FMCA International Rally - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Chandler, AZ (High 78 degrees, low 40 degrees, bright blue skies)

"An investment in knowledge

pays the best interest"

Ben Franklin

FMCA photo

The Good

We recently attended FMCA's Rally in the Valley in Chandler Arizona.  FMCA rally's are lots of fun, educational and a great way to meet up with friends and make new friendships 

Our camping clubs entry in the horse race (FMCA photo)

We did enjoy many informative and well presented seminars. The Geeks on Tour presentations are always my favorite. I started this blog seven years ago and it was their "show me how" videos which taught me how to create it. 

Chris and Jim with Geeks on Tour

I've used Picasa to organize, crop, and enhance my photos. This is a Google product and unfortunately it's not longer supported by them.  Google Photos is their new product and the Geeks on Tour seminar was very helpful in showing me how to use ti. What I really like about Google Photos is it puts all your photos together (computer, phone, camera) and allow you to access them anywhere. For example, I can access all my photos on my phone by the the Google Photo App and regardless of where they are stored I can see them all.  Sweet!

I purchased a thumb drive from the Geeks on Tour with all their "show me how videos" and a year subscription to their website. I like the thumb drive because I can watch them off line. They really keep on top of the ever changing technology whether it be your smart phone, photos, Facebook, blogging, and more. If you don't belong I'd highly recommend checking them out by clicking this link

FMCA photo

Free donuts and coffee each morning (FMCA photo(

John attended the always outstanding Spartan Chassis seminar present by Mike. He has gone to many of them and always learns something helpful This time he got a great tip on how to keep your engine in shape while being in one location for an extended period do time.  We volunteer often and these commitments usually last 3-4 months. We have been told to take the motorhome out on the road monthly to keep it "exercised" and to distribute the oil, seal lubricants, and fluids. It's a great suggestion but not always very easy to do.  Mike told the group when this is not possible to air it up, let the engine warm up, and then pull forward 25 feet and go back.  Great tip!

Our Roadmaster hitch was inspected without us requesting the service by a roving technician. He said it really needed a tune up.  John dropped it off at their shop on wheels and the next day it looked almost brand new. Because of all the new parts there was a nominal charge but we were so impressed by this great service.  

We also had our headlights polished. They were very dim and the technician quickly improved them for only $20. 

Some of the other classes we attended include the following:

Complete Motorhome Remodeling

Detailing your Coach in One Hour

Technology by Travelers

Staying Connected on the Road with Wy-Fi and Cellular

Simplifying your Entertainment System

Preparing a Motorhome for Non Use in Any Climate

Technology to Tell Your Stories

What Makes A Good Story

Photo Memories with Google Photos

Got Moonshine? Prohibition in Arizona

Did I mention vendors??

Vendors

There was a huge building with vendors selling things you needed and didn't even know you might need. It took us several visits to see everything and we found some really cool stuff.  Here are a few of the items we found.

Almost Heaven Microfiber

The best microfiber cloths for cleaning the inside and the outside of your motorhome. They last forever and are well made

Almost Heaven Microfiber

A special one to quick mop. Snaps onto your Swiffer

My Pillow

We decided to give them a try and purchased to queen size pillows.  Love them!

Gripstic

Cool, easy to use sticks which replace clips to keep cereal, chips, and crackers fresh

Renovation Ideas

TV comes up and down on a lift from inside cabinet

There are several vendors who presented programs on how to renovate your rig. We have always disliked where our TV is located above the cockpit But at the time when our motorhome was manufactured this was how they came. New motorhomes today oftentimes have the TV in a cabinet across from the sofa where you can watch it at eye level. Buying a new coach just for this feature is not an option for us. Ours is paid off and we do not want to have a mortgage. 

FMCA photo

John attended a program presented by Smoky Mountain Coach Works. He was really impressed by the owners knowledge of TV's and computers and how to make them work in a RV.  We had  him come out to look at our motorhome and he gave us some great options to consider. A cabinet which would have a TV come up and down on a lift and a place to accommodate a computer and printer would be ideal. This renovation would be expensive but a much smarter option then buying a new motorhome.  

The Bad and The Ugly

We volunteered to be a part of the parking and will call crew.  Big mistake!

These motorhomes had waited over 4 hours to enter the holding area

This is our third time attending an international rally but our first time volunteering. In fact, this was FMCA's 95th international rally. You would think they would know how to organize such an event. However, this was not the case. In their defense this location was a new one for them. 

Will Call Crew

We volunteered to be a part of the parking and will call crew and anticipated we would be very busy putting in long hours parking the 2300 coaches who had signed up to attend. We did not anticipate the chaos and lack of preparation FMCA had done in advance to prepare for how to route the traffic and get everyone parked quickly and efficiently.

It was chaos and no one in charge seemed to know how to handle the arriving coaches. Folks coming into the event waited hours to be parked. They were furious and certainly vented their frustration to us. We were so embarrassed to be a part of this team. The dust kicked up by the motorhomes was awful. The roads had not been watered to reduce this and we came home each day just filthy.  After about four days FMCA started to get the event operating more smoothly but it really sucked the happiness out of us.

So, will be attend another FMCA international rally? We both said we would. Fortunately we have attended others and it was only this one which seemed to be so poorly organized. For us the seminars are top notch and we really learn so much by attending them. The fire and weight safety classes we have attended in the past are worth the price of attendance all by themselves. Will we volunteer to be a part of the parking crew?  Thanks but no thanks!

Cliff Dwellings, Rocks, Rare Owl, Farewell Luncheon, and Future Plans -- Oh My!

San Antonio, NM (weather is improving 62 high 40 degree low, blue skies)

 "In every walk with nature

one receives far more

then he seeks"

John Muir

Mexican Spotted Owl

We saw this beautiful and very rare owl while hiking at Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument. We were so excited to see him and he seemed to enjoy watching us too. This owl is one of the largest in North America and is a threatened specie due to loss of old growth forests. Isn't he a beauty. 

Gila National Monument Visitor Center

We planned one last getaway weekend with our friends Bob and Amy to see the Gila Cliff Dwelling National Monument near Silver City New Mexico. It was a spectacular drive to Silver City from Bosque del Apache where we are volunteering. The road climbed and twisted and turned through some of the prettiest scenery in New Mexico.  We saw lots of wildlife including a bobcat, javelina, red fox, and this beautiful owl. On the way there we drove the road at night. I'm not sure this is such a good idea but Bob did a great job.

I was really struck by the vastness of this place. Between the National Monument and National Forest there are 3.3 million acres of land. There are hundreds of miles of trails and the overlooks as you wind along the road to the park are spectacular. 

Two volunteers we met at Bosque are now volunteering at Gila Cliff Dwellings. They have enjoyed the experience but found the very cold weather and lack of any internet or cell phone signal a challenge. The nearest grocery store  is quite a distance and not a easy drive to Silver City and oh did I mention the road also washed out for a few weeks to the Cliffs.  Volunteering certainly can give you many interesting stories to tell and memories.

We hiked out to the Gila Cliff Dwellings after a stop at the Visitor Center. There is an excellent movie which tells all about the Indians who built and lived here as cliff dwellers. You can actually go through some of the dwellings and there is a ranger there to tell you more about the inhabitants. The hike is about 1.5 miles in length and is moderately strenuous. There is one ladder involved but this can be bypassed if needed.  

We stayed in Silver City at a reasonable and clean Motel 6. The locals seem to  love living here and much has been done to restore the downtown. An owner of a restaurant told us many people are moving here to retire. 

City of Rock State Park

On our way back we stopped at the City of Rock State Park.  It sure looked like Fred Flintstone must have lived here. We had fun  hiking among the big boulders and added a few new birds to our life list. 

It has a nice campground with no hookups and your site is right among the boulders or there are electric and water sites on the perimeter. 

John and Jimmy

Curved -billed Thrasher

Red-tail Hawk

The next day at Bosque a really nice farewell luncheon was planned for us. Several of the rangers cooked a delicious New Mexican themed lunch for all of us to enjoy.  The refuge manager gave a nice speech thanking the volunteers for all their support to this beautiful refuge. 

Christian and Dennis our amazing chefs

Kevin - Refuge Manger

In addition, the volunteer coordinator gave out certificates and pins to the volunteers who had reached certain milestones of volunteer service. John received a pin for 2000 hours of services with Fish and Wildlife Service. I'm close behind him at about 1900 hours. We also got a nice gift certificate to use at the Nature Store as an added bonus. I used mine to buy a beautiful fetish necklace and John got a handsome Tilley Hat. The refuge also welcomed all the new volunteers who have arrived for the spring season.

Fetish necklace and earrings

Volunteers at Bosque del Apache NWR

We are ready to be back on the road again and certainly have a strong case of "hitch itch". However, we will miss all our new friends and rangers at Bosque. Saying good bye is not easy. Soon we  will be attending three rallies in Arizona. The first one is the FMCA rally in Chandler (near Phoenix) where we have volunteered to be a part of the parking crew. Over 2000 motorhomes will be arriving over the next few days. That is sure to be an interesting challenge. 

Other upcoming rallies include the Escapee Rally in Tuscon and a joint Newmar Kountry Klub rally with a fulltiming and Arizona chapter in Benson. My brother is also coming out for a visit and we are planning on visiting some friends in Why Arizona.  Check back to see why we go there. 

A two week visit to some of the spectacular National Parks in Utah is planned with our dear friend Sally from Sanibel and some friends with the FMCA camping club Cuatro Estados. 

This summer and fall we will be working for Grand Teton Association. Once again we will be returning to this very special place and are looking forward to seeing our friends who work for GTA too. Stay tuned for many more adventures. Life is good!