A whole new league of size.......

Shawn.L.Turbo · Post by **Shawn.L.Turbo** » Mon Jul 02, 2007 9:01 pm

Well, went for the second trip out in our new bird this past weekend.

Aside from driving through driving rain, arriving there at 10:30 PM in the dark, finding that our reserved spot had been given to someone else and having to park in temporary stall, it was a good trip.

Anyway, I digress, the point I was going to make is that I candidly realized on this trip that this new 36-2bh is clearly in a different league for size. In our acreage yard, it didn't look all that big or daunting - as I quickly found out this weekend however, in a heavily treed mountain park campground, it looks and feels like the Titanic.

Maneuvering this rig in and out of even average size spots is VERY different from our old 28 footer. Takes approach planning, exit planning.
Maybe I'll get used to it. I hope so.

All in all I did OK, but it was pretty intimidating to be totally honest. I hadn't expected it to dwarf the campsites as much as it did.

Any of you guys had that "OK, did I overdo it here" moment, regarding the size of your rigs?

Cheers,

Shawn

campswithcritters · Post by **campswithcritters** » Mon Jul 02, 2007 11:03 pm

Yeah, It lasted about 2 camping trips, but once inside on a rainy day it started to make sense. Also with more manuevering experience it has shrunk considerably.

jamespatrick4 · Post by **jamespatrick4** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 5:12 am

Ditto what Bruce said. Our first challenge was getting it into and out of our neighborhood - literally only inches to spare getting by my neighbor's Mercedes Benz. Glad he wasn't watching! Also, watch that rear end swing-out on sharp turns.

Don't worry though, you will get used to it. We just returned from a week near Ocean City, MD and the extra space was very nice on a rainy day. As far as driving it, you will eventually adjust to the new length and extra space you need to get into and out of spaces and parking lots. If you hve the opportunity, you might want to practice in an empty parking lot.

Good luck and congratulations on the new rig!

James

Shawn.L.Turbo · Post by **Shawn.L.Turbo** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 5:46 am

jamespatrick4 wrote:Also, watch that rear end swing-out on sharp turns.

Oh yeah - you got that right! I very quickly realized that was a critical area to monitor when maneuvering.

I took it out again last night and practiced parking in my own driveway, and got a bit better feel for backing up. I can see it will take some time before I get comfortable.

By the way folks, I just picked up the ULTIMATE in brake controllers this weekend.. It's called the BrakeSmart by Dr. Performance. For those of you with big rigs, this controller is so far and above the others on the market, it's not even funny. Completely seamless. It operates by sensing the tow vehicle's hydraulic brake pressure - so it's totally proportional.
Makes you feel like there isn't even a trailer behind you under braking conditions. Totally amazing.

10 more days until our big 2 week trip!! K'nardly wait!

campswithcritters · Post by **campswithcritters** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 9:07 am

Shawn if you ever need brakes consider retrofitting with elect over hydraulic discs, now that is a difference in braking! Very impressive.

Rob & Cathy · Post by **Rob & Cathy** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 11:50 am

Shawn.L.Turbo wrote:It operates by sensing the tow vehicle's hydraulic brake pressure - so it's totally proportional.
Makes you feel like there isn't even a trailer behind you under braking conditions. Totally amazing.

Yep, you're right. Ford has had those in their Tow Command packages since 2005.

Rob

Chief409 · Post by **Chief409** » Tue Jul 17, 2007 7:19 pm

The Ford Tow Command package is GREAT. As was said, it all acts together. Which is good considering the Darwin Award canditates who try to pass you when they don't have enough room. Hit the brakes and everything just slows down, no fuss at all.