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This past weekend (8/10 - 12) we had a bit of a problem when we were traveling to Simi Valley to visit family. About 1 mile north of the rest area on I-5 near Coalinga, I heard a faint noise. Denise told me that we had better stop because she could see "shit flying everywhere" from our trailer. When I took a look in the passenger side mirror, I immediately knew what had happened. There's only one thing I know of that tears up the side of a trailer like this. Since we were close enough, I slowed to about 30 miles per hour and we limped the last mile into the rest area. I wasn't really sure what to do. Normally, just change the tire and be on our way. But with all of those wires hanging down, I didn't know if the trailer was going to be functional or not. At a minimum, I knew there would be no trailer brakes on the one wheel. I didn't know if the brakes on the other wheels would still function. So I went to the phone booth and found an ad in the yellow pages for a tow service "...covering the entire valley..." I told them I needed a tire changed on the trailer. Then depending upon what did and didn't work, I may need a tow to the nearest RV repair facility. Well those lazy bastards had nothing but excuses as to why they couldn't be there for several hours. I told them to forget it and that I'd change the tire myself. An hour, two bruised knees (from kneeling), and 3 liters of water later, I had the tire change and the wires tied up out of the way. The only problem was that the spare only had about 30 lbs. of air in it but it needed 80 lbs. to be completely full. No problem, I carry a 12 volt tire pump for just such an emergency. OK, now it's a problem because the fuse in the pump is burnt and I can't find a replacement (I know I have some somewhere...). So we continue our limp 11 miles down the road to Kettleman City and fill the tire with air. It wasn't too bad as I kept the speed to about 50 miles per hour. And the good thing is that the trailer seems to have brakes to three of its wheels. Once we left Kettleman City, we continued our journey to Simi Valley with Denise looking back every ten to fifteen minutes to make sure "the whole thing doesn't fall off". When we arrived at our final destination, I assessed the total damage. All outlets work except for the one that is missing (you know, on the outside in where the hole is), one on the inside that must have been attached to the same wires, and the refrigerator A/C connection (it still works on propane). Everything else is working and I don't smell any smoke. I haven't felt any electrical shocks either. So all in all, not too bad. But what we don't know in all of this is if we'll still be able to leave for our long trip this coming Friday (8/17). I'm sure the fender skirt will not be replaced by then as it will have to be ordered from the dealer. But can they get the wires and broken outlets repaired. And apparently, the type of wheel on this trailer isn’t a common one that tire places routinely stock. So the wheel will have to be order as well. So the bottom line is that we may postpone our vacation for a week until all of the repairs can be made. We’ll keep you posted… |
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Questions,
Comments, Praise, Complaints?
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