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As we prepare to celebrate FMCA’s 40th anniversary, we can’t help but think back to the association’s early years and how it has evolved. During our 12 years of involvement in FMCA, we have had numerous occasions to talk with many longtime members.

Everyone will be assigned a day and time of admittance based on the date their registration is received at FMCA headquarters in Cincinnati. All registrations will be divided equally over a three-day period.

Each January, the electronics industry kicks off the new year with the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Companies from all around the world take part in this event, which is billed as the largest annual trade show focusing on consumer technology.

Faulty Furnace Ground

During a recent trip, one of the two furnaces in my 1989 motorhome began to light intermittently. After inspection, I determined that there was no spark between the two points on the igniter.

Whether you need an end table, a footstool, a stool for sitting or standing upon, a coffee table, a 3/4-table, or a magazine rack, the Amazing Magic Table from Miller’s RV Interior Trim can probably do the job. This table can be set to any of eight different heights for use in RVs, homes, and even offices.
The Amazing Magic Table (patent pending) is described as “always in use and never in the way.” It is available in oak for $300, or in walnut, cherry, or various maples for $375.

Public lands throughout the United States will receive greater attention in coming years thanks to the re-establishment of the “Take Pride in America” program, administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior.

For more than a year, engineers at Rexhall Industries worked on a first-of-its-kind slideout design. With the introduction of the 2003 35TS floor plan, their concept became a reality.

In March 2000 at the FMCA convention in Pomona, California, I promised the members of the Nominating Committee that if I was elected FMCA’s national secretary, I would serve all three years allowed by the FMCA Bylaws. To King deBord, F16686, who was chairman of the committee then, and to the other members of that committee, I can say I have kept my promise.

This summer is a perfect time to experience the vast, diversified, friendly country of  Canada. FMCA’s 70th International Convention in Buffalo, New York, will take place July 18, 19, and 20, and the Northeast Area Rally will be held July 25, 26, and 27 at Prince Edward Island, Canada.

Water, water everywhere … and so was the water’s odor. But what was causing the bad smell coming from our faucets?

As we travel through many regions, we rely on cities, campgrounds, and water districts to filter the water coming into our motorhomes.

Some full-timers coast for years before the roof caves in. Others recognize that their rolling home and the things in it will wear out, rust, fade, and break, and they save for inevitable expenditures.

We may never see a loggerhead sea turtle in the wild. Even so, it’s nice to know they’re still out there cruising the coastal waters after 150 million years.
The name “loggerhead” comes from the turtle’s large head (10 inches wide in an adult) and the powerful jaws it uses to crush crabs, mollusks, and other bottom-dwelling crustaceans attached to reefs and rocks.

We’ve always enjoyed visiting ethnic museums. Each time we see a new one, we’re reminded of the rich heritage our ancestors have brought to these shores.

Regardless of any current thoughts you may hold about bylaws, try reading Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised. I think you will find it hard to put down, just as you would an interesting novel.
The original author of the book was Henry Martyn Robert.

Getting in touch with an RVer can be pretty tough sometimes. In fact, along with bingo, potlucks, and horseshoes, phone tag may be considered a new recreational pastime.

Take acres of the gravelly Arizona desert, add 650-plus motorhomes, and what do you have? The 2003 International Area Rally, that’s what.
The Fourth Annual International Area Rally was held in Quartzsite, Arizona, January 18, 19 and 20. Attendees included many FMCA members who had been at the Western Area Rally in Indio, California, earlier that month and traversed the 110 miles to Quartzsite to join in the fun.
Arizona greeted rally-goers with outstanding weather — cool evenings, warm days, and blue, blue skies.

Q: A flat tire on a motorhome while driving on the highway can be devastating. I have seen reports that tire-temperature and air-pressure monitoring devices can provide advance warning of the impending danger.

Dear Editor:
Shortly after we took delivery of a Fleetwood Revolution motorhome from Earnhardt’s RV in Mesa, Arizona, my wife, Karen, and I headed to the California Dreamin’ convention in Pomona, California — our first FMCA convention. This is our fourth Fleetwood motorhome and our first diesel pusher.

During the past three years, I have presented a seminar about FMCA member benefits at the international conventions and area rallies I’ve attended. I believe it is important for all of the membership to become familiar with the benefits of this great association.

My husband, Russ, and I have spent the past eight years serving as full-time volunteers for FMCA. One would imagine this to be quite an undertaking, but in our case it has been an enjoyable one.

In mid-March, 3,982 motorhomes —  consisting of 2,778 family coaches and 1,204 exhibitor coaches — gathered at Fairplex in Pomona, California, for FMCA’s 69th International Convention, which was dubbed California Dreamin’. Beautiful weather; a fantastic facility; and, of course, the wonderful FMCA family and commercial members who attended provided the ingredients for another successful FMCA event.

Only 5-1/2 hours north of Maine lies a vacation place that no one should miss — Prince Edward Island, Canada’s smallest province, only 139 miles long and between 4 and 40 miles wide. Its population of 140,000 claims mostly Scottish, Irish, and Acadian ancestry.

The metropolitan area New York interstates were bumper-to-bumper. Hoping to avoid the crowds, I opted for the byways instead of the highways.

The 2003 election of FMCA National Officers will be held July 16 and 17, 2003, at FMCA’s 70th International Convention in Buffalo, New York.
This year’s Nominating Committee was elected by the Governing Board in accordance with FMCA Bylaws. Its members are Chairman Nelson K.

When you think of Buffalo, New York, the words “snow,” or “bison,” or “Buffalo wings” may also come to mind.
Yes, Buffalo receives its share of snow in the winter, but frozen precipitation won’t be a factor when FMCA members’ motorhomes roll into the Erie County Fairgrounds in Hamburg, 11 miles south of town, for the association’s “Shuffle Off To Buffalo” convention. By July 18, 19, and 20, when the convention takes place, temperatures are likely to top out near 80 degrees, moderated by pleasant breezes from nearby Lake Erie.

Thousands of motorhomers gathered in the heart of Southern California on March 21, 22, and 23 to take part in FMCA’s 69th International Convention. The venue for this grand event was Fairplex, located in the city of Pomona, 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.

You’re ready to buy a new car and are excited about the many possibilities. After researching on the Internet and visiting dealerships, you come up with a list of vehicles that you like.

The ends of the gasket seals around my exterior storage compartments did not join together tightly, leaving a gap for dirt and water to enter the compartment. To fix the problem, I used pieces of 1/4-inch tubing (3/8-inch outside diameter), one piece for each compartment seal that needed to be fixed.

Tongue Twister trailers are engineered to eliminate the injuries and damage that can occur when backing equipment on and off a trailer. These double-ended trailers do not need to be unhooked from the motorhome or other towing vehicle when loading or unloading.

Monaco Coach Corporation, C2111, and Playing Mantis, a leading die-cast manufacturer, have teamed up to give anyone with an extra $10 the chance to purchase their very own highline motorhome — albeit quite a bit smaller.
Beginning last September, miniature replicas of Holiday Rambler Navigator, Monaco Executive, Beaver Marquis, and Safari Zanzibar motorhomes have been available under the Johnny Lightning logo, a popular brand of collectibles.
The idea to make miniatures of these motorhome models came from Holiday Rambler engineers Ed Mahin and Ron Nunemaker, both avid die-cast collectors. From there, Monaco Coach Corporation engineers worked with designers at Johnny Lightning, providing technical specifications, photographs, and other information, to make sure the die-casts were as accurate as possible.

Since the “Type A Roundup” appeared in the March 2003 issue, additional models that are available for under $100,000 have come to light. So, we are adding “Chapter Two” this month.
In addition, we have a change to report to the initial roundup.

Some RV enthusiasts are attracted to the idea of driving a smaller type A coach, but they don’t want to sacrifice the comfort that comes with larger units. Recently I had the opportunity to test a Safari Trek 2810 model.

These galley-tested recipes are easy, yet family-pleasing.
Tuscan Chicken
Bring the sunny flavors of Tuscany into a one-pot dish that does not call for potatoes, pasta, or rice.
6 meaty, skinless chicken thighs
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 can chicken broth
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2-teaspoon dried thyme
Medium yellow squash, cubed
Medium zucchini, cubed
16-ounce can white kidney beans (cannellini), drained and rinsed
3 plum tomatoes, diced
Salt, pepper to taste
Freshly snipped parsley (optional)
Brown the chicken thighs in the olive oil, gradually stirring in the garlic. Add the broth, the oregano, and the thyme.

Quick meals can be a disaster if they are not in good balance nutritionally and aesthetically. Here are recipes that provide fast food without sacrificing nutrition, texture, and looks.
Tomato Tortellini
Use meat-filled tortellini or, for a meatless main dish, the cheese-filled variety.
24-ounce can plain tomato sauce (3 cups)
1/2-teaspoon dried basil
1/2-teaspoon oregano
1/2-teaspoon parsley
1/2-teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Salt to taste
8-ounce (1 cup) container real whipping cream, no substitutes
16-ounce package tortellini
Grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Whisk together the tomato sauce, seasonings, and whipping cream.

The splendor of monumental buttes, soaring cliffs, towering spires, and rugged canyons lure visitors to Arizona’s Red Rock country, near Flagstaff. There you can see in form and color how the natural world appeared millions of years ago.

No, this column isn’t about the 55 mile-per-hour speed limit, but a magic number that for many full-timers means the beginning of a drop in expenses as they grow older. Although past surveys I’ve done for this column revealed that the age range for full-timers starts at 4 and extends into the mid-90s, the median age is in the low 60s.

The javelina, otherwise known as the collared peccary, musk hog, or tayaussa, is the only wild, native, piglike animal living in the United States. The name “javelina” is derived from the Spanish word for javelin or sword.

Entertaining, enlightened, engaging? While this group of FMCA members may be so described, these words don’t offer insight into the chapter’s name. Originally, the “E” stood for “Executive.” When the chapter was formed in 1976 as The Executive Southwest Chapter, FMCA members who joined had to own an Executive brand motorhome.

Willard “Will” Whipple, F15, who served as FMCA’s first national treasurer, passed away February 3, 2003, at the age of 78.
Mr. Whipple; his wife, Madora; and sons Larry, Dale, and Gary were among the 26 families that met in Hinckley, Maine, when FMCA was founded in July 1963.
Mr.

Q: I have a Caterpillar 3208 turbodiesel engine in a 1987 Vogue motorhome. The odometer says the motorhome has 100,000-plus miles on it, but I’m guessing it’s closer to 125,000 miles, since the odometer didn’t function properly when I bought the coach in January 2001 (the clock says 3,300 hours).
I recently made a 2,500-mile trip and the motorhome used six quarts of oil.

Dear Editor:
I’m not sure that Edward Wiseman, who wrote the letter in the February 2003 issue, was on the same State Route 89A that I have driven (“Mountainous Arizona Roads,” page 174).
We live in the San Diego area and drive to Sedona through Prescott and on to Flagstaff and back. We have done this eight or 10 times over the last 25 or so years.
We drive a 28-foot Roll-A-Long, and our first time over we were pulling a Toyota Land Cruiser.

Sometimes I just have to sit back and marvel at what this association has accomplished over the past 40 years. Recently my wife, Sharon, and I were able to attend two area rallies.

Much has been said and written over the last several years regarding the importance of proper weight and balance of recreation vehicles, or more specifically in our case, motorhomes. This is a complicated issue, to be sure, but I will attempt to clarify it from a layman’s perspective.

The Erie County Fairgrounds in Hamburg, New York, a suburb of Buffalo, will host FMCA’s 70th International Convention. We have dubbed it the “Shuffle Off To Buffalo” convention.

With spring arriving throughout most of North America, it’s time to think of gardens once again. Discovering a serene and cheerful collection of plants always is pleasant, and the experience can be further enriched when the plantings reflect the tastes of past generations.

Early in July our motorhome crossed the Canadian border north of Bellingham, Washington. We cleared customs with no problem, and the favorable exchange rate when changing U.S.

It seems that many of us accumulate packets and albums of photos that we have organized by trip. After awhile, it can become frustrating to have to look through all of these separate collections when all you really want to do is show someone several places from a single state.

Have test you ever watched a camping neighbor open an RV storage compartment door to retrieve the TV cable and literally empty that compartment by yanking out every other piece of gear stowed in there? Leveling blocks, camp shovel, sewer adapter, lawn chairs, toolbox, front doormat, et al, come tumbling out, tied together with an umbilical of kinked TV cable that was coiled haphazardly and stuffed into the compartment.
As comical as that might seem, you’d be surprised at how often such scenes play out every day in the campground. And perhaps it’s even happened to you.

It’s easy to be skeptical when you read that a tourist destination has something for everyone. That’s pretty unlikely, you might think.

Its scenery is enhanced by old Southern mansions, tree-lined boulevards, and an oceanside location. No wonder Beaufort (pronounced BEW-fert), a picturesque hamlet in South Carolina, has served as the setting for many motion pictures, including Forrest Gump.