For more Americans, home's where the RV is
By Clint Williams, Cox News Service
Published March 28, 2007
ATLANTA -- They say you can't take it with you. Dottie and Marion Yancey know better.
The Georgia couple go on the road 30 to 45 days a year and take with them a pair of buttery soft leather sofas, a couple of flat-screen TVs, closets crammed with clothing, cupboards filled with pots, pans, cups, plates and canned goods, bedside table lamps, bicycles and framed photographs of the grandchildren. It's all neatly stowed away in a 40-foot motor home outfitted with Corian countertops, stainless steel kitchen appliances and cherry cabinets.
The Yanceys are longtime members of the growing fraternity of RVers -- owners of travel trailers, fifth-wheel trailers and motor homes.
The volatility of fuel prices seems to have little impact on the sale of RVs. About 385,000 RVs -- everything from $4,000 folding camping trailers to $500,000 buses -- were sold last year, according to the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association.
That is the fifth consecutive year of increased sales. By 2010, an RV of some description will be parked -- metaphorically, at least -- in the driveways of 8.5 million homes, according to the association. That jump from the current tally of just over 7 million will be fueled by the increasing number of folks in the prime RV-buying age range of 55-64.
The Yanceys, both now in their early 60s, bought their first RV long before hitting that age group. They started out small in 1987, buying a pop-up camper -- little more than a tent that folds into a trailer.
"We camped in that pop-up six times, and it rained every time," says Marion Yancey, 64.
And the tent canvas had a tendency to leak, Dottie says.
But they liked camping, so they moved up to a 19-foot, fifth-wheel travel trailer with more room and a hard, rain-proof roof.
The RVs got bigger even as their children grew up and the family got smaller.
"You get to carrying more stuff," Marion says.
The couple started driving a 30-foot motor home in 2002, taking it on a 32-day trip out West to Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Canyon and other big-sky landmarks.
"If we hadn't had the campers or the motor homes, we wouldn't have taken the trips we've taken," Marion says.
Or seen the things they've seen, says Phillip Black, who sometimes travels with the Yanceys as part of an RV convoy.
"You see what God's created along the way instead of just flying right over it," says Black, who drives a 39-foot motor home.
While the scenery changes, the accommodations never do, and that is part of the allure of traveling by RV, Dottie says.
"I like to know who has slept in that bed. I like to know who has stayed in that bathroom," she says.
Not only is traveling by RV more comfortable than staying in motels or hotels, Dottie says, but it's also less expensive because you're able to dine in, cooking meals in the galley of the motor home.
And campgrounds seem to attract the nicest people, RVers say.
"The people who camp are some of the best in the world," Black says. "If you've got a question, if you've got a problem, they will jump in to help."
Having a rolling hotel suite packed and ready to go makes spur-of-the-moment trips easy, say the Yanceys, who recently returned from a few weeks in Florida.
They often head to Florida when it's cold here, or go to the mountains of North Georgia and Tennessee when it's hot.
"We ride bicycles; we walk every day," Marion says. "It's a healthy lifestyle."
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Wednesday, March 28, 2007
For more Americans, home's where the RV is
For more Americans, home's where the RV is
By Clint Williams, Cox News Service
Published March 28, 2007
ATLANTA -- They say you can't take it with you. Dottie and Marion Yancey know better.
The Georgia couple go on the road 30 to 45 days a year and take with them a pair of buttery soft leather sofas, a couple of flat-screen TVs, closets crammed with clothing, cupboards filled with pots, pans, cups, plates and canned goods, bedside table lamps, bicycles and framed photographs of the grandchildren. It's all neatly stowed away in a 40-foot motor home outfitted with Corian countertops, stainless steel kitchen appliances and cherry cabinets.
The Yanceys are longtime members of the growing fraternity of RVers -- owners of travel trailers, fifth-wheel trailers and motor homes.
The volatility of fuel prices seems to have little impact on the sale of RVs. About 385,000 RVs -- everything from $4,000 folding camping trailers to $500,000 buses -- were sold last year, according to the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association.
That is the fifth consecutive year of increased sales. By 2010, an RV of some description will be parked -- metaphorically, at least -- in the driveways of 8.5 million homes, according to the association. That jump from the current tally of just over 7 million will be fueled by the increasing number of folks in the prime RV-buying age range of 55-64.
The Yanceys, both now in their early 60s, bought their first RV long before hitting that age group. They started out small in 1987, buying a pop-up camper -- little more than a tent that folds into a trailer.
"We camped in that pop-up six times, and it rained every time," says Marion Yancey, 64.
And the tent canvas had a tendency to leak, Dottie says.
But they liked camping, so they moved up to a 19-foot, fifth-wheel travel trailer with more room and a hard, rain-proof roof.
The RVs got bigger even as their children grew up and the family got smaller.
"You get to carrying more stuff," Marion says.
The couple started driving a 30-foot motor home in 2002, taking it on a 32-day trip out West to Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Canyon and other big-sky landmarks.
"If we hadn't had the campers or the motor homes, we wouldn't have taken the trips we've taken," Marion says.
Or seen the things they've seen, says Phillip Black, who sometimes travels with the Yanceys as part of an RV convoy.
"You see what God's created along the way instead of just flying right over it," says Black, who drives a 39-foot motor home.
While the scenery changes, the accommodations never do, and that is part of the allure of traveling by RV, Dottie says.
"I like to know who has slept in that bed. I like to know who has stayed in that bathroom," she says.
Not only is traveling by RV more comfortable than staying in motels or hotels, Dottie says, but it's also less expensive because you're able to dine in, cooking meals in the galley of the motor home.
And campgrounds seem to attract the nicest people, RVers say.
"The people who camp are some of the best in the world," Black says. "If you've got a question, if you've got a problem, they will jump in to help."
Having a rolling hotel suite packed and ready to go makes spur-of-the-moment trips easy, say the Yanceys, who recently returned from a few weeks in Florida.
They often head to Florida when it's cold here, or go to the mountains of North Georgia and Tennessee when it's hot.
"We ride bicycles; we walk every day," Marion says. "It's a healthy lifestyle."
By Clint Williams, Cox News Service
Published March 28, 2007
ATLANTA -- They say you can't take it with you. Dottie and Marion Yancey know better.
The Georgia couple go on the road 30 to 45 days a year and take with them a pair of buttery soft leather sofas, a couple of flat-screen TVs, closets crammed with clothing, cupboards filled with pots, pans, cups, plates and canned goods, bedside table lamps, bicycles and framed photographs of the grandchildren. It's all neatly stowed away in a 40-foot motor home outfitted with Corian countertops, stainless steel kitchen appliances and cherry cabinets.
The Yanceys are longtime members of the growing fraternity of RVers -- owners of travel trailers, fifth-wheel trailers and motor homes.
The volatility of fuel prices seems to have little impact on the sale of RVs. About 385,000 RVs -- everything from $4,000 folding camping trailers to $500,000 buses -- were sold last year, according to the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association.
That is the fifth consecutive year of increased sales. By 2010, an RV of some description will be parked -- metaphorically, at least -- in the driveways of 8.5 million homes, according to the association. That jump from the current tally of just over 7 million will be fueled by the increasing number of folks in the prime RV-buying age range of 55-64.
The Yanceys, both now in their early 60s, bought their first RV long before hitting that age group. They started out small in 1987, buying a pop-up camper -- little more than a tent that folds into a trailer.
"We camped in that pop-up six times, and it rained every time," says Marion Yancey, 64.
And the tent canvas had a tendency to leak, Dottie says.
But they liked camping, so they moved up to a 19-foot, fifth-wheel travel trailer with more room and a hard, rain-proof roof.
The RVs got bigger even as their children grew up and the family got smaller.
"You get to carrying more stuff," Marion says.
The couple started driving a 30-foot motor home in 2002, taking it on a 32-day trip out West to Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Canyon and other big-sky landmarks.
"If we hadn't had the campers or the motor homes, we wouldn't have taken the trips we've taken," Marion says.
Or seen the things they've seen, says Phillip Black, who sometimes travels with the Yanceys as part of an RV convoy.
"You see what God's created along the way instead of just flying right over it," says Black, who drives a 39-foot motor home.
While the scenery changes, the accommodations never do, and that is part of the allure of traveling by RV, Dottie says.
"I like to know who has slept in that bed. I like to know who has stayed in that bathroom," she says.
Not only is traveling by RV more comfortable than staying in motels or hotels, Dottie says, but it's also less expensive because you're able to dine in, cooking meals in the galley of the motor home.
And campgrounds seem to attract the nicest people, RVers say.
"The people who camp are some of the best in the world," Black says. "If you've got a question, if you've got a problem, they will jump in to help."
Having a rolling hotel suite packed and ready to go makes spur-of-the-moment trips easy, say the Yanceys, who recently returned from a few weeks in Florida.
They often head to Florida when it's cold here, or go to the mountains of North Georgia and Tennessee when it's hot.
"We ride bicycles; we walk every day," Marion says. "It's a healthy lifestyle."
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