Issue 161 Campground & RV Park E News

Campground Owners of New York (CONY) have taken steps to end its affiliation with the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (ARVC) over disagreements on ARVC's concept of allowing State Parks free trial membership.

The decision has become

a hot topic for ARVC who are now taking steps in an attempt to woo CONY members back into the fold.

On September 12th the CONY board met with the

ARVC issue on the agenda and according to the CONY Executive Director Donald G. Bennett Jr., voted to unaffiliate with the national body. “ARVC’s new initiatives were deemed by the CONY board to be in Continued

direct conflict of the CONY mission statement,” Bennett explained. Deeming that the membership offer could possibly intrude on the private campgrounds bottom line.

CONY's mission statement reads as follows:

Following is a letter to CONY members dated 14 September from Scott Sherwood, CONY's chairman announcing the boards decision.

privately owned campgrounds in New York State.

Regarding: CONY affiliation with ARVC. On Monday September 12, 2011 the CONY board of directors met and had a very full agenda. One of the agenda items was the ARVC affiliation. With much discussion, consideration and deliberation the CONY board voted to de-affiliate with ARVC at this time.

ARVC's new initiatives of offering State and municipal owned campgrounds a 6 month free trial program introduced by ARVC were deemed by the CONY board of directors to be in direct conflict with the mission statement of CONY: An association dedicated to the growth promotion improvement and development of

As you are all aware the CONY board has recently completed many Long Range and Strategic planning sessions. Many new concepts were learned and have been implemented to help improve the organization.

One of the most fundamental concepts that the board has adopted and embraced to increase production is that we will not spend time and resources on something that doesn't support the organization's mission statement.

Over the past several years many CONY members have requested a choice of membership instead of a requirement.

In the near future the membership dues that CONY would have paid on your behalf to ARVC will be refunded to you. Near the

end of the year ARVC will be sending an invoice directly to you. At that point you will have the option of paying the invoice to retain your ARVC membership or not. As a campground owner we make business decisions every day. By this action the board is allowing you to make a much requested choice.

The ARVC membership year runs from January 1 December 31. Your membership dues paid last year provides ARVC membership through December 31, 2011.

The CONY board and staff is committed to aspire to realizing the CONY vision statement: CONY will be the model campground association by providing professionalism and diversity in our programs, education, services, advocacy and support for continued growth and collaboration within the outdoor hospitality industry.

More information will be forthcoming in the upcoming CONY newsletter. If you should have any questions please let me or your President Don Bennett know.

Bennett has since resigned as an at-large member of the ARVC board.

Following the decision ARVC issued the following press releaseDENVER, Colo., Sept. 15, 2011 – Campground Owners of New York (CONY) is preparing to end its affiliation with the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (ARVC), citing disagreements over ARVC‟s willingness to offer trial memberships to state parks as well as discounts to campground companies with multiple parks in multiple states.

CONY‟s decision caught ARVC by surprise, since ARVC‟s board of directors had specifically given states the ability to “opt out” of both initiatives. “This is called working together at the state and national level, as it should be,” said ARVC Chairman David L. Berg .

Continued

Continued ARVC, in fact, turned down a request by New York State Parks to participate in a trial membership in August after learning of CONY‟s discomfort with the proposal. ARVC has also been sensitive to CONY‟s concerns about the ramifications of having the national association offer membership discounts to campground companies with multiple parks in various states across the country.

“ARVC openly welcomed states to „opt in‟ or „opt out‟ without pressure of any kind, based solely on the fact that the state would receive increased park members and dues,” Berg stated. “In fact, when the motion was passed to authorize ARVC to negotiate this concept with multi park / multi state operators, it was clearly stated in the motion to „only pursue deals that are financially beneficial to both state and national.‟ Berg noted that CONY will remain a member of ARVC in good standing through the rest of the year and said they hoped CONY‟s board would reconsider its decision during that time.

Berg also noted the numerous benefits CONY members receive as a result of their ARVC membership, including 20 to 30 percent discounts on supplies from Sherwin Williams, John Deere, Staples, Home Depot and other companies.

“Recently, we‟ve added new benefits, such as wholesale pricing on the entire Skyline park model trailer line, which allows you to save thousands of dollars on just one purchase, mostfavored-nation pricing on LP gas, and, soon to be announced, a simple, nononsense national blanket license fee agreement with the music companies to save money and cease, once and for all, the constant harassment.

We are also currently working on several other national discount programs, such as Waste Management and satellite TV services with Dish Network, with pricing such as the motel industry enjoys, that can save our members considerable money as well,” Berg said.

ARVC has also made other improvements, which include hiring a nationally respected law and lobby firm in Washington D.C. to monitor the daily flow of national and state legislation in New York and elsewhere that affects the private park business, and designing an entirely new Outdoor Hospitality Education Program, which ARVC will unveil at its annual Conference in Savannah later this year.

Subsequently, on September 15 the executive committee of ARVC met and decided to ask the board of CONY to reconsider the decision.

Continued

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Continued Berg also contacted CONY Executive Director Donald G. Bennett Jr., and asked him to reconsider his resignation from the ARVC board as an at-large member. He said Bennett said he was happy with his decision and would not withdraw it.

Since then ARVC have taken the issue one step further by sending a letter to CONY members expressing concern and asking members to lobby CONY board members to reconsider the decision.

September 19, 2011 Dear Members of CONY: We are deeply concerned that the Board of CONY voted to de-affiliate from ARVC. We strongly believe that a strong, unified national organization is crucial to all campground owners.

For this reason, we want CONY back. We need your help to make this happen.

We are all in this together.

While individual choice is an American right in most cases, it can be utterly destructive in the case of an Association like ours.

What would happen if the New York State Legislature, without notice to the citizens, voted to secede from the United States, saying that they didn’t like some laws that were passed and wanted to just give individual

citizens the ability to decide for themselves if they wanted to pay Federal Income Taxes and receive the protections and benefits of the United States citizenship? The United States would have to protect the whole state, because of the few who sign up, but the rest would benefit unfairly.

This is essentially what CONY has decided to do. If every state did it, ARVC would likely cease to exist, and the campground owners in every state would be unrepresented nationally in the Congress, education programs would cease, national marketing efforts would end, and the numerous other benefits provided through the clout of a national organization that covers the cost of ARVC dues several times over, would cease to exist.

We obviously disagree with the validity of the reasons the CONY Board stated for their dis-affiliation. ARVC has not and has no intention of requiring CONY to admit public campgrounds or offer discounts to multi-property companies. But the most important thing is that during tough times like these, we need to stick together.

Dissention amongst us is counterproductive. The ARVC Board is committed to working with CONY to resolve differences and to re-vision and renew our productive working relationship.

Campground owners throughout the United States need CONY back in

ARVC. CONY members need CONY back in ARVC. We need you to lobby your CONY Board members, go to the CONY convention, and vote for re-affiliation.

This is the time for teamwork and cooperation.

We are committed to working with you to get you back. To find out more about how you can help re-affiliate CONY, please feel free to contact our President, Paul Bambei, and either he or a member of ARVC’s

Executive Committee will contact you personally.

Please rejoin us in our ongoing efforts to benefit campground owners throughout America.

Sincerely, David L. Berg ARVC Chairman of the Board Paul Bambei President and CEO, ARVC

HOUSTON, Texas -- This Saturday, Sept. 24, is sure to be a busy one at PPL Motor Homes.

Back by popular demand, the company is hosting another Texas Association of Campground Owners (T.A.C.O) Day. Featuring door prizes, refreshments and specially priced deals on motor homes, fifth wheels, travel trailers, RV covers and other RV parts and accessories, the company is expecting quite a large turnout.

Each participating park will have the opportunity to tell its story to the hundreds of RV fans who are expected to attend. Upon entering, customers will register to receive a stamp card, which gives them entry into the hourly door prize drawings.

“We had a TACO Day in the spring, and had such a great time that we had to organize one in the fall,” said Boyde McMakin, operations manager of PPL Motor Homes.

“We will even be serving our signature PPL style

tacos – nachos with cheese, meat and jalapenos.”

Participating parks will have tables throughout the building, parts store, reception area and outside the building near the customer lounge for customers to visit while

they learn about used RVs for sale.

“It’s a win-win event for everyone,” said McMakin.

“Parks and customers get a great environment where they can find all the information they need, and of course, who can say no to tacos?”

It’s getting close to that time of year we all love, the RV Trade Show season.

While the shows can be exhausting and expensive to attend, if you do it right, it can also be quite profitable for your next season. The problem is finding a way to stand out from the crowd and attract those new guests.

Trade Booth Now is the time to begin assembling your trade show booth and deciding how you would like to have it look. If you don’t have a booth, check E-bay. They have some great booths that can be purchased new for $500 and that includes the lights. While this is quite an investment, it is a long term investment and can help show your RV Resort off to its best advantage. I would suggest that you take a look at the trade shows you want to attend and see what their booth sizes are.

Most that I have seen have 10’x10’ booth spaces but some are 8’x10’. Whatever size you get, be sure to have lighting that attaches to the booth. I wouldn’t suggest getting the booth with the graphics already on the background as you may want to change what the background looks like, add pictures or graphics or want to add shelves on the booth.

You will want to get a PopUp display. This only means that the frame work is in an accordion style configuration which allows the display to be assembled easily. You will also want a display where the shipping container can be covered and create a counter top where you can display printed materials, put a TV/Computer on top with a loop of pictures from the park.

Banners and Photos The next thing you need to consider is a banner for across the top of the booth.

You definitely want to have your logo displayed prominently on the banner.

Make sure you have a lot of color in the banner as this is going to be one of the first things that the show attendees are going to see.

Select a number of photos that truly represent your park, are very high resolution and will display well. Have those photos blown up and laminated so that you can display them easily on the booth.

Please don’t line the photos ups, making sure that they are all the same size and shape. Loosen up a little and offset the photos around the booth.

This will make a much more pleasing display. I have even included a picture of the site map so that people can see what

the park looks like graphically.

You will also want to create a loop of photos of the park to display on either a flat screen TV or on a computer. I strongly recommend the TV as it has a much larger screen and can be connected to a laptop for the photo loop.

Be sure there are people in the pictures enjoying the park. If you are concerned about the model releases, ask the staff to dress in street clothes and be in the shots.

Giveaways and Prize Wheels A free item is an almost guaranteed way of attracting attention. Before you spend a lot of money on cheap items, remember that the most kept item is one that is useful, unique and is not disposable. If the item is cheap or breaks

easily, chances are they won’t make it home to remind everyone about your great park, which is the object of the giveaway to begin with.

Rather than hand out a single giveaway, I purchased a prize wheel with dry/erase marker sections on it. The wheel has eight sections. One section I made a free night stay at the park. Three of the sections were for a 20% discount on a one night stay at the park. The remaining four sections were for the giveaways that we had purchased. The giveaway that seemed to have the most appeal was magnets. The more unique the magnet, the better the attraction to the attendees.

Brochures/Literature Most trade shows will supply you with a table for Continued

Continued the booth. This may or may not have a table cover with it. I found banquet covers for tables for a fairly reasonable price and made sure that it was always with us when we went to a show.

Even if the show provided a cheap plastic cover, I was able to replace it with a cover that gave a more cohesive look to the booth.

Make sure that you have plenty of plexi display stands for your literature.

Take your brochures and your business cards and put them in prominent places.

If your state organization prints park directories, take some along and hand them out. This will not only help

your state but you can highlight your park in the directory as you are talking to the potential guest.

Check with your state tourism department and see if they have any directories that they use at the visitor’s center. They will be more than happy to give you some to hand out.

Attendee Information Anytime someone comes into the booth, try to get their contact information.

Use the prize wheel as the incentive to fill out an information card and drop it into a fish bowl for a special prize. This could be a 1 week free stay, a free weekend, or any other prize that you decide on. Just

make sure that it is attractive enough to get people to give up their contact information (i.e.

Name, Address, Phone, email address.)

After The Show Now that the show is over, draw the name for the Grand Prize. You have the perfect opportunity to email everyone who registered with you announcing the winner and offering any other incentives you may have. The names that you collected during the show are your ROI, so don’t miss the chance to make that return as large as you can.

Pamela and her company, FocusedWords, are dedicated to helping you promote and market your RV Park/Resort/Campground to RVer’s everywhere. Be sure to follow her on Twitter: @RVStops and @FocusedWords. Check out her blog at www.FocusedWords.com/blog.

COPAKE, NEW YORK (September 15, 2011) – Motorcycle riders throughout the Northeast are invited to join the First Annual KOA Fall Poker Run Saturday, October 1, sponsored by the Copake KOA Campground, Deerpark/New York City Northwest KOA , Saugerties/Woodstock KOA and the New York City North/Newburgh KOA. The event is a fundraiser to benefit KOA Care Camps for children with cancer.

KOA Care Camps is a network of 44 specialized summer camps throughout North America that provide a safe, quality summer camp experience for children undergoing treatment for cancer.

The October 1 KOA Fall Poker Run will begin with a continental breakfast – donated by Walmart Store #2097 - at the Saugerties/Woodstock KOA Campground at 882 Highway 212 in Saugerties, New York. The route meanders from Saugerties through Eastern New York, with stops at the Deerpark/New York City Northwest KOA, New York City North/Newburgh KOA, a lunch by the River Station Restaurant in Poughkeepsie, and ends with a dinner and entertainment at the Copake KOA.

Registration for the event is $50. The best “poker hand” gathered during the event will win a $500 prize. The second-best poker hand will win a $250 camping certificate, with a $125 camping certificate for the third-best poker hand.

An optional stop during the Fall Poker Run will include the Woodstock Harley Davidson, which is offering discounts on merchandise for all riders, as well as door prizes for the evening events at the Copake KOA pavilion, with live music by “The Stoners.”

A special guest for the KOA Fall Poker Run will be Kampgrounds of America Inc. President Pat Hittmeier, who will be flying in from KOA’s home office in Billings, Montana to ride in the event.

All four participating KOA campgrounds will be offering special discounts of 15 percent off the cost of a camping stay from September 30 to October 1. Campers who are members of KOA’s Value Kard Rewards Program will receive an additional 10 percent discount.

Register for the Poker Run by emailing Copake@hotmail.com, or call the Copake KOA Campground at 518-3292811 and ask for Cathy Reinard or Susan Oles.

Mass — The 59-year-old priest from West Boylston and the 77-year-old widow from Hernando, Fla., may not have a lot in common.

But they share at least two important experiences.

They both bought mobile homes in the Peters Pond development, off Cotuit Road in Sandwich’s Forestdale section, as a place to enjoy their summers. And both say they and their neighbors were pressured to pay steep new membership fees or face the potential loss of their little slice of heaven.

Attorney General Martha Coakley quickly took up their cause: She sued the property owner and two affiliated firms last month, and later won an injunction restricting the controversial membership sales.

The seasonal residents’ stories, as detailed in affidavits filed in Suffolk Superior Court, describe scenarios that could scare someone who saved up money to enjoy a tranquil retirement.

But the owner of the Peters Pond park – an affiliate of Morgan RV Resorts – argues that it’s being unfairly treated, not the homeowners. Coakley’s case, the owner’s lawyer argues, relies on a state law that covers manufactured homes, but these mobile homes are

vehicles and not technically homes at all.

Representatives for Morgan and its affiliates – property owner Peters Pond RV Resort Inc. and Ideal Private Resorts – also claim that no one was told they needed to join the club to keep their place at Peters Pond.

The case could have significant consequences for similar parks in the state. A judge could be asked to decide whether people who live in these structures should enjoy the protections included in the state’s manufactured housing law – or if they should simply be treated as owners of recreational vehicles.

If Coakley has her way, these seasonal residents would get the benefits of the manufactured housing law, which was aimed at preventing mobile-home park owners from taking advantage of park residents whose homes really aren’t easy to move.

The Peters Pond development, which Coakley says has more than 300 manufactured homes, was sold by the DeGraw family in 2006. But it wasn’t until this spring that Saratoga Springs, N.Y.based Morgan RV Resorts started pitching a membership club to the seasonal residents for $13,000.

Many bought their mobile homes, also known as “park model RVs,” for $80,000 to $100,000 from dealers associated with Morgan RV Resorts.

Coakley’s complaint argues that these residents expected to stay at their Peters Pond sites indefinitely, as long as they paid annual fees of about $6,000.

Many of them outfitted their mobile homes with decks and additional rooms, as well as outdoor landscaping. The additions, Coakley argues, improved the homes’ aesthetics and values, but also made them much more difficult to move.

Morgan salespeople visited these residents regularly during the past spring, Coakley says, asserting that they would need to pay for a club membership if they wanted to guarantee their site for the following year. One of the salespeople later would tell investigators that all the people who bought memberships felt threatened by these tactics, that they had to sign up or they would lose their homes.

As Coakley’s complaint describes it, homeowners were offered a $16,000 price first, and then the price was discounted to $13,000 if they agreed to sign up right away. More than 80 seasonal residents ended up buying

memberships, according to Coakley’s suit.

Many owners say they’re now desperately trying to sell their properties because of the way they’ve been treated. Their dreams for a relaxing summer vacation spot, they say, turned into nightmares this year.

Coakley argues that these owners’ mobile homes meet the state’s definition of “manufactured housing” because they are more than 320 square feet in size and are built on a permanent chassis.

They also are designed to be used as homes: Many people live there from April through October, and had planned to keep doing so throughout their retirements.

Coakley isn’t only relying on the state’s manufactured housing law. Her suit also alleges a number of violations under the state’s consumer protection law, in particular because of restrictions that the park’s owner places on residents.

Those limits, Coakley’s suit says, includes restrictions on how they can market their homes to be sold and how they can gather to discuss neighborhood issues.

Full Article: www.patriotledger.com

(Sept. 16, 2011) Top bluegrass talent from across the country will take the stage during the 2011 Bluegrass by the Bay, set for Sept. 29-Oct. 2. This fourday event, hosted by Castaways RV Resort & Campground, will feature music and activities for adults and children.

Boasting a mix of traditional mountain music, contemporary bluegrass sounds and four-part gospel, the band lineup for this year’s inaugural event includes SPGMA Entertainers of the Year Nothin’Fancy. Also scheduled to perform are Blue Moon Rising, Chester River Runoff, Code Blue, the Country Grass, the Flatland Bluegrass Band, Lost and Found, Mark Templeton and Pocket

Change, Sacred Sounds and Timmons Family.

Delmarva’s Cat Country 97.5/105.9 will co-sponsor the festival.

The party will run Thursday night through Sunday afternoon, and the campground will be open to ticketholders only. Special camping rates will apply during the festival. More details on the event and reservations are available at www.castawaysrvoc.com/blu egrassbybay. Reservations are also available by calling 410-213-0097.

Castaways RV Resort & Campground, located on Route 611 in West Ocean City, overlooks Assateague Island National Seashore and Ocean City.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Inc. (ELS) announced Thursday (Sept. 15) that it closed on $100 million of secured financing bearing interest at rate of 5 per annum.

This loan closing completes the new financings that the company expected to originate in connection with its previously announced major property acquisition, ELS stated in a news release.

The loan requires interest only payments for the first two years and matures on Nov. 1, 2021. The loan is secured by 10 manufactured home communities and one RV resort.

The company has previously announced that it entered into purchase and other agreements to acquire a portfolio of 75 manufactured home communities and one RV resort and certain

manufactured homes and loans secured by manufactured homes located at the acquisition properties for a stated purchase price of $1.43 billion, excluding estimated closing costs of approximately $22 million.

As of Thursday, ELS has closed on 58 of the 76 acquisition properties, and the proceeds from the latest loan are expected to be used to partially fund the acquisition of the remaining 18 properties.

The company’s closing of the remainder of the acquisition is subject to the receipt of loan servicer consents and other customary closing conditions.

No assurances can be given that the remainder of the acquisition will be completed in its entirety in accordance with the anticipated timing or at all.

ARLINGTON -- Camping on the Battenkill has closed for the season as the result of severe flooding damage caused by Tropical Storm Irene.

Lesley Nase, who owns the campground with her brother, Peter Pratt, and sister, Molly Pratt, said this is the time of the year the campground generally makes most of its money.

Its closing is also a hit to surrounding businesses, which drew some income from campers spending money in the area and using the campground as a home-base for their Vermont explorations.

The campground has 110 sites and normally fills to capacity this time of year, she said. Right now threequarters of the campground is damaged to the point no camping can occur.

Situated between the Battenkill and Roaring Branch, the campground is used to some flooding, Nase said. Her parents, Larry and Mary Pratt, started the campground not long after they bought their home in 1961. She said they were told by neighbors to expect fishermen to camp on their land for the first day of trout season, and that gave them the idea to open a campground to put their kids through college.

"You can't change Mother Nature; you can only live with her," Nase quoted one of her late father's sayings.

Part of living with nature meant building a berm along the Roaring Branch to mitigate the usual flooding. Nase said what happened on Aug. 28 and 29 was not usual by any means, as much of southern and central Vermont can attest. She said the berm was wiped out by the Roaring Branch's waters. Logs, rocks, and pieces of houses that had been washed away upstream along the Kelly Stand Road in Sunderland found their way into the campground.

She said her brother's foresight had all of the campers evacuated before the flood hit. Only one camper lost a vehicle.

Initially, getting help was daunting, Nase said. She called the 211 number the state was asking people to use and contacted the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as well.

Nase said she found someone to come by and clear a log jam, but not much else has been done with the river. She said it hasn't been cleaned out and there is still a risk of flooding. Volunteers have come by to help clear the property, and state Rep. Cynthia Browning, DArlington, who also is a Select Board member, has visited the area.

Browning said she went to the site with stream alteration engineer Fred Nicholsen, who was called

Mary Pratt McCreery surveys the flood damage Wednesday at Camping on the Battenkill in Arlington.

Rocks and silt were strewn across a play area and throughout neighboring campsites. (Peter Crabtree) out of retirement by the state Agency of Natural Resources to help handle the problems created by flooding. Browning said he recommended deepening the river, as the rocks washed down have raised the bed.

She said the berm won't be put back, as berms aren't advisable where there are no houses. She said the river needs access to the flood plain so the water can be slowed down. Browning said the main question now is who will pay for the river work, as FEMA is mainly focused on dwellings.

Nase said the Vermont Campground Association has been extremely helpful, with its leaders making visits to afflicted campgrounds across the state. Nase said she'd applied for a loan from the Vermont Economic Development Authority, which has offered lowinterest loans to business and farms affected by Irene.

Still, it's difficult not knowing how much aid the business can get and when it can get it, she said. www.benningtonbanner.com

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

Campground and RV Park e-News has once again been selected by the Producers of the Virtual Outdoor Hospitality Expo to publish the Souvenir Program for this year’s event.

“There are a few new wrinkles to this year’s program”, said Art Lieberman, the Expo’s producer. “Besides having the complete contact information on each Sponsor and Exhibitor, the listing will contain a direct link to each booth. All the reader need do is to click

on the name or logo of the participant and they will be transported directly into their booth. This will be the case for the two days the show runs live AND for the additional 60 days the Expo will be in the ‘on demand’ status. It’s a little like ‘Star Trek’”.

The link is due to the ability of VCopious, the company responsible for the Expo’s software, to create an individual URL for each Sponsor and Exhibitor.

This URL can also be placed on websites of the participating companies.

After clicking on the link and entering the booth, attendees will be asked to log in to the booth if they have previously registered or to register at that time for the Expo. After checking out the particular exhibitor’s wares, the reader will be able to go to any other location at the Expo including the Lobby, Exhibit Hall, Conference Room, Sponsor’s Seminars, Resource Center or the Lounge.

“This is just another example of the flexibility available at a virtual event”, says Deanne Bower, the Expo’s co-producer. “I continue to be amazed at the differences between a trade show conducted on the web and a physical show. We know who attended, how much time they spent at any booth or webinar, what materials they downloaded into their briefcases and if they wish to inform us, what suggestions they would make to improve the event.

Also at a show conducted on the Internet, attendees may leave the event to attend to other matters and return hours, days or even weeks later”. Statistics from the first Virtual Expo bear this out. There were 1,447 total visits to the Expo last year, but only 497 attendees, 279 who were owners of outdoor hospitality businesses.

The publication of the Expo Souvenir Program was responsible for some of this attendance, which exceeded attendance of any previous show in the

outdoor hospitality industry.

Pre-registration e-mails that were sent out by the software, publicity in such publications as Campground and RV Park e-News, Campground Management, Park and Rec, RV Daily News and the participation of 7 trade associations including two from Canada accounted for most of the rest of the attendees for last year’s Expo.

This year the Producers have joined both the Outdoor Hospitality Industry Association (OIA) and the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) hoping to attract a greater variety of attendees to the event and broadening subjects of the educational webinars.

Advertising rates for the Souvenir Program are reasonable, especially considering the “shelf life” of the publication. Even if a company is not exhibiting at the Virtual Expo, the Souvenir Program represents a unique opportunity, to present their product or service to nearly 11,000 recipients of the publication.

The Virtual Outdoor Hospitality is produced by Art Lieberman and Deanne Bower of Campground Expositions. They can be reached at 877-901-EXPO (3976) or by e-mail at campvirtualshow@yahoo.com.

The website of the Expo is www.outdoorhospitalityexpo.com.

Advertising in the Programadmin@industryenews.com

AUBURN, Calif., Sept. 19, 2011 – More than two dozen campgrounds, RV parks and resorts that are affiliated with CampCalifornia.com are offering a two-night, $50 weekend promo the first weekend of October.

website at www.CampCalifornia.com. Simply click on the $50 weekend link on the lower left hand section of the home page to find listings of parks offering the $50 promotion. Here’s a sampling of participating parks by region:

“We’re doing this partly to boost awareness of CampCalifornia.com, and also to entice consumers who have never camped in the fall before,” said Debbie Sipe, executive director of the California Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds, which organized the promotion.

San Francisco and the North Coast Edgewood Resort & RV Park, Kelseyville Sportsman’s RV Park, Fort Bragg

Parks that are participating in the Sept. 30th to Oct. 1st promotion can be located through a special section on the association’s

Shasta – Cascade Region Fawndale Oaks RV Park, Redding Mountain Gate RV Park, Redding Old Lewiston Bridge RV Resort, Lewiston Central Valley Almond Grove Mobile

Despite the nation’s sluggish economy, RVIA is approaching a sell-out for the 49th National RV Trade Show, scheduled for Nov. 29 – Dec. 1 at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, KY. Supplier exhibit space is completely sold-out while 98% of manufacturer space has been sold. In total, the National RV Trade Show will feature 307 companies displaying the latest RVs

Home Park, Williams Bakersfield Palms RV Park, Bakersfield Eddos Harbor and RV Park, Rio Vista Flag City RV Resort, Lodi Vineyard RV Park, Vacaville Gold Country and High Sierra Clio’s Rivers Edge RV Park Meadowcliff RV Resort

Central Coast Santa Margarita Lake KOA, Santa Margarita Orange County Orangeland RV Park, Orange Inland Empire Golden Village Palms RV Resort, Hemet

Arizona: A man died and a woman barely escaped with her life Wednesday (Sept.

14) in an early morning blaze in a Star Valley, Ariz., RV park.

and related products across more than 730,000 square feet of exhibit space.

Ruth Butcher, 88, was sleeping in the forward area of a fifth-wheel in the Lamplighter RV Park when she smelled smoke and heard popping noises coming from the rear of the trailer at about 3:20 a.m., said Lt. Tim Scott with the

Lake Hemet Campground, Mountain Center Deserts Emerald Desert Golf & RV Resort, Palm Desert Fountain of Youth Spa, Niland The Springs at Borrego, Borrego Springs San Diego Area Circle RV Resort, El Cajon Escondido RV Resort, Escondino Oak Creek RV Resort, El Cajon Rancho Los Coches RV Park, Lakeside San Diego Metro KOA, Chula Vista San Diego RV Resort, La Mesa Vacationer RV Resort, El Cajon

Gila County Sheriff’s Office.

When Butcher opened a bedroom door, smoke and flames were everywhere, including where her son, Stanley Slaughter, 64, was sleeping on the couch. It is believed that Slaughter, a heavy smoker, fell asleep with a cigarette still lit and so sparked the fire. Gila County detectives, however, are still working to establish a definitive cause.

Some of California’s best beach camping weather is just around the corner as offshore breezes bring the clearest skies and warmest weather of the year.

The deserts are cooling off, too, particularly at night, and the first hints of fall color are starting to touch the highest elevations of the Sierra.

And if you’re looking to take part in fun activities while you camp, you’re in luck.

Campgrounds, RV parks and resorts throughout California offer a wide range of activities and entertainment, from family oriented Halloween costume and campsite decorating contests to adult oriented wine tasting socials, gourmet dinners and nighttime astronomy talks. Some parks even offer classes in kayaking and painting.

“Privately owned campgrounds, RV parks and resorts are no longer simply places to park your RV. Many of them are also becoming places people visit to have fun and to take part in organized activities with other campers,” said Debbie Sipe, executive director of the California Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds.

Here’s a sampling of some of the activities taking place at privately owned and

operated campgrounds, RV parks and resorts in California this fall: Campland on the Bay in San Diego: This park has numerous scheduled activities throughout the fall, including games of capture the flag, dodgeball and pickleball. The park also has arts and crafts classes, tie dye T-shirt classes, kayaking classes and adult dart tournaments. www.campland.com Emerald Desert RV Resort in Palm Desert: This park has several special events planned throughout the fall, including U.S.S. Emerald of the Seas Cruise Night on Nov. 10th with a dinner, live music and entertainment, and a Veteran’s Day event on Nov. 11th beginning with a bugle and flags presentation, which is followed by a brunch for resort guests. A full course, candlelight Italian-themed dinner will also be served at the resort’s pool area on Nov. 17th. http://emeralddesert.com Far Horizons 49er Village RV Resort in Plymouth, Calif.: This park’s Halloween themed events include a “best scream” contest. Families also create haunted campsites.

The campground also invites drama students from neighboring Amador

High School to come over and read scary stories to the younger campers.

Halloween activities are scheduled for Oct. 20th to 23rd and from Oct. 27th to 30th. www.49ervillage.com.

Flying Flags RV Resort in Buellton: This park, which has RV sites as well as park model cottage rentals, has several activities, including Friday night TriTip barbecues, Saturday night ice cream socials and movies under the stars and Sunday breakfast in bed delivery service. The park is also hosting a vintage RV show Sept. 23rd and 24th. www.flyingflags.com Golden Village Palms RV Resort in Hemet: This park’s fall activities include low-impact water exercise, water volleyball as well as groups that regularly gather for arts and crafts and Mexican dominoes.

Several different bands are scheduled to perform at the resort in October. www.goldenvillagepalms.com

Lake Minden RV Resort in Nicolaus: This Sacramento Valley park’s fall activities include a puzzle themed weekend Sept. 30 to Oct. 2nd, with a puzzle race to see which team can assemble a 500-piece puzzle the fastest.

Hydroplane boat races are scheduled to take place on the weekend of Oct. 14th to 16th. The park is also

planning a Monster Mash Bash on the weekend of Oct. 28th to 30th with a “Scarier by the Hour” movie marathon, a pumpkin decorating contest and Halloween campsite decorating. www.rvonthego.com Lake of the Springs RV Resort in Oregon House: This park’s fall activities include a Fall Line Dance Festival Oct. 17th to 21st.

The park will also celebrate Halloween on Oct. 29th with campsite decorating, pumpkin carving and costume contests and a kids’ fishing derby, plus a tailgate trick or treating event. www.rvonthego.com Newport Dunes Waterfront Resort & Marina in Newport Beach: This park will feature 14,000-square feet of haunted house fun from Oct. 26th to 31st as well as a Halloween party Oct. 29th and 30th with a costume contest, music, games and dancing for people of all ages. The resort also offers bicycle, golf cart, kayak and sailboat rentals in addition to guided kayak nature tours and kayak and sailboat lessons. Resort accommodations include 24 park model cottages and 382 RV sites. www.newportdunes.com Rancho Oso RV Resort in Santa Barbara: Guests at Continued

Continued this park can watch stock dogs herding sheep and cattle every Saturday from 11 a.m. to noon. The park also offers a bucking bull demo with “baby” bulls that are being prepared for future work in rodeos. The resort’s accommodations include five rental cabins, plus several covered wagons, which are arranged in a circle around a campfire pit. www.rvonthego.com Santa Cruz KOA in La Selva Beach: This park plans to host “Howlin’ Halloween” events on Oct. 21st to 23rd and Oct. 28th to 30th with a pumpkin carving contest, a pet costume contest, a campsite decorating

contest, a haunted house and trick or treating. www.santacruzkoa.com Smithwoods RV Park in Felton: This park plans to host a Halloween spaghetti dinner with Halloween related activities on Oct. 29th. www.smithwoodsrvpark.com

Sorensen’s Resort in Hope Valley (near Lake Tahoe): This High Sierra resort offers several special activities, including a fiveday watercolor workshop with Jill Mueller from Sept.

19th to 23rd, and a fall color hike botanist Karen Wiese on Oct. 7th.

Sorensen’s Resort has 35 cabin rentals and 25 campsites for tent or RV camping as well as a

vintage 1947 trailer and a three bedroom, two-bath house for rent. www.sorensenresort.com Springs at Borrego RV Resort in Borrego Springs, Calif.: This park’s fall activities include Thursday or Friday night wine tastings and a social hour beginning at 6 p.m. as well as water aerobics classes on Saturday mornings. The resort is also planning a Halloween party. Future events will also include star parties with worldrenowned astronomer and sky photographer Dennis Mammana. “At these parties, we start out with a light dinner and beverages.

Then sit back while Mr. Mammana presents a photo show on the big

screen with star talk about what to look for that night,” said Daniel Wright, general manager of the Springs at Borrego RV Resort. www.springsatborrego.com.

Stockton KOA in Stockton: This park is planning a military vehicle collectors weekend on Sept. 23rd to 25th that will include a swap meet with hard to find military collectables. The park is also planning a “Halloween Hoopla” weekend Oct. 28th to 31st with a pumpkin carving contest and a haunted house, and a “battle of the businesses” pie-eating contest on Nov. 18th to raise money for the Toys for Tots charity program. www.stocktonkoa.com

It is the end of September.

The air is cooler, leaves are changing color and starting to fall, schools are back in session and the high school football season is already a month old.

Although summer ended for most people with the Labor Day weekend, there is one outdoor activity that is still going strong: camping.

“Campers are kind of a tough breed,” Denny Sands, president of the Shabbona Lake Sportsman Club, said.

“They usually stick it out as long as they can.”

For some, Sands said, the end of the camping season comes with the Columbus Day weekend, Oct. 6-8. But for others, like Laura Sauerwein of Burbank, the season lasts a little longer – usually until the first week of November.

“We skip Labor Day, because that’s the last day everyone thinks they can go,” said Sauerwein’s friend, Kay Wojtysiak, as the women sat outside a camper parked at the Sycamore RV Resort.

The Sycamore RV Resort has a beach, tennis and basketball courts and two spring-fed lakes which can be fished for bass, blue gill and croppie on a catch-andrelease basis.

According to Colleen Bastian, whose family owns and operates the Sycamore campground, the peak

camping season runs from April to November. The resort’s season usually peaks the last weekend of October, during Sycamore’s annual Pumpkin Festival. Unlike many campgrounds, Bastian said her park – which is for recreational vehicles only – runs yearround.

“Not too many come out during the winter,” she said.

The resort’s 88 sites are usually divided between those who camp out for a weekend and those who prefer to stay longer, Bastian said. About half the campers are from the local area, while the other half travel farther, she said.

For many, camping is a family thing handed down from one generation to another, and expanded when noncampers join the family.

That’s what happened when Rob Yates married his wife, Zandrea.

“I am the extent of his camping,” Zandrea Yates said. “I grew up camping.

My parents were teachers, so they just packed up and we went camping for the summer.”

Rob noted that his wife’s passion for the great outdoors has rubbed off on him and on their 3-year-old son, Owen.

“It’s a good conduit for the family, spending time together,” Rob Yates said.

Zandrea and Rob Yates with son, Owen.

Sauerwein and Wojtysiak who grew up sharing a said their families camp bunkbed-like cot with her together as often as they sister, said. “We haven’t can. done that (tents) in years.”

“We look for places we can get to on weekends about an hour away (from home),” Sauerwein said.

“These little places are getting harder to find.”

Neil Wojtysiak said he has been hooked on camping since his sister took him on his first trip at the age of 16.

The Yates family, from Chicago, used their trip to the Sycamore RV Resort as a chance to spend time with Rob’s brother, who lives in Sycamore. After cooking out on Sept. 9, the two families watched the Bears game the next day.

While some aspects of camping – like respecting and being friendly toward fellow campers – haven’t changed, some say modern-day camping is not what it used to be. For many, the tent is being replaced by more modern conveniences.

“We graduated from tents to popups,” Kay Wojtysiak,

Neither have the Woodlocks, who often visit Shabbona Lake to camp.

“We went from a tent to this,” Liz Woodlock said, referring to a tear-drop trailer. “You can’t stand up in a tent.”

Despite its deceptively small size, the mini-trailer has a queen size bed, mini-stove, refrigerator, television, heater and air-conditioning.

The camper, Joe Woodlock said, probably affords them the best way to get out for a quick night of camping, which is all their busy schedules will allow.

That is, if you still want to call it camping.

“You can’t truly say you’re camping when you have a queen size bed,” Kay Wojtysiak said, laughing.

Full Article: www.midweeknews.com

A recent blog offered the following statistics. I have no way to verify these numbers and statements, but they have the ring of accuracy.

• 80% of the world’ forests are gone • 90% of the large fish in the ocean are gone • 80% of the planet’s rivers can no longer sustain life • 200,000 acres of rain forest are destroyed each day • 200 animal and plant species go extinct every 24 hours China is building two coalpowered power plants a week towards the goal of 500 new plants in response to the need for more energy. The emissions will equal roughly that of the United States: if the United States closed down all of its emissions the total amount of air pollution in the earth’s atmosphere would still be what it is now, once

all the new Chinese plants are on line.

What is happening on earth is industrialization and population growth.

Reduced down to the simplest of terms, this creates a demand for three things: food, energy and water. These are the building blocks of life. To achieve adequate supplies of these essentials we are currently jeopardizing water and air quality, compromising soil quality, stressing the oceans and eliminating other species of life.

It is a horrible thing to say, but compared to ant hills, our earth looks stupid. An ant, whose total body is tinier by far that the human brain, is much smarter than us! At the rate we are going, ants probably have a better chance to survive than humans.

They work together. We do not.

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Fumes from a generator leaked into a camper, killing three men and two women who were at a biker festival to raise money for needy children, an organizer for the event said.

Police were investigating the deaths but said no foul play was suspected. Two of the men worked security into the early morning hours Sunday during the festival's party, which featured motorcycle drag races, live music and bikini and tattoo contests. The charity's website said there was free beer.

Bill Langford, the director of the event Bikers Who Care, was puzzled over the deaths at the Clarksville Speedway.

"Most of them didn't get to bed until four o'clock in the morning, and most of those people didn't go in that trailer at the same time to go to bed," he said.

"I just find that kind that of strange. Why didn't they notice?"

It appears a small storage hatch on the RV did not close properly, allowing fumes from the generator

to leak inside the vehicle, Langford said.

The gases were so bad in the camper that the bikers who found the bodies were taken to a hospital after feeling dizzy and lightheaded, Langford said.

They all had high amounts of carbon monoxide in their systems, he said.

Langford said the bikers' group was like a family and he was close friends with the people who had died. He identified them as a married couple, another couple and one of the men's co-workers.

The married couple had 8month-old twins. The man was a truck driver and his wife was a school teacher.

All of the victims were from the Clarksville area about 40 miles northwest of Nashville.

"Me and these guys had a meeting every Thursday of the year," Langford said.

"These three guys are three of my closest friends."

By Sunday evening, the crowd of a couple of thousand people had thinned and only a handful

of people remained, sitting around campfires. Nearby, portable toilets were still out and a party tent was still up with a large American flag on top of it.

Photos from the festival showed yellow police tape around the camper and tents that had been set up close by. The camper was later towed away.

Police would not say if carbon monoxide poisoning played a role and said the cause of the deaths would have to be determined by a coroner. The identities of the dead were also being withheld until family members could be told.

Langford said the bikers collect toys for needy children and raised funds for Camp Rainbow, a

summer camp for seriously ill children at Land Between the Lakes recreation area on the Kentucky-Tennessee border. They also contribute to the Buddy Ball sports league for children with mental and physical disabilities.

The cornerstone of the event was a toy run, where the bikers lined up at the speedway and rode through town. Organizers said they gathered four truckloads of toys.

It was the 30th year of the event. Langford promised the festival would be held again.

"It's going to be hard for next year or two," he said.

"But we're going to keep doing what we do for the kids."

Written by "The Rambler" and reproduced from the CCOA Newsletter.

Trees and campgrounds are a love hate relationship. Or maybe I should say campers and trees are a love hate relationship. Campground owners and trees are for sure a love hate relationship.

We all know we shall never see an object as beautiful as a tree, or something like that.

Many years ago a park not only needed trees for their beauty but for their cooling shade. RVs and vehicles did not have all that air conditioning back then.

Today parks don’t need trees. Parks need 50 amp sites. Trees are nice but

they better not get in the way of the satellite dish on top of that 45 foot bus. A limb better not get in the way of the over the air TV antenna. The trees better not house birds or have sap that might spot up that rubberized roof. No limb shall be less than 14 feet above the ground or reach out and touch that total paint job that the $500,000.00 bus has.

Trees were nice until WI-FI at EVERY SITE became LAW. This brings me to the lost limb. Fifty-two years ago our campground needed more shade trees.

some day the twigs would become trees. After the first year most of the twigs had become food for rabbits. Today seven of those twigs are trees. One of those twigs to trees is at site E-l. E-l started out life as a tent site. As the demand for tent sites declined many were converted to RV sites. E-l was one such site. The problem is twig to tree at El had a limb that started out at a mere 10 feet and then shot up to the highest height. It was a great limb, about one third of the tree.

As fifth wheels grew taller and buses had basements, the limb became more and more of a liability.

DENVER -- The National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds is seeking nominations for an award that will be given to an RV park or campground that can demonstrate that it has taken steps to become more eco-friendly.

2011. Applications will be evaluated on impact of changes made, commitment to environmentally friendly practices, and efforts to educate guests about support of Plan-It Green practices.

This summer we cut the limb off at the trunk. Yes, it was sad. It was about 14 inches in diameter. The now lopsided tree is still beautiful. And best of all that twig will give us lots of firewood to sell.

The moral to this story is turn your lemon into lemonade. Even if it is an elm tree and not a lemon tree.

My dad bought a bundle of 50 elm trees. Yes a bundle of sticks about a foot tall.

Mere twigs. My dad was a patient fellow and knew

Please submit a letter, and visual documentation if necessary, that describes the campground's goals, actions and results from enacting new green initiatives in the park in

The award is available only to member parks that have taken the Plan-It Green pledge.

For more information, contact: Kera Tomlin at ktomlin@arvc.org.