Not the RV I’m sitting in. Our big booger weighs about 12,000 pounds when it’s empty.
I’m talking about this little red myPod, which we saw yesterday at the Austin RV Expo. It weighs 500 pounds! I most certainly do not, but I could still probably pull this cutie my own self.
When we hit the convention center floor in Austin, two things made it different from last week’s show in Houston (wrote about that one here and here):
- To save time, we were prepared with a list of only three units we wanted to see and learn more about. A fourth got thrown in at the last minute, which means that somewhere in Austin, a Winnebago factory rep probably woke up with one helluva hangover this morning. Have I mentioned that Tim asks a lot of pointed and technical questions?
- It’s Austin, not Houston. And by that I mean ATX has its own vibe, and it was palpable even at something as mainstream as an RV show.
Not just garbage cans, but bins for compost and recycling too. And a man wearing a kilt at not-the-highland-games-festival. And two rows of adorable little Airstream bubbles, as opposed to the two units in Houston.
Never change, ATX. Never change.
I was amused by this. It’s a staging area for staging items. And apparently no RV kitchen is complete without a basket of fake fruit on the table, you know, to tempt other people into buying it. Us? Not so much. “Yes, that plastic banana looks lovely, but do tell me, does this rig have a 6-point leveling system? And what’s the R-rating on the insulation? OK, now how’s the frame constructed?” Found some swag I liked, but did not buy. Photos are enough. Own less, and all that.
Tim, as mentioned, is the data head at the RV show.
I wear socks that fit my attitude.
The attendant at the door stamped our hands to make sure we could come and go. It occurred to me that last time I was in Austin sporting a hand stamp, I was the Longhorn in the family. (And the stamp definitely did not come from an RV show.) 
And speaking of Longhorns, that’s ours in the center. We treated him and his buddies — friends since freshman year of HS, and now all freshmen at UT — to dinner. They uh… they can put down a lot of barbecue, it turns out. 
Not just my reflection in an RV, but a lesson. If you visit an RV dealership on your way to an RV show, and just happen to mention that’s where you’re headed, the sales dude just might hand you a couple of complimentary tickets. That little excursion saved us 12 bucks! 
Until next time, ATX!
