Any way to purchase directly from Forest River?

I think not. Years ago (2008) the FR Website had a "Build Your Own" page, it's gone.

Probably a mistake to undercut dealers and sell to public at wholesale, sure they have dealer prices which allow dealers to negotiate a customer price. That's why the big dealers have the best retail price, they purchase more at wholesale and get a better price. In my mind the deal will be at the dealer not the manufacturer.

If someone has done this, I would also be interested in hearing about it.

Your dealer, if they ae a good one, essentially finishes the job of building the RV.  They go over the vehicle and correct defects as well as repair things that have happened during the transport from the factory.  It is well worth the cost.

If you do a search on RV Trader (www.rvtrader.com) for R-Pod, you can find the dealers as well as private sales in your area. I provided a link for you.

You can get a good idea of a very low price by getting a price from Couch's in Ohio. After you get it, you'll have to factor in the cost of shipment, the lack of dealer prep, the lack of a walk-through, and the (highly) probable lack of warranty support from the dealer you didn't buy it from. In the end, it was worth it for us, but it may not be for everyone. If you have a good dealer who will prep it and stand behind it, you're probably best off using them, but you can still use Couch's price as a negotiating tool.