Members of tHurricane Raises Demand for RVs

The value of an RV is never more apparent than during a disaster, and that has been true again in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina along the Gulf Coast.

As soon as the storm hit, RV dealers throughout the Southeast were inundated with calls from companies and individuals seeking to buy or rent RVs. News organizations, utility companies, disaster relief agencies and storm victims quickly cleared out the RV rental inventory and were referred to dealers as far away as Louisville and Chicago. In some cases, people who couldn’t find RVs to rent bought them.

As an example of the intense competition for RVs, the Washington Post reported that a Texas natural gas company, a Louisiana electric utility and a German television crew desperately sought to rent a 38-foot motorhome from a man in Fairbanks, Louisiana. But they lost out to a Californian who needed the $150,000 Coachmen Sportscoach to house stricken relatives outside New Orleans and rented it for $350 a day.

Stock prices for several RV manufacturers rose immediately after the hurricane in anticipation of heavy demand for RVs as temporary housing and emergency offices. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) negotiated for the purchase of thousands of RVs. Exactly how many RVs would be acquired was uncertain, but Forbes quoted the head of the Florida RV Trade Association as declaring that FEMA would need 40,000 RVs to cope with the disaster. Reuters news service reported that 50,000 trailers would be needed in addition to 18,000 vehicles already on hand.

The Recreation Vehicle Dealers Association notified its dealers that FEMA was in the market for new furnished travel trailers, mobile homes and park models of 30 to 35 feet, preferably selling for $20,000 or less.

RV dealerships enlisted volunteers to help drive RVs to the affected areas. In Grand Rapids, Michigan, one RV dealership that was sending more than 200 trailers to Louisiana reported that hundreds of people called to volunteer as drivers

As dealers prepared to ship RVs to the storm area, donors came forward to help disaster victims by filling the vehicles with household items. In Rockford, Illinois, the Rockford Register Star reported that an RV dealership that sold 200 trailers to FEMA collected household goods and filled each trailer with toothpaste, tooth brushes, linens, bathrobes and other donated items. The trailers were destined to go to Selma, Alabama, to create an RV village for hurricane victims. The same thing occurred in Cheyenne, Wyoming, where local churches gathered clothes, food and water to load into trailers destined for the Gulf Coast. Similar efforts were reported at dealerships in Indiana, Ohio and Minnesota and elsewhere across the country.

Meanwhile, the American Family Association, a conservative Christian organization based in Tupelo, Mississippi, launched a campaign to urge people to donate RVs to storm victims. A campsite with utility hookups was established in northeast Mississippi to accommodate 100 donated units.

In Moses Lake, Washington, John and Karen Lovrovich decided to donate their 1980s-vintage Pace Arrow motorhome to storm victims and invited others to join with them to take donated RVs in a caravan to Houston. Karen said they were not expecting people to donate expensive RVs, but to contribute vehicles that were rarely used, but could provide decent housing. At press time, it was uncertain how many people would join the campaign that the Lovroviches were promoting at their Web site, www.jointheconvoy.com.

Meanwhile, RV manufacturers were gearing up to help the relief effort. Forest River reported a $50 million production contract for 5,000 travel trailers. Monaco Coach Corporation received a contract for 2,000 trailers. The Riverside Press Enterprise reported that Fleetwood Enterprises in Riverside, California, expects to produce 12,000 travel trailers to meet needs created by the hurricane, although a company spokesman was unable to confirm the figure and said the situation was still in flux.

Elden L. Smith, president and chief executive officer of Fleetwood Enterprises, said, “We are committed to doing all we can to put survivors in safe, comfortable housing as quickly as possible. We have the capacity and experience to rapidly produce quality homes, travel trailers and motorhomes in high volume. We know this can’t compensate for the devastating losses experienced, but we hope that providing shelter for the survivors will set them on the road to recovery.”

Nevada Sweepstakes Awards Prize
Lorelee Agai, 43, of Burbank, California, has won the grand prize in the Nevada Commission on Tourism’s Haulin’ in Nevada Sweepstakes for 2005. She received a $7,000 Haultent Expedition trailer. The Haultent is a small boxy utility trailer that can be pulled by an SUV or truck and converts into a camping tent. It has a flat top on which sports gear, including ATVs and kayaks, can be transported.

The sweepstakes is part of the tourism commission’s efforts to encouragers RVers to select Nevada as a travel destination.

RV Hall of Fame Stages Raffle
The RV/MH Heritage Foundation is sponsoring a raffle to raise money for the RV/MH Hall of Fame, museum and library in Elkhart, Indiana. A maximum of 2,500 tickets will be sold at $100 each in a drawing that will offer 100 prizes. First prize will be a 2006 motorhome or manufactured home or $75,000 cash. Second prize will be $15,000 and third will be $5,000.
The winners will be drawn at noon Thursday, Dec. 15. Entries can be obtained by calling (800) 378-8694, or going online at www.rv-mh-hall-of-fame.org.

Roadmaster Acquires Ipd Division
Roadmaster of Portland, Oregon, which manufactures towing products, has acquired the suspension division of ipd, which manufactures anti-sway bars for motorhomes, trucks, SUVs, vans and ambulances. Anti-sway bars improve a vehicle’s handling by limiting body roll and improving cornering.

Under Roadmaster, ipd will continue manufacturing safety anti-sway bars for the emergency vehicle industry, as well as anti-sway bars for motorhomes, transit buses and heavy-duty trucks and vans. Roadmaster plans to expand ipd’s product line to include more suspension component manufacturing for heavy-duty vehicle chassis.

Cavco Expands Production
Cavco Industries of Phoenix, Arizona, is stepping up production of park models to meet the growing demand for its products. The company’s Litchfield plant that was formerly used entirely for manufactured housing is now turning out park models. In addition a new production facility is being planned in Seguin, Texas, to serve customers in the East. The expanded production will increase Cavco’s park model output by 300 to 500 units per year.

Park models are 400-square-foot movable resort cottages that are designed for use as vacation homes. Buyers can buy or lease sites for the homes at RV parks and campgrounds.

Guests Donate $1 million to Parks
Xanterra Parks and Resorts, which operates lodges, restaurants and other concessions at national parks, has collected more than $1 million for parks through a voluntary donation program and the sale of National Park Passes.

Xanterra collects $1 per room per night from guests staying at lodges in Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Crater Lake, Everglades, Bryce Canyon and Zion national parks. Guests may opt out of the program or make additional voluntary donations. The money goes to the National Park Foundation for projects and programs in the park where the donation was made. The donation program, which is now in its fifth year, has been well received by guests, according to Andrew N. Todd, president and CEO of Xanterra Parks and Resorts. He said that “after visiting these incredible destinations, most people are delighted to make a contribution.”

rvi@campingworld.com
Camping World RV Institute, which trains students to become RV service and repair technicians, has graduated its 300th student. The institute conducts classes in Bowling Green, Kentucky. For information about the institute, call (800) 356-0311 or send an e-mail to rvi@campingworld.com.

Foster Family Wins Makeover
Tom and Karen Moulton of Citrus Heights, California, won a $20,000 prize, including a renovation of their 1973 Timberline travel trailer, with the winning essay in Camping World’s RV Makeover Contest.

In the essay, the Moultons wrote that for 17 years they have been caring for foster children, some with mental or physical challenges, including Down syndrome and cerebral palsy. Some of the children have stayed only hours or days; others have stayed for years and some were adopted. They currently have seven children from 3 to 22 in their home.