Thursday, I went to the Ocala RV show. I saw a lot of RVs. Mostly travel trailer and fifth wheels, although there were motorhomes, some Class B camper vans, some truck campers, and some A-liners.
It was a pleasant day to spend at the show, but I was disappointed by the RV industry. So many of the rigs, although made by different companies, looked the same. Same floor plans. Same features. Same features omitted.
My long standing RV pet peeve continues: rigs that sleep 6 or 8 people but have NO closet space. Really? Are nudists a large part of your market base?
Other peeves:
Slides. I found very few rigs without slides. And even though slides have been such a popular feature for quite a while now, they continue to design them in such a way that you can't use your rig without deploying the slides. Which means you can't make a quick stop on the way for coffee or to use the bathroom.
Beds: either they're Queens and Kings, or they're hole in the wall bunks that are impossible to make up and claustrophobic to sleep in. How about some rigs with single or full mattresses and some useable floor space. Ever try to do yoga in an RV?
Entertainment: There are always televisions. But never book shelves. It's been a while since I've shopped RVs, so i hadn't seen the outside TVs before. Flat screen TVs built into the outside wall of the RV. Why?! If you have that feature, please do not park next to me.
Something else that surprised me... The show was in Ocala FL, which is a horse area. It was held at an equestrian center. So I was surprised that living quarters equipped horse trailers were totally not represented.
And another thought I had... There were no rigs that seemed like they might be easy to adapt to use by people with mobility problems. Narrow doors and passageways, awkward bathrooms, beds with little space next to them. I mentioned this to several of the sales reps and was assured that there are companies that would remodel rigs to accommodate chairs and scooters. I didn't find that at all reassuring, since it would have to be extensive and expensive.
I know that there are no perfect rigs. But it would seem that more options would be a good thing. RVs for single people, mobility challenged people, people who need to carry craft supplies and musical instruments and books, or who do yoga.
I did see one rig i really liked. It was a pull behind toy hauler, with the ramp that can also be a porch. It has enough room for my music and craft stuff and a decent house layout.
It did not follow me home because any trailer larger than what i currently pull would make it extremely difficult to visit my daughters.
