The rain won’t be going away for a few days so it is once again a chance to bloviate. Okay folks, don’t scorch me for the recent and future “Rainy Day Bloviating” articles – direct your dragon breath toward the USAF. How’s that for an opening? Seems like I owe you an explanation. Okay, gather around – it’s story time. The other day we checked-in at a MCG, went to our site and set up as we usually do. After I completed my major outside setup tasks, a very likeable gentleman approached me and broke the ice by saying something like: “You look like you know what you are doing, you must have been doing this for a long time”. That was the beginning of an eye-opener dialog for me. During that first conversation, and subsequent ones, we spoke briefly about a variety of subjects. Now is probably a good time to mention why I am telling you about this encounter. That likeable gentleman is no longer at the MCG, but that interaction with him and his wife enlightened me. If you ever encounter a similar situation, which I will talk more about in this article, you will realize that there are people out there that need or want help and/or information. Some will ask for it, others will remain silent. But this gentleman sought information and was not afraid to ask for it. What I found so interesting was the background information shared during that initial conversation. That gentleman is a retired USAF pilot, had a bucket list item for quite some time, to purchase an RV and travel with his wife to enjoy the sights throughout the country at ground level. He didn’t say it, but I believe keeping his feet close to the ground will give him a different appreciation for the beauties of our country’s treasures, much more than he had while flying at high altitudes. For simplicities sake, let’s name that gentleman Mach 1 (aka: M1), (are you curious about Mach 1 name?) and the other half of the team Mach 1 Extended (aka: M1E). It was obvious to me that M1 and M1E worked together for a few months to establish their goals, RV knowledge base, what type of RV type would meet their intended needs, and most importantly, all the financial aspects of RV ownership. After all the decisions were made, they purchased the RV, minus the tempting luxurious bells and whistles, from the dealer of their choice and brought it directly from the dealership to the MCG for a familiarity and shakedown cruise (flight?). I was impressed with the apparent planning and research, so much, that I began to wonder why they went through such a meticulous effort. After they left the MCG I realized what the motivation was for such a thorough research undertaking. Our son is also a pilot and he has on occasion reminded me of two mottos: first, “He was born to fly, but forced to work”; Secondly and most important, “Pilots have to make the correct decision 100 percent of the time”. The latter motto is probably imbedded in a pilot’s brain and explains why M1 & M1E are confident that they made the right decision. They did their homework, then followed through on the decision they can live with. I wish them safe travels. Based on meeting M1 and M1E, I am encouraged to offer my RVing knowledge and skills to help others to enjoy the pleasures of the RV life style. Not only will I offer my assistance in the MCG, I will also contribute to others by writing a series of articles (Rainy Day Bloviating) for posting on this website. I will begin by providing subjective information, that I’ve learned from experience, relating to the topics I discussed with M1 and M1E. I do not have to be alone with this effort, I don’t have all the answers, or for that fact – maybe the right answers, but maybe between all of us we can cover a lot of the bases. Get involved. Semper Fi.
