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Hey Ollie Owners! My name is Lexi Griffin and I work in marketing as an Intern with Matt for Oliver Travel Trailers and I have been looking into spots to add another rally to our roster! So far I have found that the Salt Lake City KOA is a great option and I am looking into the Jellystone Park in Larkspur, CO as well as the RiverRun RV Resort, also in CO. The idea is to have it in the fall, most likely in September time (but so far the weather in CO and WY may be too cold). If you want to suggest a campground, the sites need to have at LEAST 100 RV sites, preferably 150-200 would be best so we can get as many Ollie's together as possible. The weather at the site you recommend shouldn't get too cold or hot for the time that we stay there.

Just a follow up to this post. Our first long distance trip with this bike rack. From Mesa, AZ to Davis Mountain State Park. I was very happy with the stability of the rack. I was concerned it would have some sway, but the movement of the bikes was minimal. FYI, this pic was at a Harvest Host stopover on the way (D.H. Lescombes Winery in Deming, NM). Darren

Sounds like you are thinking more mountain west than west coast, but in case the latter is in scope, I'll mention that Fort Stevens State Park is claimed to be the largest campground west of the Mississipi. We were just there and the campground is pleasant, and has access to both a nice beach and also nice park grounds including birding opportunities, some great coastal forest, and a historic fort with old gun battery mounts and so forth. It's right next to a few small towns with multiple nice restaurants and stores for supplies, and also quite close to the small and quaint city of Astoria which has yet more food etc. options as well as a very nice museum. Also, late September turns out to be among the nicest times around there, per locals I've talked with, as there's much less of the will-sapping fog that can blanket the area for days at a time during mid summer.

There have been discussions here on the forum about a Western US Oliver Rally, as well as communications via private message or email, but nothing has ever come to fruition. Thanks to Lexi for spearheading this effort! We would love to attend a Western US Rally! I think any of these locations would be good. One of the advantages of Lake Guntersville State Park venue is the availability of rental housing for prospective buyers or people waiting for their build. I did not think the SLC KOA had such rentals, but I checked their web site and they do. The websites for Jellystone Park in Larkspur, CO and RiverRun RV Resort in Granby CO indicate that they have rentals. Lake Guntersville State Park also had communal gathering areas, which was great. The SLC KOA lists a Pavilion on their list of amenities, but it is not clear what that is. Jellystone Park lists a Campfire Canteen Restaurant and Bar, and RiverRun lists a Headwaters Tavern, and they could server as gathering spaces. Last year we went to the Inyan Rally, which was held sequentially in two different campgrounds. The first was a State Park where the organizer reserved a picnic pavilion space, and the second was a commercial campground where we congregated at the bar/restaurant every evening, although it was not ours for exclusive use. Lexi is correct that weather and time of year come into consideration. Today, Sept 15, it will be 90° in SLC, but this weekend the high should be 75°, and then 82°-84° next week. While anecdotal weather observations can be useful, I prefer to look at historical weather information. If you don’t know about the weatherbase.com website, I suggest you bookmark it, as it has historical weather information. We try to avoid camping in temperatures where the AC will be needed, and weatherbase is extremely useful. Weatherbase says the average highs in September are: 73° for SLC, 68° for Granby, and 77° for Castle Rock, CO. (Larkspur lacks weather data, and Castle Rock is nearby at similar elevation.) Living in SLC, I can provide some useful information. The Utah State Fair runs for 10 days in September, beginning the Thursday after Labor Day. They are on now, despite Covid-19. The SLC KOA is probably a half mile from the State Fairpark. There are a lot of 4-H families from rural Utah who attend the fair, and I expect the KOA was fully booked many months in advance for the Fair. So the choices are either to avoid the dates of the fair, or to book far in advance. The State Fair is a lot of fun, after all. Two other things about the SLC KOA location. It is directly adjacent to the Jordan River Parkway, a really nice biking and walking trail along the river. Also, SLC has a light rail system, and the SLC KOA is one block from a light rail stop. I was going to suggest Jordanelle State Park, as we have camped there several times, but Overland posted on that while I was writing this. Jordanelle does have an events center, and a small number of cabins for rent. Both the campsites and the cabins are reserved far in advance, particularly for weekend dates. Utah State Parks have a four month reservation window.

Susan, Our Diamondback on a 2016 Tundra is the SE model. Hope these photos help. https://diamondbackcovers.com/products/diamondbackse?variant=32626020089955 Edit: If you are asking about bed rails that locking rods insert into, bed rails were standard on our SR5 Tundra and probably many pickups. They are almost flush with the top inside of the pickup bed: Measuring from bottom of cover: Measuring from top of truck bed: Exterior lock lever: Interior lock:

Excited at the possibility of a Western Rally so we can meet other Oliver owners, face to face I'll be thinking of some suggestions for a venue.

Anyone familiar with the RSI SmartCap? It's a stainless steel cap with hinged side windows and a ton of accessories. Looks like it could be really nice - https://www.rsismartcap.com/smarter-truck

Little late showing but time flies when your having fun. Spent 4 nights at David Crockett State Park and then 2 nights at Cloudland Canyon State Park in North Ga and the Ollie was great. 2020 Tundra really did a great job towing. Nice having the V8 on a few hills and didn't feel stressed at all. Only hiccup we had was leaving Davey Crockett the street side awning would not close completely. Came to about 1 inch on the front end from totally closing. We called Jason and dropped by service to check out the problem. Seems 2 acorns had fallen in the front track and was preventing it from closing completely. So I chalked up some experience and we were on our way. I guess this would make a case for carrying a ladder. These pics are from 10 days later staying at Juliette State Park in GA and Hamburg State Park in Ga. Really love the camper and really surprised with the amount of storage. Yes, the air conditioner is loud but 93 degree days were handled with no issues. Spending 20+ years in a power plant loud noise is something I am a little familiar with. After a couple of nights it was no problem even though we are looking forward to fall camping. Erv & Sherry

I placed it in a spot I felt would provide the best clearance. The 45 degree bracket can point backward or fwd, and you can also not use that bracket and mount it so the bikes are straight above the bracket. The way I mounted it and it's placement on the tongue pushed it back as far as possible while not interfering with the jack. I believe I would have to nearly jack knife it to kit the bikes. Honestly, I'm more worried about getting the Anderson Hitch "whale tail" off kilter by turning too sharp, so I avoid at all cost. Yes, it's a Jeep Gladiator, and it's an LEII. I've posted about this elsewhere, but I'll summarize by saying I love the truck, but it's unlikely to be a long-term solution for towing the trailer. I had the truck before I got the Oliver, but wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to buy a used Oliver. Darren

Great! Thanks everyone. Yes. Thanks to all. It was the T-handle. I certainly appreciate the quick responses. best, Jason Rife

Also, if your gray tank is mostly full, the Olly might be slightly nose down. Raising the nose a bit fixed it for us.

LOL, two beat me to it..... Gray filled to the top, or you forgot to open (pull forward) the “travel” valve, to connect the bathroom drain plumbing to the gray tank. I took a Sharpie and wrote “Push In For Travel” right over the tee handle. No worries, everybody does it. You will remember next time. John Davies Spokane WA

Open the back flow prevention valve, the handle on the wall next to the toilet. Hth. Ken

Open up the blackflow ...... the black T handle. depending on how you outfit your Oliver, it's either a black handle near the floor to the left of the toilet, or it's in the closet if you upgraded.

I missed your original post on this. A few things to consider: The Shakespeare mount may not hold up on an RV installation. Best to check with their product support. The Glomex line of omnis look nicer and have more robust mounts. These are popular with the go-fasts. I believe Hodges carries them. Seems to me the Air360 is a good choice but it requires a second coax for the AM/FM antenna section. Course you'll also need an ethernet cable for the wifi option if included. The footprint may cover the Kingdome mounting holes, making for a cleaner install.

I agree, Fort Stevens is a beautiful park. However, the location is not the best for a rally. People will be coming in from all directions with only one major highway (US 101) into the area. A more central location would be necessary to insure a good turnout.

Yeah, that group does an annual ride for a few days each September. We too are recumbent 'trikers' and enjoy riding there and across the bridge in Washington. We're hoping to get over there next week if the smoke lifts.

Yeah, we ran into a small group of recumbent bicycle riders who normally have a HUGE post Labor Day rally there but this year due to COVID just had an unofficial gathering of a fairly small group of the more dedicated regulars. They said they love the logistics of the campground for their rally which sounds like tends to use something in the neighborhood of 100 of the over 470 sites (about 170 full hookup sites and about 300 sites with electrical and water, plus a handful of tent only sites, yurts, cabins, and hiker/biker only sites, as well as a large group site that they said they always book for things like booths and other group activities). BTW we learned about the nicer early fall weather there from a captain from the Ilwaco WA coast guard station, and she explained that it has to do with the difference between the air and water temperature not being as conducive to fog as in summer when the two temperatures tend to be closer to each other. The folks from that station have some amazing stories to tell from being out around the sand bars at the mouth of the Columbia in bad winter weather. They do this in boats that can (and sometimes do!) flip upside down and back up again. Yikes!!

We LOVE Fort Stevens and try to stay there a few times a year. The beach, the Columbia River and a lake all within the same park. Bike riding is fun on the paths. Just a wonderful spot, perfect for a September rally!

Jordanelle SP UT is on our list of State Parks to camp at during future western trips! Would be nice to visit during a rally in the fall.

Hi Jim! Our idea was to pick a location further west, but not too west so that we can make the trip doable for our Eastern owners as well! I'll check it out and even if it doesn't work out this time, I'll be cataloging all of the suggestions in case we can use them at a later date.

Glad to see this - Two events in one year!!

Lexi - Thanks so much for getting on this with such a great attitude. Pick a place, pick a date(s) and they WILL COME! Bill

I looked at it and made an inquiry! We'll see what they say, thank you for the suggestion.

Lexi, you might also consider Jordanelle State Park in Park City, which may be a bit more scenic than the KOA. They have well over 100 sites, a decently sized event center, the lake, and of course all the restaurants and amenities of Park City. It would probably be a bit cooler there as well.

I had not heard of the Smart Cap. The fact that it can be shipped to your house implies it can be disassembled for storage....? Interesting. How does it attach and seal? I need to do some reading. If I had a pickup I would buy a Go Fast Camper. Fully welded steel cage, massive roof carry load, and a place to sleep too. https://gofastcampers.com/ Assuming I could get one. The waiting list is veeeeeery long. It used to be 18 months, with Covid, who knows? Made in Montana. John Davies Spokane WA

Love my ARE cap... Fit and function are the best!

I would never choose the Ram Boxes for one big reason. You can’t use a canopy. That is a killer for me, no way would I make do with a tonneau cover. If they hinged in the opposite direction so one would work, no worries. They are like the Ollie’s inside cabinet and outside access panels, why do they go in the “wrong“ direction? John Davies Spokane WA

I like mine. Tools (plus other stuff, bungies, lubes, gloves, etc.) go there and not in a tool box in the bed under a bunch of stuff. I won’t get a Ram without them.

Thanks for the info. FYI, if you’re looking for a content blocker that works with the site, I use 1Blocker with all its options turned on and I haven’t seen any problems.

I had this same problem, and I was able to fix it as follows: Tap the "aA" icon to the left of the website address to reveal the Website View menu. Tap on Website Settings. Turn OFF the Use Content Blockers switch, which will only affect the current domain (olivertraveltrailers.com). Tap Done.

Thank you for sharing your advice. We are still torn between a Diamondback bed cover and a topper. Pros and cons of both.

Just stirring the pot. I usually open mine for air whenever draining. Truma does call it a "Test Lever"

Overland, pressure release valves are prone to not fully close after being released. I would be hesitant to use it for that purpose. I have had more that one fail in the past (Not on the Truma).

First gear, it's alright Second gear, I lean right Third gear, hang on tight Faster, it's alright ...with apologies to Brian Wilson and Mike Love

Thank you everyone that contributed to this thread. If we order I'm sure we'll be happy with the the Girard (especially in that it can't be deleted from the build). But perhaps today's posting about a dead Dometic awning illustrates the benefits of a simple, sturdy, high-quality manual-crank alternative -- a simpler awning that gets the job done with less risk of failure...

We use the Andersen buckets, seem to work fine. I purchased an Andresen "kit" with buckets, banana levelers, and door entry mud mat. All bright orange color. Easy to store and keep clean. Likely same or better options out there, just keeping it same with Andersen (also have Andersen hitch system).

Matt, Having just placed our deposit/order for a 2020 Oliver Elite ll, what you stated above is exactly why we chose Oliver. My wife and I were very impressed with the plant tour seeing most if not all that goes into building the finest travel trailer made. It’s very apparent to us, Oliver takes pride in their product and backs it with stellar customer service. We are looking forward to delivery day and we are already booked for the National Rally in Guntersville. David & Kathy

Its now been about two weeks since I did the installation, so, I went out to check to make sure that the gutters were still on. I'm happy to report that there are absolutely no problems - there has been no movement in the gutters and they are still FIRMLY stuck. If I had it to do over again I certainly would have made the sides longer by about two inches. Since putting the gutter around the curve of the corners of the window places a slight bit of "stress" on the gutter (it wants to remain straight) the additional two inches would have allowed for a bit more straight edge down the side of the window and thus more "glued" surface without any stress. Bill or