{"id":136536,"date":"2017-05-31T06:00:25","date_gmt":"2017-05-31T06:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wildideas.wpengine.com\/?p=748"},"modified":"2020-03-18T13:14:28","modified_gmt":"2020-03-18T20:14:28","slug":"gretchen-bayless-taylor-hood-living-the-van-life-and-traveling-the-world-with-roamerica-rentals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/podcasts\/wild-ideas-worth-living\/gretchen-bayless-taylor-hood-living-the-van-life-and-traveling-the-world-with-roamerica-rentals","title":{"rendered":"Gretchen Bayless & Taylor Hood – Living the Van Life and Traveling the World with Roamerica Rentals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gretchen & Taylor\u2019s Wild Idea: To be able to go on an adventure at any moment with minimal planning and packing. To explore the world from a van and start a thriving business around their passion.<\/p>\n

Gretchen Bayless and Taylor Hood are the founders of Roamerica Rentals, a camper van rental company based in Oregon that lets you take their vans all over North America and even to Canada. Their vans are decked out with items like Rumpl blankets, Stanley stainless steel cooking ware and local organic coffee, so all you have to do is show up with clothes and hit the road. Van life is all the rage right now, and it\u2019s definitely a passion for these two – which is why they were so eager to start a business around sharing their love of exploring the great outdoors with the world.<\/p>\n

What I love about their story is it\u2019s very real. Starting a new company isn\u2019t always easy, and as fun as a camper van rental company might sound, it comes with challenges, like working day jobs! That\u2019s right – Roamerica is their side hustle<\/i>. They didn\u2019t let time or stress or some serious health problems hold them back. Gretchen and Taylor have a lot of joy and a huge sense of adventure, and that shines through in everything they do. They share tips for getting through the highs and lows of starting a business, and letting us all in on the true van life essentials so you can\u00a0 get on the road and get going.<\/p>\n

Listen to this Episode if:<\/h2>\n
    \n
  • You want to travel out of a van.<\/li>\n
  • You want to see the world.<\/li>\n
  • You love the Pacific Northwest.<\/li>\n
  • You\u2019re starting a new business.<\/li>\n
  • You\u2019re struggling with Lyme Disease.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n
      \n
    • 3:55 – When Gretchen and Taylor decided to start Roamerica.<\/li>\n
    • 5:50 – You never have to break down a van.<\/li>\n
    • 7:20 – Roamerica isn\u2019t even their main jobs – it\u2019s their side hustle.<\/li>\n
    • 9:00 – How Gretchen\u2019s job allows her to shift her hours.<\/li>\n
    • 10:30 – What\u2019s the hardest part of starting a business.<\/li>\n
    • 12:15 – How even the best things in life have a challenging side.<\/li>\n
    • 13:55 – How a van is like a boat.<\/li>\n
    • 14:40 – What type of person van life is meant for and not.<\/li>\n
    • 16:15 – What you need in your van to get started.<\/li>\n
    • 19:00 – What to do in Oregon.<\/li>\n
    • 20:35 – How Gretchen and Taylor sent a motorcycle through the back window of their\u00a0van.<\/li>\n
    • 23:10 – What the future is for van life.<\/li>\n
    • 25:45 – Don\u2019t sweat the small stuff.<\/li>\n
    • 27:10 – Taylor and Gretchen\u2019s daily routines.<\/li>\n
    • 30:50 – What to do in Portland.<\/li>\n
    • 34:00 – Gretchen\u2019s struggle with Lyme Disease.<\/li>\n
    • 40:20 – Why Taylor would live in South America.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      \t\t\t\tGretchen & Taylor\u2019s Wild Idea: To be able to go on an adventure at any moment with minimal planning and packing. To explore the world from a van and start a thriving business around their passion.\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":136606,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1992,1993,1727],"tags":[],"internal-tag":[],"class_list":["post-136536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-season-1","category-podcast","category-wild-ideas-worth-living"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/rei.com\/blog\/podcasts\/wild-ideas-worth-living\/gretchen-bayless-taylor-hood-living-the-van-life-and-traveling-the-world-with-roamerica-rentals","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Gretchen Bayless & Taylor Hood – Living the Van Life and Traveling the World with Roamerica Rentals","url":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/podcasts\/wild-ideas-worth-living\/gretchen-bayless-taylor-hood-living-the-van-life-and-traveling-the-world-with-roamerica-rentals","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/podcasts\/wild-ideas-worth-living\/gretchen-bayless-taylor-hood-living-the-van-life-and-traveling-the-world-with-roamerica-rentals"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/02\/wiwlheader.jpg?resize=150%2C150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/02\/wiwlheader.jpg?fit=2000%2C1000"},"articleSection":"2017 Shows","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Chelsea Davis"}],"creator":["Chelsea Davis"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Uncommon Path \u2013 An REI Co-op Publication","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2017-05-31T06:00:25Z","datePublished":"2017-05-31T06:00:25Z","dateModified":"2020-03-18T20:14:28Z"},"rendered":"