Heading north

It was a fond farewell from the Tassie Isle as we popped into Mum and Dads in Gippsland for the weekend and I was lucky enough to spend some time with my daughter Haylee. Rachel spent time with her much loved Burmese cats and little Indie, our Tenterfield Terrior,or they spent time in our bed!Cheyenne our Lab is now able to run around a bit outside her pen without taking off, which is fabulous. After seeing Haylees rehearsal for the school play on Sunday it was preparation time for the haul north to Maitland where we had another show booked for the following weekend.
We headed up to a little rest stop just north of Cooma to start with and camped there the night, yep it was cold, by 9:00am whilst traveling through Canberra it topped just 3.5 degrees outside. We were of course toasty warm in the Touareg with the seat heaters on about 4, nothing was going to get cold in that vehicle. The XK660 of course sat comfortably behind us the whole way. We had a bit of squeeking in the hitch, easy fixed with a clean of the friction pads underneath. We pushed through on the Hume to Sydney and stopped in at the Parklea Tourist Park overnight. From there we headed straight into Raymond Terrace where we stayed with a good friend, Doug Meyers and his wife Sylvia. They gave us some power and water and we set up camp on their front lawn. Doug is another expert on the whole Geist range and is our National Sales agent. Doug mainly works in NSW but you will see him at all the big shows Australia wide and smaller NSW shows. We get on really well and enjoy too much red wine together when we catch up. Besides this though, we had a show to do at Maitland and it was fabulous to catch up with a few owners whilst we were there, especially Larry who did an amazing job helping us out on the stand. Larry owns an AK560 and was happy to give prospective buyers an honest opinion on the van. This year at Maitland we had the Worlds Best Drinking Furniture which was a great hit with the locals. Simon who makes them was there to show them off. We sold many sets of these, if you would like to order some, let me know for a special price, go to www.drumfurniture.com.au to see the photos but don't forget to come back to me for the special price.

Tassie tour comes to an end

Tonight is the last night we have to spend on this fabulous island state, Tasmania. Yesterday after checking out the Port Arthur site and camp park we moved on to New Norfolk where we were going to move on from today to the west coast. Of course first intentions don't always turn out to be the end path and we have spent another day here. The New Norfolk park is quite nice, it is an older park but the amenities are quite clean. Rachel and I are trying to catch up on paper work, especially Rachel, she has loads of Graphic Design work and to go on today would have been not fair on her. We will miss the western side of Tassie as part of our reconnaissance trip for the Geist rally next year but I am sure John from Getabout will have it under control.

A Treasure Connection

Have you ever wondered how a friend or relative that you enjoyed the company with as a child was fairing much later in life? Well I did. In fact I stumbled onto the existance of an old Treasure mate from the days when my uncle Jim as I knew him (not really an uncle but my fathers cousin) had his grandchildren around who were similar age. John and Ben spent a bit of time at their grandfathers place just up the road from me so it was straight forward that the events of childhood should involve these two lads. It must of been at least 20 years or more ago that I had come across John and I had heard he lived in Tassie via my father. I was soon to learn also that there were a couple of commonalities between the two of us, in fact we both had chased by namesake the same girl. We both have wives named Rachel or in John's case Rachael, and our wives have a small dog Indie or in Johns case Indi.

This aside we arranged a time Monday to meet up for the first time in over 20 years at their home. I am sure they didn't know what was coming when they say the Geist juggernaut coming down their drive. John and Rachael run a lovely little farm in the hills up past Hobart with around 900 sheep (droughts keeping the numbers down) and a successful Kelpie and Waler horse breeding business. Always a community minded couple, John and Rachael with their two children work tirelessly together to grow their family unit and share their spoils with family and friends. Rachael is a well known author of books you may have seen on the book stands with titles of "Jillaroo", "the Stockmen" and "the Rouseabout", a creative inspirationist, she talked effortlessly about the joys of motherhood, community values and family whilst modestly talking down her writing achievements thus far. We all know that together they will be very successful.

We really enjoyed John and Rachael's company and talked about the time we will meet again to discuss more of our similarities in business and social antics.

Onwards south we headed to Port Arthur where we are now camped on a point in a caravan park where water is abundant, not like the last couple nights of bird baths, I long for a long hot shower after completing this blog. I walked down to the water before dark and felt the nostalgic senses overwhelming me of the convicts whom walked the same steps in less than pleasant times. Tomorrow is another day where we head North to discover more of this pristine state I am proud to call a part of Australia.

Pics above: Rachael and Rachel Treasure with Indi, both animal lovers, both creative, both humble achievers.

John and I share a photo, its great to catch up with another Treasure.

Visit www.rachaeltreasure.com for more info on Rachael's books and Johns Kelpies and Waler horses.

Mothers Day hospitality

After a few reds with Alan the evening before we got as far as Gordon, a little settlement down past Snug where there is a great Free camp spot to pull up at. This little spot has etched its way into our memory, mainly for its English feel. So far wherever we have gone we get the beautiful sandy beaches but here in the lower reaches of Tassie the beaches are stones and the air is cool and crisp. We came in at night and really didn't know where we were camped until the next morning when the yellow hue of light shone down through the huge European hatch over our bed. The towering gums above bore its texture through the glass to reveal a classic Australian morning reminiscent of the Murray river or Aussie outback. The funny thing was that the outside temperature was around 6 or 7 degrees and we were at one of our most southern areas in Australia. Safe to say it was a gorgeous morning to lay in until around 8:30am before getting ourselves up and off to visit Craig and Juliet who were just 11kms down the road.

We arrived at Craig and Juliets new found house sitting home and backed the 660 down the drive and were quickly greeted by wonderful hospitality and a spectacular view across the water to Bruny Island. After chatting a while we showed them a few tips for hitching their XK 535 onto the Citroen C5. Now, with the C5 there is an automatic leveler in the suspension system that you must be aware of when hitching and unhitching on steep or uneven ground. The mistake some people make is to release the jockey wheel in an attempt to boost the height, this usually results in the collapse of the front of the van down the shaft of the jockey wheel. If need be jack the front up with a ball jack or similar.

It quickly came time for lunch and we were treated to a lovely meal overlooking the water on the deck. Our new found friends delighted us with the sharing of their life experiences and hospitality. The afternoon came with a bottle of next doors 06 Pinot Noir (a great wine region)under our belts, we assembled the Isabella annexe that they had just purchased, with great delight everyone saw the ease in which it went up. Sadly though the day ended with night beating us at 5:00pm and we departed back down to our favourite little free camp spot at Gordon. See the photos for more on this great little spot.

Hobart delivers

Hobart was a sleepy city until the Geist roadshow trundled into town. The looks on peoples faces showed it all, they haven't seen much like this before and the impact was evident. We settled in on Friday night after having a great run down the east coast of Tassie, due to work commitments we couldn't stop anywhere but then there is always March next year when we have the Geist Rally. I popped in to see Alan, our dealer in Hobart to discuss the next day. We stayed at Treasure Island Caravan Park and shocked the managers there when I mentioned my last name was Treasure. Of course we only stayed there for names sake, there are much better parks around, the best being out near the airport according to Alan & Kate from A&K Caravans and Motorhomes.

Saturday morning came and we arrived at Alan and Kates beautiful yard to setup, the day brought some great people through the yard, many enquiring but a few keen to make the next step as owners, we hope they come into our family in the future. We also caught up with Craig and Juliet and arranged to show them a few special tips as Geist owners on Sunday.

St Helens on sunset

We headed from Devonport to the East coast of Tasmania, this fabulous little fishing town is in the Northern reaches of the state and offers much for the person looking for solitude. We originally anticipated an overnight stay but due to work commitments with Geist and Rachel's work we spent much of Thursday indoors either online or on the phone. That's fine though, that's what we are paid to do. I could think of some worse places to toil away on the computer, that's what lifestyle is all about. We achieved a lot for Geist and Treasure Studios that day so we decided to go for a walk and see the sunset over St Helens, boy, was it worth it or what!

Spirit of Tasmania

We boarded the Spirit of Tasmania on Tuesday night ready to sail. There were a couple of things I wanted to let people know when towing a caravan over to the apple isle. Make sure your gas bottles are off, empty all jerry cans of fuel (petrol or diesel), discard all vegetables and fruit prior to boarding. If your caravan is over 3 metres high then watch where your GPS sends you as there is a low railway bridge on approach to the Station Pier after you come off the tollway. Geist caravans shouldn't have a problem as they are 2.75m with aircon but if you know someone with a high airconditioner or raised "offroad" van, they may come to grief here. To add to this it is not well sign posted and at night there are so many lights around you, you can easily miss the bridge near non existent lights. Arrive well in advance, we arrived 1 hour 15 mins before and because we were a long load we were one of the last on. We had to be allocated a spot that was adequate and coming late could be a bit stressful. Take cash if you don't run a credit card as a $50 maximum applies on the one ATM and once you leave port there is no accessible cash. The restaurant prices are quite reasonable and the food is very nice. It is a limited menu but covers most tastes. We found the twin single bed cabin with port hole was very comfortable. The gift shop prices are very good too! On departure be ready to race down to your garage deck as soon as they give the all clear, especially if you are in the front on departure otherwise you could hold others up. Remember your garage level before you head up the lift on arrival, this makes it easier to get to your level on departure. There are good businesses open for breakfast in Devonport if you are traveling overnight, don't feel you have to get up that bit earlier to catch the onboard breakfast (it still costs). I applied the hand brake on the Geist in case of rough seas but use your own discretion here. I hope this helps your travel to Tasmania one day or hopefully on the Geist tour in March next year.

Where to now?

That brings me to this week(Tuesday night) where we head over to Tasmania for a visit with our Hobart dealer, A&K Caravans and Motorhomes. We will have our van on show at their yard on Saturday. Come join us for a sausage sizzle.

We will be researching the Geist Owners club trek whilst over in Tasmania, checking the best routes and places to go. Any ideas, please forward them on. If you would like to discuss upgrading your Geist or would like to experience a tow test then contact me as soon as possible.

Going Cuckoo in Melbourne

Since the show finished on Monday night it has been pretty full on moving vans back to Gosford, this has meant me meeting our Geist truck in Euroa with vans from the show and bringing back a XK630 for a customer to go over to Tasmania. I had a little trouble with a short in the wiring of the van (now corrected) that caused me to stay overnight in Euroa on Wednesday night. Thursday was spent delivering the van and cleaning up the car. Friday was full on again getting some small issues sorted from past shows and getting some merchandise sorted. On Saturday and Sunday both Rachel and I were exhausted as I have been working pretty hard on the road this last few weeks without a break. Imagine how it has been for the guys at Geist who have been away from their loved ones for similar times, at least Rachel is with me each day.

So a cold Saturday in Melbourne was spent walking the famous Dandenong Markets and Plaza, we are limited to what we can carry so essentials like socks etc… was all we purchased. On Sunday we decided to look at our plans for Tasmania this week and Fraser Island late June and discovered we needed a few more things to keep us warm so off to Rays Outdoors and Anaconda to get the “essentials” for warmth. Rachel feels the cold pretty much all the time and so winter woollies came to her attention. The rule is though she must replace clothing not add to it, so she now has a task of bagging some old clothes for the Salvos (if we were in Townsville we could take them to the St Paul’s Lutheran Church clothing store). We returned later in the day and decided to go out for tea at “Cuckoo” Bavarian restaurant in the Dandenong Ranges(www.cuckoorestaurant.com.au). Just 40 minutes up the road we set off to arrive to a lovely atmosphere with a Smorgasboard that filled me up to the hilt! We were going to stay on for more of the floor show later but decided to head home whilst we could still walk. Thanks to Manfred and Pam who have an LV485 staying in the park with us, who gave us the tip on this one.

Melbourne Caravan Show

Well it has been a big couple of weeks for us, with the Melbourne show and moving of caravans, coupled with the preparation of some great new merchandise, Rachel getting more and more work coming in, we needed a break on the weekend. Sorry to all those who have been waiting for the blog updates.

Where do I start? The Melbourne show is always a big show, not quite as big as Sydney, this year 6 days but going from 9:30am to 6:00pm which in my view was a complete waste of time. Most people went home from 4:00pm to try and beat peak hour traffic. We twiddled our thumbs for the last couple of hours each day. We were also down the back corner this year, which dropped the volume of people through our stand. We did have more serious Geist people coming through however which was great to see. Our stand couldn’t have been to bad though as we won the Best Caravan, Camper and 5th wheeler stand of the show award. That’s two big shows we have won now. See how we go in Brisbane.

It was also great to catch up with Paddy (our UK Geist owner) and Urlie(hope spelling is right) from our LMC factory in Sassenburg Germany. Their input to our product is critical to its success and some vigorous discussions were held with them to improve our product and sales even more. Your suggestions are welcome for further talks later in the year.

Congratulations also go to Peter and Helen who purchased a XK630 from me at the show, hopefully Peter can have a wonderful birthday present on the 10th of May if the boys at EuroRV can get their new van ready in time.

Overall a good show, again thanks to our sponsors Volkswagen and Viking Kayaks for supplying wonderful products which undoubtedly helped us win best stand again.

East Gippsland Field Days

One small town that is very close to my heart is Lindenow. This quiet rural area produces a large portion of our countries vegetables and has some wonderful characters that are synonymous with the area. As you go through the main street of Lindenow you will see an anvil(blacksmiths shoe shaping tool) with an inscription "success forged on the anvil of time" placed on it (I think). This anvil was opened by my grandfather ,Charles Langford Treasure and remains an historic part of the town. Lindenow like many towns and citys around Australia has a service club, the Lions club is the service club in Lindenow and is very proactive in helping its community. Part of the fund raising is a field days that has grown to be one of the most respected field days on the country calendar. These field days are more than just a rural get together they draw over 5,000 people from a relatively small community and beyond, to showcase the best new products and equipment available to the rural region.
We decided to squeeze in this opportunity to showcase the Geist promo caravan at the field days with great success. We had a wonderful time showing the region something different to what the local Jayco dealer had to offer. The rural hospitality is always so warm, even if there was a mix up in the sites (thanks Liz). We weren't worried though, everyone found us that wanted to and the interest extended down to Melbourne with a few keen buyers venturing on to see us at the big show. Here are some photos (above) showing the stand and crowd. The Volkswagen Touareg and Viking Kayak were a great hit too! Those wanting to find out more about these products should go to Mossaro motors in Morwell or vikingkayak.com.au