8' wide caravans on club pitches
somewhere on CT somebody has already commented on how sometimes awning pegs stray into the patch of grass alongside pitches (no mans land), if we now have 8' wide caravans is there going to be a real danger of awnings straying into the same territory?. There could be a possible turf war looming as people with 8' caravans expect the use of the larger pitches.
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I don't see a problem on a hardstanding pitch. If it doesn't fit on the HS it shouldn't be put up. A few guy ropes in the divide is OK, it stops those taking short cuts.😇 More of a problem is grass, where the pitch limits are more nebulous.
I have suggested before that the CC should not be marketing some of their pitches as awning, they just aren't big enough. Perhaps a small / porch awning category could be introduced. As to wether there should be a price differential, non / small / full. That is another question.🤔
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I don't see a problem on a hardstanding pitch. If it doesn't fit on the HS it shouldn't be put up.
I tend to agree but i suspect the club have not even thought as to how they are going to enforce this or anything else, for that matter, in relation to 8' caravans.
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It will only be a problem if folk who own such caravans (I've no idea of present numbers) act without showing respect for fellow site users. I prefer to believe the best of most folk. So, if they've chosen to purchase such a van they are going to have to accept that it comes with certain limitations and one of those is that if the awning doesn't fit onto a particular pitch they will have to do without.
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6 inches extra width on caravans is not going to make a noticeable difference on pitches,unless you also have another latest "idea" of also erecting one of 3mtr deep awnings ,in all the years we have ever used awnings we have never felt the need to use guy ropes on the front edge of an awning "trip hazard",we just use a storm strap threaded between the poles and canvas
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Yesterday I drove to a pub for a meet up with my cousin. We took the ordinary A road, A56. We had to follow a tractor for about 2 miles. One with extra wide tyres that overspilled ever so slightly into the oncoming side of the road.
I hate to imagine what would have happened if he met an 8' wide caravan coming the other way, especially around a bend.
Was there/Is there a demand for the extra 6"? What is behind the reasoning? Surely it wasn't to make towing any easier .
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Was there/Is there a demand for the extra 6"? What is behind the reasoning? Surely it wasn't to make towing any easier .
The caravan manufacturers have created the demand by putting those vans out there. Certain people will view them on the dealers forecourt and see them as a must have. The "mine's bigger (and therefore better) than your's" mentality'
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I don't know about "no problem" Op.
I know RichardnRos have an 8' wide van and remember him mentioning that he had to avoid certain routes on a trip to Cornwall and also he has to make sure the sites he stays at can accommodate the caravan.
Sure, he got there so technically he didn't have a problem but I think he admitted that his choice of route was limited. At the moment you and I don't have any problem.
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WN - I wouldn't say that my choice of route was limited just because my van is 6" wider than the norm - it's just that I'm careful - but I was with the previous Barcelona as well. I decided to go down the A30 route rather than the A38 to Cornwall (and am grateful for the excellent advice I received on here) simply because it was recommended that it would be a less stressful route. (It was easy!!) That's the same principle I adopt when going elsewhere. I certainly won't be taking it down any Devon (or Cornish) country lanes - but I doubt that I would have with the other one, either!
As far as Club sites are concerned, we have only, with this van, been to Chatsworth and Sandringham and not had a problem with the awning but I agree that there are other sites that we wouldn't return to, regardless of the size of the van, simply because the pitches are too small and everyone is packed in like sardines. This is why we tend to favour CLs and CS's, because there's invariably loads of room to spread out without impacting on anyone else.
We chose the van, mainly because of the very wide single beds. Ros, has an artificial knee and struggled to get in and out of the previous fixed double - plus we tend to stay on one site for at least 7 nights - and more usually for 14. The extra width certainly makes a difference to the available living space and gives us that overall extra comfort that we enjoy.
(We also have a 3m deep awning but tend to revert to our alternative 2.3m wide Sunncamp when staying on Club sites)
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Is it a more widespread mindset? How many massive SUV's do you see doing the school run run when a small runabout would be more sensible? One wonders whether the same mindset is in operation when it comes to big caravans/ MH's.
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I don't think it's just a 'mindset' Cy. We didn't go out to buy an 8' wide van - it was just that the Knaus was the only one we could find which satisfied our requirements. The fact that it was slightly wider was almost coincidental although I agree that layout probably wouldn't have been so appealing in a 7' 6" wide van. I was actually a bit apprehensive about it at first, but that's turned out to be without foundation.
If we did the type of touring which entailed stopping for a couple of days and then moving on elsewhere, I agree that 'small is beautiful' - but we don't and what we have suits our lifestyle.
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Why do folk tug C/vans or drive oversized Moho’s when it costs so much?, choice, that’s the answer👍🏻. We all enjoy it, we are all different in that choice.
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as time has moved on, vans and cars have got bigger (longer, wider and higher) and the club has had to address pitch classification to ensure that awning pitches really can accommodate today's car/caravan/awning units and maintain required spacing...
if, following that review, caravans are now set to put on even more weight/girth (along with the de rigeur, longer/wider/higher RR/LR to pull it) perhaps some of those pitch assessments might be getting 'tight'...
...and I don't think it's the done thing for an awning owner to assume it's ok to have guy ropes in 'neutral territory' between pitches....
id never think of parking our bikes there.
surely, if you can't get all your 'stuff' on the 'confines of the pitch' you've too much (too long/wide/high) stuff?
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Do caravaners really look at there neighbors van or awning and think,; oi he's using more pitch than me; ? has it really come to that? and no my Swift 580 is your normal 7ft 6 or so, was thinking of buying one of these pump up awnings tho, I might even go for an extra deep one, what is it 1foot 7 inches bigger?..
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Not “he’s using more pitch than me” but I’d certainly notice if someone had extended their set up so that it extended into the safety gap.
Nearly everyone uses more pitch than I do and that’s fine by me as long as they keep their distance. 👍🏻
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Well over the years Ive seen many a American motorhome with there roll out awnings and little cars that they tow, and also the fifth wheel with slideouts no one ever seems to mind them, well not in the real world but maybe a few on CT might tho.
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And that’s fine. They can have whatever units they choose👍🏻
It only becomes a problem if they encroach into the fire break area. Other than that, it doesn’t concern me in the least what size their outfits are.
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I don't measure a pitch before I try to set up on it. If I've parked the caravan to the white peg as best as possible that's as much as I can do. If then an awning guy rope is then pegged into the grass finger then hey ho .... What if it was the last pitch? Do I ask someone to swap pitch or do I drive off site? 🤔
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I haven't been to one club site where this will be a problem, my current caravan is 7 foot 6 and the super version is 8 foot.
There is no need for the club to alter any of it pitches.
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agree, we generally look lost on a pitch (with room on all sides) when compared to many car/caravan/awning combos...
I've got no issue with anyone finding space for all their clobber on their own pitch...but to go beyond that and feel it's ok to overspill into other areas is taking the mick
ive seen folk, who've used all the 'sunny' space on their pitch , to erect an awning and more, who then want to sit in the sun outside on chairs, look to sidle onto the edge of our pitch as there's plenty of sunny room there...
yes, it's about choice, and I choose to have less stuff and more pitch room, sorry but that's my space, find your own..unless invited
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I’d not be so proprietorial as to object to them sitting in a bit of ‘my’ sun, BB. I’d probably chat to them and offer them a drink. It’s the pitching with gear in the fire gap that I’d take exception to.
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I've noticed, because I'm actively looking for a caravan, that my own choice has become severely limited if I want to carry on enjoying it in the same way that I have for the last 30 years. I am being forced into a bigger van, no question about it, so the drive to bigger caravans at the top end has had an effect on the smaller end. I'd like more choice. then again I'd like a lot of things that I ain't going to get!
RnR, I was going to come on here and ask for my post to be Deleted User but I've seen your reply and obviously you are happy with your choice. Glad to hear it. Apologies if any offence given as none meant.
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Not that they would anyway other than swapping a white peg for a blue .... (which I've seen)
As above I've been on white pegs & it's been very tight, so tight that it's been impossible to park alongside the caravan without putting a car wheel onto the grass as I've parked up. The wardens answer to which was to surround my pitch with "keep off the grass" signs rather than speak to me ... so I parked on an empty pitch for the remainder.
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Thought this was an 'All inclusive' Club??
Some folk need to remember to enjoy their pastimes a little more and not worry if 'Yours is bigger than mine' When booking a site, one has to include the size of unit. If it's larger than average, the Wardens can allocate accordingly, where available and where necessary. If not 'C'est la Vie'. As has been mentioned, providing the fire regs are not broken, there's no problem
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With a 5.5m MH, slightly narrower than the norm, and a little 13ft caravan, however we choose to tour, we are invariably a miniscule outfit on a Club Site, barring any Vdubs or micro vans.
Folks choose the outfit they do for a reason. Most are prepared to compromise on any limitations they meet, be it in terms of route, pitch, Ferry, tunnel, site entrances etc.... and just happily get on with things. Interestingly, I think that some Club Sites might be the only instance where outfit size is critical. Spacing on some is tight, so pitch choice might have to determined by Wardens, that is what happens with all the really big outfits that use such as Exeter Racecourse. It’s another compromise really, and nothing to do with anyone else other than the Warden. Some sites have a length and pitch limit, others are out because of entrance widths. Camping in the Forest Sites run a pick your pitch size with appropriate charges.
We haven’t seen many obvious wide vans, it’s still a bit of a niche market I would think, like all the other caravan/MH fads and fashions that come and go, ebb and flow. But it will be managed one way or another, on Club Sites and CLs so it doesn’t bother me in the least. I don’t lose sleep “speculating” if someone’s guy rope might possibly impinge on my pitch. If it does, it gets dealt with, if it doesn’t I get on with my holiday. Life really is that simple.😁
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It does seem to me that this is one of those threads debating a virtually non existent problem!
So someone with a wide van pitches up, puts up an awning and the guy ropes go on to the grass dividing strip? Isn't that almost always the strip on the side of the neighbouring pitch where the car is parked? So what's the problem? It must be "vanishingly likely" that two wide vans on adjacent pitches are pitched one nose in, one nose out with wide awnings facing each other!
As I said earlier, it's only going to be a problem if folk don't treat fellow users with respect.
As for the "mine's bigger than yours oneupmanship" mentioned, I sometimes think on reading some posts that it's more a case of "mine's smaller than yours oneupmanship"!
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Sorry to disagree old chap but I can immediately think of 2 sites that we have stayed on this year that larger outfits would have trouble fitting on. The one at Bromyard Downs, particularly the section at the bottom of the site, and Meathop Fell.
A couple of years ago we pitched up at Meathop with a Lunar Ariva (about the smallest caravan available) with a Kia Cee'd 1.6 saloon and a Kampa porch awning and only just managed to fit onto a white peg pitch. The pitches at this site have already seen some pitches moved from white to blue peg and I can see more of that happening.
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