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August, 2008.
We were leaving early Monday morning, so we had to be up at 4:00 am to catch our flight from Tucson to Buffalo, via Chicago. We arrived in Buffalo around 3:00 pm, and by the time we picked up our rental car, it was a quarter to four. We took off on the 2 hour drive to Kitchener, which turned out to be 3 hours, because it was rush hour, and it took about an hour to get across the border. It was a pleasant drive, with a lot of it through small farming towns, with corn, and soy fields. I remarked to Donna about how green everything was. It sure was a lot different than summer in Tucson. We arrived in Kitchener around 7:00 pm, checked into our room, ordered a pizza, watched the Olympics, and crashed.
The next morning we headed out to St. Jacobs, and the Farmers Market. There is a strong Mennonite Heritage there, and a drive through town, is like taking a step back in time. If you ever find yourself in the area don’t miss this place, and the Farmers market. Make sure you check their web site for the days, and hours of operation.
We didn’t have a lot of time to spend in St. Jacobs, as we were meeting my friend Peter, at the Roadtrek factory for lunch. Peter and I have been corresponding for about six years, and it was great to finally meet him in person. When we walked through the door at Roadtrek, we noticed a sign saying “Welcome Donna & Rodger”, and it made us feel right at home. After a great lunch it was time to head over to the new paint facility, and meet John Mulligan, the General Supervisor, for our tour of the paint shop.
The paint shop was opened a couple of years ago, and is located about two miles from the main factory. It is a “state of the art” 30,000 sq. ft. facility, and John’s enthusiasm told you right away that he was very proud of the work being done there, and the product that they were putting out. We took our time, and listened to John tell us about each work station, from prep, to the final decals. He explained all the machinery, and equipment, and how no expense was spared to have a full in house modern paint facility. At the end of the tour there was a Sprinter, and a 210 parked side by side, and I noticed a difference in the color of the two. The Sprinter looked like it had more silver in it, and I asked John about it, and he said the Sandstone on the 210 is a Chevy color, and the color on the Sprinter is a Roadtrek color. I believe the Sprinter’s come in silver, and white and the white ones are repainted the Sandstone color there at the paint shop. I would have never noticed the difference if they had not been parked side by side. After spending about an hour or so with John, it was time to head over for our tour of the main factory.
By the time we got back to the main factory we were about an hour late, and everyone was in a meeting, including our tour guide, so John volunteered to give us the tour. This was fine with us, as we had gotten to know John a little, and really enjoyed his enthusiasm. We started the tour outside, where John showed us a Sprinter that had been crash tested. I have to say I was impressed with how well it held up. It looked like the occupants would have survived without any major injuries. After seeing the Sprinter we headed inside and our first stop was the quarter million dollar CNC machine that cuts out the cabinet pieces from the sheets of cherry plywood. We were in luck here, and got to see it in action. Without going into detail, I will say it was a very cool machine. We weren’t allowed in the areas where welding was being done, but we did see the units as they were rolled out. In this area we saw the Sprinter windows being installed. Sprinter’s come into the factory as either a panel or passenger van. Here the window openings are cut in the panel vans, and the stock windows removed in the passenger vans. John explained how the window openings in the passenger vans needed to be enlarged slightly to fit the new windows. Moving on we saw the water testing area, and watched a roof being installed onto a Chevy 190. An adhesive is applied around the outer edge of he van, and the roof is hoisted, and slid into place. I was surprised at how quick it went. John told us that they have to work fairly fast, because of the short setup time of the adhesive. Continuing on, we saw the areas where the cabinets, roof vents, TV antennas, propane systems, electrical wiring, wall coverings, seats, etc, were all being installed. The one thing I noticed throughout both tours was the concentration of the workers. There was no joking around here, and probably explains Roadtreks great safety record. When we were done inside, we headed back outside. I had mentioned to John that I would like to see the green 1978 Rt. that is pictured on my web site. He said no problem, and took us to it. Sadly it is just sitting outside deteriorating. John said he would like to get it over to the paint shop and restore it, so it could be put on display. We thought that would be a fitting end for the old gal. The next and final stop of the tour was to check out all the models. We saw a black Rt. and it was stunning, but not very practical. I think they are more for the dealers to put on display for their “WOW” factor, but they are available for purchase. We toured all the models, both Chevy’s, and Sprinter’s. The new cherry cabinet color started to grow on me, and I could definitely live with it. So now you ask, what was my favorite model? Well, I still like the 190 Popular, and I was very impressed by the Sprinters, but give me that Sandstone 210 Popular with all the bells, and whistles, and I would be one happy camper.
After the tour I got to sit down with Jeff Hanemaayer, the Chairman, and Jim Hammill the President of Roadtrek. We discussed several topics that had been sent to me in Emails, and posts on RV.Net. I tried to get some information about a permanent bathroom for the 190’s, but no one was talking, which led me to believe that something may be in the works. I guess time will tell.
Roadtrek is constantly tweaking things on their models. Some new things that I noticed were, outside latches to hold up the storage compartments, a new bathroom door on a 190 Versatile. It had three panels on the inside of the door that unfolded to form a box around the bathroom area for privacy. I’m sure there were other things that I didn’t notice, but will show up in the new models coming out.
It was about 5:30 pm when we got finished at the factory. We wanted to get some dinner, and some rest, because the next morning we were heading for Niagara Falls. There was a restaurant named the Charcoal Steakhouse, across from our Hotel, and we thought we would give it a shot. Well, luck was with us, and it turned out to be a great dinning experience. If your in Kitchener, or near by, and want a great meal, with great service, go there you wont be disappointed. This was a perfect ending to our day, and our trip to Kitchener.
Foot notes:
1. If you wonder why there are no photos of the factory, it’s because cameras were not allowed.
2. We would like to give a big thank you to everyone who made us feel so welcome and Tess you were right about the water bottles. :)
