Issue 160 Campground & RV Park E news

Robert Peraza, who lost his son Robert David Peraza in the attacks at the World Trade Center, pauses on Sunday, Sept. 11, at his son's name at the North Pool of the 9/11 Memorial before the 10th anniversary ceremony. Photo: www.msnbc.msn.com

Gordon Huggins takes a picture of Billy Paluck and son Kamden Paluck posing in front of the 27-foot-long Oscar Mayer Wienermobile at the KOA Campground in Wilmington Saturday, September 10, 2011.

Saturday night, the largest mobile hot dog sat in the middle of the KOA Campground on Market Street, where revelers lined up, some waiting up to 30 minutes, to go inside.

Inside, high-energy Reese Brammell played host to everyone from toddlers to senior citizens.

"Our job title is hotdogger," Brammell said, adding it is on his business card.

The Wienermobile is 27 feet long, or 60 hot dogs, he said. The fiberglass dog weighs more than 7 tons and sits on a 2004 Chevy chassis.

This particular Wienermobile is one of six that travel the nation most of the year. A woman stepped up through the door and asked Brammell how he was doing.

"Bun-believable," he said.

"Frank-tastic."

The hotdoggers, usually recent college graduates, spend a year on tour. In about three months, Brammell has already been to 14 states.

David Horne, of Wilmington, stepped down off a Wienermobile for the second time in his life.

"My mom took us to see it when we were kids," he said. This time, he came with his wife, Lisa, and their children, Logan, 8, and Conner, 5.

"I liked that it looked like a hot dog," Logan said.

"I just loved everything," Conner said.

the station for a photo-op later in the evening.

Oscar Mayer whistle blows punctuated the sounds of children playing games. The smoke from a campfire carried the smell of hot dogs and s'mores through the air.

KOA manager Michael Akey said about 250 people came to see the Wienermobile on Friday night, and even more Saturday. "Easily 500 to 700 locals," he said.

Outside of the Wienermobile, couples paused to take photos, beaming even before the camera was raised.

Firefighters from the nearby station in Ogden rolled up in Engine 61 and got the hotdoggers to agree to drive the Wienermobile over to

Many of them lingered even after leaving the Wienermobile.

"It was awesome," said April Wood, formerly of Wilmington, who brought her two girls and a nephew.

"You're not all-American 'til you go to the Wienermobile." www.starnewsonline.com

November 6-9, 2011 (Expo on Nov. 9) South Point Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV Contact: (406) 248-7444

CARTHAGE, N.C. -- A family-owned business since 1978, Heritage Camping and Recreation is scheduled to be auctioned in a forclosure sale Oct. 6 at 10 a.m. at the courthouse in Carthage, N.C.

November 10-11, 2011 On the Internet Contact: (877) 901-3976

November 14-17, 2011 Embassy Suites, Covington, KY Contact: (513) 831-2100

The sale includes all of Heritage Farm, including 100 acres of land, houses, cabins, stable, apartments, 55-site campground, office building, bathhouse, and 14-acre Heritage Lake with a sandy beach.

business has grown substantially every year, and has many loyal, repeat campers," said Sadler, who noted the auction is the result of a post-probate settlement forced by some of the heirs.

The auction will start at a minimum $160,000 bid.

Just the land with no buildings or business is valued at $1.4 million, said Amy Sadler, with Heritage Camping and Recreation.

"This is my fifth season operating the campground since our mother passed away in 2006. The

"We are the only family campground in our county and are located just 10 miles from golf-oriented Pinehurst, N.C.," she added.

For photos and more information, visit www.heritagecampground.com.

November 28 – December 2, 2011 Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort Spa & Savannah International Trade & Convention Center, Savannah, GA

Reproduced from The ARVC Report As a young boy growing up on a farm in rural Indiana my grandparents kept a small Indian saying framed on their wall that read, “Walk a mile in my moccasins and you will know my journey.” I’ve never forgotten that bit of wisdom.

It’s what inspired me to drive 800 miles this past weekend to visit an ARVC member’s campground in a nearby state at the gracious invitation of the owner. I wanted to learn two things: 1. how does a park operate behind the scenes? and 2. to hear this particular owner’s perspective of the recent announcement that the National Association of State Park Directors (NASPD) had recently voted to suggest to their state park directors they join ARVC on a trial basis.

The first objective was very personal. I’m the new guy who shares a love of RVing and camping but had only seen these through a consumer’s eyes. I wanted to better understand what goes on from the operator’s perspective and asked to be put on the jobs “no one else wanted”. Sure, I spent time shadowing the front office, looking at reports,

observing visitor trends and generally seeing the customer service side of the business in full action.

However I also hauled trash, cleaned and disinfected the shower room, visited the dump station and saw the good, bad and ugly of the pool operation on a sweltering hot afternoon. Thank goodness all systems were working in good condition or I would have been put into the “real” world you all live in very quickly.

And while one day doesn’t a lifetime make, I believe I now have a much better understanding of what campground owners, managers and hourly staff do. It was an eye-opener.

Secondly, I spent some quality time with the owner discussing his ongoing frustrations with the state parks in the area which he felt were generally encroaching on his private business with their expanded infrastructure at the taxpayer’s expense. I listened carefully to his well thought-out points, which to his credit, had clearly been formed over years of trying to cooperate with the state parks in the area. However the relationship quickly disintegrated when personalities clashed and things were regrettably done and said, resulting in a parting of the ways a couple years ago.

Driving home I tried to walk

in his “moccasins”, reflecting on the past two days and all I had learned.

While I don’t think there’s anything I can do to patch up the past, I feel compelled to try and bring these two entities together again, starting one step at a time in this one state, perhaps making something positive happen that other states will notice and follow.

In my estimation, it’s a far better road to take than letting things stay the way they currently are – in a stalemate.

What’s largely been lost in the dialog to date is that for many years ARVC bylaws have allowed public parks into the association. This didn’t happen on a whim.

Past boards and leadership clearly must have seen the enormous potential of combining forces long before I showed up. Many states moved aggressively to embrace this partnership including California, Maine, Virginia and others. One campground owner in particular is Dan Wright, current CalARVC president, who manages The Springs at Borrego RV Resort. The Springs generates most of its business from visitors who visit the neighboring Anza-Borrego State Park.

Dan is a firm believer that strengthening private park relationships with state park operators can be mutually beneficial.

“The board of CalARVC has really encouraged this type of collaboration,” Wright recently stated adding that “public and private parks need to be working together to strengthen public interest and support for camping, regardless of whether it’s in public or private parks.”

Likewise in Virginia, VCA State Executive David Gorin is moving forward with his board and the Virginia state park leadership stating, “We are working on making VCA and VSP campgrounds full partners now rather than in six months.”

Here at ARVC the presentday board and executive committee also saw the wisdom of joining forces, encouraging me to pursue a non-member drive designed to attract new parks of all sizes and types, publics included. They realized as I do that there’s overall strength in numbers. In fact, ARVC’s strength in numbers has been slowly dwindling since 2008 when our membership was 12% higher than it is today. This reflects numbers that have steadily fallen over the past three years. These are the moccasins all of us, as ARVC members, should be walking in right now.

Our common goal should Continued

Continued be to try and put aside our historical differences and work together as one – working not as privates and publics apart but as one outdoor hospitality industry and one ARVC. I’ve seen too many examples of how ARVC members are making this cooperation work locally to their advantage to not try to make it work universally.

Admittedly, there are still skirmishes going on out there affecting your everyday business survival.

That’s not lost on me one bit. But unlike ever before, we have the Board of the National Association of State Park Directors

genuinely working with us to make their members, the 51 State Park Directors of the U.S. and Puerto Rico, understand the importance of collaboration. I have confidence we can make something positive happen.

As Joe Elton, Chairman of the NASPD Board, said recently, “It won’t happen overnight and it won’t be easy.” I’m convinced Joe’s trying his very best on his end and by the ARVC bylaws I’m charged to uphold, I’m committed to trying my very best on my end as well. For the good of ARVC, I hope you will, too.

Paul Bambei

“A number of parks are filling up with evacuees, insurance adjusters and others involved in the wildfire cleanup effort.”

– Brian Schaeffer, Texas Association of Campground Owners Texas wildfire evacuees are seeking temporary shelter in campgrounds and RV parks while their homes and neighborhoods are inspected to see if and when it will be safe for them to return home.

While more than 1,500 homes have been destroyed in the wildfires during the past week, others have sustained partial damage or smoke damage that must be repaired before families can return to their homes.

“A number of parks are filling up with evacuees, insurance adjusters and others involved in the wildfire cleanup effort,” said Brian Schaeffer, executive

director and CEO of the Texas Association of Campground Owners (TACO).

“We were already nearly 80 percent full when the fires began, but now we have filled the park up with evacuees and insurance adjusters,” said Juanita Voigt, co-owner of 128-site Highway 71 RV Park in Cedar Creek.

Voigt said some of the evacuees staying at her park had borrowed RVs from family members.

Local church groups were also making two RVs available to families in need of temporary shelter.

Voigt said her park was also providing two weeks of free camping to evacuees who had not yet received insurance compensation or were

otherwise facing immediate economic hardship as a result of the fire.

point for fighters who have been working the Magnolia fire.

Gwen Craig, co-owner of Rayford Crossing RV Resort in Spring and Timberline Village RV Village in Magnolia, said she has been receiving evacuees and insurance adjusters at both of her parks.

Craig said she’s continuing to receive calls from evacuees and that some callers are looking for longterm campsites, which means they probably will have to camp out for several months while their homes are repaired or rebuilt.

“A lot of (evacuees) called who were really upset.

They didn’t know if they would have to stay or not” because of the uncertainties involving the fires.

Craig said she invited several evacuating families who called her to come to her park with their kids on Sunday. “We opened our pool area up to people who just needed to take the kids and have a fun day,” she said, adding, “We normally try to assist and help in situations like this.”

Craig said her guests have also been participating in food, water and snack collection efforts for firefighters. “We’ve been collecting protein bars, snacks, bottled water and Gatorade,” she said, adding that the donations are taken to a collection

“People are still in shock,” said Dale Slaughter of the Hobo Camp in Bastrop.

“They don’t know how long they’re going to need a place.”

At least one Texas campground was also damaged by the wildfires.

Toad Hollow RV Park, a 30site park in Bastrop, was largely destroyed by the fire. “Our main building and bathhouse survived, but everything else is gone,” said Judy Horn, the park’s owner, adding that many of her guests had lost their RVs in the fire. Officials with the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) were at her park on Tuesday.

A Wildfire gets dangerously close to Austin, Texas. Photo sent in by Brian Schaeffer, Texas Advertising.

Written by Elaine Zimmermann- A personal finance expert.

A seasoned overnight Walmart parking lot guest offers this advice. "For your safety and peace of mind, select Walmarts that are open 24 hours a day. There will always be shoppers and security in the lot even in the middle of the night."

Some Walmarts do not allow overnight parking due to local restrictions. These stores usually post signs that state this policy. You may find these restrictions more prevalent in tourist attraction destinations. For example in Orlando, you may have to park in a Walmart as far as 30 miles away from the city and its theme parks.

Walmart is so accustomed to allowing overnight RV parking in their lots that most have designated areas for RV's and campers. (no 18-wheelers) Their security personnel are trained to direct RV'ers to these areas and brief the occupants on the conditions for overnight parking.

Most Walmarts allow you to leave your vehicle in their designated areas for 24 hours a day for as many as a few weeks to as few as three days -- extremely popular destinations usually have shorter stay maximums.

Just as with a campground, in Walmart lots you may come and go as you please throughout the day. But Walmart lots do not provide all the amenities of campgrounds.

Those Walmart locations that accept overnight parking by RV's and campers do not provide power -- but most RV's have fuel tank powered generators. Water is available only at those Walmart locations that also sell gasoline and sometimes at the auto bays of Walmart stores.

Also there are no facilities to dispose of waste water, commonly referred to as "black water." According to many Walmart overnight guests, this can be properly disposed of at no charge at many state rest stops.

"Gray water," the water from showers and sinks cannot be disposed of in Walmart lots either. This can be properly disposed of at no charge at most camp grounds and rest stops.

Most RV'ers have experienced an occasion when they could not find a place to park in any Walmart, K-Mart or other retail location. In this instance, most elect to park in a truck stop.

Editors Note: Facts contained in this article could not be verified at the time of publication.

lodges or more rustic cabins, staking out space in what is usually a slow season for this familyoriented KOA, after Labor Day and before the Texas Renaissance Festival kicks up in nearby Plantersville.

Williamson said he and his wife had walked the line of cars parked outside roadblocks to FM 1486, telling them of the campground, offering them a place to stay.

Scott Ross had held out past the wildfire evacuation order. The father of six didn't want to leave his place at Southall Drive and FM 1486 to looters and in his case, it wasn't idle speculation. He'd already had a guy run out from under his raised house.

and the United States, manager Aaron B. Williamson said. Its grounds are immaculate, and it boasts an indoor swimming pool and hot tub, two dog parks, horseshoe pits and shuffleboard and wi-fi -among other things.

"But the fire flared up about 7:30, 8 o'clock last night. It jumped across the street yesterday afternoon. There was a tidal wave of fire," he said.

But Saturday morning as campers got up and walked around, the constant refrain was people declaring they were or weren't evacuees and asking the status of the people they met.

Momentarily defeated, he loaded up his vehicles with his six kids and his mother and made a late-night drive to the KOA campground by Lake Conroe and the next morning, like a lot of other folks staying somewhat unexpectedly there, he was exchanging evacuee stories.

The 50-acre campground at Lake Conroe is ranked in the top 2 percent of KOA campgrounds in Canada

There was a husband-wife minister team, packing up their motor home after six months of working in the Montgomery County area.

A woman in her RV said she was traveling the country with her show dogs, six Dobermans.

But others came from neighboring towns, settled for a few days in their own RVs, air-conditioned

He said the campground itself is safe from the spreading fires. "It's not going to get to us. It's six, six and a half miles away."

Bill Starke said he'd lived in his house off Nicholsaw Road for 35 years without ever experiencing a wildfire like this one.

He'd left last Tuesday, headed to Hempstead but it

was so smoky there, he'd moved over to the KOA camp.

"They still won't let us go in," he said.

Ross figured they'd be staying at least two to three days before they could go back home and see what was there. They'd taken as much as they could of their possessions, crammed into any space available.

Even in all the rush to get out, they'd paused for a moment, he said.

"We laid hands on the house, said a prayer and drove away. We held out as long as we could."

Article: http://blogs.houstonpress.com Photos Margaret Downing

GREEN COVE SPRINGS - To help the Food Pantry of Green Cove Springs address a severe shortage of food because of the significant increase in disbursements, Whitey’s Fish Camp Restaurant and RV Park is planning a Halloween-related fundraiser.

“Whitey’s Haunted Swamp” will be open from Oct. 18-31 at the restaurant on County Road 220 at Swimming Pen Creek, says Wynema Lovell, food pantry executive director.

WASHINGTON — The percentage of Americans living in poverty last year rose to the highest level since 1993, the Census Bureau reported Tuesday, fresh evidence that the disappointing economic recovery has done nothing for the country’s poorest citizens.

Another 2.6 million people slipped below the poverty line in 2010, meaning 46.2 million people now live in poverty in the United

Lovell said the Food Pantry is seeking about 25 volunteers to work the event and serve as actors in the haunted swamp.

An organizational meeting with volunteers will be held at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 28 at the restaurant. Lovell said the volunteer program is open for anyone to serve, especially those who are in school and need volunteer hours for college.

Call Tara at Whiteys at (904) 264-7271 or email her at fishcamp@bellsouth.net for more details.

States, the highest number in the 52 years the Census Bureau has been tracking it, said Trudi Renwick, chief of the Poverty Statistic Branch at the Census Bureau.

That figure represented 15.1 percent of the population, up from 14.3 percent in 2009, and 11.7 percent at the beginning of the decade in 2001. The poverty line in 2010 for a family of four was $22,113.

CLEAR LAKE IA — The Scamps are returning to Clear Lake.

A ScampCamp for owners of the small travel trailers will begin Wednesday at the Oakwood RV Park.

The event lasts through Sunday.

because it’s not out in the countryside and there is more for people to do, Dean said.

The Scamp owners enjoy visiting all the attractions in Clear Lake and Mason City, including The Music Man Square, Virginia said.

Similar events are hosted by other Scamp owners around the country.

When they are not seeing the sights, they will be at the Oakwood RV Park playing card games and bingo and enjoying potlucks and live music provided by some ScampCampers who are musicians, she said.

This is the fourth ScampCamp the Moffetts have organized.

The public is invited to the ScampCamp to view the trailers.

Virginia said 50 or more Scamp owners are expected at the event.

Scamps are manufactured in Backus, Minn. The trailers are available in 13-, 16- or 19-foot configurations.

Scamp owners Virginia and Dean Moffett of Clear Lake are hosting the event.

The Scamp owners like coming to Clear Lake

http://globegazette.com

BOULDER, Colo. -National economic uncertainty and the destructive power of Hurricane Irene did little to slow retail sales of outdoor products in August, the Outdoor Industry Association announced today.

Outdoor product sales for the four-week fiscal month ending Aug. 27 grew 7.6 percent to $900.8 million, according to the OIA VantagePoint monthly trend report for August.

“Stock market instability, anemic job growth and destructive weather patterns along the eastern seaboard did not significantly impact outdoor consumers buying decisions,” said OIA Vice President of Business Intelligence LaRae Marsik.

Among the channels

tracked by SportScanInfo for OIA VantagePoint, sales in the independent outdoor specialty channel soared 19.6 percent for the month.

This was more than four times the increase seen in the broader retail market, which reported consolidated comps of 4.6 percent.

Footwear was again the primary driver of the overall growth for the month, but all major categories -outdoor hardgoods, outdoor apparel and outdoor footwear -- posted gains every week of the month.

Retail sales of outdoor hardgoods hit $538.3 million in fiscal August, a 4.5 percent increase that was roughly equal to the mid-single-digit gain seen in July. Back-to-school sales of daypacks (both lifestyle and technical)

more than offset weaker sales in some core categories like tents and sleeping bags.

Outdoor apparel retail sales grew 4.0 percent to $170.2 million for the month on the strength of business in the independent outdoor specialty channel. For the first time this year, the growth trend for outdoor apparel outpaced the trend in outdoor footwear in specialty stores.

On the heels of a very strong July, Outdoor footwear grew yet again by over 21 percent to $192.3 million. The category shift toward lightweight footwear is being felt even among back-to-school consumers. Some of the more broadly-sold outdoor footwear categories like trail running, outdoor

sandals and light hiking, have given up share to the lightweight footwear product that is now producing significant gains in natural/minimalist footwear, outdoor XT and multi-sport and approach footwear.

Looking forward, patterns among back-to-school shoppers may offer some insights for outdoor product retailers.

“Parents may continue to invest in the needs (or wants) of their kids while pulling back on expenditures for themselves,” said Marsik.

“This could negatively impact sales of personal high-end purchases like skis this fall, while requests from the kids for the latest and greatest outdoorbranded jacket or a new pair of lightweight shoes may be addressed.”

impressed with the performance, functionality and ease of use of the RMS system that the company has replaced its previous system with the RMS solution.

LA JOLLA, Calif., Sept. 8, 2011 — RMS North America is introducing a new property management and online reservations system that enables campgrounds, RV parks and resorts to manage their inventory using “dynamic pricing” – the ability to automatically increase rates based on occupancy levels and date of booking.

“North America’s campgrounds, RV parks and resorts have never had access to this kind of front desk and reservation system at such affordable rates before because the technology was cost prohibitive,” said Tom Chiarello, vice president of business development for RMS NORTH AMERICA. “Now, campgrounds, RV parks and resorts can use the same sophisticated yield management strategies that are used by the hotel and airline industries to maximize profitability.”

Originally developed in Australia, RMS NORTH AMERICA has spent several years testing and refining its new property management system specifically for North American RV resorts, campgrounds, private

motorcoach resorts, outdoor recreation facilities, marinas, motels and hotels. ”With our system, operators can seamlessly manage their properties in real-time using a single solution that has the flexibility to be configured to single or multiple properties of any size and type,” Chiarello said. “The system can also seamlessly and instantaneously manage reservations placed through multiple websites as well as those taken by phone by front desk staff.”

“This product will revolutionize the way campground operators run their business,” Chiarello said, adding that the product also has other technological capabilities that are attractive to private park operators, including database marketing, reporting, point of sale, text and email guest communications, owner accounting and integrated online reservations.

Greg Sidoroff, vice president of operations of Sunland RV Resorts, one of several RV resorts to test RMS reservations management technology, said his firm was so

“The ability to oversee multiple properties, each with a diverse mix of needs from RV spaces, storage, group reservations, facilities and rental accommodations, has been a welcome benefit of using this technology,” Sidoroff said.

“The system is easy to use and it allows our staff to spend more time interacting with the guests and improving their experience versus being bogged down in task work.”

RMS NORTH AMERICA has had substantial inquiries and a waiting list of orders that they have recently begun to fulfill.

RMS NORTH AMERICA plans on previewing their system at several industry trade shows and functions in the fall of 2011 and spring of 2012.

Contact: Tom Chiarello: 888.802.5827 www.rmsrvparkmanagement.com

Hosts at recreational vehicle parks and campgrounds should no longer have any questions about whether they are required to charge and collect transient occupancy tax from visitors.

The Red Bluff City Council Tuesday amended a severaldecades- old policy to specifically include RV parks and campgrounds as being among the type of visitor accommodations that must collect TOT. City officials have long maintained that the TOT ordinance, which was first adopted in the '60s, has always been applicable to RV parks and campgrounds. The amendment is a clarification only and does not change or expand the tax base.

Others see the amendment as a direct target on Durango RV Resort and an expansion of the tax base.

The target has been at Durango and not any other resorts, such as River's Edge RV Park, Durango manager Pam Cappello said.

and new businesses, Cappello said. You're telling them after 3 years in business you'll get slapped with another tax.

Resident John Elko said the original ordinance does not include RV parks and campgrounds, which means the amendment is an expansion of the tax base and needs to be put up to a vote as required by Proposition 218.

The craving for more tax money seems to have blinded the city as to what the original 1965 ordinance really says Elko said.

The amendment was passed by a vote of 3-2 with councilmen Rob Schmid and Forrest Flynn dissenting.

Flynn had earlier made a motion to scrap the amendment and leave the ordinance as is, but his motion failed due to a lack of support.

If the city attorney and the staff is saying the city already has the right to collect TOT under the existing ordinance, then there is no need for the change, he said.

In this bad economy, the target on Durango is telling all struggling businesses that the city is not there to support them.

If we change in the middle of the stream it's us saying there's something wrong with it, Flynn said.

Think about what you're saying to our community

Pat Patterson, a guest at Durango, agreed with

Flynn, saying if the city is going to fight with Durango, it needs to continue fighting on the same ground and the same wording in order for the fight to be fair.

change is not is it aimed at Durango. The city has tried to enforce the policy with Durango to no avail. The change is for businesses down the road.

City Attorney Richard Crabtree said the clarification is not required, as the city has always interpreted the ordinance to include RV parks and campground and the

If there's a legal battle with Durango it will be on the old verbiage, not new, Crabtree said. www.redbluffdailynews.com

said Steve Stamback. “It's a good basic park. It's got all the fundamentals a RVer would ever want. We like it.”

The Stambacks, who live in Sherwood, have previous experience as owners of a RV park. They are investors in the Premier RV Resort in Salem.

Steve and Cara Stamback travel in their own RV so they know what that type of traveler is interested in when looking for a place to park.

The Stambacks found those “fundamentals” at the Tri City RV Park that was for sale, and so made the decision to purchase the

business. The Stambacks, with a couple of partners, took ownership of the park Aug. 1 and it now has a new business name of Tri City RV. The park is located at 187 N. Old Pacific Highway, Myrtle Creek.

“We took a look at it and liked everything about it,”

The Tri City park was built in 2006 and '07. In August 2010, however, the park went into foreclosure, leaving PremierWest Bank as owner and operator. The Stambacks and their partners then made the purchase from that bank.

Doreen Roles is the on-site manager of the park, handling its day-to-day operations. She has

previous managerial experience and, according to Stamback, has already helped the park increase its occupancy of monthly residents from 22 in February to a present total of 44. The park has 69 full hookup RV spaces and provides guests with free high-speed Wi-Fi and cable.

“The bulk of the park's business is monthly guests and that's been going up,” Stamback said.

He added that plans are being finalized to build an RV storage facility on a lot attached to the RV park. A propane dispensing station and a 2,800 square foot outdoor pet play area for all guests to use will also be built on the lot.

ELKHART -- Thor Motor Coach announced today that it continues as the No. 1 retailing brand of motorhomes in North America with 22.93 percent market share through June 2011, according to Statistical Surveys.

The results also show Thor Motor Coach as the fastest growing motorhome brand among the top eight major manufacturers with a 27.9 percent increase over last year. Class C sales captured the No. 1 market position with an impressive market share growth of

31.50 percent compared to the previous year.

Statistics reported by Statistical Surveys are for 2011 year-to-date retail registrations through June 30th for non-federated manufactures in the United States and Canada.

“Packing in features that include camper favorites like mega-storage compartments, single step entrances and molded fiberglass front caps have helped us solidify our dedication to the Class C market. Over the past 6

months we have introduced several new floorplans that integrate features making the coach even more livable,” affirmed Mike Savage, Thor Motor Coach’s Class C product manager.

With 22.9 percent market share growth over last year, Thor Motor Coach experienced the largest increase for Class As within the top eight manufacturers, Savage explained.

"Over the last few months retail customers have responded well to the addition of several impressive new features on the Hurricane and Challenger lines, the

redesign of the Tuscany, and several new floor plans on the Windsport, Serrano, and A.C.E. lines," he said.

“Our continued focus on what retail customers’ desire helps us to bring innovative floorplans with intelligent features to the market," added Dana Simon, vice president of sales. "Our after the sale support programs like Concierge Connection and Rapid Response Parts along with the stability of a strong and financially sound company are added reasons consumers continue to display their confidence in our products.”

Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp-Resort of Sioux Falls, SD is honoring the true Super Heroes – police, firefighters, emergency personnel and armed forces – of our communities the weekend of September 16-18, 2011.

A number of special events and programs are scheduled for Saturday, September 17, 2011. A portion of the proceeds from the weekend will be donated to Operation Cares—an organization that provides support to families of service men and women who have been called away to support and defend our country.

“We’re excited to once again recognize and honor our everyday ‘superheroes’ who risk their lives helping our community,” said Donna Aljets, owner of Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park CampResort. “In addition, due to the outpouring support we had last year, we look forward to hosting a number of events that will also benefit Operation Cares.”

Activities scheduled for the day include: a rocket launcher, humvee and

obstacle course provided by the South Dakota Army National Guard; presentations on “Stranger Danger” by the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s office; the Brandon Fire Department’s fire truck; the Sanford Helicopter; wagon rides; visits from Yogi Bear and Boo Boo; an evening community bon fire; and other activities throughout the day.

All campsites and cabins are discounted 25% to any retired or active “superhero” with a valid ID. For those “superheroes” who are not campers, the daily admission fee at Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park is also discounted 25%.

The festivities begin on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. and will conclude around 10:00 p.m. The event is open to the general public. For more information, call 605-3322233 or visit http://www.jellystonesiouxf alls.com/ for more information.

Labor Day weekend may mark the end of the traditional summer camping season, but for the Jellystone Park™ Campgrounds that offer Halloween-themed activities; their busiest season is just beginning.

“We’re just now getting into our busiest time of the year,” Dana Gabriel, coowner of the Jellystone Park Campground in Swansea, S.C., stated in a news release. She added that her park offers five consecutive Halloweenthemed weekends that include carnival games as well as costume contests for adults, children and pets; campsite decorating contests; and trick or

treating. Halloween-themed activities have gotten to be so popular, Gabriel said, that the park ratchets up the scariness, with “no scare” Halloween events on the last weekend of September and first weekend of October, followed by three full-on scary weekends for older children and adults that also include a haunted house, which Gabriel and her family created out of an old barn.

Most Jellystone Parks now offer Halloween-themed activities. Activities typically include campsite decorating and costume contests as well as trick or treating and, in some cases, haunted houses and spooky nighttime walks in the forest.

VA Fall Convention & Trade Show 10/25/2011 - 10/26/2011 Virginia Campground Association is holding its Fall Convention and Trade Show, October 25-26th at Bethpage Family Camp Resort in Urbanna, VA. For more information please contact David Gorin at 703.448.6863 or by email at tovca@aol.com or David@DavidGorinAssociates.com.

Contact: David Gorin Phone: 703.448.6863

Even though there have been large wildfires in many places across the country already, we are only now beginning fire season. Outdoor growth gives way to dead and drying underbrush. The air and earth are dry. The weather is warm and often times windy. Outdoor activity is high, providing more chances for accidental sparks, careless flicks of cigarette butts, and grilling that can get out of control. Lighting strikes become more frequent and then there is always the danger of lunatic arsonists.

Three things are essential for survival in the face of these perennial dangerous wildfires.

First: AN ESCAPE ROUTE as well as an alternative escape route. Make up your mind that you will use the escape route sooner rather than later. Have your valuables gathered up and ready to toss into your vehicle with at the first warning. Know where your loved ones, staff and patrons are and be sure they know the escape

route and are ready to use it. Make sure your warning system is complete and ready to use.

Second: an adequate water supply to hose down structures and the surrounding landscape, as well as large supplies of water for firefighting crews.

If you or they adequate lack water you have almost no chance of staving off a large fire or even putting out a small fire.

Third: a cleared and cut area all the way around the property you intend to protect, with all the underbrush and grass cleared off. Wildfires are rarely forest fires. Wildfires thrive primarily on underbrush that, when dry enough, might just as well be straw. It burns quickly and spreads out of control with even a little wind. The best prevention is to eliminate underbrush at this time of year in a very large area beyond any buildings.

Pray for rain, be ready to fight, and know when to run.

iLoveDogFriendly.com, a premiere web site for dogfriendly travel and information, has become mobile with the launch of Dog Friendly, an app for iPhone.

Now pet parents can access the most up-todate information about the dog-friendliest establishments in town or on the go, powered by iLoveDogFriendly.com and its parent, iLoveDogs.com.

More and more pet parents are bringing their pooches along when they travel. However, the Automobile Association of America (AAA) reports that 38 percent of them say it’s difficult to find dog-friendly businesses. The Dog Friendly iPhone app quickly and easily solves that problem, putting more than 18,000 wet nosewelcoming hotels, restaurants, parks, beaches, boutiques, campgrounds and more right at pet parents’ fingertips.

“We’ve been amazed at the response the iLoveDogFriendly.com site has gotten from users,” says Martha Smith, general manager of i Love

integration and easy share features, Dog Friendly helps dog lovers quickly find and broadcast these pawsome places to their Facebook and Twitter social networks, and check in to dog-friendly locations on Foursquare directly from the app.

Dogs, Inc. “There’s definitely a need for a resource that helps pet parents locate dog-friendly travel accommodations and businesses for their excursions. The iPhone app will make it even easier for them to locate and share valuable information about dogfriendly establishments across North America.”

With the new Dog Friendly app—available now on iTunes—pet parents simply type a city, state or zip code to find the nearest dog-friendly businesses or to look for the latest doggie traveling tips. Plus, with seamless Google Maps

Luckily for pet parents, hundreds of businesses across the United States and Canada are adopting dog-friendly policies. The Dog Friendly app ensures that the days when the

family pooch stayed behind while his “pack” enjoyed the big, beautiful world are long dog-gone. iLoveDogFriendly.com is a premiere web site that caters to dog parents on the go, providing easy access to a wealth of dog-friendly hotels, campgrounds, parks, restaurants and stores. Users can upload photos and reviews of their favorite pooch-welcoming establishments and keep up on the latest in dog travel news.

At this time of year, many northern campgrounds are closed or getting ready to close and the southern campgrounds are getting ready to open. This year the transition time is a little earlier than usual, thanks to flooding. Many of the campgrounds in the Northeast have closed abruptly because it will take from now until next March or April to get them cleaned up and ready to reopen. I am aware that many communities have been pulling together in these times of bad weather and helping each other.

code when you take a reservation over the phone, then your rates on those reservations are usually reduced from non-qualified to mid-qualified. The banks look at it as being less of a risk when you enter that information because if the card is stolen the CVV code is on the card, but the address is not.

Now is the time to take a close look at your Credit/Debit card rates and see if there are charges you can lower yourself.

Here are a few suggestions.

If you take transactions over the phone, perhaps you’d be better off with a Mail Order-Telephone Order (MOTO) account where the mid-qualified rate would be lower but the qualified or swipe rate would be a little higher. In some cases this means having a second account.

First, look at your statement to make sure you are paying less for a debit card that’s swiped like a credit card. If the debit rate is the same as your credit card rate, ask your processor why. Debit card rates should be lower than credit card rates. And rates with a pin-pad are, generally, the least expensive rates IF the transactions are over $40.

Secondly, make sure you are not missing an opportunity for savings. An example is Address Verification Service (AVS).

If it’s a personal card and if you put in the numerical part of the address and zip

Third, if you are on Interchange Plus, make sure you are paying the Interchange rate that is published by Visa, MasterCard and Discover.

It’s on their websites.

Another option would be to use the “Authorize” button on your machine and put in the amount. When the customer arrives use the “Ticket” button and enter the transaction number from the initial transaction, so that you get the lower swipe rate instead of mid or non-qualified rates.

You also need to make sure you are PCI Compliant. If you are paying a PCI Compliance fee, find out what you are getting for your money. If

you are paying a NonCompliance fee find out why.

Set up rules of priority for credit card use since the rules have been changed allowing you to do so.

Look at how many people use recurring billing and see if Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) would be better financially for you.

If you have any questions about any of this, don’t hesitate to call me at 877858-9010.

Deanne Bower is Vice

President and a Limited Partner of Art Lieberman of MCPS for Campgrounds, a credit card processor sponsored by Woodforest Bank NA. Deanne has been in the Credit Card industry for several years.

Deanne has been helping conduct free webinars online and seminars on credit cards in many State and Regional Association Conventions. Deanne is also Associate Producer of the Virtual Outdoor Hospitality Expo. She can also be contacted at rvcreditcards@yahoo.com

Attempts to steal two caravans from a Brisbane dealer turned into a comedy of errors.

Police said a stolen utility was crashed through the front gates of Jayco dealer Brisbane Camperland at Tingalpa and a 23-ft caravan allegedly hooked up to the vehicle.

But it became dislodged and rolled across the road before coming to a stop.

The man then allegedly returned to the yard, hitched up a 16ft poptop caravan and drove away.

Police, alerted by

numerous calls from members of the public, attempted to intercept the rig before it crashed into a brick retaining wall in an alleyway.

The driver fled but was caught after a short foot pursuit. A 39-year-old man will appear in court on September 15.