kcmoedoe
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Re: Innsurance Preimum TRIPLED for one ticket.
EMD360 wrote: We had the same situation. GS tried to help but could not find a policy for us that was anywhere close to last year's cost. We went to a local independent agency who shopped for us and found Safeco at about what we paid last year. We had a totally bogus "reckless driving" ticket in a rental moving truck in Pueblo, CO in April. Also no tickets for over 30 years. We were trying to get around an illegally parked semi in a gas station that had a huge unguarded, unlighted ditch next to its driveway. One wheel of the rear of the truck fell into the ditch and because the truck was stuck partly on the side road in the turning lane we called 911 to inform them. I guess the gas station also called. I think every cop in Pueblo showed up, including one guy with two women civilians in his car who laughed uproariously at our predicament, and the chief of the dept. arrived but didn't think to deal with his own officer. We must have talked to at least 4 different cops and given license and registration etc. There was a cement sewer or water device in the ditch and they called the head of Public Service out to look at it to see if we were liable for damage to public property. Felt like Alice's Restaurant littering criminals. Then when we thought it was all over and the tow truck had pulled the truck out of the ditch, yet ANOTHER cop decided to issue a reckless driving ticket. REALLY? Of course when traveling it is impossible to go back and fight the ticket so we were out $90. Not terrible until we got the insurance bill! Yes over $3000 more for the same insurance and will will carry this strike against us for 3 years. (36 months) Apparently reckless driving is as bad as a DUI. Does there seem to be something wrong with this picture? So we wrote the station and said it was a problem and could they put up a light and guard rail and they wrote back and said it was the city's problem. Wrote the city and asked if they would look into the dangerous spot and they wrote back and said it was a state problem! Wrote the state and never heard anything back--probably couldn't decide how to blame it on the feds. Lets see, you drove into the ditch, were blocking a traffic lane and it is the fault of 1) a parked semi, 2) a ditch that is unguarded (though I must admit having a guard stationed at every ditch in America would solve our unemployment problem), 3) a ditch that wasn't lighted (sure is strange, every ditch I have ever seen has LED mood lighting at a minimum), 4)the gas station, 5) the City, 6) the State. What seems to be missing is any hint of personal responsibility. You were cited for careless driving and chose not to fight it, so as far as the insurance company is concerned you drove carelessly. Careless drivers are at increased risk of having more accidents, so a higher rate is certainly justified.0Views0likes0CommentsRe: Does an extra 6 inches matter?
flash82 wrote: ...get your mind out of the gutter..... Am talking about the areodynamics and towing characteristics of a 7.5 foot compared to an 8 foot wide. With things equal like frontal shape and height would there be much of a difference? Just a few inches more to stick outside the tow vehicle. It was a conversation we had earlier....just curious. It definitely matters in the gutter and if you are talking about a 30 foot long trailer, it means 15 additional square feet which you will notice. I would think the aerodynamics would be less important than the fact that that extra 6 inches makes the rig about 8% larger, and probably about 8% heavier, not insignificant. Personally, I would go with the larger, because square footage is always at a premium in an RV.172Views0likes0CommentsRe: West Yelowstone camping
I can't help with specifics for West Yellowstone, but I know that the park we stay at each spring at the North Entrance has complained for years that the concessionaires repeatedly hire people without telling them that housing and RV spaces are almost non-existent for those employees. They field dozens of requests for seasonal sites and the conversation ends when they explain that a seasonal site would be $1350.00 per month, if they had one to rent. Monthly rents for RV spaces near Yellowstone often run in excess of $1000, often well in excess. That puts it out of reach for the vast majority of workers. The trick is to get either an employee site provided or be placed at one of the parks where the concessionaires pay a large portion of the rent. That needs to be done upfront, I have never heard of anyone who got a site tossed in after they took a position. This thread needs to be a cautionary tale for people seeking seasonal positions at Yellowstone. Make sure housing or an RV site allowance is part of the compensation.473Views0likes0CommentsRe: what is reasonable profit for the dealer
Trap wrote: late bloomer wrote: Thank you all for the replies. I am doing my research, and this is part of it. My question stems from the fact that, after I did my research on a particular model, I made an offer, and was pretty much shown the door. No counter offer, no haggle, very much unlike any negotiating I had done for a car or truck. Since there is no "consumer reports" service available that I am aware of, I just wondered if there was some protocol that I violated in my negotiating. I know the dealer has to make some profit, but it's my money, and I'm kinda attached to it. I believe it's the dealers way of telling you that they don't think enough of your offer to waste there time negotiating any further. I agree 100%. For me to counter-offer on any offer, that offer needs to be a good faith offer to buy. If I have my RV for sale for $200,000 and someone offers me $75,000 they are not really making an offer to buy. I am not going to just start lowering my price until I think there is a chance that doing so will lead to a sale.593Views0likes0CommentsRe: Dog Owners - Need Your Suggestions
ALL dogs have the potential to be great. That being said, for RVs, if you want a medium/large dog, a Standard Poodle may be just the ticket. #1. They do not shed #2. They will draw attention at every stop. #3. They do not bark excessively. #4. They are very athletic, you will get your exercise #5. They are healthy as a breed. #6. They are friendly, social and generally won't scare the neighbors #7. They are rugged and will defend you if necessary #8. You don't have to have them cut to that pompous show cut. The downsides #1. They do require periodic clipping (usually 6 weeks will work) #2. They are very social and require a lot of interaction #3. They do need exercise #4. They are among the smartest of dogs and will test you constantly. #5. Like all dogs, they will pass away before you are ready. Finally, they truly believe they are better than you. You don't own them, they own you. And if you don't believe me, just ask one.430Views0likes0CommentsRe: Bouse 14 day camping enforcement
There is a stretch of road where there is never any enforcement of the speed limit. One day I was speeding down that road and got a ticket. Cost of doing business, not a greater conspiracy by the government to deprive me of my rights. Same here, broke the law and got caught.843Views0likes0CommentsRe: B.C. Parks fee increase
FULLTIMEWANABE wrote: Isn't it wonderful how we are all so different in our thought patterns, and how we all interpret or perceive things differently, and how much we can learn from looking at things from so many different angles that others share? We actually bid several years ago on a local PP we had a true love for having camped there for many years prior. It was to run for a 5 year period, and with full knowledge from the folks that had run it for the previous 15 years (3 x 5yrs) whom we knew very well and did an awesome job. They shared what costs and profits were being made and believe me it was a good chunk of change, which we felt we could have reinvested a portion of, tweaked a few systems, added a few extra $'s generating certain supplies, activities, and benefited the park for the people further whilst at the same time making a decent living doing something we had a true passion for. Being farming family backgrounds we are used to hard work and very long days, so no underestimation there of what would be needed effectively and to benefit a win-win. It was about hour and half from Calgary (million pop approx) in the middle of the prairies with a lake - kind of a little oasis in the dessert. No hook ups, issues with septic dump station area, we'd need to address and so on but still this older couple were making very good income, travelled south for 5 months in winter and they maintained it wonderfully. I have no problem whatsoever with the paying "a little more" "IF" it's to the benefit of the people and the tax payers that are already paying towards it indirectly, but it rarely ever is, and the amount of our wasted dollars is an absolute sin. Besides which what they say are their reasons for increasing fees rarely gets applied to that at the end, but gets diverted elsewhere has been most experience. As it turns out, looking back, we aren't sorry we lost out personally but like untold others we were very appalled that at least one of the other local Albertan residents bidding didn't get it for sure, being familiar with the area, what would benefit it, and who would spend most of their profits back into the local communities most likely. It was awarded to an out of province company that runs several other campgrounds in their domicile province, and was definitely a situation of who you know not what you know. Have no problems with anyone making a "fair" income to operate successfully but we are talking about supposedly the lands of the people here that rightly or wrongly we feel are starting to be exploited for large corporate gains. Bottom line is since then we've seen the prices go up exponentially (not at the same rate as inflation!), and more sites added to accommodate higher demand (right now!) for more profit. Knowing how the figures work out behind the scenes to a large degree at park level, number of staff employed and salaries, it's not about what's best for the people and future generations of the lands whom pay the taxes and accommodating them, it feels to us that it's all about how much more money can we bleed out of folks. Consider Kananaski's Country, it's supposedly PULZ (Public Lands) yet there's no random motorized style camping allowed even if you are the general rule of 1km away from a CG, nope you have to pay the $33 to just park on a piece of gravel in their MacLean Creek overflow area, and they will for sure make room for you at that rate! There's tons of suitable pullouts and places that would accommodate random camping, so that seems very unfair don't you think? USFS and BLM manages to allow it why don't we? $$$$$'s. Sure there are other public lands in way out places, but we have lost public access to more and more for random camping over recent years as they see another way to make yet more money at the expense of the people's enjoyment. All the creative accounting in the world which we can all do in any situation to show positive cashflows versus deficits, depending what we are trying to achieve, and their reasonings for hiking rates doesn't bode well with the locals that have done the appropriate research and realized where much wasted dollars are going. As someone else mentioned above they don't have to pay for the land, or property taxes, and due to size can bid lower rates on ancillary services, so how come the private CG owner that has to pay all those extra escalating costs can now more than compete on price we are seeing today and still survive with a small percentage the number of sites? I'm just struggling to get my head around it all no matter what figures or stats they throw at us. Bottom line is it's all down to the governments and what they decide we have to abide with or do without. Rightly or wrongly it just feels to us minions that, they just want to increase their salaries at the upper end to ridiculous figures, yet not gain a true handle on operating more efficiently, as I said before by implementing more accountability at local level through to various tiers upwards by encouraging better systems, processes and procedures. When it comes to governments or public bodies it's always their decisions in one form or another and the little guy on the street has no say, all we can do is pay our money and let the government make our choices. Would we make different assessments and assumptions if we were the fat cats at the top making these decisions which really wouldn't have much impact on our enjoyments at that salary level? As my father always said "words are cheap, actions speak louder than words". I can't help it, but all I can visualize in all of this is the single mother with two children, working a regular job, trying to keep a roof over their heads, clothes on their backs and food in their stomachs, whilst trying to scrape together enough money to afford a family weekend fun camp a couple of times in the summer, to create childhood memories, and miles of smiles that seemed to be a given way of life a couple or so decades ago in our National and Provincial Parks. We'd lend her our RV to help out but she wouldn't be able to afford the CG's fees to do it, when it costs her more for the night to camp in the wilderness than she pays rent per night for her all inclusive of utilities apartment. We all have 'x' amount of dollars to spend and will do so, it just makes a difference who's pockets and what country we will put it in at the end of the day. As always, this is just my probably totally wrong 2cents, which with inflation probably is not even worth a halfpenny today (LOL). Give that single mother the site fees when you loan her your RV and she will be set. Personally, I draw the line long before my tax dollars should be used to provide vacations. And, of course, I don't believe for a minute you or any one else is going to be loaning their RVs to strangers, so it is really a moot point.189Views0likes0CommentsRe: Who's Looking Out for Our Interests?
4X4Dodger wrote: Coach-man wrote: First, government is not your friend! If they get to involved, they will be telling you what to buy, and/or price RV's out of the reach of most people. Magazines get revenue from two sources, advertisers and subscribers. If you subscribe and do not like what they are publishing, letter to the editor followed by canceling your subscription will get the message accross. Knowledge YOU get will help you avoid problem manufacturers, if problem manufacturers do not start putting out quality products they will go out of business. It comes down to us as individuals to take the responsibility to do our dilegiance and educate ourselves before we buy. That should keep most honest! As the OP I did not suggest getting the government involved...I suggested a group to REPRESENT THE INTERESTS of RV owners and buyers TO government. However more to your argument: The government has been involved in regulating the automobile almost since it's inception. It is thanks to the government that we have seatbelts, airbags, anti lock brakes and many more improvements that are universally recognized to save lives... And last I looked there was no government agent outside the car dealerships telling me which car I could or could not buy.. Actually, they do tell you what you can and cannot buy. You can't, for example, import a foreign made auto that has not been safety certified (crash tested). The government imposes Gas Guzzler taxes on certain vehicles. The impose fleet mileage requirements on manufacturers. They place stiff tariffs on imported trucks. All that affects what cars and trucks you can and cannot buy. RVing is an outlier when it comes to personal transportation. It would be awfully easy for a bureaucrat to decide that no one really needs a 45 foot pusher designed for two people that gets 6 miles per gallon and then implement a taxation policy that makes them even more unaffordable than they are now, all in the best interests of the country. Does anyone really think that bringing the industry further under government oversight would really be good for the industry?470Views0likes0CommentsRe: We call him Sam
By naming him Sam, you have set a high bar for behavior on these forums. I think he is going to be required to be "Good" or you will be banned from further posts. (or at least moderated like me, which means at best you posts will appear a few hours or days after you actually post them)486Views0likes0CommentsRe: App for Propane Refill Prices in US
rockhillmanor wrote: Well "I "just got a news flash about propane prices when I went to order propane for my winter home in Florida. Propane prices to the consumer are determined by the SELLER. The prices range all over the place within each state and from state to state. I was shocked to find out propane is NOT regulated. :( One propane company wanted to charge me almost 5 bucks per gallon and another said 4 but that was what he called an introductory rate and the next tank would be over 4. I was paying $2 up north. :R http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_a_EPD2F_prs_dpgal_w.htm standard daily propane price per gallon http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_dcus_nus_w.htm Keep in mind these figures relate to what they pay wholesale. They can then charge the customer what ever they want. Free enterprise? Oh, the Horror. Wouldn't the world be much better if it was just governmentally mandated that the price was $5.00 a gallon everywhere? Then you wouldn't have to waste your time finding a good deal.3.2KViews0likes0Comments
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