Dave and Rick,
You guys are right on.
Often it is too easy to get carried away with some minor detail, and miss
the main event. Light and functional beats schmaltzy and heavy in my book,
any day - especially for a travel trailer. This is not to say that the
design must be sterile. I call the glitzy details taking precedence over the
essential parameters "The Wally Ballou effect."
If you are from the Northeast in the 50s, you may remember the radio comedy
team of Bob and Ray or their Bert and Harry Piel beer ads. They had a
number of fictitious characters - one of which was Wally Ballou. Wally was
the roving reporter who had a knack for missing the main event. For
example, he would interview a customer in the checkout line at a
supermarket, asking why they chose the generic store brand over the more
famous, heavily advertised, national brand. Meanwhile, a robbery was taking
place at an adjacent checkout line. A classic, "Bull's eye. Wrong target."
A few weeks ago, Don Prudhome [the drag racer and builder of drag racers and
funny cars] had an open house in the next town - celebrating his 50 years in
drag racing. There were many cars on display - new and old; but one thing
stood out. Every detail on the cars was designed for performance, first and
foremost. They had a wonderful, "I mean business !" beauty look to them.
Hopefully, the upper echelon at Airstream will read these posts and take
them to heart.
Oliver Filippi
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