slcinwa said:
As a single woman who will be traveling alone most of the time (hopefully one of my adult sons or my best friend who wants to get time away from hubby) will join me occassionally, I don't want to worry about anything I don't have to.
If you don't want to worry, then perhaps you want to re-think RVing... these things are wrought with maintenance projects, tire issues requiring constant inspection, wiring that can corrode/malfunction, appliances that can quit working, roof inspections and other potential leak areas, etc.
I'm being a bit sarcastic in that I
don't think you should abandon the idea of RV'ing. Just understand that everything has risks, and consider how likely those "worst case scenario" slide situations are to happen. Since being crushed by a forward-moving slide in a 60mph front-end crash is probably the most serious, I'll address that with the following points:
- Driving a motorhome, you are quite unlikely to be involved in a serious crash. Several factors reduce this risk (read on).
- RV's are driven much less than cars, to/from a destination and then you park there for days/weeks at a time.
- RV's are driven recreationally, often by folks who are retired or on vacation (or both). Not as daily drivers. "Hurry" is not usually a factor, which can cause vehicle crashes.
- RV's are driven more on highways/interstates (versus city traffic situations), where crashes are much less likely.
- RV's are driven most during the daytime hours in light traffic, not often during bad weather conditions or at night when visibility or impaired drivers are a risk.
- On average, RV's are driven slower than cars and with more space between vehicles. If a crash risk does exist, you have more time to respond & avoid it.
- Even if you DO hit something head-on (such as a vehicle in traffic), you will be substantially higher, heavier, and moving slower. I.E. you will "win" the crash battle. Similar to how school buses are one of the safest vehicles to ride in.
- About the only roadside item that would cause a sudden 60mph stoppage would be slamming into a bridge abutment or similar. Pretty unlikely unless you are impaired or asleep.
As Kevin mentioned, that article is quite fatalistic without sourcing a lot of data or discussing anything I mentioned. Visit & inspect lots of RV's and talk with some more veteran RV'ers before you make a purchase decision. If a non-slide RV is right for you, then go for it! Even though it's got a 2013 date, that article sounds as if it was written 20 years ago when slides were not all that common and not well understood/used.
Learning how to inspect any used RV prior to purchasing, and educating yourself on care/maintenance of these rigs (as well as being a part of a forum like this for constant access to information/sharing) will greatly decrease your stress and increase your enjoyment of the RV lifestyle! ;D