Lifestyle of the Not So Rich And Famous

Where Strangers Become Friends & Friends Become Family

RVers and Family campers are known as the “Friendliest People in the World”.  Strengthening family bonds through shared activities in the out-doors!  For some, home is where they park their RV. I love to see the joy in people when delivery day has come. The tedious RV research and search is over finding that perfect unit or close to perfect unit to meet the family needs and wants. The vacation or outing has been carefully planed schedules have been shuffled to get away from it all. Picking up the RV is truly a happy occasion especially for the first time buyer trekking into new territory.

I would like to feature the Pime Time LaCrosse bunk house since it is one of our biggest sellers at General RV.

LaCrosse Features

ETERNABOND CONSTRUCTION
LaCrosse Luxury Lite is built with Prime Time’s Eternabond Construction Technology. Every wall, floor and slide-out roof is made up of welded aluminum framework that is then laminated together in order to build a stronger, longer lasting Recreational Vehicle.

WALK ON ROOF
LaCrosse has a fully walkable roof system with 5″ crowned trusses. A one-piece insulated air conditioning duct system is blanketed with a generous layer of R-14 fiberglass insulation.

THERMAL PACKAGE PLUS
LaCrosse’s enclosed underbelly is heated with a 2″ heat duct vented from your furnace to protect your enclosed holding tanks, water lines, and dump valves from the elements during colder weather.

BUS STYLE SLAM BAGGAGE DOORS
You don’t have to buy a Diesel Motor Home to get the security and convenience of Bus Style Slam Baggage Doors.  These 1″ thick doors also have a uniquely keyed lock that won’t be the same as your neighbors.

ELECTRIC AWNING
You will love the push-button convenience of Prime Time’s electric awning.  Complete with adjustable arms to allow for water drainage, you will find this feature standard on LaCrosse models.

ELECTRIC STABILIZER JACKS
Prime Time takes the work out of leveling your trailer with the convenience of Electric Stabilizer Jacks.  Luxury and value are combined with this LaCrosse standard feature.

30″ WIDE ENTRY DOOR
LaCrosse offers one of the widest entry doors on any Lite Weight travel trailer. This 30″ wide model makes it easy to carry large items like coolers without banging and scraping your hands.

MAX SLIDE
No sacrifices are required with LaCrosse.  Incorporating over 13 feet of floor space, the MAX Slide Room offers a full size Air Mattress Hide-A-Bed and the industry’s largest U-Shaped Dinette.  Live (and sleep) like a king with MAX Slide.

UNIVERSAL DOCKING STATION
LaCrosse provides Best In Class convenience of having all your water connections, cable connections and outside shower in a lockable, all-in-one, easy to use compartment.

“EZ TOW” AXLES
LaCrosse offers EZ Tow – another Prime Time innovation designed to minimize the vertical “bouncing” effect that is transferred to the tow vehicle when traveling over rough road surfaces, potholes, or railroad crossings.

ALUMINUM WHEELS
We think you will agree, LaCrosse Luxury Lite will look awesome pulling into the campground with it’s automotive styled aluminum wheels!

OUTSIDE KITCHEN OPTION
Outside entertainment and dining is easy and convenient with Prime Time’s innovative Outside Camp Kitchen.  You’ll find a sink with running hot and cold water, a large refrigerator, a slide-out stove, and tons of storage for all your essentials.

DSI GAS/ELECTRIC WATER HEATER
The Atwood 6 Gallon Gas/Electric water heater is designed to provide a maximum amount of hot water. This remarkably efficient model recovers water at the rate of 18 gallons/hour!

EASY ACCESS LOW POINT DRAINS
No more crawling under your trailer and trying to unscrew awkward cap fittings. With a simple ¼ turn, these easy to reach drain valves allow you to quickly and easily drain your water lines and fresh water tank.

LP QUICK DISCONNECT
Hooking up an LP gas grill or other LP burning appliance is convenient with the LP Quick Connect fitting that runs to the back of every LaCrosse.

OUTSIDE ENTERTAINMENT
Your entertainment options are multiplied with LaCrosse’s exterior television hook-ups and stereo speakers.

SOLID SURFACE COUNTERTOPS
LaCrosse’s E-Stone countertops are a uniquely engineered product that combines an amazing residential look with lightweight durability specifically designed for use in a Recreation Vehicle. E-Stone is certified to meet strict UL flame spread and impact requirements.

POTS and PANS DRAWERS
The amount of galley drawers in a LaCrosse is “second to none”. You will find in every floorplan a 12″ Deep X 19″ Wide pot and pan drawer underneath the gas oven. In the case of the 318BHS model a second pot and pan drawer is located underneath the refrigerator!

LARGE KITCHEN PANTRY
LaCrosse’s abundant kitchen storage is complimented with extra convenience by making the kitchen pantry shelves removable so you can decide what goes where when “loading up” for your next trip.

HIDE-A-BED WITH STORAGE DRAWER
Without a doubt, the style, comfort, and convenience of LaCrosse’s air mattress Hide-A-Bed is tops in the industry. Customer’s love the huge, additional storage drawer built in under the sofa seat.

AIR MATTRESS SOFA
Your comfort and convenience is ensured with this Air Mattress Hide-A-Bed.  Plus, the engineers at Prime Time have incorporated a highly convenient storage drawer and worked closely with our suppliers to create a folding mechanism that eliminates pinch points.

MAX SLIDE
No sacrifices are required with LaCrosse.  Incorporating over 13 feet of floor space, the MAX Slide Room offers a full size Air Mattress Hide-A-Bed and the industry’s largest U-Shaped Dinette.  Live (and sleep) like a king with MAX Slide.

87″ BOOTH DINETTE
Because of the additional room that MAX slide provides LaCrosse is equipped with a GIGANTIC 87″ booth dinette. There is plenty of room for the whole family to enjoy meal time or game time!

FREE STANDING DINETTE OPTION
With LaCrosse’s MAX Slide, the free standing dinette and chairs are a popular option. LaCrosse offers so much more room to maneuver the chairs and dine in comfort verses the competitor’s free standing dinettes!

“DO MORE” DINETTE
LaCrosse’s dinette table drops down to the perfect height to serve as a coffee table or it can easily fit through the entry door for use underneath the awning!

SLEEP & PLAY
Upright it’s a comfortable lounge area complete with drink holders.  Laid down, it’s an extra large sleeping area.  There’s no need to accept a simple bunk room when you can have the industry’s most versatile accommodations – Sleep & Play – found in select LaCrosse models.

Here are some videos from Prime Time I believe you will enjoy if you are looking for that perfect travel trailer bunk house. Barbara Andrews.

The LaCrosse 296 BH

2012 Prime Time RV Tracer 2900BHS

On The Road Again

Motorhome Versus Trailer

Lots of customers have asked, either explicitly or implicitly, which “way to go” when selecting an RV. Most Rvers who have had both trailers and motorhomes will recognize the answer is not a simple one — if indeed there is any “answer” at all. Yet it’s important for first time RV buyers to know what the pros and cons of each are, so that they can get into a unit which will be best for their particular RV lifestyle.

Before getting to the Great Debate over Motorhome versus Trailer, let’s give the credit that’s due the relatively smaller types — the tent trailer and the slide-in camper. Actually, both of these RV types can come in quite fancy packages too. But typically there is some sacrifice in space and amenities.

The Pop Up offers quite a bit of inside space, given the relatively small size of the typical unit. Not only is it an economical choice in terms of purchase price, it’s lighter weight assures much better fuel economy over the road. Equally important, most units are light enough to pull behind almost any car equipped with an adequate trailer hitch. No need to buy one of those expensive, full size pickup trucks as part of the price for getting into Rving.

A motorhome is particularly user friendly going down the road. While underway, the and of course using due care not to move about on winding roadways or in traffic, the passenger has access to the full range of motorhome amenities. A snack is as far as the refrigerator; a quick nap is but a few steps to the coach or bed; and of course the onboard lavatory is fully accessible.

Backing into an RV site is easier than maneuvering a trailer in what often appears to be an unnatural direction. There seemed to be something inherently “superior” about a motorhome (at least the Class A types — I’ll leave the “Class A versus Class C discussion for another time). No doubt many view the “motor coach” with a certain sense of elitism.

But there are drawbacks. Perhaps the most significant — for fulltime Rving lifestyle there is not a go and stay there mode. Most stay two or three nights at any destination More typically a night or two and then off again in search of new places — or one of the many, many “old places” cataloged in years of RV travels.

Another, and unrelated factor is the first weekend outing in the new motorhome, you concluded that your travel style would require that you take along a tow car. Once a motorhome is parked, leveled, and hooked up to utilities, one hardly wants to undo all that loving work just to drive to the grocery store for a carton of milk. So now a tow vehicle is opted for light enough to tow without adding any sense of added weight, and it could be towed without the use of a car dolly — still another chassis to worry about. But of course the tow vehicle will began to log some big mileage too unless you get a tow dolly, so its resale value will be less as well. Moreover, providing maintenance on two separate vehicles, neither of which could accomplish the purpose of a “family car” — so there is of course a third vehicle to maintain.

Since the third vehicle is already a full size diesel pickup, the move to a fifth wheel becomes irresistible, and quite easy to tow. In all fairness, it is a bit more of a chore to tow the fifth wheel than to simply drive the motorhome; but it is not at all difficult. Parking at RV parks is a bit more tedious when backing into a small space. But soon you get the hang of it and that problem gets minimized. You will miss the over-the-road convenience of the motorhome, but the fuel economy goes way up, and your maintenance costs goes way down. And of course you no longer need the tow vehicle. Another difference you will notice is the superb on-road stability of a 5th wheel and generally more stable in windy conditions. Some RVers prefer the 5th wheel combo over motorhomes in windy conditions. Carefully note that we are talking about a 5th Wheel trailer — not a travel trailer. Keep in mind both 5th wheels and motorhomes come in all different sizes, shapes, weights, and design. Not all 5th wheels would be more stable in windy conditions than all motorhomes. But in my experience as a general rule,  5th wheels do better than motorhomes when the wind really decides to blow.

Now that brings us to Diesel Pusher and a class of it own.  The Diesel is built for longevity, power, and luxury that will not be pushed around by the elements and will still hold its value with high mileage. So the bottom line to the Motorhome versus Fifth Wheel seems to have everything to do with one’s current RVing lifestyle. For low or high mileage travels, or for extended RV travels, a Diesel Motorhome may offer many advantages. The Fifth Wheel combo has more overall advantages for weekend and full timers alike.  Barbara Andrews 904 458-3000

Prime Time Fifth Wheels

Sanibel – a luxury fifth wheel built with a level of Intelligence that far exceeds the status quo. Whether you are examining construction, design, features, or eye appeal, Sanibel has been carefully crafted to provide the highest level of owner satisfaction. Sanibel also has a two year bumper to bumper warranty. The Sanibel is equipped with 12-volt DC heating pads wrapped around fully insulated holding tanks for additional protection from freezing. Prime Time also uses radiant technology in the roof and floor to achieve R-52 insulation values and R-38 in the slideout floors where it is needed most.

A fifth wheel trailer is especially popular with fulltimers because most of these RVers want to go as big as the towing vehicle will allow. The fifth wheel is easy to connect and disconnect from the truck. It’s relatively easy to back up. Its tendency to sway is much less than that of a trailer coach. Because it can easily carry more height, it allows for more storage space – something every fulltimer wants.

That brings us to the most serious issue with fifth wheels — size and weight. The towing and carrying capacities of pickups have increased greatly over the years, enabling them to pull larger and heavier fifth wheels than ever before. The question is now, “Should they?” Loss of control may become a serious problem for ordinary pickups, with their relatively short wheelbases and low curb weights. In other words, we may begin to see more of the dangerous “tail-wagging-the-dog” behavior that is already common with trailer coaches.

Perhaps the answer is to use a larger tow vehicle. For example, if you buy a 40-foot trailer with four slideouts and all the luxuries of home, a medium-duty truck (MDT) should pull it safely and reliably. But do you really want to drive and park a nearly 60-foot long, 8′ 6? wide, 30,000-pound truck-and-trailer combination?

An obvious common-sense solution for most RVers is to simply choose a smaller, well-built trailer that can be towed safely and reliably by any large pickup. For pointers on selecting the proper truck to tow your trailer, see the Fifth Wheel Weight Calculator.

This introduction to fifth wheel travel trailers should be just the beginning of your research into techniques for choosing and using. We encourage you to begin your studies with the Tow rating Search.

We hope that you, as a member of RV Consumer Group, will contribute by sharing your experiences and observations. Making RVing safer and better always begins with you.Barbara Andrews 904 458-3000