FMCA, the Family Motor Coach Association, will go on as planned with its March 26-29 International Convention and RV Expo in Tucson, Arizona, despite the threat posed by the coronavirus.
FMCA has weighed the possible consequences and chosen to proceed with the event which, if all goes well, will draw 4,000 RVers or more. The average age of an FMCA member is around 70.
During the convention, members stay at the host facility, the Pima County Fairgrounds, in their homes on wheels, both motorhomes and towables. A variety of daytime and evening entertainment is offered, and attendees have many opportunities to socialize with others who share their love of the RV lifestyle.
POLL: WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
If you were in charge, would you cancel the rally or go on?
Activities range from organized meetups such as morning coffee hour and an ice cream social to afternoon happy hours in the RV parking areas.
One key element of each event is the RV Expo. Major RV manufacturers and dealers bring the latest models and invite convention attendees and members of the public to stop by to take a look. Vendors also display and sell a variety of products and services for the RV lifestyle.
FMCA President Jon Walker offered this explanation to members of why he and his board decided to go on with the event, rather than cancel or postpone it: “You have seen all the news for the past month or two concerning the new coronavirus (COVID-19). When this started to dominate our daily news updates, we immediately began thinking about our event in Tucson and how it might affect us there.
“I can honestly tell you that we have done everything one can do to gather as much accurate, up-to-date information on this virus — and how it might affect our members going to Tucson. We have sought information provided by health officials in Tucson. We have read everything we can from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We have researched what medical experts know about how we can protect ourselves from this virus.
“[My wife] Sondra and I . . . expect to have a great convention. All that will change is that we may not want to hug and shake hands with one another like we normally do. But we will be elbow tapping and dancing around in excitement with our FMCA friends and attendees! We plan to have plenty of hand sanitizer at all our gathering places. We can do all this while following the guidelines below, and while remembering, it STILL is all about having fun!”
Registrations can be made at https://www.FMCA.com and by telephone at (513) 474-3622 or (800) 543-3622 until March 18. After that, RV owners can register upon arrival at the Pima County Fairgrounds. Day passes, which provide admittance only to the RV Expo, will be sold on-site. The day pass for Thursday, March 26, also will be good for Friday, March 27.
##RVT938b
Please be respectful of others, even if you disagree with what they are saying.
We don’t need to call people names or make fun of them. That is disrespectful.
We’re adults here (even if we don’t feel like it).
I encourage all of you to educate yourselves on the Novel Coronavirus outbreak:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Check back often as you make travel plans, the situation is rapidly evolving and recommendations could change. Also, check with local officials as well, some areas of the country may have different recommendations or restrictions in place.
But please, whatever you do, don’t underestimate the seriousness of this outbreak. Please don’t make assumptions based on the flu or other viruses. Arm yourself with as much good information from the CDC and your local health officials as you can.
1st of all, I love rallys and I love RVing – not the point!
I live in Tucson. Mr. Walker and the Board of the Association is putting my community in jeopardy – not good, definitely not smart.
Being home to thousands of snowbirds and RV’ers, Tucson has a very large elderly community.
I have contacted the Pima County Board of Supervisors (where the rally is to be held) and advised them about this huge horde that is headed this way, and asked him to shut it down. If the FMCA doesn’t have the good sense to do it, perhaps the governing body will show them the error of their ways.
Wait for it. CANCELLED. Oh it’s coming.
I would not want to buy a demo unit from the show, they will be like a petri dish if any one is sick.
Seems like a very risky and shortsighted decision to go ahead with the rally I was amazed by the results of the poll. 56% would go ahead with the rally
Here is some relatively current [3/3/20] news from CDC on what over the counter products can kill the Coronavirus at home or in your RV,
“EPA’s Registered Antimicrobial Products for Use Against Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, the Cause of COVID-19.”
https://tinyurl.com/uhvnamp
There is a lot more than just Purell and not every product made by big-name companies such as Clorox, Lysol, etc are approved. BUT maybe not the Purell hand sanitizer. Here is a story on that product > https://tinyurl.com/wv3jlb9
For those concerned about this particular RV gathering. You might also look and the list of RV shows provided by RV Travel here> https://www.rvtravel.com/2018-rv-shows-in-the-usa-and-canada/
I would suggest some consistency with your travel or eating out or entertainment plans.
I did science as a career for 40 years, and science is what we should be paying attention to. The world’s scientists on this issue say that this virus is most problematic to seniors, to individuals with compromised immune systems (cancer, pneumonia, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, already sick from any other disease, etc. etc.). The World Health Organization and the CDC say we need to be avoiding unnecessary crowds and interaction with those that might have been exposed to COVID-19. FMCA is going to attract RVers from around the country and world….. in large groups of people in multiple venues. It is clear to me that the recommendations from those who “know” the issues here is to not have gatherings like FMCA right now. If the mayor of Austin can cancel a much larger and profit-oriented event such as South by SouthWest in Austin a week before it begins (with the economic ramifications of that move to all involved) due to the risk of spreading the COVID-19 virus widely, FMCA should have no problem cancelling the gathering in Tucson. Pay attention to what the scientists are saying about this issue …. not some talking head with an opinion.
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
Stay informed, keep on truckin’. Strawberry Festival just rapped up in Florida. Sun n Fun fly in is up coming. Baseball Spring training is in full swing. Beaches are beautiful. Wash your nasty hands, lets have some RVing fun!
Some statistics, now this info is a couple weeks old it might have changed a bit. Approximately 2% who become infected die. That’s extremely low (I wouldn’t buy a lottery ticket on those odds). Of that 2%, 80% are over 60 years old. CDC just came out this week advising those over 60, and those that are immunocompromised should avoid crowds.
20 seconds of thorough hand washing, is light years head of hand sanitizer.
If someone gets sick, tested positive, expect to be quarantined.
I’m 75 and in reasonably good health with no respiratory problems. I am going to Tuscon and will even be giving four presentations, so I will be in meeting rooms. I see the convention as quite different than a cruise ship since many will be eating in their own RV and spending a reasonable amount of time outdoors and not cooped up in a casino. Hand sanitizer and reasonable precautions are called for but I don’t hear anyone calling for Broadway to shut down yet? Or closing of restaurants or movie houses.
IMO it’s pretty hard to justify a call to start looking for an “ambulance chaser” given the health officials have not called for closing all events and gatherings across America.
Chuck may be a little more sensitive to the question of where to travel as he covered in his earlier post about not traveling home to an identified “hot spot” in Washington. Wondering if some feel that the gathering at Quartzite will result in dozens of sick people?
One thing I will do differently that I have not heard about from others is that when I stop for fuel along the way from Ohio is I will use some of the latex gloves I have for managing my dump tanks and wear the gloves when handling the fuel hose as that would almost be like direct contact with someone else’s hand.
The ad for FUNTOWNRVOK.COM, did the RVTRAVEL staff insert the photo of the red truck camper? It’s a European model of truck camper. I guess I expect a US based publication to use North American built vehicle photos. Or I would ask the ad agency to use NA vehicles.
I understand you probably have no control over this. And I’m being a little picky. Love all the articles & I refer others to your site. Please keep up the good writing.
I read a piece yesterday in he New York Times (I know that discredits me with 90% of readers here, but stay with me…), that referenced a Harvard study that looked at the swine flu epidemic in 2009. Obama and public health experts warned the public to get flu shots, while Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, and even Trump himself, were saying this was a nothingburger, government overreach and whatnot. As a result, Democrats got flu shots at rates that were about 50% higher than Republicans. The result was that death rates from the swine flu were much higher in the red states than blue states.
I see this playing out again. The people who trust experts and “believe” in science (science doesn’t need you to believe in it to work, btw) understand that this is a dangerous disease, especially for older people, and that the precautions being recommended are necessary. The people who trust the guy running the country believe that “it’s just the flu.” I don’t want to see it happen, but this whole thing isn’t going to end well for them.
I’m a FMCA member. I’m not going.
Look on the bright side. We may have an influx of nice gently used motor homes hitting the market in a few months.
Well, the FMCA had three choices … proceed, postpone or cancel. I wonder what the legal ramifications will be if this gathering results in being ground zero for spreading Covid-19.
Hand sanitizer won’t help if someone that is infected (and, they may not know they are infected) coughs or sneezes in close proximity of others.
Is it really worth taking such a risk just to have fun?
Probably the only way to mitigate the financial contracts would be for Tucson to step up and forbid it,
You know, the H1N1 (Swine Flu) pandemic in 2009-10, there were an estimated 61million diagnosed in the US and 12,469 deaths in the US. The flu killed 61,000 in the US during the 2017-18 season with an estimated 45 million diagnosed. Not aware of a rally being cancelled. I’m all for being pragmatic and cautious, but think we have a ways to go to get to these levels. Wash your hands, cover your coughs and sneezes. Stay home if you are sick.
Simple business decision. If they cancel the rally they must pay back registration fees. Hold the rally and those who decide not to attend have no refund coming.
As always… Money drives the bus!
What happens if there’s a case diagnosed there? Is it going to be a repeat of the cruise ship fiasco where everyone is quarantined until every last person is tested? Can’t have all those potentially exposed folks scattering to the four winds.
FMCA’s decision to proceed with the event is a stunning example of poor judgment.
It is dangerous and reckless to ignore the CDC’s guidelines. Older people should avoid large gatherings! Why endanger the lives of the FMCA membership (as well as the larger American community)?
Please, FMCA, postpone the event until we can all be safe!
Photo is Perry, GA rally. I can find my RV.
Yes, I’m going. Some concern. We are still in good health and will avoid some of the very large scale gatherings. Have excellent hand sanitizer.
I think the key to the success of events like this is the average age of the attendees. I have already canceled another rv rally reservation due to the fact that my wife has medical conditions that make her very susceptible to any respiratory problems. The younger and healthier attendees can take the chance.