Monaco Coach Corporation, the number one producer of diesel-powered motorhomes, is permanently shutting down its service and production operations in Wakarusa, Elkhart, and Nappanee, Indiana due to the declining RV market. The announcement was made July 17, 2008.

Production of the motorized and towable motorhomes Monaco makes will be integrated into its manufacturing facilities in Warsaw, Indiana and Coburg, Oregon.

The decrease in production means about 1,400 employees, which is about one third of Monaco’s total workforce, will lose their jobs and that the company will be slashing their Class A motorhome production in half, from 180 units a week to 90.

It’s awful that so many people will be losing their jobs, but Monaco is doing what they need to stay in business. The RV business has been hit with a double whammy of rising gas prices and a general downturn in the economy which means luxury purchases like motorhomes and boats are some of the first markets to feel the pinch.

The Class A motorhome market has been declining for 4 years. Class A shipments went down 29 percent from 2004 to 2007. The sky high diesel fuel prices are causing an even bigger decline from 2007 to 2008. Class A shipments are down another 40 percent since 2007.

As part of this announcement by Monaco, they also announced they will be holding a conference call broadcast over the Internet to discuss their second quarter financial results for the fiscal year 2008 that ended on June 28, 2008. To listen to the call, log onto monaco-online.com. The call will be held at 2 pm Eastern Daylight time on Wednesday, July 30, 2008.

While a machine that makes soda, or pop depending on where you live, energy drinks, seltzer, and sparkling water definitely is not a camping necessity it can be fun.

Soda Club USA offers 2 different styles of soda makers plus 2 unsweetened flavor essences for making lightly flavored seltzer or sparking water, an energy drink mix, 12 soda flavors, and 13 diet soda flavors.

Some of the flavors available include cola, root beer, orange, lemon lime, cream, and cranberry raspberry.

While the company says their machine will save money over time (they say seltzer can be enjoyed for a little as 18 cents per liter and soda for 50 cents per liter and that there is no worry about flat soda because of the bottle’s hermetically sealed caps), I think the initial investment is pretty steep.

But it is a nice alternative to buying and storing cartons of carbonated beverages while camping or RVing, especially on extended trips.

I do like that the soda machine helps cut down on garbage because there no cardboard soda cartons, plastic bottles, or aluminum cans to dispose of. Even though all those items can be recycled, the sad truth is that a lot of recyclable items end up in landfills.

Another plus is that there is no electricity or batteries needed to run the machine.

Here’s the downside. Starter kits for seltzer lovers start at just under $100 and starter kits for soda lovers start at a little over a $100. The starter kits include the machine, reusable soda bottles, CO2 cartridges, and soda flavoring.

Another downside is that the supplies are delivered and not available in stores. Yes, it’s convenient but can be a little tricky for full-time RV’ers who don’t always have ready access to their post office box.

If you would like to find out more, visit the sodaclubusa website.

The video below is a good reminder to camping enthusiasts like myself about being careful when towing a camping unit or driving an RV.

Luckily no one was hurt, but when this truck pulling a 5th wheel pulled up to a bank drive through, the driver found out the hard way that it was too tall to fit under the bank’s drive-up canopy.