Chris and Lani from On the Road

Last week was an eventful, expensive and monumental week in our lives. First, we
realized that our Airstream warranty was expiring on March 17th. Yikes! This date
became known to us about week before when I came across the paperwork and thankfully
we were somewhat close to Bates RV, an Airstream service center. Chris and I sat down
and made a list of all of the items we wanted checked or repaired. It included minor
items such as a faulty latch on a cabinet, resulting in the cabinet opening during travel, to
more involved items, such as an inoperable sewer flush and electric jack. We also
wanted our tires checked (to confirm how many new tires we needed), our battery
checked, and a propane leak test performed.

I called Bates and the soonest they could see the Airstream was March 16th, one day
before expiration. Phew! We dropped the Airstream off with our list of requests and said
goodbye to our cute little aluminum home for the week. We enjoyed our brief tour of
Bates RV – a location that is well-known among Airstreamers for the “Airstream Ranch,”
a roadside attraction along I-4. In addition to the Ranch, they also have the Airstream
Village at the front entrance. The village, a setup of four or five vintage Airstreams, is
actually part of the Sales Department. Each vintage Airstream is an office. It was quite
awesome.

We recently learned that the Ranch was the subject of a lawsuit. While many supporters
of the Ranch consider it roadside art, some neighbors regard it as an eyesore and the
County deemed it a nuisance, fining Mr. Bates $100 per day. In February, a panel of
judges considered the Ranch to be legal…not necessarily artwork…but legal, nonetheless,
stating “county officials had not produced substantial, competent evidence establishing
that the display created a nuisance, was a commercial sign or constituted an open storage
of the vehicles.” So, the Airstream Ranch lives on! (Here’s a link to an article re: the
lawsuit.)

Thankfully, when we picked our home up on Friday, we learned that our requested repairs
were covered by warranty. We learned that we need to have our roof resealed but it was
going to be a very expensive task and by Friday, we couldn’t go forward with that
expense or the time it took to have it done. We’d also like to say a special “Thanks” to
Pat of the Bates Service department. Due to an unexpected staff shortage, they had a
crazy week at Bates and by Friday, we were really hoping to have our home back. When
we had not received a call by 4:00 and were having difficulty reaching an actual person,
we hopped in the car and made our way to Dover to inquire. We were able to get in touch
with someone on our way there and they confirmed that we could pick up the Airstream
before 5:00. Unfortunately, traffic was terrible. So, thanks to Pat and a very nice woman
working the desk (whose name we did not get) for staying past 5:00 on a beautiful Friday
and waiting for us to pick up our home. We really appreciate it that they stuck around,
answered our questions, and went over the paperwork with us! (Hope everyone is feeling
better!)