Visit to NomadFest 2018 – Full-Time RV Life

When we first heard of the project, RV Nomads – The Movie, it was last November around an impromptu campfire in San Antonio, Texas, with the producer, Eric Odom, and cast members John and Laura Hebard of Hebard’s Travels.  We were extremely excited to hear about plans for a full-length feature film spotlighting people doing what we do–living, working, and traveling full time.

The vision grew and plans were made to turn the movie premier into a festival for RV nomads–NomadFest.  Mike and I immediately signed up for VIP tickets for the event to show monetary support for the movie, attend the movie premier, and the opportunity to interact with the cast and crew.  Throughout the year in our travels, quite by accident, we personally met many of the people who would be featured in the film.  RV Love, Less Junk More Journey, Chickery’s Travels, Audrey Callahan Music, and Mortons on the Move.  Our excitement grew as we knew we’d see our friends on the big screen sharing our unique lifestyle.

We were afraid our needed RV repairs would prevent us from attending, but we got a last-minute reprieve and made it to Wellington, Texas, from Elkhart, Indiana, and we drove pretty much straight through.  Mike drove 700 miles in one day, and we did the final 300-plus miles on check-in day for NomadFest.

The weekend was filled with seminars about RV travel, content creator information, and meeting other RVers, bloggers, and YouTube creators.  We also had the opportunity to meet up with friends (new and old) we’ve met while on the road.  Below are pictured with Tim Williams from Tim Rover, old friends Roy and Judy (traveling buds in Arizona last year–this post is a reminder), new friends from Alaska Bobbie Jo and Mike.  We also saw Dave and Shirley from Down the Road We Go, and Herb and Kathy from RVing with Herb & Kathy.  It was more like a huge family reunion among people who live the nomadic lifestyle.

The highlight of the weekend was the premier of the movie.  We didn’t have clear expectations of what the feature would be, and we were blown away.  When the theater darkened and the ‘silence your cellphones’ clip was shown, the excitement in the auditorium was palpable.  Goosebumps rose on my arms and tears pooled in my eyes during  the opening scene.  The entire theater watched in rapt attention with outbreaks of laughter, shedding tears, and feeling extreme pride at the quality of the movie and how it adequately depicted our lifestyle and the reasoning behind it.  It was a labor of pure love for the all the individuals involved in the production, filming and editing, and the fearless participation of the cast.  We can’t thank them enough for the eloquent execution of the premier and the love and hard work which was evident in the quality of this film.  Mike and I were 100% proud to be among the audience for the first showing and we hope that everyone will have a chance to view it to understand more of why we’ve chosen this lifestyle.

The movie will be streamed free on the Epic Nomad Life app on November 15, 2018, or the DVD can be purchased on the RV Nomads official site.  It will also be streamed via Amazon Prime the end of December and, hopefully, via Netflix soon.  Even if you have absolutely no interest in this lifestyle, it’s an entertaining and informative documentary worth watching.

As VIPs, we were afforded the opportunity to meet for coffee with the cast and crew at the CoLab Studio, where filming of the movie interviews was completed.  It was inspiring to see their space and meet everyone who made it happen.

The festival itself was a marvelous experience.  We learned about content creation, how to share our own experiences in a unique and personal manner, and innovative ways to lessen our carbon footprint thanks to Battleborn Batteries.   There were sessions on travel adventures by other nomads, mainly Alaska (Pau Hana Travels), and a hilarious comedic take on the lifestyle by Always on Liberty.   There was a concert performed by other talented RVers and cast members (Drivin’ and Vibin‘ and Audrey Callahan), potlucks, campfires, and an RV show.

The small town of Wellington, Texas, welcomed the onslaught of RVers with open arms.  We were so busy attending NomadFest events and didn’t get to explore much of the local attractions, but it’s a must on our list for next time.  We did eat at HomeBrew BBQ, and can recommend it with our whole hearts–and full bellies.  We can’t wait until next year to try the smoked meatloaf we missed this year.  We had the pleasure of meeting the constable while enjoying our BBQ lunch, and we felt very important when he remembered us the next day in the town square–actually he grinned and said, “Yep, there goes trouble!”  What a wonderful welcome from Wellington.

Mike did a video on some of our experiences at NomadFest.  If you start at around 1:46, you’ll get to hear a couple of the concert highlights while Mike flashes some pictures and inserts some of our adventures during the weekend.

To the cast and crew of RV Nomads – The Movie, thank you for immortalizing our lifestyle on the big screen.  It’s a project you should all be proud of and an accomplishment to be remembered.

To all of the planners, cast, crew, and volunteers for NomadFest, thank you for a wonderful weekend full of community, education, and sharing of experiences.

If I failed to mention anyone we met, please forgive me.  It was a whirlwind of names, faces, and experiences.  If I missed any of the cast and crew, or anyone who attended NomadFest in this post, please put links to your blogs, vlogs, and/or websites below in the comments.

It’s amazing to feel at home with all of these nomadic souls.

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