| Bob Wells | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Robert Wells 1955 or 1956 (age 68–69) |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation(s) | YouTuber, author |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Years active | 2015–present |
| Genre | Fulltiming |
| Subscribers | 747 thousand |
| Total views | 173.3 million |
Last updated: August 13, 2024 | |
| Website | cheaprvliving |
Bob Wells (born 1955) is an American YouTuber and author. Known for his advocacy of nomadic vandwelling as a form of affordable minimalist living, he founded the Rubber Tramp Rendezvous, an annual gathering of van dwellers in Quartzsite, Arizona, and the Homes on Wheels Alliance, a charity which converts vehicles for needy individuals to live and travel in.
Early life
Wells's father, who worked as a union clerk at a Safeway in Anchorage, Alaska, died two years after reaching retirement. Finding himself employed in the same store—and wanting to avoid his father's inability to enjoy retirement—Wells moved into a box van in 1995 purchased with his last $1,500 after working for 20 years at the store. The experience, which occurred during the aftermath of a difficult divorce with two children, left Wells crying himself to sleep. After six years, he remarried, moved into a house, and relocated with his wife to North Carolina, but eventually went back to living in a vehicle full-time. After he and his second wife divorced, Wells began living in a truck camper, followed by a work van and a four-wheel-drive ambulance.
Advocacy
In 2005, after seeing a mother and her three children sleeping in a car, Wells created the website cheaprvliving.com, to provide tips, resources and strategies for living in a vehicle. He portrayed himself in the 2020 film adaptation of the book Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century.
Rubber Tramp Rendezvous
As of 2024, Wells organized a get-together of vehicle dwellers in Quartzsite, Arizona each January known as the Rubber Tramp Rendezvous (RTR). Attendees and other followers of the event are known as "The Tribe". The gathering itself has been described as the Burning Man for retirees. During its first year of existence in 2010, the RTR received 45 attendees. By 2018, it had attracted over 3,000 participants and by 2019 it had attracted 10,000 — making it the largest gathering of its kind in the world. Activities include seminars geared at vehicle dwelling, ranging from city and stealth-parking, repair and improvement seminars (e.g., installing solar panels), identifying resources such as inexpensive vision and dental care (e.g., in Los Algodones, or Baja California, Mexico) to locating free second-hand items.
YouTube
In 2015, Wells started a YouTube channel called CheapRVliving to offer how-to videos, interviews with other vandwellers, and philosophical videos with inspiration by noted authors and thinkers. In May 2019, the channel was approaching 50 million views.
Homes on Wheels Alliance
In October 2018, Wells announced the creation of Homes on Wheels Alliance, a 501(c)(3) charity of which he is the president. Based in Pahrump, Nevada, the organization helps those with housing insecurity by acquiring vehicles and having volunteers convert them into a habitable space.
Works
- How to Live In a Car, Van or RV: And Get Out of Debt, Travel, and Find True Freedom, CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2014 ISBN 1479215899
Notes
- The term "rubber tramp" refers to a person who lives in a vehicle, which uses rubber tires.
References
- ^ Green, Penelope (January 31, 2018) "The Real Burning Man", The New York Times. Retrieved August 13, 2024. " ... Mr. Wells went through a bitter divorce that upended his finances. He couldn't afford to rent an apartment on his own; with his last $1,500 in savings, he bought a box van and moved into it, stealth-parking on the streets of Anchorage, where he worked at a Safeway and where his ex-wife and two sons lived."
- ^ "About CheapRVliving". YouTube.
- ^ Trujillo, Stevie (February 4, 2021) "Off-road, Off-grid: The Modern Nomads Wandering America's Back country, The Guardian. Retrieved August 13, 2024
- Horowitz-Ghazi, Alexi and Vanek Smith, Stacey (February 23, 2021) "Seeking Refuge On The Open Road", NPR. Retrieved March 7, 2021
- Paiella, Gabriella (February 19, 2021) "Talking to One of the Real Life Nomads of Nomadland", GQ. Retrieved August 13, 2024. "But if he was a reluctant newcomer, even crying himself to sleep the first night in his van, he eventually became the movement's greatest evangelist."
- ^ Sammon, Alexander (January 10, 2019) "YouTube Boomers Show #VanLife Isn’t Just for Millennials", Wired. Retrieved January 3, 2021. "Soon after, decamped from Alaska and moved with his wife to North Carolina, having ditched the van for a truck more suited to conventional domestic living. It didn't go well. "I despised living in that house. Owning a house is preposterous," he says. For Wells, it was fast becoming clear that the arrangement wasn't working. He tried to save the marriage by taking long trips, a month at a time, to the Florida Keys and to Maine for wildflower viewing. But being a mere hobbyist wasn't enough. In 2008, he left for a trip that both he and his wife acknowledged he wouldn't return from. Wells' return to full-fledged vehicle living came just as the economy nosedived ... "
- ^ "Meet the Real Nomads of 'Nomadland'". Inside Edition. April 27, 2021. Retrieved August 13, 2024.
- James, Caryn (September 14, 2020) "Nomadland Review: 'Overflowing With Humanity and Tenderness'", BBC. Retrieved August 13, 2024.
- DaSilva, Ricardo (May 21, 2024) "NCA Spreads Memorial Benefits Awareness at Homes on Wheels Alliance's 2024 Rubber Tramp Rendezvous", VA News. United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Retrieved August 13, 2024.
- N.B. (September 17, 2020) "Trading Four Walls for Four Wheels in 'Nomadland'", The Economist. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
- (May 26, 2019) "Van Life: Making One's Home on the Open Road", CBS News. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
- Harris, Selwyn (November 15, 2019). "Providing 'Homes on Wheels' in Pahrump Commmunity". Pahrump Valley Times. Retrieved August 13, 2024.
People will donate their vehicles and we will build them out and forward them on to someone in need ... We have purchased several vehicles.