RV Podcast #315: Lingering Pandemic Problems for the RV Industry

They may be selling RVs at a record pace, but there are lots of lingering Pandemic Problems for the RV Industry The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc across all aspects of the economy including the RV Industry. And while RV sales have never been better, the damage done by the shutdowns and the resulting incredible demand for RVs continues to stress the industry. In Episode 315 of the RV Podcast, we talk about Pandemic Problems for the RV Industry and much more. We interview Dean Corrigal, of Leisure Travel Vans. Dean is probably America's Best-known RV Salesman because of his amazingly detailed walk-through RV reviews on YouTube. We talked to Dean about a lot of things about how the pandemic is still affecting the RV Industry, including: The Rise of the Digital Nomads, the near 5 million people who now work remotely from their RVs The lingering effects of the pandemic and critical, ongoing shortages in RV parts and components The incredible demand for RVs and how if you want to order a new one, you shouldn't expect to see it for 14 months! And how some are predicting the U.S. Canadian border will remain closed for RV travel through next spring! This is an interview you will not want to miss. Plus, we have lots of RV news. RV Lifestyle questions, tips and another great off the beaten path report from our friends Patti and Tom Burkett. You can listen to the RV Podcast in the player below. And scroll down this page for complete shownotes, transcripts, plus links and resources about all the things we talk about.   RV PODCAST opening: WHAT MIKE AND JENNIFER ARE UP TO THIS WEEK Mike and Jen have been Digital Nomads for nine years, doing the RV Podcast, RV Lifestyle Blog, YouTube Videos, and their RV Travel books from the road much of the year Here's what's happening with us this week... We’re back from UP…where we encountered the best fall foliage ever. We timed it for peak color. And except for Mike losing a memory card from his drone with the best aerial shots, it was an awesome 10-day trip. Mike has a new drone coming this week and hopes to up his aerial photography videos and still photos We’re planning to be in Southwest Michigan next week along the Lake Michigan shoreline October is a very busy time in RV campgrounds every weekend Halloween… decorating rigs… There will be NO Trick or Treating in many places… but decorations and the festivities are on tap at most campgrounds. Most are booked up every weekend in October. This part of the RV Podcast is brought to you by Camping World – America’s #1 RV Dealer  RV PODCAST NEWS OF THE WEEK You can listen to the RV Podcast in the player below. And scroll down this page for complete shownotes, transcripts, plus links and resources about all the things we talk about. The News of the Week comes about 13:20 in. Florida RV SuperShow WILL happen this January, organizers announce It's now official: The Florida RV SuperShow is on! The show, one of the largest in the nation, will happen in person (vs. virtual) on the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa Jan. 13-17. Show organizers say they will do everything possible to provide a clean and safe environment for exhibitors and attendees.  Currently, Hillsborough County, where the state fair is located, is under a mandatory indoor mask order which - if that is still in place in January, will be enforced. The Florida RV Super Show is one of our favorites. To see past reports we have done click here. New regulations spell out e-bike rules for federally managed land, including national parks  U.S. Department of the Interior finalized its e-bike polices last Friday, announcing e-bikes are allowed where traditional bikes are permitted on land managed by the National Park Service or Bureau of Reclamation land. For the Bureau of Land Management, an authorized official must say where the e-bikes can go, and a refuge manager must determine if e-bikes are appropriate for land managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Many e-bike users were excited about being able to take their bikes on national parks trails, but some environmentalists feared people riding too quickly might alter the ambiance of the trails. Personally, Jen and I are big fans of e-bikes. They permit you to petal on your own, providing a little assist where you need it. To see a report we did a while back on our e-bikes, click here. GPS from cell phones show parks are the one place more Americans are visiting more during the pandemicAn interesting story out last week tracked GPS from Americans cell phones and found every category Google is tracking  - visits to stores, the office, restaurants, and so on - is down except one category - parks. According to the Google tracking numbers, visits to parks including beaches, dog parks, marinas and federal land like national parks, are up - significantly, something many of us can attest to anecdotally. To see the story click here. Company ranks the best national parks for night sky viewing Those who, like Jen and I, enjoy gazing into the night sky will want to check out a star mapping company's ranking of the best national parks for viewing the stars. The company, called Under Lucky Stars, used a measure of the artificial light ratio, to help with the ranking and came up with its list of the top 10. Photographing the night sky is one of my favorite activities. For photography tips, check out this blog post here.  KOA reporting strong, near record-breaking numbers with 25 percent of campers trying for first time For months we have been reading about record RV and camping trailer sales. Now the private campgrounds are also starting to gather their numbers. Kampgrounds of America announced that despite tens of thousands of cancellations in March and April, the company had an amazing summer and is within 10 percent of last year's record numbers. According to the KOA report, one-quarter of the people who camped this summer camped for the first time. And about 80 percent of these campers were families with young children, seeking a way to vacation during the pandemic. This part of the podcast is brought to you by RadPower Bikes, America's #1 e-bike brand, offering direct to consumer pricing on powerful premium electric bikes. Now with free shipping   RV PODCAST QUESTION OF THE WEEK You can listen to the RV Podcast in the player below. And scroll down this page for complete shownotes, transcripts, plus links and resources about all the things we talk about. The question of the week can be heard about 19:25 in. This question comes from our Podcast VoiceMail number (586-372-6990) Hi, Mike, and Jennifer, it's Karen. I really enjoy your RV lifestyle newsletter and podcasts. I got a question. I'm a retired sixty-two-year-old female and I recently just sold my Class C 24 ft RV. That was on a Chevy 4500 chassis and I really loved her. She was perfect in so many ways, but I wanted to buy something smaller. So now I'm kind of confused as to what I should do. I've been searching on RV Trader and different places and I really want a van type RV because I want to go places that will accommodate shorter length and height vehicle. I know I want gas vs. Diesel and I really don't want to spend over $55,000 total. I can't justify a new one because the prices are way too high. So I've been looking at Chevy models because I really like how mine drove very strong and reliable and I want to be able to travel during all seasons, winter camping, boondocking, off the grid. Go to the mountains, you know, go wherever I want to go. So I'd love to have something with an all-wheel or four-wheel drive to get me in two different places, but I don't know if that is really a necessity and it's very difficult to find those. I'm also considering buying a cargo van and having it built out or partial build-out and doing some of it myself. I was thinking also maybe an older model Pleasure Way because I've always gravitated to those. So I was wondering if you had any advice on what type of vehicle I might want to consider or if my thoughts are in the wrong direction. I really don't like the fold-down electric beds. I think I prefer twin beds and I want to be able to bring a kayak in a bicycle. I travel along with my dog and no I'm not afraid to travel alone. I've done it for quite a while now. I also backpack and hike so I'd be bringing that type of equipment along I've been looking at a lot of YouTube videos.. Doing a lot of research, but I'm kind of confused. The more research I do, the more I'm thinking that it will end up costing near a new price when I'm done building or retrofitting an older model vehicle. So if there's any advice that you could give me or considerations on purchasing an older model vehicle, or maybe why not to purchase one, I'd really appreciate it. Thank you so much. Mike and Jennifer. I hope you can answer my questions and maybe use it on your podcast. Okay. Have a good day. Thanks. Bye. ANSWER: Jennifer Wendland:       What a well thought out question. Mike Wendland:           Yeah Karen has done her homework hasn't she? Jennifer Wendland:       She certainly has. Mike Wendland:           Well Karen you don't sound confused. You have a pretty clear list of what you want, and that is good. But let me give you a bit of a reality check. For $55,000 if that's that's your top budget, you're going to have to make some compromises. To buy a new RV, with most of those features that you want, you're going to be talking about double that, $100,000 or more. Now you can find really cheap RVs and I'm just not going to recommend them because people make them and they're really cheap. I mean, they are and all you got to do is look at them. So to get a new one, that has a number of those features you wanted. It's going to cost north of $100,000. Now used, you're right in finding that, but be realistic. You're going to have to buy something six or seven years old. So probably a 2013,