WESTERN CANADA PLEASURE-WAY ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER INTRODUCTION Hello and welcome to all the Western Canada PW owners. Our Association has got off to a good start with some very dedicated people who want to have and belong to a Pleasure Way group. This being the first PW Newsletter we will have some growing to do. I asked a question of the members way back last month. What is our aim in forming an association and what do we as members want to realize by belonging. After Emailing members and receiving Emails it boils down to friendship with other owners, a group that can pass on experiences and knowledge pertaining to the PW and a means of doing so.in short we want to have fun with our RVs. Rosemarie says she will do all she can to ensure she passes on all info to our members and keep an interesting newsletter. Since beginning we have received more members and I am of the belief by this time next year we should be well into or over the fifty mark in membership. There is no reason to date, to charge any membership dues to belong to our organization. There is no need for it. Anyone with a Pleasure-Way, regardless its age, can join our happy group and enjoy the friendship. SPRING GATHERING We attempted to put together a spring gathering in Alberta for May of this year. But for reasons other then the lack of effort we just can t get enough of the membership in one place at one time. That of course is understandable, with the organization being new. Also a short heads up on the time. To Diana and Dave thanks for a great effort in assisting in this endeavour. We are now planning to have a gathering of the clan in Sep 2008 in the Okanagan Valley. It will be either in Oliver were there is a great Campground with heated pool and meeting rooms or in Osoyoos as there is also another great RV area there. We have been to them both and enjoy them when we are there. Beside the Okanagan will be warm at that time of the year and the kids will be back in school. As I know the area I will organize the outing and hopefully all will go well. Besides we should have more to talk about and do. I have some organizations that will assist us and help us out when ever possible. Now all I have to do is determine what they will help us with and how they will assist us. This will be forth coming in the next Newsletter. So again, welcome to the Western Canada Pleasure-Way Association, WCPWA, sounds like a union say what. TINKER Have you ever wanted another table with you to have outside when you are Camping? Well Rosemarie has devised just that. Take the tables you have in your PW the small round one and the other one. Put one on the table pole and the other on the other end of the table pole. Take them outside and place the small one on the ground and hence you will have a standalone table. Rosemarie made a cover to go over the small table to protect it when it is outside supporting the larger table. Great idea and PW didn t even know they had supplied us with an outside table. We have even used our table this way inside the PW as then we can slide it back and forth closer to us when eating. Need more shelving in your RV. Canadian Tire and also Super Store sells a wire type shelving that is adjustable to different lengths. It is white and covered with a rubber that makes it blend right in with the inside of the cupboards of our PWs. Good for putting pots on the top and frying pans on the bottom in the same cupboard. Sure saves space and makes thing easy to get at.
If your thinking of needing more space, turn to www.stowaway2.com There you will find those spiffy cargo boxes that connect onto the hitch on the back of your RV and actually swing away out of the way to open the rear door. By the way they are also for sale in Camping World. Wondering if anyone has used these and are they happy with them. When we went to Oregon Coast we found we needed a place to dry bath towels. Get yourself a shower rod the one that screws out and in. Place some of that non-slip cloth we use in the cupboards on the end and tighten it into place at the rear or the shower in your PW. We used that for two weeks and it never fell off and the towels were dry normally by noon. We left the towels there when travelling as well and never had a problem. Ever wonder how you can replace those little light bulbs in the new PWs. The ones that are flush with the ceiling. Yes we burned out one of those 1800 hr bulbs. So I went to my trusty RV dealer and he showed me how to change those lights. Between the outer rim and the lens there is a thin rim. Using something shape enough, pointed that is, pry that small rim out of the light and when it comes out so does the lens. You are now looking at the dead light bulb. Pull it straight out and push straight in the new bulb. Put the lens in the small rim and push it back into the light. There you are all done and saved money as well. Be careful, those bulbs are very expensive. How come we have a Pleasure-way? By: Diana & Dave Hardiman ( AKA -The Travelers) Well, the story started before we left the UK. I had done a lot of homework researching different motor homes in Canada and trying to find one similar to the European RVs. The closest we came was the B Class and visited many websites for information. When we arrived we were taken to a dealer to see a van in the flesh, but ing 6 2 found it was not high enough, so that idea was shelved and eventually we settled for a truck and a 26 Fifth Wheel. Wanting to get away as soon as possible, we planned a trip to Arizona to commence in the middle of January this year. We took enough stuff to start our own Wal-mart and still half the cupboards were empty. But off we went via Calgary and Lethbridge, getting lost in both places and having a great deal of difficulty turning around each time. Temperatures in Montana and Idaho dropped significantly, and we drove through several total white-out blizzards. We still had anti-freeze in the system, having to use bottled water for everything (in fact it wasn t until we got to Las-Vegas that we were able to de-winterize). Passing through Salt Lake City, with 15 miles of road works and narrow lanes, we learned another lesson - passing trucks with no regard for speed limits tend to push you to one side with the air they displace, and then suck you back in with the vacuum they create, scary! Eventually found a good campsite in Arizona, planned our scenic route for the following day but next morning the truck would not start. Dead as a dodo! The truck was towed away to a main dealer 20 miles away; we had to hire a car and, four days later, and $300 poorer, and we were able to move on further south. During 5 weeks we saw many wonderful places and enjoyed the actual holiday, what we weren t too happy with was what Diana referred to as towing a beached whale. But the holiday progressed, and eventually, picking a window of good weather we headed for home. Between Idaho and Montana is a mountain pass called Monida Pass. This is situated in the most desolate part of the state, and it was here that the truck decided to give up the ghost for the second time. Great, we could use our cell phone for the first time but, out of range so no cell phone coverage! We tried to flag passing motorists but no joy; the trucks were in too much of a hurry. After
about an hour in -15 degrees a couple from Manitoba stopped and said they would phone AAA from the next town. Another hour, and by this time we were very cold, when a police sheriff s car slid up behind us and he kindly let us sit in his cruiser to get warm. He radioed for the breakdown truck and we settled in for a nice chat on every subject under the sun. All the time Diana s head was banging against two sub machine guns strapped inside the roof. She said she hoped these weren t loaded to which he replied in his American drawl Mam, if a gun ain t loaded it ain t no damn good. The sheriff stayed with us until the tow truck arrived, and we were taken 60 miles to the nearest town (!) which was Dillon in Montana, where our truck was fixed and once again, several hundred dollars poorer, we continued on our way. 120 miles further on the same thing happened again, the truck just upped and died. Another tow (we were getting quite used to it by this time) but by now there was a blinding snowstorm. We were taken to Helena, Montana, and put up in a hotel while our truck was worked on. The next day with 4 of fresh snow on the ground we began the final leg of our journey. By this time, as you can imagine, we had had enough. I was in contact with a dealer in Lethbridge, discussing a trade-in for a motor home. When they suggested the Pleasure-Way, for which they were dealers, I said we had already looked at them and found there was not enough headroom. I was told that the new 08 had 6 4 headroom and should be tall enough for me. So we agreed to go and have a look, and are we glad we did. We fell in love with it at first sight and bought it on the spot. They did the PDI on the new van while we empted our truck and 5 th wheel of all our possessions and, after a six-hour stay at the dealers, we drove the rest of the way home in our new van, very much relieved and believing we had made the right decision. Now of course we are wanting to get away on our maiden voyage and are planning a couple of days away, not too far from home, to try everything out and get used to the more confined space, but we are used to this type of van in the UK, so it shouldn t be a problem.
Dave & Diana Hardiman If anyone is passing through Cochrane, Alberta, they would be glad to have you drop in. Call first, as they could be out trying out their PW. TRIPS Several of the owners will be making long extended trips this summer and it will be great to hear of their experiences. Doug & Pat Vandenberghe are heading to Alaska as our Rosemarie and George Bull, who knows we may end up meeting them along the way.
Bob & Joyce Lee are visiting BC and the Oregon Coast, hopefully they will get some sun in both places. John & Ester Barker will soon be heading off to Newfoundland, now that is a long trip from Vernon. John & Ester Barker with Mercedes LOOKING FOR ADVICE John & Ester Barker are wondering if any Dodge Sprinter/Plateau owners have used or is presently using a solar panel for an alternate electricity source. They would like any information that can help them select the right solar panel. That is something you could ask the PW Owners Group on Yahoo. You get a fast response from other owners and there is bound to be someone who has experience in this. You need to enter your VIN # to join.
Joe Abrook looking forward to spring in Saskatoon. His PW survived temperatures as low as 50C while he and Connie basked in the sunshine of Arizona. This is a box John Barker had built to give them more storage and still carry their bikes.
George Bull getting the PW ready for our trip to Oregon, where the weather wasn t as dry as it was this day in Chilliwack. Wishing everyone Happy Trails this summer and hope to get e-mails of your travels and hopefully we can plan a get together in the fall, where we can get to meet everyone. George & Rosemarie Bull 7016 Wiltshire Street Chilliwack, BC 604-858-3609 If your in our area, drop in before the end of June. We are only 5 minutes from Hwy 1 at Exit 119.