Return To Red Bay, Part – Whatever . . .

At this point in our almost 4-year RV lifestyle, Red Bay, Alabama has become a home-away-from-home for us. Obviously, because our Tiffin Open Road 36LA was built here, but also because it's the best place to get both warranty and post-warranty service done on our home. The large Bob Tiffin Service Center has seen our coach about 3-4 times since we picked it up, and lots of third-party vendors have had their hands on our home a couple of times a year, or when emergency services are needed.

A few times it's been to fix problems that have arisen, and sometimes it's just upgrades to things that we wanted or needed (usually wanted – by me). Nothing earth-shattering this time, but we had annual chassis maintenance and generator service performed before embarking on our big summer trip with our grandson, Jace; an upgrade on our Over The Air (OTA)antenna in an attempt to bring in more broadcast channels while on the road which is yet to be determined as to any benefit, and a small area of mold that had developed underneath our Diamond Shield protective covering on the front of the coach that needed to be removed.

Everything, as usual, was done quickly, professionally and with typical Post-sale Tiffin quality. It's why we come back here instead of putting our motor home in the hands of others who just wouldn't do the same quality and expertise we get from the Red Bay area.

Our new friends, Walt and Lanie, who we met at our previous campground at Whitten COE, arrived in the site right next door to us during our stay here, and we helped them through their first-ever experience in Red Bay. It can be a bit confusing for any Red Bay first-timers, and we've done things so often it's become second nature to us. They'll be leaving here a few days after us, completely happy with the experience and the work that was done on their new-to-them Tiffin Phaeton.

But this lifestyle is one that brings new experiences to Barbara and I each and every trip, and even things in Red Bay can be new and exciting sometimes.

While at Piney Grove COE - two campgrounds ago - a couple of guys had stopped by our coach while I was standing outside. As usual, that paint scheme of ours always catches the eye, and occasionally the banner across our windshield proclaiming “Parental Parolees” can be a conversation starter as well.

Jon and Barrett represent High 5 Productions, a company working with Tiffin on advertising and marketing initiatives. Among other things, they do photo shoots of product for upcoming brochures, and have been working with Tiffin's new marketing director to develop a marketing campaign of “Tiffin Stories” where a few select owners sit down and relate their experiences with Tiffin in general, their service, and life on the road experiences.

Long story short, after speaking with them at Piney Grove, they loved our story, and for some strange reason thought we'd be good candidates to do a proof of concept video interview when we arrived in Red Bay a few weeks later. So the day before we were ready to leave here, Jon and Barrett are at our RV, multiple cameras set up showing off our unique color scheme, and we're sitting down with “dead cat” microphones (so named for their furry heads that block wind noise) pinned to our shirts, answering questions and relating our stories. I had taken the time a few days earlier and given the coach a good wash and wax, so it looked pretty spiffy for it's closeup.

Now, for everybody who knows us, I have no problem at all speaking in any situation whatsoever, from one-on-one encounters with people to a room-full where I'm presenting a product or concept. Barbara, on the other hand, thinks a camera is evil and something to be avoided at all costs, as evidenced by the lack of pictures of her on this blog over the past 3 years.

Yet there she was, sitting comfortably in her camp chair, delightfully giving her impressions based on the questions being asked! I looked over at her at one point with a “Who are you and what have you done with my wife?” look, because things were going so smoothly.

With Barbara!

In front of a camera!

Finally, the session ends, Jon and Barrett proclaim that they hope that everyone they find would be as good as we were, they shoot some “B-roll” shots of the RV and focus on Grover – whose big screen debut included coming down the steps and immediately peeing on the ground during a closeup . . . of course. Then it's a couple of drone shots and Jon and Barrett are done. They are genuinely nice guys who make you feel at ease, and I hope this proof of concept gets a boost and rolls out with other couples. Frankly, it was fun doing it.

A final still from the drone, with Grover mugging for the camera in Barbara's seat. He's very photogenic!

 

So now it's a quick trip back to Georgia for a 5-day stay at Bolding Mill COE on Lake Lanier, some socializing with a couple of friends, and then we get Jace for his vacation of a lifetime!

Much more to come as we travel to the Northeast for the next 2 months. Stay tuned!