Forum Discussion

KarnaughAtlas's avatar
KarnaughAtlas
Explorer
Dec 16, 2014

I need a reality check

Hi full timers,

I apologize in advance for the large post!

I have dreamed about this lifestyle since I was a kid. Now I'm in a position where I might actually be able to make it a reality in the coming year. Some background: I'm a 27 year old male. I am a software developer and have the ability to work remotely from anywhere. I make enough money to afford the payment on a new RV and campground fees with minimal stress, on top of current bills (cell phone, internet, etc).

Why do I want this lifestyle? There are number of reasons.

1) Freedom: I don't want to be tied down, I want the ability to pick up and leave whenever I want. I want to be the master of my own space and my own life.

2) Solitude: I like being alone. In fact I love it. With the exception of a dog, I see this being a completely solo endeavor. In the event that I want to settle down with someone I don't foresee continuing the full time life with them.

3) To see the continent: Obviously I want to experience North America in ways not possible with other lifestyles.

My plan: I want to purchase a small diesel class A motorhome. Small because I want to be as agile as possible and have as many options as possible regarding parking lots, camp sites, etc. Diesel because I want the reliability that comes with a diesel engine.

I'd like to avoid flat towing a car if possible, so my plan is to buy a small motorcycle and haul it on the trailer hitch. This will get me around town economically when it isn't practical to drive the RV. Obviously this would cause an issue in inclement weather, but I feel confident that I can get around that with some planning (cook at home instead of going out, make sure I have plenty of supplies, etc).

I don't want to travel very quickly. I plan on staying a minimum of one week, and probably a month or more at each location. I will need a stable internet connection and electrical power in order to do my job and I don't think I'll get much of that on the road - so I plan to travel short distances between campgrounds on the weekends, maybe boondocking between destinations, and staying put for the work week.

I've been doing a lot of reading and trying to learn from the successes and failures of various bloggers and forum posters. I think I have a pretty good idea of what it's really like, but of course you can never know until you try it. So those of you who have been there and done this - where are the holes in my plan?

Thanks in advance!
  • Escargot's avatar
    Escargot
    Explorer
    Dec 16, 2014
    I think these two groups will serve you well:

    Nu RVers
    NuRVers is a community website for young and active RVers, many which work and are on the road full time.

    and

    Technomadia
    Chris and Cherie are full of tech info for the RV community.
  • KarnaughAtlas's avatar
    KarnaughAtlas
    Explorer
    Dec 16, 2014
    PawPaw_n_Gram wrote:
    I've met several singles and couples who travel in small diesel C / B+ units over the past year.

    A small DP class A is going to be over 30'. On a rainy cold day, you are going to have to go to the store in your rig because the motorcycle is unsafe. Parking and such are going to be a real pain.

    Folks with 24' Mercedes sprinter chassis units (some are called Class C, some are called B+) have almost no trouble going around in their rig when it's not motorcycle weather. (Heck my Ram 2500 is 22 feet long - so where I can park the truck, they can park their Class C.)

    I would suggest you look at those units - Winnebago, Thor, and other manufactures make good units which get fuel mileage the rest of us envy. (Well, Winnebago/Itasca do make a Class A on the sprinter chassis).

    Your biggest issue is going to be reliable internet. Because the great locations for solitude are often completely outside cell phone coverage. I find an ATT smartphone with tethering capability and a Verizon MiFi give me 40GB of data per month capability - and one works well whenever I have cell service. But I still am without cell/ internet about 1/2 of the time in really great locations away from cities.

    (If 20-40GB per month is not going to work for your business - you might need to reconsider the whole RV thing.)


    I had considered getting a Verizon MiFi or something similar for data needs. 40gb should be more than enough for work, though I'd really prefer an unlimited data plan for personal use as well (netflix, streaming video, etc). In your experience do most RV parks not offer WiFi? I'm also happy to stay in more populated areas for the most part in order to keep cell service - I can visit the more out-of-the-way spots on my vacation time.

    Regarding the RV, my top choice right now is a Tiffin Allegro Breeze, the 28' model. From what I've read it's very nimble and fits in two standard sized parking spaces, which I think would be perfect for my needs. I've visited a couple at RV dealers and I think with some modifications it will be perfect (I plan on removing the dinette and having a custom desk/workstation put in its place).

    2oldman wrote:
    I'll pretend I'm your father:

    That's great son, but remember, getting old will happen to you. I'm hoping you'll see this as a temporary situation, not for life. There's a lot of life after 60, and you'll need money - lots of it.

    Most of us on this board are old and/or retired. You do not want to be forced to keep working in your 60s and beyond. Plan ahead. And watch your health.


    Thank you for the advice - I appreciate it. Actually I have a very healthy retirement plan, my company is employee-owned and we have one of the top ESOPs in the country, on top of a 401k I've been contributing to since I was 17. Health insurance with a network of providers all over the US.
  • 2oldman's avatar
    2oldman
    Explorer II
    Dec 16, 2014
    I'll pretend I'm your father:

    That's great son, but remember, getting old will happen to you. I'm hoping you'll see this as a temporary situation, not for life. There's a lot of life after 60, and you'll need money - lots of it.

    Most of us on this board are old and/or retired. You do not want to be forced to keep working in your 60s and beyond. Plan ahead. And watch your health.
  • PawPaw_n_Gram's avatar
    PawPaw_n_Gram
    Explorer
    Dec 16, 2014
    I've met several singles and couples who travel in small diesel C / B+ units over the past year.

    A small DP class A is going to be over 30'. On a rainy cold day, you are going to have to go to the store in your rig because the motorcycle is unsafe. Parking and such are going to be a real pain.

    Folks with 24' Mercedes sprinter chassis units (some are called Class C, some are called B+) have almost no trouble going around in their rig when it's not motorcycle weather. (Heck my Ram 2500 is 22 feet long - so where I can park the truck, they can park their Class C.)

    I would suggest you look at those units - Winnebago, Thor, and other manufactures make good units which get fuel mileage the rest of us envy. (Well, Winnebago/Itasca do make a Class A on the sprinter chassis).

    Your biggest issue is going to be reliable internet. Because the great locations for solitude are often completely outside cell phone coverage. I find an ATT smartphone with tethering capability and a Verizon MiFi give me 40GB of data per month capability - and one works well whenever I have cell service. But I still am without cell/ internet about 1/2 of the time in really great locations away from cities.

    (If 20-40GB per month is not going to work for your business - you might need to reconsider the whole RV thing.)
  • mabynack's avatar
    mabynack
    Explorer II
    Dec 16, 2014
    Best of luck. I'm twice your age and will have to dig out from under a costly divorce before I can start my travels. I'm planning on leaving in May of 2017.
  • arhayes's avatar
    arhayes
    Explorer
    Dec 16, 2014
    We're relatively new full-timers, but a couple of points I'd look at based on our short experience to date:

    * Having only a cycle to get around....We haul our motorcycle in our 5ver Toy Hauler, and do use it a lot, but there have been plenty of times in the last 6 months where we had to use the truck for local errands. Not having a "cage" option may not be optimal. YMMV.

    * Internet - we've found it spotty and bandwidth relatively slow in most of the places we've been. We already used our personal hotspots for financial dealings, but now use it almost exclusively where in our current location.

    With that said, we're retired and chose this lifestyle for many of the same reasons you expressed. Being able to see the country, change our minds and move when and where we want on a minutes notice, and meeting new people has been a blast. We plan to continue for many years to come. Good Luck!
  • the_bear_II's avatar
    the_bear_II
    Explorer
    Dec 16, 2014
    Here's a good website to help answer a lot of questions. It's produced by a couple that left corporate jobs 10 years ago sold everything and became full time RV'ers. They had never been in an RV only tent camped.

    They include their expense each month since going on the road plus a journal of their adventures, working on the road, internet use, tips and lessons learned.

    www.rv-dreams.com

    Good luck with your new adventure.

About Full Time RVers

1,587 PostsLatest Activity: Dec 28, 2024