Too big sometimes

[grr2000]

The Corolla is a manual transmission and we flat tow. It is very light weight and tows very well. power it on, put in neutral and good to go. Wish it was automatic but can live with manual.

[Gary.Jones]

Yep, you probably can't have it both ways....

Maybe it is age, but I have a high school buddy that just bought and rebuilt a Volkswagen camper vintage from the 1970s and he and his wife and three dogs travel in it on fairly long trips. I "love" my buddy, but my wife and I simply shake our heads in disbelief at what they go through to accommodate actually living and traveling in their camper. The last time we were into our dealer for repairs, we got the brochures for some of those RoadTreks and Forrest River class "C"s and you are right, there are a lot of places that you just can't stop and park one of these big rigs flat-towing a car..... you just have to pass them by and write them off temporarily. However, we concluded quickly that we were just not the people at our age to try to move all of our stuff around just to tear down the bed to make the table to eat, or move it all around again to actually lay down for a nap or to sleep and to use the toilet in the size of facilities that are available in those rigs is just a non-starter for us. No way .... moving a few things around to get ready to depart or arrive has become a well worn "program" and we can get ready to roll in roughly 30 minutes or conversely, 30 minutes to stretch out and "live" for a while after arriving. It becomes automatic... maybe you haven't done it enough.

By the same token, what motorcoaching is about for us is visiting places we have not been..... we are not past the "marauding stage" of RVing. There is a possibility that we will move into a new phase which is simply spending a lot more time in one place, avoiding the winters or the sweltering heat of the summer. When we move into that stage, moving will be less an issue... maybe you are past the marauding stage, and simply "into" the sitting phase. If you want to see and visit new things, then the getting up and going is just part of the process.

And, we pass the ice cream stand in the bus because there is no room, but the whole reason that we flat tow the Honda, is that we virtually unhitch the Honda every night we travel, even if just overnight, because a big part of the traveling is finding a good restaurant or bar with good draft beer available, and treating ourselves to a nice meal and a cold Irish red after a long day on the road. If an ice cream cone is on the docket, the Honda takes us to all the places we passed on the way to wherever we now are, and we still enjoy, but in the Honda. Takes an additional 10 minutes to unhitch and rehitch the next morning, but frees us up to take advantage of the little places, or we hunker down and stay an extra day or two and visit the neat places we passed in the bus, while we are in the Honda.

One final issue... we realized that maybe State Parks and National Forrests were not our cup of tea after all. We last did a big park (Custer State Park) a couple of weeks ago.... we found there was only one campground that could handle our 45' to begin with, and although we had 4 or 5 days in that campground, we were the biggest rig in there by probably 15' and probably were three or four times more costly a rig than anything else that was there (simple fact). Plus, hate to say it, but we don't fish, don't usually swim, don't want to shower in the campground shower, walk a hundred yards to "take care of business" in a clean facility, don't have 5 to 8 year old grand children with us, or need bike trails, etc. etc. So, we have pretty much concluded that we will be patronizing the private RV parks near the national and state forests, and visiting them by Honda, not by Cornerstone. We have decided that our Cornerstone feels more comfortable in those RV parks also.

Different strokes for different folks.... but we are definitely still into "big" and "convenient" at this stage of our lives. Your values may differ...... - You could pull a RoadTrek behind the coach..

Gary

[GeezerViz]

We did not get rid of the "small" 34' Fleetwood gasser (we call it the Hillbilly) for some of the reasons you state. When in town we like to take the Hillbilly camping with friends and family. It will go places where I wouldn't even think of taking my 44W. The Entegra is for touring. When touring we won't be moving more than 250 miles in a day and staying for multiple nights for exploring. Both coaches are fully outfitted with everything we need, so getting ready to go somewhere only requires adding some clothes, food, and drink.

[Gary.Jones]

Hmmmmmmm... definitely getting older. some part of my lower brain kept saying softly “you better check the definition of marauding in my post above”. Well I did, and I was right that it meant wandering around looking at things, but for nefarious or illegal purposes. Well, then Dee and I gave up marauding a few years ago, and now retired, just “sight see”. Staying in front of the police was too much effort.

Gary

[Butte64]

Originally Posted by Gary.Jones

Hmmmmmmm... definitely getting older. some part of my lower brain kept saying softly “you better check the definition of marauding in my post above”. Well I did, and I was right that it meant wandering around looking at things, but for nefarious or illegal purposes. Well, then Dee and I gave up marauding a few years ago, and now retired, just “sight see”. Staying in front of the police was too much effort.

Gary

Thanks for the clarification! I was wondering what mischief you were getting into. [emoji41]

[56corvette]

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the responses and thank you for them. They really set me to thinking what the motor homing is all about. I’ll work harder to get my head on straight and realize how fortunate we all are to be driving vehicles like these.
I think the best response though was “DeeGee” telling “Lowejug” to come and visit since he likes to clean so much. Heck, he could just keep moving around to all of us. Thanks again to all and as we said with the big rigs, “keep The shiny side up”

[hdgoldie]

But I have to ask...if your toad is a Class B, will you still be welcome at Class A only resorts? Wonder how they would handle that???

[rbr]

Originally Posted by hdgoldie

But I have to ask...if your toad is a Class B, will you still be welcome at Class A only resorts? Wonder how they would handle that???

I’ve see that come up in a class-A only place. Had to be parked on the site with the big coach like a toad, could not be hooked up to utilities, and no overnite sleeping allowed. i.e. Use it like you would a toad while in the park and there’s no issue.

[Matt D]

In 2 years we’ve put over 28,000 miles on our coach. We’ve done more, gone further, faster than our previous coach could have managed.

When we travel, we pull an F-150 that is frequently stuffed with a golf cart. To say we have a rolling circus isn’t unfair.

Sometime being the ringmaster gets a bit tiresome.

Let’s downsize.

To an Airstream (long time dream).

Ok, so now my DW has her knees cramped in the truck, and needs to stop and stretch every hour or she’s hurting. The kids do pretty good with our 70# pup in between, but I wonder how far across country we’d get with the three of them hip to hip.

As a result, it might take us 2 days to make 600 miles. It would help to stop in a rest area and catch a nap, except I’d need a portable generator to power the A/C. Also, everyone has to troop back to the trailer and beds must be made up.

My favorite way of making miles is to rise early and drive. Unfortunately with a trailer, or Class B/C this is somewhat more difficult as people need to be roused in order to become roadworthy.

I guess what I’m saying is that I wholeheartedly agree with the sentiment that these things are too big, in many ways. However, that size also offers some very tangible rewards, at least for our travel style. Certain aspects of the coach make these long trips much more comfortable for me as the driver.

Planning routes and stops is important, but also offers the unique opportunity to consider options in advance.

As I still work full time, and the kids are still in school, we often flog our rig quite hard in order to maximize our time together. Fortunately, Entegra builds a very comfortable home on wheels and we enjoy those times immensely.

-Matt

P.S. Set up time is crazy fast compared to our 5er. We can easily be set up in 15-30 min., max. Whereas our 5er took an hour. That is a lot of time after a long day.

[okcnewbie]

I sure do enjoy this discussion and the various ways people choose to Glamp, camp and see the country.
We have a Older 29' Class C. I love keeping it ready to go at a moments notice. We've taken it to see Christmas lights, local theme park, hunting lease for the winter and just about any place you can mention. This old beast serves it purpose well.
My brother and his wife just bought a Popup even though they could afford to get anything they want. They still choose to just take the jeep on many trips. They are in Montana (or one of those states) now lakeside. So many different ways to see our great country.
I retire in 1 1/2 years (at 56) and have been saving and planning on my dream DP. As the time gets closer and closer I have to answer some questions; Can I live with a 5-10k depreciation per year? In my mind I'm planning on offsetting the loss each year by the value of a few rental houses going up. Do I like camping and sight-seeing more or staying put? Do we keep the S&B's. Plus many more questions.... If my wife agrees than I would love to FT for at least 5 years and then maybe buy another home if we're ready to settle again. With family in Texas, Florida and Michigan I'm pretty sure we'll get the DP and plan to spend time in each of these great locations. I guess the good thing is that we planned financially and have options. I still can't believe I'm that close to retiring.

[GeezerViz]

Before we purchased our rig, I asked a couple of questions on this forum. 1) is 45 feet too long? The overwhelming response was "no". The response I liked the best was "long when going down the road, short when parked". That prompted my next question 2) what is more important, driveabilty or livability? The overwhelming response pointed out that we would spend way more time living in the coach than driving it. It was that guidance that lead me to purchase a 45 footer. Will we miss out on a stop here or there? Maybe. I still have my toad. Will we fit in every campground? No way, but hopefully I can get close to where I want to be. Will I be comfortable when parked? Heck yes! Am I worried about depreciation? No. I wouldn't purchase a depreciating asset if I was. I'm not going to sell this coach...according to the DW. I too get to retire soon (3.5 months) and hope to see y'all down the road enjoying life.

[KarrVee]

Originally Posted by 56corvette

Wow, thanks for the responses and suggestions. I might mention, I have a class A Cdl and pull fedex doubles to help a friend during the holidays. Obviously I don’t have any problem maneuvering the motor home, but it still takes so much room to park. The DW loves it so I’ll just buck up and quit whining. When we had the monaco, i also had a 25 foot Dynamax Isata but wife didn’t like to pull out sofa for bed and tight to get around the end. Had I to do over, I’d have kept it for myself to run around to reasonable close events that I go to by myself.
By, the way we’ve had a very bad start with the Entegra. So, so many things that didn’t work. The biggest issue was reaching the campground in Casa Grande, walking back to the toad and finding the drive axle had shifted. Bus lowboy took it to Phoenix where we spent a month in a garage there. Shift caused two flat tires, ruined airbags, and many suspension parts. Garage people were terrific to us letting us stay in the motor home and gave us hookups. With the macerater and long hose we even had sewer hookup. Spartan did all they could to help us but because of venders and distance, it took a long time. This all happened because a spartan employee didn’t use proper sequencing when torquing the bolts holding the torsion box up between the rails. What amazed me was I could not tell any difference in how it drove. They said it shifted straight and not twisted is why. I had also done my walk around about 4 hours earlier at a rest area. Sorry to ramble but thought you might find the story interesting. Through all the other problems, Joyce, Jacob and others did their best to help us.

Wow! That sounds like a nightmare! Have you posted about it before? How new was your coach when the axle shifted?

----Jeff

[FreshAir]

Originally Posted by 56corvette

Wow, thanks for the responses and suggestions. I might mention, I have a class A Cdl and pull fedex doubles to help a friend during the holidays. Obviously I don’t have any problem maneuvering the motor home, but it still takes so much room to park. The DW loves it so I’ll just buck up and quit whining. When we had the monaco, i also had a 25 foot Dynamax Isata but wife didn’t like to pull out sofa for bed and tight to get around the end. Had I to do over, I’d have kept it for myself to run around to reasonable close events that I go to by myself.
By, the way we’ve had a very bad start with the Entegra. So, so many things that didn’t work. The biggest issue was reaching the campground in Casa Grande, walking back to the toad and finding the drive axle had shifted. Bus lowboy took it to Phoenix where we spent a month in a garage there. Shift caused two flat tires, ruined airbags, and many suspension parts. Garage people were terrific to us letting us stay in the motor home and gave us hookups. With the macerater and long hose we even had sewer hookup. Spartan did all they could to help us but because of venders and distance, it took a long time. This all happened because a spartan employee didn’t use proper sequencing when torquing the bolts holding the torsion box up between the rails. What amazed me was I could not tell any difference in how it drove. They said it shifted straight and not twisted is why. I had also done my walk around about 4 hours earlier at a rest area. Sorry to ramble but thought you might find the story interesting. Through all the other problems, Joyce, Jacob and others did their best to help us.

Would you mind sharing who you used in Phoenix for the repairs?
Tks, Pat