New Credo: Over 50 But Not Over the Hill

Ten or 15 years ago, normal people in their 50s, 60s and 70sdidn't go hiking in the Rocky Mountains or learn to paddle a seakayak off the coast of New Zealand. They didn't sell their houses tobuy a van and camp around Europe or stay with a family in Japan.That was for kids.

A lot of Americans believed that once you hit 50, it wasdownhill into retirement and old age. Maybe there'd be a bus tour ortwo along the way - with fellow travelers shouting for the guide toturn up the microphone. If you were a widow or had a non-travelingspouse, the only acceptable vacation was a week with Aunt Thelma oryour grown children - surely not a study tour to Nepal or aMediterranean cruise.

Lately, however, the travel industry has begun to notice thatnot everyone in their maturing years is stamped from the traditionalcookie cutter. Birth-certificate dates do not determine travelpreferences.

Perhaps tourism is paying closer attention because thepopulation of 50-plus Americans - already spending 80 percent or moreof U.S. vacation dollars by some estimates - will double to more than125 million over the next 35 years. The travel industry isdiscovering that this new breed of seasoned traveler is healthier,longer lived, better educated and more adventurous than ever before.

So travel companies are racing to keep up with the demands ofpeople like Jack and Ruth Monteith, who sold their home and camped inEurope after retirement; Ona and Bob House, who took to the road withthe Retreads, an organization for older motorcyclists; George Utzig,who has volunteered for overseas projects to improve Third Worldeconomies, and Lloyd Lambert, founder of the 70 Plus Ski Club.

These people adapted their travels to their personal interests,enthusiasms and skills.

When Jack Monteith worked as a design artist at General Motors,rumors flew that the automotive giant would begin a wave ofearly-retirement offers. A friend asked Ruth Monteith what wouldhappen if Jack were on the list.

"I told her we'd sell our house, buy a van and bum around Europelike the kids," Ruth says. "My answer surprised me. That dream hadnever surfaced before, but it set things in motion." When Jackretired early, the Monteiths sold their house, ordered a camping vanfor pickup in Germany, and began a year of roaming Europe.

For Jack, it meant a chance to paint and draw; Ruth lookedforward to the famous sights and museums.

But what the Monteiths remember most is the people they met: afamily of circus performers who gave them tips about sightseeing andloaded their larder with goose, sausages and eggs; British camperswho took them to an RV rally in Belgium; a French artist who invitedthem over for a three-hour lunch that "looked like an Old Master'sstill life," Ruth recalls.

"I believe that any middle-aged or retired couple in reasonablehealth and with a spirit of adventure could do what we did," Jacksays.

Ona and Bob House, from Topeka, Kan., have that adventurousspirit, but prefer a less conventional mode of transportation thanthe Monteith's camping van. These grandparents in their mid-70s areofficers of the 20,000-member Retreads, a club for motorcycleenthusiasts 40 and older. The oldest member, now 102, rode aHarley-Davidson until he was 95.

Like other older Americans, Bob and Ona found that once theirchildren were grown, they had the desire and disposable income totravel. But unlike most other seasoned travelers, they decided thatmotorcycling was the way to go. They ride a three-wheeler powered bya Volkswagen engine that was custom-made by a friend.

The Houses have gone to the Retreads' international rallies andto regional chapter get-togethers and trips. They've vacationed bymotorcycle on their own, too.

"When we pull up to a motel, we take off our helmets before weget off the cycle," Ona says, "and when people behind the desk seetwo white heads, the expression on their faces sure does change."

George T. Utzig, of Dubuque, Iowa, has seen some satisfied lookson the faces of people he has met on his travels since his 1977retirement. George, 77, has volunteered for overseas assignmentswith the nonprofit International Executive Service Corps (IESC),which acts something like a free-market Peace Corps.

Retired executives and technical workers, usually with theirspouses, go to developing and former Communist countries to advisebusinesses. Each year, IESC sends more than 700 retirees to work on800 or more projects lasting two to three months on average. They'repaid a per-diem living allowance but no salary.

Utzig, whose professional background is in wood buildingproducts, has designed a factory in Sri Lanka, lectured on the usesof wood in Chile, and developed factories that make doors in CostaRica and kitchen cabinets in Guatemala. When he first arrived, theCosta Rican company was bankrupt, employed six people and used handtools. Now it has a 650-person payroll and annual sales of $10million.

Lloyd Lambert, a 90-year-old ski writer and broadcaster fromBallston Lake, N.Y., began a nonprofit organization to assist olderskiers.

"People came to me and said they couldn't affort to ski anymorebecause of fixed incomes," Lambert recalls. So in 1977, he began the70 Plus Ski Club.

For a $5 lifetime membership fee, downhill skiers 70 and olderreceive a card, an identifying patch and a 10-page listing of whereto ski free or at discounts in the United States, Canada, Australia,France and Switzerland. The organization also sponsors reasonablypriced ski trips to overseas and U.S. slopes.

These seasoned travelers are examples of the diversity ofinterests, abilities, needs and desires that characterize today'smature Americans.

Marcia Schnedler, wife of travel editor Jack Schnedler, isauthor of The Seasoned Traveler, a new guidebook published by CountryRoads Press. It is available at The Savvy Traveller and otherChicago area bookstores.