[VAC] Re: By way of introduction....

["Jim Quiggins" <jquig@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

We are the proud current owners of a '67 Globe Trotter that we tow with a
Dodge Grand Caravan.  It has the large engine (V-6) and I have added an oil
cooler.  Over the past two years we (mostly my wife) have taken two long
trips.  One to the Rockies, and another to Seattle and Portland. Since we
live in Houston, both trips have involved long hauls over desert and
mountains.  While we have had to keep the van in third gear to avoid
overheating from the transmission shifting back and forth, the only problems
we encountered was having to pull over a couple of time on very steep grades
to let the engine cool for maybe five minutes.
The point of all this is that we have decided we would also like to trade up
to a larger model and tow vehicle.  Our plan is to buy an expedition with
the tow package as our tow vehicle (and soccer bus), then upgrade to either
a Tradewind or Safari.  We think about twenty-four feet would be perfect.
Twenty-six feet is about all I would want to pull with an Expedition.  I
would prefer dual axles for safety and this should improve towing. I have
looked a couple of Sovereigns at 28 feet and they seem huge.
One thing you might want to consider is that the Globe Trotter's setup with
the two couches sitting in an L shape at the front provides a very nice
living area.  In our research we have not found this arrangement in any
larger trailers.  They normally have one couch in the front and another
behind either the kitchen or bath depending on the floorplan.  This splits
the living area in two and really only provides more open space.  The bottom
line is that even with a larger trailer you have the same number of beds (4
people) and not as nice of a living area.  Since we have three kids, what we
would really like is the same arrangement we currently have, but stretched
six feet to add twin sets of bunk beds between the kitchen and the rear
bath.  This would allow sleeping space for eight so the kids could each
invite a friend along. Since we prefer the kids sleep in a tent, we would
only use this when it rained, or we were at one of the many camp areas that
do not allow tents on a trailer site.
Give it some thought, in my opinion, the Globe Trotter is the perfect size
for a family of four unless you are planning to use it full time. Five is
getting a bit tight.
Jim Quiggins
'67 Globe Trotter
'71 Volvo P-1800E