Students and instructors alike praise Gaylord Maxwell's effort

Students, seminar leaders and event organizers were unanimous in their praise for the recently completed, Life on Wheels RV Conference held on the University of Idaho, Moscow campus in June. Seminar leader and freelance writer Sharlene Minshall told RV News, "It was a fabulous experience not only for the students but for the instructors as well. I had a marvelous time and have already put my bid in to come back next year and teach another seminar."

"Excellent!," exclaimed one student. " An amazing feat for Gaylord Maxwell and his staff considering this was their first endeavor. The industry should be grateful. I know everyone who has taken the time to attend feels that they got their money's worth."

Another student said, "Excellent source of material for novices and old-timers alike. The greatest display of instructional talent at any event we have attended."

Four-hundred-thirty students from 35 states and two Canadian provinces, some traveling 3000 miles, gathered to learn all about the RV lifestyle at the Life on Wheels conference. All but 30 students parked on campus using their RVs as temporary college dormitories. The other students stayed in nearby hotels. There were 198 recreation vehicles parked on the campus during the week-long program.

The conference was taken from concept to reality by industry advocate and RV columnist Gaylord Maxwell. He said, "The folks who make the enormous investment that buying an RV requires should have and definitely deserve education in how to use these "fun machines" most effectively and enjoyably. The function of schools is to provide education, so, as a former teacher myself, I developed the idea of teaming up with a university to make that education possible. Thanks to the University of Idaho and a lot of good friends in the RV industry and the RV lifestyle, we made it happen. And next year we'll be even bigger and better."

Working with the university's Community Enrichment Pro-gram, there were 77 courses in 102 sessions offered on subjects covering three categories of RVing: lifestyle, technical/mechanical and lifestyle enhancement.

Students enrolled in the life-style classes were offered courses, for example, on how to use RVs, the ins-and-outs of fulltiming, things to do while on the road, travel to a number of locations including Mexico and Canada, packing techniques, meandering, membership campgrounds, accessories and even guns.

The technical side of the program was designed to teach RVers maintenance, service and repairs. Photography, health, nutrition, cooking, crafts and a number of other programs rounded out the lifestyles en-hancement portion of the schedule.

Classes were taught by 41 instructors who are considered experts in the RV industry. Most of the teachers are book writers, editors, university professors, service technicians and technical representatives from various industry suppliers.

"The Life on Wheels instructors were the cream of the crop and they were teaching the cream of the crop student body," Maxwell said. "Anyone who drives nearly 3,000 miles just to get some education for a week must be very special and several of our students did just that."

The college courses were subsidized by 32 manufacturers, suppliers, campgrounds, associations and one dealer, from the RV industry. Maxwell said that because of the generous industry support, enrollment fees were kept at $115 per person and $60 per rig for on-campus parking.

The program was a complete sellout and, according to Max-well, next year the university plans to offer places for 600 students with additional classes and instructors on hand to meet the demand.

Maxwell as well as his staff and the instructors were elated about the outcome, and why not, with students saying things like, "More information than I imagined. Everyone did a tremendous job. My husband has special needs and they were met beautifully."