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Old 06-27-2012, 07:20 PM   #1
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Wind pushes trailer over



Interesting video. The trailer was swaying, but we've all been behind trailers with some sway. Besides not being on the road in wind, what would have made a difference? Type of hitch / sway bars ?
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Old 06-27-2012, 08:20 PM   #2
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That brings back memories. Two years ago that happened to us. Went under a bridge and got hit by a sudden cross wind gust 50+ mph. Trailer started to sway then started to jacknife. Ended up almost getting control back but went onto shoulder and shallow ditch. When it got to the ditch it rolled. Total loss. No injuries.

Now to your question. We had dual cam sway bars and an excellent hitch. IF high winds had been predicted we would not have left camp. I don't think anything equipment wise would have helped. Going slower might have helped (was going about 60). But the suddeness of the gust, without warning, was the issue.

It was (is) tramatic enough that we took a year off from any camping. Decided to buy a class C (small) this year. No more trailers for us. I know that isn't logical or rational-accidents will happen. When you see us on the road, we will be the ones going 5-10 mph UNDER the limit. It's the only thing I feel I could have done differently.
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Old 06-27-2012, 08:31 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RvBill3 View Post
That brings back memories. Two years ago that happened to us. Went under a bridge and got hit by a sudden cross wind gust 50+ mph. Trailer started to sway then started to jacknife. Ended up almost getting control back but went onto shoulder and shallow ditch. When it got to the ditch it rolled. Total loss. No injuries.

Now to your question. We had dual cam sway bars and an excellent hitch. IF high winds had been predicted we would not have left camp. I don't think anything equipment wise would have helped. Going slower might have helped (was going about 60). But the suddeness of the gust, without warning, was the issue.

It was (is) tramatic enough that we took a year off from any camping. Decided to buy a class C (small) this year. No more trailers for us. I know that isn't logical or rational-accidents will happen. When you see us on the road, we will be the ones going 5-10 mph UNDER the limit. It's the only thing I feel I could have done differently.
I agree, don't think any hitch and sway control could have stopped it. The tv was a dually, so he wasn't overloaded. The hitch held up good, it had both sets of duals off the ground. Just a case of bad luck. Semis have been known to have been blown over also.
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Old 06-27-2012, 08:59 PM   #4
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In the video they are driving in a construction zone - so I'm assuming something like 45 - 55mph - not speeding.

Rogue gusts are scary. Wind and ice are my two least favorite parts of RVing. It's hard to know when the wind has died down and it's "safe".
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Old 06-27-2012, 09:09 PM   #5
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Holy Crap !!!
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Old 06-27-2012, 09:10 PM   #6
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I wondered about this one...good thing someone had a camera going. I bet the insurance company liked it. You never know when a gust of wind will hit. I noticed this past week coming down I-65 north of Nashville, they have signs out warning about sudden gusts of wind. I used to drive a VW Beetle..know all about wind gusts.
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Old 06-30-2012, 09:25 PM   #7
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I watched this a couple times. I don't see any sway control. And it looks like the back end of the dually is actually hanging from the tongue of the trailer by the safety chain. Accidents happen. I bet he needed a new pair of underwear!
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Old 06-30-2012, 09:43 PM   #8
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Looked at this video 5 times before I bought our 2012 FR Signature LT8315. I have a F150 Limited tow pkg., 5.4L, 3.73 ratio. I bought a Propride P3 1400 hitch.

Came home to San Diego from RVW in Lakeview Ohio. Wind in OK, TX and NM were 30-50 mph. At the Flying J had several motorhome owners stating how bad the wind was. While eating lunch I was talking to a big rig driver asking why they don't have the problems the RV folks have he thought it was the 5th wheel plate and the way it distributes the weight.

Looking at the Propride and the way the head articulates and the weight distributions with sway control may be why I didn't have any problems coming home.

The way I looked at a hitch was I spent 30K on the TT and 35K on the TV why spend $400.00 on a hitch to hold it all together??? The $2900 on the Propride was like an insurance policy.
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Old 06-30-2012, 10:42 PM   #9
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I saw this on YouTube a while back, and the owners had posted a comment that this was a "park" type trailer and they were in transit with it. They also mentioned that they were stopping at the next exit due to winds. It is scary to watch, but fortunately no one was hurt and all was insured.
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