58th Escapade

For the second year in a row we were the co-coordinators of the Escapade along with John and Lora Newby. It was a very busy, but fun filled two weeks with all the preparation in the week before and then the actual event.  The Escapees are an all welcoming group for anyone who has an interest in the RVing lifestyle. It does not matter what kind of rig you have or even if you don't own one. Parked near us was a young lady who had flown in from Alaska and rented an RV for the rally. Across the road from her was a motorhome that cost well over a million dollars. There were even two people who were staying in tents. All are welcome to join the Escapees RV Club.

This was the first time we have attended an Escapade in Sedalia, Missouri. The Missouri State Fairgrounds was a good facility with all the RV sites being full hook ups..

The staff of 130 began arriving several weeks prior to the rally with all of them in place at least three days before the Sunday opening of the event. On Wednesday we had an after work happy hour to get together with the staff.

On Thursday at the end of the day the big job is filling nearly 700 welcome bags with fliers, coupons and ads from over 30 different supporters for each registered rig. It is an assembly line operation that the team completes in less than an hour. All are rewarded with a pizza party after the job was done.

Friday was the staff appreciation dinner. It was a time to socialize and have a great meal catered by a local company.

Mark, Cole and Jean yukking it up as Shawn, with Nanc's help, makes sure not one little drop of this very fine Card Bordeaux wine does not go to waste.

The coffee and donut booth is one of the most important, as they keep everyone fueled up. Gary and Mary along with Chick and Debby did this job. They served 1680 donuts and made 150 gallons of coffee. They raised $4063 for CARE (Continuing Assistance for Retired Escapees) selling donuts.We know it is a hard job that requires getting up real early to have the coffee ready by 7:30 because we helped with this job several years ago. 

Pictured here are Escapade Directors Jean and Duane,  Director Assistants Robert and Jo, and the Co-coordinators Nanc, Jim, John and Lora. It was a great team to work with in putting on the whole event for nearly 1300 SKPs.

There are 27 different staff positions that are filled by volunteers to put on the event. Here are Volunteer and Info booth chairs Bill and Jan (Top left). They recruit attendees to help out with various jobs during the Escapade. Lanny and Lois (top middle) and Jack and Pat (lower right) are Market Hosts. They work with the 55 vendors who sell their wares at the rally. Sky with his grandson Gage (top right). Sky is the Property Chair and is responsible for ALL the equipment, as well as, setting up the seminar rooms, stage and generally anything else that needs done. Bottom left are Entertainment Hosts Brenda and Dave who have been fulltimers for 27 years and have attended almost half of the 58 Escapades. There used to be two a year. One very important team I did not get a picture of  is the Parking Team. They come in early and have the job of getting the 657 RVs parked safely, rain or shine.

By Sunday everything must be ready for the 3:00 opening ceremony. Here, Duane and Jean introduce Escapee's CEO Shawn Loring. President Travis Carr and Vice President Melanie Carr.

At each assembly there are announcements and door prizes. I had fun doing the announcements again this year and raised over $70 for CARE by asking for a donation for returning found items. The door prize give-away is always fun and the last couple of years kids from the Kidscapade group were the prize runners. There were 40 kids at this years event.  

There is always great entertainment and this year was no exception. Sunday evening was Bill Lepp, a teller of tall tales and humorous stories. Bill is a five time winner of the West Virginia Liars Contest and his stories included many locations we have visited. If you every get a chance to hear Bill be ready for a evening of fun and laughter.

This was the 40th anniversary of Escapees and sadly the first without one of the two founders, Joe and Kay Peterson. We are so glad that we had a chance to talk to Kay in Tucson during last year's Escapade. This really marks a change for the club.

The golf cart parade. No, this was not on the schedule of  events. We had to take the carts down a public street to a nearby gas station to fuel up several times while we were there. 

When you have an event at a fairgrounds there are often other things going on. This year it was a 4-H goat show. While they are cute, they left a bit of country air smell around there pavilion.

One of the most popular happenings is vendor Paul Evert's RV Country daily 4:30 happy hour. Every day is a different theme from Margarita Monday to Two Shot Thursday. It is always a good time to relax a bit and get caught up with friends. 

Monday evening's entertainment was illusionist Reza. It was a fantastic show of "Shock and Awe" as he made things disappear only to pop up somewhere else on stage. Reza performs over 200 shows a year and travels in an RV, a huge Prevost,, so he really related to the RV crowd.  

I was worried when Nanc got this close that he would make her disappear. This is another act that you should not miss if you get a chance to see him perform.  

One of Nanc's jobs was to pass out kisses to the vendors. I was not sure what that meant, so I followed along one day and was happy to see it was Hershey Kisses she was passing out. 

Tuesday evening is a day for socials and we always get together with our Class of 07 mates. Wow, this year there were only six members and two adoptees. This was by far the smallest group we have ever had. Last year there were nearly 50 of us. Here I am with Terry (Rick was working), Lora, Nanc, John and adoptees Dave and Brenda. Hope next year's Escapade out West will bring more 07 mates.

Wednesday's entertainment was Escapade's Got Talent. There were fifteen great acts, from story and joke telling to some great music. It is wonderful seeing all these SKPs showing off their talent. As you can tell by the orange suit, emcee Jim Koca added to the fun of the evening with his outfit and corny jokes.

Thursday brings the Escapade Hair-Raising Chili Cook-Off. There were eleven chili cookers and, as you can see, it was a very well attended event. There is a People's Choice award for the chili that raises the most money for CARE.

The best chili is selected by a group of experts who must be sequestered away to prevent bias. I delivered samples to the the judges while the Hottest Pepper of them all, Shawn Loring, did his best encouraging people to donate money to CARE. He did a good job as the cook-off raised $1956 for this great Escapees program.

These are all people who were at the rally whom we have met at Betty's RV Park. Top are Bill Jan, Jim and Justine. Bottom are Judy, Danny, Dan, Sue, Richard, Loretta and Ray. I'm sure there were others that I did not see because Betty is very popular with Escapees. 

Thursday afternoon is the closing ceremony. It is always well attended as the grand prizes are given away. This year's prizes were for two people to attend the Rose Parade (a $1990 value) presented by the Escapees RV Club and from Adventure Caravan for two people to attend an eight day Chicago rally (a $4595 value). It is great that the sponsors and vendors offer such support and prizes for the rally. Pictured here (left to right) are a few of  the national staff; Teresa, Shawn, J.P., Travis, Melanie and Cathy.

In the past the closing ceremony was, as you would expect, the last event of the week. This year they added an evening street festival with a great local band, food vendors, craft beer and local wines. 

Most of us where pretty worn out at this point so it was a great time to just kick back and relax. National staff members Georgianne, Teresa, Melanie, JP and Shawn enjoying the festival. 

If you forgot your chairs, you could gather on the steps to have a cold one, enjoy the food, and share experiences with friends.

Jim, Travis and Mark showing how worn out we are at this point with Dead Guy Ales. 

After the sun set we went to the grandstands for the fireworks. The street festival was a great way to relax and visit with friends one last time before we all headed out in different directions to explore the country and was also a great ending to a great Escapade.

Friday morning dawned hot and sunny.  Not a great day to have to tear down and load everything that the Escapees brought to Sedalia from headquarters in Livingston. The trailer holds 26 of the carriers that must be brought from the buildings where they were used. Then they are loaded and secured in place for shipping.

Jim, John and Duane had it all done by 3:30 that afternoon. By the time we were done we were toast. The temperature when I got in the car read 105 and, while it was not that hot outside, it was that hot inside the trailer where we were working.

One last dinner Saturday evening before we hit the road on Sunday. While it is not an easy job, we had a great time being on staff and contributing to make the Escapade a great experience for all those who attend. Next year's event does not fit into our travel schedule so we will not be in Tucson in March. 

Our plan was to go quickly from Sedalia to Michigan where we had a service appointment scheduled. We had planned to spend one night in Springfield, IL but when we got there we realized how tired we were so we decided to stay for three days. Look who showed up! Escapade parking crew members, Jan and Skip and Escapade Directors, Jean and Duane. We had a nice evening just relaxing after a very busy time. 

On a sad note, while we were in Springfield we learned that our dear friend, Tom Ridge, passed away while he and Georgie were vacationing in North Carolina. We were able to leave Opus at Spartan Chassis in Michigan, where the service was being done, and drive the CRV to WashPA for Tom's memorial service. We are going to spend a week here to support Georgie before we head back to Michigan to pick up the RV. This is a picture of us with Tom and Georgie on Hatteras Island last fall.  

57th Escapade

As we planned to go fulltiming many years ago the Escapees RV Club was our go to place for information. We attended RV Boot Camp and the Escapade in Goshen, Indiana in 2007 and have been to five more rallies since that first one. At first we would volunteer for jobs when we arrived and then in 2011 in Gillette, Wyoming we served on staff. We have taken on different duties since then and this year we were co-coordinators with John and Lora Newby. This job was a big step up in responsibility requiring long days of setting up and helping to do whatever needed done to see that things ran smoothly. It was a lot of work and long hours, but also a fun time getting to meet new people and helping others enjoy their Escapade experience.

What is Escapade? A gathering of like minded people with the common interest in the RVing lifestyle that stared 39 years ago with 29 rigs. This year there were over 900 rigs and 2300 attendees who took part in 80 educational seminars, numerous socials, dancing, games and entertainment. All this while getting caught up with old friends and making new ones.

When we arrived at the Pima County Fairgrounds five days before the start of the Escapade the two huge buildings where just about everything happened were empty shells. Part of my job was to help Bob and John put up the sponsor's banners.

There were 14 banners and a four part stage back drop that we had to install wire for before we could hang them. A lot of climbing up and down the ladder.

Lora and Nanc worked in the office, did most of the needed signage throughout the grounds and were responsible for much of the decor along with anything else that popped up.

Another job all the staff helped with was stuffing over 900+ welcome bags with rally information and flyers. 

The market, which started as an empty hall, was soon buzzing as nearly 75 vendors set up their booths. When the doors opened hundreds of shoppers moved in to look and buy just about anything any RVer could possibly need, including a new rig.

Duane and Jean Mathes, Escapade Directors, who spent most of their time since the last rally in Vermont preparing for this one, opened the Escapade on Sunday afternoon.

Escapees have a long history of fun and tomfoolery going back to the founders, Joe and Kay Peterson, SKPs # 1. As you can see that tradition is being carried on by their grandson, club president Travis Carr and his wife Melanie (right), vice president. Nice panties Travis.  

The Escapades always have wonderful entertainment and this year was no exception. Native Spirit performed dances that are part of the culture of Native Americans. 

The group includes dancers who have won championships and performed in Europe, Central America, North America and for Fortune 500 companies.

Native Spirit leader Brian Hammill and his son Nedallas are World Champion Hoop Dancers. The dance under black light was fantastic. If you ever get a chance  this group is not to be missed.

We always say making and meeting friends is the best part of what we do. We met Gary and Anita several years ago at Betty's and have seen them on the road including in Winnipeg, their home base. They called and said they were passing through Tucson and wanted to get together.  Wow, we are so busy how do we do it?  Problem solved, adopt them into the Class of '07 and invite them to the social. They got to check out the market and we had a couple hours to catch up with their travels.

Class of '07 mates Jim, Bobbie and Sal (front) Jim, Norah, Molly, Lora and Bob (center) Angela, Bobbie, Mike and Heinz (back). We met most of these people at Boot Camp in 2007 and know they are always a fun crew.

This group of Class of '07 mates are the ones who went to Quartzsite the first winter on the road. Mike who is waving donated and cooked a turducken for the social. We took up a collection and raised over $300 for CARE (Continuing Assistance for Retired Escapees). 

Bob and Molly have been Escapade Directors since 2011 and have now passed the job on to Duane and Jean. Brenda had a quilt made out of the shirts for each of the events they managed. A big THANKS to them for all their work in making the Escapades a fun experience for all. 

We have not crossed paths with Susan and John since we were in California in 2009 but have been following their travels on Facebook. It was great seeing them again and getting caught up with all that has been going on in our lives. 

Sandy, Steve, Lora and John at the social. Lora and John were so busy as co-coordinators all week this is the only picture I got of them together. They were great work partners.

SPK friends who we met at Betty's RV Park in Abbeville: Jan and Bill; Loretta, Don, Sharon and Rey. We have seen them all on the road since meeting there, always the best part of RVing.

On another evening the entertainment was provided by Woodie and the Longboards. They did one set of Beach Boys songs that had them dancing in the aisles and the other set was Eagles songs. The crowd knew the words and sang along to all the tunes.  Great show!!!

One of my duties was to read the announcements at the beginning of each assembly. While this was a fun job as you can see below..............

...........not all my jobs were glamorous. I had to lead the truck around to all the rigs that needed their sewer tanks emptied. You can believe I heard many, many crap jokes about this job.

Jim Koca was the MC for the Escapees Got Talent show. As you can see, Jim is very shy and did not want to stand out.  More of that Escapee fun and tomfoolery.

Just a few of the many talented people who performed. There was singing, skits, cowboy poetry and many instrumentals. The kids are part of the Kidscapade program that is geared to families and kids going back to the way Escapees RV Club was when it started, working on the road and traveling with family. There were 65 kids in attendance this year.  They also took part during the assemblies by handing out door prizes.

Another fundraiser for CARE was the Hair-Raising Chili Cook-Off. Brenda was the winner of both the best chili and raising the most money prizes.

While we were so busy we did not get to attend any of the great seminars we were part of the full-time panel discussion; FAQs and chat. Brenda, the moderator, full timed for 16 years. Kim and Chris (left) have been on the road for seven years traveling with their four young children. Dave and Brenda (middle) had planned to be on the road for eight years and that has turned into 26. Nanc and I (right) are in our tenth year. It was fun sharing the lifestyle with follow SPKs.  

Escapees is all about community service where ever they are and that includes the blood drive for the local Tucson community.

We did squeeze in a couple happy hours given by Paul Evert, the dealer selling rigs at the rally. Nanc and Bobbie look like they are having a fun time. 

Part of the farewell party was a 90th birthday bash for Escapees founder, Kay Peterson. Even at 90 this woman is a dynamo who loves being with her many SKP friends.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAY!!!!!!!!!

As the more than 900 rigs began to depart, those of us on staff did in reverse what we had done last week. All the banners came down, the office was torn down and everything was packed in 26 carriers and loaded on to the big truck to be sent back to headquarters in Livingston, Texas.

A beautiful sunset over Tucson to end the day and another Escapade. Next year the 40th anniversary of the club and the 58th Escapade will be at the end of May in Sedalia, Mo. Since that fits our travel plans we have agreed to do the same job next year. We are already looking forward to seeing our many SKP friends there.  Thanks again to John and Lora who were great partners to work with and to Duane and Jean for a job well done.  Also, good luck to Bob and Molly on their new adventures and hope to see ya'll down the road.