RV-Dreams Journal

The official start of the RVSEF Conference wasn't until late in the afternoon, but we started weighing RVs of attendees shortly after 8:00 this morning. They came in sporadically, so we got some work done in the rig in between.

The weather was beautiful as we got started, but by early afternoon it had clouded up and was spitting rain. The temps dropped and the wind picked up a bit.

Fortunately, we avoided getting drenched.

A few folks signed up for the "Behind The Wheel" Driving Program which is composed of hands-on driving instruction and classroom instruction. The driving portions were completed yesterday and this morning.

The Conference officially began around 3:30 with opening remarks from RVSEF Executive Director, Walter Cannon. He introduced the instructors and all the attendees introduced themselves as well.

Then Bruce Hopkins, Vice President, Standards & Education Division for the RV Industry Association (RVIA) spoke on the function of RVIA. The RV Industry is self-governing to some extent because RVIA takes on the responsibility of setting standards and does manufacturer inspections to make sure those standards are being met.

A little after 5:00, we all went over to Pike's Peak Traveland where they were hosting a dinner.

Before dinner Mac McCoy, aka "Mac The Fire Guy", spoke about emergency escape windows in RVs ....

and then took everyone outside for a demonstration.

He had three ladies volunteer to demonstrate an escape.

After the escape hatch demo, we settled in for our grilled steak and chicken dinner.

After dinner, we had to stop and pick up some office supplies and make copies of our seminar handouts. We're doing ten seminars this week and looking forward to meeting all the attendees. It's amazing how we get a little extra boost of energy when we get in this educational environment with people that are excited about learning. :)

Well, that's about it for day one. It was a pretty typical evening once we got home. We got to bed at a reasonable hour and we start with our first seminar at 8:00 tomorrow morning.

Here we go. :)

Sunday

First of all, Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there. :)

We called our moms to get the day started. Then, a little later in the morning we got a visit from some very special guests.

Those of you that have been following us awhile know that we did a wonderful workamping stint at the V.A. Poma Ranch in the Weminuche Valley north of Pagosa Springs, CO back in the summer of 2008. It was a guest ranch with six cabins and four RV sites off a long gravel road at 8,000 feet elevation.

It wasn't the easiest place to get a big RV into, but it was so quiet and peaceful, and it had three miles of stocked trout stream running through it.

The ranch was being run by Karen and was being kept alive soley by her efforts to honor the legacy of her mother and father. The Ranch House was a historic, welcoming place to gather.

Along with our dear friends JoAnn & Doug (& Fillmore, their Standard Poodle), we assisted Karen with setting up new reservation systems, accounting systems, and a policies & procedures manual. We cleaned cabins, cut grass, assisted with maintenance and hosted guests each night for a dessert of homemade pies, cookies, and other treats.

We worked hard, but we wanted to help Karen so much and we sort of became part of the family. Here's Karen and her husband, Dean.

We had several friends that visited us at the ranch, and both sets of our parents even made the trek to Colorado from Kentucky.

Linda with Karen and Linda's Mom.

Karen with my Mom.

And in the spirit of Mother's Day, here's Karen with her dear mother, Ethel, who passed away in 2010.

It was certainly a memorable summer.

Later, in 2009 while we were camphosting at Arches National Park in Moab, UT, Karen & Dean came to visit us and we took them on a hike.

We didn't stay in touch as much after that as we had in those first couple of years, but two couples that learned about the ranch through our website worked at Poma Ranch the next two seasons.

Then, last year, forest fires surrounded the ranch. Though they didn't lose any buildings, Karen did lose all of her reservations for the year as the guests canceled in droves. Up until then, she was barely keeping the expenses of the ranch covered. Though it was very painful for Karen and the family, it became necessary to sell the ranch. Fortunately, it was a quick sale.

So, working through the grief of losing her mother and having to give up the ranch, and feeling the effects of the stress and work it took over the years to keep things going, Karen is finally free to enjoy life.

And we were thrilled when she contacted us about getting together while we were still in Colorado. Karen & Dean arrived at our place around 10:00 a.m. and we shared hugs and stories and got caught up on each others' lives.

Linda had made a pecan pie for the occasion, sort of a tribute to Karen and the pies they used to make together for the guests.

In the afternoon, Neil & Connie (Travels With Gunther And Kara) came by to get their New Horizons fifth wheel weighed. They attended our Rally in Tennessee in 2011 and are now full-timers. Neil exited the truck and his first words were "This is all your fault." :)

We did the weighing and they departed with the usual hugs.

Afterwards, Karen & Dean took us out for an early dinner where we chatted and told more stories. Eventually, back at our rig, they departed and we vowed to stay in touch a little better.

Even though we weren't with our Moms physically, it was a very special Mother's Day that brought back some fun and heartfelt memories of a place where we all gathered one summer in the Colorado highlands.

Monday

This morning, we moved from Pike's Peak Traveland to the venue for the 2013 RVSEF Lifestyle, Education & Safety Conference at New Life Church. From the parking lot where the RVs will be parking, we have a great view of Pike's Peak.

After a 10:00 a.m. weighing of a motorhome, we took our truck into the local Ford dealer for service and inspections. We dropped it off and then drove up "the hill" to Woodland Park to see our friends Jack & Danielle who are workamping at Diamond Campground.

Jack & Danielle have been full-timing for 13 years now, and Jack has been our technical mentor ever since we got started 8 years ago. We hadn't seen then since January of 2012 and we hadn't seen their new rig - a 2012 New Horizons fifth wheel.

Now, Jack & Danielle are Ambassadors for New Horizons, so they try to stay in a rig that has all the latest and greatest. So, this beautiful new rig is already for sale. :)

In addition, they just got a new-to-them HDT (Heavy Duty Truck) that has a longer bed for hauling a Smart Car. So, their 1999 Volvo 610 RV Hauler is also for sale. Somebody's gonna end up with a very nice HDT. :)

They prepared a nice lunch for us and we were joined by Ken & Debbie, their fellow workampers. As the afternoon went on, it got a little cool at the higher elevation of Woodland Park, and we went inside and got the lowdown on the changes they made from their last rig.

We stayed until about 4:30 and then headed back down "the hill". Hopefully, we'll get to see them again before we leave the area.

At 5:30, we had dinner plans with RV-Dreams readers (and Conference attendees) Ray & Linda. We met at Biaggi's and introduced ourselves.

We had a wonderful dinner, and chatted for a couple hours before calling it a night. I got a quick picture of our new friends, ....

and we headed home for the evening.

Since we're boondocking in the church parking lot, we kicked on the inverter. We watched TV and returned emails for a couple of hours before nodding off.

Tomorrow, we'll be weighing the RVs of the Conference attendees that want to get weighed and then the Conference will officially begin with a welcome and a dinner. It's a busy week already. :)