We would do it all again

[Bob Nodine]

I see a lot of discussion about the price of fuel and the cost of owning an RV but here is my two cents.

We have been RVing for over 24 years and have owned 1 truck camper, 2 5th wheels, 2 travel trailers, and three motorhomes. We love this hobby and it has something for both of us. I love to tinker, and it sure provides that opportunity, and the wife loves to travel. If you just take our previous motorhome, which was a 41 foot diesel pusher we owned for 14 years and put 106,000 miles on, we spent about $42,000 on fuel alone.. The only states we have not camped in are Delaware, Connecticut, and Hawaii. I would spend that money on fuel again in a heartbeat. So many memories, so much fun, and a hard drive full of photographs.

[Judge]

Good post....

Like most things worth enjoying fuel is just got part of the cost of having fun. Between the coach and the Wrangler, we put on over 15,000 miles this season and over $5000 in fuel and have no regrets. Last year it took me ~$100 in Diesel to fill up the Magnitude and this year it cost ~$200 but I have no complaints.

It's all about the smiles during the miles....

[Scubawise]

Good post..I forgot our 2018 subaru only has 11k miles..low gas cost since we MH a lot.
We only live once and I am 100% the unfortunate on their last days do not think of gas prices.
Enjoy our MH!

[JamieGeek]

Well if you think about it these high gas prices might bring on the surplus of used motorhomes on the market as people that made the brash purchase now realize that it is a bit more expensive than they had expected.

Thus lowering the # of people in campgrounds and reservation availability may increase a tad.

Look on the bright side LOL.

As for us: 2 TT, 1 5er and now the motorhome over the past 22 years. Wouldn't change a thing.

[Bob Denman]

The cost of a favorite pastime is easily out-weighed by the benefits derived from it.

[ducksface]

I don't have much use for complaining except for my complaining about complainers,


The rose colored glasses some see the world through, might be colored that way due to
A bloody head wound affecting their sensibility.

And then they bitch and moan.

A mantra:
Prepare for the worst
Expect the worst
Be pleasantly surprised by anything less than the worst.

If you bought/operate the rv based on gas prices:
Fool.

I'd do it all again.
Unless I'm singled out, I can keep up with societal changes just fine.
If someone can't, someone had better change.

[RACarvalho]

I'm not retired yet but we travelled 37K miles since we first bought a camper back in 2016. Before that we were tent camping...
Currently we are adding ~6K miles/year.

We are of the opinion that you should not spend more than what you earn and owning a Motorhome is not cheap but, that being said, what will you be doing with that $ that can bring a better result for you and your family?

Wife turned one of the walls in our living room into a display with the best family pictures we took from our trips... More than 30 pictures so far... In some of them our kids are babies in another it was that last family trip that "baby" took with us before going to college....

That, in the wall... we can't put a price on it....

[Scubawise]

Picture wall nice. We use a rotating 19 inch USB Picture display.

[ducksface]

Originally Posted by Scubawise

Picture wall nice. We use a rotating 19 inch USB Picture display.

Our echo and roku screens do the same.
Roku allows for rotating pictures as a screen saver on any tv .
Easy to do from the roku app.
Do firestick and Google allow this?

[spdjeep23]

Originally Posted by Bob Nodine

I see a lot of discussion about the price of fuel and the cost of owning an RV but here is my two cents.

We have been RVing for over 24 years and have owned 1 truck camper, 2 5th wheels, 2 travel trailers, and three motorhomes. We love this hobby and it has something for both of us. I love to tinker, and it sure provides that opportunity, and the wife loves to travel. If you just take our previous motorhome, which was a 41 foot diesel pusher we owned for 14 years and put 106,000 miles on, we spent about $42,000 on fuel alone.. The only states we have not camped in are Delaware, Connecticut, and Hawaii. I would spend that money on fuel again in a heartbeat. So many memories, so much fun, and a hard drive full of photographs.

That is awesome, and an impressive line up of different types of campers. We've had our 26' travel trailer for 2 years now, and have used it 3 months out of the year on average. The kids love it. My parents go with us most of the time with their camper, and up until this spring my grandfather would go with us as well. Photos and memories will be good to look back on, even if our kids don't remember much at this point. We're considering a Class A, so we can more easily drive out to see the US as the kids are getting older and already purchased our TOAD Jeep Wrangler. We decided to go this route rather than a 5th wheel to make longer trips require less interruptions. The next big trip we have planned is to Disney to camp at Fort Wilderness in January!

For the most part... there is very little we can do about gas prices. This time around I do believe $3 gas will become the floor. That is just something to accept and move on.

And when talking about the cost of camping, I mostly am taken aback by the price increases over the last year in particular. My parents and grandparents raised me to haggle, and to fully understand the ramifications of each financial obligation that I take on. In today's dollars you've owned about 720,000 worth of campers over the years, and that is a conservative number. Neither set of grandparents or my parents went to college, and my grandparents owned a similar line up as yours. All I am saying is, a $60,000 increase in prices in a years time shouldn't be taken lightly. I'd love to own as many RV's as you have! But that is all dependent on how I spend my money today.

Anyone who lived through similar times might be able to help me with insight. Were campers this bad on price back in the 70's and 80's when inflation hit double digits? haha

[ducksface]

Divide an rv price of 1980(or your choice] by your monthly wage at the time.
Do it for today's rv and wage.

I think you'll see very similar ratios.

Romanticism kills fact.

That 21cents a gallon gas is being remembered by a $1 an hour guy(or whatever. Ratios will be close to today)

Aside.
$10ph McDonalds workers here are now $15ph.
The dollar menu is now $1.69
Tit. For. Tat.

[RACarvalho]

Originally Posted by Scubawise

Picture wall nice. We use a rotating 19 inch USB Picture display.

We have terabytes of pictures/movies of our trips in our hard drives but we are still old school and feel that showing a hard copy proto book is easier than in the TV... (also think someday all this virtual thing can crash ) so wife makes a real hard copy photo book of each trip and the best family pictures make it to the wall...
She uses shutterfly.com

[spdjeep23]

Originally Posted by ducksface

Divide an rv price of 1980(or your choice] by your monthly wage at the time.
Do it for today's rv and wage.

I think you'll see very similar ratios.

Romanticism kills fact.

That 21cents a gallon gas is being remembered by a $1 an hour guy(or whatever. Ratios will be close to today)

Aside.
$10ph McDonalds workers here are now $15ph.
The dollar menu is now $1.69
Tit. For. Tat.

ok....
1986 Pilgrim 720L - MSRP $4,080 Average Household Income - $23,680
2022 FR REAL-LITE - MSRP $22,977 Average Household Income - $67,521

For what you said to hold true, the household income would need to be $133,000

[ducksface]

Originally Posted by spdjeep23

ok....
1986 Pilgrim 720L - MSRP $4,080 Average Household Income - $23,680
2022 FR REAL-LITE - MSRP $22,977 Average Household Income - $67,521

For what you said to hold true, the household income would need to be $133,000

Re equip todays vehicle to 1986 equipment level.

It proves only that the average household shouldn't have an RV.
An rv is a diisposable income thing.

Dont do averages or median.
Do your income.
Averages and median include welfare and rockefellers.

Romanticism kills fact.

But this thread is about now.
I just wanted do
Crush the 'memberberries.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...9_OWmfs-JFFkmF

The long past pricing of anything is an excuse type notion.
This thread is about the joy of not needing an excuse to not use your RV.

[Bob Denman]

Ducky,
Have you wet down everybody's parade yet?
https://www.thorforums.com/forums/at...1&d=1637252885
https://www.thorforums.com/forums/at...1&d=1637252885

[spdjeep23]

Originally Posted by ducksface

Re equip todays vehicle to 1986 equipment level.

It proves only that the average household shouldn't have an RV.
An rv is a diisposable income thing.

Dont do averages or median.
Do your income.
Averages and median include welfare and rockefellers.

Romanticism kills fact.

But this thread is about now.
I just wanted do
Crush the 'memberberries.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...9_OWmfs-JFFkmF

The long past pricing of anything is an excuse type notion.
This thread is about the joy of not needing an excuse to not use your RV.

That was 'similarly equipped' or at least very close to it within a few hundred dollars. There is no way it would double the price....

Finding wage and pricing info from 1986 isn't the easiest thing, but hey here it goes....

GS-11 Engineer 1985 - 34,348
GS-11 Engineer 2021 - 55,756

So a mid career Engineer should be making a cool 193k now.... What can I say, sign me up!

I am not a GS-11 Engineer, but that seems a decently fair way to compare wages from one time to another.

Keep framing the argument however you'd like.... Disposable income has gone down over the years, at all levels below the elite.

That doesn't take away from the fact that camping is still awesome, and a worthwhile thing to do with family.

[ducksface]

Originally Posted by Bob Denman

Ducky,
Have you wet down everybody's parade yet?
https://www.thorforums.com/forums/at...1&d=1637252885
https://www.thorforums.com/forums/at...1&d=1637252885

I hope so.
Just negating a negative from a thread about todays use of todays RV.

The mis-memory of the past need not blacken today.

My old car base price when new, was a comparable to todays 14months of average income.
Roll up windows
No a.c.
12,000 mile tires.
Sest belts were an option.
Drum brakes
80,000 mile life expectancy.
6mpg in town 14 on the open road,
So what?

The past is not a way to enjoy an rv today.

[spdjeep23]

Originally Posted by ducksface

I hope so.
Just negating a negative from a thread about todays use of todays RV.

The mis-memory of the past need not blacken today.

My old car base price when new, was a comparable to todays 14months of average income.
Roll up windows
No a.c.
12,000 mile tires.
Sest belts were an option.
Drum brakes
80,000 mile life expectancy.
6mpg in town 14 on the open road,
So what?

The past is not a way to enjoy an rv today.

"The mis-memory of the past need not blacken today.

My old car base price when new, was a comparable to todays 14months of average income"

The 'average' monthly income sits at $4,125 today, at least per google. So you paid $57,750 for that hoopty? I have to hand it to you, at least you practice what you preach, walk up and pay what they ask without questioning the price.

[Bob Denman]

Just checkin'
Hey! I still have roll-up windows, manually adjusted mirrors, and you need to unlock the doors with a key...
Imagine that!

[Chance]

Originally Posted by Bob Nodine

I see a lot of discussion about the price of fuel and the cost of owning an RV but here is my two cents.

.....cut......

From “COST” standpoint, I have zero regrets. In fact, from a “COST” standpoint I wish I had done even more traveling and in greater luxury. Having said that, I now believe there is a lot more to my personal decisions than their monetary costs.