Hi folks,
After five failed attempts, I finally got close enough to a deal to actually see a coach at MOT today. This was the culmination of many months and a lot of effort to locate our "dream" coach and we found our Foretravel!
I first want to thank so many of you who contribute so often to this forum. The incredible range of expertise evidenced in the many postings here, and the willingness to share your experiences was very reassuring to this rookie. I received many kind words, recommendations, and suggestions from so many. I especially want to thank Brett Wolfe, Don Hays, Michael and Jackie, and Chuck and Jeannie. A contribution to the board has been made in your names.
This is not only our first Foretravel, it's our first RV! For a variety of reasons, we are getting a late start to RVing in our own unit. We decided to take the leap to the best coach out there, bypassing "paying our dues" and working our way up through the ranks, in order to embark on this wonderful adventure while we still have the good health to enjoy it.
As I alluded to, it was still not a smooth climb to the top. We missed our first two attempts by one day and had the opportunity to read the posts of those fortunate folks as they described their exciting journeys back home in their "new" units. Boy, talk about envy!
A third opportunity from a dealer in Florida sounded very promising, almost too promising. The dealer kept assuring us that he was "almost certain" the coach was equipped with all of the key considerations we listed. It seemed everything we wanted on our ideal coach was already on the unit he had for sale. Sure enough, when it came time to put a pre-visit deposit down and specific questions had to be verified, "Oops, I could have sworn that unit had that configuration. Well, that's not really that important." Riiight. By this point, we knew we had to do two things: deal exclusively with FOT or MOT and get our names out there to be contacted about units that were coming in on consignment.
This was how we found out about the fourth opportunity, a 38 footer that had just about everything we could want. Sadly, the owner passed away the day before I was scheduled to travel from Virginia to Nacogdoches to look at the coach. The unit was, understandably, pulled from consignment.
However, we were convinced our Foretravel was out there and keeping tabs on incoming consignments was the most promising path to finding it. That is exactly what happened. Mel Cordray advised me a 2007 Nimbus was arriving for sale with very low usage. It was a 40 footer, longer than we had been wanting, but appeared to be ideal in all other respects. We immediately went into high gear, getting everything set in case this was the one. Insurance was arranged, storage was set and Jason Haskins at MOT found us financing that we couldn't refuse! The only thing left was to arrange an inspection and test drive to see if this was an option for us. Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of several members, conflicting schedules just didn't allow enough time to get an inspection set up as planned. However, the excellent suggestions and reviews I received through many phone calls and emails gave me the assurance that this coach, for several reasons, would be a safe option for us. All new batteries and tires were installed and all services were completed. I supplemented that with the extended warranty, and I feel we are as prepared as we can be at this stage. The test drive confirmed a coach of this size and weight demands the utmost respect and focus on safety. However, the many safeguards and quality features which Foretravel packages together make this an enjoyable, safe, and viable "home" for our new adventures.
To say we are excited doesn't begin to describe how eager we are to start on this new stage of our lives. We have been reading on the sidelines, with great envy, about all of the fun times and good fellowship the members of this forum have been enjoying. The Foretravel Motorcade Club numbers go on the coach tomorrow! Now the real learning begins.
Hope to see some of you fine folks soon!!
Many, many thanks.
Don and Nancy
Congratulations!!!
Congratulations. You will love it. Where in VA are you from. There are a few of us around here.
Don & Nancy,
Congratulations. Remember to always ease on down the road with plenty of time to "get there". It's always more enjoyable and safe when your mindset is not dialed to rushing at the last minute.
Congrats - Pictures? :D
Congratulations, Don and Nancy! After the grin subsides a bit you can change your sig file to include your coach information. And, as Carol and Scott said, pictures are needed.
Congratulations and welcome!!!! Enjoy your fine new coach!
WOW straight into a late model Nimbus. You have no idea how much trouble you've saved yourselves by not starting off in, oh, prettymuch anything else. Congtratulations!
Congratulations!
If this is your first RV you might consider an RV driving school. We did after buying ours. It was a great experience for both of us.
Lessons behind the wheel (Locations) | RV School (http://www.rvschool.com/school-locations/)
Hope to see you someday.
Roger
Congrats! Welcome to the Foretravel family!
hope to see ya
ken
Another WOW, and enjoy the journey, and remember that the adventure only can begin when the plan falls apart. That can be the best part of ownership sometimes! Till then, happy tail winds, and blue skies.
Welcome, you're officially forenatics!
Hi Don & Nancy,
Congratulations and welcome. What a way to start! We have had a similar experience. Back in 2003 we purchased a new to us 1997 U 320. It was our first motorhome. Take your time, ask every question you have, be safe, and enjoy.
Raymond & Babette
Wow, thanks for all the welcomes folks!
Will definitely work on getting the grin under control in order to post pics and specifications. Have been cramming tonight to get ready for tomorrow's session with Professor Cordray!
Absolutely would like to do a driving school. Talk about putting the cart before the horse--have to slowly get the coach back to Virginia before flying out to Iowa next week. Focus changes when I finish up this last bit of running around at the end of the month. Going to be looking for someone reasonably close to Virginia that might be a good source for the driving school. Mel has been very helpful and I have been sponging up any videos I can lay my mouse on. That and some very, very careful and slow driving will get me home but will not suffice for doing some serious trips. Would welcome any recommendations.
Thanks folks.
Stay safe,
Don
By the time you get home I doubt you will need a driving school. The good part us that it is light traffic till you get 500 miles done then it picks up a little. Your first real traffic will be Chattanooga. You will bail off on 66 before the painful part. Remember your turning pivot point and use the truck lanes to fuel. You will have about 1500 hundred miles by then. The first 500 are the toughest but those will be the easiest roads.
After 1500 miles you should be getting the hang of it. My first 100 miles was over Grapevine Pass in CA. Little or no idea how to do anything. We made it to Palmdale where we met our driving instructor. Two days, both of us. Freeways, mountains, two lanes with no shoulder, construction zone, a Target parking lot and a much smaller tighter parking lot, the gas station and more. About 1/3 of the time was in a giant empty parking lot where he set up cones for right hand turns, left hand turns, backing into campsites and other maneuvers. We did hard braking stops from about 40 mph just to see how it felt.
The rv driving school experience gets you started. It gave both Susan and I confidence in ourselves and each other so that we can both drive comfortably. We still run into new situations where we have to think a bit about how it is going to work but we do and stay out of trouble.
Do what makes you comfortable. Lots of folks, probably most, just get in and go.
Roger
Roger, that is good experience to get. I agree. The op will head into some of the worst traffic in the country on his way home. He will get mountain driving experience too. I learned in the end of a hurricane that was flooding the roads and I drove they the smokies in it. I turned the cb off as all the trucks were complaining about that da...Ed winnabego going so slow. No guard rails and rain and mountains makes for a tough first trip. His will be all good interstate and the first traffic and tight roads will be 700 miles or so in TN.
I bet with a bit of coaching on backing and parking lot driving he will be fine after that first trip.
Don and Nancy,
Glad to hear you guys finally found the "Right One". I know it seems like you have made a BIG step, but actually the adventure is only getting started! We were also first time RV buyers when we purchased our Foretravel, so we know exactly how you both feel at this moment. It is all a big blur - trying to absorb all the information, and listening to all the advice literally makes your head spin. Just take it easy and be very cautious (especially during the initial drives) and you will do fine. By the time you get home you will be simultaneously exhausted and exhilarated, and you will sleep like you're in a coma. But the next morning, when you get up and go out to admire YOUR beautiful coach, it will all be worth it. Enjoy the ride!
Chuck and Jeannie
These are all great (as always) comments and suggestions, folks. Really reinforces my plan to be very cautious on this initial outing. No the way I would have wanted or planned it, but no getting around the fact this first one is going to be some serious distance.
Excellent information about the routing. I won't get complacent if the first 500 miles seems like a breeze. Know I have the mountains and traffic ahead, so I will plan additional time through there. "Planning time" is a bit of a misnomer--I'm making it a point to never get in a situation where I have to get in the coach and make it to Point B in record time. There's always an RV park and a plane ticket to address those situations--is a lot cheaper than hurting other people or myself.
Still want to do the driving course, though. I started flying about 10 years ago and learned the more dangerous phase is right after you get your private and instrument rating. You think you know a lot more than you do and can very easily convince yourself you don't really need to keep up recurrent training. Big mistake.
I will say, however, you generally can find out where the front of the plane is located. It's usually the pointy end with that flat-bladed attachment on the nose. Not so with a Foretravel. I had a dream last night that I woke up in a campground on my way back home. It was dark, I couldn't figure out how to raise the front blinds to see and I couldn't find the steering wheel. I panicked and called Mel, explained the situation and pleaded for some help. In the dream he said, "Well Mr. Rickey, if you just turn around and walk out of the bedroom to the front of the coach, I'm sure everything will be just fine."
Aren't nightmares wonderful?
Don
As 1 year owners and new to RVing also, the big thing for me was the "stopping distance". I scared myself a couple of times before I got the feel of what is required to stop these things.
Enjoy, you will love it.
Agree. I've driven all sorts of things over the years, but this coach was the biggest one. Add to that the different driving position and non-working speedometer, and I was a bit nervous. My instructor was the PO, and she made it pretty easy. I always leave more room than I need, just in case, so that was easy to bring over to the coach. When we're in tight situations Jo Ann gets out and talks to me on the radio. That sure helps.
Longer term, help from Nancy will be the routine. Unfortunately, I had to make the trip down solo. She is at home torn between chomping at the bit to see our new RV and wanting me to take forever and be safe. Safe wins out.
Don
When are you heading home?
Remember to drive very slowly in tight spaces, if concerned stop and get out and look. Especially if doing any turning.
If backing have someone behind you on the ground to guide you.
Also look out for low branches and other things like low bridges.
By the time you get home you should have feel for where you are in the lanes. It is uneasy at first.
If you center your body on tire tracks on the pavement; it will put your coach equal distance from the right and left road lines.
Best of luck. And remember to get your drivers license upgraded if necessary. That is after you feel competent. Illinois's test was not very easy but maybe it was the luck of the draw. John
FWIW,
I try to never back up. Yes, I will if I just have too but I try to park such that I just drive right out. Especially if you have a toad. The turns are WIDE too.
As others have written: Congratulations!
We are sure you will really enjoy your new coach, and we're sure you won't regret getting a Foretravel as your first coach!
Hope to see you somewhere down the road!
Congrats!!!! A 40' Foretravel was our first RV too, excellent choice!!! ^.^d
A couple of hundred miles and you will be feeling much better.
You've gotten some very very good advice here so far but for me the most important thing in getting comfortable was getting my mirrors set correctly. Once I had them set correctly, it made driving and KNOWING where I was in my lane much much easier. Hopefully this is part of MOTs walk thru, but if not, I would make it part of it. For me, I wasn't able to get the mirrors set correctly until I got out the Allen wrenches and really started moving and tilting.
If you haven't watched these videos, part 1 will teach you what you should be seeing in each mirror. Once you have them set it's really pretty easy. Just be mindful of your pivot point. RV Driver Confidence Course 1: Adjusting Your RV Mirrors - betterRVing! (http://betterrving.com/rv-driver-confidence-course-part-1/)
Good luck, and Congrats!
I remember my 1990 U280 when I first got it. I was scared and vary thankful for the fact that it was a "narrow body" when I came to construction zones that were *only* 12 feet wide. I was the very, very slow guy. Then last year, I was caught in a 10 foot wide construction zone (about 200 ft) in Nebraska and my 8-1/2 ft 2002 coach made it through fine...of course, this was about 80,000 miles of coach driving later. Just take your time, it will become easier.
Don,
It seemed to us that we were looking not very far ahead when we first started driving our coach. I think it was focusing on where we were in the lane. I think we wandered back and forth in the lane more as well. With experience you look out further, pay more attention to what is out in front, several stopping distances in front, a quarter mile or so. It gives you more reaction time and where you are in the lane stabilizes.
Leave (if you can) about 5 seconds of space between you and whatever is in front of you.
Stop every couple of hours, get out, walk around the coach, feel the tires and the rims (are they hot?) look for anything leaking. And then walk around for a while. Especially if you are by yourself, the breaks are important to stay fresh.
Be safe, enjoy the ride, get home safely. I have a big smile every time we go anywhere in our coach. I hope your's doesn't get any less.
Your adventures are just beginning.
Roger
Thanks for the suggestions, Roger. All great must do's (stopping distance and coach inspections) and recommendations (taking plenty of breaks).
Will do.
Take care,
Don
A lot of similarities when learning to ride a motorcycle. Looking out ahead, rather than down in front of you is imperative, and makes it much, much easier to drive either a huge vehicle or a small one.
Benefit of a high profile vehicle is the ability to see a long way in front of you. Know I have avoided many "panic" stops by the long "sight distance".
Roland
Annnnd, The best high profile vehicle is the GRAND VILLA with its higher than average seating height. :)
Gary B
Agree!
Has anyone actually measured how far above the ground one sits in a GV compared to other coaches? I'm wondering if some of the newer Foretravels might actually come close since they have taller basements. I know they are taller overall.
Congratulations on your Foretravel purchase, they are great coaches.
Awesome. We would never buy another coach that was not a Foretravel.
I think that I ascribe almost equal value to the build quality that I do to this forum. Invaluable resource.
Welcome to the club!
With no disrespect to anyone's beliefs but my joking comment has always been that we are a weird religion worshiping fiberglass totems and having Mobil meetin's around the electronic campfire.
Bob
Amen.
What a mental image, a horizontal fiberglass totem.
Best part of all of this may be actually meeting one another in person and having a real chat around a real campfire.
Someday S'mores with each of of you, all friends indeed.
Roger
I sometimes wonder, when FTers find ourselves in the same location we show off the neat things about our coaches and upgrades we've done or had done. When SOB owners end up at the same campground, it seems they compare "what's broken/what doesn't work" notes (at least our friends with a Tiffin Phaeton do).
Most Rv sales to new or second buyers are floor plans, fabrics, paint colors and such. The experienced buyers always ask about the quality of the build and ease of service. Power to weight also for the users who drive the Rockies or are impatient types.
I used to ask the customers that of they were driving their cars up to a light and there was an open lane would they change lanes into it? Or sit behind another car at the light and not notice the open lane.....
If they changed lanes they needed the bigger engine coach.
Bob
So true. When I worked at Country Coach in 2008, the management was always pushing to get the newest floor plan out. They were in search of the "holy grail" floor plan that would cause a flood of sales. Reality was the best selling floor plans were the old standbys that had been around for years. "Crain Prairie" was a new one with limited success - it swapped location of kitchen/dinette with couches/recliner. I think the idea was to bring kitchen closer to door so you didn't track dirt through the living room. Always looked odd to me when walking into it - don't think I would buy one. I think a mid door does a better job of accomplishing the same thing.
Monster horsepower, with unheard of mileage is what I'd spec out...
"I think a mid door does a better job of accomplishing the same thing." That's one of the reasons that we like the GV.
I agree except for the unicoach front view. God loves us as the phone rang on a mid entry unicoach.
The 40' is realiy too big for us. Might trade for a duplicate mid entry 36'. Only....
Congrates on your new Home, First thing, Get up on your roof and physically measure it,
Top of Coach to ground, All the little bits sticking up, Include the highest one of those to the ground,
And keep your eye on bridge heights, Dont exceed your roof height, and add a foot or so for safety,
A low bridge or tree limb, or even a Verandah over shops can take out the top of your Coach,
I got mine Regoed and on the road last November, Done quite a few miles in it now, 3000 miles or so,
It gets easy very quickly, Just like a luxury car to drive, ITS JUST BIG, and I do mean BIG, Especially when you want to
stop and shop, Where am I gonna park this thing, Hahahaha,
I have a Grand Villa with two Mid Doors, It creates a wind tunnel effect with the awnings out, Lovely and Cool, 38 + C
with no A/C working, and I can get in and out on both sides, is Magic,
I am very pleased to read this series of posts as we are planning to likely take the leap in late May of 2015. I have a Navy ship reunion(USS Bainbridge) at Albuquerque. If the country is still civil and investments haven't crashed we will be looking at whatever is available at FOT or MOT. I have no doubt that a well cared for preowned Foretravel is our RV of choice.
Hi folks,
A final post to perhaps wrap up this thread.
Thanks to all the kind suggestions and advice (and some extra help from the folks at MOT), I made it home safe and sound to Virginia. Like some other posters have said, my biggest problem now is figuring out how to wipe that ridiculously large grin off my face.
I still can't believe it's true every time I look out and see that beauty in the driveway. It's killing me right now because we had a previous trip planned and ticketed to be out here in Iowa for a family wedding. Love the extended family, but can't wait to get back home to Virginia to continue learning and prepping for our first little outing. Every day with the coach is a new learning experience. We are just enjoying the heck out of that.
We are reading about folks that are getting together, rallys, and something called a Grandvention (if I have that right). We are trying to soak up knowledge like a sponge and it appears these events are primer territory for that. Trying to find out more regarding the calendar for these things.
I close with our sincerest thanks for the kind words and helpful suggestions we have noted in this forum. We look forward to meeting as many of you as possible in the years ahead.
Safe travels and good health,
Don and Nancy
Happy to hear that you had a good purchase experience and arrived back home in Virginia.
Seems like Texas is the hotbed of Foretravel sales. It seems likely that when we find the right one it will be in Texas. Your experience gives me confidence to take a little trip to Texas and drive one back to West Virginia. :)
Wayne
Yup, three primary places to check for Foretravels:
MOT
Foretravel Factory
PPL in Houston
BTW, enough buyers are requesting Fortravels at PPL that one rarely hits the "for sale" list without a coincident "SOLD" appearing.
Happened to one just today: Diesel Motorhomes for Sale - PPL Motor Homes (http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/diesel/diesel-motorhomes.php)
1993 model.
If you have identified what you want, contact a salesman at PPL in Houston and let him know what you are looking for. You will get a notification before it even hits their website.
Same for MOT and I suspect at Foretravel.
Brett
Thanks, I'll contact them all with our "wish list."
I knew of MOT and Foretravel Factory, but I did not know that PPL was a good source. I've found a few private sellers in Texas, too.
Wayne
Wayne,
You can scroll through PPL's sold list and will fine a number of Foretravels-- afterall, less than 175 miles from Mecadoches.
Used Diesel Motor Homes Sold - PPL Motor Homes (http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/sold/diesel-motor-homes.htm)
I confirm what Brett is saying about contacting the salesmen and getting notification of consignments. I wasn't aware of PPL, but I put my name in with Mel Cordrey at MOT and Tyle Fore at FOT. Was the only way I found out about the Nimbus. Missed out on five other Foretravels before I learned the ropes on that.
Best of Luck. It is definitely worth the wait and effort.
Don
We bought our first DP at PPL. We bought it the day it was put on the lot for sale. Our purchase was pretty much on a whim. I had little knowledge about quality except for Prevost and Newell, which are both outside our comfort zone. Our experience dealing with PPL was good.
After eight months of owning the SOB DP, we bought a Foretravel from a private party and sold the SOB via consignment at MOT. Those were both good experiences. I think MOT had a buyer for the SOB before we put it on consignment. We had our check about ten days after we left the coach at MOT.
We've not bought or sold a coach via FOT, but our service experiences have been good at the factory.
We've had good transactions at PPL, FOT, and MOT. Indeed, let them know what you want. Also, post on this forum what you want and check the forum often. We found our coach via a Craiglist post that was reflected on Foreforums. We called within hours of the initial post and began inspecting the coach the next day.
Definately a want not a need. Great to scratch that want once in a while isn't it.
Congratulations! We too want to enjoy RVing while we can enjoy RVing! Maybe it is purely a want on one level yet then again I believe it is imperative that we enjoy life to the fullest provided we are responsible and earn our income honestly! Having a young daughter late in life I feel we owe her the best experiences possible and ASAP plan on taking advantage of one of the 20 something year old coaches on this forum...
We have an inexpensive set of walkie talkies for coach use. we use them whenever I need a ground guide (backing & tight maneuvers) or when we're on the road at truck stops, rest areas or whenever we're physically separated. Big safety item for us. Comfortable feeling having communications available, especially in a dark parking lot full of strange people & vehicles. HUGE help when backing up.