You Asked. We Answered.

We recently posted on FB and LinkedIn requesting you all to ask us questions about OME Gear and/or our 18 month USA tour in a branded RV. This was super fun and we appreciate all of you who stepped up and asked us the following fun questions.

What is the best food you’ve had so far?

This is a hard one because we (or Stace) cooks most nights on the RV but if we had to choose the best food we’ve had prepared by someone else would have to be when we were outside of College Station, TX, staying on the farm. Brandon McCord cooked a Picanha (a cut of beef taken from the top of the rump) over an open flame and served it Brazilian steakhouse style.

But, if we had to choose restaurants here are a few below: 

Sushi: (Toss up) Best Happy Hour Sushi is in Miami at a place called Sushi Garage. Best overall Sushi is Blue Sushi Saki in Louisville, Kentucky - holy yum.

Breakfast: Coffee Pot Café in Sedona

Brunch: Coastal Bird in Sedona...we love a good BOOZY BRUNCH!! 

Burger: Bear Back in San Diego (umm… their double patty wagyu burger is AMAZING!) 

Mexican: Right over the border! We took a day trip into Mexico...it doesn’t get any better than that! 

Pizza: Wheat and Water in San Diego

Best View: 30A - I mean, crystal blue water and white sand beaches…..

Best Ice Cream: (Toss up) Gelato place in Flagstaff/ Beach Happy Cafe in 30A

What's been the best experience....the success or the journey, why and give us a story about it?

Oh there are so many experiences but we think the one that stands out the most is being at FloydFest in Floyd, Va. and selling out of Wanderrs by the second day! We watched people struggle all weekend with wagons/carts. We had people waiting for us to open the morning of the second day...one gentleman came and bought 3! We had people rooting for us and high fiving us the whole weekend...it was the validation we needed to know we were on the right path!

Do you have any plans to make a stroller that can be pushed across the sand?

This is a great question, and a great idea! We do have a roadmap of awesome products that we'll be rolling out, but our main focus right now is The Wanderr and setting up manufacturing here in the US. YES! We will be made in America! 

What advice would you give to families/couples that want to live an RV life? Or thinking about it?

First and foremost - do your research and plan! We did hours and hours of researching and learning. One thing we wish we would have researched more is the different types of RVs, their engine capabilities, and space. If we could be like Cher and “Turn Back Time” we probably would have considered a tow behind, or a Diesel Class C with a Freightliner Engine...badass power!! Grunt! Grunt! Grunt! But let’s be honest if money wasn’t an issue we would be in an EarthRoamer or something that looks like we are ready to conquer Mars terrain on Earth...now that is a Bucket List item for OME Gear, for sure!! 

Second, plan your route. These days, RV parks fill up fast so plan ahead because you are not always guaranteed a room (or hookups) at the inn. 

Third, try before you buy! Go and rent an RV for a week or two. This way you can get an idea on the amount of space you’ll need for you/your family. You can also learn on someone else’s RV how to drive, turn, park, hook-up, un-hook and everything else that goes along with living in an RV. 

And fourth - be sure you really like each other.  😃

What are some things to consider prior to hitting the road?

Hmm... good questions. Here are some things we would tell people to consider before hitting the road:

1. The amount of space, or should we say the lack of space on an RV. We literally have one small closet for our hanging clothes...2 women going from 3 full closets, to a space smaller than our former linen closet (width wise) and only half the height. 
2. There are some serious weight limits on RVs so you really can’t bring everything. You learn to adjust, adapt, and purge - real quick. 
3. You have to learn to fix issues when you can. It is inevitable that things are going to break. You become a plumber and electrician. Here’s the thing - if you have an issue with your RV it can take up to a month or so to get it in the shop, and then you have to leave it there until they can actually work on it so if we can fix it, we will try! Oh, and Googling and mobile RV repair guys are worth their weight in gold! 
4. How scary it is to drive a moving house. First, did you know you do not need a special license to drive an RV?!? You can be 16 y/o and drive a 32 Ft Class A RV… CRAZY!! We elected to take RV driving lessons but even those didn’t prepare us nearly enough for how stressful it is for both the driver (Jules) and the co-pilot (Stace). Between the 18-wheelers sucking you into them as they pass and pushing you just as quickly back to the rumble strips (which is nearly impossible to pull off of), it is terrifying. Oh, and don’t even get us started on the idiots who find it ok to cut right in front of a 10+ ton moving house. 🤦‍♀️
5. And the hardest is how much we miss the people we love. UGH! This has been super hard. We left an amazing network of friends and family. We know we will be back but being fully transparent, we suffer from FOMO! 

What’s the one thing/gadget/invention that is needed on RVs to make life better on the road, AND do you think you might plan to design and make it? 

Love this question!! Two things we can't live without on the road - our incredible mattress and our tankless hot water heater (the one that came standard was only a 6 gallon tank 🤦‍♀️). Oh, and cocktails. 😂

There are so many things we have found that we would redesign or need on the RV. Things that should come standard on every RV is an outside switch to pull in the awning. If you are away from your RV and a big storm comes it should be easy for a neighbor to access this switch to roll in the awning for you. 

If we had to redesign anything it would be the Captain and Co-Pilot chairs. Ours are the worst...from the catawampus armrest, to the “synthetic micro pleather” - talk about putting lipstick on a pig. We have to sit on towels because the pleather makes you sweat like crazy. Just a bad design! We would also make them recline and stretch out into single beds to add another sleeping option. 

If we could invent anything it would be the self driving/electric RV with lots of power! Maybe Elon Musk is reading this and will get to work on this idea. Elon - we will be your testers! But we are assuming when you asked about an invention or gadget, you meant something smaller than a self-driving home on wheels. But, go big or go home, right?! 

But, truth be told, we have come up with a couple smaller inventions that we will likely see to fruition as a result of living this RV life, but those are top secret (for now). 🤫

What has been one or two of the scariest moments while being on the road? 

Oh this is an easy one...driving on the road!! It is scary every single dang time. But if we have to choose one, it was when Campers Inn in Moncks Corner put our steering stabilizers on upside down which significantly threw our RV out of alignment and almost caused us to wreck while going 65 mph down the highway. 

Oh, and the time that it was raining, we were driving through construction (you know those concrete barriers that are right on the lines... on both sides?), and the front window completely fogged up (because we couldn't figure out the defrost) so I literally could not see. Stace grabbed a mop (because you can't reach the windshield) and started wiping it down... All while going 65 mph. Terrifying.

What has been your favorite place to stay so far?  

There are so many great places to stay while traveling in an RV. Here are a list of a few of our favs:

Twin Lakes Camp Resort in Defuniak Springs, FL

Las Cruces KOA in Las Cruces, NM

Tuscon/LazyDays KOA in Tuscon, AZ

Escondido RV Resort in Escondido, CA

Our favorite Harvest Host was Caring Acres Farm in Lewisburg, WV. The view, the off-roading adventure to get to the top of the mountain, the hosts, the animals, the fresh meat and veggies. All of it. 

What are the biggest highs and lows being on the road and trying to build a company? 

Our biggest highs on the road have been the response to us, our story, and the Wanderr. Driving a 32 ft. billboard always opens up the opportunity for conversation and then being able to offer them a comfortable seat under our awning is a plus. We have met so many people on this journey who have become lifelong friends!! We have also been able to connect with so many old friends and family which has been super fun!! 

The lows have been immersing ourselves in trying to find funding for OME Gear. We wear all the hats in this business and one is fundraising (which is important for our company), and something we have had to learn to do. Did you know that only 2% of all funding goes to women-owned businesses? That statistic has caused many sleepless nights. We were talking about it the other night and decided that it would be easier to walk up to a priest and take all our clothes off. 😂 All egos and humility are left at the door when asking for investment dollars.  

They say RVs are like boats - the 2 best days are the day you buy it and the day you sell it…what have been some issues you have had with your RV?

LOL!! Oh, so many… stabilizers put on upside down, the hydraulic stabilizers/jacks breaking, the “wood” panel falling off the slide out, the contact paper peeling off the walls exposing the cheap particle board, the generator not working, the LP tank leaking, wifi not working… Seems like it’s been one thing to fix after another. 

If you had to do it all again, would you?! 

Yes, yes, and YES!! We believe this is what we are supposed to be doing. So as hard as it has been, and continues to be, we will keep on keeping on. We are settling in and actually loving living in Olive now… she feels like “home”. Besides, if it were easy everyone would do it! 

Thanks again for the questions!! It’s fun to be connected to each of you as we are on the road! We're an open book, so if there are any others, (or you just want to say hello and send a virtual hug!), feel free to leave a comment below!

Until next week,

Stace + Jules 💚