An Offbeat Look at RV Awnings


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I suppose I could have just made a two minute video asking the RV industry to start allowing for an “Awning Delete” option.

But where’s the fun in that?

 

 

Enjoy!



James is a former rocket scientist, a USA Cycling coach, and lifelong fitness buff. When he's not driving the RV, or modifying the RV (or - that one time - doing both at once), you can find him racing bicycles, or building furniture, or making music. In his spare time, he works for a large IT company.


    112 thoughts on “An Offbeat Look at RV Awnings

    1. Patrick Savoie

      This is a very funny & creative video. Thank you for that.

      As for the awning issue …. for us in Quebec … the awning is more of a rain-protection device. šŸ™‚

      Reply
    2. Bob

      Thanks James. I was just a few minutes ago thinking about asking Steph to post a pic of you when you had hair, if in fact she knew you when you were in primary school. We all know now, along with the reason why you shave your head. The beard works though.

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Iā€™m trying to remember back that far, but I think when I actually did have hair, it looked better than the wig.
        There may be some cave paintings from that time. Iā€™ll try to find themā€¦

        Reply
    3. Mike Van Nattan

      This video is awesome!

      Yes, awning trouble is something that is an issue. Having owned two RV’s we can say that the newer awning types on 5th wheels and TTs are really a pain. They aren’t designed to handle the elements, they mold, they collect junk in the arms, and so on.

      However, we have an older Airstream with a manual awning. This awning has been great. Though after 10 years the seams on our non-coated canvas started ripping out, it was never damaged by the wind even though it has gone through some pretty stiff wind. It also has extra mechanisms to keep it from flying out while going down the road. Overall, we never want another electric awning again. Manual is definitely harder to put up, but it’s also so much more sturdy. Plus at 24ft long, there is almost always shade under the awning that you sit in completely.

      Ultimately, we almost can’t live without the awning. In fact most of our windows have awnings as well and some have even survived 50mph winds!

      So we can say with some assurance: Not all awnings are evil.

      Reply
    4. lynn carr

      Yes, we had awning failure when we were camping at Mt. Rushmore. Our awning was up, we just went into town for dinner and when we came back a wind had destroyed our awning. We certainly learned our lesson and never used the replacement awning.
      Love the beard by the way. I must have missed this video when it came out.

      Reply
    5. 2020_TheLostYear

      Hi James and Stef,
      I laughed at everything in this video; loved the wig, loved the Steph-ford wife, loved our fav rocket scientist and especially Mr. Patriotic. To reward all of your immense effort, I opened the video in YouTube and fed the algorithm monster – with 1 like and 1 subscribe. I hope many others do the same. Please keep us up to date with your insights. I am always telling my Honey-do about James’s successful projects. Then he seems to go through the 5 stages that your expert mentioned: hearing-loss, denial, excuses, and finally the agony of compliance.
      Thank you for making me smile today.
      G. Borchers
      ps. I use a mini clamp-on umbrella for the chair.

      Reply
        1. Amy Howe

          Even sillierā€” the reason we want an awning is so we can leash the doors to the open door and give them shade. But now one dog as figured out she can go under the van. The other dogs has figured out it might be cooler inside. And with the top too and solar collectors we position the car so the collectors are in the sun and an awning would be useless. Winnebago says some company makes a wrap around tarp but I couldnā€™t find it on the web

    6. Phil Stover

      RV awnings are really annoying (or worse) and only occasionally useful as you so creatively pointed out! After ours got stuck fully extended with no handy picnic tables to stand on to crank it in, I felt compelled to invent a telescoping ladder carrier that is attached to our spare tire carrier.

      What I really want from RV manufacturers is some type of modular roof rack bar type system where the side bars could be used for many optional purposes (e.g. awnings of many types, screen rooms, kayak carriers, etc.). If I did want an awning, it would be manually operated and likely wrap around to the ground (or close to it) like many I’ve seen on the more creative newer tear drop trailers.

      Thanks for your help on moving the RV industry forward!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Our Fiamma rack has the awning mounted to it, and we also have kayak carriers that fit it.
        Is something like that what you’re looking for?

        Reply
        1. Phil Stover

          James – I just looked at the Fiamma rack system for ProMasters, and yes, that’s the type of system I will be looking for if we ever replace our Mercedes 3500-based Pleasure-Way Plateau XL. So many good things come to mind (like attachment points for perimeter cameras, etc.).

          https://www.fiammausa.com/en/roof-racks-631400343.html

          Thanks for pointing this out – it gives me hope!

          Phil

    7. Wayne

      We use chairs that actually move so we can about triple the time in the shade. If I removed every feature from my RV that could use improvement I wouldnā€™t have much left. I use my awning almost every setup and bring it in in the wind and at night. The only repair needed was to tighten some screws. Awnings can be rolled up wet as long as they are allowed to dry at the next opportunity. They can also be used in heavy rain if they are tilted so puddles donā€™t develop. I have done it many times. I like the scientific (data driven) approach in your videos. In this rare case I respectfully and cordially disagree with your conclusion after having owned RVs with and without awnings. I also agree that a RV buyer should have options and that one size does not fit all.

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Well, often times, what you want to shade cannot be moved. (Picnic table, your site, etc.) It was necessary to pick a fixed point to measure shade. Center of the awning seemed the most logical. It’s not always possible to set up your chairs in the road, or in your neighbor’s campsite if the shade falls there.

        But! While I disagree with you with regarding RV awnings’ utility and durability, I’m 100% aligned with you in that RVers should have a choice! I don’t want to take your awning away from you. I just want a choice.

        Reply
        1. Wayne

          How do you get out of the sun? Iā€™m certainly open to alternatives. We like to spend time in Death Valley where there is no natural shade. We have tried free sanding sun sunshades but they are somewhat awkward. Perhaps our minor difference in opinion comes from how we use our RV. I want to covey that this is just a friendly conversation, not a confrontation. Text messages lack the nuances of verbal communication and are sometimes perceived incorrectly.

        2. James - Post author

          Wayne – I get ya. I don’t think you’re being confrontational at all. We’re good!

          We like Death Valley as well, but we only go there during the cooler months. That’s part of our RVing strategy – match the destination to the season. We only go to Tucson in the winter as well.
          Honestly, it never even occurs to us anymore to mess with the awning. If we want to cool off, we’ll go inside and turn on the air.
          The van itself is a 20×9 sunshade, so lots of times, it provides shade all on its own.
          But generally, if we feel like we need to get out of the sun, that feels like a trip planning failure to us. We should have gone somewhere else… or gone at a different time…
          Different strokes, I guess. Cheers!

    8. Ross Larsen

      James, loved this very humorous post. Loved it. You caught me at the right time, I am doing a van conversion and just added a roof rack with the intent to put an awning on the rack. Perfect timing mister. Roscoe in Bountiful.

      Reply
    9. Judy Ann Mosset

      Ha! We share your…uh, opinion on awnings. Useless pieces of fabric and metal. Love the video version of our disdain. So many RVers don’t think they’ve made camp until the awning is out, the 9×12 mat is down and the chairs deployed. I don’t get it, either!
      Cheers!

      Reply
    10. Gail Blundell

      Loved the video! Thanks for the entertainment James and Stef. In just over 3.5 years full time in my T (before COVID forced me into 6.5 weeks house sitting), I could count, on one hand with fingers left over, how many times I deployed the awning. Only once in hopes of shade; upon said unfurling the wind gods were summoned and I hung on for dear life until the gust stopped and I could retract the beast. I wasnā€™t oriented properly for shade anyway as it turned out. A few times I deployed it 5ā€ to keep the rain out. But now itā€™s zip tied shut. I backed under an unseen branch and cracked the plastic parts at the end of the awning and where the motor is housed. Itā€™s been out of commission for at least a year. Oh well…

      Reply
    11. arrondo

      This is the funniest thing you’ve done since your transparent black tank! Sorry, Stef, but that wig needs to be held in reserve in case another opinion so controversial yet so brave needs to be fully explored. And also the beard.

      Very well done, you two. You obviously put a lot of time into this one!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Glad you liked it!
        You’re right, it did take a lot of time and planning.
        Wish it was doing better on the YouTube – I want to start an “Awning Optional” movement!!
        Share it with your awning-curious friends! lol.

        Reply
    12. Jonathan

      Good Video! Save the Awnings!

      I try to park so that the awning keeps the afternoon sun off of the side of my camper. I think it really does make a difference.

      Reply
    13. Leslie

      Oh my, that was just fabulous. Awning or no awning, it is clear you need to get out on the road again. Thanks for making a rainy afternoon sunny!

      Reply
      1. Stefany

        LOL! I WISH it would blow away in a light breeze! So glad I met James after he lost his hair… šŸ˜‰

        Reply
    14. Steve, another bald guy.

      Very creative, obviously that a lot of time, effort and fun went into this epic production.

      RV awnings, shade umbrellas and porch roofs all suffer from lack of shade when and where you want it. One really works in the heat of the afternoon when the RV is parked in a north-south orientation and then the RV itself is providing a lot of the shading.

      Now, the 17%… unless you’re in Alaska in the summer that number ain’t right…thanks for making me think about it.
      James the RVer reminded me of Bubba J (of Jeff Dunham fame).
      I’d swear that the thing on James the Reporters head was moving, should have killed it first!

      Anyway, thanks for the entertainment. Well done.

      Reply
    15. Greg

      So, as I see it, you are still on the fence about this AWNING matter. Please come back and tell us when you make up your mind. TIA

      Reply
    16. Brian McCarty

      I have no skin in the game (I am a tent camper), but .
      250 good minutes + 1190 bad == 1440 = 24 hours. And arguably the awning does no good at night. But I think the better fraction would be to use the hours of daylight as the denominator.
      And actually wouldn’t the optimal configuration be to park with the awning away from the sun (i.e. to the North). That way the van gives you shade during early/late in the day, and the awning gives you mid day shade (when the van doesn’t help — unless you are under it šŸ™‚ )
      Also, you could extent shade by moving the chair.

      Great video though!
      Brian
      (no opinion on awnings)

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Hi Brian!
        I’ve been waiting for someone to mention changing the denominator. Here’s my reasoning: I’m using as the denominator all of the minutes that the awning can break.
        If we use all the minutes of benefit as the numerator, the denominator should be all the minutes of liability. It’s only fair.

        And while we can move the chair, you can’t always move something like a picnic table, or your camp rug.
        I guess that’s one of the benefits of tent camping!!

        Cheers!

        Reply
    17. Rob Theodore

      James great video I think you’re ready for Saturday Night Live.
      I have a Travato 2019 59k, s there a reason you did not remove the awning. Maybe holes left in the roof.
      I am planning on ordering a new one in the future.Are you saying my dealer cannot ask Winnebago to build it without the awning.Even if I do not expect a credit.
      Thanks for your great videos and information always appreciated

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Whatā€™s left when you remove the awning depends on which awning you have and how itā€™s attached. There may be holes, or brackets. And there will also most likely be some wires sticking out of the roof somewhere.

        There is no ā€œAwning Deleteā€ option that I am aware of. Your dealer may offer to remove the awning for you (same as you could do), but I think thatā€™s the best youā€™ll find.

        Reply
    18. Darrell Van Hutten

      Simply awesome. Very, very entertaining and extremely well done. This explains the love note that Steph posted this week – her patience and support was no doubt invaluable. You two are a great team.

      We too rarely deploy our awning on our Roadtrek, and about half the time it is only a foot or so so we can have the sliding door open in light rain without getting the inside of the sliding door trim wet. Maybe our next RV will be different – maybe a sunshade system like NuCamp uses on their Tab trailers.

      Reply
    19. Ingo Lemme

      Wow what an entertaining video you made! I guess I am in the minority here, but I really like having an awning. The part of the video showing how much time the awning shaded the chair also shows, however, that at least some portion of the side of the van is shaded by the awning much of the time, and that is one of it’s advantages. We use ours extended only partially a lot for that shade, as well as for protection from the rain here in the PNW. I think maybe part of the problem with reliability is because they have gone to powered legless designs, which seem more complicated and fragile. We’ve not had a problem with ours after 3 years, but we are very careful with it. Our previous RV was a travel trailer we owned for 20 years with an old-fashioned spring-loaded manual awning with legs, and we never had a problem with it. Unless the spring broke on that style, there is no way it could self-deploy and the legs made it strong even in moderate winds. But I love the convenience of the powered / legless awning we have now. Until it breaks or self-deploys, I guess. Thanks for your so entertaining and informative videos and blog posts!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        It’s OK if you like your awning. We can still be friends. šŸ™‚
        If I moved to the PNW, I might feel differently about awnings because of the rain. Never had to deal with that much.
        (And BTW, the summers in Seattle are GLORIOUS!)

        Reply
        1. Paul Hillier

          I confess I feel the Rain alone would be my main interest in having an awning – especially if you’re stuck at a rainy site for a long day or two and really want to maximize your living space and cook outside. All points taken on shade but Rain would have been a good point to address in this otherwise SUPERB video!

    20. Rick L.

      I’m speechless. This was so well done. Bravo! You’ll give John Krasinski’s Some Good News a run for its money.

      Solis owners are looking for an awning substitute, and I point them toward a kickstarter product called Moon Shade. You can take it with you, or not, set it up, or not, and easily move it around to get many more minutes of shade.

      https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/moonfab/moonshade-portable-awning

      Seriously, the mere fact that we are having awnings deploy while underway is a serious safety hazard, potentially deadly. I’m surprised the RV industry isn’t taking this issue more seriously. At the very least, an awning delete should be an option. Thanks for putting this topic on the front burner.

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Glad you liked it!
        The moon shade is an interesting option – because it’s just that.. an OPTION!
        Those that want, can. Those that don’t, no problem.
        Perfect.

        Reply
    21. Dan Morean

      I think watching this video is the best entertainment I’ve had during this pandemic…thanks Fit RV! You two are the best.

      Reply
    22. Gary

      You totally nailed it. I’ve deployed my powered awning 3-4 times and it malfunctioned every time. I even asked if I could swap it out for a manual version and was told they didn’t have one that fit the same bracket spacing. And why design one that is so structurally unsound that you have to include a wind sensor so that it rolls back in before a light wind destroys it.

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Yeah, I wouldn’t put too much faith in the “wind sensor”.
        Remember, it’s designed and manufactured by the same companies that have yet to master “cloth on a stick”.

        Reply
    23. John Schuldt

      I kind of agree with you, James, but there have been those few times it helped to keep the van cooler even if there was no shade for the chair. I put it out about 2 feet in a light rain to keep the rain outside. I have had not problems for 12 years with my Fiamma manual unrolling. If faced with the need to replace it, I would say “Goodbye” to it.

      Reply
    24. Marley

      Great job James. Hope this makes inroads into convincing the RV industry to make awnings an option. 5 years here, one leery deployment.

      You and Steph have driven a lot of improvements. Thank you and keep up the great work.

      Reply
    25. Shaun Simpkins

      James and Patrick Stewart have a lot in common.

      Patrick says “Make it so”; James makes it so.

      Patrick does a great facepalm. James can match it.

      Patrick looks better without hair. Ditto James.

      Three for three.

      Reply
    26. Bill Sprague

      James to the 5th power?

      Bravo! This has to be Emmy worthy or is that Oh me! worthy. Either way is was great!

      Environmental confession: once while camping in Minnesota, I had occasion to hastily roll up the awning in the morning in order to escape the hordes of mosquitoes. When I deployed the awning that evening the bottom of the awning was festooned with the mosquitos. I had transported murdered mosquitoes across to state lines. Isnā€™t that a federal offense?

      Bill

      Reply
    27. Average Alice

      Excellent and well-made video! That must have taken quite a lot of time to produce. This indicates passion about your subject. Most places we camp itā€™s been windy part of the day so we made some custom exterior shades. It gets hot sometimes in our class B! Hotter than sitting in the shade outside. The shades are attached with suction cups and havenā€™t blown off unless improperly attached. But they make it kind of dark inside. Still working on the perfect solution to this for boondocking in the summer Yes we could run our generator and the AC but thatā€™s really noisy. Parking in the shade is our mantra.

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Yeah, that was a little more involved to produce than our usual videos.
        Over on our Facebook page, someone shared a picture of their self-build. It didn’t include an awning, but they travel with an outdoor umbrella. They can easily put the shade where they want it. Brilliant!
        Keep working on your shade idea. Maybe it’ll catch on and we’ll all have more options.

        Reply
    28. Donald Koval

      Great video, James and Stephanie!! Very creative and entertaining in these strange times.

      My wife and are in the process of having a semi-custom class B campervan on the Promaster chassis built in Quebec, Canada. The awning is optional, and after watching your video, w
      We plan to see most of Canada and the Eastern and western US over the next several years, and I think itā€™s probably something weā€™ll leave off and save both the money and the aggravation of it. Thanks for helping us to make that decision.

      PS Iā€™m so jealous of your workshop!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        A Safari Condo perhaps? Or a Panoramic?
        Whomever is building it, congratulations on not being forced to take an awning. That’s really what we want! Make it an option!

        Reply
    29. Steve Larson

      Outstanding

      I am going to need to remove the awning from my future Travato 59G

      It looks like the awning is attached by brackets to metal post on the roof of the promaster. There must also be a hole that has been drilled to allow the wires to be connected to the awning.

      I would assume to remove the awing, you would disconnect the brackets, seal the hole with some type of sealant and pull the fuse.

      Does that sound about right?

      Once again, thanks for the video.

      Reply
    30. Rosie & Lon Gregory

      Winning video, James & Steph!! We could certainly relate to everything you had to say about awnings, including all of the exasperating experiences as well.
      Thanks for your very entertaining production…it was the BEST!!

      Reply
    31. Stan

      An excellent and serious investigation into local photon minimization techniques. But it neglects the proposition that the awning is more than a mere photon rejection device.

      Therefore, I cannot let this topic simply van-ish, because I built our van conversion with an awning. Yes, I am a proud awning aficionado, with a geographically based photon phobia.

      We camp 4 seasons in the PNWet, so our awning is not just for sun shading (we get scared on those rare occasions when the sky turns that funny blue color instead of it’s proper shades of gray) but equally to keep rain out while the slide door is open. It’s been our experience that moss is preferable growing on the outside of the van than on the floor

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        I wondered when someone would bring up rain!
        I didnā€™t include it in the video because here in the southwest, it rains about 3 times per year. When it does rain, itā€™s a monsoon kind of thing that would tear the awning right off. So if we were RVing on those days, weā€™d just stay inside for 30 minutes or so until it stopped.
        Other Random thoughts about RV awnings and rain:

        Given that youā€™re not supposed to put an awning away wet, Iā€™ve always wondered how those that use the awnings in the rain ever get to leave. Waiting for a sunny day to leave isnā€™t usually an option, right?
        Most rain Iā€™ve seen comes with at least a little wind. That would make it a no-go for awnings.
        Iā€™ve spent enough time in Seattle to know that it doesnā€™t always rain there, so much as ā€œmists ferociouslyā€. Would an awning even help with that?
        I know youā€™re supposed to put the awnings out ā€œcrookedā€ to keep rain from pooling on top of them. But letā€™s face it, thatā€™s hardly intuitive, and not everyone enjoys looking like the Clampetts on vacation.
        Whether or not you put the awning out for sun or rain… IT CAN STILL BREAK. In the video, you can see that ours broke from literally nothing.
        Granted, two of the twelve times weā€™ve used an awning, we just put it out four or five inches to keep water from entering the rig when we opened the door. But weā€™ve seen rubber water diverters that would handle the same task just as well without the risk of breaking.

        Reply
        1. Stan

          What’s wrong with looking like the Clampetts? I resemble that remark. Since we’re rarely staying in campgrounds, fashion is a low priority for us.
          Keeping the inside of Annie dry-ish is a much higher priority. Under the awning, we can wipe down a soggy Malamute, and hang our rain gear and dog towels on a rack to drip.

          Yeah, the rain around here is often like the sky drooling non-stop. But the vector is still generally downward, so the awning does work. And putting it up crooked is standard practice. If it looks like it’ll be windy, or if we’re unsure by evening, we’ll just close it.

          We’ll put it away wet if we must. So far the acrylic fabric has held up fine. No mold issues.
          We do clean it and let it dry as part of the after-trip maintenance.

          I’m not all that concerned about it breaking, because it’s easy enough to stuff it back together and strap up. (Had to do that once on our long-gone Class C, after running the awning into a tree branch.)
          And then it becomes not much different than not having had an awning in the first place. I.e., a soggy Malamute sleeping on our bed.

      1. Ted

        Marine style awnings for boats are rated to withstand hurricane force winds, but I’ve only seen them mounted on RV’s once.

        Reply
        1. James - Post author

          And you can probably move a boat to face the awning into the sun as well.

    32. Ted

      Somewhere in the middle of the night….. A wig is quietly being buried next to an overused “cat bell”.

      Reply
    33. Rebecca Brown

      I love your creativity! Such fun entertainment. You must have had a blast creating this and then filming! As for awnings-we have PTSD from our first awning. We were camped on a bluff overlooking Lake Superior-a beautiful calm day. Within 15 seconds a GALE came off the lake and flipped our awning onto the roof. Needless to say, it was no longer usable and after the insurance claim our rates skyrocketed (we did change insurance companies). We have deployed the new one once or twice, mainly to protect our refrigerator from sunlight. the second a breeze came up we put it back in. I agree-should be an option-maybe even a dealer add on.

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Awning PTSD!!! We should start a support group!!!
        Meetings every Thursday – under the broken awning.

        Reply
    34. Graham Smith

      Bravo! Sums up my feelings well. One thought I have had based on observations at RV parks is that a Class B is less suited to an awning than a Class A due to size. The new, larger, legless awning on new Travato’s does provide a bit more coverage but is also more prone to wind issues. But awning’s won’t go away because buyers think they need them.

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        I think thatā€™s the really big thing. The RV Dealerships and their buyers think that everyone wants and needs an awning. So the Manufacturers are stuck including them on every RV.

        Reply
    35. Stephen Stringer

      Always had a love/hate/fear of failing relationship with those things! Never realized the problem was so big and you are right on in that the shade was never where I needed it, lol. Great job on the video!

      Reply
    36. Matt

      To James, a man of many talents: Actor, anchorman, presenter, scriptwriter, videographer and carpenter. Hats off to you, very funny and so true!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Iā€™m hoping this video catches on and starts a movement for all of us that donā€™t want an awning as mandatory!

        Reply
    37. Judy

      Iā€˜ve had an awning open while traveling down the road, and Iā€™ve dangled from the awning with the hook in my hand because the loop was going to disappear and I had no way to flip the lever on the end and pull it back out. I ended up yelling for help as I dangled there. After that experience, I started carrying two awning hooks – one to hold the awning loop and one to flip the lever. Iā€™ve had 6 RVā€™s over the past 27 years, and all of them came with awnings. After the above experiences with my first RV, I never opened the awning on any of the other RVā€™s. Iā€™ve always wished I could eliminate that extra weight and get an RV without one.

      Reply
    38. Russ Johnson

      We are ordering a new class b.
      I will take awning off when i get the van.
      Will store it, so if next buyer wants the awning, it will be available.

      Reply
    39. Jon Croke

      Very well done! Funny and makes a great point. Also, my comment is to note that deploying and retracting a non-electric awning is one of the most unintuitive procedures that only a rocket scientist could figure out (without a repeated demonstration). I still carry along a rod and hook tool that I don’t have a clue how to use!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        The Awning-Rewindy-Stick!!!
        We donā€™t even bring ours, since we never use the awning.

        Reply
    40. Curtis Eismann

      Hilarious and oh so true. Iā€™ve got an old class c (junk awning) , and a newer class B (electric awning Iā€™ve never used in 4 years). Definitely would have chosen awning delete option. Thanks for the scientific analysis as always.

      Reply
    41. Jane Price

      Good fun. I see this isolation business is getting to you. Thanks for the laugh.
      My awning has to be popped loose just as it is being deployed. I have to climb up on the passenger seat and make a dynamic move to reach it and set it free. I consider it a safety feature. No way is it going to deploy on its own when driving down the road. I hope

      Reply
    42. Charla Garth

      Hilarious…..and effective. But the best part besides the awful black wig? The 439 pens in Astrophysicist Jamesā€™s Pocket Protector pocket! Hah!

      Reply
      1. Stefany

        Oh Charla, THAT WIG! I couldn’t even look at it, it was so creepy. I’m so glad I met James after he lost his hair!!!

        Reply
        1. Adrian Benton

          It was a wig?!! I thought James had stopped shaving his head!
          I really enjoy your videos and look forward to see many more, keep up the great work.

    43. Rich Ambrose

      Bravo! Very entertaining with lots of nice touches. Quite a departure from your normal videos. But look what you can accomplish when you aren’t wasting all that time actually traveling around in your RV!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        This one was certainly a production challenge.
        And youā€™re right. If we were more mobile, it would have been a LOT harder to do.

        Reply
    44. Bryan Cook

      Itā€™s because you have a cheap-ass awning! Check out the Bundutec 270 degree awning- self supporting and no poles required!

      Reply
    45. Celeste Paquette

      And the award for best male actor in the RV docudrama category goes to…..James Adinaro. Loved it and hope it works it’s magic at WGO.

      Reply
    46. Gary

      I could not not make the effort to pop over here from YouTube to leave a comment. Great video, I loved it. I’m definitely going to watch it again because I think I might have missed some descriptors before I noticed they were changing with each cut.

      Thanks for using your isolation time to reach out and make my day better.

      Reply
      1. David

        Outstanding video on a super topic. We should have an awning option delete. As well as an absorption refridge delete and an option for a compressor refridge. Our awning on our Travato 59K (2017) on a trip would not retract fully and had to get a ladder to manually crank it in. Thankfully, it had not come out on our way home. They really are quite useless as proposed in the video but they sure provide nice marketing pictures. Stef, you were absolutely wonderful as a cameo and could have stared in Gone With The Wind. James, you make a valid point but doubt they will listen. How many RVs have garages after you asking for over five years. The RV industry is a strange industry. They still offer absorption refrigeration using a technology from 1850! Good luck with your awning delete.

        Reply
    47. Mike - in Cincinnati

      Bravo! Love the fact it actually broke in the middle of the video! About the only use for me would be in a light rain with no wind. How many days in 5 years does that happen? Very funny production!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        I know, right. I could not have timed the break any better. And hats off to Stef for keeping it rolling!

        Reply
    48. Sue Valentine

      From one ā€œRV awning survivorā€ to another, I couldnā€™t agree more!!! AND as a bonus, Iā€™m ROTFLMAO!!!!!

      Reply
      1. James - Post author

        Thanks, Sue!
        And having seen your rig, I KNOW you you feel the same way we do about awnings. šŸ™‚

        Reply
    49. Bryon Smith

      I laughed my a** off!!! But what are your thoughts on those new bat-wing awnings used on overland vehicles and trailers? They’re supposed to be pretty robust.

      Reply
        1. Dave Smith

          I was going to ask the same question! I don’t have an RV, but I truck camp, and was looking at the bat wing as well! I’d love to hear your thoughts and watch your next review!

    50. Elizabeth

      Ok this was very creative and took time to compile. Congrats on your creativity. Who knew you were such the actor? It was funny….no matter what anyone else thinks.

      Reply

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