KAjunRaider

Here is a story that Family Motor Coaching Magazine did on the Randolphs: http://www.fmca.com/index.php/component/co...o-to-miss-allie A 1983 Tiffin Allegro motorhome went from being abandoned and unloved to becoming a popular and lovely lady with the attention of FMCA members Sperry and Pam Randolph. By Peggy Jordan, Associate Editor September 2007 The deserted 1983 Tiffin Allegro motorhome sat in a field near a home in La Vergne, Tennessee, so long that a small tree had grown through one of its entry steps. Its carpet was rotted; its brown paneling and dash were woefully out of style; its tires were toast — and those were only a few of its problems. In the summer of 2004 Sperry Randolph drove past the 30-foot motorhome, and, as he was already in the habit of seeing things as they could be, he figured the old RV had potential. He returned to his home in Murfreesboro, told his son, Trey, about it, and the two of them visited the old motorhome to see if it was worth salvaging. Before long, a wrecker truck was hauling their decrepit prize back home with them. Meanwhile, wife and mom Pam Randolph had no idea the guys were about to add an ancient vehicle to the driveway. She was at work in a beauty shop along the same road the men were traveling with the wrecker, and Sperry was eager for her to see it. "Right before we got there I called her on the cell phone and told her to look out the window," he said. Pam was not amused. "One of my customers started laughing and called it an ark!" she said. As for Pam, she was so embarrassed, "I could have slid under my mat!" "When he came in I was really upset," she explained. "I just didn't see the thrill; I just didn't get it. That's when I got really jealous and started calling it 'the other woman.'" Ah, but this "other woman" was a gem that had been discarded too soon. She would sparkle once more, if given adequate attention. So Sperry set to work. He had plenty of mechanical experience, having learned how to work on cars and engines at an early age. Plus, he had purchased fixer-upper homes, rehabbed them, and rented them. With Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) close by, and the market for student housing being what it is, he's been a landlord for many years — and the guy to call if something needs to be repaired at one of the rental units. "I was always handy with stuff and was always the kind of person who could watch somebody do something and do it," he said. But still, he admitted, the old motorhome "looked pretty bad." "The big thing was to see if it would run," Pam recalled. "I changed the filters and put on new belts and hoses, a new water pump, and stuff that I thought might give us trouble," Sperry said. "Changed the fluid and filter on the transmission. It shifts real well. I got under it when I was checking everything out." The coach's Chevrolet 454-cubic-inch engine had 46,000 miles on it. And once it was equipped with its new belts, hoses, water pump, battery, and radiator (they found the coach's original radiator lying in a shack on the property where the motorhome waited), plus some starting fluid, the engine roared to life. And that's not all. The central vacuum system still worked, as did the Onan generator, which had 205 hours on it, and even the two roof air-conditioning units. In fact, according to Pam, the A/C units run so well that the coach gets positively frigid, much colder than air-conditioning in a nearly new motorhome owned by some friends of theirs. Of course, that was just the beginning. Much more had to be done. "We put brakes on it all the way around," Sperry said. "That was something I was very impressed with: Allegro motorhomes had disc brakes on them all the way around way back in 1983!" Tiffin technicians also impressed Sperry with their ability to help him rehab the old motorhome. Pam said, "He could pick up the phone and call those people; he had them on speed dial on his phone. He'd be under the unit on his back, talking to the guys at Tiffin." They were impressed that people familiar with such an older coach would still be with the company, and that "they would just walk him through it. They never lost their patience with Sperry," she added. The couple has talked about taking the 30-footer back to the Tiffin factory just to show her off. "Red Bay, Alabama (location of Tiffin company headquarters), is not so far from Murfreesboro," Pam mused. If you have not already guessed, Pam lost her motorhome envy not too long after the coach came to stay. Her change of heart most likely occurred the day Sperry asked her to help him with the interior décor. "Then I thought, I'm gonna have to live with this thing," she said. "She did a tremendous job on the vinyl seat covers," Sperry added. As it turned out, once she overcame her initial distaste for the project, Pam joined in enthusiastically, searching all over the Internet and elsewhere for certain replacement items for the interior. And it seems that nearly every new part of the coach has a story attached to it. For one, consider the bathroom, which occupies the rear of the vehicle. Its toilet was horrid, and its bathtub was a dark gold color that, although popular in 1983, is not considered so stylish today. To bring the tub back to the future, Sperry used Krylon-brand Fusion paint. "It adheres to fiberglass and outdoor patio furniture — it worked like a million dollars," he said. He also replaced the accordion-style doors to the bathroom with a set of bi-fold doors, and installed a new bathroom light and medicine cabinet. He added a built-in hair dryer, plus an all-brass toilet paper dispenser that fits into the wall. Additional details such as built-in soap dispensers in the kitchen and bathroom, and homelike fixtures also make the inside comfy. Sperry is proud of the fact that he added residential-type wall switches throughout the coach, which quickly illuminate a room, rather than installing those "little bitty RV switches." To further enhance Miss Allie's interior: • The Randolphs put light-colored wallpaper atop the dark wood paneling to brighten the inside of the coach; plus, they applied mirrors to the refrigerator door and bathroom doors to reflect light. • Using that same wallpaper, Pam fashioned window treatments (shades) by folding sections of the wallpaper in one-inch increments. She used a paper puncher to pierce holes on the edges and threaded a string through them. Because of moisture in the bath area, the window there has a Roman shade. • They added quite a bit of brass. It all sprang from the day Sperry came home with an unwanted piece of brass railing. That one railing, which now is the entry handle to the coach, launched a widespread brass attack. "Then I went on eBay and found some brass 12-volt fixtures, and started finding brass things," Pam said. "All of a sudden, it (the coach) had a sparkle." • They added blue countertops, which look classy with brass strips along their edges. • They brightened the brown 1980s vinyl dashboard. "I found vinyl paint that I had to use on a motorcycle seat a few years ago," Sperry said. "We painted it white." • The refrigerator was replaced, with millimeters to spare. "We found one on eBay, a brand-new Dometic," Pam said. "He and I measured and measured, and I told them to make good and sure the measurements are within 1/16 of an inch. We couldn't get the fridge through the door or the driver's door without taking off the steering column, so Trey helped him take the side window out — but it worked!" • The twin bunk beds that were located toward the rear of the coach were converted to studio beds. Pam worked her upholstery magic on these, and on other seating in the motorhome. • The brown-and-white-striped original awning ripped down its entire length upon its first re-deployment. When a new awning was affixed, "It was one of the certain little milestones along the way," Pam said. As the months rolled on, the old Tiffin became "Miss Allie" — a new name for a much beloved "other woman." The completed Miss Allie debuted in all her glory in October 2006 at an MTSU football game, and has since proved her mettle in towing a bass boat and the family's golf cart on a matching blue trailer. Miss Allie's final cost was approximately $5,000. The Randolphs paid $1,300 for the coach itself, and spent the rest of the money on upgrades. The motorhome now is flashy and clean, shiny and welcoming. She can accommodate a party of up to 12. "It's got glitz!" Pam said enthusiastically. "It's called glamping — glamour camping!" Tailgating with two With her Middle Tennessee State University colors and slogans, Miss Allie seems to have been born to tailgate. But so does another vehicle the Randolphs use on game days: a golf cart. The couple admits that Miss Allie followed in the tire tracks of the cart, because they already had converted it a year before they found the motorhome. School logos and MTSU slogans such as "Raiders Rule!" and "Go Blue Raiders" cover the cart. Sperry and Pam had the decals made at a sign shop. It's no surprise that Miss Allie is similarly decorated. The words "This is Blue Raider Country" are emblazoned right below the front windshield. "Follow Me To Middle Tennessee" appears on the back of the coach.Inside, all the upholstery colors are MTSU blue and white. "When Miss Allie came along, do you think we'd have it plain?" Pam asked. No one can help but notice that the motorhome and golf cart look like official MTSU-sanctioned vehicles. Sometimes the Randolphs have to tell tailgaters that Miss Allie is a private coach, for folks just assume the university has provided her for their use. The Randolphs' love affair with MTSU began years ago. They met at a university basketball game, and celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary this past August. The Randolphs rent housing to students, and their son, Trey, graduated from MTSU in 2006. For the Randolphs, being MTSU boosters is a given. But, according to Sperry, their ownership of the Blue Raiders golf cart was not premeditated. "I ran across a three-wheel Harley-Davidson that was an electric, and I liked the look of the cart and fixed it up and eventually sold it," he said. "I liked it so well that we found another one that was a gas one, again, old. The body of the golf cart was fiberglass. It was just a pretty blue, and here we live so close to MTSU, we thought we'd just fix the cart up." By the time the golf cart was rolling around like a gas-powered cheerleader, the Randolphs' son, Trey, was a sophomore at the university. He frequently could be seen driving the cart, and even installed a stereo system. "And we put two air horns on it, and an 'ooga' horn," Sperry said. On the spot where one would normally write down golf scores is a rare item to obtain, indeed: an official MTSU football helmet. It was a gift to Sperry from someone inside the university's sports department — proof that enthusiasm for the Blue Raiders does not go unnoticed among the higher-ups. These days the golf cart looks like Miss Allie's baby when it's being towed, and the duo attracts considerable attention on game days. "We love to see people's faces and all the grins," Pam said. "It brings out a carnival, circus-type feeling in people who see us coming. Miss Allie and the golf cart just make a lot of people smile."

They are in the Blue Lot near the stadium. Make sure and go by to say hello. They'll talk your ears off. Names are Pam and Sperry Randolph. Best of Luck and here's to an injury-free game for both teams. May the best team win ! Here is their previous RV (they have subsequently fixed up a larger one):

I think we'll win by 10 or so. This is the best MT team we've probably ever had. But I'm a homer. Very concerned about the game, however. I've got some buddies who will have their RV in the Blue Lot at NT. Drop by and say hello. Their names are Pam and Sperry Randolph.

http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net/mms/rt/...ject=1275128703

MT 27 pUNT 17

We wish you guys the very best. Kick some DLSU tail ! (David Letterman State) Just got off the phone with FireFightin'Rick and they sound like they are having a big time. 17-hour drive-- Whew !

I voted for the Mean Green. Vote for MT in the other one: http://www.thewizofodds.com/the_wiz_of_odds/primary-5/

I think half of Michigan and Ohio are here in Murfreesboro now. Never thought I'd miss the Southern accents so much. Northern accents are much worse yoooose guyyyys. You would not believe the Ohio State and Michigan para"fan"alia I see around here.

Same post by this Ball State juggernaut is on the Blue Raider message board : http://forums.scout.com/mb.aspx?s=349&...8&t=4648694 We removed his sh*tty link

stAte had a very impressive crowd against us last year. Probably 10K alone tailgating behind the stadium in what they call Tailgate City. In addition, almost every business on the way to the stadium had "Go Redwolves" signs and para"fan"alia throughout the town. You knew you were in stAte country, that is for sure. Then they proceeded to beat the bejeezus out of us.

The Morehead Coach, Donnie Tyndall (at MT 3 years ago as Kermit's top assistant) was actually quoted aa saying he wanted the "play-in" game for recruting purposes. It was a win/win for sure.

How about the PA Announcer? Thought he was excellent. He is the former PA guy for the Cajuns, until he moved to Florida last year.

True. I did not attend any more of the men's games, so I don't know how many WKU or UALR brought. That said...... without our women's fans attending the men's game, North Texas would have had many more. I think we just had about 100 "mens only" fans. They left after our men were eliminated.

Not that it matters, but MT had more than UNT during our game in the quarterfinals. I went on the opposite side of the team benches and it wasn't close. North Texas did, however, have a great group of fans. Our fans were much more vocal for the women. We did not have much to yell about for the men.......never even had the lead against UNT, not for one second. MT fans set a record for tournament book pre-sells not playing on their home court, according to our upper brass.

Our baseball coach said that North Texas was getting baseball a couple of years ago. What happened, and is this a possiblitly in the future? Texas is absolutely loaded with hardball talent.

They seemed to lack the team chemistry this year. They had several suspensions, academic issues, injuries, etc. Once their HC gets "his" players in, they should be OK. If not for APR, I bet Brady would have cleaned house...... and still may do so.

No question........ Waters. I want Kermit to win the SBC Tourney and keep his job. In fact, in this economic climate, I'm all for keeping Kermit for another year and see how it works out.

Didn't the MAC just sign a deal getting 10 ESPN games? Didn't the SBC already get 2 ESPN games, one being the N'Awlins Bowl ? The deal stinks to high heaven. Same old, same old. Waste Waters should be fired........... yesterday. Hire in a young, driven assistant commish from the SEC, ACC, etc.

Your girls played "dirty" ball, and Rick Insell and our ladies aren't going to back off. We have had many games this year when it could have been a much wider margin of victory, and other teams didn't keep fouling. Insell called off the dogs.

Nope. Your coach should have called off her press, and we would have called off the dogs. Moreover, your girls were so winded that they resorted to fouling, because they couldn't keep up. It got nasty out there. One of our low post starters went out with injury, so we had to keep Clark in there for a longer period of time. Every player from our bench scored (we have just 10 players, and with one out we had 9). Every player played at least 4 minutes. Also........ we are getting ready for the NCAA Tourney. We wanted to play some of our subs with our starting lineup, in case we need them at that time. We have a Juco transfer that is starting to come on, and she needs to be in the game with Clark, because she'll be the "5" and Clark the "4". We didn't need two "5"'s in there at the same time. We needed to play our subs in "game time" situations. We were also practicing some new plays--- like some back-door cuts with our point guard, etc. Your young coach learned a valuable lesson on Sunday, I hope. It is very rare for a team to keep pressing like your team did when the game is so far out of reach. That said.......... we did run clock when we could. When you pressed, we kept getting easy layups. We could have broken the scoring record easily, and we dribbled out the last 30 seconds or so.

Board moderators, or local site owners for Rivals, can boost star rating up to a certain point for Rivals. If your school does NOT have a Rivals site, your rankings are lower. On Scout, board owners and admins do NOT have the permission to hand out stars like tater chips. Over the years, Scout.com has been much more accurate on their abilities to judge potential of players. Scout.com is slower to get the recruits in the databases, however. But non-Power Schools often times suffer the "lower star" syndrome when it comes to Rivals.com.

We have the exact same problems at MT. Me personally, as I get older I stand and cheer less. I yelled like a madman when I was in school, but now it's time for others. I suspect in another 10-15 years I'll do much less than I do now. One of these days we'll all be a "blue hair" I reckon'.

My family is going. Four + one on the way

Are these "home" games at their stadium, or in the Miami Dolphins' stadium ?

As an MT fan, I think he should. He seems to be a better game manager. But maybe Vizza is doing as told. I thought Meager was not a bad QB at all, and had a lot of potential.