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Roadtrekingmike

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  1. Roadtrekingmike
    Last night in Iowa, I was complaining abut the gnats.
    Tonight in South Dakota, it’s the Frankenbugs.
    The bugs have only gotten bigger as we’ve moved west
    Honestly, I dont know what they are. Way bigger than a gnat. Some are beetles, or what we used to call June bugs. But there are so many and they are so big that as we drove down I-90 in South Dakota, they hit the windshield with an intensity that sometimes sounded like hail.
    Jennifer said it was a bugout.
    You can see from this photo and the video below what it was like:
    Today was one of those awesome driving days. We took our time, stopping in Des Moines to workout at a health club and then heading on through Iowa, Nebraska and into South Dakota. We dodged storms in the morning but otherwise had near perfect weather, bright blue skies with puffy cotton candy clouds and lush green prairieland.
    At sunset, we were treated to a jaw dropping South Dakota sunset of fiery oranges and reds and pink pastels.


    Then it got dark. And the attack of the Frankenbugs began.
    We pulled off at Mitchell a little before 11 p.m. and washed off the windshield.
    There were several truckers and a guy in a fifth wheel doing the same thing.S
    “Something hatched,” said the trucker next to me. “Ive never see them so intense.”
    Inside the station, the clerk was chuckling “Worse than a snowstorm,” he allowed.
    Exactly. A bugout.
    We’re spending the night in a packed Cabela’s parking lt. There are 14 other RVs here, Class As and Cs and a couple of fifth wheels.
    Inside my eTrek, I’m running the air and we’re snug as…. dare I say?… a bug.
    http://youtu.be/gDzQTjuQKpQ
  2. Roadtrekingmike
    It’s pretty amazing what a few hundred miles can do to the view. That was driven home to us today as we made our way across South Dakota, taking in the vast green prairie and its lush grasslands, the wind-carved canyons, ravines and hoodoos of the Badlands and the rolling thick pine forests of the Black Hills.


    Our Roadtrek heads across South Dakota, en route to FMCA'S Family Reunion and Motorhome Showcase in Gillette, Wyo.I’d send along a video but I’m barely able to get a cell signal from our camping spot in the Custer State Park.
    It was like a movie playing on the other side of the Roadtrek’s windshield as we headed out I-90 from Mitchell, taking the bypass through the Badlands National Park and a great two-lane to Rapid City and then south to Custer.


    Stockade Lake in the Custer State ForestStorms swept across the prairie mid-afternoon and I pulled into a rest area to watch the lightning and rainclouds under the big sky. The drumming rain on the RV roof was so soothing Jennifer and I stretched out on the rear bed and slept for an hour. When we woke, the sun was out again.
    The Custer State Park consistently ranks as one of America’s best state parks and we were impressed by the roomy, secluded spot we got, just a couple hundred yards from Stockade Lake.


    Our campsite at Custer State ParkTomorrow, we’ll do the wildlife loop drive to check out the Bison, Bighorn Sheep, Pronghorn Antelope and Elk that inhabit this vast 71,000-acre park.
    Jennifer is a little miffed at me tonight. We hiked up and down several hills to get to the lake and grabbed armfuls of fallen pine branches for our campfire. When we returned to camp she started browsing through the park brochure, only to find out that the park has lots of ticks and plenty of timber rattlesnakes.
    My traipsing in the thick woods with shorts instead of long pants probably wasn’t one of my brighter ideas. Jennifer had the good sense to put on a pair of jeans.
    But the clean smell of the forest, the sound of the wind rustling through the pines and the bright stars overhead tonight will hopefully make her forget my foolhardy exuberance.
    Unless I start itching from a tick bite.
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  3. Roadtrekingmike
    In this edition of “How We Roll,” Jennifer answers a question about budgeting and how much it costs us to take a typical week to 10-day trip. In these days of $4+ fuel, that’s the killer to any budget that involves mileage. Jennifer shares our actual costs and ways we try to save money.
    Then I tackle a stinky question ... about odor control and how we’re trying something called the “Geo Method” that mixes water softener and household detergent in a gallon of water that is poured down the toilet.
    We heard about it through our Facebook group and decided to try it out. So far, so good, though Jennifer had me cut back on the amount of detergent because we use concentrated soap and she didn’t want a bunch of bubbles coming out of the toilet every time we flushed.
    Got questions? Send them to us openmike@fmca.com. We try to roll out a new How We Roll every week.
    http://youtu.be/ulJ78aTL0kE
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  4. Roadtrekingmike
    RVers love their GPS units. Can you imagine traveling without one?
    But do you know that many of today’s most popular units can be customized to show the special places you are most interested in? Called POIs – short for Points of Interest – there are so many lists of them available now that downloading them to your GPS unit can make travel much more efficient and convenient.

    You need to have a stand alone GPS unit that can connect to your computer to be able to download POIs. Tom Tom, Magellan, Garmin and Rand MacNally all work with external POI files. There may be others. I use the Rand McNally RVND 7720 seven inch unit in my RV. My Roadtrek has a built in unit from Pioneer and it does a great job. But its integrated into my dash entertainment system and I can’t add files to it. The RVND-7720 is aimed strictly at RVers and it comes with guaranteed lifetime updates and the ability to add POI files. I connect it to my computer from time to time and it automatically downloads the latest maps, construction alerts and detours .
    But it also can download files called POIs. Many of you now I am also an NBC-TV technology reporter. I do a weekly segment for all 215 NBC affiliate stations called PC Mike and I recently did one on POIs in which I found several sources for POI files.
    What sort of POI files, you ask? Well, I downloaded a list of every Cracker Barrel restaurant (a great place to overnight, free). We downloaded the locations of all Olive Garden restaurats (Jennifer says the all-you-can-eat soup and salad menu item there is a good and healthy food choice, as long as I eat only one serving. We downloaded a list of health clubs (when we travel my job is to get her to a gym at least four times a week). I have a list of all WalMarts (overnight camping again), unusual highway attractions (I’m a sucker for giant balls of string and places like the Barbed Wire Museum) and a list of 14,357 campgrounds.
    All were free to download and install in my GPS and I can set my unit to alert me when I am approaching one of these POIs or search for them right from the screen.
    There are several places online where you can find POI files.
    We've gotten hooked on the POI Factory, a repository of downloadable GPS files that you can install on many of today's most popular GPS units, like Garmin, Rand Macnally and Tom Tom. Basically, you browse the categories and find Points of Interest you'd like. And then, as you approach them in your travels, you can see them on a map, find and get to them with turn by turn directions.
    Here's another resource -- the POI Plaza. This lists POIs from all over the world. Search by countries. It too works with lots of applications and GPS platforms, listing thousands of places and GPS coordinates. Pick the right format for your device and download it to your computer. Then, just plug your GPS unit into the computer and transfer it over.
    One more. Download POI. If you couldn't find files for your unit on the other sites, try this one. Just choose a country, the brand of GPS you have and download what you want. You're good to go!'
    Here’s my NBC report on POIs:
    http://youtu.be/A9j4sl9Tbvk
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  5. Roadtrekingmike
    Kampgrounds Of America’s rebranding of its campgrounds based on their features and amenities has kicked off with the Billings, Montana KOA Campground, which officially becomes the Billings KOA Holiday Campground.
    The change is the beginning of a new brand structure for the 51-year-old iconic North American camping company. Three new brand segments will better identify the specific offerings of KOA’s 485 campgrounds for the millions of North American camping families that use KOA each year.
    Over the next few years, KOA campgrounds across North America will be re-branded as either a KOA Journey, a KOA Holiday or a KOA Resort campground.

    "Segmenting our famous KOA brand in this way will help our campers select just the KOA they need for their next trip," said Vice President of Marketing Toby Hedges. "Each KOA is unique, but each Journey, Holiday and Resort KOA will have amenities and services in common that will make it easier for campers to find just the right campground. KOA began 51 years ago right here in Billings, so it's only right that we should begin this new chapter for KOA at the Billings KOA Holiday."
    KOA Journey Campgrounds are identified as convenient to major highways, include long pull-through sites and provide a relaxing overnight oasis for travelers.
    KOA Holiday Campgrounds, such as the Billings KOA Holiday, are great base camps to explore the area, and include family activities and additional amenities to make these KOAs great getaways for short vacations. They will also all feature KOA Deluxe Cabins, which include full bathrooms and kitchens.
    KOA Resorts will offer campers a true resort-style vacation with luxurious pools, patio RV sites, Deluxe Cabin linen service and a specially trained activities and recreation staff.
    Kampgrounds of America is celebrating its 51st Anniversary in 2013. KOA, the world's largest network of family-friendly campgrounds, was born on the banks of the Yellowstone River in Billings, Montana in 1962. For more information, go to www.KOA.com.
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  6. Roadtrekingmike
    With more and more RVers heading to the great outdoors this time of year, it’s time to sound two warnings. Depending on where you are, it’s now either snake season or tick season.
    For some parts of the U.S., it’s both.
    Both creatures post particular problems with pets. And humans, too, if they get bit. And both are very active right now.
    And RVers, who are out there camping in the woods and wilds and deserts and fields, could very easily come into contact with them. RVers with pets need to be particularly vigilant.
    My son, who lives in West Michigan, took his dog for their usual walk the other night, when they returned home, he found two ticks on him and seven ticks on the dog. In March, on an RV trip to Florida, we stopped on a nice spring day at the I-75 rest area near Jellico, TN. I took Tai out of the RV for a short walk on the dog run. He came back with two ticks.

    Ticks survive by eating blood from their hosts. They burrow deep under the skin and gorge themselves.
    At the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, ecological researchers are engaged in a four-year, National Science Foundation-funded study of ticks, and the risks they pose for transmitting several diseases. While investigating disease risks, their work is also yielding practical tips regarding ticks and tick bites.
    These tips include the following.
    Machine washing and drying of your clothes after being in the woods is a good idea, because tiny immature ticks can be almost impossible to spot. UT undergraduate John Norris found that ticks can survive the water and detergent in a washing machine, but are often killed by being pounded against jeans and other bulky clothes. Putting the wet clothes through the dryer is even more deadly and will quickly kill all the ticks.
    If you discover a tick attached to your body, don't trust the folk remedies of matches, lighters or petroleum jelly. Instead use tweezers. Grasp the tick as close to its mouthparts as you can and remove it by pulling straight out. Be sure to remove the mouthparts, if you don't get them on the first pull.

    This is one of the worst tick seasons on record. Ticks spread Lyme Disease, a very nasty disease that can cause short term discomfort and long term problems if left untreated. New cases of Lyme disease are cropping up all across the country. Same with Ricky Mountain Fever, another potentially dangerous disease. In Tennessee last year, there were almost 700 cases of Rocky Mountain Fever, most believed to have been caught from ticks.
    Some of the areas where ticks like to congregate are fields with tall grass, wooded areas and the sand dunes.
    The Center for Disease Control says pets and humans need to be checked very closely for ticks after every excursion into tick territory. Here’s a list of what to do.
    Then there’s snakes. Late May and early June is when most snakes are on the move. In the deep south, where they’ve been out for some time, it’s about time for them to hatch young. Most snakes, of course, are harmless. Most snakes do good, as a matter of fact, eating insects and vermin.
    But in the U.S., there are several very dangerous snakes with deadly venom, particularly for dogs and cats.
    The three most commonly encountered venomous snakes in the U.S. are rattlesnakes, copperheads and cottonmouths, sometimes referred to as the water moccasin.
    Poisonous snakes often have a heavy triangular head tapering toward the mouth, with elliptical cat's-eye pupils. An exception is the small but very poisonous coral snake. Mostnonpoisonous species have smoothly curved, U-shaped heads.
    Here’s a quick guide with photos to help you spot the most dangerous ones in North America.

    The snake picture here was taken a couple days ago by my friend William Browne, who was camped in his RV in California and was surprised to see this Mohave rattlesnake slithering through his camp space.
    Snakes are particularly dangerous to pets, At a dog park not far from my Michigan house, several dogs are bitten each year by the diminutive Massasauga rattlesnake. A woman I know who has a large, 65 pound Weimerheimer said she was walking her dog on a leash when it stopped, stuck it’s nose in the grass and was bitten on the muzzle. By the time she returned to her car, her dog was stumbling. She rushed him to a 24 hour pet emergency hospital. Three days later and after $2,000 in vet bills, the dog was released.
    At the same park not long before, a man and his beagle were bitten. A local sheriff’s deputy told me that the snake attacked the dog, a beagle, while walking near the woods. The man tried to stop the reptile from inflicting any further harm and was then attacked by the snake. He was released from the hospital the next day, the dog a couple days later.
    The smaller the dog, the greater the danger but even a small rattlesnake like the Massasauga can kill if the pet is not quickly treated. Like humans, pets are given antivenom. It is extremely expensive, with treatment ranging between $900 and $1,200 for just the shots.
    In Georgia earlier this year, I saw a sign outside a veterinarian’s office saying “Snakes are everywhere: Vaccinate your pets!” That’s good advice. In the south and southwest, most vets do offer snake vaccine. Regular shots help build up an animal’s immunity to the poison.
    So be careful out there. Especially with your pets,
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  7. Roadtrekingmike
    It’s time to head west to Wyoming and, eventually, Yellowstone National Park. And this year, instead of repeating past routes, I thought it would be fun to get your suggestions, to crowd source our trip by drawing on the collected wisdom of our readers.
    In other words, tell me where to go.
    Here are the particulars:
    ’ll be leaving Kalamazoo, Mich., about 9 AM Friday, June 14. I need to be in Gillette, Wyo., by mid afternoon Monday, June 18, for the annual Family Motor Coach Association Reunion and Motorhome Showcase. That’s about 1,230 miles.
    I don’t want to drive more than 400 miles a day, so there’s time to discover cool places, see great things, meet interesting people on the way that we can photograph, video and report about to you on this blog. I’m on the lookout for truly unique places and people. I’ve already written about the touristy things along the way on previous trips. The Corn Palace. Wall Drugs. We reported on the Badlands and Black Hills and Mt. Rushmore last year. So I’m looking to forgo those spots and travel off the beaten path this time. What are the stories along the way unique to the land?
    They can be a cool photo. A fun restaurant. A unique campground. A local character. An historic spot. I had an old editor once tell me decades ago that everyone has a story. My long journalism experience has told me that is indeed true. That’s also true of places. All you need to do is meet them. So make some introductions to me.
    Plot out the route and e-mail it to me (openmike@fmca.com) under the subject line “To Gillette.” You can use comments under this post to ask questions or share observations.
    As to where to spend the night on route, scenery trumps everything for us. We can boondock or hookup. I’d love your recommendations.
    We’ll leave Gillette late Friday, June 21, after I finish leading a seminar at the FMCA reunion. I’m planning on heading to Yellowstone again for a few days and then taking our time heading back so that we’re back in Michigan by the 30th. So if this group planning thing works on the way out, maybe we’ll crowd source the return trip, too.
    But for now, let’s collectively plan the route to Gillette. Tell me where to go, what to see, who to meet, where to overnight.
    For my part, I’ll try to take in as many of your tips as we can and then share what we find in daily reports here, as well as tweets and Facebook posts.
    To whoever comes up with the most detailed route and suggestions that we follow, I’ll let them pick out the item of their choice from The Roadtreking RV Store and then send it to them for free.
    I can’t wait to get your ideas. Send them to me at openmike@fmca.com and place "To Gillette" in the subject line.
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  8. Roadtrekingmike
    “How’d you end up doing this?”
    If I could have had a quarter for every time we’ve been asked that about our roadtreking.com RV blog we could buy another motorhome.
    But since enough people seem to be interested….Here’s how:
    This Roadtreking RV blog is a dream come true for me. Decades in the making, but now being lived out like one giant movie, seen through the wide expanse of my motorhome’s windshield as North America rolls on by. We can stop anytime, explore anywhere.
    And we do, sharing it with you.
    It’s all very much serendipity. Serendipity means a “happy accident” or “pleasant surprise,” something fun and useful and enjoyable that was discovered by happenstance along the way. That’s a perfect description of what we find every day in this new wandering life in a motorhome.
    This blog is entirely the work of me, Mike Wendland, who, with wife, Jennifer, bought a Roadtrek Class B motor home in early 2012 after years of dreaming. This blog is about seeing North America, enjoying our compact little motor home and then reporting the interesting stories about the people and places we come across.

    The goal is to share our Roadtreking life. I have to admit right at the start, I am not very mechanical. It took me an orientation session with my RV dealer to find out where the gas, ah, make that, diesel fueling point was on the vehicle. So this is not a blog aimed at tinkerers and mechanics.
    It’s about the RV lifestyle our motorhome allows and the great things to see and do out there on the open road.
    By background, I’m a journalist. I have to tell stories. I love meeting people, learning and seeing new things, enjoying God’s awesome creation. Taking pictures. Making videos. I’ve been doing this for more than three decades, for major newspapers, TV networks, radio stations and magazines. I’ve written six books. I’ve won 18 EMMY awards, honors from the Associated Press, Ohio State University and Wayne State University. I’ve reported from all over Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Central America.
    I used to travel so much as a journalist that one of my employers, the Detroit News, once took an ad out in a journalism trade magazine referring to me as “one of America’s most well-traveled reporters.”

    Much of that traveling was what we call “parachute journalism.” I’d fly in, cover the story and fly out, sometimes the same day, often using scenery and skylines as backdrops for my stand-up TV bits. I remembered so many times looking out at a mountain range or across some valley or in some small town or metropolis and longing to spend time, walk the streets, hike the trails, climb the hills, experience the sights and sounds and smells of a place. And, of course, meet the people. It seldom happened. There was always another story in another place on another deadline.
    Don’t get me wrong. I loved those journalism days. I had a front row, window seat to history. I covered Presidents and movie stars, CEOs and government leaders and even the Queen of England and a Pope. Those were heady days.
    But as I approached retirement age, I knew I missed a lot of stories out there over the years, stories about people, places and the things that make the U.S. and Canada such wonderful countries. The kind of good news and general interest stories hard-nosed editors and news directors tend to skip over in favor of the sensational and controversial. The world of big media today concentrates on strife and tragedy and bad news. It has little time for good news.
    In retirement, as my own boss, I decided I wanted to go back and actually see and experience the country and tell those good news stories that I am convinced people are really hungry for.
    A motorhome was my solution.
    So I got one and, with wife, and dog, we set out to meet people, discover places and take to the the road in a world of $4 plus a gallon and climbing fuel costs.PicsV
    The one work obligation I still have every week is with NBC-TV, where, since 1994, I report on personal technology. I’m known there as
    “PC Mike” and my reports are sent weekly to the NBC Newschannel service which distributes my “PC Mike” report to all 215 stations each week.
    That’s all possible because of a 4g mobile connection from Verizon Wireless. I use that connection to report, write and file my Roadtreking stories, post my videos and photos, update this blog and even send my edited “PC Mike” story to NBC each week, all from my motorhome as I travel North America discovering all the interesting people and places I didn’t have time to meet when I was a news reporter working for newspapers or TV stations. But technology, like the motorhome, is a big part of my life and being able to try out new tech toys and stay connected while on the road makes every day an adventure. You can read about my tech gear here.
    Right now, we’re traveling in a 2013 Roadtrek eTrek, an eco-friendly, solar-powered Class B motorhome built on the Mercedes Sprinter chassis. We chose the eTrek because we love to “boondock,” to stay in remote places, off the commercial power grid, typically in natonal or state forests, National Parks or wilderness areas. The eTrek allows us to be self contained for long periods of time. rtetThere is no propane system or conventional generator. Heat comes from an industry-leading Webasto diesel powered combination water heater and furnace. Electrical power generation is provided by a 3,500-watt generator mounted to the van’s diesel engine that can charge eight dead auxiliary batteries in only 40 minutes. Supplemental power comes from a 240 watt solar charging system. All this reserve power is stored in eight 6 volt AGM batteries (1600 amp. hours) and distributed directly to 12 volt lights and appliances and through a 5,000-watt inverter to 110-volt appliances like the air conditioner, inductive stove, instant drinking water heater and convection/microwave oven. The system features surge protection, power monitoring, battery minder/balancer, and solar charge controller.
    We began this blog in March 2012. Our first year we covered 11,000 miles. Typically, we mark out a route, identify a few spots we want to be sure to visit and then take off, stopping when we want or find something that interests us. An old editor of mine once told me that “every person has a story to tell.” My journalism career has shown me that to be very true. It’s the same with most places. Places have stories, too. So we like to wander, chat up the people we meet, and start taking photos and videos. Usually, we return with more stories than we can do.
    We try to travel year round. This past winter, we drove the eTrek in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where we found a winter winter wonderland that most people never see. There was 28 inches of snow on the level ground and onc night, deep in the wilderness, it got down to four degrees below zero. It was an awesome experience. We slept snug and warm inside our eTrek and realized winter is no excuse to put the RV in storage. In the first six months of 2013, we racked up more than 16,000 miles of travel.
    Typically, we’re on the road two to three weeks every month. We’re not fulltimers. We need grandkid fixes. So we return to our Michigan home for at least a week or so every month.
    We also like to visit RV rallies and events. A highlight for us is the Family Motor Home Association reunion. In 2013, it will be in Gillette, WY. I am the official on-the-road reporter for the FMCA and author the Open Mike column each month in Family Motor Coach Magazine.
    Some people have looked at our schedule and the amount of material we produce and laugh. “I thought you retired,” they’ll say.
    As a matter of fact, I’m probably writing and reporting more now than I did when I was a fulltime employee of the various news outfits I’ve worked for over the years. But the difference is I’m my own boss and telling the stories I want to tell. That makes it not like a job at all.
    Truth is, though, that if I’m not careful, Roadtreking.com could become all-consuming. The blog has been growing so fast that we also started a weekly RV newsletter. We opened an online store for RV related clothing and accessories. Our Facebook Page is approaching 20,000 “Likes.” Slowly, we have picked up RV industry-related sponsors for all this and my son, Jeff, has pitched in to help run the “enterprise” so I can concentrate on traveling, content and reporting.
    I should point out that while Roadtrek Motorhomes is an advertiser on this blog and my newsletter and we have a warm and close relationship that has given me frequent access to company executives and the Roadtrek factory in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, I am not an employee of Roadtrek. I am an independent journalist that happens to love the Class B motorhome lifestyle. The blog is a labor of love. It is all my own work, and even if I didn’t have any advertisers, I’d still be publishing it.
    Like I said, I have to tell stories. It’s in my DNA, I guess.
    For the record, Jennifer and I have been married for more than 40 years. Our brick and mortar home is in Oakland, MI. We have three grown children and six grandchildren. Our son, Scott, lives in southwest Georgia with his wife, Lauri, and four sons. Our daughter, Wendy, lives in suburban Detroit with husband, Dan, and two daughters; and son Jeff lives with wife, Aimee, in Kalamazoo, MI.
    Jennifer is a certified fitness instructor by occupation, specializing is water exercise. Besides journalism, we’ve both been very active at our church and have led in-depth Bible studies for many years. In addition to RVing, I enjoy bicycling, SCUBA diving, kayaking and fishing.
    One of the joys of doing all this is working with my wife, who now appears regularly with me in reporting our Roadtreking stories in the “How We Roll in our RV” series of reports that anser reader questions.. That’s not to say that there sometimes isn’t conflict. Jennifer insists on working out and exercising while on the road. We’re not talking campground strolls, bike rides and hikes – all of which we do. We’re talking hard core workouts. In a gym. A constant challenge for me in our travels is finding a health club or workout facility for Jennifer. I’ve learned that unless she gets in a workout three or four times a week, things in the confined space of our motorhome can get a bit strained.

    For her part, Jennifer has had to adjust to the unpredictability of my serendipity style. “Where are we going to spend the night,” she’ll ask? I seldom know. I am not one for making reservations. There are too many variables out there, places and people that make me spontaneously pull off the road and strike up conversations that could lead us to a totally unexpected delight of a story just around the bend.
    You can read and watch many of them here on the blog.
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  9. Roadtrekingmike
    Two very different questions from readers this week as we continue our “How We Roll in our RV” segment:
    Jennifer answers a question about cooking while traveling in our eTrek and I assure a reader that the fabled black flies that invade Michigan’s Upper Peninsula every summer should not deter him from traveling to one of the least-visited but most beautiful places in North America.
    I did a video called “The curse of the U.P: Black flies” last year you may want to check out.
    Got a question about How We Roll? Just send it to me at openmike@fmca.com.
    Besides our other reports, we try to roll out a new How We Roll every week.
    http://youtu.be/yXzjL26D7I4
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  10. Roadtrekingmike
    Roadtrek Motorhomes has released a new all-season, solar-powered 40th Anniversary edition of it’s 190 Popular coach that features a redesigned, higher interior and a stunning Mocha Steel tri-coat paint job that looks like diamonds have been embedded into the finish.
    Roadtrek President Jim Hammill says the new model, revealed to attendees at the corporate anniversary rally in Branson, MO, continues a trend towards green energy use and extended dry camping through solar power. Pricing information and optional packages will be available at Roadtrek dealers throughout North America in early June.
    http://youtu.be/zvojBhs_ljI
    The new model has 10 gallons of extra fresh water capacity and special tanks that do away with the need for winterization if the unit is plugged in or the engine is running.
    The solar power, with a 3,000 watt inverter, assures that users will be able to stay for extended periods of times in remote places far from commercial campgrounds. The rooftop solar panels generate 210 watts of power to four batteries. Roadtrek also added a new engine generator to the unit for extra power off the grid.
    The Popular 190 model joins two Sprinter Roadtrek models introduced late last year that use solar – the RS Adventurous eTrek and the RS Adventurous CS (for Camping Series). Earlier this year, the corporation announced that it would be able to retrofit solar on many earlier units already sold.
    Early reaction to the Popular 190 was favorable. “It’s a beauty,” said Cheryl Gregorie. “I love the fact that it doesn’t need winterizing.”
    “I love the bling of the color scheme,” said Shari Groendyk, of Portage, MI.
    “The fact that we don’t have to winterize is huge for those of us in cold climates,” said William Browne, of Spring Lake, Mich.
    The interior, with a larger bathroom and new bamboo cabinets in the interior, also drew praise from many. It is three inches taller than earlier 190 Populars.
    “This is how we’ll move into the next 40 years of our history,” said Hammill. “We will lead the Class B industry in technology and innovation.”
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  11. Roadtrekingmike
    We all have places we want to see, to explore and experience. A bucket list. At the 40th Anniversary rally of Roadtrek Motorhomes in Branson, Mo., no matter how
    experienced a traveler we found, we also found that every traveler still has a bucket list.
    Just ask the question … what’s on your bucket list? You’ll immediately get an answer.
    Watch the video below. Is your bucket place dream trip mentioned?
    http://youtu.be/zGnQS8tUNvg
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  12. Roadtrekingmike
    At first glance, the 250-plus Roadtrek Class B motorhomes gathered at the 40th anniversary corporate rally in Branson, MO look alike. But when you start walking among them, you soon realize that these touring coaches are not as alike as you may have first thought.
    Each Roadtrek is tweaked, modified and personalized. To various degrees, of course. But all have been individualized. Sometimes it’s as simple as a vanity license plate. Maybe some bumper stickers. With others, it’s something more elaborate, like interior redesigns. But each motorhome reflects the personalities of the owners.
    http://youtu.be/VZDKdJgii_I
    And many of them actually name their coach. Listening to them talk about their RV, you can’t help but notice they often refer to it by its nickname, as if it has a personality, too.
    In this report from Branson, I walked around and chatted up folks to learn about the way they have made their Roadtrek uniquely their own.
    What becomes obvious at a gathering like this is how these RVs are so much more than machines to their owners. They represent freedom. Adventure. Friendship. And each motorhome represents miles of memories.
    Check out the video above.
  13. Roadtrekingmike
    The 40th anniversary Roadtrek corporate rally is going on this week in Branson, MO, with more than 500 Roadtrek owners and 250 coaches gathered for a week’s worth of fun celebrating the four decades the very popular Class B motorhomes have been sold.
    Attenders from across the US and Canada were greeted with cloudy skies and heavy rain warnings on arrival Monday, but that didn’t deter many from taking advantage of a free Roadtrek wash organized by the company.
    Check the vanity license plate message – says it all, doesn’t it?
    Roadtrek President Jim Hammill, Sales Director Paul Cassidy and Chief Engineer Jeff Stride were all on hand, making the long trip to Branson from company headquarters in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.
    Chris Deakens, Roadtrek’s tech support guru, answered questions and scheduled on-site technician visits for those who want some tweaking and easy repairs while in Branson.
    Every Roadrek model is parked here, with the oldest (a 1985) to the newest (a new CS Adventurous that just rolled off the assembly line late last week).
    There is food, with big communal breakfasts and dinners. There’s nightly entertainment at the campground, as well as a trip to one of the big shows this resort community n the Ozarks is famous for.
    For most though, visiting and hanging out seems to top the agenda.
    The ABC campground we’re staying at is very hilly. Most of us are doubled up with two to a site but since the sites are all pull-through, no one is complaining.
    The oldest Roadtrek we’ve seen so far … a 1985 model!
    Jennifer and I have been meeting people and giving tours of the eTrek. It’s been fun to put real in-person faces with the names we’ve been visiting with for months on our Facebook group. It’s hard to overstate how tight the Facebook Roadtreking friends have become. People keep using the word family to describe it and, indeed, watching us all hug and greet each other, you’d see why we feel that way.
    We also got a chance to visit with many members of the FMCA’s Roadtrek International Chapter, which wrapped up its 40th anniversary rally just as the corporate rally bagan. Many of the chapter members stayed over for the corporate gathering.
    Frances Griffin, the chapter president, told me about a song called “Three Little Windows” that was written by Roadtrek owner Mark Sickman. Mark took photos from his travels across the country and accompanied it with an original song named after the three up-top windows that are distinctive to each Roadtrek. You can see and hear his slideshow and music at http://threelittlewindows.com
    There was lots of excitement Monday night when a severe thunderstorm swept through the park. Thunder boomed and lighting crackled all around as wind flung driving rain that was horizontal at times. Several roadtrekers retreated to the basement of the campground office until it passed. But pass it did and the worst was but a memory by bedtime.
  14. Roadtrekingmike
    Just north of the Missouri “boot heel” is the small community of Sikeston, right off Interstate 57. It’s a great place to overnight. If you stay at the Hinton RV Park, they’ll arrange for a van to take you to dinner at a place you will not soon forget.
    On our visit, we were with a group of 12 RVers, on the way to a Branson, MO rally. Our group came from Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan and Ontario and we were crowded driving in that stretch van the mile or so to Lambert’s Cafe, “Home of the Throwed Rolls.” Lambert’s is a unique Amerian culinary icon, founded in 1942 and known far and wide for it hot “Throwed Rolls.”
    http://youtu.be/jz-6DZ8tJHQ
    Yup. You heard right. Throwed rolls. Like you see in the video. Gloved servers toss em at you. Raise your hand and there will be a “throwded roll” in it. Gigantic, baked-from-scratch, five inches in diameter, fluffy, hot and ready for drizzled honey, butter, molasses or sorgum. Last year, Lambert’s baked and “throwed” 2,246,400 rolls to its customers.
    There’s more than the rolls of course. We’re talking massive quanttites of Southern Food. Fried catfish.Pulled pork.Fried ham. Fried chicken. Chicken and dumplings. Ribs. You don’t count calories here. If you do, you may get bopped with a throwed roll.
    Servers come by offering side dishes like black eyed peas, tomatoes and macaroni, fried potatoes and fried okra.
    Nobody leaves Lambert’s hungry.
    I swear the van taking us back to the campground was even more of a tight fit as we waddled out after dinner.
    There are two other Lambert’s Cafes. But Sikeston is the original. Well worth a visit.
  15. Roadtrekingmike
    Apps for on the road RV travel
    The RV season is in full swing now with folks traveling to rallies, vacations and long weekend getaways. To help make those trips more fun and travel more convenient, I thought I’d share three more fun apps and web tools that I’ve been having fun with lately. This report was put together for my other [...]
    Roadtreking | A journalist's RV travels across North America - Traveling North America in search of interesting people and places


    <a href="http://Roadtreking.com/apps-for-on-the-road-rv-travel/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=apps-for-on-the-road-rv-travel">Source</a>
  16. Roadtrekingmike
    In this edition of How We Roll, Jennifer and I tackle questions from readers asking about how we dry bath towels while we’re on the road. Jennifer shows some hooks I attached with stick-on tape and a very simple but effective bungee cord clothesline we have in the bathroom. She also recommends fast-drying micro fiber towels.
    Besides the bungee-clotheline (which hangs and dries two full-sized bath towels very effectively and out of sight behind the bathroom door), I have strategically stuck on plastic hooks (found at WalMart) on several vertical walls to hang sweatshirts, towels, items like that.
    We also answer a question about the folding chairs we use while traveling. We use the telescoping PICO ARM CHAIR Telescoping Director’s Chair and I show how compactly it packs. They’re expensive, about $100 each. But they are very rugged. Best pricing comes when you buy two of them. They fit in a case that can be carried over the shoulder like a large laptop bag.
    We roll out a new edition of How We Roll each week. If you have a question, just send it in to me by clicking here.
    http://youtu.be/wvxR9wo9s1A
  17. Roadtrekingmike
    Canada is a very popular destination for American RVers.
    And it’s home to several of the world’s best-selling Class B motorhome makers.
    So a lot is us travel there. Canada feels very much at home. It’s people are open and welcoming.
    In the last year, I’ve made over a dozen visits to the Kitchener, Ontario, headquarters of Roadtrek Motorhomes. And while I am very comfortable in Canada, there are some cultural differences.
    I’ve been taking notes. Here are 15 things to know about Canada:
    It’s smaller in population. Canada has only 33 million people. Once you get past the cities, there is a lot of open space.
    They count and measure things differently. Your GPS may tell you Kitchener is 60 miles away, but a roadside sign on the 402 says it’s 100. Huh? They use the metric system. Don’t even try to figure out fuel prices, which they measure in liters.Their money is different. Thankfully, they count it in dollars. But it’s worth more than ours. Twenty bucks U.S. is worth $20.10 Canadian. They have weird names for it, too. Canadians call their $1 a loonie and $2 a toonie.
    They don’t have as many freeway rest areas. Instead, at least in Ontario, they have Onroutes – widespread concentrations of fast-food restaurants, fuel pumps and rest rooms under one roof. Canadians don’t clutter up the landscape with billboards like we do in the U.S. And except in urban areas, there usually are not clusters of gas stations and fast-food places around each freeway exit.
    Yes, they do have Starbucks. And the good news is you won’t have to stand in line to get yours. That’s because, hands down, Canadians prefer Tim Hortons to Starbucks. Timmy’s, they call it. And I have to say ... it IS better that Starbucks.
    In Ontario, the only place you can buy beer is at the Beer Store. Seriously. That’s what they call the government stores that sell beer. Beer isn’t available at convenience stores, supermarkets and gas stations. It varies, I’m told, province by province.
    You know they spell differently, eh? In all candour, it sort of colours their written communications. Centre – center. Check – cheque. Favour - favor.
    They pronounce things differently, too. Not everything. Just a few things. Ask a Canadian to say out and about. Don’t laugh. They think YOU talk even funnier.
    Hockey is not a game in Canada. It is a religion. On their $5 bill is a scene of children playing pond hockey. Saturday night hockey on the radio was a tradition for generations. Now it’s on HDTV. Do not make fun of hockey. Ever. Canadians also like the sport of curling. Do not make fun of this, either. And yes, curling is a sport and it’s much more involved than it appears to most Americans. Trust me on this, do not ridicule Canadian sports. Especially in a bar.
    Canadians are very patriotic. More so than in the U.S. They are generally liked by other countries, terrorists are not trying to destroy it, and violence – except on the hockey rink, is very rare. There’s nowhere near the polarization there is in the U.S.
    Unless they hunt, no one owns a gun in Canada. Canadians like it that way. They think people in the U.S. who are so adamant about owning guns are extreme.
    Canadians have two languages. English and French. In Quebec, of course, almost everyone is bilingual. But even in the other provinces, you will hear a French accent fairly often.
    You will find iPhones there, of course. But many Canadians prefer Blackberries. They’re made in Ontario.
    Canadian restaurants, particularly those in Ontario, are generally more high-tech than many of their U.S. counterparts. The waitstaff have their own tablets and hand-held computers that process your credit cards right at the table. And many credit cards issued by Canadian banks have chips built in which constitute an electronic signature, meaning you don’t have to physically sign the bill.
    In the U.S., we drink soda. In Canada, it’s pop.
    Canadians are healthier than us. Average life expectancy there is 81.2 years. In America, it’s 78.1, and the American life expectancy is dropping while the Canadian is rising. Americans are the most obese country in the world, with approximately 34% of their citizens obese (over 60% are overweight). Canada is the 11th most obese country with about 24% of their people obese and 55% overweight.

    I like Canada, a lot. After so many visits over the past year, I’m starting to feel patriotic about the place, myself. The Canadians I’ve met are typically not full of themselves, as so many Americans are. They seem to be content and very sure of who they are, but without guile. They laugh a lot. Sometimes at us. Especially our politics. And they’re very accepting of people from other places, who look different and talk different.
    Just as long as they don’t make fun of hockey.
    About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who travels the country in a Roadtrek Type B motorhome, accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, and their Norweigian elkhound, Tai. Mike is an FMCA member (F426141) and is FMCA's official on-the-road reporter. He enjoys camping (obviously), hiking, biking, fitness, photography, video editing and all things dealing with technology. His "PC MIke" technology segments are distributed weekly to all 215 NBC-TV stations. More from this author. Reach mike at openmike@fmca.com.
  18. Roadtrekingmike
    In the heart of central Kentucky – not far from it’s famed bluegrass country – is an area known as the Bourbon Trail, a confluence of seven distilleries that produce the bulk of the world’s Bourbon. Formally designated by Congress as “America’s Official Native Spirit.” The distilleries offer tours and tastings and offer a perfect RV getaway.
    http://youtu.be/W_wm129Uk30
    Bourbon has a rich history and proud tradition that dates back to the late 1700s. For more than two centuries, no family has influenced bourbon-making more deeply than the Beam family, maker of the world’s best selling bourbon. The tour of the Jim Beam distillery near Clermont, KY offers an up-close look at how they make the world’s best-selling bourbon–from grain to barrel to bottle and beyond.
    Here, you learn that bourbon is unique among whiskeys because, by law, it must be at least 51% corn. Why is it called Bourbon? Well, one of Kentucky’s original counties was Bourbon County, established in 1785 when Kentucky was still part of Virginia. Farmers shipped their whiskey in oak barrels — stamped from Bourbon County — down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers to New Orleans. The long trip aged the whiskey, with the oak wood giving it the distinct mellow flavor and amber color. Pretty soon, whiskey from Bourbon County grew in popularity and became known as Bourbon whiskey.bt1
    Allow at least three hours for the Beam tour, which always ends in the tasting room, Where visitors can sample some of the 12 different brands the company makes. But remember, the Beam operation is just one of seven distilleries on the Bourbon Trail.
    A great place to use as your RVing base while touring the Bourbon Trail is Bardstown, KY, recently designated by USA Today as America’s most beautiful small town. It’s a delightful town, steeped in history. Abraham Lincoln walked its streets. So did Daniel Boone. Upstairs at the Old Talbott Inn, built in 1779, are bullet holes reportedly fired by Jesse James. Bardstown has museums and quaint shops.
    What the Napa Valley is to California wine, Bardstown is to the Bourbon Trail. Just outside of town, we used the My Old Kentucky Home State Park as our camping base, named after the famous Steven Foster song celebrating the mansion the state park is home to.
    Just down the road from the state Park is the Heaven Hill distillery. It, too, offers great tours and lots of history. Oh yeah, they have tastings, too.
    It was founded by the Heavenhill family. One word. Heavenhill. But rumor has it that when a teetotaler daughter saw a typo referring to the place as Heaven Hill - two words – she let the mistake stay so as to distance the family name from the whiskey business.
    About a half hour drive from Bardstown is the Makers Mark distillery. Situated on gorgeous grounds with Whiskey Creek running right through it and providing the pure water used in making of its bourbon, I was offered a tin cup sip straight out of a distilling tank, before the product had aged. My tongue burned. Jennifer got no further than a sniff. At Maker’s Mark, visitors have the opportunity to hand dip a bottle themselves… sealing it with the brands distinctive melted red wax.
    Each distillery is unique. Each distillery has a story.
    Take Red Roses bourbon, for example. Seems its founder was smitten by a beautiful young lady. He asked her to marry him. She refused to answer immediately but said, if the next time he saw her she was wearing a corsage, the answer was yes. The next time he saw her she was wearing a corsage of four red roses. Thus a bourbon brand was born.
    Even if you don’t drink alcohol, or bourbon is not your thing, the bourbon trail is a fascinating look at history in some of the most beautiful country you can find.
    If you decide to visit the Bourbon Trail, allow at least three days to take it all in. There are lots of campgrounds servicing the area.
  19. Roadtrekingmike
    In this week’s edition of "How We Roll in Our RV," readers want to know how we fight boredom while doing all that driving, and what kind of meals we eat in our RV while traveling.
    I offer my suggestions on finding eBooks, something we both really enjoy listening to while making long drives.
    Jennifer shares some of her favorite meals for traveling.
    Keep those questions coming in. We’ll do our best to answer them.
    We try to do a new edition of How We Roll each week.
    http://youtu.be/VKhQzs1acJk
  20. Roadtrekingmike
    It’s no secret that many of us RVers are, ah, shall I say, horizontally challenged?” With obesity already at epidemic levels and good, nutritious food hard enough to find, our laid back on-the-go nomadic travels can sure pack on the pounds. Sometimes, it’s time to get reprogrammed, to find a way to jump start a new and healthy living style.
    That’s what Jennifer and I found deep in the rolling hills of south central Tennessee, two hours south of Nashville at a place called the Tennessee Fitness Spa. For a week or as long as you want, you will be totally immersed in a health and fitness regimen than can produce some very dramatic results. You can watch the video to see what just six days did for Jennifer and me.
    http://youtu.be/KmtnC7qFkWs
    There is room for 60 guests in lodges and motel-style rooms n the 100 acre campus, plus two RV parks with full hookups. We chose to stay in the lower campground that is closest to the gym and central complex. We were neighbored by two Class C motorhomes. The RV spots there are right on the bans of the sparkling clear 48 Creek. The upper campground had a couple of Class A rigs and is located in a very quiet spot up a hill and surrounded by greenery.
    The spa provides three meals a day. They are gourmet quality but the total caloric intake they provide is no more than 1,200 calories. You can add another 200 calories or so from the fresh salad bar or from special snacks like hard boiled eggs and sweet potato wedges. The food is low salt, low sugar, all natural, never processed, always fresh and prepared in ways that will amaze you. I was not hungry once, despite my spoofng in the video.
    A fully equipped gymnasium and very large swimming pool is available 24 hours a day and fitness classes run every hour during the daytime hours.
    For the healthier guests, mornings start with a brisk walk. It’s three miles the first day, then it builds until at the end of the week, you cover eight miles. This is up and down hills and it is a challenging aerobic workout. The spa breaks it down into different groups of walkers based on their fitness levels, with the fastest being those of are able to walk a 12 minute miles. The slowest group is for tose who are just starting out.
    They expect that for maximum results, guests participate in two aerobic workous each day, as well as a stretching class, weight workouts and pool session.
    There are multiple water aerobics classes. Jennifer was a guest instructor of the week we were there. Jennifer has taught water aerobics for more than 20 years and says the quality of the water aerobics instruction at the spa is the best she’s ever seen. “Water exercise is great for everybody,” says Jennifer. “You lose the impact of your weight on your knees, hips and joints. Water offers resistance that lets you work out very hard without the stress. It really burns calories and helps in weight loss and body toning.”
    You will see in the video the inches Jennifer lost which she attributes to the healthy food she ate that week and the water aerobic classes than did. “Believe me, water exercise works,” she says. “Besides teaching classes, I was able to participate in classes here like the other students Normally when I teach, I have to do it from the deck. I loved being able to get in the water and workout in the water with my students.”
    The fun thing is getting to know the other participants. You can meet several in the video, including one guy who has been there two months and is down 60 pounds. Many of the guests were repeat visitors. who come year after year.
    Belinda Jones is the spa’s fitness and nutrition director and personally selects the menu. “The difference that most people notice immediately is that they are not hungry,” she says. “Their cravings disappear. That’s because they are eating balanced, healthy food with the right amounts of protein, complex carbohydrates and fats.”
    Health experts tell us that 20% of weight loss comes from exercise. But 80% is from making healthy food choices. Belinda holds a class on how the balanced meals served at the spa can be brought back home, or to the RV.
    The grounds of the spa are stunningly beautiful. An ancient cave called the Natural Bridge is on the grounds. Dean Ware, who holds classes on the history of the area, says the Natural Bridge was the home of notorious outlaw gangs who preyed on travelers of the Natchez Trail, which is not far from the spa. In later years, locals would hold church services there and it’s said that Davy Crockett delivered a speech from a protruding ledge of the bridge called the pulpit rock.
    Ware also teaches a class on the benefits of herbal teas and class participants actually mix up a batch they drink themselves.
    Nancy Shaw, with her late husband, Joe, founded the spa in 1991. “This is a very rejuvenating place,” she said. “It relaxes and refreshes and restores our guests,” she says. “The pace of life in today’s society is very stressful. Eating and exercising right and decompressing here is what brings so many back so often.”
    She said RVers love the fact that they can bring their pets with them as they vist the spa. “We were surprised by how many people travel in RVs,” she said. “So we built the parks for them. They like it because not only can they sleep in their own RV and bring their pets but they save money from the lodging costs our regular guests pay when staying in a room.”
    There are free laundry facilities available.
    Cellular phone service in the area is limited. When I had to make a phone call, I’d walk to the top of one of the nearby hills. But the spa has added high speed satellite Internet wi-fi that is available in the lounges and restaurant area. I picked it up right in the RV and was never out of touch.
    Our week ended much too soon. We could not believe how good we felt as we sat in our Roadtrek. We vowed to bring the healthy eating plan we learned to our everyday life.
    That’s when we encountered the reality of such a choice.
    On the road, it’s very hard to make healthy choices when eating out. A traffic accident and hour long delay on I-65 north of Nashville sent us off the interstate. We pulled off at an exit and decided to eat dinner as the traffic cleared. There was a Mexican restaurant (who could resist the chips and salsa?) a fast food place (there is nothing fresh and healthy about fast food) and a national pizza chain. We figured the pizza place would give us the healthiest choice because we knew it had a salad bar.
    But the salad came in plastic bags. That’s surely not fresh. There was only high fat, high calorie salad dressings. And the pizza we ordered – a thin crust with a pineapple topping – was so salty and sugary that our newly sensitized taste buds immediately noticed it. We both felt yucky and vowed that from now on, we are going to carry our own salad dressings and protein sources and learn to make better choices.
    As to exercise, that, too, is more challenging in an RV. Walking, of course, is always a choice. We can also carry along bicycles. And we can seek our towns with gyms and YMCAs.
    We absolutely loved the Tennessee Fitness Spa. Now, the challenge is to build on what we’ve learned.
    After all, there are a lot of places out there we want to see as we Roadrek around North America. We want to be sure we are fit and healthy enough to take everything in for as long as possible.
  21. Roadtrekingmike
    I’ve never been one to worry much about the weather. If I have something planned and the blow-dryed weather guys on TV are breathlessly warning us that a snow storm or some weather situation is about to cause the sky to fall, I usually scoff and just go on with my plans. Weather forecasters like to scare us and keep us tuned in for ratings. I know this from firsthand experience back in my local TV reporting days when they’d scramble “storm teams” and bombard the public with 24 by 7 weather alerts and constant promos about the big storm coming.
    Usually, it was much less than what was predicted.
    So when we set off on this latest RV trip with weather forecasters talking about a wind advisory and breezy conditions coming in hard with a cold front, I barely paid attention.
    The Roadtrek eTrek was packed, we had places to go, and so ... we did, heading straight down I-75 from our Michigan home.
    I could tell is was windy as soon as I pulled out of my subdivision. But as we negotiated the heavy traffic through Detroit, the “concrete canyons” nulled the effect and it wasn’t until, just north of the Ohio border near Monroe, MI, that it became apparent that the weather guys had this one right.
    This was more than breezy. This was howling.
    They said on the radio that the west wind was gusting to 50 miles an hour. I can’t confirm that, except to say that the trip through Ohio, with all that empty farmland bordering the interstate, was a virtual tug of war. And hopes of being spelled from my driving duties by Jennifer went by the wayside as soon as the first gust slammed into the Roadtrek.
    The wind blew and buffeted and the drive was two-handed all the way, made worse by wind shear from the occasional semi–tractor trailers that passed me. Most of the truckers, though, seemed to have even more trouble than we did and it was me that did most of the truck passing.
    Truth told, it may have been the worst wind conditions I have ever driven in. Weather reports said the winds were responsible for lots of power outages. My Roadtrek, ten feet high on the Mercedes Sprinter chassis, was like a sail.
    But I also found myself – I know, this sounds weird – actually enjoying the challenge. It wasn’t that bad, once I adapted my driving to the conditions. The dual rear wheels on the Roadtrek eTrek also helped provide a stability that never caused me any serious worries..
    Here’s five tips I learned about driving an RV in heavy winds that you may want to keep in mind if you find yourself in similar conditions:
    Keep both hands on the wheel. The wind really does want to push you to the next lane. A firm, not too tight grip, lets you easily overcome that.
    Keep the speed low. I usually tool down the interstate a little over 70. Much of the way yesterday, I kept it between 55 and 60. That seemed to be the sweet spot of speed for keeping it under maximum control.
    Reduce your speed and correct your steering, especially when moving from a protected area to an unprotected area, like overpasses, or when treelines along the wide of the road vanish, or when meeting large vehicles.
    Be very aware of traffic and the vehicles around you. Sudden gusts can blow any vehicle off course. Keep your distance from all other vehicles.
    Take breaks sooner than normal. We stopped about every other rest area. There’s a lot of stress in driving while fighting the wheel. Spelling yourself for 10 to 15 minutes every hour or so really helps.

    By the time we crossed into Kentucky and began heading directly west along US-71, the winds began to diminish. When we hit Louisville, they were no longer a factor. I think we just drove out of the weather pattern that hit the upper Midwest.
    We spent the night in a neat and clean place called Grandmas RV Resort, right along i-65 in Shepardsville, KY,. The spaces are all pull-throughs, 50 feet wide and 70 feet long, with full hookups except for cable. To the east is a pasture where curious alpacas chew the lush green Kentucky grass and hang out by the fence to watch all the people in their tin can homes. There’s a huge flea market right next door that draws thousands of people on the weekends and many of the spots seemed to be taken up by vendors for that. There was one other Roadtrek here, an older 210 Popular. It was all bundled up last night when I saw it and they left early this morning before I ventured out, so I didn’t get a chance to meet its owners.
    The campground was recommended by Stu Kratz, an RVing friend who lives nearby. Stu and wife, Winona, came by after we set up last night and we visited for a couple of hours. I gave them Roadtrek hats and they shared a few local places of interest we should check out.
    While here, we plan to take in the Bourbon Trail, a meandering route that takes in a collection of Kentucky distilleries that celebrate the rich tradition and proud history of “America’s Official Native Spirit.” We’ll start with the Kim Beam Distillery near here.
    I could have used that place last night after the wind advisory.
  22. Roadtrekingmike
    There’s never enough room. That’s the first thing about RVing we all think when we start RVing, isn’t it?
    But there really is.
    No matter what size RV we have, we all want to bring too much stuff.armoire
    Once we discover that, it’s a little easier to pack the essentials. Still, some times, you need a little more storage space. That’s why we recently replaced one of the two back seats with a custom sized armoire. It is a perfect match with the rest of the wooden cabinets inside our Roadtrek eTrek. And it even comes with a pull out table that lets us replace the front table that attaches to a pole that fits into a hole in the floor.
    Jennifer shows it off in this week’s edition of “How We Roll” as I show how I pack the “basement.”
    Keep those questions coming. We try to answer a new one each week.
    http://youtu.be/0slyhwcBVzo
  23. Roadtrekingmike
    RVing in Hawaii
    RVing is a huge pastime across the U.S. in 49 of the 50 states. The one exception is perhaps the most beautiful state: Hawaii. There just is not a big RV presence there. One exception is Al Waterson, a popular entertainer, singer and actor who tools around the island of Oahu in a 1995 Roadtrek 190 Versatile Class B [...]
    Roadtreking - A Journalist takes up the RV lifestyle - People and Places Encountered on the Open Road


    <a href="http://Roadtreking.com/rving-in-hawaii/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rving-in-hawaii">Source</a>
  24. Roadtrekingmike
    This is the time of year folks are shopping for an RV and planning their first trips of the season. We have questions about both in this week’s edition of “How We Roll” in which Jennifer and I answer reader questions.
    We travel in a Class B motorhome. I’ve written lots on why we chose a B. But if you have a large family, you may want something larger.
    As for where we stay, we always opt for beauty and remoteness over crowded campgrounds.
    We share more about both questions in the video.
    Send in your questions to openmike@fmca.com and we’ll do our best to answer.
    We try to do a new edition of How We Roll each week.
    http://youtu.be/evCUGwN1sy0
  25. Roadtrekingmike
    Upgrading your RV to solar power
    Advances in power management and solar power have made big news in the RV world of late, especially with the new eTrek and CS-Adventurous models built on the Mercedes Sprinter chasis by Roadtrek Motorhomes. New and efficient power control and management systems have put these advanced new Class B motorhomes on many a wish list [...]
    Roadtreking - A Journalist takes up the RV lifestyle - People and Places Encountered on the Open Road


    <a href="http://Roadtreking.com/upgrading-your-rv-to-solar-power/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=upgrading-your-rv-to-solar-power">Source</a>
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