Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 10, 1990 TAG: 9006110218
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: D11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Bill Cochran
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Why not turn the pickup into a motor home?
A growing number of outdoor enthusiasts are doing just that with truck campers, which are RV units that fit into the bed of a pickup.
A holdover from the pioneer days of RV camping, truck campers are enjoying a spurt of popularity after virtually disappearing in the early '80s.
"So many people are driving trucks now," said Don Breeden, that truck campers have regained their niche in the family of RVs.
Breeden, who operates an RV dealership in Roanoke, is one of the few dealers specializing in them, having gotten out of the motor home and conventional travel trailer aspects of the business a couple of years ago.
Most truck campers are going onto standard-size pickups, but Breeden said there are models for everything from the "minis" to dual-rear wheel rigs.
One of the major attractions, you can have a self-contained camper on your pickup and still tow a trailer. This is popular with outdoorsmen who want to go RV camping and take along their horse trailer or boat.
A truck camper mounted on a four-wheel drive also can take you farther into the backwoods than any other RV.
The new generation of truck campers have better aerodynamics and lighter construction. Floor plans are innovative, but there's still a limit to what you can do with the space of a pickup bed, Breeden said.
As for cost, Breeden sells a top-of-the-line camper with air conditioning for about $8,700, well under the price of the most popular travel trailer.
by CNB