I am the owner of a HUGE 5th wheel. My wife loves it, (tons of room...and a washer/dryer) but it is a bear to pull. I have admired the Airstreams for years and in the past year or so have enjoyed this site so much! I love the sense of community that you folks have and the friendships that seem to develope. There seems to always be a mini rally, caravan or a big rally somewhere. Not to mention all the smaller clubs scattered all over the place. We always camp alone. Our brand of trailer does not have clubs in our area. I am tired of it and lonesome. To the point...I can't convince my wife that we would enjoy this lifestyle. She says she does not like the Airstream trailers (yes...I have taken her to see them) and try as I might, I can't get her swayed. I KNOW we would love it if I could just get her off high center! Any suggestions please!
Carl, my wife goes nuts when she sees some of those pictures of the interiors of the fifth wheels in Trailer Life. As a matter of fact this month's current issue has one with 5 slides and weighs in about 15,000 pounds. Needless to say it is like a house inside. To make matters worse she reminds me that this 5th wheel costs less than our 30' Classic slide out. I shake my head up and down in acknowledgement and say yes but we have an Airstream. Because she loves me and a good marriage means compromise sometimes, I'm allowed to continue to have my "toy".
Interestingly enough my trade in for the Classic was a 27' '01 Safari. When I brought the Safari up to the dealership there was a couple with an almost new 5th wheel with slides waiting for me to get there. The dealer knew the condition of my Safari and these folks ended up buying it before I completed the process of removing the Reese dual-cam sway control off the trailer.
In their case the reasoning in trading was the fact that the 5th wheel was too big for them and the wife couldn't reach the top cabinets. In this case I think the woman of the house was the deciding factor. Bottom line the folks are happy with their decision and we received an email from the new owners several weeks after their purchase telling us how pleased they were in buying the Safari.
One alternative to you if the Airstream is out of the picture, is to consider joing the Good Sam club. There are many local chapters that you could hook up with and in many ways these folks seem to operate a lot like the local WBCCI units.
Regards,
Jack
__________________
Jack Canavera
STL Mo. AIR #56
'04 Classic 30' S.O.,'03 GMC Savana 2500,'08 Vespa GTS 250
Carl, how about if you and your wife join a local Airstream rally with your 5er so that she could see what the PEOPLE are like! I'm sure that a unit wouldn't mind having you there for an event as an SOB (Some Other Brand).
Lynn
I am the owner of a HUGE 5th wheel. My wife loves it, (tons of room...and a washer/dryer) but it is a bear to pull. I have admired the Airstreams for years and in the past year or so have enjoyed this site so much! I love the sense of community that you folks have and the friendships that seem to develope. There seems to always be a mini rally, caravan or a big rally somewhere. Not to mention all the smaller clubs scattered all over the place. We always camp alone. Our brand of trailer does not have clubs in our area. I am tired of it and lonesome. To the point...I can't convince my wife that we would enjoy this lifestyle. She says she does not like the Airstream trailers (yes...I have taken her to see them) and try as I might, I can't get her swayed. I KNOW we would love it if I could just get her off high center! Any suggestions please!
Carl
I feel your pain I was there once. However, I was out trailer shopping with my wife and we had a chance to go into an Airstream. My wife took about thirty seconds and pronounced that "it is an Airstream or nothing". I was lucky, because my wife saw the construction quality and value of a Airstream at first glance.
I would say don't give up, tour some of the bigger units with pop outs.
Try and join a WBCCI rally and meet the people, it's quite amazing who you meet. Most people will see what it's all about in time. Tell you wife, that I for one would be happy to chew the fat about Airstreaming with her. We could trade stories about the ups and downs of trailer ownership.
Anything to help a fellow Airstreamer, even if only in Heart. That's what it's all about.
Thanks to all that have given me some input on my "problem". The Good Sam Club is definitely an option. I just like the Airstream and the way Airstreamers think. I know you all understand. And yes, we must give and take in the relationship. I am definitely not going to just go out and do something on my own, but I am not giving up! I do want to try and get into some local Airstream rally and let her experience that. Thanks again for taking the time to respond! I appreciate it!
Check out a few new Airstreams or go to the factory if that is an option. Surely you will get a feel to see if its something you both can live with.
To us (Brandi and I), and this is not to project on others, but when we camp, we like having some basic amenities, because when we camp, we feel that we don't need to bring the exact contents of our house with us as we feel it defeats the purpose of "camping". Of course, by no means do I suggest that folks really rough it, or go the tent route, but to the two of us, it's always been about getting away from it all in some small way. The Airstream not only allows us to do just that, but also do it in style (with a few extras). I have nothing against the big 5th wheels...I think they are really neat, but as I see these HUGE monsters making it down the highway, I often find myself asking "is this really camping?" To some the answer is yes, to others, the answer is no. I suppose that is part of the question you'll have to ask yourself.
Now if you full time, then all bets are off, but if this is an RV to be a weekend warrior or a few weeks out of the year (2-3), then I think you'll be very happy with an upgrade to and Airstream. Less weight depending on size and features, better road manners, and basically the best darn campers and folks around. We've made lots of Airstreamin friends in the short 2 years we've been streamin' and I consider all of these folks good friends that I look forward to seeing and hearing from....one bi-product that I hadn't considered once we got into this whole thing.
Keep the 5th wheel and the wife - but ponder an addition. Have a second trailer - your dream A/S. It could be a cute little bambi or ccd or you could restore an old one. You could take it fishing!
Stock it with the best gear you can find, down comforters, high thread count sheets. stemware, really great groceries, your wife might learn to like it too.
__________________ 77 Argosy Minuet, 6 metre | 77 Argosy 24, Rear door AIR # 3181 | WBCCI # 5575
Carl, you say that you have been visiting the Forum for a while and enjoying the conversations of this community. Have you and your wife ever sat down to pull up the day's posts and browse through it together? Maybe she would enjoy the support, humor, and good fellowship found here and be more drawn to the icon that bonds us all. Best wishes, and keep posting!
__________________ maxandgeorgia 1995 Airstream Classic Limited 30' ~ Gypsy Chev Silverado 2500HD Duramax/Allison, 4X4, Crew Cab WBCCI #5013 AIR #2908 WDCU Go, Mizzou...Tigers on the prowl!
Carl,
Airstream did make a fith wheel at one time, it is not the classic aluminum shape ( though that has been done too with somewhat dubious results) Problem is I think they only made them for a couple of years, but the one or two I have seen were very nice and high end. If you could locate one of those you could have the AS community and your wife would have the 5th wheel See how simple life can be?
Aaron
__________________
....so many Airstreams....so little time...
WBCCI #2449 AIR #2495
Why are we in this basket...and where are we going
I am the owner of a HUGE 5th wheel. My wife loves it, (tons of room...and a washer/dryer) but it is a bear to pull. I KNOW we would love it if I could just get her off high center! Any suggestions please!
Buy an Airstream 5th wheel.
It is called an Integrity, and they show up from time to time for sale.
Terry
Quick Links
Buy an AS 5'ver? 
See how simple life can be? 
Linear Mode
