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RV Weekly Round-Up (November 1-7, 2009)
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Check out this week’s new stories and features about RVing, the RV industry, and Snowbirds.
Free admission to federal parks on Veteran's Day
Entrance to federal recreation sites will be free for everyone November 11 to honor active members of the U.S. armed forces, veterans, and their families.
The fee waiver of recreation-use fees applies annually on Veterans Day at public recreation lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, and Bureau of Reclamation.
In Canada, all entrance fees at National Parks are charged as usual.
Florida state parks to offer free admission on Veteran's Day
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Florida State Parks will waive day-use entrance fees for all visitors at Florida’s state parks on Wednesday, November 11 in recognition of Veterans Day. All other use fees, such as overnight accommodations, tours or special events, will be charged as usual. Skyway Fishing Pier State Park in Tampa is not included in this special offer.
M&I Bank secures $7.6 million judgment against Affinity Group founder
Marshall & Ilsley Bank received a default judgment against Steven Adams and a living trust established by Adams in 2007. Adams is the founder of the Affinity Group, the parent company of Camping World, Good Sam, and several RV industry publications among other companies serving the RV industry.
According to court documents, Adams borrowed $25 million from M&I Bank July 8, 2007. That agreement was modified October 7, 2008 in the amount of $11 million and further amended January 31, 2009 in the amount of $10.5 million. The note was secured by stock in Affinity Bank, which the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ordered closed August 28, 2009.
Mike Thompson’s RV Super Stores opens fourth store
Earlier this week Mike Thompson’s RV Super Stores opened a fourth location in Cathedral City, California, about 130 miles east of its flagship dealership in Santa Fe Springs southeast of Los Angeles. Mike Thompson’s, which also operates stores in Colton and Fountain Valley, California, has hired about 25 people to staff the new dealership featuring an outdoor display area on two acres.
Having recently added Tiffin motorhomes to its inventory, Mike Thompson’s also retails Itasca, Fleetwood Bounder and Bounder Classic, Forest River Georgetown, Damon, CT Coachworks and Four Winds motorhomes and Keystone towable RVs.
Monaco welcomes 500 RVs to inaugural "New Frontier" rally
Monaco RV, LLC was thrilled with the turnout at its inaugural “New Frontier” Rally, held October 26 through Oct. 30 in Tucson, Arizona.
More than 500 motorhomes gathered to take part in an event that featured activities such as golf, nightly entertainment, and seminars. In one seminar an executive council from Monaco RV met with more than 800 owners to discuss the future of Monaco RV and the RV industry.
Jayco Inc. recalls 200 workers to meet ‘rising demand’
Jayco Inc. announced that it is increasing production rates as a result of “higher than anticipated levels of incoming orders” for RVs. The company said that its order backlog is the largest in more than two years and that it has recalled or hired more than 200 production workers in anticipation of the production rate increase.
Jayco Inc. is the largest privately-held manufacturer of recreational vehicles in North America. The company makes and markets Jayco RVs under the Jay Series, Baja, Select, Jay Flight, Jay Feather, Eagle, Octane ZX, Designer, Greyhawk, Precept, Melbourne, Seneca, Embark, and Insignia nameplates. In addition, the company markets Starcraft, R/T, Centennial, Travel Star, Rock Star, Homestead, and Lexion RVs through its Starcraft RV division and upscale Aspire, Anthem, and Cornerstone motorhomes through the Entegra Coach division.
Carefree RV Resorts to acquire more RV Parks
National RV Communities (NRVC), with 9,148 recreational vehicle sites owned and managed, ranks among the 10 largest owner/operators of RV properties in the U.S., according to the company. And NRVC, formed in 2005 to specialize in the acquisition, ownership, and management of RV and MH communities, plans to add a lot more properties over the next few years. The company operates the RV side of its business as “Carefree RV Resorts.”
NRVC owns and operates 39 RV properties in six states—Florida, Texas, New Jersey, California, Massachusetts, and North Carolina, and one in the province of Ontario.
NRVC is led by CEO David Napp and President Colleen Edwards, who previously co-founded Encore Communities Inc. Encore was acquired by Equity Lifestyle Properties in February 2004.
Glacier Bay RV now selling factory-direct fifth-wheels
Glacier Bay RV, formerly North American Traveler in Elkhart, Ind., has moved into a new 22,000-square-foot factory in a small industrial park on the north side of Goshen, Indiana, and has begun marketing Glacier Bay fifth-wheels factory-direct.
Fiberglass-and-aluminum Glacier Bay fifth-wheels are available in six 34½-to 38-foot floorplans with few options for retail prices from $46,000. A 2011 quad-slide model will be introduced in mid-January. Because there is no dealer from which to obtain service, a five-year outside service contract is included with each coach.
Myrtle Beach’s Ocean Lakes RV Park reaps more honors
Ocean Lakes Family Campground, located along the Grand Strand of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, has been voted the “Best RV/Camping Facility” by those who visit Myrtle Beach.
Myrtle Beach’s “Grand Strand” attracts more than 14 million visitors annually and those surveyed in this poll voiced a clear preference for Ocean Lakes over other campground options in the area, according to a news release.
The “Best of the Beach” honor is the latest for Ocean Lakes Family Campground, which was named the 2008-2009 National “RV Park of the Year” by the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (ARVC). It is the largest campground on the East Coast and one of the largest in the United States with over 310 acres of campsites and beach house rentals.
Lazydays proceeds with its financial restructuring
Lazydays RV Center Inc announced that it has received the requisite approvals from its lenders and bondholders to move ahead with its previously announced debt-restructuring plan, which is expected to eliminate all of the company’s $137 million in bond debt, reducing its annual cash interest costs by approximately $16.2 million through the elimination of bond interest payments, a release states.
The Seffner, Florida dealership will remain open for business.
For more information on the restructuring, visit www.BetterLazydays.com
TengoInternet adds 17 customers in 10 states
TengoInternet, the oldest and largest wireless Internet provider for the outdoor hospitality industry, recently announced it has added 17 new customers in 10 U.S. states. Included in this growth are five locations with Diversified Investments’ RV in the Sun group. TengoInternet has more than 400 wireless networks installed across 38 states, Canada, and Mexico.
TengoInternet’s new customers include Blazing Star Luxury RV Resort, Dixieland Texas Retreat RV Park, Houston Leisure RV Resort and Sunset Point RV Resort, all in Texas; Interstate RV Park in Louisiana; Del Yermo RV Park in California; and Valley of the Sun MH/RV Park in Arizona.
Winnebago wins RVDA honor 15th straight year
Winnebago Industries Inc. received the coveted Quality Circle Award a record 15th straight year, the company noted in a news release. The honor, bestowed by the Recreation Vehicle Dealers Association (RVDA), was announced earlier this week. The Forest City, Iowa-based motorhome builder is the only RV company to receive the award every year since its inception in 1995. Winnebago’s Itasca brand received honorable mention.
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