History in the Making at the RV Show

One of the country's largest RV shows is happening right now in Tampa. We were there on Opening Day, January 14. It was also Senior Day so we were surrounded by our own demographic.

The Expo Hall was packed with vendors selling everything
from RV furniture to the latest cleaning agent for the RV's
outside to a fancy radiant heating system that could be retrofitted
on an RV. The jewelry booths seemed to be out of place as
far as I was concerned, but then one of the attendees reminded
me that I was wearing earrings! 

We saw a number of little dogs on the grounds. Since people in RVs could stay overnight at the Florida State Fairgrounds where the show was being held, we figured the owners didn't want to leave their pets alone for an entire day. I'd never seen a dog in a stroller until last year in Florida. I saw a few of them being wheeled around at the show.

This doggie in a baby carrier was something else. This woman
was one of the vendors in the Expo Hall.

Rick was particularly interested in a Class B camper - essentially a van camper. He had read about a brand, Hymer (rhymes with roomer), from Germany and was eager to see one of the models in person.

We found the Hymer exhibit and met a couple of executives from Hymer and Spartan Motors, the company in Michigan that is assembling the campers.

Dominick on the left is from Hymer and Markus on the right
is with Spartan. 

Now for the historic moment at the RV show - the two Hymers that were exhibited were the first two built in the U.S. and this was the very first day they were being shown in this country. We can say we were there!

It's amazing what can be put in a van camper - two burner stove, sink, refrigerator,
bathroom with a toilet and shower, dinette, double bed in the back, and lots of storage.

As we wandered around the grounds, we also met the VP of Sales and Product Development from Winnebago in Forest City, Iowa. He had been brought in to the company to change the Winnebago image. 

With bright colors, like red, and no more big white boxes, this ain't your Grandfather's
Winnebago anymore. This particular van camper was a lot like the Hymer.

The VP is doing his job well because Winnebago sales continue to increase year after year.

We still prefer a vintage trailer over most of what we saw at the RV show, but a Class B camper might be a possibility in the future.