Shea and I had a pretty expensive visit to Indian Head earlier this summer.
We went to the splash park and happened to bump into some friends who were back from Calgary for a few days. In the course of talking to them, they told us they’d just bought a new rPod camper.
We’d seen one of these very unique campers last summer while camping in Avonlea and had been amazed at how cool it looked – compact, environmentally-friendly design but with an add-on tent that doubled your floor space among many other cool features.
(img via http://www.gillettesinterstaterv.com/cf/shopmast/productdetailp.cfm?productid=1031)
Our friends talked excitedly about how much they liked it and how easy it was to pull even though they have a smaller vehicle (a Mazda 9).
That caught our attention. We drive a mini-van but never really considered pulling an RV (even an ultralight) with it. But we’d just had a hitch package installed so we could transport our bikes. That meant we were already halfway there (just needed to have the connection to hook up brakes/lights installed).
When Shea and I got back to Regina, we went online to see if there were any used rPods kicking around. Just out of curiosity of course!
We saw that there were a couple used rPods for sale in Regina but out of the various floor plans that different rPod models have (some with bunks beds, some with two queen beds, some with tent trailer extensions, some with different window configurations) the one we liked best (the 182G – which has a rear flip-up “garage” that provides an outdoor kitchen/entertainment centre and which also has bunks instead of a second queen bed – better for a family with two kids) only had one listed that was in Saskatoon.
We wouldn’t be able to get to Saskatoon for a week to even look at it and we weren’t sure if it would last that long since there weren’t very many for sale and they seemed in high demand, even as it was getting near the end of the season.
We decided to sleep on it and the next day, our fears were realised as the ad on Kijiji had disappeared!
But then Shea looked again later in the day and saw a new ad for an rPod 182G in Saskatoon. It seemed like too much of a coincidence – I figured it must be the same ad but with the price dropped significantly. Obviously, this people were eager to sell quickly – we just had to figure out why.
I came home for lunch that Tuesday and called the seller. When I explained we wouldn’t be able to come look at it until the following Saturday at the earliest, the lady asked if we had iPhones then offered to give us a tour of the unit via Facetime!
Although the connection kept dropping when she was inside the unit, we saw enough to know it seemed to be in really good shape. We asked a bunch of questions about the unit – why she was selling (her family had outgrown it and wanted something bigger), details about how long she’d had it, how easy it was to maintain, if she was negotiable on price (we didn’t tell her we knew she’d already dropped the price but she volunteered this during our conversation. But then she still agreed to take even less than the listed amount.) On top of that, I explained we still couldn’t pick it up until Saturday at the earliest. But then I mentioned I could call my (retired) parents to see if they were available to go pick it up with their truck. She thought this was ideal and even offered to meet us halfway to make the transition easier and just like that, we agreed to buy it – basically sight unseen!
Shea and I were both pretty nervous – usually when a deal seems too good to be true, it is and this woman’s, not…desperation…but definitely her willingness to sell *way* below what we knew the unit was worth and go out of her way to get it to us made us think we were maybe making a mistake.
But we’d committed so while I went back to work, Shea went to get a cashier’s cheque and a few other loose ends figured out while my parents headed for the city to pick her and Sasha up (Pace was at summer camp) then go get our new purchase.
After work, I picked up Pace then we went home and anxiously awaited everyone’s arrival (while I waited anxiously. I didn’t tell Pace why mom and Sasha were gone so it’d would be a surprise for him when they got back!)
They pulled in front of the house just after supper time and I was immediately impressed. (Those are some funky cool blue lights!)
Checking out our new rPod 182g’s back hatch
We knew we had a big camping trip coming up in a couple weeks (we’d planned on tenting at a ranch wedding while my parents and Shea’s parents had their own campers) but after getting the necessary light/brakes hookup installed, decided to do a quick maiden voyage to nearby Moose Jaw for a night just to try it out for ourselves…
Jacking up the rPod for the first time
The kids exploring their new bunk beds
Teaching Sasha about camping safety in the wilds of Moose Jaw’s River Park!
The following weekend was our first big test. Shea’s cousin was getting married on her ranch near Willow Bunch Saskatchewan so her parents, my parents and us were all going to camp in Jean-Louis Legare regional park for a few days.
Our rPod 182g with the tent attached and the back garage open
The rPod 182g also has a propane bbq option that hooks right in the back of the camper and a net that attaches to the back to hold dishes, utensils or whatever supplies you want.
Sasha also got to have a bath the old-fashioned way in the rear hatch’s sink.
The tent attachment came in handy when we had rain one afternoon. Six adults and two kids fit in the tent very comfortably although…
The rPod’s tent attachment came in handy when we had rain one day.
…the kids decided to see how bad the rain was anyhow! 😉
Sasha outside the rPod’s tent in the rain.
We got an amazing deal but it was still a lot of money to spend so spontaneously, just when we felt like we were getting our mortgage and the student loan debt from doing my Masters under control.
And depending on the day, I still have moments where I think we could turn around and sell it next spring for thousands more than we paid for it and be even further ahead.
But at the same time, Shea and I both grew up camping with our parents and so we see this, not as an expense but as an investment – in our family’s happiness and our kids’ memories.
That’s worth pretty much any price indeed!
Pace and Sasha love camping!
