b"Outdoor Business Pros Launches as a Training, Information Tool for OwnersMark Koep, CEO of CampgroundViews.comand mod- on-one trainingsetc., he explained. There is a lot of thaterator of a Facebook page, RV Park/Campground Owners stuff that goes on in other industries, so it's just a matter ofand Managers, Operations & Marketing Forum, which has bringing it to this industry.over 2,500 members, enjoys helping park owners find ways Koep said Outdoor Business Pros boils down the informa-to improve their businesses.tion that owners want into a very effective tool that offersHence the creation of a new venture,Outdoor Business owners the real guidance they are looking for. Pros, which offers training programs for park owners and an online training platform that gets the owners the infor- He said that the current influx of new park owners has re-their staff members.mation they need in a timely manner. ally increased the demand for this type of educational plat-The goal is to be able to provide an on-demand turnkey There will be no static classes as part of the training pro- form. educationplatformforparkowners,heexplainedto gram, said Koep, who noted that the company will utilize We have a lot of new owners that are coming in with ex-Woodalls Campground Management(WCM). No matter if weekly live sessions, where experts from the industry are perience in prior industries, but their dream was to own anyoure a single, small park owner or a large resort operator brought on to talk about the issues a park may be having or RV park or campground, said Koep. As a result of that, theywith a larger number of employees, you need to be able to to train employees in a certain area. need help getting up to speed on what hospitality is and whatoffer them training.We will be giving them actionable guidance and they will outdoor recreation is and how you reach this audience andOutdoor Business Pros offers custom training programs leave these sessions with an actual to-do list, he explained.how you run an effective park. There's always going to bebased on a parks needs, according to Koep. Koep said he felt that there was nothing quite like this in new owners coming into this that require that base knowl-As we record these videos, they become on-demand, he the RV park and campground sectors.edge, plus advanced knowledge.noted to WCM. People can use them, and we'll be doing It's done in a lot of other industries and there are a lot of To learn more about Outdoor Business Pros, head toweekly videos, strategy sessions and all types of things. It is masterminds, training courses, educational materials, one- outdoorbusinesspros.com.Ben Quiggle WCMFla., Ala. Parks Report Minimal Damage Due to Hurricane SallySeveral RV parks in the Gulf Shores, of storm debris, its buildings were OK, Corn- whole park, he said. We had no injuries and Sideview of a tree that fell during HurricaneAla., area were closed and others were well said. we lost no buildings. Praise God. We did have Sally. Photo credit: GLBGwithout water, power or sewer service Parks further north in Alabama, such as many of our guests helping our staff with theafter Hurricane Sally swept through the Montgomery South RV Park in Hope Hull, cleanup.area in mid-September according to pre- were operating without any problems. Carson Other Florida Panhandle park operatorsliminary reports from RV park operators. Village in Birmingham, for its part, had RV said they got through the storm with minimalFortunately, those closures were ex- sitesavailableandwasaccommodating damage. We had no severe damage, justpected to be only very temporary, said evacuees. lots of rain, said Pat ONeill, general man-Bobby Cornwell, executive director of the Meanwhile, most RV parks and resorts in ager of Camp Gulf in Miramar Beach. WeFlorida Association the Florida Panhandle appear to have sur- had some flooding but are pumping the waterofRVParksand vived the storm and continued to operate, al- out. We had a temporary loss of power toCampgrounds and thoughsomereportedflippedRVsand some beachfront sites.the Alabama Asso- damage due to falling trees, Cornwell said. We feel lucky, Cornwell said, summariz-ciation of RV Parks Pensacola RV Resort in Pensacola al- ing the situation in Florida and Alabama.and Campgrounds. ready has power restored and is fully opera- There are some exceptions, but, fortunately,LuxuryRVRe- tional. They are fortunate and said they have it appears as though the majority of the RVsort andSugar customers from all over who are helping with parks in southern Alabama and almost all RVSands RV Resort in debris and cleanup, Cornwell said, quoting parks in northwest Florida were OK and areGulfShoreswere the park manager, who told him the park had open for business.Bobby Cornwell both closed due to received 147 calls from insurance adjusters For a listing of RV parks in the area, refer have been impacted by Hurricane Sally.the temporary loss of utilities, with Luxury and contractors looking for available sites. to www.campflorida.com and www.camp- The ARVC Foundations Disaster ReliefRV Resort reporting wind damage to its Many RV parks in the area are full. inalabama.com Fund was created to help RV park androof. However, Island Retreat RV Park, also Rob Moorman, owner of Sunburst RV Park TheNational Association of RV Parks and campground owners recover from disas-in Gulf Shores, planned to reopen as soon inMilton,Fla.,reportedthathisheavily Campgrounds(ARVC) Foundations Disaster ters, and the fund isnt possible without do-as power was restored. While the park re- wooded park had lots of fallen trees and de- Relief Fundis seeking donations to help sup- nationsfromARVCmembers.Jeffported downed trees and fencing and lots bris. We were without power throughout the port RV park and campground owners that Crider WCMFMCA Partners with Keystone, Forest River, Offers Discounted RateFMCA, a nonprofit association for RVowners, has announced that it has en-tered into a partnership with Keystone RV,Dynamax andForestRiverMotorized(Berkshire, Georgetown, FR3, Sunseeker,and Forester) to help enhance the RVlifestyle for owners of RVs manufacturedby these companies, according to a pressrelease.Throughaspecial,discountedrate,new and existing owners of RVs manufac-tured by these companies will have theopportunity to join thousands of other RVenthusiastswhosetravelexperienceshave been enhanced by FMCA, noted therelease.Those who take advantage of this offerto join FMCA will have the opportunity toenjoy camaraderie and friendships amongRVers who share the common interest oftravel while receiving a wealth of benefitsand services designed to meet the needsof RV owners. FMCA members have ex-clusive access to RV discount club sav-ings, RV lifestyle resources, the monthlyFamily RVing magazine, RV rallies, educa-tion, and so much more. For more information about everythingFMCA has to offer, visit FMCA.com. WCM4 -November 2020Woodalls Campground Management"