RV Park owner comments about Wal-mart freeloaders
(July 11, 2003)
Dear Chuck,
Thanks for another great letter.
I have just lived through a busy 4th as a park owner/operator and even though I haven't expressed an opinion on any of the pros and cons for the Wal Mart boon dockers, I have a good one to share with you. If it's convenient for you to put it where it can be read, feel free to do so but using my name and location might not be good business policy for me!
Don't drive up to the front door of a park in a many hundreds of thousands of dollars motor home, towing a $30,000 vehicle and tell me that you can't afford my $25 fee. (They are as level as the floor and all are full hook ups with 50 amp at each one.) Then to add insult to injury, when I show you to a dry site with an absolutely gorgeous view of our mountains and national park for $12 a night, don't ask if that includes using my bath house.
I admit that I find the situation a bit ambiguous and make no bones about the fact that cleaning behind you plus furnishing you with hand soap, paper towels, and teepee because you don't want to pay for a site sort of touches a raw nerve. I would expect occupants of a ragged out 1972 Winnie to not really be able to afford to pay, but get serious and tell me that you just don't want to pay for hookups. It's OK with me.
Is there a particular reason that the RVers I read the most about are the ones that are looking for something for nothing?
Thanks. -- NRH
Dear NRH
You make very good points, and I'm sure many RVers would agree with you.
Personally, I'm not fond of the Wal-Mart squatters — the ones that do it for sport and brag about how they never pay for a campground. My feeling is that if an RVer is stuck without a place to stay, or driving far out of their way just to find a sleeping place is inconvenient, then if a Wal-Mart is nearby, what the heck? Pull in, grab some sleep and get going.
But you have a problem —and it is not you, specifically, because it seems you really provide a good service — the $12 dry camping option is a superb service for folks on a budget or who just don't need hookups. But your industry hasn't got it together: I've gone out of my way to stay in an RV park, only to find the description in the guidebook doesn't match the dump I find when I show up. Hookups are on the wrong side of the rig or too far to reach. The grass isn't cut, sites aren't level and there are a bunch of transients parked nearby for months on end in shabby rigs.
This is worst case, of course, but it happens often enough that RVers think twice about going out of their way to an RV park they have never heard of, when they know exactly what they will get at a Wal-Mart, and without putting money in the bank account of an RV park owner who doesn't care for his customers, only about making a buck.
KOAs are not cheap, but they are consistent, and that's why they do well. I did a national media tour on behalf of the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association a few years ago and when we learned early in the day that we would be staying that night at a KOA we were thrilled. Half of the other parks we were booked into were lousy, in terms of facilities, service and/or location. KOAs, on the other hand, were clean, easy to find and most had a playground for my little girl.
A guy like you, who offers good value, probably receives a lot of repeat business. And you deserve it. But others who don't place such respect on their customers, don't get a second visit, so they don't make very much money, and therefore don't improve their facilities citing lack of funds. And they love to complain about all those damn RVers who stay at Wal-mart who don't support them.
Chuck
Response to the letter above from a reader
I think he should have put in his name and location. We haven't paid less than $35 a night in a commercial campground and the last KOA was over $52 with water and electricity. With what he offers,his camground sounds like a bargain, and I'm probably not the only reader who would go there.
We travel alot with our fifth wheel, since our kids are kayak racers and race all over the country. We've stayed at lots of state, national and county parks, private campgrounds, some nice KOAs, rest areas that we pull into at 11 pm and leave at 6 am and yes, some Wa-lmarts. They serve a purpose for us — a place to get off the road. I still remember trying to find a state park in Gary, Indiana late one night, me an exhausted driver, the kids trying to figure out maps and where we were and stopping at a convenience store where the clerk could not speak English and the others in the parking lot were talking about if we knew where we were. What I would have given for a friendly Wal-mart!
I have come to believe that RVers in this country are just as diverse a crowd as any other group you could put together. The ones who take pride in "camping" in Walmarts aren't going to change any more than the slob "campers" who think someone else should pick up their trash, or those who throw trash in a pit toliet. Each camper needs to be looked at for their own merits and not stereotype them all together.
Maybe what the owner needs to do is the right kind of advertising — and maybe a sign with his business merits next to the Wal-mart would suit everyone better.
RVer Mom in Montana
How do I earn money on the road?
July 8. 2003)
Dear Chuck,
My wife and I are seriously considering purchasing an RV to hit the road, at least part time. I was wondering if you could offer some insight or sources of information on ways to earn money while on the road. Also do you have any good tips on Internet businesses?
I am retired but my wife is still working and I am trying to come up with ways of earning extra money.
Jimbo Jett
Dear Jimbo Jett,
An easy question to answer: Definitely get Jaimie Hall's superb book Supporting Your RV Lifetyle. It's the only book you will need. You may also want to subscribe to Workamper News, which has valuable information as well as job listings.
Best of luck.
Chuck
Quit bragging!
(July 8, 2003)
Thank you for giving me your life history of being on the road and overseas. Wonderful. But what does that have to with the price of tea in China?
There are some of us that haven't being blessed with the opportunity of doing the things you have. Smart person doesn't brag on what they have being doing. Say little as possible and you may learn what they know about you and respect your lifestyle. Don't rub it in their face.
Regards,
Butch J.
Butch,
Sorry, but the more personal I get the more positive response I get from readers. I wouldn't publish RV Traveler if I couldn't tell some of my favorite RVing stories. Sometimes the stories are about me, sometimes about others, and sometimes about both. I enjoy getting personal with readers, and I think most of them like it, too.
And give me a break. Bragging! You've got to be kidding. Most people are inspired by the stories of a guy who has followed his own life dream and succeeded. "Follow your dreams" has always been my motto. And in years of editing and publishing in the print world, I am responsible for dozens of people giving up boring lives to do what they really wanted for themselves, which sometimes included selling the house, buying an RV and hitting the road.
Best of luck.
Chuck Woodbury
Hi Chuck,
Just wanted to say how much I enjoy reading your newsletter. I'm appauled by people who complain about someone else's success. They themselves are so unhappy, I guess they want everybody else to feel the same way. When I see people who have followed their dreams and been successful, it gives me hope that someday I, too, can live my dreams. I've been through many hardships in my time, but have never given up hope. I believe there is light at the end of the tunnel. Keep us readers inspired. Thanks.
M.W.B.
MORE LETTERS: Readers tell of their fears in the night.
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