The search

We have accumulated a lot of camping gear over the years….  We started off using a small tent and sleeping bags while travelling camping on the motorcycles.  Over the years the equipment has changed to be more user friendly.   Cots with air pads on them, summer weight and winter weight bags, tent large enough for all the gear and so on.

We were going to camp on our 2015 summer trip but where we were going (outside Sedona) it was over 100 degrees and the tent is just not comfortable for that weather.  The trip cost us a lot extra to accommodate the need for comfort.  So we started talking about a fifth wheel.  The Beast was already fully equipped to tow when I bought it, including a fifth wheel mount and all the factory wiring.

So in our usual fashion we started doing online research on new models (2015/16) from all the manufacturers that we could.  This morphed into us going and trolling the sales centers…..at least one dealer knew us by name!

We spent countless hours walking the lots, talking to the dealers, the maintenance guys, the repair folks, and salesperson after salesperson.  We joked that they were going to get restraining orders against us.  Any time of the day and in any weather we would show up.  It’s fall and winter here in western Washington so it’s dark early and probably raining.  Didn’t matter, we were there.  We went into almost every product that is represented by the dealers here.  We wanted to gain every scrap of knowledge about the products. We sat in the chairs, laid on the beds, opened every compartment and asked a LOT of questions.

We decided that the layout we prefer at this time is a rear kitchen design, and couple of slides for room and under “30” feet (more about length later).  So we found a couple ideal units in the new category at our local dealer and as you know, no one pays full MSRP for any RV.  So the prices were a lot lower than the sticker but we really want to hold off for a couple reasons. ….

E says she wants a structure built to house the unit (wouldn’t you know it, my shop only has 10 ft clearance) before we buy one…..add 25k to the acquisition cost.  And in the meantime we start looking at used units…..R.P. says she would like a “starter” RV…..I hunt and fish and go to the beach and I can hear the question now about a brand new unit……”You brought what dead critter inside?”…So yeah, a used unit would probably be best for right now.

We looked all over the western half of the state for a used coach that met our needs and found one 2 hours away in Vancouver, WA.  We drove down there and looked it over, thought about it for a couple days and made an offer which the owner accepted.  On a very, very rainy day in December we became the owners of our very own 2008 Forest River Sandpiper 295 RGBS.  We towed it home in a storm that had R.P. looking pretty wide eyed in the passenger seat.

The beast and it’s tag along.