TRVN Rally (Tiffin Owners)

A funny thing happened on the way to.....

A week ago today we were getting ready to depart from Coastal Haven RV Park in Fairhope, AL to make the long drive (30 miles) to Gulf Shores, AL for the TRVN Rally. Well, the motorhome had other ideas! Everything was going great until I started the jacks retracting. The right rear decided it wanted to stay put! Would not retract. Finally, after about a half hour of prying with boards it went up. When we drove off I pointed the front end toward Pensacola and Carpenters Campers. We've had some issues with that particular jack since we purchased this motorhome and it now convienced me it was time to have a professional look at it.

Two days later and a empty wallet, we left Pensacola for the rally. Fortunately we had planned on arriving early and the official start date was Wednesday so we didn't miss anything.

This was our first TRVN rally and we really were not sure what to expect. It began Wed. evening with a meet and greet. The moderator asked how many first time rally attendees there were and almost half of the 200 raised their hand. Wow! There were a bunch of us newbies here so that made me feel better already.

Other activities included a couple of seminars, coach tours to see how some have made modifications, bingo, a delicious pot luck dinner, a garage/craft sale, a BBQ pork dinner and a hot dog supper. There was also a golf game set up for those who like to chase the little white balls around acres of land. Brannon from Red Bay, AL, who used to work at Tiffin, was on hand to do work on coaches. He installed air conditioner covers to match our new lights in our coach. They really finished off the look! There was also a detail company to wash and wax your rig. We had ours washed but not waxed since it was waxed just over a month ago. Great work and good prices.

I have to say I was impressed at the way this rally was put together, lots of free time but plenty of activities. We have met a lot of new people and I'm sure we will attend another one of their rallies.

Friday afternoon my daughter Suze drove down from Montgomery for the weekend with us. We spent Saturday afternoon shopping and then had lunch at Lulu's, her favorite place. The TRVN group welcomed her with open arms to the activities of the rally, which was really nice.

The only down side was that because there were so many Tiffin motorhomes here, the park had to separate some from where most were parked because of prior reservations from other people. We were one of those. It wasn't bad until Sat. night when the group beside us in a 5th wheel decided to invite their whole family to spend the night - four car loads. Out came the beer, the loud music and the loud talking and swearing. I called around 11:30 pm and the park sent someone over. Well, it didn't make much difference since it basically continued off and on till 2 am except they did turn the radio off. I got very little sleep. I did talk to the gal in the office yesterday and will see the manager this morning before we leave. Fortunately, the "white trash" left Sunday morning. I use the term that was used by the gal in the office but I have to agree after seeing the way the left the campsite!

Today we are on the road again, heading toward Marksville, LA with a two night stop in Bay St. Louis, MS. Dean's two sons, Terry & Tim and their wives will be meeting us in Marksville for the weekend. We are really looking forward to this time with them.

That's about it for now. Check back in from time to time as I will be back with more posts. Till next time...God Bless and Drive Safe