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Smilin' Jack

Well Known Member
I have camped at Oshkosh with a Tripacer and it was very nice to drape a tarp over the wing put the tent under the wing and we were set to go. No matter how hot it got or how wet it got we were cool and dry.

Could you share any method of camping with a small almost stand up tent making it comfortable during the heat and rainy days with your RV. My tent won' t fit under the wing and the better half said we need to think about this for a week long stay.

Did you ship stuff to Oshkosh and pick it up there?
Were the new shower facilities nice in the RV area at OSH?
Never been to SNF but thinking about going this year for a couple of days.

Jack
 
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Most folks (in the homebuilt camping area) at Oshkosh tend to set their tents up off to the aft port side of their aircraft next to the tail. During the heat of the day, or if it rains during the day, we're generally off wandering around in the big vendor hangars A/B/C/D, or the museum, or the Theater in the Woods. On really hot days, like in 2012, the museum was a really popular place. Another good place to escape the heat in the afternoon is to visit the Seaplane Base.

Make sure your tent is one of the good newer modern designs with a waterproof tub-type floor in it. The Coleman 3 or 4 man dome tent is small and light to carry in an RV and performs excellent even in a deluge rain. Mine has handled several mini Noah's Flood rainstorms with ease and kept everything dry inside. Bring inflatable air mattresses to put under your sleeping bags and one of those little battery-powered fan-type air pumps to inflate/deflate them.

I can carry everything with me I need for a week's camping at Osh in my RV-6, I fly there solo so I can load the right front seat and floorboard down with heavy stuff to keep the CG in range when the fuel burns down to minimums. And yes, everything is secured so it cannot interfere with the right stick or rudder pedals. If you have a passenger in a 2-seater RV aircraft, of course you'll be unable to also carry a full weeks worth of bottled water, a cooler full of beers, a week's worth of camping foods, and a toolbag loaded with enough tools and equipment to perform a top-end overhaul of a Lycoming in the field along with your camping supplies, but you should be able to carry enough of the minimum camping supplies and requirements along with a passenger and still stay within your W&B envelope, many folks do it year after year.

By "showers in the RV area" do you mean the camper/recreational vehicle area or the "HBC" homebuilt aircraft (our RVs :D ) camping area? The showers in the HBC are old and gross. I walk over to the North 40 and use their brand new showers... clean, private, and endless supply of hot water with high pressure.
 
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Whichever tent you choose, take some extra line and stakes and tie the tent down well. I've seen several collapsed by the gust fronts of thunderstorms.
 
I camped with my daughter last year in a 4-man Coleman tent that has seen many fly-ins, daddy-daughter campouts and Scout campouts. The daytime can get a little hot inside, but who spends time in the tent when the sun is up at Oshkosh? Evenings were comfortable. We didn't even bring full sleeping bags, just fleece bag liners and pillows. It was perfect.

I agree with the advice to bring plenty of guy wire tie-downs for your tent. It'll save you tent rebuild time in the long run. My two cents are to bring ear plugs so you're not listening to the port-a-potty doors slamming all night, and put some of mom's old cutting boards under the tires so they don't sink in the mud.

The showers were adequate. Timing is everything--find a time when the crowds aren't showering, and it'll work better. I think I read somewhere that EAA is putting in new showers in HBC, but not sure when.

I've never shipped anything to OSH. I sort of like the challenge of traveling light. If it doesn't fit, then we do without it. But then I am always jealous of the guys with big Ramadas and giant coolers. *sigh*

BTW, I love that we're already talking about Oshkosh in January! :D
 
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Thanks guys, good input. Yea with the TRi-Pacer I was able to load up about 150 lbs of gear.... But the 7 flight hour trip and two fuel stops,one due to bladder, made the trip pretty long, over all with the stops it was almost 9 hours, but it still beat a 22 hour drive from Georgia thru a couple rush hours.

We'll see you there Lord willing this time hopefully just over 3 hours.
Jack
 
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