Tiffin Rally - Orlando

Our first RV rally! The Tiffin Allegro Club was holding a rally in Orlando and it seemed a good way to learn more about our coach and meet other RVers with similar coaches. When we found out that a new friend we met last month in Gaffney, SC was attended we elected to sign up and join him. What the heck, it was being held fifteen minutes away at the Central Florida Fairgrounds. I could even keep my dentist appointment!

We have never been to an event like this and the logistics amazed me. Two hundred and sixty coaches were to arrive and needed to be parked in the same day. Volunteers arrived ahead of time, had everything set up, and guided the coaches into position with little trouble. We were in the block designated to arrive between 1:00 and 3:00. Coaches wishing to be parked together had to arrive together, so we coordinated with Jerry to pull up at the fairgrounds at the same time. We both arrived at 12:55 and as it turned out we were very fortunate to get parked in the very last row of the main group of coaches. I say fortunate because we ended up with a very nice lake view instead of looking at neighbors across the way.

 

Getting in was not entirely without issue. Water hookups were scarce, and people were running hoses great distances to get to a faucet. We heeded instructions in the pre-rally packet and filled our water tank before arriving, so it was not an issue for us. Electrical power, however, was crazy. We knew to bring a 50 to 30 amp adapter and an extension cord, but for the group of about eight coaches in our section the outlets were typical household 20 amp outlets! Half of the outlet boxes on the pole were charred black and not functioning. It was a scramble as everyone juggled for a place on the pole with a working outlet. Those that did not have adapters for the three prong household outlet had the additional burden of finding one. Once everyone was settled in that pole looked like something out of a “What Were They Thinking” YouTube video. In the end the power was adequate thanks to cooler weather reducing the draw of multiple air conditioners.

Days were spent in seminars and checking the wares of the vendors that had come. I managed to get a few things like a flagpole holder and LED bulbs to change out the majority of the bulbs in the coach that were not already LEDs. Some of the seminars were just vendor sales pitches, but others provided good information. One of the best was a pet first aid class.

Meals were busy events as you can imagine since there were close to six hundred mouths to feed. The caterer had plenty of food, so no one went hungry even if they arrived a little late.

Barbara was unable to stay the last night since she was leaving at 4:00 AM to travel with her grandniece on a school trip to Washington, DC. Our current golden retriever foster and I were left to spent the last night together and break camp the following morning.

Bella crept out of the bedroom and found her own space

All coaches were required to leave by noon, and I thought that it would be a madhouse as 260 coaches headed to the exit at the same time. Reality was much different. I never noticed more than a half dozen coaches lined up at the exit at any one time.

I was impressed with how well the entire event was handled. I was also pleased to find so many friendly people. Everyone seemed to be enjoying him or herself, particularly the Le Mesa RV sales staff. Each evening at dinner they announced the couples that bought coaches that day. Over the course of the rally nearly twenty coaches were sold!

The Tiffin Motor Home Company provided another nice benefit. Technicians worked long hours every day of the rally providing up to three minor repairs on each coach – FREE! Thank you Tiffin!

Would we attend another such rally? Perhaps, but it would be dependent on the location and ease of access. Driving out of our way to one will most likely not happen. Not that we did not enjoy the rally, or that the rally was not run well, but because we prefer our gatherings to be much smaller in size, or focused on a specific activity of interest such as May’s rally in Moab with the FMCA 4Wheelers.

Bill and Barbara with new friends and solo travelers Jerry and Linda

We would like to thank the Tiffin Allegro Club and Tiffin Motor Homes for putting on a wonderful, well-run event.