Saturday June 14, 2014-Bethpage Campground, Urbanna VA

Well, as usual, I haven't kept up with my blog entries and am waaaay behind. This entry will cover the rally days and then I'll get back on track.

I was very lazy and didn't take any photos, I just wasn't in the mood. The rally-goers were mostly people we didn't know and many were nice people, and overall we had a good time.

Monday was the first official day of Pre Rally, with everyone being on their own. Many were still arriving and we all spent the day getting things set up and greeting old friends. We went across the street to John and Deb B's campfire and had some nice chat time with them and others.

Tuesday morning we went to a potluck breakfast that was sponsored by the North East Region at a smaller Activities Center. There was a huge assortment of food, all delicious! There were so many people there, many had to stand or went outside to sit by the pool. There was a beach ball volleyball scheduled for 11AM but it got rained out. It should have been an interesting game, with everyone sitting in a lawn chair to play volleyball using a beach ball instead of a regular volleyball. I'm sorry it got rained out because I would have liked to see it played. We had another campfire tonight and it was even better attended. Many passerbys stopped to chat and we had a good time.

Wednesday morning we began the morning with the famous Nellie Muffins and coffee at Kevin and Nellie's trailer. The weather turned much warmer today and we had a Stay Cool at the Pool day, including a club-furnished ice cream social. There was a huge turnout and the park actually ran out of some of the ice cream goodies, but there was plenty and it cooled us off pretty well. Our friends Andy and JoAnna came in from Louisiana today and we went to eat with them and Dave and Nancy at The Virginian in downtown Urbanna. There was no campfire tonight because of rain. We were all full from supper and went on home.

Thursday the rally officially kicked off. Seminars began at 8AM but I didn't go down until 9 for my first seminar. the seminars were all good and instructive and I enjoyed them. The demo trailers were open this morning and most of us went down to look. The new model, a Landmark Newport, with a huge front bathroom arrived about noon and was the hit of the show. Jim B had taken me to see it when we were in Shipshewana a few weeks ago, so I was somewhat familiar with it. Some things had been changed since I saw it and overall I was impressed. The floorplan doesn't work for us but it will for many. The entire Landmark line will be revamped  and we will be interested in the new features. We had a welcome reception and Meet and Greet at the main rally hall and many of us were introduced. We went over the agenda along with any changes that had been made. This is a relatively a small rally (139 rigs) and we filled the hall. I can't wait for Goshen next year. It will be the 10th Anniversary rally and should fill the fairgrounds with 300 or more rigs.

Friday there were more tours of the new trailers, vendors displaying their wares in the Activity Center and more seminars filled the day. There were some youth activities this morning as several had brought a child or grandchild with them, and they had something to do today. This evening we had our first catered meal. The food was okay but not outstanding but this park forces rallies to use their vendors and won't allow outsiders to come in. Different... We had a great entertainer, a guy named Rik Roberts. He was a very funny man and best of all, no profanity at all. He began his act by dressing up as Barney Fife, and if you follow the link above, you'll see that he does resemble him. 

Saturday was the final day of touring the demo's and we later found out that McGeorge's RV's the sponsoring dealer, sold 8 units. Congrats to those that bought here. I didn't go to any more seminars today and in the afternoon we went into town and filled the truck with fuel and came back and began making preparations to leave tomorrow. We had another (better) meal tonight and then were entertained by The Beach Bumz. They are a beach-themed group that sings selections from The Beach Boys, Jimmy Buffet and other artists. Our own Deb B. entertained us with a drum solo of "Wipeout". I don't think any of us knew that she had her own band and is a good performer. Several of us came back here and we sat outside chatting and talking to folks walking by. It was a nice way to finish up the rally.

So long.