Made it home last week. Took the trailer to a repair facility yesterday as I have decided to file a claim and get some of the repairs done better than I would do them. Most, if not all, are things I believe I could do, but I lack good facilities, all the tools, and patience to complete it in a professional way.
A few other thoughts about Hi-Los after this trip:
In spite of the usual annoyances of screws working lose inside etc, I continue to be pleasantly surprised with the build quality of the trailer. I took it on some VERY rough mountain roads in the Fort Davis, TX area and it held up pretty well, including the fact I was able to “bend” it back in shape after the accident to a degree that it was still usable.
The last days of the trip included driving with formidable cross winds, generally 25mph range with higher gusts, including some very gusty mountain passes in northern NM and a dust storm in south east Co. that made me pull off the road. One night we camped in 45 mph winds, though I had the sense to park oriented length wise to the wind. The one time I felt I was going to blown off the road it was the 1/2 ton Pick Up that had me worried, not the trailer. In fact, I believe it was the HI-LO that kept the truck from being blown on the shoulder. So as much as folks like to highlight the gas mileage from towing the lower profile, to me it is all about the low wind resistance from the side. We shared a campground with a family one evening who had pulled over for the day because of the winds on their 25 foot travel trailer- and were continuing their trip at night when the winds had died. I had no such issues.
It would do everyone well to give some thought as to what they would do if they were in some type of mishap that would damage the door to the trailer and make it inoperable while in the down position.
From now on we will certainly carry an “overnight” bag IN THE TOW VEHICLE, in case such a crazy scenario would arise. A “remote” switch for getting the unit “up” isn’t a bad idea, either, in case you cannot access the up-down switch. Been there.
And, thanks for all the support offered from this group while I was on our private version of a “Chevy Chase vacation”.
Rick
Made it home
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