There were 73 attendees (six of which were “solos”) at the rally and the facilities at River Bend Resort were excellent and the involvement from a local RV company—Guaranty RV was incredible. They provided an hour of free on-site service to all attendees to get minor issues dealt with as well as a free roof inspection...not to mention, the day they provided for us at their facilities (read on to find out more about it).
The rally didn’t actually start until Tuesday (18) so on Monday, Steve and I thought that we would drive the 20 miles into Eugen (Springfield, actually...a suburb) to the Cabelas store. It was a very smokey day (from the fires in Washington)...This time it was Steve who came out with lots of stuff...he now has his birthday present and Christmas present...outfitted with Simms Gortex chest-waders and a 4-piece fly rod and case that can go on the quad. I guess it wasn't all about Steve....I finally got the lifejactket I wanted! Rather than the bulky type, it is quite streamline and inflates automatically when it hits the water.
After Cabelas, we stopped at Costco so that I could order my contacts and pick up a few things...we also had to have lunch, of course! On our way home we stopped at a Chevron station to fuel up with diesel...the cheapest Steve was able to find in the area at $4.19/gallon cash ($4.29 credit). I went inside to get cash out of the ATM but after paying the admin charge of $4 for two transactions, I really don’t know if it was worth it...probably should have collected our TD travel points instead by charging it. The beautiful Willamette River...
Quite a few rally attendees had arrived during the day and
that evening we all met around the fire pit so that Linda and Howard could
solicit some volunteers for various things that would need to be done tomorrow
before rally registration started tomorrow afternoon. With so many people, we didn’t bother with a
campfire...no one would have been able to get anywhere near it!
Tuesday morning I drove the truck into Junction City (5 miles) to Safeway so that I could finish grocery shopping. When I got home I put the groceries away and went over to the banquet room to see what I could do to help Linda. I spent the next hour or so separating name tags and stuffing them into plastic holders. Steve was put to work putting together info sheets with everyones name that could be displayed on their rigs as RV-Dreams attendies. It was very enjoyable working with fellow volunteers...just the start of a lot of great friendships that were starting to blossom.
Registration opened at 2:00 and Rose and I were at the start
of the greeting table welcoming people and handing out name tags, lanyards and
RV-Dreams carry-all bags.With only a few stragglers left to come in, we were all dismissed just after 4:30...time for a little relaxation before getting ready for the catered dinner of BBQ Pulled Pork & Chicken.
Howard and Linda always open their rallies with a song...sung by Linda...”Me and My Gang” by Rascal Flatts (I believe).
After welcoming everyone to the rally, it was time to start calling table numbers for dinner...our table was first!
We had a great evening...the icebreaker was especially funny—2 teabags taped to a baseball cap and you had to swing the bags up so they landed on the brim and stayed there. Not a very easy task let me tell you but it was sure fun watching people trying to do it! Here is Linda showing everyone how to do it...
...and Steve trying it out at his table (we were all separated to random tables)...
The “champions” from each table were then called up to have a “playoff”...it was all too funny! Steve was up for his table...(see him?...he's second from the right)...
Wednesday morning started with coffee and donuts at 7:30 followed by a seminar put on by SkyMed Insurance. The rest of the morning continued with seminars put on by Howard and Linda...’No Right Way To Full-Time—Evaluating The Options’; ‘Emotional Aspects of the Full-timing Decision’; and ‘What Does It Cost to Full-Time?’
Howard and Linda...
After lunch on our own, the afternoon continued with a two-part session of ‘RVing Basics’. A lot of information packed into a day and even if we have been full-timing for over 27 months now, we still learned something from each seminar...there was always some tidbit of new information.
“School” ended at roughly 4:30 and we all sauntered back to
our rigs (or hotel rooms...there were a few attendees who had booked rooms,
either because they chose not to bring their RV or because they hadn’t yet
bought one). I was rather exhausted but
we had an hour and a half to rejuvenate before returning to the banquet room
for a catered dinner of pizza and salad.After dinner, there was a “Show & Tell” of favourite RV accessories, gadgets and toys. Lots of interesting...and some very funny...things were shared!
Thursday morning started with coffee at 7:30 again. The seminars this morning were ‘Understanding RV Extended Warranties’; ‘Buying an RV—Pros, Cons & Must Haves’; and ‘RV Weight & Tire Safety’. I played hooky so that I could get 2 trays of lasagne made for the potluck dinner tonight. I also managed to get 3 loads of laundry done at the same time so it was a very productive morning for me.
I joined in for the rest of the day’s seminars (okay, most of them)...’Working on the Road’; and ‘Boondocking Basics’ but left Steve to attend ‘Solar Savvy with Greg Holder from AM Solar’ alone. I headed back to the fifth-wheel to put the final touch on the lasagne (i.e. cheese) and get them in the ovens....I put one in Linda’s oven since they are right next door...thanks for the use of your oven, Linda!
That evening was the potluck dinner and what an array of dishes we had! So much food and soooo good!
After dinner it was “game time”...Road Tested is an RVing
twist on the old popular TV game show The Newlywed Game...and it was too
funny! Of course, Steve and I were among
the first contestants...we didn’t get one answer right! I haven’t laughed so hard in a long
time...what great fun!What a day we had on Friday! It was cloudy for a change which was just fine but very unusual after the long stretch of sunshine that we had been having. Two big motorcoaches arrived to transport those who did not want to drive themselves over to Guaranty RV. They have over 300 employees, 36 work bays and sixty million in inventory (a third of what they used to have when the economy was better) on 28 acres!
There we were escorted into a big conference
room where there was coffee, donuts, muffins, etc. After filling up, we all took seats for their
“RV 101” seminar. It was very well done with
some of the best explanations on everything from batteries to black water
tanks. Not being particularly interested
in any of that stuff, I found myself very impressed with the way Tim was able
to explain things using terms that were both humorous and understandable.After the seminar we were transported down to another “Guaranty RV facility” about a mile down the road where we were treated to a wonderful BBQ lunch.
After lunch we had a choice of going to a driving course where we could test drive Class A’s, Truck & Fifth-Wheel, and Truck and Travel Trailer; or tour their many locations in the Junction City area looking at motorhomes, fifth-wheels, trailers, etc. We chose to go over to their fifth-wheel location and take a look.
We saw some nice fifth-wheels but not any that I would have preferred over ours. Once finished there, we went back to the motorcoach location (where we had lunch) and looked through some of the high-end motorhomes...wow! What do you think? Does it suit me?
After our afternoon, Guaranty RV was going to host a social
hour for us...nice! It was going on 3:30 when we went back inside and sat down
at a table to relax...it was a little early, but the girl setting up the table
and getting the beer and wine ready asked Steve if he would like a drink. So, there ended up being a number of us that
got an early start on the social “hour”!We spent a couple of hours chatting about our day and enjoying beer/wine along with some cheese and cold cuts...it was a great day! They also gave very “interesting” shirts away...they were supposed to be for those who test drove the RVs but I managed to get one too. Well, we girls had quite a blast modelling our new shirts!
What fun!
Steve and Howard...
Steve, Dianne, Howard and Linda...
Saturday morning’s seminars started with a couple that Steve and I decided really didn’t pertain to us since we live in Canada...‘Understanding RV Insurance’ and ‘Selecting a “Home Base” and Insurance Considerations’...so we skipped them. It allowed us to have a slow start to the day. At 10:30 we headed over for the last couple of seminars...’Internet on the Road’ and ‘Choosing Campgrounds/RV Parks’.
Saturday afternoon was lots of fun as those who wanted to
open up their RVs for Open Houses. It
was a great way to see other types of RV’s and what modifications had been made
to them. We had our rig open from 2:00
to 3:30 with lots of people coming through...when it was our turn (3:30 to
5:00), we went and looked through a few rigs.
We were late getting started and wanting to relax a bit before the
dinner and dance tonight, we called it quits and went back to our place.
Dinner was another catered event (we are certainly eating
well!!). Tonight it was “Italian” with
lasagne, chicken, Caesar salad, roasted veggies, and cheesy mashed potatoes. It was all very good! After dinner, it was time for the “70’s Theme
Party”...what a blast! It was dance time!
Unfortunately, I did not get individual pictures of all attendees but here are some...
Debra and David...
Rose and Monte...
Sherry and Jesse...
Harry and Vicky (Vicky is not too sure about this "full-timing thing")...
Steve with Gina (a "solo")...
Another "Solo"...DJ...
Bill and Diane...
Dave and Diane (lots of "Diane's" at the rally)...
Maureen and Tony...
Gary and Sandy...
Bob and Karen...
Donna and Allen (aka Ferg)...
John and Janie...
Phil and Theresa...
Camera-man, Monte...
It was a wonderful time and a great way to celebrate our last night with all our new friends!
Sunday morning we all gathered in the banquet room for a
full catered “Farewell Breakfast” at 8:30...it was time for hugs and handshakes
and a few final words from Howard and Linda.We certainly made so many new friends that I know we will meet again as we continue our travels in this wonderful lifestyle! For the host’s perspective on the RV-Dreams Fall Rally, visit Howard and Linda’s journal at RV-Dreams Journal
Most of the attendees left after breakfast Sunday but there were a few stragglers that were staying on for another day or two. We are leaving tomorrow, so we had a pretty laid back day...I was exhausted...it had been a very busy and eventful week!
We said goodbye to Debra and David...they are heading to Lake of the Woods today. They are just loading their SUV into the trailer...now, they are long...69 feet!While we were watching Dave and Debra prepare to leave, we saw some activity on the river...that looks like fun...
There were leftovers from dinner last night so we were told to bring our plates and cutlery over to the banquet room. After dinner, we all gathered around the campfire...as you can see, there are still a number of us left...
Monday, we were all packed up and on our way to get our rig weighed by Howard and Linda. They had set up on a flat area near the entrance/exit to the resort.
It was about 11:30 a.m. when we hit the road...for our 5 mile trip to Guaranty RV in Junction City. The camping area was pretty full but we managed to find a pull-through spot...there was no electricity hookup but that was no big deal. Steve had filled the fresh water tank before we left River Bend RV Resort so we were all good.
After doing a minimal setup (i.e. clear the stuff off the
bed and unstrap the dining chairs), we headed off to Cabelas and Costco...yes,
a repeat of our shopping trip last Monday.
The clerk at Cabelas had grabbed the wrong box off the shelf...they were
Simms chest-waders but they were the cheaper pair that were not made of
Gortex. Of course, we hadn’t noticed
this when we paid for them and it wasn’t until we were home and I was going
over the receipt that I noticed the price difference. I didn’t mind paying less...but they weren’t
the same quality as the Gortex. The GPS
mount that Steve had bought for his ATV wasn’t going to work for him either, so
that had to go back as well.At Costco, I left Steve waiting in the truck while I went in to pick up my contact lenses. The price difference is very significant down here compared to back home. I don’t know what they would cost at Costco in Canada but from my optometrist, I paid $120/box...Costco here in Eugene, $52.49/box...so that’s $105 (one box/6 month supply for each eye) vs $240 plus tax back home. There is also no sales tax in Oregon. So now that we are retired and on a fixed income, that’s a pretty significant savings!
It was going on 5:00 by the time we got back to our fifth-wheel. Steve got the chairs out and we sat with a cocktail enjoying our lovely surrounds...
As it turned out, there were a number of rally attendees getting work done at Guaranty RV after the rally...4 other couples were here...Monte and Rose; Mike and Nancy; Gary and Sandy; and Larry and Bonnie.
After dinner, Steve got the “Campfire in a Can” out and Monte, Rose, Mike, Nancy and Sandy joined us around the fire. So what if we were sitting in a parking lot...still a great time with great people!
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