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Show Sunday, January 21, 1996 THE DAILY HEIIALD, Provo, Utah .J M By MARCIA SCHNEDLER for a weeklong tour. "They were just leaving town when the escort announced that the bus company had figured the cost wrong," Thurman says, "so everyone would have to pay $100 more per person on the spot or be billed on return. Their other option was' to turn around and go back." Kirchner, Thurman and other itinerary and daily schedules in detail, the NMN brochure says, so the company knows what hours the driver must be available to your group. List such special needs as video equipment or a galley. Find out how long the company has been in business. Get and verify its Interstate Commerce Commission and DOT numbers, which leaders in the motorcoach-chartare required to operate legally. Ask for references from groups like industry say irresponsible companies' shortcuts on yours which have taken trips simimaintenance, services and driver lar to the one you are planning. Also ask for the company's s.afety ;an threaten Passenger secu- nty and comfort as well as the tour DOT safety rating. Only half of the itself. country's 6,800 charter companies The number of U.S. charter even have one, Hamilton says. motorcoach companies has grown "Satisfactory" is the standard ratfrom 1,500 before deregulation in ing. If it's "conditional" or they 1983 to 6,800 at the end of 1994. don't have a rating of any kind, About 55 percent of today's comtake a hard look at their operation. If it's "unsatisfactory," use anothpanies have six or fewer motorcoaches, with 1,500 of them owner firm. The brochure advises coning just one bus, according to Stan Hamilton at the Department of sumers to have the company proTransportation (DOT) Office of vide a copy of its certificate of Universal Press Syndicate If your senior group is If motorcoach olannino trip, a low bid from charter company may not be the irgain it seems. An Ohio group boarded three jses for a trip to Washington, 15.C, The volunteer planner of the ur got bids from several motor-ac- h companies listed in the Yel- w pleased with Pages and was g . i e aeai j . ..i .1sue u guueu. But on the way, all three buses id minor engine trouble, delaying . ,i an inour e group s ic:,i.. umvai uuay i i n i two. Ana on saiuraay morning, ;1 of the buses broke down again, is time with serious problems. '1 got a call from the local tour icort asking if I could help find iree motorcoaches to get them pmd on their' tour and possibly fjck to Uhio, says Meven Kirch-fir- ,: 1;LJ3g cost-cutti- ; garter companies. ''One of the drivers had called lie Ohio company to see what to Ilo, but got a recorded message that ie oifice was only open 9 a.m. to h 'p.m. 'weekdays," Kirchner says. Jt this company doesn t even pro-id- e an emergency number to its lirtvers, will it have the money to ix its motorcoaches and rent rs eplacements? I can't refer the to some company here that irobably won't get paid." John Thurman, executive vice resident of Van Galder Bus Co. in 'Janesville, Wis., remembers a Vlidwestern company that boarded two-- busloads of a retirees group I -zr ("X er 'j president of the National .btorcoach Network (NMN) in ,$shington, D.C., a marketing garjization of three dozen major ! Page D7 Motor Carriers. "In our industry, many buyers look strictly for price, and that's where the disasters begin," says Carl A. Lajeunesse, general manager of The Arrow Line in East Hartford, Conn. Disasters are not commonplace, but still they do happen, and once a tour has started, it's too late to do much about it. So the National , Motorcoach Network has pas-ange- insurance. Beware of any firm that gives any doubletalk about its insurance. See how many coaches are in the company's fleet. It's a gauge of the ability to provide alternate vehicles if there's a mechanical problem, or handle your group if it needs more than one bus during busy seasons. Find out the average age of the equipment. Vehicles over 10 years old, unless properly maintained, tend to be less reli- pro- duced a brochure listing "20 Consumer Protection Tips for Chartering a Motorcoach." The pamphlet tells senior travelers, who account for up to 75 percent of the U.S. group-tou- r market, what to ask before selecting a bus company, The first task is to spell out your ' . able. Visit each company you're considering. Inspect the motorcoaches, maintenance facilities and general offices. "You'll know in a hurrv if it's a guy with one old bus who does all the maintenance and driving himself," Lajeunesse says. You'll see whether the equipment has o amenities, such as reclining seats, enclosed overhead compartments, reading lights, a te two-by-tw- Photo'courtesy King Features Syndicate The Sleepytime Bear presides over an exhibit sew the Celestial Seasonings early tea bags. ... that also features the sewing machine used to Tea company's ' i Tea company offers tours This time of year, you just want to snuggle up with a steaming cup of hot tea. Once, such an urge would have been warm cocoa domain; but then an aromatic little company in Boulder, Colo., turned America on to flavorful herbal teas, and kettles across the full-size- steep visitors in the scents and sights of Celestial Seasonings. Tours start in the gift shop, which sells everything from tea sets to stuffed Sleepytime Bears mascot for the (the heavy-lidde- d tea). company's Once the guide gathers your group of tea tourists, you stroll past an herb garden and enter the best-selli- began country sewing machine used to stitch cloth bags for such Celestial orig- inals as Mo's 36, the company's d first tea. A Sleepytime tableau, with a giant stuffed bear in an easy chair, also is displayed. Heading toward the production area, you pass original artwork for the boxes of brews such as Mandarin Orange and Red Zinger. Exhibits along the way show how and where ingredients are, procured from around the world. Depending on when you visit, the place smells enticingly packaged teas. Today it's Amern ca's largest herbal tea company! with Siegel at the helm. The Boulder factory offers tours that By LAURA BERGHEIM King Features Syndicate whistling a different tune. Celestial Seasonings Tea, Inc., was started in 1969 by Mo Siegel and John Hay, who would go into the mountains with their girlfriends to pick herbs for hand- - corporate headquarters. Here, you learn the company's history amid artifacts including the galley, restroom or stereo and video equipment. Ask about procedures for ad emergencies. The company should have reciprocal maintenance agreements with other motorcoach , Photo courtesy National Motorcoach Network ; Motorcoach tours go to many fascinating places, but pitfalls await thjse who book a company without checking it out first. companies GoAnywhere and garages nationwide. DOT regulations limit drivers to 10 hours of continuous driving time or 15 hours on duty. Exceeding that limit is one of the most common violations DOT staff find during random roadside inspections. 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