Business Directory Omission
At press time it was discovered that FMCA commercial members in Quebec, Canada, were omitted from the Business Directory, a listing of all FMCA commercial members, in the January 2004 issue (page 1073). Unfortunately, because of time and space constraints, it was not possible to publish a list of these missing companies this month. A list of Quebec commercial members will appear in the March 2004 issue of Family Motor Coaching.
Internet users might like to note that information about FMCA commercial members, including those companies in Quebec, is available via the online version of the Business Directory at www.fmca.com/bd.
Appeal For Assistance
Dear Editor:
The top fuse distribution panel cover on my 1994 Safari Sahara has disappeared. Without it, I can’t trace the origin of the circuits involved. My efforts to obtain the information from Safari (now Monaco) were fruitless, as the last model year they have records for is 1996.
Please contact me if you know how I can obtain another distribution panel.
Charles B. Tuley Jr., F112894
233 Duke of Kent St.
Chestertown, MD 21620
(410) 778-4368
Caterpillar Owners To Form FMCA Chapter
Dear Editor:
The Caterpillar Corporation is interested in expanding its market share of engines for motorhomes and is giving a high priority to customer satisfaction among existing owners. Thus, the company’s management is highly enthusiastic about forming a Caterpillar owners’ chapter in FMCA and is more than willing to be a primary sponsor.
Most of us who have Cat-powered coaches want to know more about these engines so we can get the best performance possible. We also want information about the best way to maintain them. What better way to obtain this kind of information than to have an FMCA chapter and seminars dealing with Cat engines? It is a win-win situation for all concerned.
The chapter organizational meeting will be held at 1:00 p.m. Thursday, March 18, 2004, at the upcoming FMCA convention in Albuquerque, New Mexico. (A Caterpillar Engine seminar will be offered on Tuesday, March 16, at 8:15 a.m.) This chapter is destined to be a “first class” group. With the help of Caterpillar Corporation, it can’t miss. Please check your convention program to confirm meeting dates and times, and join us.
Don Tallman, L1956
Sacramento, California
Coach-Net An “Excellent Choice”
Dear Editor:
After researching FMCA’s benefits, we chose to buy FMCA’s Emergency Road Service & Technical Referral Program, provided by Coach-Net. We found that Coach-Net offers the additional advantage of coverage for borrowed vehicles, a service other emergency road service plans do not offer. Originally, our selection was based on that advantage, since we had planned to use our daughter’s SUV for a trip.
During our annual “escape winter” trip to Florida, we had a tire blow out. We immediately contacted the Coach-Net staff. The blowout occurred in a location where service is difficult to obtain, and the staff had to contact several sources before they were able to locate a company willing to drive the required distance. During our wait Coach-Net kept us informed. Help arrived promptly in spite of the hurdles that had to be overcome.
Charles’ Towing & Repair Service of Bishopville, South Carolina, came to our rescue, driving 30 miles to reach the spot where we were stranded. They quickly and courteously took over, and all was accomplished within 2½ hours.
We are sincerely grateful to Coach-Net and to Charles’ Towing & Repair Service for jobs well done. We congratulate FMCA on this service and ourselves for making an excellent choice.
Dick & Barbara De Blaker, F163469
Minneola, Florida
Florida Resort Project Disappears
Dear Editor:
Regarding the article titled “The Ins And Outs Of Campground Programs And Fees” (November 2003, page 100), we want to let readers know that apparently the Casa Del Lago RV Resort in Naples, Florida, is no longer being developed. We visited there recently and also attempted to call them; that confirmed our awareness a year ago that the project was dropped.
Donna A. Ebright, F197200
Fort Myers, Florida
Editor’s note: We have not been able to reach anyone involved with Casa Del Lago RV Resort in Naples, and the company is no longer a commercial member of FMCA. So, it appears you may be correct. Perhaps other readers can provide information.
Albuquerque RV Park Welcomes FMCAers
Dear Editor:
I am the resident manager of a campground in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and wanted to make other members aware of us prior to the upcoming convention. I noticed that we are not listed in the “Area Campgrounds” section of the Albuquerque article that appeared in the December 2003 issue (page 82).
El Rancho RV & Mobile Home Park (201 Wyoming S.E., 505-266-1455) is open year-round and features 86 shaded sites with grass and patios. Cable TV and phone lines are available. We have full hookups, paved and lighted streets, and computer use with high-speed Internet access. Pets are welcome. We are within walking distance of restaurants, shopping, and other amenities. Because of our easy access to Interstate 40, we’re just a short drive away from local area attractions and Albuquerque’s variety of great restaurants. Within two miles or less are two shopping malls, a Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, Costco, and the New Mexico State Fairgrounds (now called Expo New Mexico), where the FMCA convention will take place.
For more details, e-mail us at manager@elranchorvpark.com or visit our Web site, www.elranchorvpark.com. Our Web site has a map and directions.
Kaye Dennis, F224029
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Buffalo, New York, Was A Fair Location, Too
Dear Editor:
Your recent article “Meet Me At The Fair” in the December 2003 issue (page 130) omitted Buffalo, New York, the location of the 1901 Pan-American Exposition. President William McKinley was assassinated on September 6 while visiting the event.
The fair’s main attraction was the electric tower. The grounds also were lit with thousands of lights. It was a wonder to behold! This was the first time that electricity was generated to illuminate buildings. With Niagara Falls nearby, Buffalo was the first city to use hydroelectric power.
Buildings that exist today from that event include the Erie County and Buffalo Historical Museum “” originally the New York State Pavilion. The Albright-Knox Art Gallery was supposed to be part of the exposition but was not completed in time for the opening. Both museums overlook Hoyt Lake in Delaware Park, which was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted.
My wife’s grandmother was standing in line to shake hands with President McKinley when he was shot. He is buried in Buffalo’s Forest Lawn Cemetery. The mansion on Delaware Avenue where Theodore Roosevelt was sworn in as president is a national historic site.
Glenn Hazelet, F329027
Lockport, New York
Bring On The Trees
Dear Editor:
The December 2003 issue of FMC (“Readers’ Forum,” page 168) had a letter from a couple who enumerated the problems with trees in campgrounds. As owners of a 30-foot type A gas-powered motorhome, we don’t care for low-hanging branches, either. However, we strongly prefer a wooded campground with plenty of shady campsites. We don’t need a clear view of the southern sky, because we don’t have satellite TV. In fact, our TV is rarely on. We prefer to sit outside, reading “” in the shade, or walking around the park “” in the shade.
We have spent several years in the Southwest, where many campgrounds are treeless, and whenever possible we would head for one with some trees and shade. The camping experience is more comfortable with shade, both inside and outside of the RV. We hope campground owners and operators will not go about clear-cutting and paving their campgrounds.
Lincoln State Park campground in southern Indiana has lots of trees, and is usually packed on weekends, so we suspect that we are not alone in our desire for wooded sites.
Stephen & Jeannie Bodney, F569D
Corydon, Indiana
Dear Editor:
Some of the very best times in an RV are spent in the woods, with rain dripping from the branches, fires burning at the campsites, birds chirping, squirrels chattering, owls hooting, and coyotes calling. We’ll take this scenario any day under the trees.
T.J. & Nancy Romes, F309116
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Foretravel’s Quality Service
Dear Editor:
During our return trip from the International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, New Mexico, this past fall, we were traveling east on Interstate 40 some 30 miles out of Amarillo, Texas, when we noticed the smell of rubber. After pulling off to a safe location, I performed a walk-around inspection of the coach and noticed that the passenger-side rear tires were making contact with the fender well.
Using our Foretravel directory, I placed a call to the company’s Technical Support Group. James Triana answered the call and asked specific questions to obtain some background information. Within minutes he provided instructions that served as a temporary measure and allowed us to continue on to a prescribed truck repair center to have the condition corrected.
Mr. Triana’s input was direct and precise. With all the thousands of fine-quality coaches that Foretravel has built over the last 36 years, there is still a live, breathing person at the other end of the phone line with great ability to grasp the subject matter and provide a workable solution in just minutes.
Thanks so much; first, for a quality coach, and second, for a competent technical support group that is available for assistance when needed.
H. Glen Musick, F315062
Smithfield, Virginia
Speedy Slideout Repair
Dear Editor:
We say thanks to Siskiyou RV World, C9195, in Grants Pass, Oregon.
Last October we were in Vancouver, British Columbia, and our slideout became stuck in the “out” position. Coach-Net helped us get it back in. We drove to Brookings, Oregon, and a campsite neighbor said Siskiyou RV World was the place. Other RV repair facilities gave us two weeks to two months to wait. Siskiyou was thoughtful and scheduled repairs for two days later.
The repairs were done quickly and completely in two days. Everyone at Siskiyou RV was friendly and helpful, and we could write a full page about their wonderful service. They are at 231 N.E. Terry Lane in Grants Pass; phone (800) 541-1626 or (541) 479-3432, or visit www.siskiyourv.com.
Don & Linda Feltner, F275426
Wheat Ridge, Colorado
Camping With Cable TV
Dear Editor:
When we look for an RV park, we usually like to get one with cable television hookups. We do not yet have a satellite receiver.
Most RV parks furnish us with a list of the available cable stations. These lists usually are in channel number sequence, which makes it more difficult to find the stations that we want to view.
This is not a big thing, because we generally stay at an RV park long enough to memorize the numbers of the channels we want to watch. It would be much easier, though, if the listing of cable television channels could be arranged in network name sequence.
It’s just a suggestion we’d like to pass on to the RV parks.
Frank McClernon, F313773
Springfield, Missouri
Heating System Concerns Solved
Dear Editor:
On June 7, 2003, we took delivery of a 40-foot motorhome that we watched being built, from chassis to coach. Our perk for our seventh coach was its Hurricane hydronic heating system. International Thermal Research (ITR) recently purchased this franchise. During production we met Jeff Ludlam, the company’s East Coast vice president of sales and marketing.
The Hurricane heating system is powered by diesel fuel and provides heat and a continuous supply of hot water. It also puts heat into three zones in the coach and bays.
Upon leaving the motorhome factory, we noticed that a “preheat engine” light was illuminated on the control panel. We contacted Ken Elwell, ITR’s U.S. service manager, and he arranged to work on our problem at FMCA’s Buffalo, New York, convention in mid-July. He and his associates discovered and corrected several errors that were made when the furnace was installed.
We then traveled to the Toronto, Canada, area and eastward across Canada to Prince Edward Island. We experienced problems with our system three more times. Jeff Ludlam met us in the Concord, New Hampshire, area to diagnose and instruct a repair technician. ITR arranged help for us again in Westbrook, Connecticut, and maintained phone contact with our repair tech. On a fourth occasion, Ken Elwell met us in Anderson, South Carolina, to correct another problem.
Most, if not all, of our problems were the result of errors made in installation of the furnace. Through all of this we got quick and understandable tech help, via phone, from Kevin Dewitt or Ken Elwell of ITR.
Our problems are now corrected, and we are enjoying the reliability of this system.
We could not be more pleased with ITR. They have stood behind our coach’s heating system even though most of its problems were directly related to installation errors. We have no hesitation in calling them, as they always are interested in us and in solving our concerns.
Charles & Roxie Marston, F164080
Franklin, Tennessee