Quartzsite RV show this week!

eeltinge · 01-16-2016, 05:15 AM

I am going to the Quartzsite AZ RV, rock and mineral, and Indian Pow Wow this week for the first time. I bought a new 2015 Winnebago ERA 70A last November, so I am not looking for a new coach. I do need help on satellite TV and solar panel purchases. Will there be seminars there or just sales booths? Is there dedicated parking near the Big Tent for B-class motorhomes? Is there anything in particular I should not miss? I will be there for 3 days. Thank you for any suggestions!

wincrasher · 01-16-2016, 01:59 PM

I highly recommend the Dish Tailgater. You don't need to mount it on the roof - helpful when you want to park in the shade and still want to watch TV.

Also with the service, it's month to month, no contract. You can use it for the season and have it off the rest of the year.

Davydd · 01-16-2016, 02:42 PM

I was at Quartzsite last February and will most likely go there again next month. January is the big month there but I know little about it. In February you have no problem finding campsites.

I'm not looking to buy anything and I like to avoid crowds.

mkguitar · 01-16-2016, 05:19 PM

Tracking systems are great if you need TV while on the road- overpasses or tree lined roads can interrupt the signal.

You have to pick a place to park with clear shot at the satellite- and on the systems I know care has to be taken to turn the tracking system off 'cause if the signal is interrupted the dish will continually rotate and maybe burn out a motor drive diode.
( my experience is with rock band tour buses).
Previous to these tracking systems, we would have a dish on a piece of plywood in the bay.
And when parked, with compass and smarts would point the dish at the sky while the other guy reads off the signal meter on the TV ( I later came up with a wireless headphone system on the TV so I could hear the beeps when aiming).
on the buses we have always used DTV.
I had dish at home years ago, but was frustrated that the introductory offers were 1/2 what i was paying...so I switched to DTV at home.
I am now looking to dump DTV, subscription costs have almost doubled and video quality has not kept up with cable/phone providers

In my RV I have a crank up TV antenna which gets me local channels ( tvtowers app for IOS)

Our $120 samsung TV from costco accepts a USB thumbdrive- I have hundreds of movies and tv series stored on the drive(s)- these can be watched anywhere, anytime.

I may cruise over to Quartzite and have a look. I am going to anaheim next week for a trade show and may stop on the way out or on the return to phx
Interested is seeing what is being offered.

Frankly, I'd always thought the quartzite thing was a bunch of cheap nuts tearing up the desert.

Mike

Davydd · 01-16-2016, 05:46 PM

Quartzsite has a lot of private campgrounds with various services mostly in town. North and south of town are BLM managed dispersed campsite campgrounds. The ones north of town are free and have no facilities, not even vault toilets. They do have a host who issues a pass to put on your windshield. The campgrounds south of Quartzsite are dispersed but longterm stay and there are some vault toilets, office, etc. There is a very nominal seasonal fee there.

We stayed at a BLM campground north of town about 2 miles away. You just drive around until you find a level spot and park in any direction you desire. There are loose rocks and many of them have been built up for fire rings. The few days we stayed there we were at least 200 feet away from the next nearest RV. They just sort of disperse that way voluntarily.

eeltinge · 01-16-2016, 09:05 PM

Regarding Quartzsite, I made a reservation at the Hampton Inn in Blythe (with a military discount) before I bought the Winnebago. It's 22 miles to Quartzsite. As all the best campgrounds in Quartzsite seem to be booked, I am going to motel it this time.

Regarding TVs, I received this email from Winnegard regarding their newest antenna:

The RoadTrip T4 (RT2035T) is another option. This satellite isn't available currently but should be within the next couple of weeks. Functionality wise it'll work the same as the RoadTrip Mission but it will be smaller. The T4 has a diameter of 14.3" and a height of 13.5".

I hope I can install it behind my roof air conditioner at the rear of the coach. I do have a lot of DVDs and a 18GB Verizon Jetpack for streaming Amazon Prime, but I love NFL/NBA and my wife has to have Bravo/HGTV!

avanti · 01-16-2016, 10:12 PM

If you are camping where you have Internet access, you can just get a Slingbox and use your home satellite (or cable) service. Works extremely well.

mkguitar · 01-18-2016, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by avanti

....Slingbox ....

This can require very good bandwidth at your location and very good upload bandwidth at your home...if your home upload is slow it doesn;t matter what your download speed is.

As an early adopter of sling I can say that this company has NO problems with forced upgrades of software or firmware which may disable your system or reduce functionality.

They have a record of not supporting legacy ( older products) and I think that current owners ( dish) look forward to new customers, not back to existing customers.

they are moving to a subscription basis- rather than selling hardware which allows the owner to view home programming ( sat/cable)...this gives them monthly $$

I have a useless slingplayer sitting in a box...it don;t work no more due to changes at the mothership ( "this device unrecognized" ) and a forced update.

mike

avanti · 01-18-2016, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mkguitar

This can require very good bandwidth at your location and very good upload bandwidth at your home...if your home upload is slow it doesn;t matter what your download speed is.

As an early adopter of sling I can say that this company has NO problems with forced upgrades of software or firmware which may disable your system or reduce functionality.

They have a record of not supporting legacy ( older products) and I think that current owners ( dish) look forward to new customers, not back to existing customers.

they are moving to a subscription basis- rather than selling hardware which allows the owner to view home programming ( sat/cable)...this gives them monthly $$

I have a useless slingplayer sitting in a box...it don;t work no more due to changes at the mothership ( "this device unrecognized" ) and a forced update.

mike

I have not had the same experience. I have several very old Sling devices that still work just fine. Not sure what the difference is.

I also disagree about bandwidth. Watching HD takes a lot of bandwidth, it is true. But one of the reasons I recommend Sling in particular is that they have industry-leading adaptive compression. That is, they will gracefully degrade the resolution to match conditions -- whether upbound at your home or downbound at your campsite. We have always been able to watch video even with connections that barely supported web browsing. Crappy video, yes, but always watchable.

I liked Sling better before they were acquired, but it is still a viable technology, and in some ways it is best of class.

mkguitar · 01-25-2016, 04:01 AM

stopped in at quartzite on my way home from a music trade show in anaheim. 90% of the vendors are of the kind that show up at every fair/swap meet etc.
40% no relation to RV's- 30% some RV application, 30% RV centric- lots of rv park time share type offers

I will say that much of the electrical stuff was off-brand, and anything I might have recognized from camping world/walmart- like camco stuff was priced high I thought.

same old bbq/burger/hot dog vendors as anywhere else.

worthwhile stop to stretch my legs and refill coffee.

"show" ended this evening- some of the vendors said they were off to another "show" in the bay area

quartzite has 3 gas stations and usually priced 10~15¢ better than the other stations to the East and West

Mike

eeltinge · 01-25-2016, 07:23 AM

I spent just a half a day at Quartzsite RV show. No manufacturers or seminars. Mostly non-RV related products pushed by commissioned sales people. Had one salesman jump out into the aisle to sell me a bracelet to cure "my arthritis." Too much flotsam and jetsam. Just like hunting/fishing shows now. Pity!

wincrasher · 01-25-2016, 01:00 PM

They must eek out a living off the suckers or this nonsense wouldn't continue.

Mike · 02-01-2016, 01:10 AM

It's a bizarre little oasis, in the middle of nowhere, that had the feel of a fairground, but when we passed through back in September 2011, the carnival had moved on and there was nothing much around except a few full timers in the LTVA campgrounds, and a lot of tumbleweeds and dust. Still, I can say I've been there, and gassed up at the PFJ truck stop. That was an experience I'd like to forget, including dodging the panhandlers wandering around the pump islands.

Mike · 02-01-2016, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eeltinge

I spent just a half a day at Quartzsite RV show. No manufacturers or seminars. Mostly non-RV related products pushed by commissioned sales people. Had one salesman jump out into the aisle to sell me a bracelet to cure "my arthritis." Too much flotsam and jetsam. Just like hunting/fishing shows now. Pity!

So, it was more like a flea market? I've been to a few RV shows put on by MARVAC over the last 3 years out this way, and there's almost always a gauntlet of "non-RV related products" booths or tables to run, before you actually get to the gauntlet of RVs and their associated sales people. Everybody's got to make a living somehow, I guess.

eeltinge · 02-01-2016, 05:10 PM

According to the TV show "Big Time RV", the average RV purchase is $120,000. This is as much as a S-class Mercedes! Yet so much of what we encounter in the RV world, be it private campgrounds or shows, treats us as if we have no money or tastes. While all members of society fortunately are able to RV, for the majority it is a luxury item that costs more than their average car. Your would think we would be catered to in a better manner.

When I take my 2015 Winnebago ERA to a Mercedes dealership for chassis service, I am given a free new C-class loan car. The porters offer beverages even during the immediate service I receive from the service writers. I am text messaged with the status of ongoing repairs, service is completed in 1 day, and the coach is immaculate upon pickup. At my Winnebago dealership, none of this is true.

I have reached the point as I travel CA, OR, and AZ that I either stay at a state campground or Walmart. The private campgrounds are adequate at best, or just asphalt parking lots. My wife would rather we camp at a Hampton Inn! The RV travel industry doesn't seem to support the manufacturer's products. The experience is not middle class, much less upper middle income, or affluent. I wonder what the A-class owners must think when they park their beautiful rigs in even Good Sam 10-10-10 campgrounds. They look out of place and receive mediocre service to boot.

We baby boomers constitute the majority of society and have the majority of the disposable income. Quality, service, cleanliness, and value are more important than price. Why are we treated like 2nd class citizens?

Mike · 02-01-2016, 06:11 PM

Sad but true far too often. Once the cheque clears, the service and willingness to go the extra mile to maintain the vendor/customer relationship vanishes at a lot of places. And it's not just in the RV arena, either. That said, I've mostly found in 7 years of travel across North America, that the overall customer service experience is still far better on average in the USA. I (and my commerce $$$) get treated with much greater respect by those responsible for the customer service role south of the 49th. Even the technicians I've dealt with seem more involved in the customer service experience and try to make the relationship as pleasant and stress free as possible. Not as true here in Canada, sad to say. Probably why we spend more of our travel time in the States. I believe that there are people and companies in the US who realize that they are in constant competition on a daily basis, who are also trying to build and maintain relationships with their clients, that will last a long time, and result in much sought after repeat business.
We rarely stay at commercial campgrounds, preferring NPS parks, State parks, and then the usual smattering of boondocking places like Walmart, truck stops, Welcome centers, rest areas, etc....

wincrasher · 02-01-2016, 07:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eeltinge

According to the TV show "Big Time RV", the average RV purchase is $120,000. This is as much as a S-class Mercedes! Yet so much of what we encounter in the RV world, be it private campgrounds or shows, treats us as if we have no money or tastes. While all members of society fortunately are able to RV, for the majority it is a luxury item that costs more than their average car. Your would think we would be catered to in a better manner.

When I take my 2015 Winnebago ERA to a Mercedes dealership for chassis service, I am given a free new C-class loan car. The porters offer beverages even during the immediate service I receive from the service writers. I am text messaged with the status of ongoing repairs, service is completed in 1 day, and the coach is immaculate upon pickup. At my Winnebago dealership, none of this is true.

I have reached the point as I travel CA, OR, and AZ that I either stay at a state campground or Walmart. The private campgrounds are adequate at best, or just asphalt parking lots. My wife would rather we camp at a Hampton Inn! The RV travel industry doesn't seem to support the manufacturer's products. The experience is not middle class, much less upper middle income, or affluent. I wonder what the A-class owners must think when they park their beautiful rigs in even Good Sam 10-10-10 campgrounds. They look out of place and receive mediocre service to boot.

We baby boomers constitute the majority of society and have the majority of the disposable income. Quality, service, cleanliness, and value are more important than price. Why are we treated like 2nd class citizens?

Unfortunately, many of our RVing bretheren, who spend considerable money on an RV, are notoriously cheap when they travel. The service you get is commensurate with that mind set. It's like when a waitress thinks you aren't going to tip them, your service isn't stellar. Until people demand better, and are willing to pay for it, I don't expect anything to change.

eeltinge · 02-01-2016, 07:55 PM

1. Since I'm in the Coast Guard, I've found military to be clean, safe, and cheap. Navy has beautiful beaches, but Marines too rough (to be expected).
2. Indian excellent in Phoenix, but passed on Parker AZ and Pechanga CA casino campgrounds.
3. NFL/NASCAR are my next investigations. San Chargers require everyone tailgating to have purchased tickets to the game. I wonder if LA Rams new stadium will be the same. Guess I'll have to become a season ticket holder!

mkguitar · 02-01-2016, 10:36 PM

1.) maybe you don;t want to camp in Inglewood ( I lived in Inglewood a mile North of there late 80's).
you'd have to drive a few miles to find a supermarket even.

2.) interesting in that the FAA has already protested- we went through that in PHX, they even started the hole in the direct flightpath...than had to stop and relocate 15 miles.
in these days when they make you take off your belt- how smart is it to put a stadium w/ 100,000 people right in a flightpath.

mike

avanti · 02-08-2016, 04:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by avanti

I have not had the same experience. I have several very old Sling devices that still work just fine. Not sure what the difference is.

I now see what the difference is. I note that some of the Sling mobile apps have newly-introduced backward-compatibility problems, which I agree is pretty annoying. Since I mostly use the old OSX desktop app, it didn't affect me.

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