Two changes to the Trek lineup grab their inspiration from opposite poles, but unite to form a spectacular combo in the middle of the model year.

The first is a completely forward-looking Trek Outdoor Edition Package, available on 28-foot floorplans, which comes with an unparalleled rear storage area, new exterior paint, front cap hardware, and spirited interior design elements.

The second is the 28RB2 floorplan itself, a new floorplan with an element that harkens back a few years, an element that was brought back due to customer request.

The Outdoor Edition Package

Innovation is the heart of this package. It has broken the status quo and ventured into new territory and what better coach to choose in rejecting the status quo than the Trek?

A motorcoach with a brush guard over the grill? I’ve never seen one, or better said, I had never seen one until I saw the Trek Outdoor Edition Package. Now that I have seen it, I’m wondering why they all don’t come with one. It looks really slick and when I think of some back roads I’ve traveled, I’m sure it will prove useful. The guard should help protect the new full body paint, a dark blue and grey scheme that lends the Trek a sporty edge.

Stepping inside, it’s clear that all the creativity wasn’t used up with the brush guard and paint. This is not an interior with the same ol’ muted floral patterns or gentle pastels. It is bold and inviting: bullet lights above wood trim wainscoting provide classy indirect lighting in the living/sleeping area, and a great new covering reminiscent of alligator or snake skin adorns living room rocker barrel chairs and trims the sofa. The secondary fabric used on the cockpit seats, the sofa cushions and dinette chair pads has a lively fishing motif, and the kitchen wallpaper gets the same treatment.

The Outdoor Edition comes with new countertops throughout, new valances and decorative lighting, new woven wood cabinetry inserts, new plumbing fixtures in the kitchen and bathroom, a new shower door, plank flooring throughout, a sectional rug in the living area and a redesigned dinette with an integrated storage cabinet.

The dinette chairs (also new) are really unique, with gilded metal comprising the legs and the frame of the backrest, which contains wooden slats that look like handcrafted bamboo. The chair pads are covered in the same fabric as the sofa, tying into the interior theme.

I’ve saved the best for last and the Safari designers saved the best for the back. That’s where you’ll find the double door storage area that is roughly four feet tall and stretches from taillight to taillight. It’s also over a foot deep but the impressive size of this space isn’t what makes it such a jaw dropper. First off, stainless steel covers the back of the doors and the bottom of the compartment is lined in polyethylene, making it easy to clean, quick to dry and odor resistant. Next, there is virtually everything you need for storing any kind of sports equipment. There is an enormous pegboard complete with moveable hooks and cargo nets, several watertight flip-top storage compartments, two drying racks and individual pull out trays for organizing smaller items.

An obvious use for this area, and one that would keep with the decorative theme, is to make it fishing central. There’s ample room for a stockpile of rods, a place to hang vests, a place to dry waders or wet clothes, a place to hang boots, compartments to store and organize lures and flies … you could even use the sealed compartments to put cleaned fish on ice. (I can hear a collective “oh great” from fishermen’s wives everywhere.)

The real beauty of this area, however, is that it is designed in a way that invites multiple uses. Safari National Sales Manager Joe Zurbuch said this is no coincidence. “In tailoring this package, we wanted it to appeal to more than just the fishing crowd,” he said. “So we came up with a storage area that no one else is offering, not just to fishing enthusiasts, but to anyone with a need for more storage – storage that is extremely flexible in how it can be used.”

He’s not exaggerating. In having a look behind the double doors it’s clear to see it could be used as a place to store skis and hang soggy ski clothes, wetsuits, waders, soiled work clothes or dirty tools. You could buy several more cargo nets to hang on the pegboard and provide specialized, well-ventilated storage, or a few more pegs could be added to create shelves where items could be easily secured with bungee cords.

In fact, as you think about it more, the possible uses begin to snowball. The Outdoor Edition Package would be a good choice for hunting and fishing enthusiasts, photographers, artists, skiers, golfers, tailgaters, woodworkers, metalworkers, scuba divers, collectors of anything from antiques to precious stones, or really any hobbyist (or for that matter any RVer) with a need for compartmentalized storage.

As a wine enthusiast I envisioned rows of padded cabinets secured to shelves on the pegboard where bottles picked up at various wineries could be stored, a hanging rack for glasses and maybe a hinged, drop-down wine bar for spontaneous tastings. In short, I think you could turn this huge rear storage area into just about anything you want, the possibilities are limited only by your own ingenuity.

The 28RB2

This new floorplan brings a change that is more subtle, but I’m betting it won’t be welcomed any less than the Outdoor Edition Package. And keep in mind, the OE package can be optioned on both 28-foot floorplans. In essence, the 28RB2 is nearly the same as the 28RB floorplan with one big difference. It is still a forward bedroom floorplan with no slides, a rear bath and vanity and freestanding dinette. The big difference can be found in the galley, with the return of an L-shaped configuration known to some Trek aficionados as the “classic kitchen,” due to its widespread use in Treks of a few years back.

With the “classic kitchen,” the sink is centered in the middle of a straight counter, flanked on one side by the refrigerator and the range on the other, which completes the L-shape. Last year, this configuration was not available, replaced with angled countertops that provided a little less space in the kitchen, in favor of larger bedrooms and bathrooms.

According to Zurbuch, a bevy of owners contacted Safari to lament the loss of the kitchen style and the strong customer feedback prompted product developers to reintroduce it in the 28RB2. “We try to be forward looking in how we design our products, but you don’t want to sacrifice customer satisfaction for that,” he said. “If a good number of your customers want an element from the past back, you do your best to achieve that.”

With the 28RB2 and the Outdoor Edition Package, prospective Trek owners are getting a blast from the past and a taste of the future.

2004 Trek Outdoor Edition Photo Gallery click on photo to view larger image
	The one-of-a-kind Trek Outdoor Edition Package offers and odor and water resistant storage area complete drying rack, sealed compartments, cargo nets and multipurpose pegboard.		A bold interior design with new furniture fabrics. lighting and wall treatments.
	A redesigned kitchen dinette with specialized cabinets and wrought iron chairs.		The Outdoor Edition's rear storage compartment with dual doors for complete access.
	The TrekRB2 floorplan heralds the return of a "classic kitchen" offering an L-shaped configuration for additional cabinet and counter space.