New Member Interview with Lorri Carter

Can you tell us about how you got into the vintage trailer hobby?
I joined Sisters on the Fly several years ago and have always been enamored of all things vintage. As a college student I took on the restoration of a 1966 Mustang with my grandfather. He instilled in me a love of old cars and vintage campers have always been a part of the vintage car scene in some way. Joining Sisters exposed me to so many ups and downs of owning vintage. Camping in a vintage is like nothing else. It’s like another place and time.

What type of trailers have you owned and what do you have now? What is your dream vintage trailer?
My grandparents had a mining claim in rural northern Nevada. We set up a remote household for the summers there with a couple f large tents. One year my dad got us a Six Pac cabover camper for his 1968 GMC pickup and that was my very first experience in any type of camper with walls. I loved how all the space was used and how it was both a place to eat and a place to sleep. I have always fondly remembered that first camper.

As an adult my brother’s in laws camped at the ocean every summer and I would hang out with them in their 1969 KenCraft. For me it was the perfect camper. They purchased it new in 1969 and had treated it like the treasure it was. Beautiful wood, smart layout. Like a home on wheels. I spent hours working on jigsaw puzzles on that dinette table every summer. For their family it had been a home every summer. They were camground hosts at Yellowstone in early spring. They took that camper all over the west coast while the kids grew up and when they retired it became their beach house – traveling the hour from their home to the beach every summer. As I started thinking about a camper for myself that KenCraft was the standard I looked for when shopping for a vintage.

I eventually got a Shasta Reissue that served me well for a few years but eventually there was an opportunity to own that camper of my dreams. My sister-in-law asked me to find a new owner for the KenCraft once her parents were no longer able to camp. I told her that new owner should be me. I have been working on her for the last few months and have started taking her out on the road for some fall camping and she is the most comfortable and meaningful camper – it is like a member of the family and I hope I can maintain her and keep her road worthy for many more years until it is someone else’s turn to take care of her.

Like a lot of people, I swoon over a vintage Airstream and seeing the really spectacular campers of the 50’s at rallies is always a treat but for me my KenCraft is my dream camper.

What do you tow with?
I tow with a Jeep Gladiator with the Max Tow option.

Do you attend rallies and what do you like the most about attending a rally?
I have attended rallies in my area as a spectator for years and am excited to get to take my KenCraft out to a rally in the future

Why did you decide to join the Tin Can Tourists?
I have followed Tin Can Tourists on Facebook for years – there is such a wealth of knowledge there and some of the experts have been so helpful. I walked one of their rallies a few years ago and have always had it in the back of my mind to join if I ever had a real vintage camper.

What are your camping plans for this year?
I am taking the KenCraft over to the Buffalo National River area this weekend and hope to camp at least one more time in November before I winterize and put her away for winter. Next Spring I plan on taking her camping in Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma at least.