Mahlon Miller, majority stockholder of Newmar Corporation, announced in December that the proposed sale of the company to a group of investors from Atlanta, GA, is off.

Forecast ­­ RV Shipments Seen Advancing 9% in 1999

According to John DeWolf, RVIA's economist, RV shipments should be about 327,000 (at annual rates), in the final quarter of 1999. This will bring the total for the year up near 320,000 for a gain of 9.2% over 1998.

Writing in RVIA's newsletter, Roadsigns, DeWolf said, "Growth should continue through the year 2000 when total units shipped should reach 332,900, for a further annual gain of 4.2%." DeWolf believes both towables and motorhomes will see more shipments in 1999 than in 1998 - towables, 8.0% more; motorhomes, 13.4%. Towables should be up almost 5% in 2000; motorhomes up about half that rate. While motorhome chassis supply will remain tight, demand is expected to remain strong.

RVIA Board Approves RV Franchise Legislation, Revised Weight Label

During their Nov. 29 meeting in Louisville, KY, RVIA's board of directors unanimously approved a proposed bill for RV specific legislation that was developed jointly by the Vision 2000 group, which represents all industry segments. The board also said it looked forward to working further with RVDA and state RV dealer associations in implementing the proposed legislation in individual states.

This landmark initiative provides the industry with a tailor-made RV-specific franchise law that can be presented to states to remove RVs from the automotive franchise laws.

"In most state RVs fall under the franchise laws that govern the relationship between automotive manufacturers and dealers, and that poses problems from time to time," said RVIA President Dave Humphreys. "Having an RV-specific bill provides the industry with a document that promotes the mutual growth and health of all members of the RV industry."

The model legislation, designed to be fair and reasonable to RV manufacturers and dealers alike, addresses many issues in the areas of sales territory, transfer of dealer ownership, termination of the dealer-manufacturer relationship, and warranty issues. The bill was developed using the 1990 RVDA Model Law, the 1999 RVDA Model Dealer Agreement and RVIA's draft franchise law as guidelines.

"RVIA had been opposed to efforts aimed at passing legislation governing the relationship between RV manufacturers and RV dealers," said Humphreys. "However, we changed our position and agreed to support this legislation to avoid the lengthy and costly legislative battles that plague the auto industry."

New Weight Label Approved

The RVIA Board also approved a revised motorhome weight label as recommended by the Standards Steering Committee. Since 1996 as a condition of membership, all RVIA manufacturer members have been required to display a weight label in a conspicuous location that provides certain information about the loaded and unloaded weights of that specific vehicle.

The newly revised weight label for motorhomes replaces the Net Carrying Capacity term with the term Cargo Carrying Capacity (this new term incorporates the weight of fresh water -- including the hot water tank -- and of LP gas); adds the term Sleeping Capacity Weight Rating and increases the weight of passengers to 154 lbs. per passenger; and eliminates the Gross Combination Weight Rating from the label (this information still must be addressed in the owners' manual).

Members may voluntarily use the revised label immediately with a mandatory effective date set for Sept. 1, 2000.

KOA's Art Peterson Retires;
New President and CEO Named

Arthur M. "Art" Peterson, who has served as president and CEO for Kampgrounds of America (KOA) for nearly 20 years and who has been a driving force within the travel and tourism industry, retired at the end of 1999.

KOA owner Oscar Tang also announced KOA's new president and chief executive officer. He's Jim Rogers.

Kent Zimmerman, senior vice president of franchisee services and marketing, said, "Art Peterson helped to shape modern tourism as we know it. Through his leadership in the development of KOA as the standard in family campground franchising, as well as his contributions to the many boards and foundations on which he serves, Art has left an indelible mark upon international recreation and tourism."

A member of the Travel Business Roundtable, a coalition of 70 CEOs representing all sectors of the travel and tourism industry, Peterson has also served the U.S. National Tourism Organization, the Travel Industry Association of America, the Recreation Roundtable, the Montana State Governor's Tourism Advisory Council, and the Rural Tourism Foundation.

Among Peterson's accomplishments, he is credited with increasing KOA's commitment to quality and, early in his tenure, guided the company in increasing the average size of businesses and the elimination of sub-standard campgrounds within the KOA system.

Reflecting on his term as CEO, Peterson said he believes his greatest accomplishment was KOA's introduction of camping cabins in the early 1980s. "As in all things in society," Peterson said, "the camping customer demands higher levels of service all the time. We have had to continually change to meet their level of expectation."

Rogers' first job after finishing college was working as a management trainee at KOA from 1972 through 1974.

"After an extensive national search," said Tang, "it was determined that Jim Rogers was the perfect choice to build upon the wonderful business platform that exists at KOA today. The KOA name stands for quality in family camping and it is upon that strong foundation that we look forward to finding new ways to better serve our customers and capitalize upon the growth of the RV camping marketplace."

Rogers comes to KOA from Harrah's Entertainment, Inc., where he worked since 1978. Rogers was senior vice president and general manager of Harrah's Reno since 1994.

Norcold Voluntarily Recalls Three Small Refrigerators

Norcold has voluntarily recalled three small gas absorption/electric refrigerators primarily used in folding camping trailers.

Norcold notified the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) when it became aware of a potential safety defect involving stress corrosion cracking in brass swivel nuts on the pressure tap components of the refrigerator. A significant crack could potentially cause propane gas leakage during gas operation. Models affected are:

Letters spelling out recall details have been sent to all manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and service centers.

Thor California Delivers 20,000th Towable; Honors Top Dealership

In October 1999, Tom Powell, Thor California's president, presented the company's 20,000th towable RV to Western RV Country, Thor California' top North American dealer with dealerships in Leduc and Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Based in Moreno Valley, CA, Thor California began building its Tahoe and Wanderer brands of travel trailers and fifth wheels in early 1996; by April, 1998, the company had produced its 10,000th vehicle.

A contingent from Western RV Country traveled to the Thor California plant to receive the 20,000th trailer, tour the plant and meet key employees. While there, Brian Savage and Rick Hollinger were presented with plaques for becoming Thor California's #1 and #4 sales achievers, respectively, in North America; in addition, Western RV Country's service manager, Fay Green, was recognized for her department's outstanding customer service.

Coaching is the Way to Go for Presidential Candidates

Presidential candidates John McCain, Steve Forbes and George W. Bush are among the contenders who have leased Custom Coach motor coaches for the 2000 election. The coaches are being used to campaign at parades, personal appearances and special events throughout the country.

Candidates typically favor a layout that offers a front and rear lounge, center bath and center galley. This configuration allows room for an entourage that may include advisors, VIPs and reporters, yet the candidate can enjoy privacy in the rear lounge if desired. Campaign theme paint or decal schemes are applied to the coach's exterior to convey election messages and help the coach attract attention.

The new 20,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art building will feature a showroom and 16 service bays. The building will also incorporate sales, service, parts, financing and bookkeeping under one roof.

Fleetwood RV Honors Its Outstanding Suppliers

Fleetwood RV presented its annual Outstanding Supplier Awards at the recent RVIA show in Louisville. The 'Award of Merit' recognition was presented to The Dometic Corporation (Elkhart, IN)  refrigerator and awning supplier for the Fleetwood RV Towable and Motor Home Groups - for long-term outstanding performance in quality, customer service, timeliness and responsiveness.

Winners were selected based on ratings they received on Supplier Performance Evaluations given by the individual Fleetwood RV travel trailer and motorhome plants during the 1999 model year. This year's recipients of Fleetwood RV's Outstanding Supplier Awards were:

• Decorator Industries (Bloomberg, PA) - supplies window coverings.
• Airxcel, Inc. (Wichita, KS) - supplies air conditioners and furnaces.
• Lippert Components, Inc. (Alma, MI) - provides chassis to the Towable Group.
• Thetford Corporation (Ann Arbor, MI) - distributes RV toilets.
• American Bolt & Screw Manufacturing (Ontario, CA) - supplies fasteners.
• Winegard Company (Burlington, IA) - supplies TV antennas.
• Progressive Dynamics (Santa Barbara, CA) - provides converters.
• Continental Imports (Riverside, CA) - provides various imported RV components.
• Denso Sales California, Inc. (Long Beach, CA) - distributes air conditioners.
• Sherwin Williams (South Pasadena, CA) - supplies paint.

Contry Coach Teams With Habitat For Humanity International

Country Coach, Inc. (CCI), a Highline motorcoach manufacturer, recently announced the local Junction City/ Harrisburg, Oregon's Habitat For Humanity affiliate has successfully completed a $20,000 fund-raising campaign. As a result of reaching its $20,000 goal, an additional $20,000 in matching Ford Family Foundation Challenge Grant funds became available to this HFHI affiliate for their housing needs. The $7,100 which HFHI raised at it's Fall fund-raiser pushed them over the $20,000 mark and secured the challenge grant matching funds. According to the local HFHI representative, this was made possible in large part due to Country Coach's contribution of furniture, carpeting, tile, fabrics and assorted building items to this fund-raising effort.

Kindlund Family Foundation Establishes RVDA's First Scholarship Program

The Kindlund Family Foundation recently contributed $100,000 to the Recreation Vehicle Dealer Association's (RVDA) Education Foundation. The donation will be used to provide the first national scholarship program for the retail segment of the RV industry.

Newt and Joanne Kindlund co-founded Holiday of Orlando over twenty years ago. The company grew to become Holiday RV Superstores, Inc., the only publicly held RV and marine dealership chain. Earlier this year, the Kindlunds sold their controlling interest in the company to Atlas Recreational Holdings, Inc., a Miami-based venture capital group. The Kindlunds are continuing to serve the company as consultants for the next two years.

Rick Horsey, Foundation chairman, said "This is a gracious donation to our industry and RVDA's Education Foundation. Both Newt and Joanne have proven to be role models for many years in our industry and their impact certainly raises the bar for others to follow."

Thor Announces Record Backlog of $310 Million
California Bus Facility Receives ISO 9001 Certification

Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE: THO) announced that its order backlog is at a record $310 million, up 55% from last year.

At last week's Louisville RV show, Thor received excellent order input and added over 100 new dealers. RV backlog is $135 million, up 62% from $83 million last year. Bus backlog, including the recently announced bid awards from the State of California for 1,135 buses, probably the largest unit bid ever awarded to a bus manufacturer, is $175 million, up 49% from last year. The bus backlog also includes 65 buses totaling $10 million from Hertz and Avis.

Thor also announced that its ElDorado National bus facility in Chino, CA received the International Standards Organization 9001 certification that recognizes world class quality standards. Wade F. B. Thompson, Thor chairman, said, "Thor is the only mid-size bus manufacturer to receive this certification for all its plants, demonstrating again our leadership position."

Marv Whetter Passes Away

RV News learned recently that RV aftermarket industry veteran Marvin (Marv) Whetter passed away in late July. Marv was a manufacturers agent until his retirement in 1996.

According to his son, Dave Whetter, Marv suffered a heart attack on July 12 and he lapsed into a coma. He died 16 days later on July 28.

Dave Whetter said, "My father was one of those fortunate people who truly loved his job. He loved working in the RV and automotive aftermarket. There wasn't anything he didn't like about his career, He loved the business, the people, and the challenges. He finally retired when he discovered that the changes in the industry over the last several years made his job seem too much like work. Until then, I don't believe he thought of his job as work."

KIT Announces Results for Fiscal 1999

KIT Manufacturing company (Amex: KIT) reported a net loss of $11,000, or $0.01 per share, for the current fiscal quarter in comparison to a net loss of $329,000, or $0.30 per share, for the same period in 1998. Year-to-date net income was reported at $373,000, or $0.34 per share, compared to a net loss of $357,000, or $0.32 per share, for the twelve months ended October 31, 1998.

Net sales, company-wide, rose 14% from the comparable quarter in the prior fiscal year. Manufactured housing sales reflected less than a 1% increase, while recreational vehicles posted a 27% increase in sales in comparison to the fourth quarter in fiscal 1998.

According to Dan Pocapalia, KIT's chairman of the board and chief executive officer, "The significant RV sales increase was a result of increasing demand from our dealer body for our model year 2000 travel trailers as a result of increasing retail activity. Recent reports from our dealer body regarding the new 2000 model year RV products have been extremely favorable in regards to competitive value and retail movement. The relatively unchanged results for manufactured housing sales can be attributed to the increasing competitive pressures in the marketplace."