A FIFTH WHEELER - A RETIREMENT PLAN OR A WAY OF LIFE
Or
Best of British Meets Best of USA
This story starts back in the 1980's - having been a camper and then a caravanner and thoroughly enjoyed the outdoor life we started to realise that we needed to settle down and look to our future. With one of those oh so regular recessions looming, the company I worked for in Sheffield decided in its wisdom that as our division was becoming successful, so it was no longer interested in us, having used us as a tax loss in the past. It shed us with little thought for the 300 or so employees. As a result the company changed hands some 17 times in 2 years and to put it politely I had little faith in my future. As a result my wife and I decided to take the biggest gamble of our life - we sold up everything we had and bought a field in Somerset and started our own business - a wholesale nursery.
Amongst different economic upturns / downturns and crisis we are still here. We brought up our daughter there - who decided very quickly that she had no interest in the business and forged her own very successful career. As time went by she married a chap serving in the Royal Navy. They were both very keen on their individual careers and both very successful in their own field. We periodically saw them but during all this time we had been without a holiday. When we started the business we had to sell our little fishing boat - we did however keep our Sprite Musketeer caravan - as a store room and spare bedroom.
We were living in a twin unit mobile home and on those cold winter nights we reminisced on our caravanning days and planned how we would spend all the money we would make (ha ha), We also decided that we had, because of the laws at the time, pretty much lost all of my pensions. We then had a choice - we could take money from the business to set up a new pension scheme or we could do the most sensible thing and put the money to development of the business and then when I reached 60 we would put the business on the market and sell it, hopefully quickly and we could then buy a big Winnebago and disappear until we were well fed up with travelling and then find a small house as a base.
Well, planning is fun but seldom do plans - - go as planned. I broke my leg (again!) and could not do deliveries so my son-in-law came down to help and during a trip he asked if I was ever disappointed that all the work we had put in to the business could not be passed on in the family – well, we had always accepted that our daughter had no interest in the business but the answer was of course “yes”. To cut a long story short - my son-in-law, having left the Navy, joined as a partner and then later my daughter joined as a partner and ‘joy of joys’ we can take some time off!
We then bought a 20ft Burstner caravan and started to enjoy long weekends plus holidays and also used it to avoid hotel bills when we had to visit shows or customers. As we are now rapidly approaching retirement we tried to decide the best way forward - we suggested to our daughter and son-in-law they should move on to the nursery and take the day to day responsibility, whilst we would work with them for a further 5 years travelling around the countryside seeing customers and generating business for them.
So that is the background to our story - we had decided that the Winnebago was not for us as we would not have a vehicle to travel about in and our feelings were if we were going to tow a small car we may just as well have a large car and tow a large trailer - a caravan was fine but too small for day to day living and - then we found fifth wheelers.
The plan started to develop and make sense. Although the actual purchase was to be some time in the future we quietly started to go to shows looking at fifth-wheelers. We tried to understand the implications of towing them and what we could tow. We had always had a 'thing' about Land Rovers. My interest went right back to when I was in the Boy Scouts and, as a part of a camping holiday, our contingent (about 12 of us) visited the factory in Solihull and I was plonked on the base of a Series 1 Land Rover and had it built around me and then it was taken, with me inside, around the test course - after that you either love them or hate them. I have had a Land Rover now for most of my driving life and would hate to be without one.
Back to the fifth wheeler, most of the fifth wheel traders were more interested in selling us a Japanese import or one of the big American trucks doing 5 or so to the gallon - don't get me wrong I believe in live and let live - if someone has an interest or a preference in big American trucks I am certainly not going to object. Going around the Shows whittled the possible choices down by quality and attitude – there was the British manufacturer who really did not want us to go inside his trailers - he stood at the top of the steps and demanded to know if we were really interested in buying one before letting us in - how the heck do I know if I can not see in the thing? Another seller who, when I asked to see inside, diverted me to the monster tow truck he was trying to promote and when I asked if his fifth-wheel could be towed by a Land Rover, he replied “ No chance!” although he quoted figures which were well within the capabilities of the Land Rover - but at the extremes of the truck he was trying to promote. Another dealer who, when I called in on his stand, was too busy watching footy on the telly to speak with me - why did he bother to spend a fortune on going to the show if customers were such a problem?
One dealer, however, shone above all others. Why, because he was always about - never in the way -listened to what we said - accepted that we were researching and were not an immediate sale.
Niche Marketing - Peter and Greg - they always said “Yes, have a look around” and left you to it, but were just a few feet away if you needed answers. Posed with the question concerning the suitability of the Land Rover as a tow truck, the answer was straight forward and honest “Don't know - never done one, but I will find out.”
Some 6 months or so later we visited them at another show - same laid back attitude - and I reminded them about the Land Rover - immediately the answer came “Ah, yes it was you - yes we can do it - no problem!" We had discussed some points with them on what can or cannot be done with the interior and left it at that.
In July 08, we contacted them and said we were now in a position to place an order - they advised that they had a new model on the it’s way from America, that might just be what we were after, so they let us know a date that it would be on site and we called up to see them. They had definitely been listening to their customers - it was perfect, we came away pretty certain that this was the vehicle for us and within a few days we placed a firm order. The fantastic thing was when we said “what if” 'or “can you do that” - the answer was always “yes, of course.” The unfortunate thing was - this was the start of the economic downturn and the manufacturers in America did not play ball. So the original plan and delivery dates were not kept - but most, importantly we were kept in touch. Finally Greg decided to do the work in the UK, rather than wait for it to be done in the States - so as to get us on the road.
At last, the day came to collect it – and all was prepared for us. We had arranged for the Fifth Wheel Hitch to be fitted by some good friends, who actually worked for Land Rover and they knew the exact strong points to bolt the hitch to. After checking the system over, it was up to us! Greg took us up the road to explain the electronic braking system and we then pulled onto a local site for a couple of nights to get used to everything. Apart from one little niggle which Greg promptly popped down to sort out all was well - Greg's briefing on the systems were simple but obviously effective. With stowed and stacked, we settled back to enjoy the six-hour drive home.
And so the rest of our life starts here - we are now living full time in the 5th wheeler. We are lucky in that we can go back to base - we have a 'docking' site within the curtilage of the house that we can legally pull into and couple up to all services. My wife thinks she is in heaven – trying to keep a four bedroom house, that had a continual flow of people through it, as well as an office attached it – tidy, used to take her at least one full day a week and a complete weekend every four weeks – but now she is down to about ten minutes a day and an occasional fifteen minute burst.
What made us stand back in amazement was all the 'stuff' that we had accumulated - much we have never used, or only once or twice at most. Why did we buy it? Just think how much extra money we would have salted away - if only! Never mind, the car boot sales are looming and so is the open road!!!!
Why and what drove us to a 5'er (no pun intended)
Well, those are two of the more sensible things we have been asked - we have been asked some questions that have been downright insulting but generally only from those people wearing blinkers, who have never had a business or responsibility to others, such as staff.
Once the excitement of starting our own business settled (it has never waned otherwise we would have sold up) we realised that it was a total 24/7/365 commitment. Every morning almost as soon as you get up, you need to check any phone calls, faxes, now emails, as well - check the bank and make sure any payments due have been received and that payments made, have happened etc. You need to be on the ball with stock. No such thing as a lie in or a day off. You accept it – it’s your baby - you started it - and if you screw it up then all your hard work and money disappear - as Tommy Cooper used to say “just like that”.
There are benefits though, there is no one dictating when you stop for a cuppa - or if you want to just natter to a neighbour for half an hour. You have a fifteen plus hour day to work in a twenty-four hour period and it’s up to you how you do it!! When planning retirement it is always easy to formulate plans but sometimes the reality does not come through until it gets nearer to fact. The succession of the business was the final link in a very long chain that allowed us to realise our dream.
So what were our criteria? The business aside, as that was in good hands and we would still have some involvement in it, so it was just ourselves in the equation - and the fact that we would be touring the country on a regular basis seeing customers. As you already know - we have a thing about Land Rovers so we will include that. Next, me being, shall we say on the larger side of large and standing six foot tall - I object to keep bumping my head on the ceiling when I get up!! Shirley enjoys cooking so a decent sized cooker / oven / grill was a must - plus the necessary space for the pots and pans.
We had already been through the Winnebago / RV / Large Caravan / Motorhome discussion and had 'found' fifth wheelers which ticked a lot of boxes for us – six foot plus headroom in the bedroom – seven foot in the bathroom and a massive eight foot in the Kitchen/Lounge. We looked at many fifth-wheeler layouts, some sacrificed headroom to look more like a caravan. Most had slide-outs of some form or another, the bigger the 5'er got - the more slides they had, but it became obvious that sometimes these were more of a sales pitch than creating really useful additional space. Then we came to furniture. So many also want to sell the fact it can sleep so many people, that in the space it would be horrific - yet they sacrifice comfort for bed space that will seldom be used. What about visitors? Well, over the years we have always had spare bedrooms for people to visit in our houses - we have cleaned them - painted them - polished them - heated them, etc., and for the very few times we have had people stay - it would have been cheaper to have them put up in a 5-star hotel and rented a stretched limo to run them to and fro.
SO we decided that our comfort came first and – provided we had some form of occasional bunk for a grandson or two it would be fine. Our criteria have always been that a good bed - a good shower and some good food should be all you really need and anything else is a bonus. So head room - box ticked, king-size bed - box ticked, large wardrobe for the wife, small one for me - box ticked. Bathroom - compact but good (powerful) shower - a 'normal' toilet (Hurrah) and a basin for shaving and hand wash - that’s three more boxes ticked.
Many 5’ers we looked at had small slides - about six foot long and come out just a foot to eighteen inches (30cm to 45cm to the younger readers) but did not add a lot to the space - then we found this one, a full twelve foot long and over six foot six inches headroom - adding a massive four foot to the width of the room so that we then ended up with a lounge / diner /kitchen some fourteen foot by eleven foot six inches and our dream came true. The fixed dinette turns into a small double if required but makes a good eating place or temporary office, or grandsons billet on the odd occasion - good storage under the seats – that’s where the office is stored. Very comfortable reclining massage chairs that are exceedingly comfortable, with foot stools - this allows a bit of storage behind them when parked up - and stacks of room in front - enough for two people to pass without doing a dance – from the outside the 5’er looks a standard size but from the inside, it is like the Tardis - Bliss.
Cupboard space –well, once we had decided what we thought we needed - then found what we actually needed - you then go down the route of what you really need and the variation weighs a ton - literally. Once you have this cracked – then, generally speaking, there is too much space. One great controlling factor to remember - is that you are paying for the fuel to haul stuff around - if you don't use it and cannot think when you last used it why carry it - if you cannot think of a good reason to carry it then there probably isn't!!!
So what’s next - well - water heater and central heating and if we are living in some comfort air-conditioning. What do you need - enough hot water to have a good shower - usually about ten to twelve litres - so if there are two of you - say twenty-four litres plus shave (only 1!!) total twenty-five litres. That works out to about five and a half gallons - the boiler holds six gallons and can reheat using electric and/or gas in about an hour - so that all equals plenty of hot water. Central heating - what are the options really, wet or dry – wet, you are hauling a lot of extra weight, blown air is simple and straight forward and can work with the air-conditioner to circulate air, it needs to be able to get the temperature to about 70 degrees F without excessive effort when it is -20 outside. The air-con need to do a similar job on keeping the temperature down to about the 68/70 degrees F. - again without effort - nothing worse than have things running all the time and the more they run the sooner they wear out and if you are paying for the electric and or gas you feel the pain.
Kitchen – a Smeg or similar 4 burner hob with grill and Oven – a good cooker hood and extractor fan otherwise you are living with the smell of your last meal until the next one. Microwave - almost a must these days - many of the packaged foods these days can only be micro-waved. You are operating in a compact area and everything has to be thought out, to make it work easily - so a double sink that allows one for washing up and the other for slops and draining, which allows limited work space to be used and kept clean and dry. A good size fridge and freezer allows extra use as a larder as well - and a useful freezer saves multiple visits to the shops. It’s always amazing how you go to the shops for just one item and generally come away with a bag full.
Carpet - on not - that is the question. In our previous vans, we have had carpet laid on all the floors and it has been a nightmare to keep clean. The 5'er has three ‘holy’ steps leading in - (no you don’t have to pray on the way in) - the holes appear to clean shoes on the way in - a good door mat and an area where you can shed foot-ware is good - and then a nice area of vinyl flooring for the kitchen allows all spills to be cleaned up without grief.
Locker storage - you need to be able to store all items to do with electric - water – sewerage and gas outside - we found that the new BP Lite light-weight gas bottles save an enormous amount of weight (less diesel to buy!) and they fit easily into an accessible locker. You then need to be able to store such things as chairs - barbecue etc., believe me space disappears at rapid rate of knots (more diesel to buy!)
More to come – watch this space………. | 
