# Finally Brought Her Home, Was Scared To Death The Whole Way



## Dub (Dec 8, 2008)

Well, I was supposed to pick up my new 310BHS from Holman on Saturday but my aunt passed away last Wednesday and we had the funeral over the weekend so I had to postpone the pickup until the next weekend. Not much was going on at work, it was 20F and not a cloud in the sky so I thought it'd be a good idea to take the rest of the day off and go pick it up.

First I had to drive 45E to pickup my old unit, then back those same 45m and then 2 hours south. No problem. The Tundra is one of the best towing trucks I've ever driven and I've owned several Chevys (including a dually) and used Dodges at work. I didn't even bother hooking up the equalizer, just wanted to get down there asap. Wasn't a problem. Drove 70mph in overdrive and got 11.6mpg until I hit a headwind and then dropped to 9mpg.

Got there, did the necessary paperwork then went to my PDI. I'm very anal and hate going back to the dealer for repairs so I checked everything. Opened cabinets, microwaved some water, ran the fridge on gas and electric, speakers, 110 outlets, I went over it with a fine tooth comb. Only thing I didn't check was the hot water heater because I didn't want to empty it but I did fire the gas on it to see if it would come on. Everything checked out great, now I just had to wait for them to move my electric tongue jack and MaxxAir vent/fan over, as well as setup the equalizer and move it from the old one. I went to go look at the other units while I waited....well, when I left the service bay it was raining.....and it was below freezing....

I really liked the 29TG or Tailgate. It's essentially the 310 but a lil shorter, no second slide, and outside it has a fridge and real sink. See it here They have some new 5ers with remote key fobs that lower the front and rear jacks, move out the awnings and slides...but none unlocked the doors...hmmm. I saw some dimplex fireplaces that were pretty cool, might have to get one for mine.

I looked at quite a few and they got everything done so I took a test drive around the lot to make sure the equalizer was setup correctly, etc. Everything was good so I went over to the parts store to spend some cash since I got 10% off that day. Bought quite a few things so they gave me another 10% which I'll use for a tote tank and some other big items on another day.

At this point the parking lot was ice and I still had to move all of my stuff over. This really slowed the process down. Also, I can't believe how much stuff I had in the old camper, it was unbelievable. At first I was putting things away, then I decided to just get some boxes and throw everything in boxes and worry about it later since now I was starting to get worried about the weather. Probably took me 2 hours to get everything moved. By this time it was rush hour in Cincinnati and Holman's is located near a big mall shopping area and it's 2 days to Christmas....not good.

It took me 30m to make it the 1.2 miles to the freeway and heres why...everything was frozen. Cars were slid off the road on both sides of the ramp, it was frozen....hmmmm....9000lbs of trailer behind me.....frozen ramp... Good thing I had 4x4 because I doubt I'd have made it up otherwise.

Let me tell you this. I've lived in Ohio for 10 years now. And in my 10 years there could be a foot of snow on the road and people still drive 70mph, in fact I've done it myself. Snow, Ice, rain, nothing slows down these people. The entire freeway was moving at 20-30mph. Never in my life have I seen people driving this slow on the freeways, even when it's dangerous you at least get some guy in an eclipse with a fart pipe on the back come flying by at 70. Not this time. The roads were complete ice and it was raining so it was slick as heck.

I've never had to tow anything on snow or ice especially wet ice. So I was scared to death about towing this brand new camper home 120miles and then another 70miles to my campsite. It was supposed to be a nice day. The biggest thing was I was unsure of how to set my brakes. I didn't want to jackknife. I usually let the trailer lead me as that's how I learned and have preferred for years. In this case it mean they would lock up and slide on ice.

Anyway, long story short. It was ice all the way back home. What is normally a 1.5hr drive turned into 3.5 hours. Cars, Semis, trucks were all crashed into walls and the median the entire way. I only saw one other RV the entire time and like me he was driving very slow and very carefully. The Tundra with its 1 ton size rotors can usually stop a heavy load pretty darn quickly. On wet ice it's a whole nother story. I probably couldn't get it to stop in 100 yard at 20mph. It was insane, it was crazy, it was the reason why the medians were littered with wrecked cars, no one could stop. This added to my nervousness when one semi would get brave and pass the slow moving lane like we were sitting still or the occasional college kid in a souped up 4 banger.

If I didn't have to work today I would have just stopped at a Flying J or walmart and camped for the night, but I was the only one available to run the office today and I had to do it, I could not skip work period or it would cost us a lot of money. Besides that I had been up since 6am and our baby was sick and kept me up til 2am and now it was 9:30pm and I was just on the edge of Columbus and my campground was another 1h30m at normal freeway speeds and I am dead tired at this point. We live in a condo and RVs are not allowed plus I would have nowhere to park it while I was at work...big problem for me.

So I really don't want to take 3.5 hours to make another 1.5hr drive and then come back so I start calling people I know begging and pleading to let me park the camper in their yard for a few days. Finally one of my friends graciously accepted...cept I had to go on some unsalted backroads with hills. Some of these roads were so iced I didn't think I would ever get there. But I finally did. 11pm...5 hours for what is normally 2 hours.

I have never been so scared in my entire life. Towing on snow and ice is not something I wish to repeat. The thought of jackknifing and wrecking my new truck and trailer was too much. I was exhausted to start with and did not expect the day t happen this way. Cars wrecked all over the place didn't make me any calmer either. Anyway, the new camper is here and we love it. Can't wait to start modding it. Probably gonna go take it to it's home this weekend.


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## mswalt (Sep 14, 2004)

Wow, what an experience. I'm glad it was you and not me!

Great news you got it where you needed it without any damage. I grew up in central Illinois so I know about winter driving. That's why I'm in Texas now. Still not far enough South for me but I'll leave that for a few more years until I retire.

Anyhow, glad you made it. Congrats on your new trailer.

Enjoy.

Mark


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

Congrats on getting the Outback home!!

You failed to comment on just how many beers you had one you actually got the Outback parked and were done driving for the day.









Love to see some pictures if you have the time.


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## Collinsfam_WY (Nov 9, 2006)

Sure am glad to hear you made it ok - sounds like it was an awful experience. Congrats on getting the new TT at least as far as your friends house! Must have been an enormous relief.

-CC


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## wolfwood (Sep 19, 2005)

*YOWZER!!!* I've spent many hours on that highway and driven with the very folks you talk about .... I can see it ... ALL 5 hours of it !!! Congratulations on getting her home ... and having the truck (and driver) to do it without event !!!

You will, forever, have _THE SCARIEST_ campfire story to tell !!


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## psychodad (Dec 9, 2008)

Dub, Congrats on the new OB. Did your friend have to peel your hands off the steering wheel ?


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## mike elliott (Dec 17, 2007)

WOW! glad you made it safe and sound but just think how easy this summer will be towing your new rig







.that 29tg laredo is kind of cool i wonder how much room there is under the roof for the outside kitchen.


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## Scoutr2 (Aug 21, 2006)

Wow!







My worst nightmare come true - for you! Thank goodness you made it OK.

We had that same ice storm a couple days earlier and I cannot imagine trying to tow our OB in that mess. Heck, I didn't drive - period - except for a couple trips to the stores, which are less than 1 mile from home.

I'm sure you've had your share of "ice road" driving for awhile!

Mike


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## Dub (Dec 8, 2008)

psychodad said:


> WOW! glad you made it safe and sound but just think how easy this summer will be towing your new rig
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'm about 5'11" and it was probably 2" of clearance above my head. In fact the salesguy mentioned that some of the taller men didn't like it because of that, but he said you could flip the axles and get a few more inches if you needed it.

I will probably take it to the campground on Saturday and get some pictures then. I was just too worn out and stressed to even think about taking a picture, I just wanted to get home!


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## Sayonara (Jul 23, 2007)

Been there, done that. Unfortunately all too many times when heading up north snowmobiling with a 5000lb 24' snowmobile trailer. 
Now we leave it up in the UP for the winter. makes for much more relaxed drives.

Glad you took your time and made it home ok!! Congrats on the new OB !! Love that 310BHS.


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## rdvholtwood (Sep 18, 2008)

Dub, what an experience!! Thank God you are OK...

BTW those pictures of that TG model - way cool! - would be great for one of those Penn State tailgate parties..

Have a great Christmas and New Year!

Rick


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## Joonbee (Jan 18, 2008)

Glad you made it safely. Had an experience like that a few years ago. Had just bought a new truck (05 Dodge 1500 Hemi). Decided to make a trip out to Cabela's, about an hour. Well we got caught just as you in an ice storm before leaving to come home. Here I am in my BRAND NEW truck (probably less than 200 miles) and people are sliding all over the place into ditches and bouncing off of the medians. Few detours, because the interstate was clogged with bumper cars and we were home in about 3 1/2 hours. Couldn't imagine doing with a trailer in tow.

Side note. That TG is very cool. Need one in a 5th wheel and I could be in trouble.

Jim


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## RLW7302 (Feb 27, 2005)

Congratulations on your new Outback!



Dub said:


> Let me tell you this. I've lived in Ohio for 10 years now. And in my 10 years there could be a foot of snow on the road and people still drive 70mph, in fact I've done it myself. Snow, Ice, rain, nothing slows down these people. The entire freeway was moving at 20-30mph. Never in my life have I seen people driving this slow on the freeways, even when it's dangerous you at least get some guy in an eclipse with a fart pipe on the back come flying by at 70. Not this time. The roads were complete ice and it was raining so it was slick as heck.


I suppose that the _rest_ of Ohio knows how to drive in snow and ice, but for some reason, Cincinnatians (and I am one) always freak out with the slightest bit of snow or ice. It doesn't take much to turn a 30 minute commute into a 90 minute one.

That being said ... that day was particularly bad. Glad you made it safely.

Happy camping!
-Roger


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## clarkely (Sep 15, 2008)

Glad you, your truck, & the New Outback made it home safely!!!!!

Now you can look back at it and have a great story............especially a Campfire Story!!

Congrats and many Safe Miles

Clarke


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Glad to hear you were safe and sucessful in the end! Save the next tow for nicer weather!


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## Dub (Dec 8, 2008)

I towed it to the campground this past weekend as I had to leave it at a friends house after the storm. It was 50F outside and much much nicer to tow since I could actually do highway speeds! It's a beast though, longest trailer I've owned so far.


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## clarkely (Sep 15, 2008)

Dub said:


> It's a beast though, longest trailer I've owned so far.


X2
It is a big SOB.....but it is nice......and it does tow nice.........


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## skippershe (May 22, 2006)

I finally had the time to sit down and read your story and boy, that was one "nail biting, on the edge of your seat" kind of a story!

I'm both relieved AND amazed that you made it home in one piece









Enjoy your new Outback and Happy Camping!


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