Wandering Gypsy RV Life

How much does your RV weigh right now? Not what the brochure says, and not the sticker. Loaded the way you actually drive it. In this solo episode, I walk through the numbers on your RV's weight sticker in plain English, explain why weight affects your tires, brakes, and handling, and show you how to find out what your rig really weighs. I also share Bertie Bea's numbers: her sticker says 24,000 p...

NASCAR veteran Mike Skinner and his wife Angie of Skinner Roundup pull up a chair to talk real RV life: how a dinner with the Tiffin folks put them in a Tiffin Zephyr, why Mountain Falls Luxury RV Resort feels like home, and how they travel with a whole caravan of friends without anybody getting bossed around. Plus the great shoe-count debate, a wrecker that clipped their mirror seven miles from h...

2025 PRCA Clown of the Year Matt Merritt spent five months on the road this year in a truck and horse trailer, and his last run home from Pendleton, Oregon to North Carolina cost him $3,000 in diesel. Stan and Matt talk about what life on the rodeo road really costs, and what it teaches. Matt has owned just about every kind of rig: a bus, a 48-foot race car trailer with living quarters, a stock tr...

Seventy episodes. When I sat down to record the first one back in March of 2025, I honestly didn't know if there would be a second. This week I went back through all 69 episodes and pulled some of my favorite moments: the stories that made me laugh, the lessons that stuck, and a couple that still hit me right in the heart. In this episode: - Doug Simcox of Beyond the Chutes on why you better be a...

PRCA music director Kye Todd spends his summers going rodeo to rodeo, and this year he traded motel rooms for a used travel trailer. Sitting outside at Kick Back Ranch and Event Center, Kye and Stan talk about what that switch really looked like: a blowout on the maiden voyage, fiberglass issues, soft spots in the floor, and a bed lift that quit. They also talk about the best part, his wife Haylee...

Three RV rallies, a pantry makeover, some mighty good salsa, and plenty of people worth remembering. As Bertie Bea, Rosie, and I head out of Goshen, Indiana, toward Dayton, Ohio, come along for a windshield conversation to close out the trip. I’m looking back at the Forest River Owners Group, Grand Design, and Montana Owners Group rallies at the Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds—and the RV community...

Nine years of full-time RV living—and an estimated 200,000 miles on his current rig—have taught Jeret Burnett that experience comes from using your RV, learning how it handles, and asking for help when you need it. Stan sits down with Jeret of Cool RV Everything for a candid conversation about life as a traveling RV vendor, 500-to-700-mile driving days, Stan’s 300-mile rule, campground entertainme...

What makes the RV community special—and how can better education help travelers make safer decisions? In this episode of the Wandering Gypsy RV Life Podcast, I sit down with Michael Kilbourne, owner of TechnoRV, during the Grand Design RV Rally in Goshen, Indiana. Michael and I talk about: • Why RVers continue pursuing meaningful trips despite rising travel costs • The importance of businesses rem...

A safe entrance means very little if your RV cannot safely get back out. After an Airstream trailer was destroyed in a collision with a train in Minot, North Dakota—while its occupants thankfully escaped safely—Stan reflects on the importance of situational awareness before committing an RV to a railroad crossing, fuel lane, narrow road, crowded parking lot, or difficult campground entrance. Trave...

How did RV travel evolve from covered wagons and early roadside campers into the modern motorhomes we know today? In this episode of the Wandering Gypsy RV Life Podcast, I’m joined by my friend Jennifer Schillaci of Learn to RV for a conversation recorded at the RV/MH Hall of Fame in Elkhart, Indiana. Jennifer and I talk about the history preserved inside the museum, the surprising connections tha...

Episode summary One broken anti-billow mechanism changed Stan’s travel plans—and created a genuine GO/NO-GO decision. After arriving in Milton, West Virginia, Stan discovered that the vanity-slide topper on Bertie Bea had lost its only positive anti-billow restraint. Rather than normalize the risk or let the itinerary dictate the answer, he stopped for the night, consulted Precision RV Repair, and...

When I visited Huckleberry Hideaway Cabins and RV Resort in Minden, Louisiana, Lundy McKittrick and I talked for nearly an hour. The first half of that conversation became an earlier podcast episode, but as I looked back through the footage, I realized there was another story hidden in the second half that deserved to stand on its own. This isn’t really about campsites. It’s about vision. Lundy sh...

Last week, we talked about building margin. This week, I had the opportunity to live it. After several unusual symptoms began showing up in Bertie Bea, I decided to arrive in Red Bay early instead of rushing from one appointment to the next. What followed wasn’t a week of throwing parts at problems. It became a lesson in slowing down, asking better questions, trusting the right experts, and discov...

Have you ever had one of those weeks where it feels like someone walked over to the chessboard of your life and moved six pieces all at once? This week was one of those weeks. Maintenance schedules changed. Travel plans shifted. New work opportunities appeared. Decisions had to be made before circumstances made them for me. At first, it felt like I hadn’t accomplished much. Then I realized somethi...

This week, I’m coming to you from the 30th Annual Chas. B. Davis Memorial PRCA Rodeo in Ringgold, Georgia. What started out as a scheduled interview with PRCA Music Director Kye Todd turned into something completely different after a sound system issue forced us to postpone our conversation. Instead, I share a lesson that has become a cornerstone of the Rolling Smooth Mindset. Over the past few da...

In this episode of The Wandering Gypsy RV Life Podcast, we visit Huckleberry Hideaway Cabins & RV Resort in Minden, Louisiana, and take a golf cart tour with owner Lundy McKittrick. Lundy shares the vision behind the park, what it has taken to build Phase One, and how they are learning and improving as they go. We talk about wide RV sites, preserving the property’s beautiful trees, primitive c...

The Newmar Rally has come to an end. The booth has been packed up, the banners have been rolled away, and Bertie Bea and Rosie are getting ready to point east toward the next stop. After a busy week of seminars, conversations, and helping fellow RVers, I found myself reflecting on a few lessons that were reinforced once again. In this episode, I share why: ✅ Education still matters more than sell...

In this episode, Stan Cromlish steps back from the usual RV systems, safety products, trip planning, and campground lessons to talk about the real reason Wandering Gypsy RV Life exists. After hearing his own words from past conversations, including a February interview with Doug Simcox of Beyond the Chutes, Stan is reminded of the mission behind the books, videos, seminars, and podcast: “I just wa...

Blue sky, sunshine, and a beautiful-looking travel day can be deceiving when you’re driving a 24,000-pound Class A motorhome across open Wyoming prairie. In this episode of the Wandering Gypsy RV Life Podcast, Stan shares the real story behind a travel decision that cost $308 but may have saved Bertie Bea, Rosie, and everyone around them from a much bigger problem. Parked at the Sweetwater Events...

This week on the Wandering Gypsy RV Life Podcast, Stan records hands-free while rolling down the road toward North Sterling State Park in Colorado, with a little Garmin GPS commentary along for the ride. In this episode, Stan talks about the difference between being a new RVer and becoming a more seasoned RVer. From learning the difference between 50-amp and 30-amp power to understanding inverters...

Six years ago, I pointed a little 25-foot Class C motorhome named Bessie west and headed out with more enthusiasm than experience. I had no idea how much that decision would change my life. As I drive Bertie Bea from Douglas to Cheyenne, Wyoming, I reflect on the lessons learned from six years on the road. Some came from friendships, some came from failures, and some came from the miles between de...

In this episode of the Wandering Gypsy RV Life Podcast , Stan sits down with Pete and Tyson D’Acosta of Capri Campers for a conversation about one of the most recognizable truck camper brands in the rodeo world. The episode opens with Tilden Hooper sharing what Capri Campers meant to him growing up around rodeo, and why getting his own Capri felt like a sign that he had made it. Pete and Tyson sha...

In this episode of the Wandering Gypsy RV Life Podcast, Stan visits with Meagan Butler, Marketing Manager for Family RV Association, for a real-world conversation about solo RV travel, safety, confidence, long travel days, campground instincts, and the RV community. Meagan shares stories from her own RV journey, including solo travel with teardrop campers, an Airstream Basecamp, and a Winnebago So...

10-time NFR qualifier and 2-time The American champion Tilden Hooper joins me for a conversation straight from the rodeo road. We talk Capri Campers, Cowboy Christmas routing, family travel, campgrounds, tire blowouts, bent axles, TPMS systems, tools, faith, and the mindset it takes to stay steady when life and the road throw you sideways. Tilden shares stories from years of traveling rodeo countr...

This episode is a continuation of last week’s conversation with Doug Simcox of Beyond the Chutes. We had so much great behind-the-scenes content from that recording that it deserved its own episode. So this week, we’re pulling back the curtain on podcasting, storytelling, AI tools, editing, audio quality, and the work that goes into preserving real voices. Stan and Doug talk about where AI helps,...