The highway is packed with RV's.. an improving economy for the middle class and blue collars!

[Peacetrain]

Back in 2008, 09, to the beginning of 10.. the number of Rv's you would see on the highway plummeted.. I wrote an op at that time, that you could tell who the economy was hurting the most by the number of RV's running down the road.

I was in Omaha, and then up in Mn a couple of weeks ago.. and the highways are packed, and I mean packed with 5th wheelers and the big RV's (those big RV's are 120,000 easy) but the 5th wheelers..those are the RVs of choice for the middle class and blue collars.. trust me on this.. I was raised in a camping family..


And if you stop at the campgrounds and visit with people.. and start in with politics etc.. every one of them almost to a T will say.. the economy is in the toilet, but we are doing good.. and our friends and family are doing good....but the rest of the economy is awful..

You tell people they are ugly enough.. sooner or later, they are going to start believing they are ugly as sin..

And if you tune in r wing radio and fox news.. it is ugly 24/7

How do we combat that.. by pushing back.. and getting people to talk about why things are good for them.. it just might help

[Rex]

1. Obviously things cannot be bad and good for us all at the same time.

Some disconnection with reality going on imo.

[Peacetrain]

2. Yep!..

[Eleanors38]

3. Most of the folks I know who get those camper/5th wheels are Boomers with retirement.

[Peacetrain]

4. Lots of families here love to camp.. its a fun thing to do with the kids

You have the snow birds.. but many of summer campers in Iowa, Mn Neb.. etc.. those are younger people with families..

[Rex]

5. Same here.

I've yet to meet a 40 year old with their family in an RV. Almost all retired Boomers around here, traveling the country on vacation.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

9. Yep!

That's what I've seen as well.

The good paying union jobs in my area dried up with the baby boomers.

I went to college and earned a double-degree in math and physics, and I still never got paid as well as those baby boomer union guys.

By the way, I'm pro-union! It's just that new labor deals with management didn't leave much for the younger folks back then. Maybe they realized the companies were going to fold anyway?

[Rex]

10. I don't really think they looked ahead far enough to see what the

ravages of predatory capitalism does to a nation. I mean we all use capital, even the Chinese are feeling the effects of runaway GDP growth due to state created jobs that are not productive to the work force. Just more endless growth at the expense of the working class.

No pensions or unions, just contract work at a good hourly rate if you can get it. 32 hours if you can get it, get through an army of for hire recruiters if you can get it. Younger people outsource themselves to other countries, because they can make more money. So things are kinda in reverse imo.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

11. I think this article pretty much sums it up.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281823571_Corporate_Parsitology_101

[Rex]

14. Technology helped accelerate the growth.

I don't know if the host can be revived. Too many easy and cheap creature comforts. IMO, it is not companies but lobbying groups and special interest groups (been around forever) that fuck with something that doesn't belong to them and never will.

Those two groups share one thing in common, they are all anti-society.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

16. Corporations are set up for profit, and that goal is often short-sighted.

I can understand the appeal of corporations. Unlike private companies, the legal set-up often protects owners from lawsuits.

The downsides are numerous, however.

Even if management was extremely kindhearted and far-sighted, the corporate legal requirements would still push them toward profit above all else.

What I've also observed, at least around here throughout my employment history, is that management cares more about kiss-as*es than people who actually work hard. They might be legally required to improve the bottom line, but they don't REALLY care because it's not their money on the line. I've seen co-workers who got promotions who, if an actual owner was overseeing the operation, would've got sh*t-canned instead.

[Eleanors38]

42. I think you are right on this. Despite the descriptor "social networking,"

it appears direct human-to-human contact -- most especially within associations -. is not seen as desireable because it has the real potential to break down the model of masses acting independently to consume. When I was in college 500 yrs ago, the expression was "atomization," whereby a state of "free agents" was encouraged to consume with little regard to social structures. We are now in this age full-bore.

Recently, being frustrated with my inability to discuss "weighty issues" with those around me, I fnally started to preface everything with "Do you discuss politicial or social subjects?" Most of the time I get a vigorous negative answer. I call it "militant apathy." The disposition is certainly wrapped up with style concerns.

[essme]

37. The only two

I know of, are younger than us. Born after '66. Not retired yet.

[Historic NY]

6. The big motor coachs are making a big come back...

They have a lack of reality....I'd bet most have ones that are at least 1- 3yrs old too.

http://www.everything-about-rving.com/what-rv-manufacturers-are-out-of-business.html

http://www.generalrv.com/blog/nationwide-press-rv-sales-rise/ nationwide sales have been on the uptick.

[Peacetrain]

7. Those big motor coaches are unbelievable.. and so blasted expensive

The thing that is so bad about them.. is if the motor goes.. you are out of luck.. whereas with the 5th wheels.. just change trucks, but the camper itself is fine.. and you do not have to haul on a hitch another vehicle in order to get around once you hit the campground..

[ripcord]

22. I feel like I'm going to get run over

Towing my little teardrop trailer.

[Peacetrain]

24. That is what we want to get!!

My husband will retire in the not too distant future and we want a tear drop to take around fishing etc..

[ripcord]

51. I like mine for weekends

Doesn't cost much to tow, I even put an air conditioner in since I spend a lot of time on the desert.

[Historic NY]

46. I saw a couple of new Roadteks last year...

Chevy vans converted they had full upgrades to solar etc. a bit expensive but I want to get on the road and go. Full queen size bed and full bath. Older couples 65+ said it was more than enough room.

http://www.roadtrek.com/models/

[Eleanors38]

43. I don't doubt the figures. Curiously, in Texas, a lot of used auto brokers have a fleet...

of big 4-wheel drive vehicles on hand. Fracking bust, and a lot of oil workers suddenly are out of work, and have let their vehicles go back. Another interesting trend was the inbility to find good used mobile homes AND 5th wheels as these workers absorbed them all. I now expect these trailers to start clogging the system.

[Jim Beard]

49. I was wondering when someone was going to mention the oil patch bust.

The workers had to pay an arm and a leg for a place to live when they got the oil jobs. Now that they are out of work, I see lots of RV parks full.

[loyalsister]

8. Or, maybe they have met some of the people I know

I recently talked with a guy who was panhandling. He told me that he was living in a camper, as in poor mans RV, and hitchhiking back and forth to the city where there were still people out and about.

The economy most certainly is in the toilet for the 24% living in poverty here. Unemployment is 3%, which means many are working their asses off and still having trouble paying rent, feeding their families, and many also find it impossible to buy health insurance. Thus, they are one illness away from homelessness. Minimizing the circumstances under which they are living is not helpful.

[malaise]

12. Thank Obama for those low gas prices

[Buckeye_Democrat]

15. I'm sure that would contribute to it as well! n/t

[scscholar]

17. Good point. That is bad.

People are consuming more now.

[Peacetrain]

25. Ahh yep.. that certainly plays into it..especially for the snow birds.

[Wellstone ruled]

13. Great points of discussion.

Two years ago the running joke on the Super Slab was,everytime you seen a new Motor Coach you checked the State license plate,most came from North Dakota,new Oil Well new 200k R/V. Have a friend that sold these super rigs in Williston,two years ago he couldn't bring them in from the factory fast enough. He has since down sized to mostly inexpensive and used rigs. The boom has busted,but,he has three or four lots in Minnesota where his family has been in business for sixty years. And the new buyers are young families who R/V ed as kids. Once it is in your blood,you have to go R/V ing.

There is a large segment of Retirees that are Nomads,living in their R/V's and migrating across the country working odd jobs or seasonal work to make ends meet. But it is nice to see our Nations Mobility come back after Bush and Cheney wrecked it.

[Peacetrain]

26. I hear that.. my younger brother

is just like my Dad.. he loves rving.. I am not so much in that vein.. I love being outdoors..and as I replied to someone farther up the thread.. we would love a tear drop.. I swear if he could stay on the road 24/7 and just explore the country if he could .. he (my brother) is happiest when doing that..

He brings his RV when he comes to town and we go over to the campground.. and the park is full of young families with kids.. swimming in the pool.. playing mini golf.. its their spa trip so to speak..

The rich and the wealthy can go to foreign ports of calls and stay in great hotels.. doing basically the same thing they are doing at the campground..

[Wellstone ruled]

34. It is

adictive.

[underpants]

18. RV's good example. I've used car traffic on my early morning runs

I was out of work from Sept 2008 to Sept 2009. I still was running to both keep my sanity and stay in shape for interviews. At the time I was running a crazy amount of miles for marathon training.

Typically I'd get up at 4:00 am and get out the door at 5:00am. This is the early shift and people who really work everyday, a real indicator I would think.

In 2008 and 2009 there was NO TRAFFIC. I could go 3-8 miles crossing or running down several major roads in the western 'burbs of Richmond VA and actually not see a single car. Into 2010 it started to pick up. It increased every year. These days I'm only pulling 2's and 3's but the traffic at 5 or 5:30 am is its own mini rush hour. More than it was in 2005 when we moved out here.

[Peacetrain]

27. Wow..

Its amazing how the things around you can almost tell you if the economoy is improving or not..but that would be a great one too.. who is on the road going to work..

[Eleanors38]

44. Noted. I-35 through Austin has been useless for years, practical only during duck-hunting hours,

(before 5 a.m.), but this is evaporating as well. It is a pain in the ass to leave AND get into Austin. Traffic is the single biggest factor restricting my shopping, concert, dining, movie-watching, cultural choices, and even hunting. I have even toyed with spending the night at camp grounds attached to hunting and fishing management areas -- and those areas are 50 - 60 miles away! (Put another way, driving home in the dark in the dark on hugely over-crowded and speedy highways is not what I want to face.)

[Jim Beard]

50. I am too old for 75 mph at night on Texas roads that have not been "stripped" in years

or placed curve signs where needed.

[Eleanors38]

54. I rarely go above 55 at night anyway.

[Liberal_in_LA]

19. k&r for this thread. I live in boat country..lots of folks dragging boats behind big trucks

On the weekend. Someone has money

[Peacetrain]

28. That is right.. the boats going down to the river..

See a lot more of those too now that you mention it

[SunSeeker]

20. K & R

[PasadenaTrudy]

21. Meth cooks

[bluedigger]

23. I think tourist traffic was up around 10% last year at Mesa Verde NP.

RV's are a plague and a pox upon us locals right now.

[Peacetrain]

29. I wonder what it will be like in 5 or 6 years.. because the boomers

are just starting to retire.. boomer here.. my husband will retire hopefully this year.. and we are closer to the start of the boom.. you might get overwhelmed when the boom glut retires.. apologies in advance!

[Buckeye_Democrat]

30. Higher national demand for medical services too.

It's going to be a rough ride!

[Peacetrain]

32. That is true.. but also a higher demand for nurses etc..

If I had money to invest.. which I don't it would be in assisted living communities..

[bluedigger]

35. Just built another motel last year.

We've got three RV parks in town and plenty of room available to build more. I think they might be putting in another 150 space park in Mancos, too.

I just get tired of having to wait ten minutes to pull out onto the highway from our road while they all chug past. My Jeep has no acceleration, either. They'll squish me like a bug if I don't time it right.

[Peacetrain]

41. I hear that.. we are seeing the same thing locally

campgrounds being built.. but I hate getting behind one pulling another vehicle.. when they change lanes I just get so nervous they will take me out

[JonathanRackham]

31. What ever happened to camping in tents?

God bless CO2.

Motor homes would make better shelters for the homeless.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

33. That's what I do. Bivy sacks too. n/t

[SeattleVet]

38. Many 'campgrounds' do not allow tent camping.

Sucks when we pull up on motorcycles and get turned away.

I think I might have to go to one of those RV shows at some point, though - I'd really LOVE to see what the front of one of those things looks like. I've certainly spent enough time on the road looking at the back of one...

[Peacetrain]

39. Seattle, have you looked at a tear drop yet?

Hubby and I are going to get one when he retires.. and I have seen more than one motorcycle pulling a tear drop..

[SeattleVet]

48. Really not a fan of trailering anything behind a bike.

Not really opposed to it; just not for me and my riding style.

A sleeping bag, tent roll, and Therm-a-Rest pad sll strapped behind the seat have been sufficient for many years.

[JaneyVee]

36. Just got back from vacation in Cape May. RVs everywhere on the ride down.

[Peacetrain]

40. Janey, hubby and I started doing a count..just out of curiosity...

We would count the number of RVs we saw going down the opposite side of the road.. and then double to count our side.. and over an 86 mile drive we saw more than 100 on the opposite side..which if you doubled.. would be 200 rv's in 86 miles.. it was phenomenal.

[Retrograde]

52. They're all over Norway, so it's not just an American thing

Lots of campers being towed, about half with German license plates (Italy was also well-represented). Didn't see any of the behemoths, but we were on narrow mountain roads a lot of the time.

I see a lot of rental RVs on US 1 in California: if you're carting a family around having a place to fix meals can make up for the gas costs - and camping fees are less than motels or hotels.

[bhikkhu]

45. At some point the cognitive dissonance has real consequences for people

I recall three years ago when I was a mechanic at a small shop. I helped with the bookkeeping and general business model planning, and had managed to help grow the business 10% per year through the recession. But the owner remained stuck in the right wing doom mode, expecting the "miserable Obama economy" to go into free fall at any moment.

About the same week that I heard through the grapevine that the two biggest car dealers in town had set all-time records for monthly sales, and I was working out a plan to sell the boss on some new equipment purchases to expand our offerings, my boss was deeply depressed about the state of things, and announced that if he had $10k in his pocket he'd go out and buy gold right now. Which was so utterly stupid I couldn't even argue...in any case, I realized there wasn't much of a future there. After a brief time getting my training and certifications up to date I applied for and got a much better job, with the competition.

[Peacetrain]

47. I hear you.. when a person refuses to accept that things

are getting better..then they cannot take advantage of new opportunities.. Congrats on the new job!!!

[libnnc]

53. We just got back from spending a month on the road, 4,996 miles, in a 24 foot travel trailer.

Happy as little clams! I would add that in addition to folks being in a position to spend extra money RVing, the whole experience is more accessible with the availability of really helpful youtube tutorials, RV and camping message boards, etc. Lots of helpful info out there that makes it easier to enjoy the hobby and way of life.