April 2008 news notes

Web links

to information discussed in this newsletter including March rally photo gallery, the April rally site info, the WBCCI survey, and various Airstream blogs: http://sierranevadaairstreams.org/snu/2008/08news/

March at Pyramid Lake

If the March SNU rally is any indication we are off to a great start for 2008! We had a total of eight Airstreams including two first timers. The first timers were Mike and Cindy Gower with their 1977 Caravanner and Scott and Cindy Roller with son Carson and their 2008 Safari Special Edition. The Gower's haven't had their Airstream very long and they are planning several projects to spruce it up a little. It will be interesting to follow their progress. The Roller's just purchased their Airstream and this was their second night in it. Three year old Carson seems to totally approve of Airstream camping. After a good nights rest, he enjoyed watching the sun come up through the skylight and windows of the trailer. In addition to the first timers other rally participants included Wes and Roylaine Warn, Jerry and Dyann Thornburg, Bryan and Diane Leipper, Dave Gmur, Roman Kreminski and Melissa Wong, and Dave Strode who came all the way from Mendocino and surprised us. Rachel Strode had prior plans so she wasn't able to come. We also welcomed guests Gene and Carmen Balme. According to Melissa she had been suffering from ASA (Airstream Separation Anxiety). This was caused by the fact that neither of their Airstreams were parked in their yard due to snow and also that she hadn't been to a rally since last October. I think this rally ensured she is well on the way to recovery as are any other SNU members suffering from ASA. This was the first trip since Wes and Roy built a dog palace on the back of their truck. It is insulated, has a great window in the back, a view out the front of the truck and a nice comfy cushion to lounge on. Lilly and Sam are pretty lucky pooches. Jerry, Dave S. and Roman spend most of the weekend fishing. It seems the fish and the rocks were part of a conspiracy with Crosby's store as both Roman and Dave had to make several trips for more lures. Everyone caught some pretty nice sized fish, a few of which were kept but most went back into the lake. Two people, who shall remain nameless (but have a dog named Indy) celebrated birthday's at this rally. We all wish them Happy Birthday. Thanks to various members for bringing enough wood to keep a fire going all weekend. It was very much appreciated as the weather was a little windy and cold. The fire also made some great coals for marshmallows, hot dogs, and for Jerry to experiment with his new toy. He recently bought a battery operated rotisserie. He set it up by the fire and put a beef roast on the spit. After a few hours we all got to sample some delicious roast. As usual the primary activities at this rally (other than fishing) were keeping the campfire going, eating, sharing stories and information, and checking out each others Airstreams all interspersed with some inspirational naps. For a buffet table, we used Jerry's truck for an SNU version of tailgating. The food as always was diverse and delicious. Dave Strode brought some soup which really hit the spot with the weather we had. A great time was had by all and I know we are all looking forward to our April rally at Ft Sage. We look forward to seeing the Gower's, and Roller's again soon as well as other SNU members who weren't able to make it to Pyramid. Check Melissa's blog for her stories of the Pyramid Lake rally.

Business meeting

The SNU held it's business meeting on Saturday evening. We had three SNU officers present – Jerry Thornburg, President, Roy Warn, Secretary, and Bryan Leipper, Treasurer. The agenda items included nomination and election of the SNU delegate and alternate for the International Rally in Bozeman, discussion of the 42ft Airstream project, and a discussion of SNU rally considerations.

* The members present at the meeting voted unanimously to elect Don Williams as our delegate and Jerry Thornburg as alternate. This means for the third year in a row the SNU will have voting representatives at the Delegate meeting during the WBCCI International Rally.

* Jerry updated us on the status of the 42ft Airstream. Jerry has been in fairly frequent communications with staff at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola. As of this rally the museum has accepted the SNU's offer to spearhead the restoration of this special Airstream. Jerry will be drafting a letter to seek funds for this project which, after review and approval, will be sent to specified companies and organizations seeking their financial support of the project. We will also be providing WBCCI as our parent organization, with an overview of the project. Because of the work needed and in order to ensure that the job is done as historically accurate and complete as possible, the SNU will be seeking professional assistance for the restoration. A visit to the museum will probably occur during the Ft Sage rally. Between this visit and our rally at the museum in June, the SNU will solidify it's plans and begin the actual work on this restoration project.

* The SNU has grown quite a bit in the last few years so it seemed it was time to review the Unit's rally structure and get member input. This review was also prompted by problems that have come up a few times over the last two years, primarily with the Nevada State Park system and the Regional park system. Members agreed unanimously to keep things just as they are. This includes our preference for unstructured dry camping spots, keeping rsvps as a courtesy and not mandatory, not requiring any pre-registration or pre-payment, keeping the $5 per night per rig rally fee, and the open door policy – ensuring that we have room for any Airstreamer that shows up even if they haven't rsvp'd. As part of this decision the SNU will step up it's efforts at finding good BLM and US Forest Service spots for dispersed camping. This means more spots like Obsidian Dome and Sweetwater Summit. It also means we need all SNU members to act as scouts and help the SNU find these types of spots. Several of our members have already assisted the Unit in finding these types of rally sites. There are several tools on the SNU website to assist in this effort. Check them out on the links page listed on the back of this newsletter.

* In contrast to what we just agreed on regarding rallies, we also decided to check out a full service RV park as a possible site for our March 2009 rally. The site we are considering is in Yerrington. The reasons behind this idea are mainly as an alternate for dealing with fickle March weather and to try something different. We also felt this might be a way to encourage some members who haven't been able to attend and SNU rally yet.

* We also briefly discussed the WBCCI Merit Award Program. When asked if the SNU had ever participated in the program it was learned that the form had been completed once or twice in the past out of curiosity but due to lack of interest, never submitted.

SNU Canine Club

As our two legged membership grows so does the four legged membership. There were ten dogs at the March Pyramid Lake rally. Everything from a miniature dachshund to a Chesapeake Bay Retriever. SNU canines represent all the major groups of dogs including terriers, hounds, herders, and toys. We are really fortunate that all of these dogs have trained their owners well. The dogs all get along and are a quiet, unobtrusive and enjoyable addition to SNU rallies. We should have held a canine fashion show at this rally as several of the dogs displayed various coats and jackets to help keep out the cold wind. Miss Lilly might have been the winner of such a contest with her red, hand me down PJ's. There are some pictures in the photo gallery and on the back of this newsletter a link to the web section regarding traveling with pets.

WBCCI Survey

SNU President, Jerry Thornburg recently received a survey from the 2020 Long Range Planning Committee. Hopefully the information the SNU provides will help WBCCI focus on it's mission and achieve its goals. This survey is a good way for the SNU to review it's progress and programs and to gain a better understanding of our own membership. Much of the statistical information requested has already been posted on the SNU website. It will be useful in completing this survey. Many of the other question would benefit from SNU member input. The survey has been posted in PDF form on the SNU website. We encourage all members to take a look at it and to send us your input and comments to various questions. You can send email responses to president(at)sierranevadaairstreams(dot)org, preferably before April 21, 2008. We will compile all the information and Jerry will send in the completed survey before the deadline of May 1, 2008. Find the links to the survey and to SNU statistical information on the links page listed on the back of this newsletter.

Annual Donation

Did you know that you can make an annual donation of $100 to the SNU rally kitty? The online SNU shopping page provides this option and you can also make your donation at any SNU rally. This is a great way to support the SNU. Even if you aren't able to make it to all the rallies, it is still a bargain and a convenient way to take care of your rally kitty contributions all at one time.

Planning for Ft Sage

The SNU April 17- 20, 2008 rally will be at a BLM campground and off road trail head near Doyle, CA, about 45 miles north of Reno. The campground is called Ft Sage and is about 5 miles east of US 395. The vistas across the valley from the campground are spectacular. There are great hiking and off road trails to explore. Be sure to bring extra boards and chocks as Ft Sage provides lots of opportunities for SNU members to practice leveling techniques. Also bring firewood to help keep the campfire going. There will probably be an informal day trip to nearby Portola to check on the 42ft Airstream. Be sure and stop by the store in Doyle. It is a 100 year old slice of history. The store is part museum and part current day market. It also has hotel rooms on the second floor.

President's Ramblin's

Via the intense use of a big bat both physical and psychological, it was suggested that I get off my duff and do the ramblins column. So here goes: There are a couple of items that have arisen. First is that the Regional President from Florida is trying to resurrect and backdoor in the motor home issue. For those of you that are new to WBCCI and the SNU, it is to change the constitution to allow all Thor motor homes into the WBCCI. Last year the SNU voted to go against this proposal and a majority of the organization said the same thing. Unless I hear from a large portion of the unit wanting to go with this idea, I am going to direct our delegate at the national to vote the same as we did last year, a resounding no. By the way, Don Williams was asked, consented and was voted in as our delegate for the 2008, and I will be the alternate.

The second thing I need to bring up is that I received a letter from the Portola Railroad Museum authorizing the unit to act as lead in the restoration of the 42 foot Airstream. The letter I received, in my opinion, answered all the concerns raised by the unit as to the placement and usage once the restoration is finished. At this time I am drafting a letter to be used for the solicitation of donations of money and other items needed to complete the project. Once it is written I will get the advice of certain members and then publish the completed form on our web site. I am asking the help of all unit members to look at who might be a resource for this. The primary goal is to try for large sponsorship, when you come up with someone please email me and I will complete and sign the letter and forward it. Remember the initial idea is to raise approximately $100,000. I am also sending a letter to the WBCCI outlining the project. Now that we have the letter officially giving us the lead we can let the proverbial cat out of the bag.

Now to the fun stuff. The rally at Pyramid was a big success. Coming in from the south via Wadsworth, when we rounded the corner where we could see the lake, it was possible in the afternoon sun to see the unit’s rigs at Pelican Point. The sun on the shiny aluminum was not a thing that you could miss. The turn out was great, and we had the pleasure of meeting another rig out of Santa Cruz, a 19 foot Safari, These people were with the Santa Cruz Fly Fishing Club. Speaking of fishing it was great, Roman, Dave and I got a bunch of fish. I believe the fish pictures are posted already. We kept two, one an 18.75 incher that I cooked in the fire after it was caught and a 26.5 incher that I brought home to smoke. The rest were returned to the lake. The best part was when one fisherman said that we wouldn’t catch anything using spoons and not fly fishing. That was proven to be an error. The only thing we didn’t catch was the under 16 inchers that they were. We had new prospective members also come to the event and it was great to have them there. Hope they join. I also met a couple from Truckee in Fallon that I invited to Fort Sage and gave them info on the unit and how to find us on the web. The only perplexing thing that came up at the rally was when someone asked me who the little girl was running around, I couldn’t think of who they were talking about since there was only one young boy in attendance, then I realized they were talking about Melissa and I had to tell them that no she was a full grown adult. She did prove useful in that as fast as Roman lost lures she was able to go to the local sporting goods/bar/restaurant/store and replenish his stock. Between Roman and Dave the store probably increased their yearly gross receipts considerably. In their defense I did lose one lure.

One last thing, Dyann said to include she needs RSVP’s for Unionville to plan the brunch. Saying that I will conclude the ramblins and get this to the publisher. See you at Fort Sage. Jerry

Naked Airstreams

Have you ever wondered what your Airstream looks like naked? This is our 1968 28' Ambassador in it's stripped down form. After our 1969 Overlander was broadsided on the way to the Tri County Death Valley rally, we found this Ambassador that was the perfect candidate for an extreme makeover. The work is being done in Orange, Ca by Area 63 Productions owner, Uwe Salwender. He has taken the trailer apart and has addressed any frame issues including adding another cross member in the rear. When we are finished the only thing "old" will be the shell, windows and frame.

By the way, we received huge assistance from fellow unit member, Jim Polk with his professional appraisal of our 69 Overlander. He was successful in convincing the insurance company that our trailer was indeed "restored and collectible" and we received a very fair compensation from the insurance company. Thanks, Jim

We cannot wait until our new old trailer is finished so we can join you all on a rally hopefully by summer. Will keep you posted on our progress. Check the link listed on the back page of this newsletter for the web log of the Poll's restoration project.

Paula & Ed Poll #22353

Note: Paula and Ed have been subscribers to the SNU email newsletter since June 2007. They spend a lot of time in the Southern Sierras. We hope to see them at Obsidian or another SNU rally soon.


Bodie in Winter

SNU member Chuck Fell is one of those guys who helps manage public lands near Bridgeport. Every winter he encounters some of the more clueless, a group that you do not want to join. Bodie is a nice place to visit but you should make that visit when the road is open. Like many remote areas, especially in the Great Basin area, you can easily get lost or stuck and without any means to communicate - even when conditions are good. Here is one of Chuck’s stories from this year.

“We dragged two guys back to HWY 395 who went around the road closure signs and made it up the snow covered road about 6 miles until they broke through the hard crust and got high centered and stuck. If we had not come by with our snowcat I imagine they would have spent a pretty cold night out on the Bodie Road cursing themselves for not calling ahead about road conditions or for ignoring the signs.”

In addition to Chuck's stories, we recently found two photo postcards from the 1950's of Bodie. Chuck identified some of the buildings and provided some interesting comments regarding the pictures. For other stories and information and to see the photos, check the link listed on the back page of this newsletter.

Tramp Editor

My Grandfather, Joe Camp, left Springfield Illinois near the end of the 19th century, loaded a printing press, collection of lead type fonts, paper, ink, wife, and three small girls into a covered wagon and hauled them to Nevada to set up business as a "tramp editor." He subsequently published five separate newspapers in Nevada mining towns, as documented at UNR in their special collections department. He would publish until the ore veins played out and he had to move to another mining camp. Hence the title "tramp editor."

I know his newspapers did not have the sophistication of most organization's newsletters of today, but I do know from my Mother's stories, that they sold for three cents apiece, but sometimes traded for a can of fresh drinking water, or a piece of venison. (which was more plentiful than news in Nevada)

My Mom told me Grandpa would load up his "ticker", ride his horse down into the valley from Jarbidge, Unionville, or wherever, climb a telegraph pole, and tap into the flow of news and messages between Sacramento and places East. She remembered he would sometimes be so angry because the wind blew away his paper notes. It was difficult hanging on to the pole and take notes, and hold the ticker all at the same time.

Then he would have to climb back up again and start all over until it got too dark to see. It took sometimes two or three days to get enough news to fill his weekly paper, so he worked really hard to sell from 50 to 100 papers a week. He would only print the minimum number, and sometimes wait until he had another five or six sales before he would run off some more copies. She said he sometimes had to work at night in the mill, or the mine, to supplement his income to buy paper or ink, or lead for type, from Sacramento.

Note: This story was contributed by Don Costar, friend of Bryan and Diane Leipper. Don and his wife Katherine were guests at the SNU luncheon in Dayton. Don is a third generation Nevadan.

Upcoming events


For more information on upcoming rallies check the website

http://sierranevadaairstreams.org/snu/2008/events/rallydocs/08-rallyschedule.html