Dan Olsen has been around the Dewey-Humboldt area for about 25 years, and he's seen lots of growth and quite a few changes.

"This being our 25th year - typically every year we do a Customer Appreciation Day, we have things on sale, have our vendors here; this year Bob Been and I got together and decided it would be a good thing if we teamed up, being as they're right across the street and had a combined event. So, Affinity RV, Bob's company and me and my staff are throwing a block party, to generate excitement here in Dewey and cross-merchandise. As you can see, there's RV's on my lot... The whole idea is to get people who might be looking at RVs to come over and see what we have and vice-versa," explained Dan Olsen, of Olsen's Grain in Dewey-Humboldt.

Now, when the folks at Olsen's and Affinity decide to celebrate, they go all out. "We're trying to cross-merchandise," said Dan, "but at the same time, make it festive and fun. We're going to have three radio stations here tomorrow, a wagon ride with a team of horses, a jumping castle, we've got the Starisland Motor Sports here with ATVs. Then, about ten of our vendors that we buy dog food and feed from will be here to answer questions. So, it's informative and it's fun, and of course, free food! If nothing else, come for the free food! We'll have sloppy joes, and beans and potato salad and hot dogs and soft drinks, it should be really fun."

Hay and RV's? A perfect match, says both Dan Olsen and RV Van Kuilenburg.

Twenty-five years ago, the Dewey-Humboldt location of Olsen's Grain was the third of their stores to open. And Dan was there at the beginning. "When we opened here, there was that one building, 50 x 60, and nothing else around us. The closest building was right over here, it was the post office, and it was about the size of a mobile home. All this was just fields and weeds. So, a lot of changes in this block since we started. It's grown so much - we've probably grown in business twenty-fold since we started... We've been the mainstay. Of course, the highway was just a two lane little highway when we started, now it's five lanes and a major thoroughfare to Phoenix, which it always was, but the traffic on 69 there is incredible compared to what it was back in '82. Also, 169, used to be a little country road, it wasn't paved. So, that brought a lot of change, too, because people could come and go from the Verde Valley really easy." 

Things have changed a lot in the pet food world, too, since then. Now, people are starting to really think about the kinds of food their pets are eating, and wanting only the best. Olsen's Grain offers several types of organic pet food. "The technology that goes into some of these pet foods is amazing, and the whole idea about the holistic, organic type foods is that your pet gets out of the food the quality that's put in. So, the ingredients, the naturalness of them, it's all good for the dog, so he's going to digest -or cat - they're going to digest more of what they eat. So, even though they might cost more, you're going to end up spending less in the long run, because the real cheap dog foods, a lot of them just go right through the animal, it's waste. They have to eat a lot more to meet their needs."

While you're celebrating, let's not forget your furry friends. With the terrific sale prices that Olsen's is offering for these two days (Friday and Saturday), you can stock up on your pet supplies and save some serious cash. Download the sales fiyer here. Maybe you'll even save enough cash to think about purchasing one of those RVs you'll find next door at Affinity RV .

And, speaking of Affinity RV, you really should take the time to say hello to RV Van Kuilenburg. He's the Sales Manager for the Dewey-Humboldt location of Affinity RV, (although, no, the business isn't named after him, or vice versa). Kuilenburg has been in the area for about 3 years, moving to Dewey-Humboldt from Las Vegas, looking for a more rural lifestyle.

The spacious interior you're looking at is actually the inside of an RV.

RV is justifiably proud of his RV lot in Dewey-Humboldt, and notes that just because the lifestyle is rural, that doesn't mean that Affinity RV should be overlooked. 

"We handle the Keystone lineup in our Dewey facility, which handles the number one selling fifth-wheel in the nation today with the Montana, the number two selling fifth-wheel in the nation today, which is the Cougars, and the number two selling travel trailer today which is the Springdale. We're trying to introduce this line to the people in this area. It has been number one in the nation, and we're slowly making it number one in Yavapai County."

Because of their location, which includes lots of space to accomodate a vast variety of models and floorplans, and their lower overhead, RV said their facility is considered the largest competition by many Phoenix-area dealers. Affinity RV is able to be very competitive on both selection and price, he stressed, and is well worth a drive up from Phoenix. 

RV also noted that many people might be concerned about wandering around a RV lot, afraid that they might be a target of an over-zealous salesperson. RV said that doesn't really happen on his lot, because his salesmen are very cognizant of the fact that most people will take several visits to make a decision. Actually, 80% of the people who purchase an RV are what they call, "Be-backs." RV explained, "They come back to see us, three or four or five times before they make a decision. We encourage that. With today's internet sales, which 80% of the people call before they visit a dealership, with the way that the internet sales are, they still need to touch them and feel them to see what they are. You can see the price, that's one thing, but we try to invite the people out and to let them know that we're very user-friendly to them. You can come here and take a look and you won't feel pressured."

That's another reason for Affinity RV to join Olsen's celebration. "It's to show the people in the area what great establishments they have that will serve the Yavapai area, and they can feel comfortable and relaxed in coming here and enjoying themselves," said RV. 

And, RV thinks that the team of Olsen's and Affinity RV makes sense, "The reason why is that a majority of the people that are full-timers, they do have pets, if you've been to any of the RV parks, you'll see people walking around with their dogs and everything. So we thought it'd be a nice merger between both people. We do a lot of people with the horse industry, as far as the rodeo, they go over here and get the feed, and come to us and get the RV."

You know, now that Young's Farm is no longer in business, this might be the best opportunity you'll have to get a free hayride in Dewey-Humboldt. So, why don't you take the time to visit Olsen's Grain and Affinity RV this weekend - after all, a 25-Year Birthday Bash with free food and drastically marked down prices is something you don't want to miss! 

This RV even has a garage... perfect for ATV's. 

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