RV Podcast 283: Rapido’s Rebuilding of the Roadtrek Brand

This week we talk with the CEO of the new Roadtrek Inc. and how the company is counting on a new emphasis on quality to overturn the tarnished reputation left when the once iconic maker of Class B campervans was caught up in a massive financial scandal last year. We also update you on the recalls and investigations plaguing the old company as the new owners begin production at their Cambridge, Ontario, Canada factory. The old company was known as Roadtrek Motorhomes. The new one is Roadtrek Inc. This episode of the TV Podcast features a very candid interview with Dane Found, the new CEO of Roadtrek Inc,  owned by the Rapido Group of France. Found talks about the challenges involved in restarting production and winning back business following the sudden collapse of the old Roadtrek, once the best-selling Class B manufacturer in North America. Plus, we have lots of RV news, tips and an off the beaten path report from the Burketts. Show Notes for Episode #283 Feb. 26 2020 of The RV Podcast: WHAT MIKE AND JENNIFER ARE UP TO THIS WEEK JENNIFER We're on the road, heading into Florida this week doing last-minute research and taking lots of photos for our 7 Day Adventure Guide series on different regions of the country. We’re recording this podcast from Albany, GA, where we stopped to see our son and his family and take in a baseball game with grandson, Jacob. MIKE I used the visit to put the final editing touches on the movie I made that chronicle’s grandson Matthew’s senor year of playing football. JENNIFER And on the way down we stopped north of Atlanta and were able to have dinner with our grandson Nick and his girlfriend, Liz. Our 4th grandson, Zachary, is moving to Phoenix, so we won’t be able to catch up with him in person until we et there later in the spring. That’s one of the nice things about traveling North America in an RV…we get to visit with our kids and grandkids, who are scattered all over the country. As this podcast is being released we will be heading to Forida, where we’ll be spending the next couple of months. As we travel, we're trying to do meetups from various spots. The first will be this Saturday, Feb. 29 at the Ocala RV Show in Ocala, FL from 11AM to 1PM at the Sunshine State RVs display. We look forward to meeting our Florida followers and snowbird friends wintering down there. MIKE We're also posting videos, photos and lots of social media updates on our travels, meetups, adventures, and plans, especially on Instagram. You can follow us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/rvlifestylemike  As a special for the leap year day coming up at the end of February, we've decided to mark down our Beginner's Guide to Boondocking to just $20 from TODAY (2/26) until the end of the month (midnight EST, Sat 2/29)! No discount code needed. Use our guide to get more comfortable with boondocking (or learn some new tricks), throw off the shackles of traditional RV Parks and campgrounds, and STOP paying high fees every night that you spend in your RV!  Get Your Copy Of The Beginner's Guide To Boondocking Here! This part of the podcast is brought to you by Dish Outdoors, which lets RVers pay as they go and watch HD satellite television from wherever they are camped with easy to set up gear made with the RVer in mind. Just go to https://rvlifestyle.com/dish for details on the service and special deal just for listeners of this podcast. RV LIFESTYLE NEWS OF THE WEEK JENNIFER Lack of Chinese tourists because of coronavirus expected to impact Yellowstone tourism industry this year Yellowstone National Park tourism groups are preparing for a downturn in visitors this year as a fall out of the coronavirus. About 350,000 to 400,000 Chinese tourists visit Yellowstone each year but because of the virus, the Chinese government has proposed mandatory quarantines on parts of the country and the U.S. government has greatly restricted travel from China. All Chinese tour groups are completely suspende...