Harvest Hosts Sold: What Does It Mean for RVers?

RV PODCAST NEWS EDITION - MONDAY, OCT. 5, 2026

Publishes 6 a.m. ET

Mike Wendland

OPEN

Hello, everyone. I am Mike Wendland, and this is the Monday RV Podcast News Edition for Oct. 5, 2026.

Before we get to the news, a reminder about something happening this Thursday.

On Thursday, Oct. 8, I am teaching our End-of-Season RV Shutdown Workshop. It is live, and it walks you through the complete shutdown process for your rig, with special attention to the plumbing system. That is where the expensive winter mistakes happen.

It is just 10 dollars. And if you cannot make it live, you will have access to the video replay for several days afterward.

You can sign up at RVLifestyle.com/Workshop.

Again, that is RVLifestyle.com/Workshop.

This is one of two RV Podcast episodes we do every week. This one publishes at 6 a.m. every Monday with the biggest news stories affecting the RV lifestyle. Then, on Wednesday, Jennifer joins me for our Stories from the Road edition, where we have interviews, share RV lifestyle tips and travel ideas, and answer your questions.

I am a journalist by training. More than 40 years working for big city newspapers, television stations and the networks. That is where I learned to source every story I do, and that is what we do here.

We came up in the news business, and old habits die hard. We source our stories, we check the numbers, and we try to separate what actually happened from what the press releases want you to believe happened.

You will find links to every story we report at the very end of the transcript for this episode at RVPodcast.com. Go to the show notes page, click the Transcript tab, and scroll all the way to the bottom.

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It is free, and you can sign up at RVLifestyle.com/Newsletter.

Again, that is RVLifestyle.com/Newsletter.

Now, here is the RV news of the week.

STORY 1: CHOICE HOTELS BUYS HARVEST HOSTS. THE LETTER IS ABOUT LOVE. THE DEAL IS ABOUT LOYALTY POINTS.

Our lead story this week is one a lot of you have been writing to us about.

Harvest Hosts, the membership program that lets RVers stay overnight at wineries, farms, breweries and museums, has been sold.

The buyer is Choice Hotels International. That is the company behind Comfort Inn, Quality Inn, Econo Lodge and about 7,500 hotels around the world.

The price is about 130 million dollars, in cash. The deal was announced Wednesday and was set to close the next day.

Before we go any further, a disclosure. RVOvernights, which sponsors our Wednesday edition, runs its own overnight stay program. That makes it a competitor of Harvest Hosts. You deserve to know that, and you should weigh what we say with it in mind. We have tried to stick to the documents and the arithmetic.

This is the second time Harvest Hosts has changed hands. Founders Don and Kim Greene built it as a small passion project. Joel Holland bought it from them in 2018. Then in 2021, at the height of the pandemic RV boom, a growth investment firm called Stripes put in 37 million dollars. Now Stripes and the other shareholders are selling.

Wednesday evening, members got a letter from Holland, who signs it "Chief RVer." It is a warm letter, and it opens this way: "I love RVing. I love it so much that 8 years ago I purchased the greatest RV company in the world."

He writes that he promised the founders he would "take care of their baby and grow it with love."

And let us give credit where it is earned. He did grow it. By his own count, the host network went from 600 locations to more than 11,000. Membership went from 6,000 to more than 300,000. He says members have spent well over 100 million dollars at those small businesses. A lot of family farms and little wineries got customers they never would have seen. That is real, and it is good.

Now let us translate one line. The letter says, "We have found a new long-term owner."

Here is what that means. Harvest Hosts hired Jefferies, a Wall Street investment bank, to advise it on this deal. Companies do not hire an investment bank to go looking for a pen pal. This was a sale, run the way sales are run, and the goal of a sale is the best price for the people selling.

That is how growth investing works. A firm puts money in, helps the company get bigger, and a few years later it needs to get that money back out with a profit. Five years after 2021, here we are. That is not a scandal. It is the business model. But the letter never mentions that anyone is getting paid. Choice's own announcement describes Holland as the "Owner and CEO."

So why does a hotel company want an RV club?

Choice says about two million of its Choice Privileges rewards members went RVing in the past year. That is the play. A big loyalty list on one side, a membership to sell them on the other.

There is also pressure inside Choice. It has been lagging its big rivals. Its longtime CEO stepped down this spring after disappointing results, and Dom Dragisich got the job permanently at the end of August. This is his first acquisition. Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt have all moved into outdoor lodging already. Choice was the last of the big franchisors to make a move.

For a company that size, 130 million dollars is a small bet. Choice says it will not have a material impact on this year's results.

One more thing, and it is the kind of thing we always check. The numbers do not all line up. Holland's letter says more than 300,000 members. The travel industry publication Skift reported more than 500,000. The letter says members spent well over 100 million dollars at hosts. Skift reported 200 million. Maybe one set counts the whole family of brands, which also includes Escapees and Boondockers Welcome. We do not know. We are using the CEO's own numbers.

So, is Harvest Hosts getting too big? Do the math with Holland's figures.

Back in 2018, there were about 10 members for every host location. Today, it is about 27 members for every host. Membership grew much faster than the places to park. And a winery parking lot does not get bigger because the membership did. If Choice starts marketing Harvest Hosts to two million RVing hotel guests, you can guess which direction that ratio goes.

Then there is price. After Harvest Hosts bought the Escapees RV Club in 2024, its top All-Access plan went from 129 dollars to 179 dollars, according to the company's own help page, to add Escapees and new features.

When news of the Harvest Hosts sale broke last week, we were at the RVCommunity.com fall rally in Pigeo Forge, TN. And let me tell you, the sale was the talk of the campfire. Many noted how hard it was to get a spot at a Harvest Hists site these days because it has gitten so big. Others, members of Escapees when it was bought up by Harvest Hosts, said Harvest Hosts has changed the whole vibe of the club in not a positive way.

Readers on the online forums reacted about the way you would expect. One commenter wrote, "I bet they raise the cost of Harvest Host!" Another wrote, "And the corporate machine rumbles onward." And one put it more gently: "Things will change as they always do with any kind of acquisition. Hopefully not for the worse."

Choice and Harvest Hosts say the brand stays, Holland stays, the team stays, and no jobs are expected to be eliminated. Those are the standard promises in almost every acquisition. What we could not find, in the announcement or the company's question-and-answer page, was any commitment on membership prices, or any time limit on the promises. And for now, according to the travel site Upgraded Points, Choice Privileges members cannot earn or redeem hotel points on Harvest Hosts stays. So the members get nothing new yet.

So what does this mean for the average RVer?

First, nothing changes today. Your membership works the same as it did last week.

Second, if your renewal is coming up, write down what you pay now. Then count how many nights you actually used it. One full-timer on the iRV2 forum reported using just four stays in an entire year. Divide the fee by the nights. That is your real price.

Third, watch three things over the next year. The price at renewal. Whether your information starts showing up in hotel marketing. And whether it gets harder to land a spot at the popular hosts.

Fourth, remember the hosts did not sell anything. It is the same winery and the same farm family. Keep buying the wine and the pie. That part of Harvest Hosts was always the best part.

Is it too big? Not yet. But it now belongs to a company that needs it to get bigger.

The letter is about love. The deal is about loyalty points.

STORY 2: ANOTHER CLASS B MAKER CHANGES HANDS. WHAT IS GOING ON WITH CAMPER VANS?

That Harvest Hosts sale is not the only for-sale sign in the RV world this week.

Our sources tell us that Outside Van, the high-end adventure van builder, has been sold. Dealers are being notified. We are told the buyer is a car dealership in Oregon. The terms have not been released, and neither Outside Van nor its parent company has announced anything publicly. So treat the details as preliminary. We will confirm them as soon as we can.

Outside Van started in Oregon in 2007, building custom Mercedes Sprinter vans for people who wanted to go way off the pavement. In 2021, at the height of the van life boom, it was bought by Fox Factory, the company known for high-performance shocks and suspension. Last year, Fox announced it was moving Outside Van's production from Portland to Georgia.

And Fox has had a rough stretch. It reported a loss of more than half a billion dollars last year, most of it from writing down the value of businesses it had bought. Its board said it was reviewing "strategic alternatives" for what it called "non-core assets." And late last month, Fox sold its baseball bat company, Marucci, to pay down debt.

We do not know for certain that Outside Van was part of that housecleaning. But it fits the pattern. And it is worth noting that even last year, Outside Van was offering a 12,000 dollar rebate to move vans.

Now put it next to the other Class B news this year.

In February, Alliance RV, best known for fifth wheels and travel trailers, bought Midwest Automotive Designs, the Elkhart builder of luxury Sprinter vans. Midwest landed on the market after its parent, REV Group, merged with the equipment giant Terex.

In July, Roadtrek, one of the oldest names in Class B, was sold again. This time to Conestogo Partners, a little-known investment group that calls itself permanent capital. By our count, that is at least the fourth time Roadtrek has changed hands since its founder sold it. We broke that story here on this show.

So what is going on?

Here is the context. Class B wholesale shipments are actually up a bit this year, about 9 percent, according to the RV Industry Association. But that is from a very low starting point. Through August, the industry shipped about half as many camper vans as it did during the same months of 2022. And in August, shipments dipped again.

So the van life gold rush is over. The companies that bought in at the top, like Fox, are getting out. Smaller builders are being absorbed. And the biggest names in the category, like Winnebago's Travato and Coachmen’s Beyond and the gazillion Class B models made by Thor and its manufacturers, belong to big, publicly traded corporations that can ride out a slump.

There is one interesting twist. Alliance is still selling Midwest vans under the Midwest name. But it is also developing an all-new Class B on the Ford Transit chassis under the Alliance name, and it showed prototypes at last week's open house in Elkhart under a strick embargo on detals until the end of the month. Our read is that Alliance wants a van its own dealers can sell alongside its trailers, with its own reputation for service on the badge. Alliance is independently owned has earned a good reputation for standing behind its products. If it brings that to vans, it could shake things up.

So what does this mean for the average RVer?

First, if you own one of these vans, keep your paperwork in order. Your warranty, your build sheet, your service records. When a company changes hands, the new owner usually honors the warranty, but you want proof in hand.

Second, if you are shopping for a Class B, ask a question most people never think to ask. Who owns this company, and who stands behind the warranty? A van can easily outlast its builder's current owner.

Third, all this turmoil means leverage for buyers. Leftover vans from builders in transition can come with real discounts. Just get the service and parts questions answered in writing first.

The vans are still great. Just know who built yours, and who owns them now.

STORY 3: THE ELKHART RV OPEN HOUSE. SMILES ON THE OUTSIDE, "STABILITY, NOT GROWTH" ON THE INSIDE.

Every fall, the RV industry throws its biggest party of the year in northern Indiana. This year, the party was much more low key.

It is called the Elkhart RV Open House, and it wrapped up this past week. It is a dealer show, not a consumer show. Manufacturers roll out their 2027 models, and dealers decide what to put on their lots next spring.

It ended in a steady rain. And the mood, if you read past the headlines, was not much sunnier.

The industry's own trade press noticed. On opening day, RV PRO reported "decidedly fewer" manufacturers lining the main display road. RVBusiness wrote that the event was "scaled back." When the friendly trade publications say that, pay attention.

The most honest assessment came from the multistate dealership chain Campers Inn RV.

Its chief operating officer, Ben Hirsch, said that dealers and manufacturers have to be prepared for the possibility that 2027 will look a lot like 2026. His words: "We shouldn't be preparing for a 2027 that's going to be a robust year when it doesn't look like that is going to be the reality."

The company's CEO, Jeff Hirsch, put it even more plainly: "We have to look for stability, not growth. We stabilize first, the market comes back and then we grow again."

Let us translate. Stability, not growth, after a year when shipments are down 14 percent, means the people who sell RVs for a living are not expecting next year to be any better than this one. No matter how you spin that, it is a dismal assessment.

And it lines up with the numbers. Last December, the RV Industry Association forecast growth this year. In June, it cut that to a drop of about 8 percent. Through August, shipments are actually down 14 percent.

The word of the week was cheap. A Shipshewana manufacturer showing trailers around 18 to 20 thousand dollars told WNDU-TV in South Bend, "It's kind of a race to the bottom, because price is everything now."

Not everyone was gloomy, and in fairness we should tell you that. Axiom RV said it signed up a significant number of new dealers this week. Brinkley, which makes the fifth wheel Jennifer and I own, said a lot of its dealers are "having good years." And one supplier, Trevor Kropf, said, "Attendance was down just a little bit from prior years, but at the end of the day, I still think we have a really strong industry."

Notice the "but." That was the tone all week. Smile, acknowledge it is tough, move on.

There is also how the story gets told.

Last week we told you Forest River banned filming by influencers and content creators for the first three days of the show. RVBusiness reports Forest River then kept its Dealer Expo open an extra day for "media and social media influencers." So when the glowing walkthroughs of 2027 models start showing up in your feed, know that many of them arrived on a schedule. We make videos too, so we know how this works. Some creators get access, trips or even RVs from the companies they are showing you. Federal Trade Commission rules say they have to disclose that. Look for the disclosure. And remember that a walkthrough under showroom lights tells you nothing about how that rig holds up after 10,000 miles.

So what does this mean for the average RVer?

First, it is a buyer's market, and now the dealers are saying so out loud. You have leverage. Use it.

Second, cheaper is not always a better value. When a manufacturer calls it a race to the bottom, ask what got cut to hit that price. Pay for an independent inspection before you sign.

Third, as the 2027 models arrive, dealers typically want the leftover 2026 units gone. That is usually where the best deals are.

The industry put on a brave face in the rain. The people who actually sell RVs are telling you what next year looks like. Believe them.

MIDROLL: RVCOMMUNITY

Let me take a quick break to tell you about something we built for exactly this kind of week.

Our RV Lifestyle Facebook group has more than 600,000 members. But Facebook's algorithm now decides who sees a post, and most members never see any given one. A great question gets buried. A warning about a bad campground never reaches the people who need it.

I saw that coming, and it is why we built RVCommunity.com. There is no algorithm. When someone posts, every member sees it. No ads, no noise, just RVers helping RVers.

And here is a nice bonus this week. RVCommunity members get Thursday's End-of-Season RV Shutdown Workshop included, with unlimited access to the replay whenever they need it.

You can join at RVCommunity.com.

That is RVCommunity.com.

STORY 4: THE BEARS ARE HUNGRY, AND THEY KNOW WHERE THE CAMPERS ARE.

I want to tell you about the bears.

At our fall rally in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee last week, a black bear strolled right past us as we were walking to a campfire in the Camp Margaritaville parking lot. Just ambled by, like he had somewhere to be.

A couple of days later, one of our rally attendees was walking her dog when a big black bear stepped out of the woods about 100 feet away. Her dog started barking. The bear stopped. And for a long few seconds, the two of them just stared at each other. Then the bear turned and walked off.

Everyone was fine. But it got our attention, and it should get yours too.

Here is what is going on. This time of year, black bears go into what biologists call hyperphagia. It is a feeding frenzy before winter. Great Smoky Mountains National Park says a bear can eat up to 20,000 calories a day right now. That is roughly what you or I would eat in a week and a half. Most of it is acorns and berries. But a cooler, a grill or an unlocked car is a lot easier.

And around Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, bears have been breaking into cars. Opening doors, breaking windows, ransacking vehicles in parking lots.

The price for that is paid by the bears. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency says 61 bears have been euthanized in East Tennessee so far this year for breaking into vehicles or entering buildings with people inside. Sixty of them were in Sevier County, the county that is home to Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. The agency says about 80 percent of these conflicts start with unsecured garbage, bird seed, pet food and grills.

There is an old saying out here. A fed bear is a dead bear. Sixty-one of them, this year, in one corner of Tennessee.

And it is not just Tennessee. In Colorado, wildlife officials counted 10 bear attacks by mid-September, including a woman bitten through the wall of her tent at a campground in the Rio Grande National Forest.

So what does this mean for the average RVer?

First, lock it up. Your RV and your tow vehicle or toad. Doors and windows. And do not leave anything that smells like food in the car, including empty wrappers and coolers.

Second, keep a clean campsite. Clean the grill after you use it. Feed your pets inside. Take the trash to the dumpster right away, not in the morning.

Third, keep your dog on a leash, and skip the dawn and dusk walks in bear country. BearWise, the bear safety program run by state wildlife agencies, warns that a barking dog can provoke a bear. And a dog that chases a bear often comes running right back to you, with the bear behind it. If it happens, do not try to step in. Carry bear spray.

And fourth, if you see a bear, give it room. In the Smokies, federal law says 150 feet. If one follows you, the Park Service says change direction. If it keeps coming, stand your ground and never run. If it gets closer, shout and act aggressively to scare it off.

Our rally friend did everything right. She stayed calm, kept her dog close, and let the bear decide to leave.

Enjoy the bears. From a distance. With the car locked.

STORY 5: MEET BACKPACK, AMERICA'S FAVORITE FAT BEAR

Since we just spent a few minutes worrying about hungry bears, let us end with a hungry bear we can all cheer for.

His name is Backpack. Bear 89, if you are being formal. And he is the 2026 champion of Fat Bear Week.

Fat Bear Week is a contest run by Katmai National Park in Alaska, along with the Katmai Conservancy and Explore.org. Every fall, the brown bears at Brooks Falls spend the summer gorging on salmon, and the public votes, bracket style, on which one has best bulked up for winter.

It is the same hyperphagia we talked about a minute ago. The good version. No cars, no coolers. Just salmon.

This year, people cast more than 2.3 million votes. Backpack beat a big female, Bear 910, in the final.

And he has quite a story.

He is about 20 years old. He got his nickname as a cub because he would ride on his mother's back when she swam across the river. His mother, Holly, won Fat Bear Week herself back in 2019. As a yearling, Backpack suffered a serious leg injury. He recovered, and he grew into a big, healthy adult male.

He is known as the quiet type. He does not brawl for the best fishing spots. He just shows up, big and calm, and the other bears make room.

There is a lesson in there somewhere for anybody trying to get a good campsite.

So what does this mean for the average RVer?

It means you can watch some of the best wildlife viewing in America from your dinette table. The bear cams at Brooks Falls are free at Explore.org. Pour a cup of coffee, put it on the screen, and watch the real professionals of the food-storage business.

And if you ever make it to Alaska in your rig, Katmai is on the bucket list for a reason.

Congratulations, Backpack. Eat well. Sleep long.

CLOSE

That is our RV news for this week.

Thank you for being with us. I appreciate the time you spend with this show.

If you have a comment on anything you heard today, or a question you would like me to answer, use the Contact link at RVPodcast.com. It comes straight to me, and I read every one of them.

We will be back with another episode Wednesday, when Jennifer joins me for our Stories from the Road edition, with interviews, RV lifestyle tips, travel ideas and answers to your questions.

If you have not already done so, please sign up for our free RV Lifestyle newsletter. We publish it every day with RV news, travel ideas, campground information, helpful tips and reports from the road. You can sign up for free at RVLifestyle.com/Newsletter.

And if you enjoy this podcast, would you please leave us a rating and a review? It only takes a moment, but it helps other RVers discover the program. We read those reviews, and we sincerely appreciate every one of them.

One last reminder. Our End-of-Season RV Shutdown Workshop is live this Thursday, Oct. 8. It is 10 dollars, and you get access to the replay for several days afterward. If you are an RVCommunity member, it is included, and you get unlimited access to the replay. Sign up at RVLifestyle.com/Workshop.

Again, that is RVLifestyle.com/Workshop.

I am Mike Wendland. Thanks for listening, and Happy Trails!

Story 1: Choice Hotels buys Harvest Hosts

Choice Hotels, official acquisition announcement, Sept. 30, 2026:

https://media.choicehotels.com/2026-09-30-Choice-Hotels-to-Acquire-Harvest-Hosts,-Expanding-Its-Reach-with-the-Value-Minded-Traveler-Into-Outdoor-and-RV-Travel

Harvest Hosts, member FAQ on the acquisition:

https://support.harvesthosts.com/en/articles/17273668-information-about-the-harvest-host-acquisition

Skift, deal analysis with membership and spending figures:

https://skift.com/2026/09/30/choice-hotels-buys-rv-club-harvest-hosts-for-130-million

Hotel Dive, deal terms and outdoor lodging competition:

https://www.hoteldive.com/news/choice-hotels-acquires-harvest-hosts/831748/

RVTravel.com, deal report and reader comments:

https://www.rvtravel.com/choice-hotels-acquire-harvest-hosts-escapees-130-million-deal/

Upgraded Points, Choice Privileges points not yet usable on Harvest Hosts:

https://upgradedpoints.com/news/choice-hotels-acquire-harvest-hosts/

Built In Colorado, Stripes 37 million dollar investment, 2021:

https://www.builtincolorado.com/2021/03/02/harvest-hosts-raises-37m-funding

Harvest Hosts help center, All-Access price change to 179 dollars:

https://support.harvesthosts.com/en/articles/12733300-how-do-harvest-hosts-membership-costs-renewals-and-taxes-work

RVTravel.com, Harvest Hosts buys Escapees RV Club, 2024:

https://www.rvtravel.com/harvest-hosts-buys-escapees-rv-club/

Skift, Choice names Dom Dragisich permanent CEO, Aug. 31, 2026:

https://skift.com/2026/08/31/choice-hotels-hands-ceo-job-to-insider-as-it-tries-to-reverse-a-slump-versus-rivals/

iRV2 Forums, full-timer's one-year Harvest Hosts review:

https://www.irv2.com/threads/we-tried-harvest-host-for-our-rv-travels-for-one-year-it-didn%E2%80%99t-work-for-us.2170912/

Joel Holland letter to members, "A new chapter for Harvest Hosts," emailed Sept. 30, 2026 (no public URL)

Story 2: Class B makers change hands

Outside Van, company history and Fox Factory ownership:

https://outsidevan.com/about/

Fox Factory, "What Are Adventure Vans? Meet Outside Van," 2025:

https://vehicles.ridefox.com/blogs/gear-and-grit/what-are-adventure-vans-meet-outside-van-the-leader-in-van-conversions

RV News, Outside Van moves manufacturing from Portland to Georgia, July 2025:

https://www.rvnews.com/outside-van-moving-manufacturing/

RV PRO, Outside Van profile and 12,000 dollar rebate, 2025:

https://rv-pro.com/features/outside-van-delivers-on-performance-with-its-class-b-vans/

Fox Factory fiscal 2025 results, 544.6 million dollar loss, impairments and strategic review (StockTitan summary of SEC filing):

https://www.stocktitan.net/sec-filings/FOXF/8-k-fox-factory-holding-corp-reports-material-event-482d4c87f2da.html

TradingView, Fox Factory sells Marucci for 225 million dollars, Sept. 25, 2026:

https://www.tradingview.com/news/tradingview:4f2bc44a839df:0-fox-factory-divests-marucci-for-225-million-takes-24-7-million-convertible-note-from-buyer/

Terex, sale of Midwest Automotive Designs to Alliance RV, Feb. 10, 2026:

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/terex-completes-sale-of-midwest-recreational-vehicle-business-302682913.html

RV News, Alliance RV moves into motorhomes with Midwest acquisition:

https://www.rvnews.com/alliance-rv-moves-into-motorhomes-with-midwest-automotive-designs-acquisition/

RVBusiness, 2027 model year guide, Alliance-branded Ford Transit Class B:

https://rvbusiness.com/2027-model-year-guide-alliance-midwest-automotive-designs/

RVBusiness, Roadtrek confirms acquisition by Conestogo Partners, July 2026:

https://rvbusiness.com/roadtrek-inc-confirms-acquisition-by-conestogo-partners/

RV Lifestyle, Roadtrek sold again:

https://rvlifestyle.com/roadtrek-sold-again/

RV Industry Association, August 2026 shipment report, Type B van campers:

https://www.rvia.org/reports-trends/rv-shipment-reports/2026-08/rv-shipments-23600-august

RV Industry Association, August 2022 shipment report, Type B year-to-date comparison:

https://www.rvia.org/reports-trends/rv-shipment-reports/2022-08/august-rv-shipments-top-33000

Story 3: The Elkhart RV Open House

RVBusiness, "Steady Rain Couldn't Dampen Elkhart RV Open House," Hirsch, Kropf, Brinkley and Axiom quotes, Oct. 1, 2026:

https://rvbusiness.com/steady-rain-couldnt-dampen-elkhart-rv-open-house/

RV PRO, opening day report noting fewer manufacturers, Sept. 28, 2026:

https://rv-pro.com/news/open-house-2026-now-underway/

WNDU-TV, dealers weigh smaller, lower-priced models, Sept. 28, 2026:

https://www.wndu.com/2026/09/28/rv-dealers-weigh-smaller-lower-priced-models-industry-faces-softer-market/

RV Industry Association, August 2026 shipment report:

https://www.rvia.org/reports-trends/rv-shipment-reports/2026-08/rv-shipments-23600-august

RVBusiness, RVIA's original 2026 forecast calling for growth, Dec. 2, 2025:

https://rvbusiness.com/rvia-wholesale-shipments-expected-to-trend-upward-in-26/

RVBusiness, RVIA lowers 2026 forecast, June 2, 2026:

https://rvbusiness.com/2026-wholesale-shipment-forecast-lowered-amid-soft-demand/

Camper FAQs, Alliance RV opens open house to the public:

https://camperfaqs.com/alliance-rv-opens-elkhart-open-house-to-the-public-for-the-first-time

That RV Tech, Facebook reel showing the embargo sign at the Alliance RV display:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/2247802429400731/

Federal Trade Commission, disclosure guidance for social media influencers:

https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/disclosures-101-social-media-influencers

Story 4: Hungry bears and campers

Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency figures via WTVC NewsChannel 9, 61 bears euthanized in 2026:

https://newschannel9.com/sports/outdoors/61-bears-euthanized-humanely-killed-east-tennessee-human-black-bear-conflicts-2026-safety-risk-breaking-vehicles-people-sevier-county-wildlife-resources-agency

WVLT, Great Smoky Mountains National Park fall bear and elk safety, hyperphagia and distance rules:

https://www.wvlt.tv/2026/09/14/great-smoky-mountains-national-park-visitors-urged-practice-safe-viewing-habits-elk-black-bears/

National Park Service, Great Smoky Mountains black bears:

https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/nature/black-bears.htm

CBS Colorado, Colorado's 10th bear attack of 2026 and campground attack:

https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/colorado-parks-wildlife-bear-attacks-teen-woman-injured/

Denver Gazette, Colorado Parks and Wildlife camping advice:

https://www.denvergazette.com/2026/09/14/takeaways-from-two-more-bear-attacks-that-occurred-in-colorado-one-involving-camper/

BearWise, dogs and bears:

https://bearwise.org/bear-safety-tips/dogs-and-bears/

Story 5: Backpack wins Fat Bear Week

National Park Service, Fat Bear Week 2026, Katmai National Park:

https://www.nps.gov/katm/learn/news/fat-bear-week-2026.htm

The Weather Channel, Fat Bear Week 2026 winner:

https://weather.com/2026/09/30/science/nature/wild-animals/fat-bear-week-2026-winner-katmai-national-park

OutKick, Backpack's final vote and background:

https://www.foxnews.com/outkick-sports/champion-chonk-backpack-takes-2026-fat-bear-week-crown-katmai-national-park

Explore.org, Fat Bear Week and Brooks Falls bear cams:

https://explore.org/fat-bear-week-schedule

Workshop and community

End-of-Season RV Shutdown Workshop, Thursday, Oct. 8:

https://rvlifestyle.com/workshop

RVCommunity:

https://rvcommunity.com

RV Lifestyle newsletter:

https://rvlifestyle.com/newsletter