The publishers of the new online consumer magazine “GetawayUSA” which focuses on promoting campgrounds, rv parks and state parks will release another issue this week. The magazine has a major focus on family with a firm belief that spending time in the great outdoors with children or loved ones goes a long way in
teaching family values and creating everlasting memories. “Our first issue achieved 840000 readers and it was most encouraging that 10000 of those forwarded to a friend” said Publisher Dennis Macready. “It is not unlike readers of Campground & RV Park E News where statistics show more than a third
read each issue 2-3 times, that is the beauty of online magazines, you know where they are all the time and don’t have to go look for a paper version”. The new issue of GetawayUSA features West Virginia, Utah, South Carolina and Oregon with some spectacular photographic images Continued Page 2
Continued from Page 1 designed to entice visitation and staying in a campground or RV park. Articles like recipes, tenting, traveling with pets and general tips and tricks make each issue an attractive read. Campgrounds have the ability to promote themselves via the unique links page which takes the reader directly to their particular interest.
Dennis Macready GetawayUSA has had the support of ARVC, KOA, Leisure Systems, Best Parks of America and Equity Lifestyle, along with State Park heads. “David Gorin in particular has been very supportive with the concept from day one and his input and direction has been very welcome” said Macready. This issue has an increased distribution
going to potential “hot leads” of RV buyers, Best Parks of America club data base and increased membership via social networking efforts. “Private Campground State Associations and State Park heads are encouraged to support the pro active venture as it is reaching out to 66 million plus Americans with a concept to go
camping” said Macready. “Understandably, this is a new venture and people tend to sit on the fence for a while to wait and see how it goes ”. The new issue will be sent to the Campground & RV Park E News data base this week and feedback is encouraged.
If you've gone camping, you've probably used a lot of books and websites, maybe some info on GPS units.
apps, you may have noticed that most have come and gone, to never be updated again or even work right at all.
provides two ways. This makes for a complex app that does a lot but it is also simple to use in each way.
And you've probably been frustrated. The goal of this app is to be the best camping app made for the iPhone.
The only way to do it well is with a passion. So yeah, there will be glitches or mistakes once in a while. The scope and ambition of the info provided is large. But any issues will be corrected, usually as fast as the app review process will allow it.
Map view: This uses GPS and maps to plot all places. Starting from your current iPhone location, you can zoom out and in to anywhere in the USA. This mode shows everything. Then you can filter the map to view only what you want. If you don't RV, you may want to filter out all the RV dealers.
It is made by a full time travel website where lodging is a focus. It is not made by just a full time app developer company that is looking for a way to make a quick buck. If you've bought other camping
Because one way to search for camping is not enough, Camp & RV
City lookup: View text info
by state and city. Filter city names to only show those towns with a KOA, State Parks, etc. AllStays.com, based in the state of New Mexico, lists all kinds of lodging, from primitive campgrounds and RV parks to luxury hotels and spa resorts. www.allstays.com/
HOMOSASSA, Fla., Oct. 4, 2010 – For years, housing prices have taken a beating in Florida as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis, recession-induced job losses and record numbers of foreclosures. But while prices for sitebuilt homes and condominiums have fallen by 40 percent or more in many locations, prices for sites at some of Florida’s newer and higher end RV parks and resorts have fallen by less than half that amount. In some cases, they haven’t fallen at all. Jim Eyster, who recently developed Chassas Oaks RV Resort in Homosassa, said prices for sites at some of the more upscale RV resorts are holding their own partly as a result of the continuing shortage of highquality RV parks and resorts that sell their sites in Florida. “There was never a big building boom of RV sites during the heyday of the real estate boom,” Eyster said. Bill Harvey, who developed Silver Palms RV Village in Okeechobee, also believes that the relative shortage of high quality RV resorts in sought after destinations is helping to keep RV site
prices steady. “I have seen little if any price reduction in RV resorts that have sites for under $75,000,” he said, adding, “Silver Palms has not lowered our prices at all over the past two years, and I do not intend to.”
County. Seven years ago, when he developed Nature Coast Landings in Crystal River, the county allowed him to build up to 12 RV sites per acre. The county now requires developers to build no more than 5 RV lots per acre.
While Florida continues to have an abundance of RV parks, more than half of them were built 30 or more years ago and cannot easily accommodate today’s larger, more luxurious RVs or the people who invest in them.
“This means everybody gets more space,” Eyster said. “It also makes it more expensive to develop the property because the infrastructure costs remain the same and you aren’t able to spread the water, sewer and clubhouse costs over as many sites.”
These larger RVs, many of which have slideout rooms, flat screen TVs, computers, stereos, microwave ovens and other household appliances, often require 50 to 100 amp utility connections, as well as larger campsites and wider roads, all of which are difficult for Florida’s older parks to provide, unless they make considerable investments in upgrades and renovations. Meanwhile, changing government regulations are making it more costly to develop RV resorts in some areas of Florida, which translates into higher RV site costs. Eyster has seen evidence of this first hand in Citrus
David Gorin, a longtime campground industry consultant, added that RV resorts that sell their sites provide consumers with an affordable way to obtain country club style amenities without the high maintenance fees that condo developments typically charge. RV site owners can also have the park rent out their sites when they’re not using them, so they can make money on their investments. The insurance costs for RV sites are also lower than they are for site built homes and condos, since RV sites are less susceptible to hurricane damage than site built homes or condos, Gorin said, noting that RV owners have the ability to
David Gorin move their vehicles before powerful storms arrive. So with this information in mind, combined with the relative shortage of higher end RV parks and resorts that sell their sites, developers are less inclined to lower their prices. Some RV resort developers also feel they have an obligation not to lower their prices because that could undercut investors who recently purchased sites from them. “There’s still quite a bit of consumer interest in buying an RV site,” Gorin said, adding, “If you go to the Tampa RV Supershow in January, practically every park that sells its sites has a booth there.”
New in 2010, Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park CampResort in Mill Run Pennsylvania introduced the first snow-less snow tubing track into the camping industry. Yogi Bear, Boo Boo and Cindy Bear took the first ride down the track as onlookers cheered them on waiting anxiously to take their turn sliding down the hill. Kids and adults of all ages enjoy the fun that this brings
into the Mill Run Pennsylvania campground.
While waiting for your turn campers enjoy snow cones, cotton candy, popcorn and drinks at the activity table.
Rider’s line up, to either form long trains or race each other to the end. Evening parties have been started to do late night glow stick riding which brings a different twist to the ride. The cooler the evening gets, the faster the track starts to run and with it being dark and unlit, the thrill of not knowing where you will end
up, excites the campers even more.
Anyone passing through Mill Run Pennsylvania should stop by and try out the slides. Just think you don’t have to put snow boots, gloves , hats and extra clothing on to enjoy the same fun you have in the winter. Plus there is no chance for frostbite.
There are units of the National Park System, such as Canyonlands, North Cascades, and Great Smoky Mountains national parks, just to name three, that have little or no lodging within their borders. It's just such a lack of facilities, believes Derrick Crandall, that serves as a drag on visitation to the park system. Parks with little or inadequate lodging, he maintains, have limited allure with the traveling public. The argument raised by Mr. Crandall, the counselor for the National Park Hospitality Association as well as president and chief executive offer of the American Recreation Coalition, is not unlike many made nearly a century ago, when the thought of a "national park" was just beginning to germinate with
promote those parks with visitor services, help to ensure that in fact visitation to the parks you just cited are if not record are at least, certainly they have high levels of visitation."
politicians, the general public, and business leaders. "I think there’s significant awareness that if in fact we want to encourage continued relationships between the national parks and the American public, we can’t do that if fewer and fewer people are coming to the parks," said Mr. Crandall. "And right now we’re looking at a 25 percent increase in the number of Americans, and a park decrease in terms of the number of visits, and that I would say is not a good situation, especially when you’ve grown the park system by 20 percent in terms of units. “This year, visitation will be down 2 percent. You’re seeing at some of the units where there is a higher level of visitor services, that’s where you're seeing the people go," he continued,
Derrick Crandall nodding to the strong numbers at such parks as Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Glacier. "It’s also a reality that Americans go where they hear about, either where they’ve been or where they see some kind of effort in the way of marketing and promotion and I would say the concessionaires, because they do market and
The National Park Service seemingly has yet to develop a concise and accurate method for counting visitors. Currently, it's hard if not impossible to say with any confidence which course visitation is following, up or down. That said, it's no secret that the agency at times has struggled to keep up its lodging facilities, which in most cases are leased, not owned outright, by concessionaires. Full Article: Excerpt written by Kurt Repanshek and published in The National Parks Traveler www.nationalparkstraveler.c om
SOUTH DAYTONA -- This city is about to get its first park for recreational vehicles and RV fans are about to gain one more site where they can park for the night or the month. Developer August Spreng filed a permit recently with the St. Johns River Water Management District for drainage needed for a park on 9.87 acres at the Lake View Business Park, 24302440 S. Nova Road. The site he plans to use was most recently Daytona Brick and Stone. Other businesses at the park include a thrift store and
pest control company, neither of which will be affected. Spreng said Thursday he plans to have South Daytona RV Park and Gardens open for business this month. Besides the 90 spots onsite, Spreng said, the park also will have two warehouses that will provide indoor storage for large items such as RVs, boats and motorcycles. Spreng said he decided the time was right to move forward with the park. "With
the way the economy is, I felt a vacation-oriented application was prudent," he said. The facility is the first RV park proposed since the city modified its land development code to allow recreational vehicle parks as a special exception in business heavy commercial and light industrial zoning. John Dillard, community development director, said the city has always allowed RV and boat storage in business, heavy commercial and light industrial zones, so there was no real problem with allowing the park.
The city did mandate several requirements with regard to the size of the vehicles, parking space, amenities that could be offered and the length of stay. Guests, for example, cannot stay more than 210 days in a 12-month period. "A nice RV park that will attract people to South Daytona and use our local businesses is better overall for the community than a storage site for RVs and boats," Dillard said Friday in an e-mail. Article: www.newsjournalonline.com
Yellowstone National Park has chosen the man who will serve as the park's new superintendent.
where I first learned what it means to be responsible for our nation’s treasures, is a distinct honor.”
National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis appointed Daniel N. Wenk as the new superintendent of the first national park.
Wenk began his NPS career in 1975 as a landscape architect at the Denver Service Center. He returned as director of the DSC from 2001-2007 where he oversaw the National Park Service’s centralized planning, design, and construction services, and provided parks and regional offices with services including contracting and project management.
Wenk is currently serving as the agency’s deputy director of operations, a post he has held since 2007. “My first job in a national park was in Yellowstone in 1979,” Wenk said. “To return as superintendent to
New Berlin, PA – The Producers of the Virtual Outdoor Expo, scheduled to open in only 3 ½ weeks, have announced that an early pre-registrant attendees will win a prize on November 1st, the day the show officially begins. Art Lieberman, the Expo’s Producer, has decided to hold a drawing for a POS credit card terminal to one lucky attendee who preregisters for the event prior to November 1st. As stated in earlier announcements, the producers intend to preregister up to 4,500 outdoor hospitality businesses and send confirmation e-mails to those businesses with a user name and password. “Those will go out next week”, says Lieberman. “In the meantime, an early registrant will win a
Verifone Omni VX-310LE POS credit card terminal. All registrants, however, will have the opportunity to view the Expo as it is the process of being set-up. There is a list of all sponsors and exhibitors and will be a complete listing of the Webinars including the time schedule for them. It will give attendees a feel for what the virtual show will actually look like.” Attendees could literally go the the pre-show site on a daily basis to watch the progress of building and customizing the software that will run the Expo, The Producers would like to take this opportunity to thank some individuals who have been working behind the scene to try to assist in the success of the Expo.
Tracie Fisher (tracie@campgroundmanag ertoday.com) has volunteered to assist exhibitors in establishing their booths. Tracie was also influential in convincing both the National School of RV Park and Campground Management and the Association of RV Parks & Campgrounds of Michigan to exhibit. She has spent countless hours working on the Expo.
Beverly Gruber is the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Campground Owners Association and, although the Board of the Association has decided not to exhibit with the Expo this year, Beverly continues to promote the event to the PCOA’s membership. Most of the members of the Advisory Board of the Expo will be exhibiting at the PCOA Show in December.
Greg Gerber of RV Daily Report (editor@rvdailyreport.com) has taken a great interest in the Expo and has been fastidiously posting our Press Releases. Although exhibiting at the Expo would not be possible for Greg due to the nature of his publication, Producers of the Expo are seeking ways for further work with him.
Information about the Virtual Outdoor Hospitality Expo can be found at their website at www.outdoorhospitalityexpo .com or by calling them at 877-901-EXPO (3976). (Website designed and maintained by Pelland Advertising)
also purchased a garage condo to accompany her site at Chassa Oaks. “We’re in our early 50s and we’re not slowing down,” Greg Smith said, adding that he needs a place to work on his motorcycles and to build a car. “We’re going full-time (RVing), and the garage condo gives me a workshop as well as a place to store some of our more personal items we don’t want to part with,” he said.
HOMOSASSA, Fla., Oct. 4, 2010 – Florida’s higher end RV resorts have just about everything a full-time RV enthusiast could desire. What they don’t typically have, however, are garages where active retirees can pursue their hobbies or store their RVs, boats and other adult toys. But developer Jim Eyster plans to fill that void by selling “condo garages” to RV enthusiasts who purchase sites at Chassa Oaks RV Resort in Homosassa. The resort, Eyster’s second RV resort after developing Nature Coast Landings in Crystal River, features 10by 35-foot concrete pads, 6by 16-foot patios, a large clubhouse with a covered lanai and heated and screened swimming pool, a meeting hall, kitchen facilities, a workout room and library. But offering garage condos on the lot next door to the resort will complete the product offering, he said. “I think we’ve found the right niche,” Eyster said.
Tom Weldon of Albuquerque, N.M. couldn’t agree more. “It’s perfect for me,” said Weldon, who recently purchased a garage condo to accompany his RV site. A retired government employee, Weldon said he builds canoes for a hobby
and needs a place for his woodshop. “I’m not one to sit around the pool or be sitting by my RV,” he said. “But the garage condos are perfect for people who want to stay active.” Greg Smith has a similar perspective. He and his wife, Sandy,
When: October 6-10, 2010 Hours: Weekdays 2-9 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Where: Rock Financial Showplace, 46100 Grand River Avenue, Novi, MI 48374. Exit I-96 at Beck Road, 1 mile east on Grand River.
campers, motor homes, travel trailers, truck campers, park models and fifth wheel travel trailers, ranging in price from $4,999 to more than $400,000. • Booths featuring parts and accessories, campground information, on site RV financing and RV rentals.
Highlights of the show: • Over 200 units and 50 brands displayed; folding
• Special discounts including folding campers
Chassa Oaks currently has 39 RV sites, about half of which have already been sold. Eyster said he plans to start building the second phase of the resort early next year. The park will eventually have 150 sites. For more information on Chassa Oaks RV Resort, please contact Jim Eyster at (352) 212-7245 and visit www.chassaoaks.com.
from $4,999; trailers from $8,999; motorhomes from $49,999. 2009 model closeouts and discounts on 2010 models. Plus, manufacturer rebates on select RVs. • Enter to win the Ultimate MIS Race Experience package from Michigan International Speedway. Includes tickets, camping and VIP access.
A family-themed campground for recreational vehicles that once appeared doomed to failure has won the Sarpy County Board's stamp of approval. Last week, the board voted 4-0 to allow construction of the Leisure Village RV park south of Bellevue, near the Platte River. The project will be part of a 220-acre development near Chris, Hanson's and Betty Lakes that aims to appeal to outdoor enthusiasts and families seeking weekend getaways. The campground near 38th Street and Paradise Road calls for 192 RV pads. It will feature ballfields for tenants and guests. An area is designated for riding allterrain vehicles. A 35-acre sandpit lake on the property would allow for swimming, but motorboats and personal watercraft would be prohibited. The RV park will be seasonal, open from April through October and closed in winter. Leisure Village should be ready to open by April 2012, said James E. Lang, an attorney for developer Frank Krejci.
County Planning Director Rebecca Horner recommended approval. “We worked very, very, hard with the neighborhood and the applicant to help find a resolution that the County Board could support,” Horner said. “I believe it's a good use of a property that has limited development potential, provided the owner maintains compliance with the agreement.” The project needed a flood-plain development permit and a special-use permit, along with preliminary and final plats, to proceed with construction. Horner said the county can revoke the campground's special-use permit if the developer fails to comply with the terms of the agreement. Board member Tom Richards of Bellevue said the developer has agreed to invest about $4 million in infrastructure improvements to the property. Krejci will build a hardsurfaced road into the park, erect a chain-link fence along the property line and plant dozens of trees to create a buffer with abutting property owners.
“The developer really worked hard with the neighbors, and he satisfied a lot of their concerns,” Richards said.
county that his RV park would attract high-end RV owners and not be a detriment to the 300 waterfront properties at the existing lake community.
Last January, about 100 homeowners from the nearby lake community attended a Sarpy County Planning Commission meeting in a strong show of opposition. The neighbors raised concerns about noise, septic systems, lighting, trespassing and other nuisance issues.
An engineering firm he hired concluded that Leisure Village would not cause any contamination or generate other related problems for the area. Still, the flood of concerns raised with the Planning Commission caused the county to delay action for several months.
Several property owners at Chris Lake also wanted assurance that the RV park would not harm the water quality there or become a haven for underage drinking parties. At the time, Krejci, president of Century Development, assured the
Richards said the project will be a positive addition to the county and increase the county's property tax base. “Long-term, I think that's really a place that will take off,” he said. Article: www.omaha.com
For 34 years, Olin McIntosh drove the long way home toward Bishop Road from Belle Ayr mine. Weary from the drive, his head would droop lower and lower as the morning light began to rise. “I wish there was some place out here to stay on this drive,” he thought. Nearly a year later, he has the answer — the first fully certified Campbell County RV park. “You can see how wide (the spaces) are and how long they are,” said McIntosh, who owns All Seasons RV Park his wife, Sandra. “We didn’t build this for someone to be sitting on the lap of another person. We built it to have space. And it’s quiet, too.” The RV park at 1000 McIntosh Lane sits just 1 mile above Bishop Road in Rozet. It is the newest, yearround RV park to be established in Campbell County. It includes 20 spaces, each with more than 88-by-60 feet of space and Wi-Fi access, along with a bathhouse and a laundromat. “We only designed this for 20. We could have put 40 or 60, but we want people to have their dogs and their
cats and they can have a little fenced yard and it can be very relaxed, instead of them just being crammed together,” he said. The park allows for RV camping and dry camping (without utilities). It offers 30amp, 50-amp and 100-amp electricity service. The park only has been open since Aug. 31, but many were lining up for dry camping spots before it opened. “These are people from all different walks of life,” he said. “We like for them to think of us as family and we’d like to think of them as family,” Sandra said. “We want to interact with the people who come to stay. We want to get to know them.” Ten people have moved into the lot so far, but McIntosh hopes for more. “I’m sure it’s going to fill,” he said. “We’re not full right now, but when people find out, I’m sure we’ll fill.” The promise of snow is just around the corner, but All Seasons RV Park will be true to its name. “We’re not going to close the park,” he said. “We’re open all year long.” Article: www.gillettenewsrecord.com
Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp Resort at Barton Lake is celebrating the fall and Halloween season this year with four Halloween weekends! September 17-19 is “Happy Howl-O-Ween”, geared for the Little Tykes. The Barton Lake Indiana campground will feature a costume parade with trickor-treating along the parade route, picture time in the pumpkin patch, hunt for The Great Pumpkin, story time, craft hour, cartoons, wagon rides, bingo and more! September 24-26 “Yogi Bear Witching Weekend”, Something is brewing on Barton Lake! Costume
complete without a Monster Bash! Wear your costume for the famous Monster Ball with the Bears, Trick or treating through the campground, ceramics, cartoons, wagon rides, bingo and much more! Keep those sites decorated – awards for the best decorated campsites!
parade with judging, trick or treating through the park, bring a pumpkin for judging, best decorated site awards, ceramics, wagon rides, cartoons, bingo and more! October 1-3 “Monster Bash”, Halloween is not
October 8-10 “Spooks & Spirits” Another spooky weekend at our Jellystone Park in Indiana! Bring your costume for the costume parade with judging, trick or treating through the park, ceramics, cartoons, wagon rides, bingo and best decorated site awards!
A CANADIAN RV dealer in Morinville teamed up with Jayco to donate a caravan to the Make-AWish charity so a young girl with a life threatening brain tumour can enjoy a summer camping holiday with her family. GERMANY has unveiled a motorhome called the Futurina Caravan Salon that comes complete with terraced roof, hot tub ... and a near $1 million price tag. THREE illegal immigrants were found hiding in storage boxes in a caravan on a ferry at the English port of Harwich. Three people in the vehicle towing the caravan were arrested, and the Chinese nationals deported to mainland Europe. LEADING British caravan manufacturer Coachman has recorded one of its most successful new product launches ever, selling nearly $3 million worth of new caravans in a single weekend at a show in Cottingham, Yorkshire. STUNNED police could
do little when brazen thieves reversed their stolen caravan into their patrol car. The crippled police vehicle was left with steam billowing from the radiator and $7000 worth of damage as the caravan was driven off. A man was later arrested and is now serving a 30-month jail sentence. CARAVANNERS have told of the frightening moments when a minitornado tore into a Queensland showground in Australia. Four people were taken to hospital and others given first aid for cuts and abrasions as the freak storm hit the already sodden Millmerran Showgrounds on the western Darling Downs. Hundreds of caravans had assembled in readiness for the Australian Camp Oven Festival. A BRISBANE caravanning couple's journey to the festival went pear shaped when they crashed while trying to avoid a snake on the road. Their $42,000 single-axle York caravan flipped and was wrecked
October 18-20: Virginia Campground Association, American Heritage RV Park, Williamsburg, Virginia. For more information contact David Gorin at 703448-6863 or tovca@aol.com October 19-20: Ohio Campground Owners Association (OCOA) Fall Fun Day & POOT, Cherry Valley Lodge, Newark, Ohio. For more information contact Kristy Smith at 614-221-7748
November 4-7: 47th Annual CONY Conference and Trade Show, Syracuse, New York. For more information contact Donald G. Bennett at 585586-4360 or Don@nycampgrounds.com
November 1-3 Virtual Outdoor Hospitality Expo www.outdoorhospitalityexpo.com
or by calling them at 877901-EXPO (3976). November 7-10 KOA convention in Savannah, GA Vendors interested in the Expo or Convention sponsorships can call 406254-7435.
December 1-3: InSites Convention and Outdoor Hospitality Expo, Rio All Suites Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information visit www.arvc.org December 6-8: PCOA Conference, Wyndam, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. For more information contact Beverly Gruber at 610-767-5026 or info@pacamping.com
No big projects this year! That was our plan as we started 2010 having completed several big projects each year since we bought our park in June 2007. But, our trees had other plans… Our big cottonwood tree at the front of the RV Park needed a professional trimming. A few others that were questionable last year were obviously dead or dying. So, how is it that a relatively small project of hiring a “tree guy” to “take care of a few trees” becomes a six week ordeal in the middle of the travel season? Surprise! When two separate arborists confirmed that over twenty of our mature trees had fatal cottonwood canker and
needed to be removed so they wouldn’t spread the airborne disease to the remaining healthy trees we were struck with grief! Shock (“22 trees!”). Denial (“Maybe it’s the wrong diagnosis? Can’t we wait to cut them down until fall?”). Anger (“It’s gonna cost me $5,000 to have less green and shade in the middle of summer?! This is NOT an improvement!”). Acceptance (“Where can we get 20 “largish” trees of at least three species for less than $2,000?”) And finally, resolution (“OK, let’s figure out a plan...”). We experienced them all. It took a few weeks to bring ourselves to accept a bid and begin the work. We took this opportunity to remove trees from the middle of the sites and
place new ones near the split rail fences between the sites so they are no longer obstacles for slide outs, doorways and awnings. Now, as we look out over the new Locust, Autumn Ash, Zelkova and crabapple trees we have planted - we feel better. Our customers have commented that our sites seem bigger and the park looks “cleaner” with the trees in their new locations. The variety of species we have planted will add more visual interest and color in every season and will help protect us from losing them all to some disease or infestation in the future. In short, our park IS better!
Tom and Mari Garland
We turned our lemons into lemonade.
As campground owners we face unfortunate realities regularly. It helps to see them as a chance to improve our campgrounds or help our guests reclaim what could be a ruined vacation. As you reflect on your summer season and make plans for next year look for those difficulties that can be turned into opportunities to improve YOUR park or give genuinely helpful and caring customer service. by Tom & Mari Garland Junction West RV Park Reprinted from CCLOA President's message
By Larry
The answer is air, earth and water. So what is the question? The question is: when all is said and done, what is the environmental movement all about? It’s about air, earth and water. One cannot reflect very long on air, earth and water without noting that any number of other natural resources relate to the supply and quality of air, earth and water. Trees, for example, are threatened by floods and drought. They also contribute to good air quality, making them part of the discussion. Fish are part of the discussion of water quality. Plants and crops are woven into the concerns about ground quality. The theme of the upcoming Virtual Outdoor Hospitality Expo will be sustainability. Organized around this theme there will be many educational and informational aspects that touch on matters environmental, reflecting the amazing research and many dimensions of environmental science.
One could say that all living things, whether human, animal, fish, bird, plant, insect or even simple cells, depend on adequate supplies and quality of air, earth and water. The term “sustainability” for this writer simply means that we use environmental resources responsibly so that they will last. It’s the difference between using and using up. It would be impossible, of course, to literally “use up” the air, earth or water of this planet. But it is possible to ruin the quality of air, earth and water to a point such that life on earth would become problematic. With regard to water, it is also possible to overuse water from specific sources to a point such that there would be no more, as in the case of deep aquifers. Even from a purely selfish point of view we all have motivation to use rather than use up: it’s the way to keep a good thing going!
Gregg Fore, president of Dicor Corp., was elected RVIA Chairman of the Board for fiscal year 2011 during the association’s Board of Directors meeting, held Sept. 21 at the Hotel Park City in Park City, Utah. “The Board has elected an experienced, insightful leader to be our next chairman,” said RVIA President Richard Coon. “Greg is a very active and involved member in the association and that participation has been an invaluable asset to RVIA and the industry. I look forward to working with him in the coming year.” Fore has served on the RVIA Board since 1999 and has extensive experience on the Executive Committee, having held the posts of First Vice Chairman, Second Vice Chairman, and Treasurer. He has also chaired the Audit Committee, Awards Committee, Standards Steering Committee, and Strategic Planning Committee and served as a member of the Nominating Committee and Public & Legislative Affairs Committee. He was honored with RVIA’s Distinguished Service to the RV Industry Award in 2009.
Gregg Fore In addition, the RVIA Board of Directors elected other officers to join Chairman Fore on the Executive Committee, including Doug Gaeddert, general manager, Forest River, Inc., as first vice chairman; Bob Olson, chairman of the board, CEO and president, Winnebago Industries as second vice chairman; Derald Bontrager, president and COO, Jayco, Inc., as treasurer; and John Regan, chairman, Fabric Services as secretary. All officers will begin their one-year terms on Oct. 1 and are joined by Chairman Ex Officio Jim Sheldon, special assistant to the president, Monaco RV, and RVIA President Richard Coon on the Executive Committee.