02/11/12

Joe: You may have read about the RV Life on Wheels Conferences or perhaps you’ve heard about them from those who have already attended. We seem to get one or two requests a week for more information.

RV Life on Wheels Conferences are educational events that take place at universities and colleges around the country. During these conferences, present and prospective RVers have the opportunity to attend classes specifically designed to enhance their knowledge about recreation vehicles and the various RV lifestyles. Instructors, many of them well-known writers and speakers, are recognized experts in their particular field of RVing.
The classes are conducted in regular college classrooms. Syllabuses, handouts, visual aides, slides and overhead projectors are utilized to complement the professional, academic presentations. It should be emphasized that these classes are not infomercials in disguise. Instructors are not allowed to pitch products or services. And, because this is not a commercially driven event, the instructors feel free to tell it like it is.

Vicki: Each conference day is divided into four, one and one-half hour class periods. A variety of subjects are presented simultaneously during each of these class periods. Students select the classes they wish to attend by simply showing up. A half-hour break between classes and a one and one-half hour lunch break assures a relaxed, comfortable pace.

Individual classes are scheduled so a student can attend a series of programs and progress from the basics of RVing to more advanced and technical subjects. A prospective or novice RVer, for example, might start out by attending a class on how to choose an RV, and then go on to learn the basics of equipping, operating, traveling and camping in an RV.

An experienced RVer, on the other hand, is free to skip directly to classes on repair and maintenance, making money on the road, or how to travel in an RV for extended periods of time. Technically oriented individuals might be drawn to subjects that deal with solar power, inverter/chargers, satellite systems, or electronic communications. More general subjects such as RVing with computers, RV insurance, travel destinations, and travel writing are also available.

As an added bonus, conference participants are encouraged to camp in the comfort of their own RVs right on the campus of the university or college. Students arrive in truck campers, telescoping trailers, conventional trailers, fifth-wheels, class A and C motorhomes, van conversions and hi-line buses. As many as 300 RVs (and a few tents) have been known to set up camp on the University of Idaho’s campus grounds.

These college encampments provide plenty of opportunities to meet fellow RVers from various parts of the country. It’s not unusual for impromptu happy hours and potlucks to spring up on a nightly basis.

The students represent a cross section of RV lifestyles, age groups and backgrounds. While most are retired or about to retire, a good number of them are less than 50 years of age. And, not all of the participants are experienced RVers. Prospective, first-time RV buyers frequently make up to 30 % of the enrollment (they stay in nearby hotels). It’s not unusual for some of the basic classes to be repeated in order to accommodate the number of “newbies” who wish to attend.

The RV Life on Wheel Conferences do not have a scheduled entertainment program but local merchants and/or RV industry sponsors often put on a barbecue or some other food related activity. This is where novice RVers learn that wherever RVers gather there is usually something to eat.

Joe: One of the first RV Life on Wheels Conferences occurred in 1996 at the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho. 430 students from 35 states attended 77 RV related classes presented by 41 instructors.

The next year’s conference was even bigger. More than 700 students from 41 states (including Hawaii and Alaska), four Canadian Provinces and the nation of Japan attended 96 classes presented by 44 instructors. Many of the students had attended 1996’s conference and about 150 signed up for 1998’s. They bragged about their status as sophomores and juniors.

The enthusiastic response to the University of Idaho’s Life on Wheels five-day conferences encouraged other colleges to offer similar three-day programs on their campuses. The three-day conferences are a condensed version of the five-day program. They have the same time frames and format but fewer classes and instructors.

Conference attendance, by the way, is now limited to 600 participants (300 RVs) at the University of Idaho and 400 participants (200 RVs) at the three-day events.

The same instructors do not participate at all of the RV Life on Wheel Conferences. It seems the conference dates occasionally conflict with some instructors’ opportunities to visit Alaska, get acquainted with new grandchildren, or check out a new fishing spot. RVing, after all, means going where you want to go and doing what you want to do. The instructors have a tendency to practice what they preach.

Vicki: Check our seminar schedule to see the Life on Wheels conferences where we will be teaching this year. Our classes include “Choosing an RV,” “RVing Made Easy,” “Extended RV Travel” and “RVing to Alaska.” They are decidedly non-technical and designed to show how easy it is to choose, operate and enjoy an RV.

We have been RVing for over 40 years. Our travels, in a variety of rigs, have taken us from Nova Scotia to Puerto Vallarta and from the Florida Keys to Fairbanks, Alaska. We have been writing and speaking about the RV lifestyle since 1989. Those who attend our classes seem to appreciate our “share the platform” approach where we take turns speaking, just as we share these written pages.

Judging by the attendance, response and repeated signups, the RV Life on Wheels Educational Conferences are an overwhelming success. They seem to satisfy the RVers’ need for in-depth knowledge, presented by professional instructors in a non-commercial environment.