This is my soapbox....be prepared for me to be stepping on it frequently

I haven't been posting much about my opinions lately.

This is my SoapBox

I will be stepping up onto my soapbox HERE on my blog.  In more ways than one.

As usual, I try to think before I speak, but it IS my blog & I will say what I want.  I do have several posts in draft for me to tone down. : )

Hang on to your saddlehorn, we're going for a run.

GreenRanchingMom

Trailer Driving 101 - Part 1 Driving Forward

This is my 40 foot trailer with the little piggies I haul on Thursdays.  I haul about 500-650 pigs each week in this trailer at one time.  They weigh about 10 - 15 pounds each.  Its a pretty light load, but a long load for my pickup.  My entire rig only weighs about 27,000 pounds when I'm loaded.

 I have a few friends who have livestock, but don't regularly drive the truck & trailer.  One friend asked me for a tutorial or lesson on driving with the trailer.  Even if you don't drive trucks or trailers, please scan the post & read the tailgaters section (thank you for your consideration).

So, here goes.  My dad was a great driving instructor when I was learning how to drive!  He has the MOST patience of ANYONE that I know.  He is also inventive & would spend hours letting me learn how to drive.

I did start driving a truck & trailer as soon as I had my permit (14).  Mostly, at that time I only drove in the tight spots at horse shows & backed the trailer into the place we wanted to be parked at the show (had to have a good view of the arena, with all of our friends around us).  This was because Mom has no depth perception & would always run into things, or get stuck with our 2 wheel drive truck.  But, she didn't enjoy letting me drive on the highway.

First, you need to know about how long the trailer you are pulling is.  Is it a 40 foot gooseneck (like I haul on Thursdays) or a 12 foot bumper hitch?   Most typical livestock trailers are about 24 - 28 feet.  It is also good to know how wide your trailer is.  Typical widths are 6 to 8 feet wide.  Good indicators are wether the wheel wells are inside or outside of the trailer.  Most wheels are about 6' 5" apart.

Gooseneck versus Bumper Hitch - Basics

Goosenecks will follow in your truck tracks.  You can turn MUCH tighter with a gooseneck.  Just watch your cab especially if you have a short-box truck & turn too tight.  If you are loaded, you need to watch your trailer tires when you make more than a 90degree turn.  You will be sliding the tires in the back & front axles & could potentially pop one off of the bead if you are toooo loaded & turn tightly.

Bumper Hitch trailers are great for going forward, but a little different to back.  A bumper hitch will turn tighter behind you & will have much different tracks than your truck tires. (*I will add more here later, because I haven't pulled a bumper hitch in about a month)

I would recommend getting to know how your trailer drives without a load and in wide open spaces.  Its NOT always possible, so just try to keep these few things in mind.

1 - Always turn at least 1 second later than you usually would, per 10 feet of trailer.   Meaning that if you have just a 12 foot trailer; just count "one Missippi and" between the time you would normally turn a corner and the time you NEED to with a trailer.  This will give you the extra travel room to prevent your trailer tires to jump the curb or hit an obstacle.

      For instance, with my 40 foot trailer, when I want to turn left, I drive 4  (& a half, cause I like extra room) seconds farther forward BEFORE I turn SHARPLY to the left.  If you are driving a Gooseneck, you can turn sharper than with a bumper hitch.

2 - If you are going to turn right, you need to first hug the left side of your lane before you turn the corner to the right.

     If it is an especially tight right hand turn, (and you have a long trailer) you might need some of the next lane to the left of you.  Plan AHEAD and share respectfully. 

3 - If you have mirrors that adjust OUT and away from the truck, pull them out as far as they will go & then adjust BOTH of your mirrors so that you can see your trailer tires and the area next to your trailer.

4 - You now weigh a LOT more than you did before you hooked up your trailer.  So you will need to plan farther ahead to stop your rig.  If you are heavily loaded, you will need even farther ahead to stop.  This also needs to be considered when you choose your speed.  SLOWER is better.  But, you do need to consider the flow of traffic & people passing you, might disturb your load (animals).

5 - TAILGATERS!!!  (THESE PEOPLE DRIVE ME NUTZ!!!) If you can not see BOTH mirrors of the rig in front of you, they have NO CLUE you are back there!!  It is rude to drive so close that you can't see their mirrors!  And it is DANGEROUS!  Please consider this the next time you are following a semi-truck.  Think about how far back you need to stay.  If you do decide to drive closer, you are taking your own life in your hands.  I usually hope a cow pees on the people following me!!  I have seen it happen, & I thought it was a great lesson to the angry man in the little blue car!  I only wished he was driving a convertible!

6 -  Know your hitch, & double check everything for saftey!!! Hitch your truck & trailer, then check it again!  Always check your entire rig each and EVERY time you get out of your rig.  Make it a practice to walk around starting at the front and check the following things.  (Put your light & flashers on & it will make it easier)
Front bumper (going towards passenger side)
Anything hanging under the front?
Truck Lights good?
Front Drive Tires good?  Inflated, tread good?
Passenger side - Anything hanging?
Trailer Marker lights good on front of trailer?
Back Drive Tires - Both inflated good?  (kick inside dual too!)  Anything hanging?
Hitch - All saftey chains hooked?  Hitched properly?
Trailer Marker lights on Side of trailer good?
Underside of trailer (LOOK, REALLY look!)  Floor looking good from underside?  Anything hanging, boards sagging?
Trailer tires - Good tread, Good inflation?  Anything hanging underneat axle?
Trailer gates - Latched properly?  Saftey Latch too?
Blinkers all flashing??  Bright enough & CLEAN enough to be seen??
Marker Lights all good??
    Follow same checks for driver's side as you come up to the front.  CHECKING IT ALL AGAIN!!! You can see different things from each side!

There's the basics for now.  I think that I have covered everything.  A little knowledge up front & a quick run around the rig always saves some time in the long run!!  Beter to notice a sagging floor board now, before an animal falls through!  That quick run around the truck will also let you make a list of things (like marker lights) that you need to fix after you haul this load.

Just slow down a little, plan ahead for turns and stops.  And you should be good to go!

By the way, I still count in my head the extra seconds when I'm hauling the big trailer.  But, I also make really wide turns when the trailer isn't hooked up (drives my husband nutz!)

Happy hauling!!

Water N Poo

I love this little video. And after the RAINY wet day that I had, I was thankful that I wasn't covered in Pig Poo like I have been in weeks past. So, I thought I might direct you to Water N Poo. I can't figure out how to just put the You Tube Video in my screen....
So you'll have to click on the link.



TRUST ME, Its Cute!!

Hope your day isn't as wet as mine!!

A Stroller and Tire Chains

Well, what do both of these things have in comon? They are both in my toolbox right now, and I used both of them on the same day. (Before Christmas, in the Ice storm).

Crazy, yes!

The true explanation of my life, YES!

You see, I am a fiercely independent, "Anything you can do, I can do better" kind of gal". A man says, you can't do that and I say WATCH ME! And I usually do it.

Most guys think that I'm crazy, (or my husband is for marryin me) when I say that I pull a 40 foot stock trailer. They think I can't count or measure or something. Then they see me pull in someplace. Like Wal-Mart, or McDonalds and parrallel park my rig. Hop out, with 1, 2, or 3 kids and a pair of dogs in tow, and instantly resume the Momma roll (that never stopped).

But, yes, that's me. I do love what I do. I get to have the kids whith me when I haul, and I get to have fun and get off the ranch a couple of times a week.

As for the Ice and Tire Chains, I hauled in the slickest roads I've seen in a while. My farrowing house (where the mommas have the piglets) had held their pigs for 2 weeks, and was stuffed to the gills. So, they couldn't wait. I had to haul 'em out. We chained up, put a movie in the tv's for the girls to watch, and off I went.

The hill coming down out of the Farrowing house is pretty steep, so I made sure the chains would fit the 17" tires on the Dodge (cause it has a pretty handy Jake Brake) and off I went. Not very fast, 30 at the max with the chains. I felt like a Mountain Woman (they get to wear chains a lot in the winter).

The pigs were all hauled, no problems with the rig, and NO SLIDING! I was even able to take off my chains pretty quickly by myself.

Now, you have a small peek at the STUBBORN side of me. I won't let most things stop me from taking care of my animals or my family.

BTW, I used the stroller later that day for the obligatory Santa Picture. Squeak wasn't even all that scared.