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Scott Oliver called me today. This is the latest info on the dealerships. They now have confirmed dealers in seven different states. Georgia, Massachusetts, Virginia, North Carolina, Texas, Colorado and Oregon. The dealership in North Carolina is Bumgarner Camping Center, Inc. | Lenoir NC. If you already are in talks with Oliver sales in Hohenwald about purchasing an Oliver and finalize that transaction within the next 90 days, you will have your sale and delivery handled in Hohenwald. Starting now, if you call Oliver sales in Hohenwald requesting information about buying an Oliver from a state that has a dealer, your call will be transferred to that dealership. They will handle your order and delivery from that point forward. If you don’t want to deal with that particular dealership for whatever reason, you may choose any other dealership in the nation. The reason the agreement is set up in this fashion is to avoid a conflict between the dealerships and the factory. You can still buy from a dealer of your choice and take delivery in Hohenwald if you so desire. Factory tours are still available. Two trailers were shipped today from Oliver to the dealership in Georgia. One of them is already been bought.

You can deal with the factory or go to any authorized dealer. Warranty service can still be done at a local business and reimbursed by Oliver. Mike

@ScubaRx Great news!! 🤩 We purchased our first Overland Camper an Intech “Pursue” from Bumgarner Camping Center in Lenoir. This is a small family owned business and they were excellent to deal with in both the sale and service of our former Intech. We actually know the owners and are excited for them to now be an Oliver sales and service center. The Bumgarner's are really fine folks and only an hour away from our home. Patriot🇺🇸

Took some photos of Ollie's new orbital bathroom 🙃:

Why does it need to be so complicated?

I am one of those guys that has to keep his vehicle looking and smelling like it just rolled off the showroom floor. Of course, it gets dirty from daily use, and we do eat in our vehicles, but periodically, I get that itch to detail it to perfection. It just so happens that it always happens before the trip. Now that you mention it, I do believe my cleaning routine may just be a subconscious way to verify that it is in good working order. Regardless, I travel much more comfortably and calmly in an immaculately clean vehicle. We are planning on leaving on Sunday now (my wife's idea). We will stay in a hotel in Hot Springs, AR. Any good things to do there with a dog, anyone? Then travel the remaining distance on Monday before our appointment on Tuesday. I know that the excitement of finally getting our Christmas present will eventually wear off, but this trailer really is a means to an end not the end itself. At the end of the day, it is a tool to allow us to do the things we love.

There are a lot of ways to skin this cat. I carry our bikes on a bed rack above the tonneau cover. Lifting my wife’s e-bike, even with the battery removed is a heavy lift. The rack locks on the front thru axles. Every option has its pros and cons. The rack on a front of the truck receiver hitch means every rock, bug and road hazard will be in your bike. The rear of the Oliver is not really rated for heavy bikes and boy would they flop around on a rough road, ie I70 through Kansas and eastern Colorado. Racks in the bed consume valuable bed space. There maybe some racks that mount above the propane doghouse. Good luck on your search!

Thank you all for your advice and examples. We may indeed go with folding bikes. That sounds like a good solution.

Katanpilot, I do not possess the skill set nor the mindset to install the equipment properly.. If one has the skill and good mindset the cost to install is greatly reduced. The greatest cost of the project was installation cost. Take a look at the Victron Forum and there are many who will provide great ideas to a successful installation. I have also seen used gear for sale a few years young.. One who want to upgrade from a 12v to a 24v system etc. I believe strongly the Victron solution is the right solution. Does the Katanpilot refer the the DA20? I have had the delightful joy of left seat in that ship. Diamond makes some great airplanes.. Very Respectfully, George

Most certainly there is a list but as one might imagine, the actual signing of contracts and getting product to these "new" Ollie dealers is currently a very recent and fluid affair which seems to be changing (with additions) daily. I'm sure that in due course Oliver will release a complete list and I would think that this will be in the near future. Bill

@Patriot, that is a great recommendation. Thank you for sharing your personal experience. They're just a little over an hour from our camping property in WNC! We've been through Lenoir, and it seems like a nice little city, with plenty of restaurants (especially great bbq), and plenty of nice (and pet-friendly) lodging. A short drive to Blowing Rock as well, and all it has to offer. This is a big win for those of us in the Carolinas. (Even us part-timers. 😀)

Because this is oftentimes the venue for much comtemplation!

Boy - I know that I'm treading on a knife's edge with what I'm about to say, but, hope that you (and perhaps my wife) will understand what I'm trying to say. My relationship with my Ollie has progressed in a similar manner to the relationship with my wife. Of course these relationships are on different levels. The complexities that one has in dealing with any other human being are much more complicated that they could possibly be with a machine. I too remember that excitement of when "we" first met and while some of that excitement has waned over the past 49 years it still isn't gone. But, instead it has developed into what I like to think is a deeper even more "connected" feeling. In a similar way, I now understand my Ollie better. I know what sounds it makes and how it is supposed to look and feel. I understand it's systems better. I've grown more and more comfortable with virtually everything about it and why it was originally designed the way it was. In turn, this allows me to be more relaxed and confident in what to expect and what it demands of me. I much prefer this deeper, more "connected" feeling. I'm simply not sure that I could still handle that initial excitement anymore. But, it sure is still fun to remember and from time to time ........ Bill

I delivered an 85 foot sail boat from St Lucia to Newport, RI. The MultiPlus and the batteries were becoming rather hot, 90 degrees F. Blue Hull with full sun. I stopped in Martinique and procured a three inch flexible hose. I ren it from the bilge to the Multiplus compartment which also housed the Battle Borne batteries. I removed a muffin fan from an unimportant function and drew air from the bilge to cool the batteries etc. This worked like a charm. After clearing Bermuda the jury rigged cooling system was no longer needed. george

After several unsuccessful camper trailers and the nightmare that went along with the experience, we finally decided to order an Oliver. We made friends with an owner of an Oliver in a National Forest campground in Texas after seeing LE2 in person. Ours is now on order, due December 19. I have no idea what hull number it will be but we are certainly excited to get it. The wait, however, is a bit irritating since this is our time of year to camp. It will come soon enough. We hope the wait will be worth it. *Fingers crossed*

Not that I’m aware of, yet. Waiting for the company announcement!

Thanks George. (Sorry all - very off topic). Yes, we owned a Diamond DA20-A1 for many years. Both my kids learned to fly in it. We donated it to a high school in Florida a couple of years ago for their aviation program. If you want to see more - https://www.firstcoastnews.com/article/news/local/class-in-nassau-county-teaching-students-how-to-take-flight/77-0316acb0-19c4-4531-ac3e-053b6511973f As to the skills to install the system, I hope I do. Mostly it's taking the time and working in cramped spaces. I am heading in this direction, as I like the capabilities and reliability of Victron components. Thanks for the additional information.

I think the rewards program may be back up and running. I signed in yesterday and was then able to see my balance.

A PM (private message) to mossemi might get you a look at his bike rack arrangement. Same thing for SNY SD UP. Bill

We can take that sailing conversation to private message. 😀

Not meaning to highjack the thread, but, YES! In fact, we're headed to St. Maarten in early FEB.

Woodland Gardens near Hot springs is beautiful. The chapel is amazing. I just looked up winter hours. No dogs, unfortunately, during the winter hours. https://www.garvangardens.org/

@gbergh, we had a close friend for dinner tonight, who designs Victron systems for sailboats. He, too, uses the multiplus, vs multiplus II. I asked him about the mounting positions. He always mounts normal , (letters up) , though victron technically allows sideways mount, on a bulkhead, for proper heat circulation. Even so, he adds muffin fans to exhaust heat, to a larger space, if enclosed. Victron has an overheat cutoff, but who wants that to happen, right? In our little 2008, I have no idea where we could mount a multiplus. It's simply too big. But then, we don't have an inverter, anyway. And, got rid of the 1000 watt inverter we had, as we didn't use it. When we refit our boat for solar some years back, our xantrex was only a year or two old, so, we kept it . (We rarely use the inverter, anyway.) Down the line, when necessary, it will likely be replaced with a multiplus, as many other components are victron. We can find ventilated room for it, somewhere. Thanks for your insight and comments.

@SeaDawg, I still have the Navion 24V. I chose the Multiplus over the Multiplus II. The Multiplus was a couple of hundred dollars less money. The Multiplus II is capable of handling Grid applications or functions. I saw no merit to the Grid capabilities. Victron sells either the MultiPlus or the MultiPlusII in various VA. The Victron solution has worked flawlessly for several years. I also employed the Victron and Battleborn system in my sailboat. Albeit, the sailbot was for racing and has a spartan interior, ie no Hot water, HVAC or Solar. I was concerned with powering running lights, autopilot and instruments. The battleborn afforded all the power I ever required as long as I monitored the battery temperature and kept it about 80 degrees F or less. I delivered sailboats to the Caribbean, Fllorida and two trips to England after I retired in 2000. The vast majority had a Victron system. As John Davies pointed out proper installation, temperatures and SOC, the Victron System is almost Bullet Proof. Respectfully, George Bergh

How can "we" ever be alone with all those voices in my head?😁

Bill, I wondered if I was the only one that liked to wash the car before a trip regardless of the weather forecast. Nice to know that I am not alone. John

I agree. Back in the day, I thought nothing of throwing the backpack on and heading into the woods through a bunch of snow. Campfires were GREAT as you fried the front and then did the dance around to warm up the back. The critters must have thought we humans were idiots with all that dancing we were doing. But, truth be told, there was a certain "misery" to the whole process. Sure, no bugs and little concern for watching for snakes and/or poison ivy/oak/sumac were welcome as were those clear star lit skies being able to track critters in the snow and, perhaps, even the "challenge" of it all. But, the wet feet, the cold, putting on frozen boots, dropping pants to ........ were certainly not enjoyable after the first few times. Perhaps the simple explanation was that I was getting out on my own without "family" impinging upon my freedom. Or, getting away from chores. I do fondly remember these camping trips and would encourage anyone who has never experienced this to have at it. But, I've grown to like what one might call the comforts of life a bit too much to look forward to eating Vienna Sausage cold out of the can or Dinty Moore beef stew out of the can - let alone having it explode because I didn't poke a large enough hole in the lid. The Oliver gives me those comforts and I'm truly appreciative. Basically the season doesn't mater - its always camping season! Bill

I solved our e-bike dilemma with a folding model and carry bag, easily transported in the TV under cap and staged on a front-mounted bike rack, as needed, when at camp. Bagged e-bikes shown behind the DuroMax generator. Front-mounted bike rack in use. Secure storage. Additional security and protection at night and/or inclement weather. Staged for day use. Easy transport to trails at distance from camp. Bike rack in travel mode.

The Xantrex inverter in our 2018 LEII failed, and was replaced with a Victron by the previous owner. I mentioned this to the RV tech who is readying our new truck to also carry our Northern Lite TC, and he mentioned that they no longer recommended Xantrex because of a high (10%) failure rate.

I have the Victron Muliplus installed in the Navion 24V and associated equipment with three 100 Ah Battle Born batteries. The system has functioned flawlessly. It was professionally installed. v

If you type the words - bike rack - in the Search box at the upper right of this page, it will return several pages of information. Of course, most of this information will be relative to the hitch located on the back of the Oliver. However, even in those threads I'm guessing that you might find information that can be of interest to you. You will also find threads specifically related to you question. These threads vary from talking about mounting bikes on top of a tonneau cover to rack systems attached to the tongue/basket area of the Ollie and others. Good luck! Bill

Here's my ad. I think it will work.....😁

Between Ronbrink's (very doable) MOD & JD's recommended straps, I see a winter project that I soooooooooo want to complete before our 2024 Alaska Oli-venture. The plumbers strap that held (past tense) the WH has snapped. And I have what I believe is a great replacement for it and to add it to the Heater while I am at it. Thanks Ronbrink & John Davies, B~out

I beeped half way through🤣

Nothing wrong with humor - but it can backfire sometimes.... BOOM!

Before we saw the Oliver, we were committed to purchasing an Airstream Globetrotter. We went so far as to visit a showroom in Fort Worth, picked it out and settled on the trade value for our old camper. The dealership turned out to be some of the biggest crooks I have ever had the displeasure of talking to. While we were still grumbling about that, we saw an Oliver for the first time. Our impression was that the build quality was exactly what we were looking for; However, it had a few negatives. First, it was small. This was good and bad. We all know the tradeoffs here. The other was that Oliver didn't take trade-ins. This last one was a hard pill to swallow. We are still trying to sell our other one. I am fairly confident that the Oliver will be the last camper we will ever buy. We are fairly young so that is a bold statement. We got almost all of the options including the full Truma upgrade and the Lithium Pro package. It was expensive but cheaper than that ridiculous Airstream would have been after it was all said and done.

This happened while camping at a State Park in Nebraska, guess this could be classified as meeting your neighbors. True story. When we set up in a new campground, I like to go for a walk checking out the campground, restrooms, and laundry if the campground has one. The campground was about 1/2 full and had already been told there was also a national camping group meeting there, too. When I tried to inspect the laundry room, the door was locked. After trying a couple times, saw a couple on the floor. They got up putting their clothes back on and opened the door apologizing to me. I told them no problem, sorry I bothered them. Told Debbie what happened and she said we wouldn't be using that laundry room to wash anything, will wait until we find another one. 🙂

We have just the solution for deer and it’s the best homemade chili we have ever enjoyed. Blessed with an amazing season last year with a total of (5) in the deep freeze. That is our deer 🦌 story and we are sticking to it. 😄

Let me preface this story by making it clear that I am NOT a hunter but I do now understand why we SHOOT deer in the wild... I never liked the taste of venison, too gamey or too wild or too something. So, I had this idea ...that I could rope a deer, put it in a stall, feed it up on corn for a couple of weeks, then kill it and eat it. The first step in this adventure was getting a deer. I figured that, since they congregate at my cattle feeder and do not seem to have much fear of me when we are there (a bold one will sometimes come right up and sniff at the bags of feed while I am in the back of the truck not 4 feet away), it should not be difficult to rope one, get up to it and toss a bag over its head (to calm it down) then hog tie it and transport it home. I filled the cattle feeder then hid down at the end with my rope. The cattle, having seen the roping thing before, stayed well back. They were not having any of it. After about 20 minutes, my deer showed up-- 3 of them. I picked out a likely looking one, stepped out from the end of the feeder, and threw my rope. The deer just stood there and stared at me. I wrapped the rope around my waist and twisted the end so I would have a good hold. The deer still just stood and stared at me, but you could tell it was mildly concerned about the whole rope situation. I took a step towards it, it took a step away. I put a little tension on the rope, and then received an education. The first thing that I learned is that, while a deer may just stand there looking at you funny while you rope it, they are spurred to action when you start pulling on that rope. That deer EXPLODED. The second thing I learned is that pound for pound, a deer is a LOT stronger than a cow or a colt. A cow or a colt in that weight range I could fight down with a rope and with some dignity. A deer-- NO Chance. That thing ran and bucked and twisted and pulled. There was no controlling it and certainly no getting close to it. As it jerked me off my feet and started dragging me across the ground, it occurred to me that having a deer on a rope was not nearly as good an idea as I had originally imagined. The only upside is that they do not have as much stamina as many other animals. A brief 10 minutes later, it was tired and not nearly as quick to jerk me off my feet and drag me when I managed to get up. It took me a few minutes to realize this, since I was mostly blinded by the blood flowing out of the big gash in my head. At that point, I had lost my taste for corn-fed venison. I just wanted to get that devil creature off the end of that rope. At the time, there was no love at all between me and that deer, but I figured if I just let it go with the rope hanging around its neck, it would likely die slow and painfully somewhere. At that moment, I hated the thing, and I would venture a guess that the feeling was mutual. Despite the gash in my head and the several large knots where I had cleverly arrested the deer's momentum by bracing my head against various large rocks as it dragged me across the ground, I could still think clearly enough to recognize that there was a small chance that I shared some tiny amount of responsibility for the situation we were in. I didn't want the deer to have to suffer a slow death, so I managed to get it lined back up in between my truck and the feeder - a little trap I had set before hand...kind of like a squeeze chute. I got it to back in there and I started moving up so I could get my rope back. Did you know that deer bite? They do! I never in a million years would have thought that a deer would bite somebody, so I was very surprised when ..... I reached up there to grab that rope and the deer grabbed hold of my wrist. Now, when a deer bites you, it is not like being bit by a horse where they just bite you and slide off to then let go. A deer bites you and shakes its head--almost like a pit bull. They bite HARD and it hurts. The proper thing to do when a deer bites you is probably to freeze and draw back slowly. I tried screaming and shaking instead. My method was ineffective. It seems like the deer was biting and shaking for several minutes, but it was likely only several seconds. I, being smarter than a deer (though you may be questioning that claim by now), tricked it. While I kept it busy tearing the tendons out of my right arm, I reached up with my left hand and pulled that rope loose. That was when I got my final lesson in deer behavior for the day. Deer will strike at you with their front feet. They rear right up on their back feet and strike right about head and shoulder level, and their hooves are surprisingly sharp... I learned a long time ago that, when an animal -like a horse --strikes at you with their hooves and you can't get away easily, the best thing to do is try to make a loud noise and make an aggressive move towards the animal. This will usually cause them to back down a bit so you can escape. This was not a horse. This was a deer, so obviously, such trickery would not work. In the course of a millisecond, I devised a different strategy. I screamed like a woman and tried to turn and run. The reason I had always been told NOT to try to turn and run from a horse that paws at you is that there is a good chance that it will hit you in the back of the head. Deer may not be so different from horses after all, besides being twice as strong and 3 times as evil, because the second I turned to run, it hit me right in the back of the head and knocked me down. Now, when a deer paws at you and knocks you down, it does not immediately leave. I suspect it does not recognize that the danger has passed. What they do instead is paw your back and jump up and down on you while you are laying there crying like a little girl and covering your head. I finally managed to crawl under the truck and the deer went away. So now I know why when people go deer hunting they bring a rifle with a scope......to sort of even the odds!! All these events are true, so help me God...An Educated Farmer

NPS put this out on social media, in a humorous attempt to make more people aware of the dangers. Every year, we see reports of folks trying to interact or take selfies with wildlife, with disastrous and sometimes fatal results . None of us, I'm sure.

So true.

Camp pillows that tickled my funny bone...