I just tell folks I have a travel trailer. If they inquire further, I tell them I have a 40 year old Airstream. I think its hard for them to think that someone with a 40 year old trailer, regardless of the brand, is a snob.
In a campground full of tents and popups any trailer is going to stand out as pretty elite ....
In an rv park full of motor coaches a Bambi looks (and is) mighty modest ....
... then again - there was that time we were parked in the middle of a bunch of Prevosts - I'm pretty sure those folks were green with envy as they eyed up our 19 feet of opulent over-the-top luxury .... I do hope we didn't lord it over them too much ....
Jay
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Bambi - 2002 (The Toaster)
Pathfinder - 2003 (The Buggy)
I had to make the post above while I was on lunch break, so couldn't go on in-depth. When I call to make reservations and the place I am going has a "10 year rule", when they ask what year and make my trailer is, I tell them it's an Airstream, without elaborating on year. If I meet someone at the place we're staying, I tell them it's an antique Airstream. When someone at work, or "out and about" is conversing, I just refer to "our trailer" or "our travel trailer", and only go into details if asked.
Jack and Craig have much more self control than I. As someone who's only recently been out and about with our Globe, I tend to swing open the door to anybody who so much as smiles and asks what year it is.
The way I see it is: most people tend to be on the shy side, keep to themselves. So if they made the effort to talk to me in the first place, it was most likely out of genuine interest. I'd rather err on the side of being that friendly "ambassador" Wally encouraged everyone to be rather than leave them wishing they'd found out more.
I guess my point is that if you aren't proud of your hobbies, and happy to share your enjoyment with the rest of the world... you may not be the ideal candidate to have a 25 foot long tube of aluminum attached to your car in the first place.
I can't tell you how many times I've heard, "Do they still make those?" or "I didn't know they made slide outs." or "Do you mind if I show my wife your Airstream?" Others campers are usually curious about our Airstream and we're happy to be gracious hosts and/or tour guides. We've always enjoyed looking into other folks trailers as well (especially Airstreams) as if to return a compliment. No snob or embarrassment factor here.
HAPPY TRAILS
I guess my point is that if you aren't proud of your hobbies, and happy to share your enjoyment with the rest of the world... you may not be the ideal candidate to have a 25 foot long tube of aluminum attached to your car in the first place.
I've learned not to discuss my hobbies with my co-workers, they all think I need to be in a straightjacket as it is. The few times I've talked about them (the hobbies), I get that "looking at a weird bug" look, and they find an excuse to hurry off to do something more interesting, like trying to lick an electric fence...
If jealous SOB owners think you "paid too much" for your AS, they may not understand the false economy of owning some of the SOBs out there. By the time they replace a fallen-apart, disposable SOB every X number of years, they may have very well paid just as much as if they invested in the longevity of an AS in the first place.
As well, even the better built Avions, Streamlines and Silver Streaks; longevity pays for itself.
This topic was covered in "Am I an AS snob? Are you?!". I found the earlier thread and this one very interesting. With everybody out there being what I would consider great ambassadors, how can anybody think we are snobs? Whenever I see anybody pause or stop and gape at our trailers I make it a point to make the first attempt at conversation. Some have only a cursory interest while others are truly interested and want to know more about the Airstream brand. We have made countless new campground friends with our trailers and I hope it continues, they make a great icebreaker. As I said in the previous post in the other thread, we always keep a stack of Airstream brochures and our RV dealer's business cards on hand to give out to anybody that is interested.
I think reactions can be classified as interest in the Airstream name and trailer or interest in something totally different to somebody's eye. This past weekend we were camped with four other SOB's. One of the guys that we camp with owns a truck wreck shop. They had gotten a Holiday Rambler mobile home that was all but totaled. Well they are the kind of folks that are always re-engineering things and they basically grafted a Mack truck front end onto this Holiday Ramber body. It was done well and makes for quite a unique looking RV. Well they were parked in the site next to our Airstream and people would slow down and look at ours, but their jaws dropped as soon as they saw the "Mackstrosity" (as they call it ) and most of the conversations and questions were directed at them. So I think a great departure from the white box SOB really draws fellow RV'ers' attention. All week long my friends were ribbing me that my friend, Shane, was stealing my thunder. We all got a good laugh out of it. And I will make sure that he never parks the "Mackstrosity" next to our Airstream again.
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Carl, Elaine & Bailey Beagle
2006 30' Classic W Slide & Limited Package
1987 34' Excella 1000
2006 GMC 2500 HD 6.6 Turbo Diesel Crew Cab 8' Bed
AIR #14487
WBCCI #7429
Many of the people we meet on the road or who walk up to our campsite have had an Airstream experience one time in their life. We hear comments like, my uncle used to take us camping in one of these or I used to sleep on the front sofa. Since my Airstream is vintage, it brings back a lot of happy memories for many folks. Never have we been looked upon as elitist, we are very far from it.
people don't think i'm a snob.on the contrary ,they find my hobby absurd.this includes my wife's opinion as well.there is nobody i know who has a clue.alas, i camp as a lonely guy.hot dog for uno........i take that back.the ones who will camp with me truly are absurd ,so i never do camp with them.pithetic is it not?yuck yuck
Snobs?..Jeeves please fold down the step so I may enter the Silver Palace...now what were we talking about before the interruption? Does extending one's pinky at Tea Time in the afternoon constitute 'snobbish' behaviour...I think not...
It just cracks me up to think that other campers may think we are snobs because we own an Airstream - let them eat cake!
Speaking of prices...It's interesting to note that our 1978, 28 ft AS Ambassador cost about $18K with some options when new, according to the OR's papers that were stuffed inside the manuals.
In 1977, we paid about $17K for a brand new 24ft, Ford Class C (Field & Stream) MoHo with AC and generator. We still have the MoHo in the back yard, and it's wood frame shell is falling down around itself!
There is NO comparison between the two, and I suspect that the new AS one buys today that's about the price of current Class C rigs, will outshine and outclass them for years to come, also!
I'm afraid that if we're to be labeled 'snobs' because we tow a shiny silver cocoon around, we can handle that!
I guess that means we'll have to leave our 'ground crew' at home from now on, and they won't be able to wash and blow dry our camp site before we get there...damn, next, someone will point out we use Irish Linen on the park bench and that the Champagne bucket is wrought silver to match our rig!
I guess that means we'll have to leave our 'ground crew' at home from now on, and they won't be able to wash and blow dry our camp site before we get there...damn, next, someone will point out we use Irish Linen on the park bench and that the Champagne bucket is wrought silver to match our rig!
Maybe the true test of snobbery is if we wear white shoes while camping before Memorial Day or after Labor Day.
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) and most of the conversations and questions were directed at them. So I think a great departure from the white box SOB really draws fellow RV'ers' attention. All week long my friends were ribbing me that my friend, Shane, was stealing my thunder. We all got a good laugh out of it. And I will make sure that he never parks the "Mackstrosity" next to our Airstream again
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