crooks are stealing your money, often via telemarketing. Their efforts are often most successful with people 65 years and older who fall victim to the scammers’ sophisticated techniques. Here is this week’s episode.
Trivia
Sometimes visitors at Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona, break the rules, and the law, by taking rocks home as souvenirs. But then, according to rangers, they often mail the stolen rocks back to the park, along with a note of apology.
Don’t take those rocks—or anything else, for that matter—from anywhere!
Laugh of the Week
Today in History
RVtravel.com All-Star Team
Publisher: Chuck Woodbury. Editor: Emily Woodbury. Associate editor: Diane McGovern. Senior editors: Russ and Tiña De Maris. Senior writers: Nanci Dixon, Gail Marsh, Dave Solberg. Contributors: Roger Marble, Dave Helgeson, Janet Groene, J.R. Montigel, Randall Brink, Karel Carnohan DVM, Cheri Sicard, Dustin and Ashley Simpson, Dale Wade, Paul Lacitinola and Jeff Clemishaw. Special projects director: Jessica Sarvis. Moderators: Gary Gilmore. Financial affairs director: Gail Meyring. Special Reports: Bradford Geer. IT wrangler: Kim Christiansen. Artificial (AI) contributors: Johnny Robot and Milly MacWilly. Canine Mascots: Archie and Astor “the Disaster”
Everything in this newsletter is true to the best of our knowledge. But we occasionally get something wrong. We’re just human! So don’t go spending $10,000 on something we said was good simply because we said so, or fixing something according to what we suggested (check with your own technician first). Maybe we made a mistake. Tips and/or comments in this newsletter are those of the authors and may not reflect the views of RVtravel.com or this newsletter.
RVtravel.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Regardless of this potential revenue, unless stated otherwise, we only recommend products or services we believe provide value to our readers.
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I drive the highway where the trailer rolled because he hit a pothole a fair amount. First of all, he was weaving in and out of traffic on a very steep hill. Secondly, in the winter in Colorado there is going to be potholes. You need to be on the look out for them. From the video I would say he was going WAY to fast for that hill.
Had to do a quick Google Maps search to discover that not only will that proposed Caesars RV Park be in Danville, VA, (about midway between Martinsville and South Boston along the VA/NC border) but also that it will likely be downwind from the local sewer treatment plant.
Thus the cheap land…
I fine it hilarious and infuriating the “government” would condemn Mexican pharma after what they have done to us and the world over the last 3 years. Hypocrites!
I politely suggest the RV shows listing be trimmed by date each time it is republished. There is a lot of scrolling to get past long gone opportunities.
Shoot! Thanks for the reminder, Jim. I’ve cleaned it up a bit and I’ll work in there today to update the show listings. Very sorry! (My 76-year-old brain has been busy trying to unscramble all the changes involved in switching the weekend newsletters around and I neglected the RV show list in the process. 😯 ) Have a great day. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Passing a snow plow, while towing a camper no less! A little pickup towing a camper at 75 miles an hour over Loveland pass in the winter! Hmm, it would appear that Darwin is actively culling the herd.
Five RV spots at a Love’s truck stop? And, you can “only” stay there for a max stay of 28 days? Wouldn’t THAT be fun! Some dates are already filled too. $42/night. I guess there IS a call for this. Maybe because it’s in FL where RV parks are notoriously filled (or so we hear).
Yesterday, in Perry, Ga, regular gas dropped below $3.00 at most retailers. You’all come South.
$2.72 here in Tulsa. But, it’s Tulsa so…. I’ll gladly pay $3.65 at Costco back home in Seattle.
Gas was over $5.00 a gallon for, regular,at some stations yesterday here in wonderfull souther California. Makes me want to cry 😞
Makes me glad I have a MH on the Sprinter chassis.