interesting - new level - who's paying ?

You don't get very much more for the Elite membership. New members and those that get the Elite membership are two different things. New members are just new members. Elite members spent thousands of dollars to purchase their rvs. Thus they are given the membership free. I bought an rv in 2010, but did not get a membership to good Sam. I bought a years membership afterwards and then purchased a life membership. Last year, we traded in the TT and bought a class c. They had the Elite membership going on and automatically switched us to elite membership from the life membership. After 3 years it reverts back. The only added benefit I see is I get a free 22 point inspection yearly (for the 3 years).

And who is paying for that elite membership is the people who are buying the rv. It's not costing the other members anything. It's just a marketing ploy to entice people to buy from hem.