Stories about having to disconnect your toad

[sharon]

Soos, I can't back up a trailer, but I can back the heck out of a car or pick up. Hope can be a little iffy at times, tho. My dad taught me to back up using the side mirrors, he even went so far as to cover up the rearview mirror. It just amazes me that my BF can't back up with the side mirrors, and he has a 5er. I've always been grateful to my dad that he taught me how to drive and the things he taught me. I spent hours backing in a straight line and around corners. Thank goodness he did 'cause Hope doesn't have a back window and even if she did 34ft is a little far to be looking down!

[bluepinecones]

I'm impressed with all of you for back up skills. I struggle just backing up a mini van . Wish I'd had a good teacher for I really hate backing up.

[sharon]

This is how my dad taught me....go to a fairly empty parking lot if you can, if not, your street if it's not busy. Cover your rear view mirror with something, maybe a couple of socks or footies. Do not look over either shoulder, pick a spot and slowly back towards it. Just use leetttlllle turns of the wheel, don't crank it! Keep practicing this until you hit your mark every time. When you can do that, find a curve, or use your driveway, and practice turning w/o looking in rearview mirror or over your shoulder. Pretty soon you'll be a backing fool! It's really easy once you get used to using the side mirrors and seeing everything backwards. Then go to a parking lot and start backing into parking spaces using only the side mirrors. You are allowed to move your mirror up or down if it's electric. It helps to move it down to watch the white lines in the parking lot. Sometimes Hope's mirrors are looking at the ground so I can see where my wheels are going. Just be aware of what's around and behind you. Easy Peasy!

[sharon]

And I didn't say I liked it, I just hate a back in camping spot!!!!

[retiredhappy]

Absolute best words are " PULL THROUGH" .

[asirimarco]

Here is an excerpt from our trip to South America in 1978 - we were driving a 24 foot motorhome and pulling a 20 foot trailer loaded with "stuff." We went to San Blas Mexico down a road towards the beach. Stopped to ask where the campground was. Aren't Macho Men wonderful.

“The campground is over there,” Bill said as he got back into the Casa Rodante (house on wheels) and started it. He pulled forward a bit - then stopped. He put it into reverse and backed up a few feet - then he stopped, opened the window and stuck his head out to look behind us. There seemed to be a problem. The motorhome with the trailer behind was too big and unwieldy to turn around on the narrow gravel road. If he backed up straight the trailer, which was now at right angles to the motorhome, would jack knife or drop into the sand, if he went forward the front wheels of the motorhome would be either in the sand or climbing the porch of the cantina. Either way we would be stuck for sure. He had to keep everything on the road. Now this was a predicament. The card players were out of their chairs leaning on the porch rail watching with interest. One turned and called to someone inside and the men and women from the cantina came out to watch too. One man still had his guitar in his hands. He sat down in one of the now empty chairs and put his booted foot up on the rail and continued to strum his instrument while watching us with interest. The rest leaned on the rail or sat on the steps. Now the smart/easy thing to do would have been for Randy and John Mc to get out unhook the trailer and move it out of the way. Bill could then have turned the motorhome around, hooked the trailer back up and been on our way. But Bill had to do the macho thing and maneuver out because the local hombres were watching and betting on whether the estupido Gringo would be able to get moving without getting stuck. Looking out the back window, I could see that more of the town had come down to the beach to watch. There was a lot of gesturing and talking and exchanging of money going on on that porch. Words of encouragement were shouted to Bill with each inch gained. One half-hour of sweat and swearing and twisting and turning later the motorhome and trailer were headed back towards town and the campground. One of the card players hollered and waved and came up to the window with a fist full of bills and grinning told Bill he knew he could do it. He invited us to join him at the cantina that evening - he would buy.
“Probably the best entertainment they’ve had in years,” says John Mc. We all gave him a dirty look and told him to “Shut-Up!”

[Pooker]

Carol -

You definitely win!

Pooker

[Cedar518]

because the local hombres were watching and betting on whether the estupido Gringo would be able to get moving without getting stuck. ......One half-hour of sweat and swearing and twisting and turning later the motorhome and trailer were headed back towards town and the campground.

Wow,... congratulations to "The Driver!"

[OutandAbout]

Carol, did the driver learn to unhook? Great story. This is why I am too chicken to tow. If I got stuck like that I would have a melt down and cry I'm proud of you ladies that can tow. Linda

[snowball]

what a good story Carol!!! made me laugh
sheila

[sharon]

Great story, Carol!

[Rufflesgurl]

Two summers ago we were in Yellowstone driving along enjoying the scenery when the MH ahead of us tries to make a U turn to go back the other way and they didn't make it. So, they were blocking traffic from both ways with the MH and their tow completely taking up the whole road. The woman jumped out of the passenger seat and ran to the tow car, got in and started it and her husband got out of the coach and went to unhook the tow car. Now mind you, traffic was stopped from both directions. We encouraged them both for the team work they did. She drove the toad to the other side of the road while he backed up the coach and got it straight so they could rehook and head out.

They had been with a group of MH travelers and they made a wrong turn so they were going to try to reconnect with their group. We enjoyed the rest of our day!!

[asirimarco]

I could keep this topic going for months - here is another episode from our trip to So America - it happened days before the San Blas fiasco. We were on our way to Guadalajara - remember this was in 1978. We were driving a 24 foot Pace Arrow motorhome towing a 20 foot trailer. We had four of our five kids with us. And a friend.


Reading the guidebook I discovered there were 24 distilleries in Tequila and I thought it would be interesting to visit one.
The day was beautiful, the boys were content and Bill was agreeable. “Just tell me how to get there.”

I did. “Turn right here,” I said, my finger tracing the route on the map. “Now left there.” The distillery I picked to visit was down towards the center of the old part of town where the streets were still cobblestones. Cobblestones were very rough to drive on, everything inside bounced and rattled around and the motorhome creaked in every joint. The bunk bed bounced up and down, each time getting closer to The Driver's head. In the mirror I could see the scowl on his face getting more intense. But he just gritted his teeth, clutched the wheel and continued to follow my directions. I pretended I didn’t notice the look or the racket or jarring and continued to call out directions. By now we were into a very narrow one-lane, cobblestone street.
“Now turn left,” I told him, "it should be just around this corner."
Warily he turned the motorhome and trailer into another one-lane, cobblestone street. The tequila plant was smack dab in front of us. In fact the street ended at the entrance of the plant.
Bill braked, threw his hands up in the air and turned to look daggers at me. I carefully folded the map in my lap while acting as if I was very interested in looking at the massive stone buildings that surrounded us on three sides. John came up to sit next to me and we sat there looking out the windshield at the four or five blue clad workers who had been lounging next to the building in the shade. Now, cigarettes hanging from their lips, they were staring opened-mouthed at us.
So there we were head first, trailer behind, up against the entrance and loading dock area of the tequila plant. The one I wanted to visit.
Inside the motorhome there was dead silence. One thing the boys had learned was when to keep quiet.

Outside, one of the workers standing between the dock and us straightened up and started toward us. He was frantically gesturing, arms above his head, motioning for us to back up. I could hear him yelling, “No! No!” as he continued to make pushing motions at us. I couldn’t understand what he was saying, but I was pretty sure he wasn’t inviting us in for a tour.

Bill, released the catch on his seat, spun it around, braced his hands on the arms and propelled himself up out of it. All the time glaring at me. Another dirty look came my way as he grabbed his black Stetson and jammed it on his head. With a hitch of his pants he went out the door and down the steps to talk to the gathering crowd. The motorhome rocked with the force of the door slamming shut. One man shuffled forward to meet him. With a shake of their heads they both turned to study the motorhome and trailer. After a few minutes of discussion Bill and the worker started walking towards the back. The rest of the men fell in behind as they walked around the motorhome and trailer, twice.

The only thing to do was back the 24-foot motorhome with the twenty foot trailer on the back down a one-lane cobblestone street around a corner.
“Why don’t Randy and I get out and take the trailer off. We can get it out of your way so you can back up,” says John Mc (the friend) as Bill comes back inside. He is brave, maybe because he isn’t actually related to Bill. His offer is not received with good grace.
John, Paul and Gil slink back to the back bed. Randy keeps dealing his cards, not looking up. I sit there keeping my mouth shut as we ever so slowly back down the street towards the corner. Back a little bit - forward a little bit to straighten out the trailer. A couple of the workers walk to either side of us giving Bill directions. Getting the trailer around the corner was the hard part, but he finally made it and soon the motorhome was also around the corner and backing towards an intersection. The workers wave good bye their faces bright with smiles (laughter).
Within a few minutes, we are out of Tequila back on the main highway heading to Guadalajara, without visiting a distillery.
Everyone found something in the back of the motorhome to occupy them.
I alone remained up front ready to give more directions. When asked.

He is still stuborn that way.

[sharon]

Yup, I can help you out with another story. On vacation in Arkansas, going north on 65 I saw a sign that said "Natural Bridge". Now I have to tell you, DH was great at stopping to see stuff. He couldn't go by a dip in the road with a sign without stopping to see what it was. And he didn't mind going out of his way to see something if I found it on a map or in a book. His attitude was "it's only a couple of hundred miles, let's go!" Needless to say we never made it as far as we planned and never saw everything we planned to see on any one vacation. Anyway, I saw this sign, X amount of miles up the road and I suggested we stop. He said why not? Made the right turn, went probably 1/8 of a mile, another sign....RV's not reccomended beyond this point or some such nonsense. 32ft class C, Ford Taurus on back on a tow dolly. Narrow 2 lane road and fields fenced in. Deep ditch on each side. Cannot repeat what DH had to say about that! We continued on a ways, found a fork in the road, took car off dolly, took dolly off RV, turned RV around, rehooked Dolly. I asked DH did he want to guide me onto the dolly and his response....HELL no!!! After all that, we're gonna go see that %%##%@ bridge! Got in the car, left the rv partially blocking the lane and went down to see the bridge. After we got down the hill going to it, we saw that there would have been plenty of room to turn the whole rig around and park, too!!! He wasn't a happy camper! But the bridge was kind of cool.