FMCA Western Area Rally, Indio, CA

Wednesday, 9 January

Based on our limited stays at KOAs before, we had high expectations for our stay at Palm Springs/Joshua Tree KOA.  We expected great service, nice clean sites, nice showers, as well as a bit pricier than other alternatives.  All our expectations were met, and for only $45/night including taxes.  Sprinty enjoyed glamping enough that he might insist on KOA glamping more often.

We finally had a low overnight temperature of 45 degrees, the warmest we have enjoyed in too long.  We know many of our friends in colder climates might not sympathize, however, this multi-month trip was part of a “stay warm” strategy.  And while our home is mobile and we are capable of going someplace else, other goals, like sightseeing the southwest, have us tolerating the chiller than preferred temperatures.

With 45 degrees, and sun coming up, we elected to walk to All Star Burgers located about 1/4 mile from the campground.  The KOA staff recommended it as a breakfast place nearby.  We enjoyed the walk, and split a breakfast burrito that was very tasty.

On our way out of camp, we dumped tanks to make sure we were as empty as possible for the next few days at the rally.  One less things to worry about.  We took the scenic route to Indio, CA.  Along the way we passed through Sky Valley, CA, which made us think of the Sky Valley development in Maryland where our friend Melanie lives.  So we had to get a picture of the town sign to send her:

We made a couple of errand stops before reporting to the Riverside County Fairgrounds.  We arrived about 11am, and the parking volunteers were awesome.  We picked up our package and within a couple of minutes, we were led to our parking area which was set aside for the Roadtreks.  

Roadtrek International, a chapter of Family Motor Coach Association (FMCA), schedules a Roadtrek Rally in conjunction with the FMCA Western Area Rally at Indio, CA every year.  A rally within a rally.  Sprinty is getting to hang out with the cousins while Kris and Darrell see a couple of old Roadtrek friends, and make new Roadtrek friends.

The Western Area Rally is the third area rally Sprinty has attended.  Sprinty attended the Greater Eastern Area Rally (GEAR) in Lewisburg, WV in October 2017, and the Southeast Rea Rally (SEA) in February 2018.  And the fifth FMCA rally Sprinty has attended.

Enjoying sunny weather with high temperatures in the low 70s, we spent part of the day meeting other Roadtreks folks and wandering around the fairgrounds looking at other peoples rigs.  Darrell cleaned the dust and dirt off Sprinty’s solar panels so they would be at optimum performance for the next few days as we elected to dry camp and not pay the electric surcharge.  Darrell also “washed” Sprinty using a waterless wash so Sprinty could show off for the cousins.  As expected, Darrell got so many offers to wash Sprinty’s cousins that Sprinty could spend a month in Indio before Darrell finished.

At 4:30, the Roadtrekers gathered for a potluck dinner.  

Kris made a quiche last night which was a hit.  The dish was the first to empty.   While at dinner, we enjoyed a beautiful sunset.  By 6:30, dinner was done, with several people headed for the town hall for bingo.

Thursday, 10 January 

Delighted to wake up to warmer temperatures and a beautiful sunrise.  We also enjoyed coffee and donuts over at the main building, something all the FMCA rallys provide.  Our morning stroll was through another part of the parking area looking at the various RVs people were traveling in.  The majority of the RVs are Class A motorhomes.  We learned later that there were about 770 motor homes and 60 towables attending.  During the day, we attended various seminars.  Being a warm sunny day, we enjoyed getting into shorts and tee shirts in the afternoon.

At 3pm, all the Roadtrekers gathered to prepare for the parade at 4pm.  The Roadtrek group converted a golf cart to a pumpkin, and 24 of us donned gray clothes, mouse ears, mouse nose and mouse tails to accompany the charming prince and princess and the pumpkin.

The evening entertainment was a Salute to Glen Cymbeline by Jeff Dayton.  Jeff and the bass guitarist both played for and toured with Glenn Campbell for over 15 years.  A fun evening of entertainment. 

As we walked back to Sprinty, we both reflected on the entertainment we have enjoyed at FMCA rallys.  All the evening entertainment has been good.

Friday, 11 January 

Today was partly sunny, so we did not get into shorts and tee shirts.  We spent a good part of the day attending seminars.  We went to the RVing to Alaska seminar for refining our planning for Sprinty’s trip to Alaska.  And in the afternoon, we looked several of the motorhomes on display.  Most of the display RVs were large Class As, with only one Class B on display, and only a few Class Cs.  We also attended an informative seminar on e-bikes, and Darrell took a couple of e-bike test rides.

Two real palm tress and one man-made “palm tree”.

The evening entertainment was comedian Ken Kaz.

Saturday, 12 January 

Rain moved in sometime after midnight.  We both enjoyed sleeping in till almost 8am, then having to move out to swing by the main building for coffee and a donut and briskly walk over to make our 8:30 seminar on cleaning the inside of the RV.  We then split up - Kris went to the seminar on Lots of Good reasons to Caravan (to go on organized RV tours) and Darrell went to the seminar on the FantasyRV tour to Canadian Maritimes, the tour we signed up to do this August.  Kris came back with some good info, while Darrell came back with a $250 fuel card he won as the giveaway.

Kris took one of the e-bikes for a test ride and was impressed as to how smoothly the power assist worked.  After lunch, we did another seminar, then logged around in Sprinty for most of the afternoon.

The evening entertainment was Groovin’ to the 60s, celebrating the greatest 60's folk rock hits of The Mamas & The Papas; Peter, Paul & Mary; Simon & Garfunkel and many more.