709
Caledonia Drive Martinsburg,
WV 25401
(304)260-JUMP (5867)
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709
Caledonia Drive Martinsburg,
WV 25401 |
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The Concept The concept of taking a retired school bus and giving it new life is nothing new. For decades, people have been renovating surplus school buses for a variety of uses... as campers, mobile classrooms -- even tour vehicles for musical groups (who doesn't remember that brightly-painted icon of the '70's "The Partridge Family" Bus!). The term "Tumblebus" traces its roots to a company of the same name in New Albany, IN which began converting buses into mobile gyms and marketing them to would-be entrepreneurs in the late '80's. Since that time, others have shared the mobile gym concept, renovating their own bus and building a business from scratch. Today, "Tumblebus" has fairly well evolved into a generic description for the many independently owned and operated mobile gym buses across the country. The Reality For years, Miss Stacie had dreamed of operating her own mobile gym business. She knew the buses existed and became familiar with the concept through her contacts in the gymnastics industry. After completing a preliminary needs assessment, Stacie was certain that such a program could flourish in the Eastern Panhandle and surrounding communities. Now all she had to do was get her husband "Mr. Rick" on-board. Earlier attempts to float the idea to her spouse brought responses such as "You want to do WHAT with our money?!!" (Mr. Rick is the eternal pessimist.) Finally in June 2002 -- with the stress and long hours of non-profit administration beginning to takes its toll -- Miss Stacie acted on her dream. She contacted Chris Deyo, a tumblebus business owner in State College, PA. who invited the Rohns to spend a day with him on his bus. That one visit solidified Stacie's desire to own her own bus, erased many of Rick's doubts and set in motion the creation of "Miss Stacie's Tumblebus." At 1am on a July Sunday morning at the Martinsburg Waffle House, Stacie and Rick mapped out a plan to get "Miss Stacie" on the road. Further research lead the Rohns to Heidi and Craig Parr and Bev Wood in nearby York, PA. Wood had recently purchased the Parr's tumblebus business consisting of two buses. The Parr's sold their buses to Wood to devote full time energies to opening "Tumbletown" gymnastics businesses at two York-area shopping malls. The Parrs and Wood proved to be the primary sources of information and guidance to Stacie and Rick throughout the creation of their business. In Craig Parr though, Stacie and Rick found much more than advice. They found a bus builder. When increasing demand gave Heidi Parr the opportunity to add another tumblebus, she turned to husband Craig to build their second bus. Craig and his father Roger operated and maintained heavy equipment and trucks as part of their family-owned business, so they already possessed many of the skills and tools needed to convert a school bus for gymnastics use. After seeing the impressive craftsmanship of the Parr-built bus, Stacie and Rick asked the father/son duo if they'd be game to build "Miss Stacie's Tumblebus." Once cost figures were agreed upon, only one obstacle remained... finding The Perfect Bus.
For Stacie and Rick it was love at first sight. Within the week, the Rohn's returned to Brightbill with the Parr's to get their expert opinion on the possible purchase. After driving her and performing an extensive mechanical inspection, the Parr's gave their stamp of approval and the purchase contract was signed.
After some last minute tweaks and modifications, Craig proclaimed "Miss Stacie's Tumblebus" ready for the road. On Sunday October 27, 2002, "Miss Stacie's Tumblebus" left the Parr's garage in York with Miss Stacie on board, "Mr. Harold" Snyder behind the wheel and Rick and his dad R.J. following in two other vehicles loaded with related equipment, all bound for Martinsburg, WV. 114 miles, almost three hours and one memorable meal stop later, "Miss Stacie's Tumblebus" arrived in Martinsburg ready to begin her second career serving children bright and early that Monday morning.
October
27, 2002... The Big Day and the culmination of a dream. |
Come Aboard The Bus! Here's
an idea of the many
Circle Time! Interior view showing the forward activity area configured for "circle time." The children "sit on their star" to enjoy group circle activities with Miss Stacie. Compare this "after" view of the bus interior with the photo below of the same area during the conversion process.
Jump,
Roll A variety of mats setup in the forward activity area for the "jump, roll & crawl" activity.
Straddle Vault Miss Stacie adds the trampoline and hand/feet guides for this activity.
Climbing Wall A kid favorite, our brightly-painted Climbing Wall allows program participants to climb amongst the creatures of the jungle. ******************* In addition,
Miss Stacie's Tumblebus offers the following equipment and activities... Spring Board Rings Turning Bar Octagon & Vaulting Boxes Tunnel Zip Line Ball Pit
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Vital
Stats For 1992 Bluebird International DT-360 4-Speed Allison Top Speed: Classified Average Fuel Economy Installed Hardware... Generac Quietpac
75D 2 Coleman-Mach 2 1,500 watt Kenwood KD-SX980
September
6, 2002...
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Site
designed by "Mr. Rick" Rohn using
Macromedia Dreamweaver MX & Fireworks
MX. Page
last updated
February 27, 2005 9:23 AM
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So
in late August 2002, Stacie and Rick embarked on a trip through Central
Pennsylvania in search of The Perfect Bus... and a quiet getaway. After
a romantic overnight at the Hershey
Highland Bed & Breakfast for
their 10th Wedding Anniversary, Stacie and Rick stopped at 
