RV Podcast #280: How to have Less Junk, More Journey

This week in the RV Podcast, we learn about having Less Junk and More Journey from Marissa and Nate, a young couple with a very popular YouTube channel who fulltime in their RV with their young children. It all started in an effort to declutter and downsize Show Notes for Episode #280 Feb 5, 2020 of The RV Podcast: WHAT MIKE AND JENNIFER ARE UP TO THIS WEEK This episode is coming to you from the road and it may sound a little different because we don’t have all our normal podcast gear with us. We made a very impromptu trip to Arizona this week and, because we flew out here we didn’t have room for all that equipment. We borrowed an RV from a friend, though, and have had an awesome time boondocking in the desert, hiking and exploring… first at Quartzsite and later down south closer to Yuma in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. As we record this, we are in Tucson, attending an RV industry event called Dometic in the desert, attended by lots of industry folks and our fellow RV Lifestyle YouTube influencers. Dometic is a major player in the RV industry that innovates technology so RVers can go further and stay longer – that’s their motto and they make everything, such as RV coolers and refrigerators, toilets, air conditioning, heating, climate control devices, awnings, cooking and RV kitchen appliances…you name it they make it and they are planning even more, researching and developing improvements in lithium and solar energy products for RVers…and lots more. Anyway, we’re here learning about some of those developments and hanging out with a lot of our friends who also do RV blogs, YouTube Channels and the like. We should point out that out borrowed RV, after our desert boondocking, is in the parking lit and we and everyone else at this event are staying in the beautiful and five star luxury Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, which Dometic has taken over for this event. Talk about contrast. From the stark beauty of the desert to the luxury of a five star resort. Wjat an awesome week this has been. This part of the podcast is brought to you by Dish Outdoors, which lets RVers pay as they go and watch HD satellite television from wherever they are camped with easy to set up gear made with the RVer in mind. Just go to https://rvlifestyle.com/dish for details on the service and special deal just for listeners of this podcast. RV LIFESTYLE NEWS OF THE WEEK RV manufacturers who reply on parts manufactured in China watch for signs of supply chain delays As public health workers strive to contain the coronavirus, which first surfaced more than a month ago in China, the effects of keeping people home and closing shop have the RV industry bracing for a hit on its supply chain. Many RV manufacturers get parts from Chinese factories. But as Chinese officials tell people to stay home, and keep factories closed, many RV manufacturers are carefully watching the situation, wondering how factory delays, increased sickness, or mandatory quarantines could ripple through the supply lines and - possibly - a few months down the road, lead to production delays. Are you planning to see Yosemite's "firefall" this month? Have you heard about Yosemite National Park's "firefall"? The time to view it (February 14-27) is fast approaching, and park officials are putting in restrictions in anticipation of large crowds. For those unfamiliar, each winter - usually in February - when the sun is setting, its colors reflect on Horsetail Falls, which flows over El Capitan, making it look like bright orange lava is flowing down. This usually happens shortly before sunset, and has become a major tourist attraction. In anticipation of the crowds the National Park Service is requiring most visitors to park one and a half miles away and walk to the Fall. It is also recommending people bring flashlights and warm clothes for the walk back in the dark. GM unveils new brake system for pick up trucks that enables trucks hauling a camper to stop faster Those who camp by hauling a fifth wheel or other trailer with their pick-up truck might be interested in a story out last week about General Motors unveiling a new braking system that enables a pick-up hauling a trailer to stop faster. The breaks reduce the stopping distance by using GM's e-boost braking system. Some are saying that the new technology is so good and improves safety so much that it should be mandatory. Coyote attacks woman cross country skiing at Yellowstone National Park A young coyote attacked a woman cross country skiing in Yellowstone National Park last week, coming up from behind and pulling her to the ground. Other people, in a snow coach, saw the scene and came to the woman's rescue, scaring the coyote away. The woman had puncture wounds to her head and arm, and officials later captured the coyote and it did not test positive for rabies. It is extremely unusual for a coyote to attack a human. Officials say when an animal is very hungry, as apparently this one was, is can happ