Wheels - 0906

June 16, 2007 – July 9, 2007 - 23 nights

Newfoundland and Labrador – additional 10 days

Dust off the bagpipes, load the cameras, grab your kilts – we are off to the Canadian Maritimes in June 2007. Now even if you don’t have one drop of Scot ancestry you can adopt a new surname for the trip – we might suggest Carnegie, Bell, Campbell, or Macdonald! Be ready for some lobster treats – even McDonalds serve lobster rolls! Janet and Russ Payne will be planning the food and meals and putting you to work in the preparation. Please plan to loose some weight before the trip. Please also be prepared for walking tours of over one hour and the climbing of stairs.

We will gather just outside of Bar Harbor, Maine and then travel into New Brunswick with the first stop at the chocolate town of St. Stephen before heading to St. Andrews, Saint John, and the Hopewell Cape. We will be along the Bay of Fundy and will see the reversing falls and experience the spectacular tidal changes.

Off to Prince Edward Island where we will be staying in Charlottetown for four nights and traveling around the island using the cars. Anne of Green Gables’ Home will be a must here and getting on the island via the 9 mile Confederation Bridge and departing by a ferry trip will make the visit to PEI most unforgettable. We are planning on a harbor seal watching trip. No trip to PEI would be complete without experiencing the community lobster dinners and we are planning on this!

Off to our campground in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Our campground will be in a city park in Dartmouth across the bay from Halifax and a ferry (fun ride) or bridge will take you easily to downtown. A day car pool trip will take us to Peggy’s Cove on our way to Lunenberg, a quaint fishing village. We will attend the opening night performance of the 2007 Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo on the evening of July 1^st with its cast of 2000 performers! This will follow a huge parade and be followed by fireworks over the city – truly a day to remember! On the 2^nd we will travel to the restored 1800’s Sherbrooke Village to visit its restored village and the next day off to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

We will be staying in the historic town of Louisbourg – right next to their playhouse – which we will be attending. We have a fort to visit as well as perhaps more lobster and hopefully some ceilidhs (only the Scots among us will know about this until we all experience it) to join. Cape Breton is the home of Scottish fiddling, bag piping, and Scottish dancing here in this hemisphere! We will travel the Cabot Trail and visit the Alexander Graham Bell Museum and of course go on a whale watching cruise!

On July 9^th caravan members will have two choices – start the return trip by heading towards Moncton for the night after a stop at the Anne Murray Center or:

delay the return for another 10 days and board the ferry to Newfoundland for 10 days of adventure. This portion of the trip will be “pay as you go” and we can all travel together and explore together. Because of the expense in getting to Newfoundland via long ferry trips, some may wish to stay even longer! Perhaps some couples will want to “double-up” for this adventure and we can leave some coaches behind with electrical hookups.

Initial cost estimates are $1620 US dollars and will include 21 events and all campground stays. This includes tickets to the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo, Anne of Green Gables Musical, Louisbourg Playhouse Production, 3 boat trips (including a tall masted ship tour, whale watching, and seal watching) and various other attractions and tours. This amount will include the $102.00 ferry fee from PEI to Nova Scotia which must be paid by each individual (you can use VISA) because of the logistics of paying and loading. Many of the rates have yet to be set for 2007 and we have tried to figure conservatively. We have figured all Canadian dollars as US dollars for now since the exchange rate will be changing. We prefer to give money back! Detailed day to day will be available on web site shortly.

We would like indications of interest as soon as possible so reservations can be adjusted. We are planning on 15 coaches maximum.

Application for this caravan will be in the December 2006 issue of Wheels and the drawing will be held on February 10, 2007. Deposit of $800.00 will be due with the application and the balance will be due on April 1, 2007.

JeanAnn and Bill Miller

706-579-1213 Home

678-617-8855 Mobile

Jeanann01@alltel.net

billcanoe@alltel.net

Janet and Russ Payne

770-943-3432 Home

404-434-3114

Senyap@juno.com

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Mexico’s Copper Canyon Piggyback Caravan

February 13^th to

March 1^st, 2007

Tracks to Adventure offered us an exclusive opportunity to “Buy the Train” where we would be the only ones on the caravan, except for the leader and tail gunner which would be Tracks staff. In addition they dropped the cost from $5750.00 to $4100.00 plus $50 processing fee for one coach with two people. The Executive Board accepted their offer and the proposal was presented to the membership meeting yesterday in Greensboro, North Carolina. Twelve coaches signed up at the meeting and there is space for another ten coaches on a first come, first served basis. This is a departure from our established selection method but is necessary due to the short lead time. Tracks has agreed to another caravan in 2008 at the deeply discounted price of $4550 and we will select participants in our normal way.

This will be a 17 day caravan beginning on February 13, 2007 in El Paso, Texas and ending on March 1, 2007 in Nogales, Arizona. We will spend 4 days and 5 nights aboard the train, 4 nights in beautiful Mazatlan, and visit Chihuahua, Los Mochis, and San Carlos. The Caravan will include 49 tours and events, and 9 meals. Complete details can be seen on Tracks web site, www.trackstoadventure.com, then choose the 17 day Copper Canyon under Mexico on the left margin, and then “Itineraries” under any date.

Again, this caravan will be available on a first come, first served basis. Kindly phone Tracks to Adventure at 800-351-6053. They will require a $500 deposit and the balance will be due on, or before, December 15, 2006. We need a minimum of 17 coaches and a maximum of 22 coaches. Full refund, minus the $50 processing fee, will be available for cancellations prior to December 15, 2006.

Please act soon to guarantee your spot on this exciting caravan. Call Tracks at 800-351-6053 and tell them you are with Monacos In Motion.

Colorado High Country

A 4-Wheeling Adventure

Caravan Leaders: John & Rita Ham and Wade & Linda Myers

Dates: August 22^nd to September 6^th, 2007

This will be a 4-Wheeling adventure of a lifetime that will explore the beautiful backcountry of Colorado under the guidance of 4-Wheeling experts. Please note that this will not be extreme, hard core 4-Wheeling, but will require a minimum stock 4-wheel drive vehicle (without running boards) and a CB radio. The Hams and Myers will guide you through and you will have lots of fun.

This caravan will follow the Continental Divide through Colorado as you explore the scenic backcountry beginning in historic Leadville, Colorado at over 10,000 foot elevation. From Leadville we will travel to Taylor Park, which is north of Gunnison. After running several 4-wheel trails we will move to Ouray, called the Little Switzerland of America, for more trail riding. Our camping will be at elevations up to 10,000 feet, and we will 4-wheel to elevations of 14,000 feet.

Our activities will be centered around 4-wheeling in the beautiful Colorado mountains. During this caravan you will see enormous meadows of wild flowers, visit old mining towns that are now ghost towns, and much more. You will see the Colorado High Country as few tourists have.

Application for the Colorado High Country Caravan will be included in the December 2006 issue of Wheels.

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Club Website

We have a fabulous chapter web site located at www.MonacosInMotion.org. Stop by and check it out.

This issue of Wheels is on the web site and you can view it, or even print it out, in full color. There is even a less formatted web version for those folks with dial up modems. Sign up now for electronic delivery of your newsletter, you will get it much earlier and save the chapter the cost of printing and mailing.

Kim Pollock is our web master and doing a great job. Kim has an abundance of talent and is putting it to our advantage. Please thank him when you have a chance.

Treasurer’s Thoughts

From time to time I think it is important that we recognize the significant role our sponsors play in the life of our club. For the first time in this newsletter, we are making a distinction between sponsors and contributors. Sponsors are those commercial RV dealers who show real faith in the future of our club by paying us $500.00 per year for the unrestricted use of our club as we see fit. Contributors are those who contribute goods and services in kind, which we can use as door prizes at caravans and meetings. Both types are important for the health of our club. Please patronize them whenever you have a chance, whether you are considering a new motorhome, or even just need parts and/or service. I can speak from personal experience for John Bleakley, since we bought our Monaco from him and got a very competitive deal. For those of you on the west coast, Paul Evert's also offers competitive deals judging from the motorhomes they sell at Monaco rallies. Lastly, Lazydays has provided good service for us since we spend a good deal of time in central Florida in the winter. So give these fine folks a shot at your business when you have a chance, and while you are there, let the dealer know you are Monacos-in-Motion members and how much you appreciate their support of our club.

Bill Miller

National Director

Prior to the FMCA Convention at Lowes Motorspeedway in NC, we were provided plenty of reading material to entertain us. The main thing that was under discussion was the attempt to remove the governing responsibility and authority from the Governing Board and consolidate it in a small group consisting of the Area Vice Presidents and a few National Directors. This is basically the same people who serve on the Executive Committee who now make recommendations to us, the Governing Board. This is also the same group that made this recommendation. This would have drastically reduced the size of the group that governs FMCA and consequently reduced the representation of individual chapters. In our case, the International Area, which we belong to and which is the biggest area in FMCA, would have the same amount of votes as the smallest area.

We would have lost out if this proposal passed.

The bulk of the discussion for the whole day centered around this proposal and finally when the vote was taken it went down to overwhelming defeat.

The only other thing of consequence that was passed was the abolition of the Information Technology Audit Committee. Since one of my careers was as Director of Information Technology or Data Processing as it was known then, I realize how easy it is to serve the one real master, the computer, and lose sight of the corporate goals. Therefore I voted to retain the audit committee.

The rest of the meeting was uncontroversial and involved mundane housekeeping chores.

Jack Sangalli

Safety First

Put your car keys beside your bed at night. If you hear a noise outside your home or RV or someone trying to get in your house or RV, just press the panic button for your car. The alarm will be set off, and the horn will continue to sound until either you turn it off or the car battery dies. This tip came from a neighborhood watch coordinator. Next time you come home for the night and you start to put your keys away, think of this: It's a security alarm system that you probably already have and requires no installation. Just press the panic alarm on your car keychain.

Test it. It will go off from most everywhere inside your house or RV and will keep honking until your battery runs down or until you reset it with the button on the key fob chain.

It works if you park in your driveway or garage. If your car alarm goes off when someone is trying to break in your house, odds are the burglar or rapist won't stick around.... after a few seconds all the neighbors will be looking out their windows to see who is out there and sure enough the criminal won't want that.

Try yours to make sure it works before you rely on it. Just know that you must press the alarm button again to turn it off. And remember to carry your keys while walking to your car in a parking lot. The alarm can work the same way there.....

Bill Ledbetter

Minutes

Monacos in Motion

Board of Directors Meeting

Wednesday, August 9, 2006 Greensboro, NC

President John Ham called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m.

The following were in attendance:

President – John Ham

Vice President – Ed Tilman

Treasurer – Bill Miller

National Director – Jack Sangalli

Alternate National Director - Dick Tucker

Past President – Fred VonRicklinghausen

Acting Secretary – Barbara Greenwood

Guest - Connie Tilman

John raised the subject of caravan problems. Much discussion followed. The problems are twofold: finding leaders, and lack of participation. John will solicit ideas for future caravans at the General Meeting tomorrow.

John offered to put together another four-wheeling caravan in the summer of 2007, and Bill offered to host a Maritimes caravan also in the summer of 2007. Connie and John will provide Bill with material on the Maritimes area which they gathered previously.

Tracks to Adventure is planning a piggy-back trip to Copper Canyon in early ’07. John will ask the membership if there is any interest in having a caravan not run by members.

There was a brief discussion related to whether or not a caravan must include three overnight stops. Connie looked into this earlier and understood that the three stops was only a guideline.

Bill Miller is sending letters to members who have not paid their dues, and is having good response.

Approximately 80% of the membership is receiving Wheels electronically. The possibility of reducing the annual dues for members utilizing e-mail was discussed, but no decision was reached.

John expressed his appreciation to everyone on the Board for their hard work throughout the year.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 9:25 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Barbara Greenwood, Acting Secretary

Monacos in Motion

Business Meeting

Thursday, August 10, 2006 Greensboro, NC

President John Ham called the general membership meeting to order at 11:40 a.m. John led the pledge of allegiance, and then recognized new members and guests. Sue Haught agreed to serve as parliamentarian.

John introduced members of the Executive Board who were in attendance:

Vice President – Ed Tilman

Treasurer – Bill Miller

National Director – Jack Sangalli

Alternate National Director Dick Tucker

Secretary Barbara McCray was absent.

It was moved and seconded that we dispense with the reading of the minutes. The motion carried.

Treasurer Bill Miller reported, for the second quarter of 2006:

Beginning Balance $10,631.30

Ending Balance $9,300.66

The report was submitted for file.

Vice President Ed Tilman welcomed all in attendance, particularly new members and guests.

National Director Jack Sangalli reported that he had voted for Les Alexander for President of the International Area, and that there would be many issues to be voted upon at the upcoming FMCA Governing Board meeting.

Nominating Committee Chairman Joe Monk reported that elections would be held at the meeting in Macon, Georgia, next spring.

Website manager Kim Pollock was not in attendance to be recognized, but John Ham praised our website highly and encouraged everyone to visit. The URL of the site is www.MonacosInMotion.org

During the meeting, a continuous slide show depicted highlights of the Virginia History Caravan II, and the Maritimes in September caravan.

Connie Tilman gave a brief synopsis of the Virginia History Caravan II which took place in April, 2006. There were many Civil War and Revolutionary War historical sites included in the tour, and fine opportunities for good eating. Connie observed that one makes such wonderful, lasting friendships on caravans.

Dick and Sandy Bell reported on the Maritimes in September (2005) caravan. The original caravan hosts, Hoyt and Nancy Highfill, were unable to attend, so the caravan proceeded without a formal leader.

John Ham described the April, 2005, Sherman’s March to the Sea caravan. It started in Chattanooga and followed Sherman’s path throughout Georgia.

John reported that the Fall Festivals 2006 caravan and the Pennsylvania Keystone Kapers caravan, both scheduled for 2006, had to be cancelled due to lack of participation.

The Land of Enchantment, to be run in September and October of this year, is being led by Kim Pollock. In his absence, Bill Ledbetter described the plans. It will cover a 600 mile distance in three weeks with seven stops. It begins in Santa Fe and ends at the Balloon Festival for three days. Nineteen coaches are signed up, and the caravan is full.

Caravans for 2007 will include:

A tour of the Maritimes, lead by Bill and JeanAnn Miller and Russ and Janet Payne. Dates will be announced later both on the web site and in Wheels, but is tentatively planned for late June and/or early July, 2007.

Four-Wheeling in Colorado, lead by John and Rita Ham and Wade and Linda Myers, in August, 2007. This would be the third running of this popular caravan.

A Tracks to Adventure “buy the train” piggy-back to Copper Canyon caravan, to be held February 13 through March 1, 2007. Many people expressed interest, so John will work on having it scheduled.

John asked for the members to indicate places that they wished to see future caravans go. There were many locations suggested:

Australia and New Zealand

Hudson River Valley, horseracing in Saratoga, Niagara Falls & Thousand Islands

Michigan

Pacific Northwest

Calgary Stampede

New England States

Alaska

Mainland Mexico

Polar Bears at Churchill

The Deep South

Loop the Great Lakes

TVA Valley area and the Kentucky Derby

Arizona and Utah National Parks

All suggestions will be listed on the website. Individuals would indicate those areas that they would be interested in researching, but this would not necessarily commit them to be wagon masters. There were volunteers to look into several of the areas:

Henry Snyder and Marcia Winters - the Hudson Valley

Carl Moyer, Mary Young and Jim and Milly Gummerson - the Michigan area

Tom and Dee Irwin - New England

Dick & Sandy Bell – TVA Valley

Wilt and Barbara Greenwood - the National Parks in AZ and Utah.

John encouraged the members to get involved as wagon masters. He stated that many former wagon masters would be willing to assist as you plan a caravan.

John encouraged the members to begin using the email version of the newsletter. It is not only more cost effective for the club, but the member receives Wheels in full-color rather than the less exciting black and white copy which is sent by snail mail.

It was announced that Chapter shirts would be available following the meeting for $20 each.

A prospective member inquired about the cost of membership. John responded that the initiation fee was $25, and that the annual dues were $15.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 12:30 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Barbara Greenwood, Acting Secretary

Volume 8

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Contributors

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Secretary

National Director

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