Letterfly Mural Art Announces New Location
After 14 years as the resident artist at Lazydays RV in Seffner, Florida, and with more than 30 years of experience creating custom hand-painted art on motorhomes, towed vehicles, motorcycles, and trailers, Dave “Letterfly” Knoderer recently announced that he has moved his company, Letterfly Mural Art, to the new Letterfly ArtPark. The facility is located just off Interstate 4 in Plant City, Florida, a short driving distance from Tampa and Orlando.
The ArtPark serves as Letterfly’s home, studio, gallery, and shop. The facility also offers free RV parking where Letterfly customers can enjoy a flickering campfire under the towering live oak trees that punctuate the surrounding orange groves. Campsites include 50-amp electric and sewer hookups, with shopping centers and entertainment venues minutes away.
Letterfly, who has created more than 2,000 motorhome murals during the past 30-plus years, began his career as an apprentice for a professional hand-lettering sign painter. He moved on to do hand-painted theatrical background sets, amusement park scenery, award-winning storefront décor, and murals to enhance the retail environment. As an artisan skilled in 24-karat gold gilding, he was sought to restore, pinstripe, and decorate antique fire engines.
He began traveling the RV rally circuit, customizing Blue Bird coaches with small, discrete touches such as the yellow rose of Texas, hand-painted names of coach owners, small hand-brushed portraits of traveling pets, and individually designed and created airbrushed murals. Demand for his work grew so much that it became impossible for him to meet the many requests at three-day and four-day rallies. Lazydays RV invited him to set up a permanent RV art studio on site as the resident artist, where he worked until the recent move.
To learn more about the Letterfly ArtPark, visit www.letterfly.com. Dave Knoderer can be contacted by calling (813) 505-5539, or via e-mail at Letterfly@aol.com.
Increased Participation At Caravan Salon 2010
With higher attendance, new products, and good sales figures, the 2010 Caravan Salon Dí¼sseldorf, which took place August 27 through September 5, 2010, provided some encouraging signs that the RV market around the world is showing economic recovery. A total of 580 exhibitors from 26 countries showcased the latest vehicles and accessories in Dí¼sseldorf, Germany.
“With 170,200 visitors, Caravan Salon Dí¼sseldorf 2010 was among the three best stagings in the trade fair’s history and has far exceeded our expectations,” stated Joachim Schí¤fer, managing director of Messe Dí¼sseldorf, the group responsible for putting on the annual event. “We are particularly delighted that more than half of the visitors came to Dí¼sseldorf with concrete intentions to buy and a willingness to invest.”
According to organizers, the show attracted 23,000 international visitors “” an increase from past years “” who came from as far away as Australia, New Zealand, the United States, China, and Mexico.
Klaus Fí¶rtsch, president of the Caravanning Industry Association (CIVD), also was pleased with the event. “Attendance substantially increased compared to last year and we noted that this also impacted sales figures,” he said. “The innovations presented here were very well received.” According to an exhibitor survey, luxury-class RVs were very popular, as were smaller RVs with innovative interior layouts.
In 2011, Caravan Salon Dí¼sseldorf will celebrate its 50th anniversary when held from August 26 (trade visitor and media day) to September 4. For further information about visiting or exhibiting at Caravan Salon 2011, contact Messe Dí¼sseldorf North America, 150 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 2920, Chicago, IL 60601; (312) 781-5180; or visit www.mdna.com.
Camp-California! Guide Expanded
Camp-California! Guide –The Camper’s Guide to California, from the California Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds, has tripled its database with the addition of government-run campgrounds and private campgrounds that are not affiliated with the statewide campground association.
The recently completed additions increased the database from 350 parks to more than 1,000 campgrounds, said Debbie Sipe, executive director of the association. She added that a digital version of the guide is available at www.camp-california.com.
The association plans to add the nearly 1,000 Forest Service campgrounds to its database next year.
In addition to campground listings, the guide also provides activities and events held throughout California during the year, as well as fun facts about the state.
To obtain a copy of the guide, visit one of California’s Welcome Centers; e-mail info@camp-california.com; or visit www.camp-california.com.
Hunting/Fishing Info Online
A new Web site promises to help travelers learn about the fishing or hunting license requirements in whatever state they may plan to visit. At www.huntnfishregs.com, RVers can find interactive regulation guides for all 50 U.S. states.
“We’re not only making hunting and fishing regulations easier to find, they will be fully interactive,” said Guy VanDyke, vice president of sales for huntnfishregs.com. “Our navigation tools will help you find exactly what you need. Plus, you can e-mail the regulation guides, download PDFs, and print them out.”
Many other useful tools at the site help travelers plan hunting and fishing trips. They can buy a hunting or fishing license; find a hunter safety course; and check out maps, fishing reports, weather/lunar forecasts, and more. The founders of huntnfishregs.com, VanDyke and his partner Jeff Hunt, who serves as the organization’s vice president of marketing/creative director, have more than 15 years of experience each producing hunting and fishing regulation guides. Plus, they are avid sportsmen who know what it takes to plan a trip afield.
“Our vision is to supply sportsmen and women with all the information they need for legal, successful, and safe hunting and fishing trips,” Mr. VanDyke said. For more information, visit www.huntnfishregs.com.