What's missing from this forum?

[Dusty Traveler]

What do you think is missing from this forum? As I know we are not to advertise companies with their links. I have a few friends who are RV'ers and after talking with them did not think of themselves as RV'ers, and why because there are no posts to pull them in. Example; We do have a section, on our MENU when you click on the name "FORUM" on top LEFT. pan down the page of Forum selections and topics.
Could we add some of the following along with "RV Rallies" like.
ART SHOW FOLLOWERS -- these are folk who make things in the off-season and return to the road and towns to post their newly created Art. While there they stay in their RV.
NASACA -- RV'ers who follow their favorite race drivers and stay in campers.
COLLAGE SPORTS -- This is us as we learn our team schedule, for the year from our Boosters and plan our RV visits.
OLD + NEW CAR SHOW RALLIES -- Is this your thing? I'm not going to say a word about Gun Shows, and Pistol Matches. etc.. I enjoyed following for a while. Now clearly you need not post link of stores. Understand, I'm wondering if we could include a menu topic in our forum. Posts along with RV Rallies where the next HOME SHOWS will be or whatever you follow around the state or country in your Campers?

A topic like "RV Road Rallies & Events" Tell us what you enjoy doing in your RV Road Rallie/Event this year.

 

[Tom]

What do you think is missing from this forum? As I know we are not to advertise companies with their links. I have a few friends who are RV'ers and after talking with them did not think of themselves as RV'ers, and why because there are no posts to pull them in. Example; We do have a section, on our MENU when you click on the name "FORUM" on top LEFT. pan down the page of Forum selections and topics.
Could we add some of the following along with "RV Rallies" like.
ART SHOW FOLLOWERS -- these are folk who make things in the off-season and return to the road and towns to post their newly created Art. While there they stay in their RV.
NASACA -- RV'ers who follow their favorite race drivers and stay in campers.
COLLAGE SPORTS -- This is us as we learn our team schedule, for the year from our Boosters and plan our RV visits.
OLD + NEW CAR SHOW RALLIES -- Is this your thing? I'm not going to say a word about Gun Shows, and Pistol Matches. etc.. I enjoyed following for a while. Now clearly you need not post link of stores. Understand, I'm wondering if we could include a menu topic in our forum. Posts along with RV Rallies where the next HOME SHOWS will be or whatever you follow around the state or country in your Campers?

A topic like "RV Road Rallies & Events" Tell us what you enjoy doing in your RV Road Rallie/Event this year.

The way a new forum might get added (or its scope or title gets changed) is if someone starts a thread on a topic and it attracts a lot of continued discussion and encourages more threads.

 

[Isaac-1]

Perhaps calling it something like festivals, events and rallies would cover the topic. I agree there are a lot of people with RV's that don't consider themselves RV'ers, such as all the people that own an RV that only ever take it tailgating at football games.

 

[Larry N.]

such as all the people that own an RV that only ever take it tailgating at football games.

Which is, of course, an event. AND, how much do folks like that need a forum like this? And I'd think that they're smart enough to recognize that a site about RVs would cover their specific vehicle, even though their usage is different from that of most of us. I also wonder if they would ever spot that new section if they don't already come to this site on occasion.

If such a section showed up I wouldn't see a problem with it (if it ever got used), but I wonder if this is a solution looking for a problem.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Seems to me that "Rallies, Shows & Events" covers all those and more, which was and is the intent. Perhaps we could expand the description of that forum a bit to mention more types of those things.

Over the last 25+ years we have tried out a number of suggestions for special interest forums or boards and found that rarely is there as wide an interest as the proponents believed. It's human nature, I think, to believe there are many others who want the same things we find attractive, but that doesn't mean there is a widespread audience that would support a dedicated forum for it.

 

[Tom]

Seems to me that "Rallies, Shows & Events" covers all those and more, which was and is the intent. Perhaps we could expand the description of that forum a bit to mention more types of those things.

Good suggestion, let me take a look.

Over the last 25+ years we have tried out a number of suggestions for special interest forums or boards and found that rarely is there as wide an interest as the proponents believed. It's human nature, I think, to believe there are many others who want the same things we find attractive, but that doesn't mean there is a widespread audience that would support a dedicated forum for it.

Agreed. I consciously chose not to say "I've lost count of the suggestions ... only to find it fizzles out and the member doesn't stick around".

 

[1stimerver]

How about group trip or tour planning, or would that be called a rally? I noticed a number of posts over the last few months concerning safety, and suspect they would feel more secure traveling with a group of like minded RV'ers.
I wouldn't have any idea how to connect with a traveling group of RV'ers.
Just my $.02

Safe travels and all the best.

 

[Lou Schneider]

How about group trip or tour planning, or would that be called a rally? I noticed a number of posts over the last few months concerning safety, and suspect they would feel more secure traveling with a group of like minded RV'ers.
I wouldn't have any idea how to connect with a traveling group of RV'ers.
Just my $.02

Safe travels and all the best.

Here are some ideas to get you started.

Since 1988 the Wandering Individuals Network (WINs) organize several "circuits" each year where solo RVers can travel together. www.wanderingindividualnetworks.com

Escapees has a group who explore Mexico every winter. Welcome to Escapees Chapter 8 - Mexican Connection 08

Homes On Wheels Alliance has caravans and rallies for van lifers, mostly low income fulltimers like in the movie "Nomadland". HOWA - Cheap RV Living

Fantasy RV Tours and Adventure Caravans are commercial companies that organize RV group tours. I'm sure there are more.

 

[1stimerver]

We do most of our travels with a family group, which I find to be my preference.
DW and I do take our own occasional solo trips as well, but really enjoy the pleasure of the rest of the group's company. Just like the old proverb "many hands make the work go faster" I find that the varied view points of the many minds make the planning easier and the trip much more fun and interesting.

Safe travels and all the best.

 

[Ray-IN]

I visit a specific website that lists all festivals, shows, etc that's submitted to them.
While you're dreaming up topics, why not include all rodeos big and small in the U.S.A., plus swap meets, AAA meetings; things traveling rvers might be interested in attending.
At some point there's a limit to any business model.

 

[UTTransplant]

A rally doesn’t have to have 20 rigs to be an RV Forum rally. There is the option for a poster to say “I am going to be at location X for event Y. Come join me if you want.” Those are known as mini-rallies, and they happen. For example, I love the Death Valley National Park Dark Sky Festival, and we go every year. I post it, and we have had at least one other person show up each time. Others can do the same.

 

[solarman]

Well it depends on how granular you want the forum to be, I think there is a category for all
popular topics that the majority of RV'ers fall into, that ought to be enough.

do you really want a forum topic for "i scratched my ass this morning" LOL

seriously though, I would suggest perhaps the addition of RV specific manufacturers.

 

[Tom]

... I would suggest perhaps the addition of RV specific manufacturers.

That's one the forum staff/team debated numerous times over the years, and decided other venues (such as iRV2) did that to extreme.

 

[Larry N.]

That's one the forum staff/team debated numerous times over the years, and decided other venues (such as iRV2) did that to extreme.

Plus, so many of the posts about a specific brand are equally valuable for people with other brands of similar units.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

seriously though, I would suggest perhaps the addition of RV specific manufacturers.

That would be overwhelming. There have been well over a thousand national & regional brands in the last 50+ years and many of them are still in use. JD Powers (aka NADA) RV Guide lists 2322 manufacturers, though some of them are different subsidiaries of the same corporation. And RV manufacturers come and go almost routinely.

 

[jymbee]

solarman:
"...seriously though, I would suggest perhaps the addition of RV specific manufacturers."

That's one the forum staff/team debated numerous times over the years, and decided other venues (such as iRV2) did that to extreme.

Plus, so many of the posts about a specific brand are equally valuable for people with other brands of similar units.

That would be overwhelming. There have been well over a thousand national & regional brands in the last 50+ years and many of them are still in use.

 

[1stimerver]

I visit a specific website that lists all festivals, shows, etc that's submitted to them.
While you're dreaming up topics, why not include all rodeos big and small in the U.S.A., plus swap meets, AAA meetings; things traveling rvers might be interested in attending.
At some point there's a limit to any business model.

You make a good point. I hadn't looked at it from that perspective.

It would be simple enough to use existing forums to basically state " heading out for a trip to XYZ and looking for others who might like to join us.."

Safe travels and all the best.

 

[Larry N.]

It would be simple enough to use existing forums to basically state " heading out for a trip to XYZ and looking for others who might like to join us.."

That actually has been done here a number of times, though often the wording is different. Pam in post # 11 above mentioned that, and there have been a number of other times, not all in the Rallies section.

 

[LMHS]

I have a few friends who are RV'ers and after talking with them did not think of themselves as RV'ers

There are many people who have RVs aka Campers (no matter what type or how much it cost, it's still called a "camper"), that do not think of themselves as RVers. Nor do they really want to. Their lives do not revolve around sewer dumping and the pro's and con's of tank treatments. Most of the people in my park live in a "trailer" or a "camper" and go to work. When work is gone, they move the "trailer" down the road to the next place to work at. I have had a few ask me about some things. When they ask me what forums I use, I tell them and they invariably tell me there's too much drama or it's boring and they have other interests. Often they tell me that they tried RV forums in the past and it's just not for them. I understand.

I've been told many times that because I don't move all the time (work), I'm not a "real fulltimer" even though I live 24/7/365 in a converted bus. Also have a truck camper. And I don't really fit in with the "RVers" and the "camp my way or not at all" view. I think of my bus as a rolling tiny apartment and the truck camper as a portable motel room/portable toilet/really big cooler for groceries (my ice cream makes it home still frozen). Plus RVer's have gotten rude and classist since they went from "campers" to "RVers". We used to all be "campers". Didn't matter if we were in a sleeping bag on the ground, a big cabin tent, a popup, a well-used trailer or a fancy-dancy motorhome (tagged as a "recreational vehicle"). We were still all "camping". I have seen "RVers" post that tent campers shouldn't be allowed in RV parks. Now everyone wants to be an "RVer", no matter what they are in. And they all look down on the next one below them. RVing has become about how much money you can spend on toys, RV and campgrounds/rv parks and someone will post "if you can't afford it then you shouldn't RV". An expression that is tossed around far too much. I can't decide if it's sad or pathetic.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

From my perspective anybody who owns/operates a recreational-type vehicle is an RVer. Or a camper, if you prefer. Some live in them, some never move them, some travel frequently and some only do a few weekends a year. But when the toilet clogs or the roof leaks, they are all the same.