I would like to introduce you to Ace, our motorhome. He is a 2015 Thor ACE 30.2. Here’s his story. (And I’ll add pictures, assuming that’s an option, as soon as I figure out how to do so.)

I decided last July that I want to take a trip around the country in an RV with my kids. I joined an RV forum, did online research, visited RV dealerships, and decided that Ace was the RV for me. My biggest priority was finding a motorhome that could sleep all 7 of us. Sounds easy enough, but that was more difficult that it sounds. Ace has a bedroom in the back with a queen bed, bunk beds against the wall, and a queen bed that drops down over the driver’s seat. The jackknife couch easily folds down into a double bed. The table also folds down into a bed, however that isn’t something we will use.

Besides the floor plan with enough sleeping, I needed storage. Ace is loaded with storage space. This may not be as important if we were using it for weekend trips and camping, but 10 months is a long time to be on the road and the more we can store, the easier things will be on us. There were a number of great motorhomes I looked at that were beautiful with great options and tempting pricing, but like sleeping room, storage was one of my non-negotiables.

I had a budget to which I was limited and I wanted to get either a 2015 or a 2016. Motorhomes need a couple years to get all the kinks worked out and are notorious for for spending their first year at the dealership getting worked on. I didn’t want to deal with that, I don’t have the time or the money. I also didn’t want anything too much older than that for practical reasons. I’ll be on the road with 6 children. We are not mechanics. I don’t want things breaking and going wrong, that causes too much stress, costs too much money, and takes too much time. So I figured 2015/2016 would be my best bet.

I found Ace on sale in Tampa, Florida and flew down there with Allena. We spent the next few days driving back to NY and he officially a part of the Joyce family!

Come by tomorrow and hear about the furriest members of the family!

*pic- our camper on the left, Ace on the right