We just wrapped up another fun time at the 102nd FMCA Rally in Perry, Georgia. The weather was perfect, the people were friendly and most importantly right now, the safety measures worked smashingly.
We were in for a busy week this time. Mark was a golf cart driver covering four shifts and we were presenting two seminars. We arrived Sunday so Mark could attend the golf cart driving safety class. We joked a lot about this. He’s an experienced golf cart driver since he’s golfed most of his life. Let’s just say there are many wild and fun ways to drive a cart on wet grass and I’m happy to report Mark was a good and safe driver. He had his mobile speaker playing music taking requests from riders. He also offered up flamingo sugar cookies. It’s a funny story on the cookies. Last time in Perry, there was a Tiffin meet & greet potluck and I brought a huge tray of cookies. This year, I decided to bring decorated flamingo sugar cookies but, the organizers decided not to come to the rally. I made them anyway and gave a tray to the FMCA staff and the rest Mark got to offer to his riders all wrapped in cellophane. I am a little sad he didn’t give them all out on his first shift. Another casualty of the pandemic I guess.
I was a little nervous, okay a lot nervous, about the seminars. I ran through the presentations so many times. I knew I could do it. What I didn’t know was how they would be received. Did people really want to learn more rally boondocking tips? Was I going to completely fail in the cooking seminar? Would their be way more empty chairs than occupied ones? I talk with my hands, would I be able to hold the microphone and slideshow clicker still the whole time? These thoughts and more danced in my head in the days leading up to the rally.
Monday and Tuesday were pretty quiet. The parking crew was worked non-stop parking everyone. Mark had his safety class and I practiced. The morning temps were perfect for some good cardio. Tuesday evening there was a much smaller, outside and properly distanced get together. It was a bring-your-own-everything kind of thing but, since I struggle arriving empty handed, I made a quick batch of brownies. I always have brownie mix in the RV. People we’d talked with via social media were now new friends. It’s one of the best parts of attending a rally.
Everything ramped up Wednesday, day one of the rally. I ventured over to the seminar for first time attendees to get some pictures. I wandered through the vendor buildings checking out all the new “must haves” for this year. I sat in on some seminars and took lots of pictures. Before Mark’s driving shift we checked out the two seminar rooms. One was really big, the other was a good size for me. We counted off the paired chairs for a better idea of how many handouts we might need. While Mark was shuttling people around the fairgrounds, I checked out the new RV’s because it’s always fun to dream, right? I walked into the Tiffin area and had my fangirl moment with Mr. Bob Tiffin. He is such a nice man and so accommodating. Comedian Jeff Allen was the night one entertainment and kept us laughing. Walking back to our RV after the show, I remembered that we wanted Bob to sign our cabinet. Odd to many, it’s a Tiffin thing.
Thursday was an early morning since Mark was driving the golf cart from 7:30-9:30 and it was the first day of 8am coffee and donuts. It’s been a really popular event in past rallies, and I was pleasantly surprised at the number of people that came. The volunteers really make the rally and the donut volunteers were no exception. They had bags and bags of donuts to hand out with a smiling face, you could see their happy eyes and knew they were smiling under their masks. The Frustrated Maestros played music while people sat at small tables or in spaced chairs. It wasn’t the “hang out” event of previous rallies, most people took their donut bag to-go. I’m hoping maybe the next rally might be closer to rallies we remember.
When Mark got back to from his driving shift, we removed a cabinet door and hustled on over to the RV section to get it signed. We were the only people there and had a nice little conversation with Bob. He asked us about our old coach and our new one, what we liked best about each. When talking with him, you feel like you’re talking to an old friend.
I went to a solar seminar since our new coach came with three panels, this is was more of a “buy our product” seminar but the questions were interesting. Most of them centered around battery life in cold weather. I figured I was the only one with a hot weather battery life question so I waited until it was over and asked one of the employees. He talked about how well the batteries perform in his neck of the woods and told me how hot it got in his area, all of 90 degrees. Nope buddy, that isn’t near hot enough for my question, that’s just spring.
Thursday was also seminar day. Alrighty, here we go.
Our first seminar topic was about rally boondocking or short-term boondocking. The goal was to give tips and tricks for short dry camping stays like at FMCA rallies. We also talked about other great places to dry camp like at the beach, in the mountains, in the desert, at races, festivals and other events. Thankfully, we had a good turnout. Several people arrived early and got to watch us set up. About 10 minutes before the start time, there were still only 15 people. I joked that this might be an intimate affair and maybe we wouldn’t even need the microphone. All of a sudden, there were over 50 people! We talked about power management, tank management, water saving tips and more. Before I knew it, we had completed the presentation. The attendees asked great questions which became members helping members. It was a nice thing to watch, RVers helping fellow RVers. It was time for a huge exhale as we packed our stuff.
Fridays at rallies are especially fun. The day starts with coffee and donuts, as does everyday of the rally. On Fridays, though, it’s also Magic Mile day. The Magic Mile is a one-mile event that was started at the Minot rally in 2019 and is a fundraiser for local charities in the host city. It’s a great day to start your day when you can walk, run or ride and at just a mile, a lot of people join in the fun. We walked with Meagan, our camping neighbor and fellow seminar presenter. She presented two seminars on solo female RVing. We raised $1,200 and Jon Walker, our FMCA President got to present the H.A.L.O. Group with the big check.
Up next is the cornhole tournament, always a fun time and, say it with me, a great place to meet people and make new friends. We’re not done yet! The ever popular ice cream social is the perfect after lunch dessert! Like everything else, it was a little different this year. Cheerful volunteers offered chocolate or vanilla ice cream in single serve containers. I wandered about the room, watching the Frustrated Maestros before finding a spot to eat my sweet treat. This is one event I hope bounces back at the next rally. I have such fond memories of it at the 2019 Perry rally.
The clock chimed and it’s seminar time!
Our second seminar was on RV Cooking using the Micro-Convection Oven and Instant Pot. We arrived at the seminar room 45 minutes early and started to walk in the rear side door then stopped, thinking the earlier seminar was running long. No, those were people already sitting in their seats for our seminar. We talked and joked with them as we set up. Mark was excitedly handing people their handouts and their pen. When several refused the pen, I whispered to him to let them pick their own pen, darn virus. As the room filled, it got warm and Mark jokingly asked if there was an HVAC person in the house to adjust the air conditioner. Standing at the front, I was amazed that all these people were here, to hear us talk. Overwhelmed might be a better word as we closed it off because the room was full.
Our goal was to help people feel more comfortable with their micro-convection oven in their RV and to help unlock some of the Instant Pot secrets. We walked through the keypads of two popular RV micro-convection ovens, including the different options of each. We talked about four easy recipes for the oven that would help jump-start their confidence. Then we moved onto the Instant Pot, a popular cooking machine that has it’s own idiosyncrasies. We went through the pot, starting with all the buttons and their functions. After that we talked about all the cooking parts that come with it and different parts we can’t live without. This was a very active group and they shared different gadgets they can’t live without, it was awesome to see the collaboration. We shared and walked through four recipes including an appetizer, a main dish, a side dish and a dessert for them to try.
Afterward, several people came up to talk, ask questions and take pictures of the steamer basket, my favorite IP gadget. I didn’t have the answers to some questions but told them I would do some digging to find out. I also whipped out my phone to look up the gadgets they told me about to check out later. The silicone trivet and pressure release diverter were two things I really wanted to try. We packed up, wiped down everything we touched and let out a big exhale. Every seat had been used, every handout was gone. We did it, our first rally giving seminars in person was done.
Friday night entertainment was a highlight for us as we are big Josh Turner fans. Mark was behind the wheel of the golf cart and I decided to join him. We still had cookies and I decided it was my job to cheerfully hand them out to our passengers. I had so much fun riding with him as we chased down people walking, offering them a ride. I say chased but really it was riding slowly up to them. We chatted with many riders, some gleefully took cookies while others passed. One huge perk of working the golf cart shift leading into the concert was the reserved seats we had. We haven’t had seats that close at a concert in years. Josh talked about this being his first live performance in a year, how the masks hid enough of our faces so he couldn’t tell if we were smiling or scowling under them. Our seats were grouped in pairs, like they were in every building. Our cheers were muffled by our masks but it sure felt good to do something normal after a year. It was a fabulous concert, one I could have stayed all night at.
We hoped back in the golf cart to take people back to their campsites. Everyone we picked up raved about the concert, how fun it was and how it felt good to be at a live show again. They also raved about the rally and how happy they were that they came.
Yeah, the numbers of attendees and vendors were reduced but all in all, FMCA staff did a fantastic job putting together another successful rally. You could tell they’d put many hours into every single detail. I’m sure they also ran every scenario over and over again as they prepared. If you watched any of their Facebook Live events, you saw their preparation first hand. The last Perry Rally we attended there were around 2,500 coaches, this time there were 1,362. Last time, almost the entire giant green field at the East Entrance was full, this time it was totally empty. Aisles were wider and one-way, chairs were set up in pairs with lots of space in between. I don’t think I’m alone in saying that I felt very comfortable. However, I will be one happy camper when we can all be together seeing smiling faces and giving hugs again.
We’re excited to see you in Gillette in July!