GYPSY DAY 4, & A NEW MOTOR HOME

Signed, sealed and almost delivered. Nancy's new 2012 Tiffin Phaeton motor home.

The morning started off with me moderating a seminar on Boondocking, with no thought that the day would end up the way it did. I had a pretty good crowd, and the discussion touched on all of the tricks that people use to extend their RV stay in places off the grid. The hour flew by, but we covered a lot of subjects that included everything from water conservation to solar power. I thought I knew most everything about dry camping, but I learned a few things myself. The opportunity to learn about this lifestyle is one of the benefits of attendance at an RV rally, and the Gypsy Rallies are among the best, when it comes to a variety of seminar subjects.

OK, now what do we do? There were other interesting seminars scheduled for this last day of the Gypsy Gathering, but Cracker Barrel won the flip of the coin. Nancy wanted at least one meal at Cracker Barrel before we left Yuma, and who was I to argue. We had an early lunch, then drove out to the Market Place Swap Meet, where Nancy exchanged a dog harness that she purchased earlier in the week.

There were no seminars on the afternoon schedule that were of particular interest, so Nancy suggested that we go back to LaMesa RV, and take another look at the 2012 Phaeton that we checked out yesterday. It didn't take long to figure out that this lady was more than interested in just taking another look, she was ready to pull the trigger!

When the negotiations ended, she got a really good price that was equal to about 25% off MSRP, and LaMesa took her 5th wheel trailer at a decent trade in price. When ever you trade something in, you never come out as well as if you sell yourself, but their offer, sight unseen, was fair. We negotiated a 7 year warranty at the dealer cost, and that will give her years of coverage beyond the manufacturers warranties. All in all, I would have been very comfortable with the deal, and was just a little bit jealous, because this is really a nice motor home. The floor plan was almost exactly what she was looking for, and the coach is pretty well optioned out. Except for writing the check, I think she's pretty excited about the prospect of becoming the owner of a brand new, beautiful Phaeton Motor Home.

With a purchase like this, there's always lots of paperwork.

Within a couple of hours, all of the preliminary stuff was taken care of, and Nancy was a brand new motor home owner.

This was the hardest part I'm sure - writing the check.

OK, now what to do? Nancy is in Yuma, AZ, and in possession of a new motor home, a 5th wheel trailer, and a Chevy diesel pickup. The plan this morning is to take the 5th wheel to the dealer, where her Winegard Satellite dish will be taken off the trailer, and put on the new motor home. A few other things will be taken care of on the motor home, while she drives the pickup back to CA. Sometime next week, she'll fly back to Yuma, and we'll meet her at the airport. When she takes possession of the new rig, she and I will do some driver training, and Patty will follow us back to Lake Havasu, where Nancy will get a chance to become more familiar with the new motor home. Then, she'll take off on her own, and drive back to CA. She's been able to maneuver that trailer like an expert, and even though she has some anxiety, I know she'll soon be driving the new rig like a pro.

The grand prize winners of the Sea Eagle Kayak.

The Gypsy Journal RV Rally ended last night with a bunch of door prizes, and a farewell from Nick and Terry. They rewarded all of their volunteers with gift certificates, and Miss Terry was given a standing ovation for her tireless dedication, and hard work toward making the rally a fun time for everyone. Nick & Terry are special people, who have a lot of friends in the RV community, and I'm glad to say that Patty & I are part of that circle.