Excessive Maturity
Dear Editor:
I liked President Charlie Schrenkel’s synonym for old age in the February 2013 issue: “excessive maturity” (page 8).
But on second thought, doesn’t that also mean “overripe”?
Kenneth Crosby, F167401
Laredo, Texas
FMCA’s GLAMARAMA
Dear Editor:
GLAMARAMA is FMCA’s newest area rally for FMCA’s newest area association, the Great Lakes Area Motorcoach Association (GLAMA). GLAMARAMA 13 will be held at the Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds in Goshen, Indiana, September 18-22, 2013.
In the past, the Great Lakes Area Rally was piggybacked on one chapter’s rally, called the Great Lakes Area Spring Spree (G.L.A.S.S.). This put the entire burden of the rally on the back of that one chapter. GLAMARAMA will be a proper FMCA area rally, with each area chapter taking part in managing the rally, doing the work, and enjoying the activities.
GLAMARAMA 13 and 14 will be held at the Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds. In response to feedback from our members, GLAMARAMAs beyond 2014 will be held at different locations throughout the area. This will give everyone the opportunity to see and explore new places.
The Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds has many covered shelters that will be ideal for chapters, or other groups, to get together to socialize. We have no events planned Thursday night of the rally; it is set aside as an evening for our chapters to have their happy hours or potlucks, hold business meetings, or just sit back and enjoy each other’s company. We have also made arrangements with the RV/MH Hall of Fame and Museum for the facility to be open later than usual Thursday to accommodate rally-goers.
In addition to the staple technical seminars related directly to the mechanics and maintenance of your motor coach, we are planning several learning sessions related to the RV lifestyle, such as how to perform emergency CPR, use a defibrillator, and travel safely with your pets.
Three nights of top-notch entertainment will feature groups coming to our rally from as far away as Massachusetts and Oklahoma. Our own Frustrated Maestros will also be performing for us during the rally.
Full hookups with 50-amp electric are available at an extra cost (first come, first serve). All other sites will have 30-amp electric unless you specifically ask for dry camping. Water and dump stations are available; but, as always, it is best to come in with full water tanks and empty holding tanks. Members with towed cars can park them next to their coaches and will be able to drive to and from the entertainment, commercial displays, and seminar areas. There also will be golf carts available for anyone who needs a lift.
Non-FMCA members who own an RV and are interested in learning more about motor coaches are welcome. They may park with their FMCA friends if they come in together.
The whole concept of GLAMARAMA is to invite and involve as many FMCA members and chapters as possible. Everyone can get involved in the planning, lend a hand at the rally, or just participate in all the wonderful rally activities. If you have any suggestions or ideas that you would like to share, email jwalker@fmca.com or visit www.gla2013plng.blogspot.com.
Please join us! You will be glad you did.
Jim Koenig, F406483
Communications Chairman
GLAMARAMA 13
Harrison Township, Michigan
Bad Luck, Then Good Luck!
Dear Editor:
On Saturday, December 22, 2012, my wife and I were en route to the Western Area Rally in our motorhome when, about 15 miles out of San Bernadino, California, a driver pulled up beside us and made some pretty frantic gestures. We pulled off the freeway only to see steam coming from under our coach. We had lost all of our coolant. Bad luck!
We got in touch with Coach-Net (I never leave home without it). They immediately sent out a tow truck and started calling repair shops. Good luck!
But it was the Saturday before Christmas, and no repair shop would take us until after New Year’s Day. The best we could get was a tow to a campsite or a Walmart to get us off the road. Bad luck!
Fortunately, we remembered that Gary and Corinne Robinson, F337792, lived in the area and had frequently invited us to come visit. These fine folks not only invited us to be towed to their house, where they had full hookups, but to stay until we could get repair work scheduled. We even received an invitation to spend Christmas with them. Corinne is such a sweetheart. She included socks for us under the Christmas tree. Their son-in-law checked under the coach and found a broken coolant line, which he immediately replaced. Gary called the Colton Truck Terminal Garage and made an appointment for us to get in on the day after Christmas to replace the coolant. Good luck!
After that repair, we were off to Banning to await the start of a pre-rally in Indio. There, we discovered the front of our towed car was covered with oil that had come from the motorhome. Bad luck!
Ed Doltar (what a gentleman) from Colton Truck Terminal — on New Year’s Eve — drove the 35 miles from Colton to Banning where we were parked. He crawled under our motorhome, and after close inspection, recommended we return to his shop. Good luck!
As it turned out, the motor was fried and would have to be replaced. This would be the third motor in this particular motorhome. Real bad luck!
A replacement would take six to eight weeks for delivery, so they decided to rebuild the motor in their shop. Good luck!
Ed arranged for us park just outside the bay doors, hook up to water and electricity, and allowed us to live in our coach the entire stay. Ed Doltar is a remarkable person! Not only did he check every detail of the repair work, but he did everything he could to make our stay comfortable.
Everyone knows it is expensive to rebuild an engine, but Ed Doltar’s kindness made our bad luck very painless. Try Colton Truck Terminal Garage (863 E. Valley Blvd., Colton, CA 92324; 909-825-4080; www.coltontruckterminalgarage.com).
Also, it is great to have FMCA friends like the Robinsons.
Bob & Sioux Smith, F122125
Milwaukie, Oregon
Remembering The “Chrome Kid”
Dear Editor:
I really enjoyed your article about Ed and Dot Martel (“Remembering The ‘Chrome Kid,'” March 2013, page 67). Ed’s coach was truly unique, and when many guys spent hours polishing their hot rods, he did the same to his motorhome. One comment my mom always made was that his engine was shiny enough to use to put your makeup on.
He was so meticulous with his engine that any leak or problem was quickly fixed. At one rally, a few other guys decided to play a joke on him and poured some oil under his engine. When he got back to his coach, they said, “Ed, I think you have a leak there!” He quickly crawled under the coach; touched, sniffed, and felt the offending oil spill; then crawled back out and said proudly, “That’s not my oil; it’s too dirty!”
Chris Guenther, F3508S
Westminster, Colorado
Rally With The Travlin Texans
Dear Editor:
I’m president of the Travlin Texans chapter. We were recently profiled in the “Chapter Spotlight” column (April 2013, page 34). I am writing to see if there are other chapters near us that would like to join us at our rallies.
We hold rallies at certain RV parks in our state, but we have been struggling to meet the parks’ minimum requirement of 10 coaches or more in order to use their rally room. So we are looking for other chapters in our area that also may be in need of sufficient members.
Currently the Travlin Texans meet five times per year, generally the first week of March, April, May, October, and November (this is flexible). We begin the rally on Tuesday and leave Friday morning. We try to stay in Texas.
Please contact Travlin Texans chapter secretary Marie Taylor at wilmartay@aol.com or call (830) 303-3025. Thank you.
Wilfred J. Taylor, F310834
President
Travlin Texans Chapter
Seguin, Texas
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