jwstewar
Active member
I did a couple of things yesterday that I had never done before. Totally one of those screw up type days. Glad that neither one of them was major and no damage. As some may know, we have goats. We've been raising them for a few years now and bought a new one back in the spring. Part of the deal was, she went back to her previous owner to be bred with their buck. Anyway, she is supposed to go back into heat on Wednesday or Thursday. Since we didn't want to have to be traveling the 85 miles or so to take her there on Thanksgiving day, we decided to take her yesterday. As we are pulling out of the yard, I made quick casual mention to Monica that the stock trailer was pulling heavy - mind you we are pulling a 16' stock trailer that weighs 3500 lbs for 1 130 lb goat. I said must be because everything is cold and stiff. We kept going and it didn't get any better. I also noticed the truck wasn't shifting into 4 gear like it normally does when pulling the stock trailer light. So we drive, almost to Columbus (about 35 miles or so) I happen to look down at the 4x4 buttons. The AutoTrac light was on. Push the 2WD button, immediately the truck shifted into 4th and the trailer "lightened" up. No harm/no foul other than cost me a little bit extra in gas. So we finish the trip to the people's farm we were going to. We drop the goat off and talk for awhile. Then we get ready to leave, she says back the trailer over her...blah, blah... so I start to back the trailer and it and I just weren't getting along yesterday. On the curve of the driveway, I just couldn't get the trailer to go the direction I wanted it to. Then the kids yell STOP!!! They said we were close. So I pull up and get another shot at - in reality I should have pulled up and started over, but I didn't. Finally I get back home and I'm back in the driveway and Monica says Is that a dent in the front of the trailer? I said, I don't know. We get out and look and sure enough the whole right front of the trailer is caved in. Apparently I had jackknifed the truck and trailer when the kids yelled stop and I was closer than we all thought. No damaged to the truck other than the chrome on the bump is scuffed a little bit. Fortunately I was able to go inside the stock trailer and kick the front wall out without any lingering damage. So two things I had never done before, not checked the 4x4 switch and jackknifed a trailer....don't wanna do either one again. At least both turned out OK, both could've been much worse...i.e. had it been true 4x4 instead of the AutoTrac and torn the truck and trailer up badly.