February 26, 2025 • 46 mins
How do you keep your RV cool in the scorching summer heat? In this episode of the RV Life Podcast, host Patti Hunt talks with Don Rohacek and Deanna Monet, the innovative minds behind Kool RV. After a chance accident revealed a major flaw in RV air conditioning systems, Don and Deanna developed a game-changing solution to improve cooling efficiency by 40-60% while also reducing noise. Tune in as they share their inspiring journey, and how their product is making a difference for RVers everywhere.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Did you know there is a way to keep your RV cooler,
even in those hot days of summer?
I'm Patti Hunt and you'relistening to the RV Life Podcast
.
How much can your inventionimprove cooling performance of
(00:22):
someone's RV air conditioner?
Don?
Typically 40 to 60 percentimprovement in cooling
efficiency 40 to 60 percent, andI cannot wait to dive in and
find out all about cooling ourRVs.
I've spent a lot of time inthose hot places and this would
have been a great device.
(00:43):
Great invention for me.
Now, for those of you who don'tknow, would have been a great
device.
Great invention for me.
Now, for those of you don'tknow, I have been traveling
full-time over three years andhave spent many days, like I
said, in the extreme heat.
I've traveled back and forthacross the country three and a
half times.
Right now, I'm coming to youfrom a house and I'm living
outside of Philadelphia, and mynext chapter is being created as
(01:06):
we go along, and you guys willhear more about that.
As it happens, the RV Lifepodcast was created to entertain
, educate and explore the RVlifestyle, with the mission to
inspire you to live life to thefullest.
This week, what you need toknow is brought to you by Open
Road Resorts, and they havelocations in Idaho, nebraska,
(01:29):
new Mexico and two in Texas.
A lot of people.
What you need to know right nowis the time to start planning
for those spring and summermonths, and if you're looking to
head to Yellowstone NationalPark, you can look at Red Rock
RV Park in Idaho.
It's 22 miles from the westernentrance of Yellowstone, two
(01:54):
hours from Jackson Hole, wyomingand Boisman, montana, and it's
one of the highest rated parksin the area.
This, what you Need to Know, isbrought to you by Open Road
Resorts, and you can check themout at openroadresortscom.
But I want to jump in and talkabout my guests today.
(02:14):
Don and Deanna each embarked ontheir own adventure of a
lifetime embracing the full-timeRV living and the freedom of
the open road.
A year later, fate brought themtogether and they quickly
bonded over their shared lovefor travel.
But an unexpected accidentwould soon change their journey
(02:37):
and the RV industry forever.
Welcome to the show, don andDeanna.
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Thank you for having us.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
You are welcome Now, Don, how do you say your last
name?
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Rohacek.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Rohacek and Deanna Monette is that right Monet.
Monet.
Okay, so I tend to screw upnames, but there they are.
So what an incredible story.
I spoke with you, don, for awhile, and your story is
incredible.
But first, before we dive intoall things keeping our RV cooler
, let's talk about you guys.
(03:10):
You both, separately, withoutknowing each other, before you
knew each other, decided to gofull-time in your RV.
So tell us your stories of whyyou did that.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
Yeah, so for me.
I was living in New York for 15years and it changed a lot
after COVID.
So I decided I wanted to movesomewhere.
I didn't know where to go and Igrew up in Arizona.
So I came back to Arizona, gota truck and a trailer and
decided to hit the road andfigure it out as I went.
So what background?
(03:42):
But before what?
Yeah, now I'm curious Did youhave any background in a trailer
?
And decided to hit the road andfigure it out as I went.
So what?
Speaker 1 (03:45):
background.
But before what?
Yeah, now I'm curious did youhave any background in the RV
life?
Speaker 3 (03:51):
I grew up with my family camping and we had
various RVs.
We had a Class C at one time,we had a truck camper, van.
So yeah, various camping wewould do as a kid, but never
solo, okay.
So yeah, it was just going tobe me and my Yorkie on the road
(04:11):
there you go.
Speaker 1 (04:12):
So a little bit of background for you.
How about you Don?
Speaker 2 (04:15):
So I'm from Alaska, so being in the outdoors is
normal, and doing things thatare kind of out there to a lot
of people is normal for those ofus from Alaska.
I was in Denver I'd moved toDenver in 2015, and I got sick
when I got there, Couldn'tfigure out what was going on.
After about eight months, mydoctors came back and said you
have a massive birth defect inyour heart and you need
(04:37):
open-heart surgery immediately.
I ended up having a total ofseven heart procedures two of
them open hearts, a couple ofstrokes and a whole lot of just
really bad things over a periodof several years there in Denver
, and my doctors and my kidsboth came to me and said you
have to get out of the altitude,and I couldn't figure out where
I could move that could fitwhat my heart was dealing with
(05:00):
and what I wanted for myself.
And then one day it dawned onme well, I don't actually have
to move anywhere.
I can sell the house, buy an RVand hit the road and when I get
there, I'll know and I'll stopwhen I get there, and that was
almost four years ago.
Speaker 1 (05:14):
Wow, what a cool story and a lot that had
happened that led you to whereyou are now, which brings us
forward.
I said in the introduction, inthe edification, that an
accident actually led you towhere you created what's called
Cool RV.
So let's talk about the two ofyou meet.
(05:38):
Let's backtrack a little bit.
Let's not miss out on how didthe two of you meet.
Let's talk about that first.
Let's not miss out on how didthe two of you meet.
Speaker 2 (05:46):
Let's talk about that first.
So I was, my son was living inPhoenix, arizona, and it was
getting to winter and I decidedI was going to winter in Phoenix
.
I've got a lot of friends here,and so I get to spend a lot of
time with my son and my friends.
And the week before I got here,my son called to inform me that
he had his work, hadtransferred him to Kansas City
and he wasn't going to be hereanymore.
(06:07):
And so I was.
I do a lot, we do a lot ofboondocking.
At the time I was outboondocking in the middle of the
desert and I was a little bitbored and thought well, you know
, maybe I should get on a datingapp and just meet some people
so I can have, you know, dosomething during the winter.
And so I hopped on a dating appIn the meantime.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
And so I kept prolonging my trip because that
winter was so cold and I had afriend who had met someone on
Facebook dating.
So I thought well, while I'mwaiting around, might as well to
meet some people, and that'show we ended up meeting.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Wow, and you said you were living, if I remember it
right, don, in a 40-foot Class AI had a fifth wheel.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
A fifth wheel, I was a 45-foot.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
Fifth, wheel.
Dan and you were in a traveltrailer.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
I had a little 15-foot pole behind, pole behind
Okay.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Her trailer could fit in my garage.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Okay, so clearly the 45-foot fifth wheel won out and
you both moved into that.
What a story.
That's an incredible story initself.
That's awesome.
I love it.
So now you're traveling aroundtogether and I didn't ask before
(07:23):
this, so we'll have to have myeditor edit it out if I'm not
allowed to share, but Iunderstand you're getting
married next?
Speaker 3 (07:25):
Yes, in the next couple months.
Yeah, so edited out if I'm notallowed to share, but I
understand you're gettingmarried next.
Yes, okay, yeah, so I don'thave to have it edited.
Yeah, yeah, we actually gotengaged at Arches National Park.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
Oh, that's amazing.
Yeah, and you're going to bemarried in Alaska.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
In the end of July, in the end of July.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
Okay, it was close, very close, okay.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Well, that's amazing Married on a mountaintop in
Alaska.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
Married on a mountaintop that sounds.
You will have to send uspictures.
We will post them on socialmedia.
Congratulations to both of you.
Okay, so now you're travelingaround Great story and you have
(08:07):
an accident.
But before we get to thataccident, and which led to
figuring out how to cool off RVs, I want to talk about my
sponsor.
For those people who are stillin the cold weather, air skirts
is an incredible invention byanother amazing person that,
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that goes around the perimeterof the RV to prevent warm out
(08:28):
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damage.
It saves on heating costs andwhat it does is it traps the air
in and it creates a naturalinsulator.
It's made of a heavy duty,military grade PVC coated canvas
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(08:51):
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That is Airskirts and peoplecan find out more about it at
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The best part is there's $200off using code RVPOD.
That's R-V-P-O-D.
You go to airskirtscom.
But now we're talking aboutbeing in warm weather, we're
going to talk about how peoplecan survive the warm, but this
(09:14):
all happened literally from anaccident, so I want you guys to
tell that story.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
Well, so I'm that guy , I'm the guy from all the
YouTube videos that runs his RVinto a low overhang.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
But to back up for one second, I have my own
business and I rely on Wi-Fi.
So we were camping at a placein Montana and there was no
Wi-Fi and I was getting a littlestressed out and so I said we
have to find a place that hasWi-Fi.
So we moved and we each put inthis campground in our apps.
(09:51):
He had one map, I had adifferent map and it led us to-.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
The same place and it said there's an overpass, but
don't worry, big rigs can fitthrough that overpass.
And we pulled up to it and I'mlooking at it thinking, boy,
that looks, that looks too low.
And but we're both looking atboth of our separate apps that
both say you know reviews frompeople saying, nope, you can get
to this campground that waywith the big rig.
(10:17):
And so I started inchingforward and crunch.
And so, you know, I was at.
Fortunately we weren't drivingat speed, I was inching forward,
but it it crunched our frontair conditioner and that was the
.
That was the end of that oneokay so your air conditioner
gets destroyed.
Speaker 1 (10:33):
And here's a great teaching moment, because I'm
thinking those apps you wereusing were like ways or google
maps yes, we did not have rblife at the time.
Okay, let's talk about that so,while it turned out to be an
amazing accident for you guys,let this be a teaching moment
and you now use RV LifeAbsolutely.
(10:54):
Talk about that for ourlisteners that don't know about
it.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
So, going around, if you put addresses in Google Maps
, apple Maps, any of these otherprograms, they don't know
anything.
They don't know that you'redriving a big rig, and so they
don't they're.
They're looking at it twodimensionally.
They're not looking at theheight as another dimension, uh,
of the equation.
And so, after the fact, afterhaving gone through the
(11:19):
crunching, the air conditioneris when we found out about RV
life pro, which would have savedus all of those hassles but
would have cost us an entirecompany in the process.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
So yes, but.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
I don't recommend our approach to starting a company.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
Good, I'm glad you said that I'm glad, and I have
been using the RV Life Pro suiteof Products the trip planning
and RV Safety Press GPS beforewe started, before we ever
bought the RV because of storieslike this.
So okay, For those people whowant to know more, there's a
link in the show notes, but nowyour air conditioner crunch.
(11:56):
So tell us, tell us a story.
How did this progress from here?
Speaker 2 (12:03):
So I had to take some pictures for our insurance
company.
They wanted pictures from theroof, where you could see the
exterior damage, but they alsowanted pictures from the
interior, and I had never takenthe cover off of our ACs from
the inside.
And so when I pulled it off, Ilooked up and there's this big
box with a little foam dividerdown the middle of it, and you
could see where the warm air wascoming up on one side, the cold
(12:25):
air comes out on the other, andthe duct openings were on the
sides of this box.
They weren't attached and Ithought, well, that's odd, but
it was a 2021 rig built duringCOVID.
And I thought, well, so theyjust missed the part that
connects the cold air to theducting.
No wonder I'm not getting verymuch air out of my ducting.
And so I called my dealer andsaid, hey, they forgot the part.
(12:50):
And my dealer just startedlaughing at me and they said no,
that's how they're built.
And I said, well, when you saythey, are you talking about my
rig or all rigs?
And they said all rigs.
And immediately the light bulbwent off in my head.
I mean, I'm not an engineer,but it doesn't take one to
figure out that that's awretchedly inefficient way to
get air into your ducting.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
Right, and just to jump in for a second, you're
painting this picture for people.
But anybody that's visual, likeI am, and if somebody hasn't
actually seen what the inside oftheir air conditioner looks
like, I just want to let peopleknow.
Stay with us.
You're painting the picture,you're doing a great job, but
there's also videos that peoplecan see.
So I know, for people like me,I'm like wait, what's he talking
(13:30):
about?
So I just wanted to put that inthere.
Okay, so you now learned thatthere's a totally inefficient
system, yeah, and so we got hot.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
It was mid-90s, low to mid-90s in Montana.
We were cooling in the 80s withboth of our ACs running in our
unit, and I'm from Alaska, Idon't do heat, and so I was
miserable.
And so I started thinkingthrough how to attach the two
and I literally grabbed somecardboard, some duct tape and
(14:02):
some HVAC ducting and made anAlaska redneck version of the AC
Connect, made two of them, Ipopped them in, the temperature
dropped to 75 degrees and theair conditioners turned off
because they reached thetemperature I'd set them to.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (14:18):
And I looked at Deanna and I said, hey, honey, I
think I'm on to something here.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
Now, you have no engineering background.
I mean, I've read some thingsabout you, your background's, in
economics and finance, but itwas pretty logical for you, okay
.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Yeah, it just kind of .
And again this goes back togrowing up in Alaska.
My dad always bought old, usedcars.
I learned to drive on a 1967Toyota Land Cruiser and you know
we rebuilt engines.
So you know I'm by no means agenius, but I can handle a tool
or two here and there, as neededto.
And this was just something tome that just made common sense
(14:59):
and it proved out in the numbers.
I since went back and I wentand bought a textbook on fluid
mechanics and read that, whichwas, you know, great bedtime
reading if you want to go tosleep.
But I needed to figure out thescience as to why this worked so
well.
And that was able to prove itout.
But you know, in the meantime,so we've got this, now it's
working, but it's cardboard.
So you know, you're not goingto leave cardboard in your
(15:21):
ducting.
But I, you know, we just lookedat each other and said you know
, we're onto something here.
If we can figure out a way tomake this commercially, this
could really be a big benefit tothe community, particularly if
we can make it at a veryreasonable price point.
And so Deanna, with herbackground she had some relative
(15:43):
that that that that sheenlisted the help of and kind of
helped get all of it going.
Yeah, doing the CAD design,yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:50):
So I have a background in operations.
I have a business that I helpsmall businesses and
entrepreneurs with their systemsand processes and logistics.
So you know, getting everythingoff the ground was really my
forte and we were able to dothat.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
And with my heart condition I can't.
I can't do that.
I can't run the company.
I can't.
I'm just not physically capableof that after everything that I
had to go through.
And so you know, if I'd been onthe road by myself I would have
continued on with cardboard andduct tape for quite some time
at that point.
But with Deanna and and and andher background and experience,
that just opened up the door toto the company.
Speaker 3 (16:32):
Yeah, right, yeah.
So we launched our business inJune of 23 was when we opened
the doors.
Speaker 1 (16:38):
Yeah, and so I understand that there's now
something created that's notcardboard, and what I want
people to hear is you were at 90degrees, the RV was sitting at,
cooling at 80, air conditionerrunning nonstop, and with this
you know cardboard prototype,let's call it you got it down to
(17:01):
75 degrees, which in 90 degreeweather, 75 is way more bearable
, and you did that with thiscardboard duct tape.
Duct tape really is great,isn't it?
And so now these are being sortof mass produced, right?
Speaker 2 (17:18):
Correct and that you know, again, I have no
background in that.
Indiana, you know, had someconnections and and utilized
those, and she had a relativethat did cad design, and then
they were able to take that to,uh, another person that was able
to convert that into amanufacturing design, uh, and
then those were able to be to betaken out to commercial shops,
(17:41):
uh, to see what they could do tomanufacture those for us.
And so our initial productswere actually made by commercial
3D printers which allowed us totake those parts and, to you
know, customers would givefeedback.
They'd send emails, phone calls, whatever to give feedback, and
(18:01):
so then the designers were ableto take that feedback and
redesign those parts into whatexists today in terms of putting
it out there.
So there was the going throughthe processes of how do you
actually make it and where doyou get it from, where do you
get the different parts from,and then the other big challenge
(18:23):
we faced was how do you putthem together, how do you get
people to be able to put themtogether?
Because, you know, the initialbatch was, I think, a hundred
and we just didn't know whatpeople's response would be, and
those just were gone in a matterof days.
From literally opening thewebsite to sold out was a matter
of a few days.
And then it was ordering moresystems and that whole first
(18:47):
summer with friends and familyand anyone that could help put
those things together.
Everything was done on apre-order because they couldn't
be made fast enough.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
Yeah, we were really relying on the customer's
feedback as well, because, youknow, as you may know, there are
so many different variations ofplenums and how things are put
together and the differentbrands of air conditioning.
So, you know, really listeningto what our customers were
(19:18):
saying and what their needs werehelped us create, you know,
create additional products thatwe now have and we're still
learning from our customers ontweaking here and tweaking there
and to make it even that muchmore efficient.
Speaker 1 (19:33):
And I want to talk about more of the benefits of
having this.
Now, what do you call it?
It's called Cool RV, right?
Speaker 2 (19:42):
It's technically called the AC Connect, but
everybody just calls it Cool RV.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
It's because it's a cool name.
It really is a great name.
But I want to talk more aboutthat, and there's also another
huge benefit that I know RVerswould appreciate.
Before we get to that, I wantto talk about OpenRoad roads
fuel card.
So, as we travel back and forthacross the country or just in
our neighborhood, if you havediesel whether it's a truck or
(20:09):
an RV that has diesel the openroads fuel card is the best way
to save money.
On February 5th, I did anepisode with people from the
company that explained the openroads fuel card, as well as the
new toll pass that I'll talkabout.
But not only did they explainit, I had 12 people on that I
(20:30):
interviewed and how much moneythey saved with this fuel card.
So I'll put that link in theshow notes, check it out, and
it's really an amazing card.
So, okay, let's get back.
Speaker 3 (20:43):
We love ours.
Speaker 2 (20:44):
We use OpenRoads, we actually use the card and we use
the transponder as well.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Okay, so let's talk about the card.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Absolutely love it.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
I never planned these things.
So again, the Fuel Card it'seasy to get.
It's free.
Sign up for free, it doesn'tcost anything.
You go to the major gasstations some smaller gas
stations are all truck stops andthere's an app that shows you
where they're located and yousave money.
And I mean people can listen tothe interviews.
(21:13):
People have saved anywhere fromthree, four, $500, because they
didn't travel that much tosomebody who saved over $1,500
last year.
So it is amazing.
The toll pass we'll talk aboutin a little bit.
Let's get back to that otherbenefit.
When we sit in our RV, the bigthing is so much noise, and so
(21:36):
this RV cool RV has reallyhelped with that as well.
Speaker 2 (21:39):
Right, it does so.
As the air comes out of the airconditioner from the bottom, it
blows down into this box and itessentially has to pressurize.
And so there are three benefitsfrom our system.
One is we eliminate that needto pressurize, which directs the
air straight to the ducts andallows better airflow.
Two, when you put air underpressure, it starts to warm, and
(22:03):
so we actually get three tofour degrees cooler temperatures
at the vents on average,because we've eliminated the
need to pressurize within thatbox.
But a big part of the noise fromyour air conditioner comes from
all of that air bouncing aroundin that box trying to
pressurize to push its waythrough.
Our system eliminates all ofthat air noise, that buffeting
(22:25):
that occurs and turbulencethat's occurring up there.
And so for our initial rig,when we initially installed
these, we didn't have a lot ofnoise.
The way our plenum was built,it really wasn't that noisy, and
so when we put these in it wasa little quieter and that was
nice, but it really wasn't afocus for us.
I in particular needed to becooler.
(22:46):
But I had a good friend from mydays in my finance career who
had an RV that was really loud,and she knew that we'd started
the company, and so we sent herone of these units and she sent
us this email back about how sheand her husband could finally
have a conversation together inthe main living space of their
(23:07):
RV.
They could finally watchtelevision without going deaf
trying to turn the volume up,because it had improved that.
And so we started to focus onthat a bit more as we looked
through and we see customersthat report six to eight decibel
decreases in volume, which sixto eight doesn't necessarily
sound like much, but the way thedecibels work it's actually
fairly substantial.
Speaker 1 (23:29):
Okay, so thanks for clarifying, because I didn't
know what that meant.
And again when you're in an RVthere is a lot of things.
You're in a closed space andthat noise it really makes a
difference.
So let's talk about.
I was in Las Vegas during thesummer months, july and August.
Don't ask why I do notrecommend it.
(23:49):
My husband and I were there fora job.
Do not recommend it at all.
It hit 120 times Sure, andwhere I'm going to be honest.
People say this all the time.
I live, born and raised on theEast Coast.
I'm back on the East Coast.
I'm back on the East Coast.
When you get to 90 and thehumidity is at 95, it's
miserable.
(24:09):
Even at 100 in Vegas, withoutthe humidity, for me it's not as
bad, but 120, it's getting bad.
When you're in an RV, You'resaying you could get that
temperature cooled.
Now I know there's only so muchsomebody could do.
First of all, don't be in LasVegas in July and August, but
give people you know real typesof scenarios and I would imagine
(24:34):
each RV and air conditioningunit is going to give a little
bit of a difference.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
It is.
So if you take our rig, our45-foot rig, two air
conditioners in it.
A lot of 45 foot rigs will havethree air conditioners in them,
but you can run into someelectrical issues depending on
which air conditioners you'reusing.
And I should say when we testedours before we put our systems
(25:06):
in, we would typically coolabout 16 degrees cooler than the
outside temperature on anygiven day, relative to where the
temperatures were when we putour system in that rig.
We've since acquired a new one,but in that rig we went from 16
degrees cooler than the outsidetemperature to 23 degrees
cooler than the outsidetemperature just with that
system.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
That's huge.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
Before you take other steps, for instance using your
awnings to cover your windows,or a little tip that I learned
we have black doors on our rigsand turning one of our vents to
blow on the door to keep thatheat from coming through those
black doors was another littlething that we did.
Trying to park under shadedareas there are a number of
(25:48):
things.
Speaker 3 (25:48):
The reflectics in the windows.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
Reflectics in the windows on really hot days.
Yeah, there are lots of thingsthat people can do, but our
system just really.
A lot of folks will complainthat, oh, this air conditioner
isn't a very good airconditioner.
It's not the air conditioner,it's the lack of a connection
between the air conditioner andtheir ducting.
Now, for folks that don't haveducting, we don't have a
(26:10):
solution for them.
This is specifically for ductedsystems.
But there's that again, thatpressurization chamber, which it
comes from the commercial andresidential space it's typically
used.
If you have 8, 10, 12 ductsrunning around your house coming
off of your furnace and yourair conditioner, you want to get
equal airflow through your home, and so it makes sense to have
a plenum that the air blows into, pressurizes and then pushes
(26:33):
out from there.
But in an RV with ducts,there's only two ducts, there's.
No, you don't need thatpressurization, and that's the
part that our system overcomes.
Speaker 1 (26:44):
You don't need that pressurization, and that's the
part that our system overcomes.
Okay, so now for those peoplewho are visual and some of this
isn't making sense from a visualstandpoint there are videos, so
stay with us.
Are there certain airconditioner units that this
works for?
You said they have to haveducts.
Are there certain brands,certain air conditionersers?
Speaker 3 (27:03):
let's talk a little bit about that so we cover all
the major brands, so coleman,demetic, ge, virion, and then
there's different modelsassociated with with each of
those brands.
Um, which we have the mach,which is the low profile.
For the Coleman, we have theColeman Series, which is the 1,
(27:26):
5, 10, 15q, the Dometic Briskand Fresh Jet NXT.
We have the Penguin, which is alow profile.
So, as you can see, there's avariety of air conditioning
models.
There's also some new ones onthe market that we don't have
(27:46):
quite yet, but as the demandincreases for those, then we
work with the manufacturer tocreate something.
Speaker 1 (27:54):
And as we're talking, I'm sure people are saying, hey
, I need to check this out.
Yes, I'm going to direct peopleto your website, CoolRV, and
that's K-O-O-L-R-Vcom, just sopeople can check out videos and
check out which types of airconditioners.
Let's talk a little bit aboutthe installation.
(28:14):
Is it a DIY or does it have tobe?
Oh, you're shaking your head,Okay?
Speaker 3 (28:20):
let's talk about that .
Even he can do it.
Speaker 1 (28:22):
Even he can do it.
Speaker 2 (28:23):
Wow, wow.
So when I was designing mycardboard version, I needed
something that was easy toinstall and wouldn't take a lot
of time.
And so when Deanna and teamthey were working on how do we
(28:44):
build this out on acommercialized basis, one of my
things that I insisted on waslook.
This has to be completelysimple.
The Coleman base pan, thebottom of the air conditioner,
is actually designed so thatit's a snap fit, and so you
literally take the center pieceand snap it in and there's a
little silicone gasket thatcreates an airtight seal.
(29:06):
So there's no taping oranything of that piece adapter
that can turn in differentdirections depending on where
the duct is situated, and incertain situations it's angled
(29:31):
so that if there's a tight fit,like on the Furion, or on a
north-south, like in a FleetwoodRV.
So the team's done just anexcellent job of designing
things.
That's a do-it-yourselfsolution.
You take the cover off.
On the majority of the systemswe sell they're snap-to-fit or,
in terms of the gross number,coleman is a snap-to-fit.
They're over half the market.
The other ones may have someself-tapping screws that will
(29:54):
hold those up in place and thenthe vent adapters just tape into
place on the sides.
Speaker 3 (29:59):
And we include all of that in the package with the
kit, so the voile tape.
And we include all of that inthe package with the kit, so the
voile tape.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
No, running back and forth to Home Depot to figure
out how to attack it.
Speaker 3 (30:10):
Now again, there are situations that do require a
little bit more because of thesetup, and we just never know
what the manufacturer is goingto put in or how they're going
to design it.
Speaker 1 (30:23):
So there can be.
Speaker 3 (30:25):
you know a little tweaks here and there, but you
know it's pretty simple.
Speaker 2 (30:29):
Most customers can expect on the snap to fit.
It should take them about 15minutes start to finish.
Speaker 1 (30:39):
And half of that's probably finding their
screwdriver.
Speaker 2 (30:41):
I always knew where my screwdriver was you need to
On the Dometics Furions, they dorequire that there are four
bolts that are taken out so thatthe bottom plate can drop down.
So those customers I'd say planon about 30 minutes on average
for those to get those in Again,because you've got to drill
(31:02):
little self-tapping screws up into hold those into place.
Speaker 3 (31:05):
And we also discovered, thanks to our
customers, that Jayco andWinnebago's are a little bit
different, so their ventopenings are smaller than what
the manufacturer typicallyrequires.
Speaker 2 (31:19):
Might recommend, but the team just came up with a new
adapter to help accommodate forthat it in 2023.
Speaker 1 (31:30):
I know the demand in 2024 has been incredible and
hopefully it sounds like thedemand for 2025 is going to
skyrocket.
You have a unique way of havingthese produced.
(31:54):
Can you talk about that?
Is that?
Speaker 2 (31:56):
something you can talk about.
Yeah, so one, we moved from 3Dprinting Once we got things
squared away with our designsand everything, then the team
moved to injection molding andthey were able to use the same
manufacturers.
And so now all of those parts,we have a handful of parts that
are low usage, parts that arestill 3D printed but again done
(32:16):
commercially.
But there was no way to keep upwith the demand and the
staffing, the staffing andeverything else.
At the end it would have neededto to get the systems made.
And with my heart condition,you know, I, I'm, I'm disabled,
I just I physically can't meetthe demands needed.
And so, uh, as, as the team waslooking around for manufacturing
(32:38):
partners, I happened to stumbleacross a company in Tucson and
it's a company called the BeaconGroup, very special company.
They were started 70 years agoby a couple of mothers who had
disabled children and theywanted their kids to have
something productive to be ableto do as they matured and grew.
And so, again, it just, youknow, they were going door to
(33:01):
door to businesses.
And is there anything ourchildren can do to help here?
Our adult children can do tohelp and work, and over the last
70 years.
They've evolved that from acouple of mothers and their
children to a company that nowemploys over 2200 disabled
people in the state of Arizona,and so I stumbled across and
(33:25):
brought them to Deanna'sattention.
We scheduled a meeting with themand went down and they put
together a team of folks, andthese are folks that may have
developmental disabilities, theymay have physical disabilities,
they may be recovering fromaddiction, but they are are
disabled, but they're lookingfor something that they can do.
(33:46):
And so, you know, we have ayoung man with autism who is
fantastic at counting fourscrews and putting them a little
baggie for it.
It gives him meaning andpurpose and he, he just does a
fantastic job.
We have people that can't stand, but they can sit at a table
and they can put these systemstogether.
We have recovering addicts whoare well down their road to
(34:09):
recovery, and this is givingthem an opportunity to get back
in the workforce.
And so we're very, very proudof our affiliation with the
Beacon Group and the incrediblework that they do for the
company, and they not only putour systems together, but they
package them and they fulfillthem, so as the orders come in,
they ship them directly to ourcustomers out of their Tucson
warehouse.
Speaker 1 (34:30):
That's incredible and when you told that story I was
very moved by it.
I was a teacher for 20 yearsand worked a lot with different
types of disabilities and tohave something that you know,
like you said, gives purpose andmeaning, it's just so touching.
That's amazing.
And you said there are otherareas around the country that
(34:51):
you're looking at the BeaconGroup so you'll be shipping,
fulfilling, having them puttogether and then fulfilled from
different areas.
Speaker 2 (35:00):
There are other companies similar.
So the Beacon Group is justhere in Arizona, okay, but there
are other companies that areout there helping people with
disabilities of varying levelsand varying abilities that those
organizations have.
But there are some otherorganizations that will be as we
grow as a company.
That it's again with mydisability.
(35:23):
It's a passion for me tosupport those folks, regardless
of cost or anything else that we, we, we, we, we may have to
deal with, and it's just been awonderful, a wonderful
experience for us and I'mcertain it will continue to be
able to do that to supportpeople like me.
Speaker 1 (35:42):
That's.
That's just incredible.
Again, I'm going to lead peopleto coolrvcom, K-O-O-L-R-Vcom.
They can find out all about it.
Just as people are traveling,we're thinking about this summer
.
I am planning on going to anevent in Lebanon, Tennessee.
Last year I was there in Juneand it was hot.
(36:02):
Now I was in an air conditionedhotel room for when I went home
to bed, but it was hot there,so this would have been very
helpful for people.
It is the Music City MotorhomeExpo.
It's May 31st to June 4th andthis gives people the
opportunity to be the first tosee the 2026 model year coaches
(36:24):
from all the major manufacturers.
The attendance is kept verysmall so you could test drive as
much as you want and you couldtalk to the manufacturers, the
product developers, engineers.
There will be seminars.
They give you three meals a dayan incredible entertainment and
, like I said last year, it wasgreat but it was hot, and it was
just the beginning of June inTennessee it was really hot.
(36:46):
I guess maybe it gets hot therethat time of year, I don't know
.
So I highly recommend thatevent and people can check that
out at Music City Motorhome Expo.
Now do you guys go around to?
I know you were in Hershey lastyear and you were sponsors of
the RV Life, the Hershey RV LifeAfter Party, and we appreciate
(37:09):
that.
So you were there in Hershey.
Did you actually have a booth?
We did Okay, so will.
You were there in Hershey.
Did you actually have a booth?
Speaker 3 (37:14):
We did Okay, so will you be back in Hershey this year
?
Yes, we definitely plan on it.
We loved that show.
It was great.
So we had some of our team wasat the Tampa show in January and
then I was at the Quartziteshow as well with some of our
team.
So, yeah, we try to do thebigger ones around the States.
I was at the Quartzite show aswell with some of our team.
So, yeah, we try to do thebigger ones around the states.
Speaker 1 (37:37):
That's great.
Yes, I saw somebody from CoolRV at the Tampa show.
I was there, so I actually sawsomebody and we'll see each
other then at the Hershey show.
So we'll have to talk aboutthat For those listeners.
I know it's only February soyou might not be thinking about
the Hershey RV show in September, but as you're making plans, it
is a great event and RV Lifefourth year will be doing the
(38:02):
Hershey after party and thatsells out very quickly.
So listeners stay tuned forthat and people that are going
to be in Hershey can come Now.
Will you guys be at the show oryou take a team of people?
Will they get to meet you?
Speaker 3 (38:17):
um, we, we might be there.
It just depends, yeah, on thisyear.
We have a lot going on, soright, I'll keep people up to
date on that.
Speaker 1 (38:26):
Um, but again, people , you know I'm going to say it
again cool rvcom.
K K-O-O-L-R-Vcom.
It's now time for the questionof the week and what I'm going
to do is ask you guys thisquestion.
You could think of your ownanswers and then I'll give you a
few minutes while I talk aboutthat innovative toll solution we
were talking about earlier.
(38:47):
The question for you guys iswhat is on your bucket list?
So a place, an experienceperson to meet that you either
have done and people should puton their bucket list, or you're
looking forward to putting onyour bucket list.
And I'm going to give you aminute while I talk about
innovative toll solutions.
(39:08):
And this is that toll pass thatboth of you said you use.
It covers all 48 states, costs$24 a year.
It covers all 48 states.
One toll transponder.
If there should be any problem,you get a fine.
It didn't work.
You didn't have it in yourwindow that day.
Innovative Toll Solutions thepeople there will take care of
(39:32):
any issue you have.
They will resolve it for you.
You just contact them.
I highly recommend this tollpass and people could go to the
link in the show notes to findout all about that.
Okay, do you guys?
You didn't really have to thinkmuch, there weren't much faces.
Okay, deanna is ready.
Speaker 3 (39:54):
So we've actually covered quite a few things on
our bucket list, and this lastyear we hit all 50 states, so
that was a huge accomplishmentfor us.
Now, we didn't necessarily dothem all together or in the RV,
but we finished our last 50states together in the RV, um,
(40:17):
which was um, uh, mississippiwas our last.
Speaker 2 (40:21):
Mississippi, excuse me.
Speaker 3 (40:23):
So uh that's so cool, yeah.
And then we, we did go toHawaii, but not again, not in
the RV.
Speaker 2 (40:32):
Yeah, right.
So I had something we did thislast year that's been on my
bucket list forever, which is aplace called Brooks Falls at
Katmai National Park in Alaska.
Grew up in Alaska, grew upfishing, grew up on my folks,
had a boat out of Whittier, outon Prince William Sound, did all
of that.
But Brooks Falls is where allthe grizzly bears in Katmai
(40:53):
National Park congregate tocatch salmon as they're jumping
up and leaping through the fallsand I've always wanted to do
that and Deanna had never beento Alaska.
We went up there, we spent thesummer up there.
Speaker 3 (41:05):
We drove the RV Okay.
The old one we don't recommenddriving a 45 footer.
Speaker 2 (41:10):
We had to buy a new RV in Hershey because our old
one got totaled Wow.
Speaker 1 (41:15):
Oh no, okay, so Hershey is a good place to buy
an.
Speaker 2 (41:18):
RV.
Hershey is a good place to buyan RV and the lesson here is
don't travel to Alaska.
And let Don drive.
Speaker 1 (41:25):
Okay, there you go, I'd let you.
Speaker 3 (41:27):
Okay, yeah, take something smaller.
Speaker 2 (41:30):
Okay, but we took a float plane out of Homer Alaska,
flew over, landed on a lakethere by Brooks Falls and went
in and got to just sit there andwatch.
There are literally hundreds ofgrizzlies all around you.
Probably not a great idea for aguy with a heart issue, but
(41:54):
they have no interest in you.
We were taking pictures of awhole bunch of grizzlies that
were right in front of us in thewater and I heard a noise
behind me and I'd looked over myshoulder and there was a
grizzly walking right behind us.
Speaker 1 (42:02):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
Just completely ignoring us.
So, from a bucket listperspective, that was something
that's been on my list for along, long time and it was
absolutely incredible.
Been on my list for a long longtime and it was absolutely
incredible.
Speaker 1 (42:13):
That sounds amazing.
Alaska is one of those placeson my list, as well as Hawaii,
very much on my list of placesto go, but that sounds
incredible.
I'm not sure that I'm feelingthe whole idea of having
grizzlies all around me.
I'm not sure about that one,but you have to get out of your
(42:33):
comfort zone.
That might be a little too farout.
I'll have to think about thatone.
And for our listeners, anybodywho's done something like this
gone to Alaska, been there withthe Grizzlies let us know.
We're always looking forcomments and questions.
You can put it in the reviewsection of the podcast or social
(42:56):
media RV Life Podcast.
Do you guys have social mediachannels?
Speaker 3 (43:01):
We do.
We're on Facebook and Instagramare the two big ones.
Speaker 1 (43:05):
At Cool RV K-O-O-L RV Okay great, and I'm also on
Instagram and Facebook at RVLife Podcast RV Okay great, and
I'm also on Instagram andFacebook at RV Life Podcast.
We are not done yet.
I'm going to talk about thecampground of the week.
I did want to, just I hopepeople were okay.
I am so congested but I knew Ihad to have you guys on Like.
I did not want to wait.
(43:26):
We have had this scheduled.
I want people to be preparedthis summer to cool off their RV
and if people are looking to goto Florida, I don't recommend
that in the middle of the summer, but certainly if they're there
in the summer they have a wayto stay cooler.
The Featured Campground isbrought to you by RV Life and it
is Live Oak Landing in Freeport, florida, and this is actually
(43:51):
in the panhandle of Florida.
I heard they got snow While Iwas in Tampa in January.
They had snow.
It's right near Destin, florida.
It is a beautiful area.
It's right on the Gulf.
They do have full hookups.
They have pull-in sites.
They are dog-friendly.
You could do cabin andcampground rentals.
They have a solid 8.8 rating onthe RV Life Campgrounds website
(44:15):
with 92 reviews, and it is soeasy to book.
All you have to do is go tocampgroundsrvlifecom and search
for Live Oak Landing and onceyou get there, you could see a
ton of photos.
Like I said, this place isbeautiful.
They have all the tips, all theamenities about this property,
(44:37):
as well as what's in the area.
And what's nice is, once you'reon the campgrounds website, you
can go and book right from thewebsite.
Rv Life Campgrounds is part ofthe RV Life Pro Suite of
products which we talked about.
You would not have had theaccident if you had it.
Something great came out of it,but that's usually not the case
(44:59):
.
So anybody looking for the RVLife Pro suite of products there
is a discount in the show notes.
You can click that link whenyou check out.
It'll give you 25% off, and itis the most comprehensive source
of RV parks, campgrounds,resorts, city, state and
national parks, corps ofEngineers, as well as a ton of
(45:22):
points of interest.
There's so much there.
Well, guys, I want to thank youso much for being on and thank
you for having this accidentthat led to this amazing product
.
Yeah, we turned lemons intolemonade you sure did, and that
is a great lesson for people.
Thank you for spending timewith us today.
(45:44):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (45:45):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (45:46):
And thank you to my listeners and remember life is a
journey.
Live each day to the fullest,without regrets.
I'm Patty Hunt and you'relistening to the RV Life Podcast
.
You
Did you know there is a way to keep your RV cooler,
even in those hot days of summer?
I'm Patti Hunt and you'relistening to the RV Life Podcast
.
How much can your inventionimprove cooling performance of
(00:22):
someone's RV air conditioner?
Don?
Typically 40 to 60 percentimprovement in cooling
efficiency 40 to 60 percent, andI cannot wait to dive in and
find out all about cooling ourRVs.
I've spent a lot of time inthose hot places and this would
have been a great device.
(00:43):
Great invention for me.
Now, for those of you who don'tknow, would have been a great
device.
Great invention for me.
Now, for those of you don'tknow, I have been traveling
full-time over three years andhave spent many days, like I
said, in the extreme heat.
I've traveled back and forthacross the country three and a
half times.
Right now, I'm coming to youfrom a house and I'm living
outside of Philadelphia, and mynext chapter is being created as
(01:06):
we go along, and you guys willhear more about that.
As it happens, the RV Lifepodcast was created to entertain
, educate and explore the RVlifestyle, with the mission to
inspire you to live life to thefullest.
This week, what you need toknow is brought to you by Open
Road Resorts, and they havelocations in Idaho, nebraska,
(01:29):
new Mexico and two in Texas.
A lot of people.
What you need to know right nowis the time to start planning
for those spring and summermonths, and if you're looking to
head to Yellowstone NationalPark, you can look at Red Rock
RV Park in Idaho.
It's 22 miles from the westernentrance of Yellowstone, two
(01:54):
hours from Jackson Hole, wyomingand Boisman, montana, and it's
one of the highest rated parksin the area.
This, what you Need to Know, isbrought to you by Open Road
Resorts, and you can check themout at openroadresortscom.
But I want to jump in and talkabout my guests today.
(02:14):
Don and Deanna each embarked ontheir own adventure of a
lifetime embracing the full-timeRV living and the freedom of
the open road.
A year later, fate brought themtogether and they quickly
bonded over their shared lovefor travel.
But an unexpected accidentwould soon change their journey
(02:37):
and the RV industry forever.
Welcome to the show, don andDeanna.
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Thank you for having us.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
You are welcome Now, Don, how do you say your last
name?
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Rohacek.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Rohacek and Deanna Monette is that right Monet.
Monet.
Okay, so I tend to screw upnames, but there they are.
So what an incredible story.
I spoke with you, don, for awhile, and your story is
incredible.
But first, before we dive intoall things keeping our RV cooler
, let's talk about you guys.
(03:10):
You both, separately, withoutknowing each other, before you
knew each other, decided to gofull-time in your RV.
So tell us your stories of whyyou did that.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
Yeah, so for me.
I was living in New York for 15years and it changed a lot
after COVID.
So I decided I wanted to movesomewhere.
I didn't know where to go and Igrew up in Arizona.
So I came back to Arizona, gota truck and a trailer and
decided to hit the road andfigure it out as I went.
So what background?
(03:42):
But before what?
Yeah, now I'm curious Did youhave any background in a trailer
?
And decided to hit the road andfigure it out as I went.
So what?
Speaker 1 (03:45):
background.
But before what?
Yeah, now I'm curious did youhave any background in the RV
life?
Speaker 3 (03:51):
I grew up with my family camping and we had
various RVs.
We had a Class C at one time,we had a truck camper, van.
So yeah, various camping wewould do as a kid, but never
solo, okay.
So yeah, it was just going tobe me and my Yorkie on the road
(04:11):
there you go.
Speaker 1 (04:12):
So a little bit of background for you.
How about you Don?
Speaker 2 (04:15):
So I'm from Alaska, so being in the outdoors is
normal, and doing things thatare kind of out there to a lot
of people is normal for those ofus from Alaska.
I was in Denver I'd moved toDenver in 2015, and I got sick
when I got there, Couldn'tfigure out what was going on.
After about eight months, mydoctors came back and said you
have a massive birth defect inyour heart and you need
(04:37):
open-heart surgery immediately.
I ended up having a total ofseven heart procedures two of
them open hearts, a couple ofstrokes and a whole lot of just
really bad things over a periodof several years there in Denver
, and my doctors and my kidsboth came to me and said you
have to get out of the altitude,and I couldn't figure out where
I could move that could fitwhat my heart was dealing with
(05:00):
and what I wanted for myself.
And then one day it dawned onme well, I don't actually have
to move anywhere.
I can sell the house, buy an RVand hit the road and when I get
there, I'll know and I'll stopwhen I get there, and that was
almost four years ago.
Speaker 1 (05:14):
Wow, what a cool story and a lot that had
happened that led you to whereyou are now, which brings us
forward.
I said in the introduction, inthe edification, that an
accident actually led you towhere you created what's called
Cool RV.
So let's talk about the two ofyou meet.
(05:38):
Let's backtrack a little bit.
Let's not miss out on how didthe two of you meet.
Let's talk about that first.
Let's not miss out on how didthe two of you meet.
Speaker 2 (05:46):
Let's talk about that first.
So I was, my son was living inPhoenix, arizona, and it was
getting to winter and I decidedI was going to winter in Phoenix
.
I've got a lot of friends here,and so I get to spend a lot of
time with my son and my friends.
And the week before I got here,my son called to inform me that
he had his work, hadtransferred him to Kansas City
and he wasn't going to be hereanymore.
(06:07):
And so I was.
I do a lot, we do a lot ofboondocking.
At the time I was outboondocking in the middle of the
desert and I was a little bitbored and thought well, you know
, maybe I should get on a datingapp and just meet some people
so I can have, you know, dosomething during the winter.
And so I hopped on a dating appIn the meantime.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
And so I kept prolonging my trip because that
winter was so cold and I had afriend who had met someone on
Facebook dating.
So I thought well, while I'mwaiting around, might as well to
meet some people, and that'show we ended up meeting.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Wow, and you said you were living, if I remember it
right, don, in a 40-foot Class AI had a fifth wheel.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
A fifth wheel, I was a 45-foot.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
Fifth, wheel.
Dan and you were in a traveltrailer.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
I had a little 15-foot pole behind, pole behind
Okay.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Her trailer could fit in my garage.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Okay, so clearly the 45-foot fifth wheel won out and
you both moved into that.
What a story.
That's an incredible story initself.
That's awesome.
I love it.
So now you're traveling aroundtogether and I didn't ask before
(07:23):
this, so we'll have to have myeditor edit it out if I'm not
allowed to share, but Iunderstand you're getting
married next?
Speaker 3 (07:25):
Yes, in the next couple months.
Yeah, so edited out if I'm notallowed to share, but I
understand you're gettingmarried next.
Yes, okay, yeah, so I don'thave to have it edited.
Yeah, yeah, we actually gotengaged at Arches National Park.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
Oh, that's amazing.
Yeah, and you're going to bemarried in Alaska.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
In the end of July, in the end of July.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
Okay, it was close, very close, okay.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Well, that's amazing Married on a mountaintop in
Alaska.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
Married on a mountaintop that sounds.
You will have to send uspictures.
We will post them on socialmedia.
Congratulations to both of you.
Okay, so now you're travelingaround Great story and you have
(08:07):
an accident.
But before we get to thataccident, and which led to
figuring out how to cool off RVs, I want to talk about my
sponsor.
For those people who are stillin the cold weather, air skirts
is an incredible invention byanother amazing person that,
because of need, invented airskirts, and it is RV skirting
that goes around the perimeterof the RV to prevent warm out
(08:28):
from escaping, and it protectspipes from freezing and causing
damage.
It saves on heating costs andwhat it does is it traps the air
in and it creates a naturalinsulator.
It's made of a heavy duty,military grade PVC coated canvas
and the best part is it sets upin minutes, you can take it
down in minutes and it's reallycompact, so it's great for
(08:51):
storage.
That is Airskirts and peoplecan find out more about it at
airskirtscom.
The best part is there's $200off using code RVPOD.
That's R-V-P-O-D.
You go to airskirtscom.
But now we're talking aboutbeing in warm weather, we're
going to talk about how peoplecan survive the warm, but this
(09:14):
all happened literally from anaccident, so I want you guys to
tell that story.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
Well, so I'm that guy , I'm the guy from all the
YouTube videos that runs his RVinto a low overhang.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
But to back up for one second, I have my own
business and I rely on Wi-Fi.
So we were camping at a placein Montana and there was no
Wi-Fi and I was getting a littlestressed out and so I said we
have to find a place that hasWi-Fi.
So we moved and we each put inthis campground in our apps.
(09:51):
He had one map, I had adifferent map and it led us to-.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
The same place and it said there's an overpass, but
don't worry, big rigs can fitthrough that overpass.
And we pulled up to it and I'mlooking at it thinking, boy,
that looks, that looks too low.
And but we're both looking atboth of our separate apps that
both say you know reviews frompeople saying, nope, you can get
to this campground that waywith the big rig.
(10:17):
And so I started inchingforward and crunch.
And so, you know, I was at.
Fortunately we weren't drivingat speed, I was inching forward,
but it it crunched our frontair conditioner and that was the
.
That was the end of that oneokay so your air conditioner
gets destroyed.
Speaker 1 (10:33):
And here's a great teaching moment, because I'm
thinking those apps you wereusing were like ways or google
maps yes, we did not have rblife at the time.
Okay, let's talk about that so,while it turned out to be an
amazing accident for you guys,let this be a teaching moment
and you now use RV LifeAbsolutely.
(10:54):
Talk about that for ourlisteners that don't know about
it.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
So, going around, if you put addresses in Google Maps
, apple Maps, any of these otherprograms, they don't know
anything.
They don't know that you'redriving a big rig, and so they
don't they're.
They're looking at it twodimensionally.
They're not looking at theheight as another dimension, uh,
of the equation.
And so, after the fact, afterhaving gone through the
(11:19):
crunching, the air conditioneris when we found out about RV
life pro, which would have savedus all of those hassles but
would have cost us an entirecompany in the process.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
So yes, but.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
I don't recommend our approach to starting a company.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
Good, I'm glad you said that I'm glad, and I have
been using the RV Life Pro suiteof Products the trip planning
and RV Safety Press GPS beforewe started, before we ever
bought the RV because of storieslike this.
So okay, For those people whowant to know more, there's a
link in the show notes, but nowyour air conditioner crunch.
(11:56):
So tell us, tell us a story.
How did this progress from here?
Speaker 2 (12:03):
So I had to take some pictures for our insurance
company.
They wanted pictures from theroof, where you could see the
exterior damage, but they alsowanted pictures from the
interior, and I had never takenthe cover off of our ACs from
the inside.
And so when I pulled it off, Ilooked up and there's this big
box with a little foam dividerdown the middle of it, and you
could see where the warm air wascoming up on one side, the cold
(12:25):
air comes out on the other, andthe duct openings were on the
sides of this box.
They weren't attached and Ithought, well, that's odd, but
it was a 2021 rig built duringCOVID.
And I thought, well, so theyjust missed the part that
connects the cold air to theducting.
No wonder I'm not getting verymuch air out of my ducting.
And so I called my dealer andsaid, hey, they forgot the part.
(12:50):
And my dealer just startedlaughing at me and they said no,
that's how they're built.
And I said, well, when you saythey, are you talking about my
rig or all rigs?
And they said all rigs.
And immediately the light bulbwent off in my head.
I mean, I'm not an engineer,but it doesn't take one to
figure out that that's awretchedly inefficient way to
get air into your ducting.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
Right, and just to jump in for a second, you're
painting this picture for people.
But anybody that's visual, likeI am, and if somebody hasn't
actually seen what the inside oftheir air conditioner looks
like, I just want to let peopleknow.
Stay with us.
You're painting the picture,you're doing a great job, but
there's also videos that peoplecan see.
So I know, for people like me,I'm like wait, what's he talking
(13:30):
about?
So I just wanted to put that inthere.
Okay, so you now learned thatthere's a totally inefficient
system, yeah, and so we got hot.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
It was mid-90s, low to mid-90s in Montana.
We were cooling in the 80s withboth of our ACs running in our
unit, and I'm from Alaska, Idon't do heat, and so I was
miserable.
And so I started thinkingthrough how to attach the two
and I literally grabbed somecardboard, some duct tape and
(14:02):
some HVAC ducting and made anAlaska redneck version of the AC
Connect, made two of them, Ipopped them in, the temperature
dropped to 75 degrees and theair conditioners turned off
because they reached thetemperature I'd set them to.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (14:18):
And I looked at Deanna and I said, hey, honey, I
think I'm on to something here.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
Now, you have no engineering background.
I mean, I've read some thingsabout you, your background's, in
economics and finance, but itwas pretty logical for you, okay
.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Yeah, it just kind of .
And again this goes back togrowing up in Alaska.
My dad always bought old, usedcars.
I learned to drive on a 1967Toyota Land Cruiser and you know
we rebuilt engines.
So you know I'm by no means agenius, but I can handle a tool
or two here and there, as neededto.
And this was just something tome that just made common sense
(14:59):
and it proved out in the numbers.
I since went back and I wentand bought a textbook on fluid
mechanics and read that, whichwas, you know, great bedtime
reading if you want to go tosleep.
But I needed to figure out thescience as to why this worked so
well.
And that was able to prove itout.
But you know, in the meantime,so we've got this, now it's
working, but it's cardboard.
So you know, you're not goingto leave cardboard in your
(15:21):
ducting.
But I, you know, we just lookedat each other and said you know
, we're onto something here.
If we can figure out a way tomake this commercially, this
could really be a big benefit tothe community, particularly if
we can make it at a veryreasonable price point.
And so Deanna, with herbackground she had some relative
(15:43):
that that that that sheenlisted the help of and kind of
helped get all of it going.
Yeah, doing the CAD design,yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:50):
So I have a background in operations.
I have a business that I helpsmall businesses and
entrepreneurs with their systemsand processes and logistics.
So you know, getting everythingoff the ground was really my
forte and we were able to dothat.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
And with my heart condition I can't.
I can't do that.
I can't run the company.
I can't.
I'm just not physically capableof that after everything that I
had to go through.
And so you know, if I'd been onthe road by myself I would have
continued on with cardboard andduct tape for quite some time
at that point.
But with Deanna and and and andher background and experience,
that just opened up the door toto the company.
Speaker 3 (16:32):
Yeah, right, yeah.
So we launched our business inJune of 23 was when we opened
the doors.
Speaker 1 (16:38):
Yeah, and so I understand that there's now
something created that's notcardboard, and what I want
people to hear is you were at 90degrees, the RV was sitting at,
cooling at 80, air conditionerrunning nonstop, and with this
you know cardboard prototype,let's call it you got it down to
(17:01):
75 degrees, which in 90 degreeweather, 75 is way more bearable
, and you did that with thiscardboard duct tape.
Duct tape really is great,isn't it?
And so now these are being sortof mass produced, right?
Speaker 2 (17:18):
Correct and that you know, again, I have no
background in that.
Indiana, you know, had someconnections and and utilized
those, and she had a relativethat did cad design, and then
they were able to take that to,uh, another person that was able
to convert that into amanufacturing design, uh, and
then those were able to be to betaken out to commercial shops,
(17:41):
uh, to see what they could do tomanufacture those for us.
And so our initial productswere actually made by commercial
3D printers which allowed us totake those parts and, to you
know, customers would givefeedback.
They'd send emails, phone calls, whatever to give feedback, and
(18:01):
so then the designers were ableto take that feedback and
redesign those parts into whatexists today in terms of putting
it out there.
So there was the going throughthe processes of how do you
actually make it and where doyou get it from, where do you
get the different parts from,and then the other big challenge
(18:23):
we faced was how do you putthem together, how do you get
people to be able to put themtogether?
Because, you know, the initialbatch was, I think, a hundred
and we just didn't know whatpeople's response would be, and
those just were gone in a matterof days.
From literally opening thewebsite to sold out was a matter
of a few days.
And then it was ordering moresystems and that whole first
(18:47):
summer with friends and familyand anyone that could help put
those things together.
Everything was done on apre-order because they couldn't
be made fast enough.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
Yeah, we were really relying on the customer's
feedback as well, because, youknow, as you may know, there are
so many different variations ofplenums and how things are put
together and the differentbrands of air conditioning.
So, you know, really listeningto what our customers were
(19:18):
saying and what their needs werehelped us create, you know,
create additional products thatwe now have and we're still
learning from our customers ontweaking here and tweaking there
and to make it even that muchmore efficient.
Speaker 1 (19:33):
And I want to talk about more of the benefits of
having this.
Now, what do you call it?
It's called Cool RV, right?
Speaker 2 (19:42):
It's technically called the AC Connect, but
everybody just calls it Cool RV.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
It's because it's a cool name.
It really is a great name.
But I want to talk more aboutthat, and there's also another
huge benefit that I know RVerswould appreciate.
Before we get to that, I wantto talk about OpenRoad roads
fuel card.
So, as we travel back and forthacross the country or just in
our neighborhood, if you havediesel whether it's a truck or
(20:09):
an RV that has diesel the openroads fuel card is the best way
to save money.
On February 5th, I did anepisode with people from the
company that explained the openroads fuel card, as well as the
new toll pass that I'll talkabout.
But not only did they explainit, I had 12 people on that I
(20:30):
interviewed and how much moneythey saved with this fuel card.
So I'll put that link in theshow notes, check it out, and
it's really an amazing card.
So, okay, let's get back.
Speaker 3 (20:43):
We love ours.
Speaker 2 (20:44):
We use OpenRoads, we actually use the card and we use
the transponder as well.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Okay, so let's talk about the card.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Absolutely love it.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
I never planned these things.
So again, the Fuel Card it'seasy to get.
It's free.
Sign up for free, it doesn'tcost anything.
You go to the major gasstations some smaller gas
stations are all truck stops andthere's an app that shows you
where they're located and yousave money.
And I mean people can listen tothe interviews.
(21:13):
People have saved anywhere fromthree, four, $500, because they
didn't travel that much tosomebody who saved over $1,500
last year.
So it is amazing.
The toll pass we'll talk aboutin a little bit.
Let's get back to that otherbenefit.
When we sit in our RV, the bigthing is so much noise, and so
(21:36):
this RV cool RV has reallyhelped with that as well.
Speaker 2 (21:39):
Right, it does so.
As the air comes out of the airconditioner from the bottom, it
blows down into this box and itessentially has to pressurize.
And so there are three benefitsfrom our system.
One is we eliminate that needto pressurize, which directs the
air straight to the ducts andallows better airflow.
Two, when you put air underpressure, it starts to warm, and
(22:03):
so we actually get three tofour degrees cooler temperatures
at the vents on average,because we've eliminated the
need to pressurize within thatbox.
But a big part of the noise fromyour air conditioner comes from
all of that air bouncing aroundin that box trying to
pressurize to push its waythrough.
Our system eliminates all ofthat air noise, that buffeting
(22:25):
that occurs and turbulencethat's occurring up there.
And so for our initial rig,when we initially installed
these, we didn't have a lot ofnoise.
The way our plenum was built,it really wasn't that noisy, and
so when we put these in it wasa little quieter and that was
nice, but it really wasn't afocus for us.
I in particular needed to becooler.
(22:46):
But I had a good friend from mydays in my finance career who
had an RV that was really loud,and she knew that we'd started
the company, and so we sent herone of these units and she sent
us this email back about how sheand her husband could finally
have a conversation together inthe main living space of their
(23:07):
RV.
They could finally watchtelevision without going deaf
trying to turn the volume up,because it had improved that.
And so we started to focus onthat a bit more as we looked
through and we see customersthat report six to eight decibel
decreases in volume, which sixto eight doesn't necessarily
sound like much, but the way thedecibels work it's actually
fairly substantial.
Speaker 1 (23:29):
Okay, so thanks for clarifying, because I didn't
know what that meant.
And again when you're in an RVthere is a lot of things.
You're in a closed space andthat noise it really makes a
difference.
So let's talk about.
I was in Las Vegas during thesummer months, july and August.
Don't ask why I do notrecommend it.
(23:49):
My husband and I were there fora job.
Do not recommend it at all.
It hit 120 times Sure, andwhere I'm going to be honest.
People say this all the time.
I live, born and raised on theEast Coast.
I'm back on the East Coast.
I'm back on the East Coast.
When you get to 90 and thehumidity is at 95, it's
miserable.
(24:09):
Even at 100 in Vegas, withoutthe humidity, for me it's not as
bad, but 120, it's getting bad.
When you're in an RV, You'resaying you could get that
temperature cooled.
Now I know there's only so muchsomebody could do.
First of all, don't be in LasVegas in July and August, but
give people you know real typesof scenarios and I would imagine
(24:34):
each RV and air conditioningunit is going to give a little
bit of a difference.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
It is.
So if you take our rig, our45-foot rig, two air
conditioners in it.
A lot of 45 foot rigs will havethree air conditioners in them,
but you can run into someelectrical issues depending on
which air conditioners you'reusing.
And I should say when we testedours before we put our systems
(25:06):
in, we would typically coolabout 16 degrees cooler than the
outside temperature on anygiven day, relative to where the
temperatures were when we putour system in that rig.
We've since acquired a new one,but in that rig we went from 16
degrees cooler than the outsidetemperature to 23 degrees
cooler than the outsidetemperature just with that
system.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
That's huge.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
Before you take other steps, for instance using your
awnings to cover your windows,or a little tip that I learned
we have black doors on our rigsand turning one of our vents to
blow on the door to keep thatheat from coming through those
black doors was another littlething that we did.
Trying to park under shadedareas there are a number of
(25:48):
things.
Speaker 3 (25:48):
The reflectics in the windows.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
Reflectics in the windows on really hot days.
Yeah, there are lots of thingsthat people can do, but our
system just really.
A lot of folks will complainthat, oh, this air conditioner
isn't a very good airconditioner.
It's not the air conditioner,it's the lack of a connection
between the air conditioner andtheir ducting.
Now, for folks that don't haveducting, we don't have a
(26:10):
solution for them.
This is specifically for ductedsystems.
But there's that again, thatpressurization chamber, which it
comes from the commercial andresidential space it's typically
used.
If you have 8, 10, 12 ductsrunning around your house coming
off of your furnace and yourair conditioner, you want to get
equal airflow through your home, and so it makes sense to have
a plenum that the air blows into, pressurizes and then pushes
(26:33):
out from there.
But in an RV with ducts,there's only two ducts, there's.
No, you don't need thatpressurization, and that's the
part that our system overcomes.
Speaker 1 (26:44):
You don't need that pressurization, and that's the
part that our system overcomes.
Okay, so now for those peoplewho are visual and some of this
isn't making sense from a visualstandpoint there are videos, so
stay with us.
Are there certain airconditioner units that this
works for?
You said they have to haveducts.
Are there certain brands,certain air conditionersers?
Speaker 3 (27:03):
let's talk a little bit about that so we cover all
the major brands, so coleman,demetic, ge, virion, and then
there's different modelsassociated with with each of
those brands.
Um, which we have the mach,which is the low profile.
For the Coleman, we have theColeman Series, which is the 1,
(27:26):
5, 10, 15q, the Dometic Briskand Fresh Jet NXT.
We have the Penguin, which is alow profile.
So, as you can see, there's avariety of air conditioning
models.
There's also some new ones onthe market that we don't have
(27:46):
quite yet, but as the demandincreases for those, then we
work with the manufacturer tocreate something.
Speaker 1 (27:54):
And as we're talking, I'm sure people are saying, hey
, I need to check this out.
Yes, I'm going to direct peopleto your website, CoolRV, and
that's K-O-O-L-R-Vcom, just sopeople can check out videos and
check out which types of airconditioners.
Let's talk a little bit aboutthe installation.
(28:14):
Is it a DIY or does it have tobe?
Oh, you're shaking your head,Okay?
Speaker 3 (28:20):
let's talk about that .
Even he can do it.
Speaker 1 (28:22):
Even he can do it.
Speaker 2 (28:23):
Wow, wow.
So when I was designing mycardboard version, I needed
something that was easy toinstall and wouldn't take a lot
of time.
And so when Deanna and teamthey were working on how do we
(28:44):
build this out on acommercialized basis, one of my
things that I insisted on waslook.
This has to be completelysimple.
The Coleman base pan, thebottom of the air conditioner,
is actually designed so thatit's a snap fit, and so you
literally take the center pieceand snap it in and there's a
little silicone gasket thatcreates an airtight seal.
(29:06):
So there's no taping oranything of that piece adapter
that can turn in differentdirections depending on where
the duct is situated, and incertain situations it's angled
(29:31):
so that if there's a tight fit,like on the Furion, or on a
north-south, like in a FleetwoodRV.
So the team's done just anexcellent job of designing
things.
That's a do-it-yourselfsolution.
You take the cover off.
On the majority of the systemswe sell they're snap-to-fit or,
in terms of the gross number,coleman is a snap-to-fit.
They're over half the market.
The other ones may have someself-tapping screws that will
(29:54):
hold those up in place and thenthe vent adapters just tape into
place on the sides.
Speaker 3 (29:59):
And we include all of that in the package with the
kit, so the voile tape.
And we include all of that inthe package with the kit, so the
voile tape.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
No, running back and forth to Home Depot to figure
out how to attack it.
Speaker 3 (30:10):
Now again, there are situations that do require a
little bit more because of thesetup, and we just never know
what the manufacturer is goingto put in or how they're going
to design it.
Speaker 1 (30:23):
So there can be.
Speaker 3 (30:25):
you know a little tweaks here and there, but you
know it's pretty simple.
Speaker 2 (30:29):
Most customers can expect on the snap to fit.
It should take them about 15minutes start to finish.
Speaker 1 (30:39):
And half of that's probably finding their
screwdriver.
Speaker 2 (30:41):
I always knew where my screwdriver was you need to
On the Dometics Furions, they dorequire that there are four
bolts that are taken out so thatthe bottom plate can drop down.
So those customers I'd say planon about 30 minutes on average
for those to get those in Again,because you've got to drill
(31:02):
little self-tapping screws up into hold those into place.
Speaker 3 (31:05):
And we also discovered, thanks to our
customers, that Jayco andWinnebago's are a little bit
different, so their ventopenings are smaller than what
the manufacturer typicallyrequires.
Speaker 2 (31:19):
Might recommend, but the team just came up with a new
adapter to help accommodate forthat it in 2023.
Speaker 1 (31:30):
I know the demand in 2024 has been incredible and
hopefully it sounds like thedemand for 2025 is going to
skyrocket.
You have a unique way of havingthese produced.
(31:54):
Can you talk about that?
Is that?
Speaker 2 (31:56):
something you can talk about.
Yeah, so one, we moved from 3Dprinting Once we got things
squared away with our designsand everything, then the team
moved to injection molding andthey were able to use the same
manufacturers.
And so now all of those parts,we have a handful of parts that
are low usage, parts that arestill 3D printed but again done
(32:16):
commercially.
But there was no way to keep upwith the demand and the
staffing, the staffing andeverything else.
At the end it would have neededto to get the systems made.
And with my heart condition,you know, I, I'm, I'm disabled,
I just I physically can't meetthe demands needed.
And so, uh, as, as the team waslooking around for manufacturing
(32:38):
partners, I happened to stumbleacross a company in Tucson and
it's a company called the BeaconGroup, very special company.
They were started 70 years agoby a couple of mothers who had
disabled children and theywanted their kids to have
something productive to be ableto do as they matured and grew.
And so, again, it just, youknow, they were going door to
(33:01):
door to businesses.
And is there anything ourchildren can do to help here?
Our adult children can do tohelp and work, and over the last
70 years.
They've evolved that from acouple of mothers and their
children to a company that nowemploys over 2200 disabled
people in the state of Arizona,and so I stumbled across and
(33:25):
brought them to Deanna'sattention.
We scheduled a meeting with themand went down and they put
together a team of folks, andthese are folks that may have
developmental disabilities, theymay have physical disabilities,
they may be recovering fromaddiction, but they are are
disabled, but they're lookingfor something that they can do.
(33:46):
And so, you know, we have ayoung man with autism who is
fantastic at counting fourscrews and putting them a little
baggie for it.
It gives him meaning andpurpose and he, he just does a
fantastic job.
We have people that can't stand, but they can sit at a table
and they can put these systemstogether.
We have recovering addicts whoare well down their road to
(34:09):
recovery, and this is givingthem an opportunity to get back
in the workforce.
And so we're very, very proudof our affiliation with the
Beacon Group and the incrediblework that they do for the
company, and they not only putour systems together, but they
package them and they fulfillthem, so as the orders come in,
they ship them directly to ourcustomers out of their Tucson
warehouse.
Speaker 1 (34:30):
That's incredible and when you told that story I was
very moved by it.
I was a teacher for 20 yearsand worked a lot with different
types of disabilities and tohave something that you know,
like you said, gives purpose andmeaning, it's just so touching.
That's amazing.
And you said there are otherareas around the country that
(34:51):
you're looking at the BeaconGroup so you'll be shipping,
fulfilling, having them puttogether and then fulfilled from
different areas.
Speaker 2 (35:00):
There are other companies similar.
So the Beacon Group is justhere in Arizona, okay, but there
are other companies that areout there helping people with
disabilities of varying levelsand varying abilities that those
organizations have.
But there are some otherorganizations that will be as we
grow as a company.
That it's again with mydisability.
(35:23):
It's a passion for me tosupport those folks, regardless
of cost or anything else that we, we, we, we, we may have to
deal with, and it's just been awonderful, a wonderful
experience for us and I'mcertain it will continue to be
able to do that to supportpeople like me.
Speaker 1 (35:42):
That's.
That's just incredible.
Again, I'm going to lead peopleto coolrvcom, K-O-O-L-R-Vcom.
They can find out all about it.
Just as people are traveling,we're thinking about this summer
.
I am planning on going to anevent in Lebanon, Tennessee.
Last year I was there in Juneand it was hot.
(36:02):
Now I was in an air conditionedhotel room for when I went home
to bed, but it was hot there,so this would have been very
helpful for people.
It is the Music City MotorhomeExpo.
It's May 31st to June 4th andthis gives people the
opportunity to be the first tosee the 2026 model year coaches
(36:24):
from all the major manufacturers.
The attendance is kept verysmall so you could test drive as
much as you want and you couldtalk to the manufacturers, the
product developers, engineers.
There will be seminars.
They give you three meals a dayan incredible entertainment and
, like I said last year, it wasgreat but it was hot, and it was
just the beginning of June inTennessee it was really hot.
(36:46):
I guess maybe it gets hot therethat time of year, I don't know
.
So I highly recommend thatevent and people can check that
out at Music City Motorhome Expo.
Now do you guys go around to?
I know you were in Hershey lastyear and you were sponsors of
the RV Life, the Hershey RV LifeAfter Party, and we appreciate
(37:09):
that.
So you were there in Hershey.
Did you actually have a booth?
We did Okay, so will.
You were there in Hershey.
Did you actually have a booth?
Speaker 3 (37:14):
We did Okay, so will you be back in Hershey this year
?
Yes, we definitely plan on it.
We loved that show.
It was great.
So we had some of our team wasat the Tampa show in January and
then I was at the Quartziteshow as well with some of our
team.
So, yeah, we try to do thebigger ones around the States.
I was at the Quartzite show aswell with some of our team.
So, yeah, we try to do thebigger ones around the states.
Speaker 1 (37:37):
That's great.
Yes, I saw somebody from CoolRV at the Tampa show.
I was there, so I actually sawsomebody and we'll see each
other then at the Hershey show.
So we'll have to talk aboutthat For those listeners.
I know it's only February soyou might not be thinking about
the Hershey RV show in September, but as you're making plans, it
is a great event and RV Lifefourth year will be doing the
(38:02):
Hershey after party and thatsells out very quickly.
So listeners stay tuned forthat and people that are going
to be in Hershey can come Now.
Will you guys be at the show oryou take a team of people?
Will they get to meet you?
Speaker 3 (38:17):
um, we, we might be there.
It just depends, yeah, on thisyear.
We have a lot going on, soright, I'll keep people up to
date on that.
Speaker 1 (38:26):
Um, but again, people , you know I'm going to say it
again cool rvcom.
K K-O-O-L-R-Vcom.
It's now time for the questionof the week and what I'm going
to do is ask you guys thisquestion.
You could think of your ownanswers and then I'll give you a
few minutes while I talk aboutthat innovative toll solution we
were talking about earlier.
(38:47):
The question for you guys iswhat is on your bucket list?
So a place, an experienceperson to meet that you either
have done and people should puton their bucket list, or you're
looking forward to putting onyour bucket list.
And I'm going to give you aminute while I talk about
innovative toll solutions.
(39:08):
And this is that toll pass thatboth of you said you use.
It covers all 48 states, costs$24 a year.
It covers all 48 states.
One toll transponder.
If there should be any problem,you get a fine.
It didn't work.
You didn't have it in yourwindow that day.
Innovative Toll Solutions thepeople there will take care of
(39:32):
any issue you have.
They will resolve it for you.
You just contact them.
I highly recommend this tollpass and people could go to the
link in the show notes to findout all about that.
Okay, do you guys?
You didn't really have to thinkmuch, there weren't much faces.
Okay, deanna is ready.
Speaker 3 (39:54):
So we've actually covered quite a few things on
our bucket list, and this lastyear we hit all 50 states, so
that was a huge accomplishmentfor us.
Now, we didn't necessarily dothem all together or in the RV,
but we finished our last 50states together in the RV, um,
(40:17):
which was um, uh, mississippiwas our last.
Speaker 2 (40:21):
Mississippi, excuse me.
Speaker 3 (40:23):
So uh that's so cool, yeah.
And then we, we did go toHawaii, but not again, not in
the RV.
Speaker 2 (40:32):
Yeah, right.
So I had something we did thislast year that's been on my
bucket list forever, which is aplace called Brooks Falls at
Katmai National Park in Alaska.
Grew up in Alaska, grew upfishing, grew up on my folks,
had a boat out of Whittier, outon Prince William Sound, did all
of that.
But Brooks Falls is where allthe grizzly bears in Katmai
(40:53):
National Park congregate tocatch salmon as they're jumping
up and leaping through the fallsand I've always wanted to do
that and Deanna had never beento Alaska.
We went up there, we spent thesummer up there.
Speaker 3 (41:05):
We drove the RV Okay.
The old one we don't recommenddriving a 45 footer.
Speaker 2 (41:10):
We had to buy a new RV in Hershey because our old
one got totaled Wow.
Speaker 1 (41:15):
Oh no, okay, so Hershey is a good place to buy
an.
Speaker 2 (41:18):
RV.
Hershey is a good place to buyan RV and the lesson here is
don't travel to Alaska.
And let Don drive.
Speaker 1 (41:25):
Okay, there you go, I'd let you.
Speaker 3 (41:27):
Okay, yeah, take something smaller.
Speaker 2 (41:30):
Okay, but we took a float plane out of Homer Alaska,
flew over, landed on a lakethere by Brooks Falls and went
in and got to just sit there andwatch.
There are literally hundreds ofgrizzlies all around you.
Probably not a great idea for aguy with a heart issue, but
(41:54):
they have no interest in you.
We were taking pictures of awhole bunch of grizzlies that
were right in front of us in thewater and I heard a noise
behind me and I'd looked over myshoulder and there was a
grizzly walking right behind us.
Speaker 1 (42:02):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
Just completely ignoring us.
So, from a bucket listperspective, that was something
that's been on my list for along, long time and it was
absolutely incredible.
Been on my list for a long longtime and it was absolutely
incredible.
Speaker 1 (42:13):
That sounds amazing.
Alaska is one of those placeson my list, as well as Hawaii,
very much on my list of placesto go, but that sounds
incredible.
I'm not sure that I'm feelingthe whole idea of having
grizzlies all around me.
I'm not sure about that one,but you have to get out of your
(42:33):
comfort zone.
That might be a little too farout.
I'll have to think about thatone.
And for our listeners, anybodywho's done something like this
gone to Alaska, been there withthe Grizzlies let us know.
We're always looking forcomments and questions.
You can put it in the reviewsection of the podcast or social
(42:56):
media RV Life Podcast.
Do you guys have social mediachannels?
Speaker 3 (43:01):
We do.
We're on Facebook and Instagramare the two big ones.
Speaker 1 (43:05):
At Cool RV K-O-O-L RV Okay great, and I'm also on
Instagram and Facebook at RVLife Podcast RV Okay great, and
I'm also on Instagram andFacebook at RV Life Podcast.
We are not done yet.
I'm going to talk about thecampground of the week.
I did want to, just I hopepeople were okay.
I am so congested but I knew Ihad to have you guys on Like.
I did not want to wait.
(43:26):
We have had this scheduled.
I want people to be preparedthis summer to cool off their RV
and if people are looking to goto Florida, I don't recommend
that in the middle of the summer, but certainly if they're there
in the summer they have a wayto stay cooler.
The Featured Campground isbrought to you by RV Life and it
is Live Oak Landing in Freeport, florida, and this is actually
(43:51):
in the panhandle of Florida.
I heard they got snow While Iwas in Tampa in January.
They had snow.
It's right near Destin, florida.
It is a beautiful area.
It's right on the Gulf.
They do have full hookups.
They have pull-in sites.
They are dog-friendly.
You could do cabin andcampground rentals.
They have a solid 8.8 rating onthe RV Life Campgrounds website
(44:15):
with 92 reviews, and it is soeasy to book.
All you have to do is go tocampgroundsrvlifecom and search
for Live Oak Landing and onceyou get there, you could see a
ton of photos.
Like I said, this place isbeautiful.
They have all the tips, all theamenities about this property,
(44:37):
as well as what's in the area.
And what's nice is, once you'reon the campgrounds website, you
can go and book right from thewebsite.
Rv Life Campgrounds is part ofthe RV Life Pro Suite of
products which we talked about.
You would not have had theaccident if you had it.
Something great came out of it,but that's usually not the case
(44:59):
.
So anybody looking for the RVLife Pro suite of products there
is a discount in the show notes.
You can click that link whenyou check out.
It'll give you 25% off, and itis the most comprehensive source
of RV parks, campgrounds,resorts, city, state and
national parks, corps ofEngineers, as well as a ton of
(45:22):
points of interest.
There's so much there.
Well, guys, I want to thank youso much for being on and thank
you for having this accidentthat led to this amazing product
.
Yeah, we turned lemons intolemonade you sure did, and that
is a great lesson for people.
Thank you for spending timewith us today.
(45:44):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (45:45):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (45:46):
And thank you to my listeners and remember life is a
journey.
Live each day to the fullest,without regrets.
I'm Patty Hunt and you'relistening to the RV Life Podcast
.
You
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