[A/S] Courtesy parking and buying an Airstream

["Terry Tyler" <tylerbears@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Orin and Lois Score,

You asked where Pearl Main's courtesy parking site is located. If you are a WBCCI member, it's in
your Directory. If this will be your first Airstream and you aren't a member, I encourage you to
join WBCCI after you buy the Airstream, get the directory and look up where she and all those other
wonderful people live who offer courtesy parking to WBCCI members?  

Regarding your comment about having more than one Airstream; each of our Airstreams was purchased
when an unexpected opportunity knocked loudly and we answered quickly. 

Both the '77 31' and the '86 31' are used primarily during the Snowbird season. There are subtle
differences between them. Our changing personal needs determine which one we'll use each year. Even
though both Airstreams are solid vehicles and in mechanically mint condition, we'd sell or trade
either one of them for something else if we felt our needs could be better met with different
features. For us, an Airstream is a manufactured product constructed to meet the needs that
designers think humans have. When our needs change, we look for different ways to satisfy them.

Our '67 22' was purchased a few years ago from a friend. We've used it to scout a caravan, took it
on two caravans with the Vintage Airstream Club, and used it during a cross country trip where we
followed the Oregon Trail from start to finish. It has been used about 200 days and 10,000 miles.
Now that every mechanical system has been confirmed reliable and I've completely refinished all the
cabinets, we'll start looking at patterns and materials for changing the drapes, buying new foam,
upholstering the couches and replacing the carpet. For $500+-, everything inside will be fresh and
attractive to us. 

With that background as a preface -- In your note, you mentioned wanting to travel 3-4 months a year
visiting National Parks and other interesting places around the USA. During the 10 years before we
bought the '67 22' Safari, we used our '77 31' full time for the kind of trips you described. We've
almost completed our goal of visiting every USA National Park and never once did we have a problem
because the Airstream iss 31' long. Granted, there were occasions when I'd stand on the running
board of our Van, face the Airstream and slow dance it out the same way we came in, but that's a
small trade off for having the features in it that meet our particular needs. Because there are
advantages and disadvantages with every size RV, with every floor plan and with every variation in
features, it's up to each of us to decide what we want to do, what we can do, what we'll try to do
and what amount of effort, ingenuity and persistence we'll bring to the task. 

When you ask, "Do you think a 31 footer is too big for our intended use?" my reply is, "Not if your
needs are met and everyone is satisfied." To your second question, "Do you use your smaller rigs for
short trips because they are easier to tow or park?" my reply is, "The difference between towing and
parking the 22' compared to our larger rigs became insignificant 30 years ago." 

As for the smaller one being used for shorter trips, that's debateable. For us, it isn't the length
of the trip that determines which one we'll use, it's the nature of what we want to do during the
trip. There's a vast difference for us between a trip when we play tourist, when we are on the go
daily and when we just need a place to sleep and eat AND/OR a trip when we take our time, read or
write a book, swim a few miles in a 50 meter pool, do Christmas shopping and wrap presents, visit
relatives or just lay back. For the latter lifestyle, we'll take the larger Airstream every time. 

Another reason we have a large AND a smaller Airstream is we like variety in our life. We have more
that 100 years of camping experiences between the two of us and those include favorite places and
memorable activities that we like to revisit every year or two. 

In your fourth question, you asked, "Do you see any advantages in your '77 airstream over the newer
ones (wide body)?" 

My first thought is, "If I was going to buy only one Airstream, I'd look closely at those built
during the mid to late 80s when the economy was robust, when there was an abundance of experienced
craftsmen not quite ready to retire and when many labor forces were experiencing what has been 
affectionately called the cinderella years." 

My second thought is tempered by being the Editor of the WBCCI Full Timers Club for 7 years during
the time when the 1990's were built and receiving hundreds of letters from members experiencing a
wide range of problems, all of which were dumbfounding to me when I realized these owners had paid
dearly to purchase an Airstream. Seven years is a small window of time, but it was my window and I
was the one who received the letters (which I published in my "Letters to the Editor" column).
Enough said.     

So there you have it Orin and Lois Score from Lake Elmo, MN. This may be more than you asked for,
but that's the risk you take when you ask a question on this discussion group. 

Terry