Community Forums

chaperon · 12-29-2010, 12:14 AM

OK - here's the story.We came across a good deal on a 98 Mountainaire, we have been camping in a travel trailer before that which was a progression from several other RV's over the years. We love the lifestyle and get away most weekends in summer culminating in a 2 week vacation in August - In the time we have been camping, I can't say we have made any great or lasting friendships and find RV'er to be a little bit offish, most likely because of our age(late 40's)I am wondering if joining such a club as this is for us, as we may not fit in so well. Also the age of our motor home might be a deterent as it is not any where near as fancy as the half million dollar units I see advertised on the Newmar website.Looking for you opinions and comments

GaryKD · 12-29-2010, 05:35 AM

Hi chaperon,
You have a very good question. I had the same question in 1978 when we purchased our first coach. It was a Winnebago Brave. The wife and I were about 31 years old with two small kids.

All I can tell you is to check out the various organizations, as a guest. Determine which one is a fit for you. This is what we did. We tried FMCA, WIT and a few others. We determine their members were older folks who had a different life style and social needs than us. We joined Good Sam and a local chapter. The GS organization and chapter were more family (with kids) orientated.

I'd like to think the NKK would be something you would be interested in. We are now in Florida. The NKK Florida state director has a Mountain Aire older than your coach. The NKK International Director (the top dog in the NKK) has a Dutch Star within a couple of years of your coach. I guess the bottom line is each chapter of the NKK has a different flavor. This provides choice for members to easily find a fit.

In the NKK forum I post the Sea Turtle chapter rally season. If you are in Florida, I invite you to join us for a rally or two. PM or email me for details. You can also contact the NKK HQ office at 877-639-5582. Ask them for information about Klub activities in your area. They may direct you to the Klub web site at Welcome to Newmar Kountry Klub. There you can find out all the Klub details.

If you would like additional information about the NKK, PM or email me.

jhagedon · 12-29-2010, 09:57 AM

Hi Chaperone:

Thanks for starting this thread! GaryKD covered a lot of your concerns, but I wanted to share our personal experiences, especially concerning the Newmar Kountry Klub - Newmar's Company-sponsored club for Newmar owners.

We purchased our first Newmar in 2001 and attended our first International Klub Rally in 2002. I didn't want to go, thinking much as you did. My wife, Sue, talked me ito it, and we had a great time. As luck would have it, we were parked with three other first-timers and two of the three are still good friends. We continued to attend rallies and take on various Chapter and Region responsibilites, and have met some wonderful people along the way.

Currently, I serve on the Klub's Board of Directors as Member-at-Large - a Klub member-elected position, representing our member's interests at the Board level. I can tell you that from a Klub standpoint, we recognize that attracting younger members is vital, if we are going to continue to be a thriving organization. We have a small, but steadily increasing number of members who are still working. We are doing our best to gather input from them and do what we can to meet their needs.

As GaryKD suggested, I would visit www.newmarkountryklub.com. There you can read copies of the Konnection magazine and check out our Calendar of Events. There are a lot of activities, including breakfast and luncheon get-togethers in "showbird" areas. Since you are in Florida, GaryKD would be a good contact to help you find an active Klub chapter in your area. I'm sure they would be glad to help you get active.

Finally, a "commercial message" on behalf of the Klub. There are many benefits to joining, but from a pure "dollars and cents" standpoint, you will easily recoup the cost of your dues, just in what you learn about your rig from talking to other Newmar owners. We have a saying that "nobody knows more about your Newmar than another Newmar owner," and, from owning Newmar rigs for nearly 10 years, and 150,000 miles of driving, I can tell you that is absolutely a true statement!

We would love to have you as a Klub member and hope to see you somewhere "down the road!"

read & learn · 12-30-2010, 08:24 AM

Chaperone
Welcometo the Newmar Kountry Klub section of irv2.
As Gary and Jim have said NKK is a great Klub to belong to and from meeting many members of the land of short summers {Canada} they all have had a great sense of humor and have been fun to be with.

chaperon · 04-02-2011, 10:57 PM

Well we took the plunge and signed up.....sent the payment. Let's see where it goes from here.
Figured I might as well join a club that has the most in common and right now it owning a Newmar.

jhagedon · 04-02-2011, 11:43 PM

Glad to hear you joined. Be sure to check out the Calendar of Events on the Kountry Klub website www.newmarkountryklub.com and plan to attend a rally or two. You will also start receiving a monthly email from the Klub that will help you stay in touch.

There's been a lot of talk about what the benefits are of belonging to the Klub -- and there are many. But the main one, and I think one of the reasons that there are so many Newmar repeat buyers, is because of the wonderful friendships you will make in the Klub.

I think you will really get a lot out of your membership. Hope we can meet up with you on our travels in the not-too-distant future.

chaperon · 04-03-2011, 12:07 AM

Hey Jhagedon,

Thanks for the encouragement and I hope we do cross paths at some point in time.
I just checked out your where are we now link....... very cool, looks like your somewhere nice and warm and dry, seems like an eternity since we were in a climate like that... really makes me hate winter even more

GaryKD · 04-03-2011, 01:09 PM

Hi chaperon,
Welcome to the Klub. Follow Jim's advice and take a look at the webs site to determine where/what activities you'd like to attend. I too hope we meet. If you are in Florida, during January, the Klub has a great rally at the Tampa Super Show. It is usually held in the middle of January.

Route 66 · 04-03-2011, 01:31 PM

I have many Newmar friends that I have met at NKK rallies and we stay in touch from time to time.

One highlight is the iRV2 social at the NKK Tampa Supershow rally in January.

GaryKD hosts this get together where iRV2 (Newmar and other) members attending the show can meet at the Newmar tent.

jhagedon · 04-03-2011, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chaperon

Hey Jhagedon,

Thanks for the encouragement and I hope we do cross paths at some point in time.
I just checked out your where are we now link....... very cool, looks like your somewhere nice and warm and dry, seems like an eternity since we were in a climate like that... really makes me hate winter even more

You know what's really weird? If you look at the satellite view of our location, you will see our RV parked in front of the house! The satellite pass just happened to grab the image on one of the few days we had the rig there!

wa8yxm · 04-04-2011, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chaperon

OK - here's the story.We came across a good deal on a 98 Mountainaire, we have been camping in a travel trailer before that which was a progression from several other RV's over the years. We love the lifestyle and get away most weekends in summer culminating in a 2 week vacation in August - In the time we have been camping, I can't say we have made any great or lasting friendships and find RV'er to be a little bit offish, most likely because of our age(late 40's)I am wondering if joining such a club as this is for us, as we may not fit in so well. Also the age of our motor home might be a deterent as it is not any where near as fancy as the half million dollar units I see advertised on the Newmar website.Looking for you opinions and comments

Well, you say "A club such as this" I"m not sure what club you are talking about... Wife and I do full time, our rig is now six years old, Traded up from a trailer that was somewhat older than our daughter when she ws in her 20's so I know how it is to camp with an older rig.

We belong to a couple of membership campgerounds. and We have mde some long term friends, epically in the 2 years we have been full timing (Ok, it's not two years for another 11 days). But then due to budget restrictions we are not traveling as widely as we would like.

We also have friends we have made via comptuer forums not all of whic hare RV related and via Ham Radio (Which I do).

So if "A club like this" means this forum.. WELCOME TO THE CLUB!