Trailer Troubles

The insurance adjuster found an RV repair company in Winston-Salem, NC who made arrangements with a trucking company to transport Sonny back to “Mommy” (the factory) for repair. We had only days to pack up all of our valuables and necessities. In addition, the factory needed all of our belongings, in the bedroom and basement areas, removed for the repairs to be completed. More than half of everything we loaded into Sonny had to go back home with us via a one-way U-Haul truck. To make this even more interesting, we had to coordinate turning in our rental car and picking up and loading the U-Haul to coincide with the arrival of the low-boy tractor trailer at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, April 7th. A massive cold front roared in the night before. Stressed from the urgency of packing, lack of sleep and the looming income tax deadline we loaded the truck on a blustery, cloudy, 50 degree morning. With Little Miss discontentedly howling in her pet carrier, we waited for the arrival of the tractor trailer - - and waited - - and waited. It arrived two hours later than scheduled due to a mechanical failure and repair (do you see the writing on the wall?).

Chris loading the final items into the U-Haul. Notice Little Miss' carrier to her right.

Little Miss in her carrier. We put her in last so that she could look out and feel not quite so "caged".

The Winston-Salem company sent two employees, Dustin and Daniel, to load Sonny onto the low-boy since it is not the truck driver’s responsibility. They too waited and passed the time with Jay playing catch with Max, while Chris stayed warm reading in the truck. We all expected that the low-boy would come equipped with loading ramps. Not to be. As a matter of fact Donald, the driver, said that he’d never towed this particular trailer before and that it was “quite old”. In other words, we had an antique trailer transporting our beloved Sonny a thousand miles to be repaired.

For those of you who have never had up close and personal experience with the mechanics of a low-boy trailer, perhaps we should describe how it normally works. We’re sure you’ve seen them on the road. They are the trailers that haul large construction equipment and tall, oversized loads. Imagine a long, shallow “u” shaped trailer where the bed of the trailer rides very close to the ground and the front and rear portions angle up to form platforms over the wheels. (This will make much more sense when you see the pictures below.) The front, gooseneck portion, detaches at the trailer bed level to allow the cargo to be driven onto the trailer bed. It is then reattached in order to tow. Disconnecting the gooseneck is normally a 10-minute process. It took the 3 D’s over two hours to beat the rusty hulk into submission.

The tractor-trailer hired to take Sonny back to Indiana.

1 PM: With the gooseneck dangling from the rear of the tractor, Dustin and Daniel set to work on creating a ramp from the 2x12’s, and other assorted lumber, they had brought with them. As they propped the planks in a variety of rickety configurations it became more apparent to us that a disastrous situation was in the making. (The military term for this is not printable here but it begins with gaggle.) At this point Chris couldn’t take it anymore and in her sweet, demure, gentle way, told them “We don’t want this to become a candidate for the Darwin Awards.” Donald quizzically peered at her through his round, wire-rimmed glasses trying to understand what she had just intimated. She saw the wheels turning in his mind. Finally he began to chuckle – he got it. Chris explained to the other two D’s what the Darwin Awards were and told them that a Lowe’s and Home Despot were a few miles up the road.

2 PM: The two D’s went shopping. Returning almost two hours later with lumber, and a brand new electric circular saw, they went to work building ramps that resembled the Bridge over the River Kwai. No Darwin Awards that day!!!

Dustin on the left and Daniel on the right positioning the ramps they built.

5 PM: The RV park roads were laid out in a skewed grid type formation with water and electric hookups protruding from the grassy areas in between. It so happens that a set of utility posts was directly in line with the front of the trailer about 50 feet away. Daniel’s truck, when hooked to our RV, is just about 50’ in length. If you do the math, it was impossible to line up the truck, RV and low-boy trailer in a straight enough line to easily get one onto the other. Add to this the fact that the RV wants to crab sideways, because of the bent axles, and you have a loading situation that just doesn’t work. Attempt after attempt was made to line up the RV wheels with the ramps without success.

With the ramps in place, Dustin directing Daniel as he backed the RV toward the trailer.

6 PM: The feat was accomplished only by twice backing the RV to a certain point, disconnecting it from the truck, straightening the truck in line with the RV, then reattaching before the RV was finally aboard the low-boy. But that wasn’t the end of it. Once aboard Daniel remarked that, when fully on the low-boy, the stern of the RV may hit the rear fender area of the trailer!! Chris muffled an expletive and, in the most controlled voice possible, under the circumstances, questioned “I thought all the measurements had been done ahead of time and that there wouldn’t be any problems with the trailer!?!?!!?!?!?” Daniel explained that the low-boy trailers were capable of being extended up to 5 feet. Our question was, “How do you do that when the RV is already loaded?” At this point, Jay took control and said, “Chris, let’s go. It’s getting late, we have a long drive and we need to get on the road. They have the RV loaded. Donald has signed for it and if they need to work until midnight, they’ll get it done. We don’t need to be here. Let’s go.” As frustrated as Chris was with the situation and desiring to monitor the loading until it was completed, she had to recognize the fact that Jay was right and she had to let go and leave for home. As it was we probably wouldn’t get home before 1 a.m. Reluctantly, but somewhat relieved we saddled up and rode off into the night. We breathed a sigh of relief when Daniel called a few hours later and told us that the loading was complete and the truck was ready to depart after the driver got a good night’s sleep.

Sonny loaded onto the low-boy. More position adjustments would be done before lashing it down for transport but, this is how we left it.

At this point, Dear Reader, you might think that all went well. Oh, how wrong you would be. Multiple times during this entire evolution, Chris and Jay took turns offering to measure the total height of the RV and the trailer from the ground. Willing neighbors, in the RV Park, offered to help with the measurements. Each time one or more of the Three D’s assured us it would not be necessary and they had it all under control. Two days later, when the trucking company called and began the conversation with small talk, Jay and Chris knew something was up. Sure enough, when Jay was asked “Uh, was there any damage to the top of the RV in the accident?” We knew immediately that their measurements had been faulty and it hit an overpass on the way to Indiana. The good news is, we got a brand new air conditioning unit, complements of the trucking company. Somehow bad things always turn out for the better.

The drive home was uneventful. Little Miss continued to howl her discontent when checked on and with no dog food handy to satisfy Max’s hunger, we discovered how much he really likes Quiznos cheese steak subs. While rolling into our driveway in the dark of night, Chris’ spirits were raised by the site of her front yard blooming with hundreds of cheery daffodils. If we have to be home for a while, spring is the best time.

The daffodils are waning by the time this photo was taken but imagine most of the front yard ablaze with bright yellow, white and orange blossoms.