Heartland Recreational Vehicles, LLC (“Heartland”), manufacturer of towable RVs in America, today that it has acquired the remaining active trademarks of the towable brands from Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. As one of the leading former manufacturers of towable RVs in North America, Fleetwood has some of the most recognized and iconic brands in the industry.

“This is an exciting transaction for Heartland. Fleetwood’s towable brands have long been among the most widely recognized names in the towable RV segment, with loyal customers and an extensive dealer network. By acquiring the trademarks of Fleetwood’s towable products, we will enhance Heartland’s brand portfolio with industry leading names such as Prowler, Pioneer and Wilderness,” said Brian Brady, CEO of Heartland.

Mr. Brady continued, “In the last five years, Heartland has become one of the leading manufacturers of towable RVs and is the third largest manufacturer of fifth wheel RVs in the U.S. Our phenomenal growth and success has given us the financial strength to pursue the acquisition of Fleetwood’s legendary trademarks. We would like to thank our dealers and customers for their continued support of Heartland and we look forward to enhancing our industry leadership by continuing to create great products that our customers love.”

In addition to producing existing Heartland RV brands, the company expects to begin manufacturing towable RVs under the newly acquired brands over the next twelve months. Under the terms of the transaction, Heartland has acquired all active trademarks of the towables RV segment of Fleetwood Enterprises from a bankruptcy proceeding, and Heartland will not assume any liability for warranties or claims relating to existing sold and unsold Fleetwood manufactured products.

Snowbirds have arrived at Arizona's RV parks in greater numbers than last year, and many are staying longer, according to private park operators and industry officials.

"We're doing extremely well. We're up about 16.5 percent in terms of occupancy," said Wendell Johnson, general manager of Palm Creek Golf & RV Resort in Casa Grande.

And while some snowbirds arrived early, others have booked extended stays well into spring. "We've gotten a sizeable number of three month reservations for February, March and April," he said.

An even more dramatic increase in winter visitors has taken place at Rincon Country RV Resort in Tucson, which has seen a 30 percent increase in winter visitors since November. "From November on, occupancies have been running steadily higher," said park owner George O'Leary, adding that his current winter business exceeds his 2006 figures by 4 percent.

Park operators attribute the increase to several factors, including a stronger economy, moderate fuel prices, an improving stock market, and a strong Canadian dollar, said Merlin Jones, president of the Arizona Association of RV Parks & Campgrounds.

Jones, who serves as general manager of Eagle View RV Resort in Fort McDowell, said his park has also seen a significant increase in visitors this winter. "It's a lot better than last year," he said. "We're up a good 10 percent. We're still receiving reservations for monthlies for February and March."

Desert's Edge RV Village in Phoenix has also seen an increase in its snowbird business, both in terms of daily and monthly visitors. "I'm very excited," said park owner Saundra Bryn. "For January, we were up 10 percent over last year. That's wonderful for us."

Not every park has had a significant, but in this economy, even modest gains are welcome.

"We're pleasantly surprised this year," said Jim Beach, general manager of National Mobile Development, which owns Mesa Spirit RV Resort in Mesa. "We're not phenomenally up. But we're up a couple of percent." About 60 percent of Mesa Spirit's RV sites are allocated for transient RVers, with the balance being by snowbirds who spend the winter in park models.

The Arizona Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds represents private campgrounds and RV parks and resorts across the Grand Canyon State. For help locating industry sources, statistics and other information about camping trends in Arizona, please contact Merlin Jones at (480) 789-5316 or email him at mjones@fmyn.com. Additional information on Arizona parks is available at www.azrvparks.com. Contact information for the parks referenced in this release is provided below:

• Desert's Edge RV Village, Phoenix, Saundra Bryn, (602) 672-8263 or [ e-mail ]
• Eagle View RV Resort, Fort McDowell, Merlin Jones, (480) 789-5316 or [ e-mail ]
• Mesa Spirit RV Resort, Mesa, Jim Beach, (480) 830-0338 or [ e-mail ]
• Palm Creek Golf & RV Resort, Casa Grande, Wendell Johnson, (800) 421-7004 or [ e-mail ]
• Rincon Country RV Resort, Tucson, George O'Leary, (520) 886-8431 or [ e-mail ]

King’s Campers, is proud to announce that 2010 is the company’s 20th Anniversary. Family owned and operated by owners Ron, Mike, and Mark Gajewski and Les Stankowski, King’s Campers has become the North Central Wisconsin Area’s leader in the RV sales and service industry. These families together forged a company that has become synonymous with above-and-beyond customer care, dedication, integrity, and honesty.

The Gajewski’s and Stankowski’s are hard working and dedicated Wausau families that have taken a very small company originally established in 1967 by Ron Gajewski (then turned over to Roger King in 1972) located on Wausau’s West side to extraordinary growth since they re-purchased the business in 1990. Their “can do” approach to all things work related brought them to a cornerstone within 5 years of ownership; relocation. The families recognized the Wausau area’s future population development and took the innovative step of relocating the business to what was once an abandoned building located at 5507 Lilac Ave, Wausau in 1995. This location was seen by King’s Campers owners as a property that would provide them with the utmost visibility and also would provide the opportunity for expansion to better serve a growing population. As a result of this vision and drive, King’s Campers now covers 5 acres of new and pre-owned products and includes 12 service bays to repair or service any make or model RV. With approximately 40% of sales from out of state customers, Wausau is now on the “favorites menu” for GPS systems around the country.

Ron Gajewski, General Manager for King’s Campers stated, “Reaching this mile stone in our company’s history is a fantastic achievement. Twenty years has gone by so quickly, and yet at the same time, it feels like forever. So many things have happened in those years. But truly the best part is the customers. I’ve met so many wonderful people through this job. It’s just been a wonderful experience. I’m an engineer by trade and a sales person by choice because I really enjoy working with and meeting folks.”

“This anniversary is a true testament to our owners and staff. “ John Gajewski, Sales Manager added. “I truly appreciate all of them. They’ve all worked together to make this company what it is today. We all should be very proud of all the achievements King’s Campers has earned over the years. In looking ahead, we can easily look back to see what we’ve done right and use that experience to help us improve all aspects of our operation, to include continued partnering with quality manufacturers, and providing above-and-beyond service.”

King’s Campers is the North Central WI Area’s leader in RV sales and service. Selling KZ, Open Range, Salem, Tiffin, and Winnebago RV’s and servicing all RV makes and models. King’s Campers has been locally owned and operated since 1990.

Jayco's Jay Flight and Starcraft Autumn Ridge travel trailers have been "green certified" by TRA Certification, Inc., an internationally accredited certification organization. The Jay Flight and Autumn Ridge travel trailers were awarded a Gold Level Performance Rating, making Jayco and Starcraft among the first RV manufacturers recognized for building products with green manufacturing processes and materials.

There are four levels of TRA's green rating for RV manufacturers: Bronze, Silver, Gold and Emerald. The Jay Flight Autumn Ridge travel trailers achieved Emerald ratings in three out of five categories (water efficiency, indoor environmental quality, and operation and maintenances) and Gold ratings in the other two categories (resource efficiency and energy efficiency).

Tom Arnold, president of TRA Certification Inc. in explaining the green RV concept, said, "A green RV incorporates environmental considerations and resource efficiency into every step of the development and manufacturing process. The design, construction and operation of a green RV focus on energy and water efficiency, resource-efficient RV design and materials, and indoor air quality."

"Jayco is proud that our Jayco and Starcraft brands are among the first to be named gold-level green certified products," said Sid Johnson, Jayco's director of marketing. "It is one thing to say you are a "green" company but it is an entirely different standard when your company is certified green by an independent testing firm. Operating as a good corporate citizen has always been the Jayco way of doing business. Paying attention to environmental standards and being efficient with resources are just a couple of the ways we can demonstrate that responsibility."

Johnson stated that other Jayco and Starcraft products have yet to be tested and will be going through the same process in the near future.

Bigfoot RV is under new active ownership, and will soon be providing parts, service and new products to the North American RV market from its facility in Armstrong, BC, Canada.

In a news release, the new management said, "Our experienced Bigfoot staff & management have a long term dedication to the Bigfoot experience. We are committed to the Bigfoot Tradition, and look forward to taking Bigfoot RV’s into the future with new and refreshed products proudly built upon the solid foundation of Bigfoot’s unmatched quality, design & customer experience. Our focus as we begin production of our world class RV’s will be maintaining the carefully designed & well-built products that Bigfoot is known for."

In addition to providing parts & service for existing Bigfoot RV’s the new management says it will soon begin production of Truck Campers & Travel Trailers, with updated offerings selected from Bigfoot’s most popular models. The company is seeking to establish distribution outlets in both Canada & the USA and will provide details regarding product availability as soon as they are confirmed.

For future updates regarding operational and product details please visit www.bigfootrv.com.