rpelatt
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Posts posted by rpelatt
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19 hours ago, brocki said:OK, to those of you who have expressed a preference for the Michilins. In one word, what is the reason? Price? Ride? I will be buying rear tires this summer and am interested in your opinions from those who have them.
Don't know if others have followed suit, but Michelin just increased their warranty to 7 years. So spread the cost over 7 years vs 5 and they justify paying a little more.
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You won't have any problem, but time wise it would be a wash as there are many sharp turns, as well as more game/ livestock, etc causing slower speeds, as well as the towns you mentioned that are posted 25 mph. If you were to go on east to Laurel you would be on 4 lane Interstate , then from Laurel going back up to Red Lodge is wider and straighter.
on edit: I remember there was talk about posting a maximum vehicle length limit from Absorokee over to Red Lodge but do not know if it was ever decided for sure
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My membership expired 24 days ago. Waiting for the results before deciding...although I'm pretty sure which way it is going to go
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I keep a thermometer like this: https://www.grainger.com/product/35HV46?cm_mmc=PPC:+Google+PLA&s_kwcid=AL!2966!3!166591779552!!!g!370218741819!&ef_id=WKnhCQAAAD0FzW19:20171129181604:s&kwid=productads-adid^166591779552-device^c-plaid^370218741819-sku^35HV46-adType^PLA attached to an AC vent. This way I know if the AC is blowing constant temps. Your increase in temp. could possibly be coming from the windshield, or other source of radiant heat.
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Thank-you Brett !!
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Thanks for posting. I have 2 at home that qualify. Plan to check the RV tomorrow
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18 hours ago, wolfe10 said:Let me ask a question-- neutrally:
Does anyone question that the average of current FMCA members is 71 years old???
I don't really question the age either. But, in our travels, it seems that when I see much younger people at an RV park they almost always have a license plate of the same state. Any towables that have a different states' tags are over 65 as well. That makes me feel like the younger crowd are only going relatively short distances from home, 3-5 day getaways and are not likely to want to join any group other than Good Sam where they can get discounts on camping gear.
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31 minutes ago, camarti1 said:rpellat, Thank You so much for the clarification, I had not asked for those documents, was just keeping my browsing to the available on line writings I have access to. I am still hung up on 20 members in good standing should be able to cut this off right now and table the vote for adding towables to the membership. Especially when using the core document stressing members are first, which would then supersede all of this other committee stuff.
No problem. Thanks for all the research you are doing! I bet even Bill Adams would renew his membership for a chance to bring this vote to a halt
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56 minutes ago, camarti1 said:I read the Constitution, the by-laws, and the members guide, and nowhere is there stipulation as to money limits which can be spent by a committee or a member of the executive board. As a matter of fact, it is read that the corporation may do all that is needed to procure services it feels are needed. So despite what the bylaws state, it is spelled out within the bylaws there is no cap on spending on whatever the corporation feels it needs.
I was referring to Dons2346 post on Oct.1:
" ................... I firmly believe we need to vote with the recommendation of the Board. They have studied the issues involved and know the subjects much better than I could ever do so nor want to do so at this stage of my life. I believe they are good well meaning people who want the very best for this organization................... "
Sundance, here is the problem with your analogy. There was zero study done on the subject of "recreation vehicles" becoming a part of FMCA. From here on out, I'll use "towable". Not one towable club or manufacturer was contacted about this endeavor, not one. This was brought about by one person and one only. In fact this person, at one of his rallies had a towable show up. He took his treasurer over to the trailer and told him he was not welcome and the treasurer wrote a check for the rally fees and he was told to leave. Now all of a sudden he thinks this is the greatest idea since sliced bread.
Another example of the executive board using bad judgement is the giving of $250,000 to the owner of rVillage, a facebook wanna be. The so called details of the gift is that FMCA will supposedly receive 5% interest on the money OR the owner has the option to issue FMCA stock in the company which is supposed to happen in 2019. This info was found out when I requested a copy of the current annual audit. It had to be covered there to justify the $250,000. You might think this is great in that we will get something however our investments are regulated by our Policy & Procedures. Those tell the organization what investments can be invested in. One that we cannot invest in is private stock. rVillage is not listed on any stock exchange. During the last GB meeting I questioned the then treasurer about the 5% interest and had we received it yet. The treasurer informed the entire GB that the "money is gone". Not one member of the GB stood up and raised any issue with it.
Any member can get any document from FMCA by calling and asking to talk to "membership services". You can get meeting minutes from any meeting, monthly treasurer reports, etc.
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40 minutes ago, camarti1 said:So, then, who got to vote on initiating changes to the constitution? Was this something voting members brought forward? Is this a product of the governing board? I ask, because when looking at the order of how the documents rank, the constitution should take precedent. Bylaws, which direct actions of the various and numerous groups, are directions to those to live by, under the constitution. It would seem to this observer, the vehicle should be the constitution, and the bylaws should be the driver. If there is no vehicle, there is not a need for a driver. Which of course brings me back to the 20 voting members and their ability to change or halt this current direction the FMCA is taking. If the drivers are trying to tell the vehicle which way to go, and there is not a vehicle to direct, then the steering committee, the gas pedal committee, the spark plug committee, the back seat committee, the headrest committee, and so on have no value. The vehicle will take direction from the committees, but the vehicle is still the focus of the trip. Ideally, all of these groups would work in tandem, but upon trying to read and comprehend all of the levels of committees and who has precedent over whom, it boggles the brain.
I had three strokes in 2005, and so my ability to read and comprehend, as well as question the things I am takes some time to process. I still strongly feel the constitution, as the overriding document, allows for 20 voting members, that are in good standing, to make a motion from the "floor", even at this late date. I understand the process as it was developed, but I do not see where it is written it is only process to be allowed. Hence, my attraction to the word "or".
How does one go about getting onto one of these numerous committees that make these decisions? Are they all local to Ohio? Are these people paid a salary? Is there an expectation the "committee members" are available to be at these various meetings in person?
Okay, me and my 20 voting members ideology are going to think on this some more, and try to come to an understanding as to why 20 voting members cannot stop this train while it is still on track, before it derails itself.
Thanks to all who have given of your time and talent, it again, is appreciated.
Certainly with you on this one. If you look back earlier on this thread it sure appears that at least $250,000 was spent in violation of the bylaws, and as was answered a few posts above there was a "survey" done a number of years ago that came up with the average age of 71(?).Now I'm wondering just how that was conducted. I certainly feel there has been a lack of transparency in this whole process.
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2 hours ago, camarti1 said:Article X
AMENDING THE CONSTITUTION
A. Any 20 voting members, the Governing Board, The Executive Board, or the Constitution and Bylaws Committee may propose an amendment to the Constitution.
B. Proposed amendment with rationale should be clearly set forth in writing.
C. Proposals shall be sent to the Secretary and a duplicate to the President.
Now, why did I write out this specific portion of the "Proposed Changes"? It only took 20 members to make this suggestion, and sent it on to way through to too many committees to write about. Is it possible a motion from the floor (us) could stop this process of this vote? I made a motion in a previous post "I would like to make a motion that this vote be tabled until such time other options can be explored by the FMCA committee for expanding its membership, using some of the suggestions brought forward contained here within."
I made my request in writing, and it is clearly done with rationale, as I have explained my ideas for the FMCA quite clearly.
Is it possible, with a "second" and 20 votes to table the motion, this issue goes back to committee for review? I jokingly stated it was too late for this to happen, but is it? Can someone much more knowledgeable please respond to this, please? I know I will be severely reprimanded for even suggesting such a thing, perhaps even thrown out of the FMCA, but if we can exercise our votes to put this out there to amend the constitution, then it may be possible to use our voting power to stop these changes and ask for the items suggested be considered.
I am for positive changes, but not changes which appear to be changes just for the sake of change. I do not feel adding towables is the right direction for the FMCA, and I have voted "NO", just to help keep the thread back on subject.
Thank You for your time and attention, it clearly is appreciated. Any and help is also gratefully acknowledged.
I'd sure second that one
can't imagine it would take more than 5 minutes to get the other 20...
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On 10/26/2017 at 10:27 AM, manholt said:rpelatt.
That's why I asked for substantiated information! All I got was "Catch 22" !
When I became a member the first time, I gave my DOB, as a A member the same and as a F member again the same...had I known that something like this was coming, I would not have given my DOB. Where FMCA gets the numbers from, is probably a base known age....low, high + they know the month and year that a F # was issued..
Today, with all the computers, Internet and reporting agencies that are available...you can get all the info you want. Legal? Yes. Immoral? Possibly.
I asked Smithy how they determined the age yesterday in a post above but he apparently hasn't had the time to respond. Perhaps, he will make the time soon, as I feel it is an important piece of information we could all learn from. I doubt they could look at the date the F number was assigned as they still would not know your age unless given on the app. I am beginning to wonder if they used the average age of those who needed FMC Assist.
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On 10/25/2017 at 6:53 AM, smithy said:Anyone in insurance will tell you that the more people to spread the risk, the more likely the cost per member will go down. Doesn't mean that will be the case every time. Yes our membership did grow, but so did the claims.
The fact of the matter is towables are a younger average age. The younger you are, the less medical issues you have. If we can increase membership with younger towable owners, naturally the cost per member will go down because they won't have as many claims as our current membership.
Smithy, As mentioned above, FMCA does not require you to give your age when joining, so how can you know the age of the towable group is younger? Where did you get that info?
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On 10/25/2017 at 8:02 AM, rossboyer said:When I chaired the first Committee to select the provider for FMCASSIST the average age of our membership was 66 years + or - 2 months based on gender. Seven years later, the average age was 71 with the same 2 months except the gender had switch as which was younger or older. Statically, any insurance company will tell you the older the group insured, the greater the claims. As more of our members become aware that this insurance is provided and get older, more claims are made.
We still have members that still don’t know we have this insurance or know the procedure to activate the service. Also, cost of the services has increased. Early years the average repatriation cost was $18,000. The last I heard, the cost had increased to $24,000 and that was a few years ago.
So, if stating our age is not mandatory, how could you possibly have known the average member age of 66 and later 71?
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56 minutes ago, BillAdams said:So Smitty, are you suggesting that when you join FMCA you will have to declare how old you are or are you and the insurance company just jumping to the non-verifiable conclusion that EVERY towable owner will be younger than EVERY motorhome owner. I have never heard of an actuary that would make a financial decision based upon this kind of speculation.
Maybe I'm forgetting something, but I don't remember giving out my age was a requirement when I joined...
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Well, you haven't owned a Holiday Rambler like mine then. That model step is no longer made (by Lippert) and the "replacement part number" cost $1300. But it also required some modifications that a local machine shop had to fabricate, taking the total up to $1900(including the labor). Don't know where you come up with $2100. but the real total is just under $5,000 that the warranty has paid out, and I still have around 18 months left of coverage. I'm not saying it's for everyone. The OP asked for suggestions and I responded with what worked for us. Glad you self insure, and glad you have an extra $150,000 laying around so you can cover anything that may go wrong in the future with yours. My main reason in buying was to cover the big things like an engine, or generator, which can jump into the 5 figure range very quickly, so having it cover what it has, has been more of a side benefit that has really paid off. Yes, I would do it again, but I am also the kind of guy that gets "agreed value" on my insurance policy, so I know exactly what I will get if the RV is totaled.
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Around $7500. It was for 4 years or 50,000 miles. We are 2-1/2 years into it. One thing I can ad is that when the steps failed the company administering the warranty allowed only for a replacement step motor ($200). When it later turned out to be the entire step assembly ($1900.) they denied the claim saying it had to have been abuse. Rather than argue I called Wholesale Warranty and spoke to their warranty administer. He had me take pictures and send them directly to him, and he then called the administrating company and convinced them to honor the entire claim. So, in my opinion, it's not just which insurance plan you buy, but it is equally important who you buy it from.
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We purchased an extended warranty from Wholesale Warranties https://wholesalewarranties.com/ . The plan we got is an exclusionary type which is more inclusive. So far, we have had to replace one of the roof AC's, the entry steps, the dash AC pump, a generator control panel, and a few other things. In each case my out of pocket was $200. While we have not saved the total amount paid for the policy, we certainly sleep better knowing that if something does go wrong we are not likely to experience a huge and unexpected expense.
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4 hours ago, Hermanmullins said:repelatt,
Let me ask you some questions.
Are you in a Chapter?
If so have you ever held an office?
Do you attend either a Chapter Rally, an Area Rally or a National Convention & Family Reunion?
Do you Volunteer to help anywhere?
If you see the need to change the officers, you are welcomed to run for one of the offices. That are open to any FMCA member in good standing.
What I am saying if not involved get involved. What FMCA doesn't need are more arm chair quarterbacks.
IMHO
Herman
Hello Herman,
repelatt,
Let me ask you some questions.
Are you in a Chapter? No, I am not.
If so have you ever held an office? Not in FMCA, but yes, in several trade organizations as relating to the business I owned. Also served as VP and later Pres. of a local off-road club.
Do you attend either a Chapter Rally, an Area Rally or a National Convention & Family Reunion? No, I have not due to time constraints
Do you Volunteer to help anywhere? Yes, now that I am retired I have averaged 500-600 volunteer hours per year for the past three years with the Tonto National Forest here in Az.
If you see the need to change the officers, you are welcomed to run for one of the offices. That are open to any FMCA member in good standing.
What I am saying if not involved get involved. What FMCA doesn't need are more arm chair quarterbacks.
If you look at my posts up to this vote issue you will see that I do not criticize, or go on a rant. Until this vote started, I was happily minding my own business, assuming that FMCA was a well oiled machine. I thoroughly enjoyed my membership knowing I belonged to an association that catered exclusively to Class A, B, & C RV's. I have gained a huge amount of knowledge reading the various forums here. I enjoy the magazine and even look forward to the ads as they always pertain to our type of RV. IF there was any mention that the Association was having financial problems then I am guilty of missing that article. From reading this thread as well as the one that preceded it, I suspect I am not the only one to share that feeling. Having said that I totally agree with others on this thread that to go outside of the charter, and authorize an expenditure of $250,000 (and that is just one that we have heard of...are there others?) is wrong no matter how you look at it. My question remains: Why didn't the directors put it out to the membership that we were approaching a dire position and ask the membership for input before going down this path in which the entire charter must be amended?
Bob
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4 hours ago, manholt said:A little math, had there not been an illegal investment of $250k to RVillage and how much is being spent at the current meeting in Elkhart, IN?
Bet, we could cover the extra cost of Assist for several years! All we get is denial and excuses....sure would be nice to put a stop to wasteful spending and $$$$ going out the back door! 
Nothing will change unless those who made that decision are removed from office
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10 hours ago, manholt said:This post is over 2 years old...The OP has a coach...Rodger S. has never owned any form of RV! Draw your own conclusion !
Just curious...How did Rodger become a member if he has never owned a coach?
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On 10/3/2017 at 5:15 PM, smithy said:The agreement was done before I became Executive Director, so I was not privy to all the details. I can say the intent was never to invest in RVillage. It was booked as a marketing expense, and the auditors insisted it be classified as an investment.
Thanks for the reply, but you still are not answering my question. As executive director, surely you know the answer as to whether this happened as stated by Dons2346. If it did happen as he stated then no wonder FMCA is in financial trouble. I cannot imagine this was a single isolated use of funds that resulted in a loss. Maybe the real issue should be to re-evaluate how the EB and GB members are appointed and what their qualifications are. I think Hayes Family is spot on in his comments. After all whether or not FMCA is non profit, it still needs to be run like the large business it is and needs well qualified talent to make that happen.
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Last year we stayed in a "Class A" only resort in Las Vegas and was asked when calling for reservations what year our HR was. I asked why that mattered and she said they only allow RV's less than 10 years of age. After getting checked in and parked we walked around and saw several Prevost's that were clearly over 10 years of age judging by the old style headlights. I walked over to the office and politely asked about this and was told "Bus conversions are different. we just have them send a photo" Oh well, in 2 more years I'll know where I cannot go!
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Brett, I hope you do not close this out. I feel that although the discussion has appeared to wander it is for a good reason. We are being asked to vote on a major change to FMCA and the reasons given appear to be financial related.
So if the discussion evolves to members asking about significant expenses (as is the $250,000 investment in RVillage) that are questionable to say the least, then I think it is very important to address these publicly.
It seems we are being asked to vote on the issue at hand and expected to not question why and I think that is wrong. I for one, joined assuming FMCA was/is a well run association that caters specifically to self propelled RV's.
From reading this thread I have learned that the need to expand the association to include towable RV's is due to expenses out growing income. Is it not fair, but logical as well, to question just where and why the shortfall is occurring?
If I understand Smithy's response to my post above the $250,000 was labeled an investment because the auditors could not ethically expense it to basically a "startup" venture. So it was then turned into an "investment" that may or may not pay 5% interest or gain shares of ownership (which then violated the charter). If this thread were started as an idea gathering post perhaps better ideas would have been put forth allowing the FMCA to remain profitable as well as remain true to the original charter.
What tire if price no concern
in Tires
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I bought mine 2 plus years ago, so "only" have the 5 year warranty. Just pointing out that as all tires have gone up recently in price getting the additional warranty might be a factor in deciding which brand to purchase. One nice feature in buying through the FMCA Tire program is that by buying from Michelin and registering your credit card at the time of purchase they have (as well as FMCA has) your purchase information on file so a warranty claim is all the easier.