By Jeff Johnston

Motor Matters

Americans have the freedom to enjoy choices of all kinds in almost every area of life, and how they spend their recreational time is right up there in choice priority. Of all the ways we can spend leisure time, doing so in a recreational vehicle, or RV, is a terrific way to go.

RVs are enjoying an almost record-breaking upsurge in popularity. The number of travelers in RVs is increasing as users discover the joy and fun of RV recreation.

Sadly, some of this RV rediscovery has been inspired by the events of September 11th. Instead of flying to a chosen destination, many users are opting to drive an RV instead. It takes away the security worries and leaves the user feeling in full control of the situation, something that’s lacking in airline travel. If anything, an upside to Sept. 11 is that families and many individuals are drawing closer together, and it’s hard to beat an RV for enjoying that closeness.

Families are discovering that an RV is a great “together time” tool. From travel and exploration excitement by day, to sitting by the campfire at night and regaling each other with the days’ adventures or telling ghost stories, children carry fond memories of RV trips for years to come.

The variety of people met in campgrounds helps expand kids’ horizons and exposes them to potential new friends from across the country, and around the world, judging by the number of foreign visitors who rent RVs for U.S. travel.

Unless you stay in an expensive resort, when you wake up in an average hotel, you have a view of the parking lot or the businesses next door. When you wake up in an RV, you smell the campfire and the forest, or desert, or ocean air, and can enjoy the best of mother nature’s scenery. That first cup of coffee by the fire as the early sun burns the chill from the air and the fog from the meadows is hard to duplicate in a motel. Aesthetic considerations aside, from a strictly practical standpoint, an RV is a great vacation-enhancing tool.

A big vacation can be surprisingly affordable in an RV. The cost of driving in a family car, staying in hotels and eating in restaurants, can often be offset by going in an RV, staying in campgrounds and eating many meals using the RV kitchen. While the higher fuel expenditure caused by the RV’s lower gas mileage can be a concern, the freedom and flexibility of an RV makes that expense factor seem less important.

Although some are aimed specifically at couples and retirees, many RVs are designed with families in mind. Most have sleeping facilities that can easily handle two full-size adults and four, or more, children or young adults.

It’s no longer necessary to own a big pickup or large sedan to tow a functional RV trailer. Many trailers are now smaller and specifically aimed at being towed behind midsize vehicles such as compact pickups, minivans and SUVs. While these towables have shrunk in size, new design elements such as the highly-popular fold-out full-size end beds mean the unit is small on the road, but big in living space when camped.

Due to historically low interest rates, this is a highly affordable time to buy an RV. Dealers are always anxious for your business, of course, and the extra incentive of low interest rates for RV loans is icing on the cake.

Fortunately, it’s not necessary to buy an RV to enjoy a fun RV vacation. Numerous local and nationally-based RV rental companies make it possible to find rental RVs of all types virtually anywhere in the U.S. For more information about RV rentals, contact the Recreational Vehicle Rental Association at 703/591-7130, www.rvra.org. Many local RV dealers also have RVs available for rental, so it’s worth checking the listings in your yellow pages. A Google search on the Internet of RV rentals will also produce numerous results that can point you in the right direction.

As an example, the initial $800 to $1,300 cost of renting a Class C motorhome for a week may seem steep, but it’s cheap compared to the cost of buying and owning an RV, and it compares favorably to hotels and associated expenses for a similar automobile vacation.

For general information about a wide variety of RVing subjects, and for leads to Trailer Life magazine, MotorHome magazine, the Good Sam Club – a sort of Triple-A for RVers – go to www.rv.net or phone 303/728-2267.

Yes, it’s a great time to go RVing, and the resources and vehicles available today make it easy to get onboard and join the fun.