Tag Archives: indy rv expo

January 4, 2017 · 11:52 pm

Winter RV Show Season Set to Begin

The winter RV show season is kicking off in many cities this coming weekend, and the 120,000 square foot Indy RV Expo in Indianapolis is one of them. Some of you long time readers may recall I’ve filled in as a part time salesman over the past few years for local Indianapolis dealers Braun’s Fun Time Campers and Mount Comfort RV. I thought I was going to be an “unsigned free agent” for this year’s show and just be a spectator until an opportunity arose this week to join Braun’s again on both weekends of the show.

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As most of you know, this website is not my full time job, and I don’t even make a regular living in the RV industry – I work full time in the retirement services division of a major insurance holding and  financial services corporation. So any time I get to escape the daily routine and talk to folks about trailers in person, I’m all over it! I enjoy writing and having you all read my ramblings, but helping dealers at these shows is a no pressure, rewarding venture for me that allows me to get out and help the industry grow. Granted, I like to think this website does just that as well, but talking to people one on one about RVing is one of my more enjoyable things to do. funtimesSo, for those of you in the Midwest looking to get out of the house, the show starts this coming Saturday, January 7 and runs through Sunday, January 15 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. I’ll be working at the Fun Time Campers corral both weekends of the show from open to close.  Braun’s is a dealer mainly of Riverside Retro, Winnebago Towables, and KZ travel trailers. They’re the same dealer we recently bought our Riverside teardrop from, so as was the case with my time working the show for Mount Comfort RV last year, I’m taking the angle of a customer selling for them as well. Honestly, a lot of folks don’t like dealing with sales people, so I try to convey to them my position as a fellow RVer. In some cases, that can tend to enable them to drop their defense shield a bit knowing they’re dealing with “one of them”.

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So aside from Riverside Retros, you can expect to see some Winnebagos there such as the Winnie Drop and plenty of KZ products, such as the Escape.

winnie-drop

escape

Even if you’re not in the market for a trailer and just want to see what Braun’s and the other dealers have brought out, I do hope you’ll hunt me down and say hello!

Pat

 

 

 

 

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January 24, 2016 · 9:49 am

Small sightings at the Indy RV Expo

As the winter months drag on, I’m sure a lot of you have hit an RV show in your region. I was fortunate to work at one in Indianapolis for a couple of Saturdays this month for Mount Comfort RV at the Indy RV Expo. Seven dealers packed over 200 RVs in the West Pavilion at the Indiana State Fairgrounds for the 9 day event. Here are some of the small trailer offerings that the dealers brought to the show. In case you didn’t see some of these at the show(s) you attended, here’s a little more for you to research. For ease of viewing, I’ve put the 5 of the 7 dealer’s photo above all the trailers that follow it. One dealer didn’t have anything small. There were a couple I would’ve taken at Camping World’s booth, but 3 of their sales people were standing in front of them, too busy watching a football game on an outside TV on a motorhome across the aisle. Their loss….they should’ve been working.

DSC_0620Braun’s Fun Time Campers

DSC_0570Winnebago Winnie Drop WD 1780

DSC_0585Winnebago Winnie Drop WD 1710

DSC_0571DSC_0573DSC_0575White Water Retro, Jr.

DSC_0577White Water Retro 177SE

DSC_0581DSC_0580White Water Retro 176S 

DSC_0614Mount Comfort RV

DSC_0587DSC_0588TAXA Cricket Trek

DSC_0590TAXA Cricket Camp

IMG_0583[1]Shasta Oasis 18BH

DSC_0591Palomino Palomini 177BH

DSC_0598Palomino Palomini 150RBS

DSC_0595Aliner LXE

DSC_0596Aliner Scout Lite

DSC_0615Colerain RV

DSC_0601Coachmen Apex Nano 172CKS

DSC_0603Venture Sonic 190VRB

DSC_0606Modern Trailer Sales

DSC_0604Summerland Mini 1700FQ

DSC_0607Springdale Summerland Series Mini 1800BH

DSC_0608Keystone Bullet 1800RB

DSC_0609Walnut Ridge Family RV Sales

DSC_0610Keystone Hideout 177LHS

DSC_0612Keystone Hideout 185LHS

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January 13, 2012 · 5:02 am

44th Annual Indy RV Expo

This past weekend we took the opportunity to attend the 44th Annual Indy RV Expo at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. We’re happy with the trailer we have, but we still like hitting as many shows as we can to see what new trailers are on the market. Then there’s also the fun of looking for our retirement rig, although retirement’s another 10-12 years down the road. Nevertheless, between now & then I’m still going to keep tabs on the offerings of our motorhome manufacturer of choice.

The show in Indy featured seven central Indiana RV dealers, each showing a plethora of travel trailers, 5th wheels, and motorhomes. These shows typically focus on behemoth towables, and this show didn’t “disappoint” in that regard, as there was very little there for fellow small trailer devotees. However, if you’re a lover of the venerable 14′ floor plan, there were three manufacturers that had their 14 footers on display.

There was a new unit on hand that did catch my eye. It is so new that it’s not even on the website of its manufacturer, Skyline RV. The Koala Super Lite Eco-Camp 18RB is an all aluminum framed, 2800 lbs trailer that overall was a nice little package. OK, I’m going against this blog’s rule of 20′ or less (the Eco-Camp is 21’9″), but it was the only thing out there that caught my eye. It’s also available from one of the other Skyline family of trailers, the Walkabout.

Overall, I was a little bummed out with this show. Fortunately it cost just $6 to get in, so I at least didn’t break the bank. I got word the show up in Cleveland also lacked anything small, so this show wasn’t alone. The Indianapolis Boat, Sport, and Travel Show is coming up in about a month, so hopefully I’ll have a little more to report on for us small trailerites .

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