Tommy Camper Vans are Designed to Explore the Backcountry in Comfort
“The trail is the thing, not the end of the trail. Travel too fast, and you miss all you are traveling for.” ―Louis L’Amour, American writer
Americans have long had a love affair with the open road. Stories, often romanticized, have shaped our collective wanderlust since the earliest days of the country.
More recent generations have gotten their nomad on in RVs and motor homes, with the past several years having seen the numbers of RVers increase exponentially. So much so that one of the most common complaints is about overcrowded parks and campgrounds. Try booking a couple nights at a national park over the summer months and you’ll see for yourself. Between that and often-poor construction of even the best brand RVs, and you might just feel like sticking your head into the dark water tank.
Enter Michael “Mikey” Rudman, owner of Tommy Camper Vans in Phoenix, who has a solution: custom-built camper vans in which you can get off the grid and into the wilds in a self-contained, reliable rig.
“I listened to customers about what they wanted over the years,” says Rudman, who started Tommy Camper Vans — named for his brother — three years ago and has since sold around 30 vans per month. “I heard about maintenance problems, long waits for parts, storage problems, durability problems, parking concerns … all with bigger RVs. We wanted to disrupt the industry by creating a better product at a fair price.”
The only custom van builder in Arizona, Rudman will source a Ford Transit, a new or used certified Mercedes Benz Sprinter or Ram Promaster chassis, then work with the client to design the interior using one of the four most popular templates the company has developed. Alternatively, a client can custom design their own interior.
All vans are built out by expert craftsmen at the company’s Phoenix location, using high-quality materials — think all lithium batteries, induction stoves, Dometic refrigerators, solid wood finishes — to ensure the most reliable result. To address the issue of leaking roofs, for example, which many RVers experience, Rudman created a roof rack that doesn’t puncture the roof and then attaches the solar panels to the roof rack. Capsules extend the sleeping area to 75 inches, and all vans include both interior and exterior showers.
The vans are compact compared to a larger RV, true, but the well-designed interior space provides road living with fewer hassles.
“Our clients are free spirits,” Rudman says. “Most of their time is spent outside the van. They want to wake up on the beach with awesome views, not plugged in at an RV park. They are active people who want to get out hiking. There are so many wonderful destinations that are only two or three hours away … Sedona, the Grand Canyon, Payson, Prescott.”
Tommy Camper Vans will both finance and build the van for you, with prices starting around $35k for a slightly used van and an additional $29k for the build out. If you’re someone who prefers to try before you buy, Rudman just started a rental division that currently offers turbo diesel vehicles starting at $189 per night. Finding your own corner of night sky paradise? That’s up to you.
This story appeared in the AZ Foothills Home & Design, Best Places to Live issue. Read the full issue here.
