Several FMCA members entertain us this month with their offbeat answers to the question:
What’s the most unusual place or attraction you’ve visited during a motorhome trip?
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Soon after we bought our first motorhome, a Type B, our daughter decided to celebrate her son’s 12th birthday at the beach and called us to join them. She was driving right down to the water and asked me to follow. I was thinking the sand would be soft, but my husband said, “Just press the gas and go.” I did, and down into the sand I went. It covered the coach’s wheels right up to the bottom of the doors. The beach patrol called in the convicts doing day work to get the RV out. Those guys surrounded the RV and just picked it up and moved it out. It was an unusual attraction at an unusual place. We could only give them a cold drink for payment “” needless to say, all the cold drinks we had for the party.
David and Betty Pope, F376328
Sugar Land, Texas
After wintering in Mission, Texas, last year, we and our friends Bill and Brenda Matkins headed to Austin for the week. Austin is famous for the great state capitol, Fourth Street Historic District, and nightly fruit bats that fly from under the Congress Street bridge. Sure, anyone can walk or drive to the locations to view these sites, but we wanted to do something different to match our adventurous personalities. We hired a city guide to show us the sites of Austin, and we did it on Segway Personal Transporters. For more than two hours we toured the city on these Segways, going as fast as 15 mph at times, weaving in and out of traffic. And we saw the Mexican fruit bats. A truly wonderful experience was had by all.
Chuck and Jeanne Fingerman, F345878
Emery, South Dakota
There’s $60,000 cash in Oatman, Arizona, but it’s not in a bank vault or an eccentric’s mattress. The money is stapled on the walls of the Oatman Hotel. It’s estimated that approximately 60,000 $1 bills hang from ceilings, frame doorways, decorate a stage, and wallpaper the walls. The tradition dates back to the mining heyday of the 1900s, when each dollar paid for 20 beers. The hardy miners would give the hotel bartender a dollar or two on payday as credit until the next month’s payday hit. Some people autographed the bucks they left behind. People today continue to sign a dollar bill as proof of having visited this historic hotel, which was built in 1902.
Patty Lonsbary, F260756
Livingston, Texas
Last fall we went to the Sheep Dog Trials in Meeker, Colorado, a town of about 2,000 friendly folks in the northwest corner of the state. We don’t have sheep or dogs, but to watch them work was absolutely fascinating. Those dogs are so intelligent. The entrants come from across the United States and Canada, because Meeker has one of the five largest trials in the United States and one year hosted the National Trials. The competition starts the Wednesday after Labor Day each year with elimination trials. On Saturday, 30 dogs compete for one of the 12 final slots on Sunday to determine the winner. The web site www.meekersheepdog.com is very educational and interesting, even if you are unable to attend.
Jean Gunderson, F388264
Yakima, Washington
Future questions:
1. Where’s the best place to get a burger?
2. What do you think motorhomes might be like in 10 years?
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