We are excited to introduce our new blog series, #familyfridaycheckin brought to you by #TSRVFamily members, The Route of it All. Check back on Fridays for weekly updates of their RV adventures on the road. Stay tuned this Friday for our first update!
Read below to learn more about the start of their journey into RV life:
The Route of it All, Where do we begin?
The path to RV life is not always simple or straight. Our journey began nearly two years ago: initially we started researching tiny houses to build and relocate out west. We ended up having lots of conversations about why tiny houses were built better for stationary existence and how we were more excited about traveling than being stationary. So we changed our minds! We started researching Class A RV’s; We loved the idea of keeping our Jeep and towing it behind us.
We looked hard at Country Coaches because they were built well and started looking cross country for models for sale. Long story short, it did not go well. Not only were the models we were looking for extremely sought after but they were also usually so far from us that it was hard to know exactly how much repair work they would actually need. We looked into RV inspectors who can help do the job for you, but in the end – and after a few months of no progress – it didn’t work out for us. It took us a little while to regroup after this seeming setback and convince ourselves that it was okay to change our minds yet again.
What helped us move forward was visiting RV shows and local dealerships to actually step inside the RV. Stepping inside an RV changed everything for us! We stepped in lots of different makes and models and had a checklist of things to consider that were important to us in how we wanted to travel. We would be taking our family pets with us on the road, so they were a consideration. We also would be working from the road, so having a comfortable work area was important to us as well.
We nearly bought an RV, a 337 RLS Grand Design Reflection, from a local dealership. They were even going to deliver it to our house. It was awfully tempting, especially since at that time we didn’t have our tow vehicle.
Boy, did we have a really tough heart to heart with ourselves that day! When you’ve been wanting something for so long it would be so easy to just say YES! But as is so often said, nothing worth while is usually easy. We checked in with each other and did a simple exercise stating what each of us liked and disliked about the RV. We found out that we had some of the same concerns.
We made a list of the things that felt off to us about that model RV and then we went down the list of potential models again. Checking all of the boxes and staring us in the face was the Solitude S-class from Grand Design. We had really enjoyed this model having walked into it at an RV show the previous October. Sadly, there were none available in our state. So we started looking cross country and while a cross country search had not worked out for us looking for a Country Coach, it worked out beautifully when looking for the Solitude. We came across the exact model we wanted at Tom Schaeffer’s RV in Pennsylvania. Within a few days we had an agreed sale, within two weeks we had our tow vehicle, and within the month we had our new home.
We know our dog doesn’t look amused but this was one of the best days ever! Don’t let Dakota fool you, she had a great time too getting treats and love from all the Tom Schaeffer’s staff!
Watch us picking up our new RV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZx7Ch2TYlw
