The first time Ken Dickinson saw his family’s new Airstream, “excited” would not have been the first word to leave his lips.
The year was 1969, and his father, Chuck Dickinson, had just brought home a brand new 23-foot Safari Land Yacht, his reward for winning a company sales contest. “New and unfamiliar,” as Ken describes it, they had never owned any type of recreational vehicle, so he and his three young brothers had no idea what to expect.
Can you imagine? At twelve years old, Ken’s childhood was one full of possibility, indulging the curiosities that come with youth through coast-to-coast travel. To his parents, he says, it represented a new sense of freedom and adventure. At first, he was just along for the ride.
Chuck, the admired father, hard worker, and family man, worked as an independent dealer for the Kirby Vacuum Cleaner Company. His competitive nature and determination was apparent in the way he went about his work.
“I clearly remember the poster announcing the contest being up on the wall,” Ken says, “and we regularly stopped by the local Airstream dealer in Albuquerque to better understand the product. It never crossed his mind that he would not win that contest.”
Their first Airstream adventure was a short one, a test run to the mountains near their home in Albuquerque, just to get used to in it. When they traveled, they slept on any available space: his parents on the pull-out bed, one brother on the top bunk, one on each of the two sofas at the dinette, and one on the floor.
Chuck taught his boys responsibilities on the road: he was a private pilot, and like any good aviator, he diligently used a checklist of tasks that needed to be performed upon arrival at their destination. The boys couldn’t visit the game room or swimming pool at the RV park until they’d completed the list.
Their first long road trip took them west to California, to see where their father grew up. They drove across Arizona, stopping at national parks and other sights along the way, and, of course, a trip to Disneyland was on the itinerary. The classic American road trip, in the classic American travel trailer.
Along the way, they grew to love their Airstream, and, as Ken puts it, “what it represents to us in terms of the history it has in our family.”
Other adventures took them to Pismo Beach in California, where they ate fresh homemade clam chowder on the shore; to Taos ski valley, where they lived for days under the snowy slopes; and to Branson, Missouri, where a breakdown just meant they had a chance to discover the land’s unexpected beauty.
For its entire life span, it’s worn #10252, its WBCCI registration number. Everywhere they went, other travelers would ask to see the Airstream, as its shiny silver exterior drew immediate interest. As the four boys grew up, each would earn the rank of Eagle Scout, each growing up living a unique lifestyle, full of adventure on the road.
Yet after years of use, their beloved Airstream was sent into hibernation. For almost 30 years, the trailer rested, well-maintained and cared for, polished and kept clean, but stored unused in the dry climate of New Mexico.
But the time came to bring #10252 back to life. And so it was brought to Colorado, given tender loving care by Ken and his wife, and by a nearby mechanic who specializes in Airstream maintenance. The number, still worn proudly by the Airstream now approaching 50 years of age, was transferred to Ken and his wife, Christine.
They had the bug. In 2015, they headed to Pasadena for the annual Rose Parade Airstream Rally, then traveled to Tucson and AlumaFiesta, where they shared ideas, memories, and experiences with over 150 other Airstreamers.
Ultimately, they traveled almost 8,000 miles over the course of 12 months, and they’ve planned trips to Tennessee and Kentucky in the new year. Ken is still working, so it’s hard for he and his wife to commit to long Caravan trips – but they’re eager to sign up in the future.
What does it mean to be an Airstreamer?
“Access to an amazing lifestyle, and connections with people who share that same lifestyle,” Ken responds. “The WBCCI is your passport to amazing trips and lasting relationships, an immediate level of trust with other owners.”
He describes a time when, within ten minutes of parking beside another Airstream family, they were invited to their home, any time. Immediate bonds, formed between strangers-turned-friends.
“It identifies you as both an adventurer and a pragmatist. Each day can bring breakdowns and failures, but a pragmatic explorer plans their adventures knowing they have the equipment to deliver in quality and value, time after time. That you have your oasis and shelter, often times the only thing on a trip you can depend on.”
