Camping Bloopers or Funny Stories - Page 2

Wobbles · 02-19-2016, 09:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

"Honest confession is good for the soul!"

Heard that phrase before. Just never with the "Honest" put in front of it. Does that mean plausible deniability?

Tfort · 02-19-2016, 09:21 PM

This not while camping but during the walk through when we bought our 5er. While finishing up some paperwork we had a usual Florida summer afternoon shower. When we went outside to meet with the tech to start the walk through process it was still raining a little. The tech took us inside to start inside while the weather cleared. He was a bit frustrated because he had an order he liked to show everything that was out of order because of the rain. We finished inside and continued to the outside. We were almost done when he says oh I forgot to show you this as he reached up and pulled down bar on the awning that adjusts the pitch or the auto dump feature. Remember it has been raining for a bit before this. As soon as he did it I hear water rushing across the awning. I reach up and push my wife over to get her out of the way as a couple gallons of fresh rain water douse me on the head. Although I was able to keep my wife dry I am not sure her pants were dry as she almost peed her pants laughing at me. Later when we went back in to finish the paperwork the salesman asked us how it went and without missing a beat the wife responds with "very refreshing" and starts laughing all over. When we finished and were outside hooking the truck up the service manager informs us that in his career that was the first time he had one of his techs demonstrate the dump feature on a customer. The tech was probably glad to see he did this to one of the most easy going people.

2000 F250 CC 4x4 7.3L diesel

15 Salem Hemisphere Lite356QB

Justice12t · 02-19-2016, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wobbles

Heard that phrase before. Just never with the "Honest" put in front of it. Does that mean plausible deniability?

...I talked about having to remove someone else's rubberized protection "device" from my sewer line...I was honest that it wasn't mine...judgement free zone with some good stories told by good people with some good laughs...

Buck1032 · 02-19-2016, 10:25 PM

Thanks The_Rhino! You refreashed my repressed memories. Just stating for the record we are starting our 4th season so still a little wet behind the ears. We bought our Surveyor when our son was 5 and still in the peanut bladder, no warning stage. As such we have gotten into several very interesting situations. Once in our first year camping our son announced he really had to go bad! We always try to take the next exit so our son can get relief. Well we were just getting into some town and well pulled off and the Sunday afternoon church crowd was out in force. The DW acting as navigator says turn left and head up to what appears to be a turn to the left with a bank up on the hill. I follow the directions and as I get into the entrance we are met with poles blocking. Due to the curve and hill to get in I didn't want to blindly back out into the road. There was a really nice and wide sidewalk (I did not see it as a sidewalk) so I back up a little and start a hard left turn. I get us lined up on the sidewalk, DW takes our son to the camper to use the bathroom and we beat feet out of there with our heads hung low. Lol

Dwilcox · 02-19-2016, 10:46 PM

The DW and I had had just moved from a PUP to a 33' bunkhouse as the kids were getting bigger. Our daughter was about 8 or 9 and had invited her cousin who is about 3 years older to go to the ocean with us for the weekend. We were late getting started on the 3 hour drive,

I was still getting used to towing a trailer about 3 times larger than I was used to,

we hit the rush hour traffic,

so we were going to be getting into the state camp ground late, well after dark.

And to top it off I had to stop to get gas about 10 - 15 miles from the camp ground. Well, DW is reading in the front, oldest boy (13) is in the way back with little brother (7) playing their game boys. I finish fueling up, jump in the rig, maneuver thru the lot and back into traffic, And our youngest says, "why are we leaving the girls?"

DW goes into panic mode, (Her sisters youngest we just abandoned in a strange town with HER daughter) Had to make a big around several blocks to retrieve them, me steaming the whole time that no one told me they went to use the bathroom (I thought that was one of the reasons we bought a trailer was for the bathroom) anyway, when we came back to the gas station they were standing on the sidewalk, Daughter was crying and cousin had a big grin. She said, "I told you they would come back for us."
Daughter is 20 now and there are times I have thought maybe I should .....

Well I will be paying for that when DW see it...

Cant wait for it to warm up, then it is time for

around the

Scubanut · 02-19-2016, 10:55 PM

I had my experience with a paper dam a few years back with the grandkids before I taught them less is best. I couldn't get my black tank to dump at all and I knew it was full. I used my flexible tank rinse hose and went at it from the dump side. Needless to say it let loose and I had a heck of a time reconnecting the slinky and the hose was blocking the gate valve from closing. My first shower with poo juice. Yuck! The saving grace was no one saw my attempt to get that cap back on.

2012 F150 FX4 Crew 5.0 3.73

2012Coachman Freedom Express 292BHDS (outdoor Kitchen)

keep camping · 02-20-2016, 11:52 AM

After having pop up for years , we bought FIL's TT. First weekend out I was at cg while DH & DS were gone for the day and I managed to lock myself out. Asked neighboring Campers if I could try their keys on my door knowing there are only a handful of locks they all use. No luck on the door key , but the good old c37 storage hatch key worked. It was the 9" tall x30" wide hatch under the bed . So I emptied out the hatch, hoped nobody was watching or videoing this and squeezed in. Then had to lift the bed from underneath which almost killed me, because it has no assists and we changed out old mattress with new 15" residential mattress so it was heavy.Luckily I am pretty small so I got through the hatch, but as soon as I got it unlocked I went to Walmart and bought magnetic key holder and put the spare keys that I always carry in my purse ( that were locked in TT too) underneath the frame. Just glad it was late fall and not many people around to see that LOL.

mtnlvr · 02-20-2016, 12:45 PM

Last year I just pulled into my campground in Malibu late at night and tied my two big dogs outside while I set up inside. The dogs weren't outside for more than 5 min. when they got sprayed in the face by a skunk. This was dry camping in a state Park and hard to get them cleaned up. Boy, did it smell in my RV that night!😝

mtnlvr · 02-20-2016, 01:12 PM

Oh, And how I can't forget my recent incident camping SuperBowl Sun. My Winegard interface box for my Dish satellite on my roof broke. It refused to recognize my dish which was up and wouldn't automatically store away. I was supposed to be leaving & picking someone up. I wasn't going to be able to go anywhere until I got the thing collapsed. So, of course the 3/4 socket wrench w/ 6" extension, I didn't have with me. ( lesson to self- carry even more tools!) I had to walk around the park and find someone with the tool, go on roof and manually crank it into travel position. I travel solo as a 57 yr. old female, what a sight up there! I'm becoming handier and learning more than I had ever wanted to before out of necessity!

spudston · 02-20-2016, 02:38 PM

After 6 travel trailers over 28 years I have had my share of embarrassing moments but I don't have any to top my next door neighbor's stories:
1. He towed his TT to Lake Tahoe in the winter. "I have 4 wheel drive" he said. What he didn't have was propane. He ran out in the middle of the night and got very cold. He said he thought the furnace only used electricity.
2. He towed his TT to the coast. When he got there he found he had forgotten to plug the electrical cable into his truck and had dragged it 80 miles. Of course, by then there was no plug left, only frayed wires.
3. He unhitched his TT in a campground without chocking the wheels. TT rolled, the tongue jack fell off it's blocks narrowly missing his foot but neatly severing the electrical cable.
4. He set up his TT in a campsite, leveled it, chocked the wheels, put the slide out, jacks down, hooked up water and electric, unhitched etc. only to find the sewer hose didn't reach. So he hitched up, put the jacks up, removed the chocks, but left the water and electric attached because he only needed to move a couple of feet. Then he unhitched and redid the setup only to find the TT was parked on the water hose.
I wonder why he hasn't used his camper in years...

Wobbles · 02-20-2016, 02:44 PM

spudston, post a picture of him with a caption that reads:

Your only purpose in life is to serve as a warning to others.

LOL

The_Rhino · 02-20-2016, 04:17 PM

For over a year I patted myself on the back for finding a 2 year-old Ram 2500 CC for only $14K... Then it happened... On the way to a meeting (not towing) I was driving up a steep hill & into a parking lot when my Hemi self-disintegrated. My ears were filled with the most horrendous metal to metal grinding as rotating assembly parts attempted to liberate themselves from their oppressive cast iron overlords. As the Ram lurched to a stop all I could think was, "This is going to be expensive!"

However, at 96K miles Ram replaced the Hemi under their 100K Powertrain warranty, no questions asked, even though I became the 2nd owner at 85K miles. Kudos to Ram for taking care of us!

The_Rhino · 02-20-2016, 04:51 PM

A real blooper this time... I swapped-out my China Bombs for Maxxis but while doing so was interrupted by a chatty neighbor, DW & kids asking questions about where to pack stuff, and our dog dropping her ball in front of me every 2 minutes in hopes that I'd take a break to play catch... Needless to say I forgot to double-check one set of lug nuts. I also failed to stop at the recommended 10 mile point since the CG was only 45 minutes away...

So as we're turning into the CG I check my mirror to make certain my TT tires clear the turn & notice the left rear TT tire is WOBBLING BADLY - like almost off the hub badly! I run back to discover that 2 bolts had completely sheared & only 2 (unthreading) lug nuts still remained! Yikes! The holes in the aluminum rim were now ovals. Double Yikes!

I used my 12V impact wrench to tighten down the remaining 2 nuts & a 3rd borrowed from another wheel so that we could limp to our CG site. Good Sam's sent a mobile repair tech to replace the lug bolts & mount our spare. I found an exact match for our TT rims online for $65. My total cost was less than $200 but it could've been $2000 had we lost the tire on the highway.

So now my 3 sons take turns reminding me to hand-check all lug bolts on TV & TT before each trip. None forget the look of that scary wobbly wheel literally hanging on by a thread... Sometimes a good scare keeps us safe later in life... So ya, for the sake of my kids, Ill accept the role "My purpose in life is to serve as a warning to others..." Do what I SAY, not what I DO!

Wobbles · 02-20-2016, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The_Rhino

Ill accept the role "My purpose in life is to serve as a warning to others..." Do what I SAY, not what I DO!

You are fortunate to have had this lesson turn out so well, me, I am waiting my turn for my own mistakes.

This discussion is how I learn. I was told to keep checking my lug nuts, got lazy after a year. You have just brought me back to earth with this story.

I laugh but still take note. Thanks for that post/reminder.

Yes, we all are a warning. Have not met anyone that is perfect except dear old mom but that story requires therapy.

LOL

Tirebuilder · 02-20-2016, 05:29 PM

My wife and two young daughters were returning from a vacation in Fla., towing our 31ft. travel trailer. This unit was about 8 years old. My sister had bought it brand new at the time and had it at a campground in Tennessee full time for them to use when they would come to visit 3 or 4 times a year..(they lived in Ohio). I bought it from them after about 6 years so we could use it traveling. Put new tires on it after removing from campground and we were ready to go. Used it for about 3 years with no issues until this one time coming home from Fla. We were 45 mins from home and pulled over to let the dog out to "do her business." Sun was just starting to go down. My youngest daughter came up to me and said "we have a flat tire." I hadn't noticed anything while driving, but as I got out and looked, sure enough it was flat. Ok, I said, no problem. We have a jack ramp and a spare tire. I pulled the trailer up on the ramp to lift the flat tire. Proceeded to take lug nuts off and remove the flat. I then went to back of camper and removed the spare tire, (which I did not replace when I bought the new ones because it had been covered all the years and never used.) I rolled tire to side of camper and proceeded to try to install good tire onto the camper. Something was wrong. It would't fit over the lug nut posts. Upon closer inspection I saw the problem...my flat tire was on a 5 lug pattern wheel and the spare was a 6 lug pattern!! In all the years of camper being in family, this was never noticed. Unbelievable. It had to have come from factory that way, (or dealer), because the spare had never been removed while in our possession. Being a Sunday evening and nothing open, darkness coming upon us, I started to worry. Luckily, a sheriff's deputy from this particular county we were in saw us and I flagged him over to explain our predicament. After a few moments of laughter, he made a call to a friend of his who ran a tire business out of his garage and he arrived about 15 mins later. After him laughing also about our luck, he took our spare and the flat and said he would be back. Sure enough, about 30 mins later he arrived and had changed the tires with the wheels so I could get it changed and head home. We sold camper shortly after that...lol. We just purchased a brand new FR 32ikbs for our retirement rv last year and the sales guy at the dealership looked at me like I was nuts when I started inspecting and comparing the wheels on the ground vs the one on the spare tire rack...that is until I told him our story. Laughter was heard all around. Lesson learned...NEVER take anything for granted.

rockfordroo · 02-20-2016, 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spudston

After 6 travel trailers over 28 years I have had my share of embarrassing moments but I don't have any to top my next door neighbor's stories:
1. He towed his TT to Lake Tahoe in the winter. "I have 4 wheel drive" he said. What he didn't have was propane. He ran out in the middle of the night and got very cold. He said he thought the furnace only used electricity.
2. He towed his TT to the coast. When he got there he found he had forgotten to plug the electrical cable into his truck and had dragged it 80 miles. Of course, by then there was no plug left, only frayed wires.
3. He unhitched his TT in a campground without chocking the wheels. TT rolled, the tongue jack fell off it's blocks narrowly missing his foot but neatly severing the electrical cable.
4. He set up his TT in a campsite, leveled it, chocked the wheels, put the slide out, jacks down, hooked up water and electric, unhitched etc. only to find the sewer hose didn't reach. So he hitched up, put the jacks up, removed the chocks, but left the water and electric attached because he only needed to move a couple of feet. Then he unhitched and redid the setup only to find the TT was parked on the water hose.
I wonder why he hasn't used his camper in years...

From Management Secrets of Attilla the Hun:

"Every Hun has his purpose - even if only as a bad example!"

Wobbles · 02-20-2016, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

From Management Secrets of Attilla the Hun:

"Every Hun has his purpose - even if only as a bad example!"

rockfordroo, Did you read that book? Awesome. Quoting from the book, "Know thy enemy well. (abridged also)" My older brother made me read that before going into business for my self.

Back on topic:
Please keep sharing. It took a post here to remind me of the basic chores
that I have ignored and that mean everything.

kholmes · 02-20-2016, 10:12 PM

My father had just purchased a van conversion ,you all kno the ones from the

Moorio · 02-20-2016, 10:22 PM

We were on I-5 coming back from San Diego when i decided to pass a slower vehicle well i guess you can tell what he decided to do, thats right he sped up. By the time i was passing him i had made 90 mph. When i changed back to my lane i saw something in the mirror it was the plywood from the top of the tent trailer taking off. It was about to shear the top off the car that sped up and then went straight up and missed them. Next the tent portion decided to erect itself (funny but no damage). We patched it back together and limped home. On our last night we were setting up and the plywood broke off and fell to the ground mattress and all (we slept on the other side that night) We were too tired to fix it so we left it. Well you can imagine the giggles and comments from the people passing by in the morning. We didnt know my wifes ex was staying at the same campsite and his comment was the best one "Wow we didn't do that when we camped

"

kholmes · 02-20-2016, 10:40 PM

Continued...

The eighties. Well my gf at the time and now my wife of 29 yrs asked to take it on a maiden voyage to British Columbia. So as we are loading it on the day were leaving my gf is putting some stuff on the bed and she accidently breaks the bed. We haven't even slept in it or christened it and she busts the plywood. We just got into the area where we were going to camp and had problems with the heating,cooling system of the van. So we take it to the local garge/gas station and they discover the heater core went and needed to be replaced. As it was parked halfway in the garage the owners kid was moving a vehichle around and hit the back of the van. 2000.00 damage to my fathers van!! So after all that we get to the campsite and am backing in to the spot,my gf is supposedly directing me in and all of a sudden i hit the back fence with the van. Another dent!! Wow what a start to our first camping vacay. All is well for the week were their and as we are driving back home and are driving through Calgary Alberta on our way back to Saskatchewan and all of a sudden it seems like we have a flat tire. So i pull over and we discover all the LUG NUTS are broken off with the exception of 1 that is holding the tire on. UNBELIEVABLE!!! We gave to call a tow truck and get it towed to a garage to have it fixed. Oh and by the way it was a Sunday evening at 930 pm and nothing is open. What a vacation from HELL. The good news is we made it home in one piece, married the girl,and we now own a sabre 33ckts 5er.
Ps. Were still married and still love to camp together. And my father sold the van immediately when we got back home.
Cheers to all and happy camping!!!

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