RV Drivesmart Blog Posts

To turn or Not to turn, that is the question

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 18:58:18 -0400

A problem that many people have when they drive a motorhome is to know when it is OK to turn. There are several ways to establish reference mark that can help you determine when you are clear to make that turn. Here are a few hints:
The key to know when to start a turn is knowing where your vehicles �Pivot Point� is. The Pivot Point is defined as the fixed point on a vehicle at which the vehicle rotates around in a turn. On a two axle vehicle it is the center of the rear axle. This means that if an object, for example a tree, is located at the center of the rear axle or behind, you can turn toward the object and not hit it. If the object is ahead of the Pivot Point and you turn toward the object you will hit it.
What I do to start is to take a traffic cone, or something you can easily see, and lay it on its side pointing at the center of the rear axle. I then set in the driver�s seat and see if there is a reference point along the sight line from where you are looking in the mirror, normally the spot or convex mirror, to the point of the cone on the ground. I have experimented with several different types of markings.
On my motorhome the exhaust pipe on the driver�s side is almost perfect. On the passenger�s side there was nothing that stands out, so I put a piece of electrical tape on the awning arm along that sight line. I have also tried putting marks on the mirrors. If you have side cameras you could put marks on the screen. I have even heard of people using old fashion suction cup darts to mark their Pivot Point.
Which one is best is the one that works for you and you are most comfortable with..
When you come to a corner or object do not start turning until the corner or object is above your reference mark, which means it is behind your Pivot Point and the rear of your coach will be swinging away form it.

To learn more about driving a motorhome pick up a copy of �Drive Your Motorhome Like a Pro�, the book by Lorrin Walsh, or the DVD by Mark Polk and Lorrin Walsh, available at http://RVDriveSmart.com

Planning an RV trip to Alaska

Mon, 25 May 2009 18:49:17 -0400

There are a lot of things to consider when planning a trip to the great lands of the north, Alaska and Yukon Territory. Do you want to drive both ways? Drive one way, ferry the other? Ship your RV?, Fly-drive? Cruise-drive?, Rent?, I could go on and on about the options. The following excerpt from �Rambling by RV Through Alaska and Yukon Territory�, by Nyla Walsh can help you make that discussion.
The more you put into planning your trip to Alaska, the more enjoyable your trip will be. I am not talking about planning your trip hour by hour, just the overall basics. One of the first things you need to understand about Alaska is its size. When we were on the road promoting cruises and cruise tours to Alaska and Yukon Territory, one of the analogies we used was a road atlas. It is something that everyone is use to using. Have you ever noticed that every state fits a page? And some of the big states even get 2 pages? The one we used as an example gave Alaska 1/2 page! Alaska is 1/5th the size of the lower 48 states and has more coastline than all 3 coasts combined. You will find that distances between points will be further and take longer than you might think.
First you must decide on what you want to see and what modes of transportation you will take during your trip. For many folks a cruise on one of the many luxury cruise ships that leave from Seattle or Vancouver is their first introduction to what is waiting for them up north. Cursing to Alaska is the most scenic cruising in the world, but you will only see 1% of Alaska and none of the Yukon if that is all you do. Cruising coupled with an organized land tour is a good way to experience the Great Land without the concerns of going it on your own. It gives you a taste, without the worry.
There are many other ways to travel, such as, fly to Anchorage or Fairbanks and rent a RV for your adventure. Some folks will cruise one way rent a RV for a week or two and then fly the other way. If you have your own RV you could choose to drive both directions, take the Alaska State Ferry one way and drive the other, or ship your rig via Totem Ocean Trailer Express, known as TOAT, and fly or cruise to or from. If you decide to ship your rig via TOAT you would need to deliver it to Tacoma, Washington or Anchorage, Alaska. There are also organized caravans that will do all the planning for you, such as your itinerary including all your campsites, some entertainment, and there is a Wagon Master to keep everything going well and provide information to make your trip more interesting. By the end of the trip you will have made lots of new friends too. We talked to several people that bought a smaller rig just for their trip to Alaska, to save ware and tear on their primary RV.
Being that Nyla and I have both worked cruise ships and cruised to Alaska many times we wanted to concentrate on the land portion of the north. The organized cruise tours and land tours can give a good over view, and an excellent way to visit the Great Lands for the first timers, giving you a better understanding of what you will want to go back to see on your own. For us, there were those special places that we would like to stop at and stay forever, figuratively speaking. When I planned our trip, I laid it out in one-week sections of about 600-800 miles. That would allow us to travel an average of 150 miles a day and have 2 extra days to use as we wished. I did not want to have any fixed time schedules to meet, but as our plans progressed, a few did creep in. [1.] our son flew in to meet us in Anchorage for a few weeks of fishing [2.] we made reservations in Denali National Park to ensure that we would get to camp in the interior of the park and [3.] our overnight hotel stay in Deadhorse. Sometimes we did not use the extra days, but there were times when we got some place that was just too nice and we stayed longer, because we did not have a, too tight schedule.
A word to the driver! Remember if you slow down and follow the rules of driving on adverse roads, your rigs will come back in good shape. The stories you hear of rigs being shaken to pieces on the roads up north don�t have to be the norm, if only you will pay attention to the conditions!

To find out more about traveling in Alaska and Yukon Territory pick up a copy of �Rambling by RV Through Alaska and Yukon Territory�, by Nyla Walsh. It is full of interesting information, stories, history, facts, and a few laughs along the way. Available at RVDriveSmart.com.

Using Spot or Convex Mirrors

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 12:08:46 -0400

The spot or convex mirror is probably the most under utilized piece of safety equipment that people have on their RVs. Most people do not understand the most effective way to use them.
I find after talking to people that spot mirror is not used to their full potential. Most people only use them when they are making a tight maneuver, and not using them during general driving. Think of you spot, or convex, mirror as an early warning device. They should be checked every time you check your flat mirror, which should be about every 8 seconds. 30% of the hazards that you encounter when driving come from the rear. Things will show up in the spot mirror sometimes several seconds before you detect them in the flat mirrors. This will give you additional time to take whatever action, if necessary, to avoid an incident. During driver training, in controlled conditions, we will cover the flat mirrors and make the student drive using the spot mirrors only.

Another thing that I have noticed is that when people install those stick on spot mirrors they generally put them in the wrong place. Most people will place them at the outside lower corner of their mirror. What they are doing is robbing them the use of the most important part of the flat mirror. When you look at the inside lower corner of a side mirror you will usually see the side of your vehicle. If you install the spot in the inside lower corner you will not change the view of the spot enough to notice and you will still get the maximum view from the flat mirror.

Learn more about how to set and use mirrors and many other heplful hints in the book �Drive Your Motorhome Like a Pro� available at RVDriveSmart.com.

Our summer adventures, The Book.

Sun, 05 Apr 2009 18:13:25 -0400

Our summer adventures, The Book.
Nyla had teased you with the idea that she might be writing a book about travels in Alaska, Yukon and all places north. Rambling by RV Through Alaska and Yukon Territory is at long last finished and has been released on the market! You will want to get one before you head out on the road this season. Whether you are going up north to Alaska�s Last Frontier or somewhere closer to home, you will enjoy her book and all the stories she tells. It is not your typical travel log as you will travel along vicariously with Nyla and Lorrin as they hit the highway north. As you read about their adventures you just might fall in love with traveling the bumpy highways of this Great Land. Rambling by RV Through Alaska and Yukon Territory is for everyone who has gone to Alaska, wants to go someday, or just enjoys traveling from the comfort of their armchair. Between the covers of her book you will find: Adventures * Hints * Stories * History * Recipes * Sketches * and even a few laughs.

Order you copy today at http://RVDriveSmart.com

Enjoying Denali National Park

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 23:51:22 -0400

Take time and adventure into Denali NP, you won't br sorry
Our adventure into Denali National Park, unique in so many ways, with few trails and one road, 90 miles long and the tallest mountain in North America, Mt. McKinley at 20,320 ft. You must take time while visiting if you want to have a chance of seeing all that is here. You can�t just drive through take a few pictures and drive out again. As a matter of fact you can�t drive through the park, as most of the park is closed to private car traffic. So how did we get to drive in, you may ask? Plan ahead! That is the key here. You should make reservations months in advance. Check out the National Park website that�s what we did. You get to drive into the campsite and then out at the end of your stay. We stayed 4 nights, (not long enough) 29 miles into the park, at Teklanika River Camp. The park has a wonderful bus system that will get you where you want to go. They are trying to keep vehicle traffic to a minimum for our viewing pleasure and the wildlife�s peace of mind. While on the subject of wildlife, most people come to the park to see grizzly bears, moose and the mountain. Many go away disappointed because their expectations were too high. They are missing the total experience, there is so much more to do and see. First I say, stay awhile, get out of your vehicle and into �their� environment, take in what is around you, slow down, listen, breath in. While we were in the park we saw a good number of animals including the Grand Five moose, grizzly bear, dall sheep, wolf, caribou plus the mountain and bugs, yes, by the way, there are mosquitoes. Please do not worry about them, I know you have heard that they are as big a 747 airliner and they could carry you away, but we only ran into large numbers of them in two places in the park. We were prepared with head nets and repellant, they did not even try to carry us back to their dens for dinner. Even my fear of bears did not keep me from taking hikes along the river and through the woods. When you go remember to take in a few interruptive talks and hikes with the rangers. They will enhance your experience and they are fun too!

Chasing the Silver Dragon

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 20:34:22 -0400

Our next adventure takes us along the oil pipeline North to Deadhorse.
Our next adventure takes us along the oil pipeline from Livengood (yes that is the name of a community in AK) to Deadhorse (yep Deadhorse is right) (Prudhoe Bay) and back to Fairbanks, 828 miles round trip on the Dalton Highway. Alaskans have a sense of humor when it comes to their highways. Many of their numbered highways are not even paved. In the case of the Dalton, Hwy 11, it is paved 25% of the way. That means 555 miles of gravel roads. We had a great time and there will be many stories to come, about this trip, but for now I have some advice for you. When planning a trip such as this, do your homework. Be honest with yourselves are you capable of changing a tire, taking care of yourself if need be and are you ready for a long, bone jarring ride for you and your rig? It is advised that you take extra fuel and two full sized spare tires mounted on rims as well as a CB radio and emergency supplies. We read up on the trip and followed the advice given. We talked to people that had driven the highway, Alaskans and tourists alike, most just turned pale, got a glazed look in their eyes and shook their heads, �Don�t do it!� was the common answer. This road was built to service the pipeline and is used mostly by 18 wheelers and heavy equipment as well as hunters and a few brave souls that want to see what�s there. If you �Drive Smart� and follow a few common since rules of the road you will have a great adventure. Take your time, don�t try to do it all in a day, you can�t! Read the road, mud, dust, washboard and potholes are waiting for you. Give the working rigs respect, they know the road and will travel faster than you. When it is safe pull over and let them pass. Slow down when you see oncoming traffic. This prevents your rig throwing rocks at oncoming windshields. You hope that those coming at you will do the same for your windshield. Don�t stop in the middle of the road when checking out wildlife and scenery, find a safe pull out. We took 5 days and could have stayed longer. We did not take our mortorhome all the way, instead we parked it at Coldfoot (yep, I am not making up these names) and drove the rest of the way in our tow vehicle, stayed overnight at a hotel in Deadhorse before returning to our rig the next day. I will save the story about swimming in the Arctic Ocean and others until next time.

A Big fish story

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 23:46:00 -0400

Nyla's fishing adventure on the Kenai
A Big fish story
We dedicated some time to fishing with a little sightseeing thrown in on the Kenai Peninsula. Our son is here for, the sport of fishing, the chance of hooking the �Big One� on the Kenai River, the river of Kings. Joe Connors, Big Sky Charter and Fishcamp, Sterling, AK, set it up for us. We had an incredible time. The camp was right on the Kenai River situated at one of the best fishing holes. They were catching Rainbows, Dolly and Kings off the banks of camp. It was exciting just being there. We could sit on the deck by the river and watch, who would think that fishing could be a spectator sport? We had an all day boat trip planed so went to bed early as we were to be on the river bank at 5:30am ready to push off with Ryan our guide. OK, with that big build up, did we catch anything? You know that they call it fishing not catching? Well this story has a mixed ending. At the end of the day, Wayne had landed 2 nice Rainbows 2 & 5lbs. (took pictures and released them) and had lost a big King. As luck would have it, I got the big fish, a 40 pound 42 inch King, (took the picture and KEPT it), also a rainbow pan size and a Dolly Varden about 3 pounds (took the picture and tossed it back). Now I am not saying that I had the best skills. That fish got into the boat in spite of everything I did wrong. In fact I thought I had hooked the bottom. Now I am here to tell you, I am not the fisher person and I would be willing to bet money I would be the last to catch a fish like that, but I did. Here is the dilemma though, on one hand I wanted to shout and jump up and down for the excitement of it all, but felt restrained because Wayne had not boated his fish. As his mom, I would have given anything to have the story reversed, have Wayne catch the big one, some days are like that. He had other great fishing adventures while he was with us and we did do a flight into Wolverine Creek for some bear watching and sockeye fishing. The fish were not interested in being caught. The bears on the other hand showed up, both Black and Brown Bears, I am glad to say the bears were not biting! We got some good pictures.

Monitoring your tires in the digital age

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 13:51:00 -0400

In this digital age don't get your self rapped up with too much information when monitoring your tires.
With the introduction of digital interments the trend is to move to the more accurate gauges. They are great, easy to read and give precise reading and many people say you need to use them to get more accurate readings, but before you start using one you need to think about a few things. Your objective is to keep your tires properly inflated for optimal safety and wear.
Your are not driving a racecar where minute changes are critical for optimal performance. You are driving an RV, which is a dynamic load. The weights and balance are constantly changing. Fuel, water, groceries, and yes, that beautiful rock or piece of drift wood that would go great in the garden.
You should start by weighing each wheel and see what the load is. You may need to adjust things around to even the load and keep it within the limits show on the Manufacturer�s data label, usually found near the drivers door/seat area. . The tire manufacturers also put out tables that give the recommend inflation pressures per the load. This will give you the optimal inflation pressure. If you do not have the manufacturer�s tables, use the maximum inflation pressure molded on the tire sidewall.
As always check the pressure when the tires are cold and use a good quality gauge.
A good indicator of how things are going is to monitor the tire temperature. Some people will tell you that you need an infrared temperature gage to do this. But when you use something that reads that accurate stop and think before you start to make adjustments. Have the warmer tires been in the sun all day? Did the road have grooves warn in it? There are many things that can have an effect on tire temperature. The best tool that I have found to monitor tires during the day is �Your Hand�. When I stop during the day or at the end, I take the back of my hand and feel the sidewall of each tire. You don�t need to know if one tire is 1* warmer than another, just are they all about the same. Generally they will feel warm. If you find one that is hot you had better go back and recheck your pressure when it�s cold. I also rub my hand across the face to check wear and check each hub for temperature.
I have a saying: �The more accurate the interment, the more un-obtainable the goal�. Keep it simple, don�t �Techno� your self to death.

Drive Smart, Drive Safe,

Lorrin Walsh

RV Education 101 Teaches RV Consumers How to Drive a Motorhome Like a Pro

Sun, 15 Jun 2008 05:11:00 -0400

When most people were taught to drive they were just taught the hows and not the whys. Teaching the whys or the mechanics of driving gives you the tools and skills you can apply to any vehicle or any driving situation. The purpose of this video is to help instruct you on how to drive your motorhome like a pro.
Fayetteville, NC � June 2008 -- RV Education 101, a video and RV Information Company releases a new DVD titled, Drive your Motorhome Like a Pro. In this video, hosts Mark Polk (RV Education 101) and Lorrin Walsh (Professional driver & author of Drive Your Motorhome Like a Pro) provide the tools to help the RV consumer drive their RV like a professional driver. That means professionalism developed by the ongoing awareness of driving motor coaches, and the execution of unique driving techniques needed to become a safer and a more confident driver.

Mark Polk stated �Driving a motorhome, especially for the first time, can be very intimidating. The truth is with power steering, automatic transmissions and great visibility, almost any experienced driver can quickly adapt to driving a motorhome. The question is; are you driving it the right way? Lots of people have been driving motorhomes for many years without a real understanding of the dynamics and driving techniques of driving a large vehicle.� Drive Your Motorhome Like a Pro is a complete video guide to professional driving techniques for beginners and experienced drivers. It takes commercial driving training techniques and converts them to layman's terms, and it explains basic rules you can apply to any vehicle you might drive.

Polk goes on to say, �Out of the fifteen instructional DVD�s we offer, this is probably one of the best titles to help educate the RV consumer on such an important topic. I have always felt that driving a large vehicle, like a motorhome, requires some additional training above and beyond your typical automobile. I thought I knew a lot about driving large vehicles, but by the time we finished this project I realized there was a lot I didn�t know.�

Drive your Motorhome Like a Pro includes charts & hands-on instruction covering basic definitions, pre-trip inspections, setting the mirrors, seat position, steering, reference points, transmissions, driving, backing, braking and a bonus chapter on improving fuel efficiency.

Dawn Polk, co-owner, added, �We don't want RVers to be overwhelmed with their new RV lifestyle. Our goal with all of our products is to teach the consumer all that we can to make their RV experiences everything it should be, SAFE, FUN and STRESS FREE. RV owners can review our RV training videos as many times as needed.�

In addition to being available on DVD www.rveducaion101.com , Drive your Motorhome Like a Pro is available as an instant download too at www.rvdownloads.com

Pre Trip Inspection

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 01:47:28 -0400

Doing regular inspections can save your trip
As a commercial driver I am required to do a Pre Trip Inspection before I drive a vehicle. I am also required to do a Mid Trip and a Post Trip Inspections in the middle of the day and at the end. Even though it is not required to drive my motorhome, I carried this practice over to my personal vehicle and it has paid off.
When I went back to the east coast to film the DVD version of my book I noticed during a Pre trip that after a few days I noticed that I was loosing some coolant. Only a little at first, but then one day the level was way down. Cause turned out to be a broken hose clamp, which when leaked, sprayed on the exhaust manifold, which evaporated it so there was no visible leak.
We are now on our way to Alaska. I again noticed at Pre Trip Inspection that the coolant level was down, just a little. During a photo stop I did a Mid Trip Inspection and noticed a few drops of liquid on the font axle. Further inspection found another broken hose clamp, even though I had them inspected by the repair facility when the first one broke.
The moral of this story, by doing regular inspection, I saved a breakdown out in the middle of no where, and the possible loss of an engine, which can really mess up a trip.

Lorrin