Mission Impossible: Backing my Camplite into any kind of sit

[admin]

I can imagine a 21 foot trailer being intimidating as a first backing experience! It helped me to have learned/practiced on small trailers. Even a riding lawn mower with a little garden trailer would help get the feel of what happens when backing. In the end, you'll get to be good at it with practice, so don't give up!

I've actually found short trailers to be just as frustrating as larger ones. They tend to jack knife too quickly in my opinion to be effective teachers.


Leslie,
You will get it, I'm sure. First time I had to back up a large trailer I thought I was going to have a heart attack. My biggest take away from my experience is that you will want to think three steps ahead. Nothing happens immediately when backing up so be sure to leave room to make corrections. Also dont forget about your TV, its easy to get into a tight spot and forget that the front of the TV needs room as well. I've almost taken out a few objects this way.

Like others have suggested using a big parking lot to get a ton of practice time is the best advice anyone can give. This is a skill and like most skills they cant really be transferred without actually doing it.

[solds88]

[p][font face="comic sans ms" size="3"]Leslie,[/font][/p][p][font face="Comic Sans MS" size="3"]
[/font][/p][p][font face="Comic Sans MS" size="3"]Pinstriper  has the right idea, choose pull through sites until you get good at backing. First of all get a campground book, see this http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_13?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=2014+good+sam+rv+travel+guide+%26+campground+directory&sprefix=2014+good+sam%2Caps%2C266&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3A2014+good+sam+rv+travel+guide+%26+campground+directory , and carry it in your TV. As your trip progresses you'll have an idea of where you'll be stopping for the night. Peruse the book and call ahead to see if they have any level pull through sites available. Even if you arrive after the campground office is closed you'll be assured that your spot will be waiting for you. If I'm just overnighting I like a level spot so I won't have to unhook the TV, just the 12 volt cable. I don't even drop the stabilizers, I just hookup shore power, water, and sewer. If you wake up in the morning and it's raining, it's just that much less you have to do to get out of Dodge.   And, I recommend this item if you ever hook up your rig in the dark, see this http://www.amazon.com/PowerCap-Mens-Cotton-Twill-Lighted/dp/B004X76O6U/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1413957047&sr=1-1 , I got a pink one for the DW, as she is the primary dog walker, and she loves it.    [/font][/p]

[funpilot]

[p]Best video I have seen on backing up a trailer.  It is on a big truck but the lesson learned applies to any trailer.[/p][p]
[/p][p][a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pACYTXk_DQ8"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pACYTXk_DQ8[/a][/p][p]
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[pinstriper]

If you have a smartphone, pull down the Reserve America app. It shows a photo of the specific campsite you are reserving and you can see the angle and situation when deciding which to pick. At least it does for all our state parks. Haven't looked elsewhere around the country. If there's a map available that is good, too. Many sites try to put the pad orthogonal to the road, but that's a harder cut in reverse, and can be blind if there is vegetation. Choose a site on a curve where the angle will appear more acute, but will actually be less in reverse.

KOA has an app, too. Dunno if it's any good.

[leslie]

Too bad there isn't a book - "Backing up for Dummies"

The service manager at the dealer spent a few minutes in the Jeep with me backing into a space and explaining how he does it.

[leslie]

I have made progress. No longer am I in absolute terror when I back up, now it is controlled panic. I am now able to back up into a space that is 30 feet wide, and not be on an angle.

I read all of your posts, and I watched funpilot's video. I sat in my Jeep as two men backed my Jeep into a parking space. I have been putting all of this together.

I found a place to store the trailer outside. They told me I wouldn't have to back up. THEY LIED. The space is at a junction of two driveways, and I have to back it up with a slight adjustment to the passenger side as I back it up. Fortunately for me, the storage space is 30 feet wide, so I can manage this. So far, we have found 2 private campgrounds that are still open with pull-throughs.

The directions for backing up in the RVing books I have say to follow the directions of your spotter, which in my case is my husband, and to grip the bottom of the steering wheel with one hand, and turn in the direction you want the trailer to go. These directions did not help. I managed to get the trailer sideways in a 30 foot wide driveway following these suggestions.

Now I use my husband as a warning system for when I am about to hit something. I figure out which way I want the back of the trailer to go and use both hands on the wheel to turn in the opposite direction of the way I want the back of the trailer to go. I turn the wheel much further than when I only had one hand on it, move only a couple feet at a time, and adjust the turn of the wheel before moving another couple of feet. I also move forward and back a lot. It is not smooth at all.

If anybody has any more suggestions, I would appreciate it.

[solds88]

[p][font face="comic sans ms" size="4"]Your confidence is up, and it sounds like you're doing just fine. Everyone does it a little different. And, the way that you do it the best is the correct way to do it. Happy camping, James [/font][/p][p][font face="Comic Sans MS" size="3"]
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[daplumbr]

You are not alone. We all went through that backward-forward-backward-forward stage and still do when in new places. My wife and I often bicycle around a local lake in the summer and stop at the boat launch for a break. The wide variety of backing skills are really evident at a boat launch. Pretty soon you'll be so good at you'll be giving others advice. 

[sam]

[p][font size="4" face="comic sans ms"]This is an art, not a science. Practice and more practice is the answer. You mentioned that the trailer went the opposite way that you thought it was going to go. Steering from the bottom of the wheel moves the back of the trailer in the desired direction, not the front of the trailer. Start with small movements, try this exercise in a large parking lot: Hand in the neutral position, centered at the bottom of the wheel, turn wheel 90 degrees clockwise, (1/4 of a turn), and back slowly holding the wheel in this position for 1 or 2 seconds then return the wheel to it's neutral position. Your trailer should going in a slight arc to the drivers side. You should be able to see your progress in your drivers side mirror. Oh, I forgot to tell you to set out a cone or cardboard box to serve as a target to aim for. If you're arcing too much you'll want the rear of the trailer to swing the other way. Move the bottom of your wheel 90 degrees counter clockwise for a second or two then return to the neutral position. Go very slow and make a lot of corrections, don't let the arc become too acute as it will require a lot of wheel correction to straighten the arc. The idea behind this exercise is to get your hand and eye coordinated with the trailer movement. Good luck      [/font][/p]

[sam]

[quote source="/post/4312/thread" timestamp="1413787814" author="@james"][p][font face="comic sans ms" size="4"]This is an art, not a science. Practice and more practice is the answer. You mentioned that the trailer went the opposite way that you thought it was going to go. Steering from the bottom of the wheel moves the back of the trailer in the desired direction, not the front of the trailer. Start with small movements, try this exercise in a large parking lot: Hand in the neutral position, centered at the bottom of the wheel, turn wheel 90 degrees clockwise, (1/4 of a turn), and back slowly holding the wheel in this position for 1 or 2 seconds then return the wheel to it's neutral position. Your trailer should going in a slight arc to the drivers side. You should be able to see your progress in your drivers side mirror. Oh, I forgot to tell you to set out a cone or cardboard box to serve as a target to aim for. If you're arcing too much you'll want the rear of the trailer to swing the other way. Move the bottom of your wheel 90 degrees counter clockwise for a second or two then return to the neutral position. Go very slow and make a lot of corrections, don't let the arc become too acute as it will require a lot of wheel correction to straighten the arc. The idea behind this exercise is to get your hand and eye coordinated with the trailer movement. Good luck      [/font][/p][/quote]

[sam]

This is the best description I have read. My wife and I were not doing so well. A fellow camper by the name of Gram offered to back it in. I agreed, if he would explain it as I watched. His lesson helped us out in a really big way. Thea write up is very similar to his lesson.

[leslie]

Thanks for all of the input. We are using orange plastic traffic cones to help me back up. I am making progress, backing more smoothly. I can back into a space 20 feet wide without the back corners of the trailer going out of bounds. Next up: backing unto a space that is 10 feet wide. Now that is scary.

[sam]

[quote source="/post/4362/thread" timestamp="1413983382" author="@funpilot"][p]Best video I have seen on backing up a trailer.  It is on a big truck but the lesson learned applies to any trailer.[/p][p]
[/p][p][a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pACYTXk_DQ8"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pACYTXk_DQ8[/a][/p][p]
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[/p][/quote]Thank you. I have had trouble using the "Bottom of Wheel Description" . This is actually the same, but I find it easier to visualize as I look it the mirror. They both work, but people have different perspectives.

[sam]

[quote source="/post/4763/thread" author="@leslie" timestamp="1415071387"]Thanks for all of the input. We are using orange plastic traffic cones to help me back up. I am making progress, backing more smoothly. I can back into a space 20 feet wide without the back corners of the trailer going out of bounds. Next up: backing unto a space that is 10 feet wide. Now that is scary.

[/quote]I have noted the RV community is always very helpful, on the forums and on the road.  It is one of the things that makes it such a fun and pleasant hobby (or lifestyle as the case may be).

Many of us have had issues and backing up trailers, and many have received and given assistance. It is one of the things that if you do not get a handle on you might give up and go home thinking it is too hard.

Of all of the threads and conversations I have had on this topic,  the most useful piece of advice I have found is the following:

[span]    [/span]Keep your windows down (walkie talkie or not) and keep your partner in sight. If you loose sight of your partner stop immediately and put the tow vehicle into park and wait. Do not start until you see your partner. If he or she does not appear, turn off the engine and go and fine them, (the probably cannot hear you). It turns out that backing up accounts for a lot of accidents that can be avoided if we follow this rule. It is a nice way to tell your partner you care.

[leslie]

Mission Impossible just might be turning into Mission Possible. I have been working every weekend, when my husband can help spot for me. This weekend, I told him I wanted to back into a campsite without his help, and I DID IT! He stood and watched, ready to give me a holler just in case it looked like I would smack a tree, but backing in went just fine. That doesn't mean I can just whip that trailer right around into a campsite, but I can do it by myself. I am going to Florida this winter. Maybe my husband can get away from work long enough to join me for a little bit.