Rough Day Yesterday

[StewB]

Just thought I would share our misadventures as yesterday was a rough day in more ways than one. My family and I are moving from Alaska to Utah and began our journey on Monday weighing in at around 22,000 pounds. On day 2 we ran into about 200 miles of frost heaves. For those that don't know, a frost heave is a huge dip or bump in the road resulting from thawing and freezing of the permafrost under the road. Some of them are bad enough to catch air in your vehicle.

Anyway, The frost heaves were so bad that our trailer tongue folded about halfway between Tok, Alaska, and Whitehorse, Yukon Territory...truly the middle of nowhere. Once we put the important stuff in the truck we had to abandon the trailer and drive an hour just to get to a pay phone to call the insurance company. They couldn't do anything that late in the day so we drove another 3.5 hours to Whitehorse, which has the nearest repair facility and a decent place to stay. Today we are in a hotel while the towing company retrieves the trailer. Looks like we will be around here until at least Tuesday waiting on parts.

The good news is nobody was hurt since I never was out of control or anything. On the money side, we have a disappearing deductible which is currently reduced to $0. Everything except for a couple nights lodging is covered with no out of pocket expenses or deductibles.

I have to say, for nothing out of pocket for towing, the $25 roadside assistance annual premium is money well spent. The trailer is 30' plus the tongue, weighs around 10,000 pounds, and the driver will have to drive 4.5 hours each way to get it. I'm not sure I even want to see the bill for that! Nothing is cheap up here.

Well, if any of you are inclined, please pray for speedy, effective repairs and a safe remainder of the trip. Also that my family can maintain a positive attitude. The wife and kids have been great so far, but boredom will soon set in, if you know what I mean. ?

Thanks for sharing in my misadventure.

Stew

[CSM]

Prayers sent.

[Mopar1973Man]

Sorry to hear about your mis-adventure with the trailer. I do know what a frost heave is we get them up here in Idaho. So I'll say a few prayers for your safe travels from here on out.

[dripley]

Ouch!! Also sorry to here of your troubles. I have not experienced frost heaves, but have seen alot of heaves from heat over the past couple of years. It does the same thing, buckle the road up and the asphalt can launch your vehicle. You have our thoughts and prayers here for a safe journey and a special one that the kids think it is all an adventure. As a father of 3 and a gran daddy of nine, I can feel your pain.

[diesel4life]

Hey Stew, have you crawled under your truck and inspected the hitch for any damage? That would be a concern for me since the tongue incurred that much damage, the hitch also had to see quite a bit of stress.Glad you all are OK, and hopefully your back on the road quickly. Hang in there!

[flagmanruss]

OUCH!! The trailer nose & hitch seems a lot like my very old trailer. Very scary. We have frost heaves in New England, often times despite the best intentions of the road builders. I remember as a kid, seeing my first real frost heave. I had a buddy flying copilot in New Hampshire when we went by a sign that said "Frost Heaves next 3 miles". I slowed about 5 mph & Charlie says, "You better slow down." I said "I did." He says "More!" We came around a bend & there was a Frost Heave over 2 feet high. I slammed on the brakes... went around it... there were more, some 3 feet high! They were as high as the hood of my mini-truck. Then another section of 5 miles. I hope your repair comes out ok... Russ

[Killer223]

glad to see every one is ok. i wonder what the tongue weight is? scary!!!!

[flagmanruss]

I'm afraid to weigh my tongue weight! With the rear fixtures gutted from the Toy Hauler, and just my mobility scooter... the trailer is very heavy TW. I'm clearly exceeding the cap of my 750# WD hitch bars. The weight shift with a full black water tank going home is enough to make it a white knuckle trip. I moved heavier items to the rear & even added (literally) ballast bars to the rear.

[StewB]

Thanks for the prayers guys. Now it's a waiting game. Waiting on a hitch part and for the welding shop to get to it. They are busy and we have to wait in line. The welding shop owner is good people and said he was going to use beefier materials to make the new tongue. Lots to do around Whitehorse so not so bad after all. Thanks again,Stew

[StewB]

Forgot...tongue weight was 1150.

[StewB]

Hey Stew, have you crawled under your truck and inspected the hitch for any damage? That would be a concern for me since the tongue incurred that much damage, the hitch also had to see quite a bit of stress.Glad you all are OK, and hopefully your back on the road quickly. Hang in there!

Yeah, the welder and I both looked around under the truck. The truck side of the hitch looked fine but the 2" solid steel draw bar for the trailer hitch bent down right where it comes out of the receiver. That's the part I had to order from the manufacturer because I don't have a standard weight distributing hitch. Only one place makes it.