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reshecca · 09-18-2011, 07:02 AM

Well, I've been on a month-long road trip which has been great until yesterday morning. There was an accident in the RV Park I'm staying at which has pretty much totaled my tow vehicle.... Thankfully no one was injured

However, now I'm sitting in Colorado Springs wondering how in the heck I'm going to get my Trailer back home to California....

This forum has been a great resource over the last 2 years and 15,000 miles of Airstreaming, and now I'm just hoping for a little help brainstorming what to do next....

And does anyone have a recommendation for a good body shop in Colorado Springs?

Thanks!

overlander63 · 09-18-2011, 07:21 AM

If the truck is truly totaled, simply take the check the insurance company give you, pay off the bank, and go find another tow vehicle. A new one there will likely cost less than a comparable truck in California, anyway. Plan B would be to arrange to store the trailer and use the rental car the insurance company gives you to get home, then drop it off when you buy a replacement truck. Head back out to Colorado to pick up your trailer, or leave it until Spring, when the weather is better. If you do that, make sure you Winterize it before you leave it.

Caryl · 09-18-2011, 07:23 AM

Not a body shop, but call Intermountain Couch for ideas. Colorado Springs Dealership | Used and New Buses, RVs, Cars, Trucks, SUVs and Vans Dealership | Highlands Ranch, Pueblo, Aurora, Denver | Intermountain Coach Leasing Inc. | Southern Colorado

We were stuck in Colorado Springs with the dreaded tire separation issue and they were a great help. They likely have a delivery service for RVs.

Good luck.

kidsgone · 09-18-2011, 07:46 AM

Ditto on Intermountain Coach...we have used them a couple of times while camping in the Springs. Nice people.
Glad no one was injured!!
Andi

Skatiero · 09-18-2011, 10:29 AM

I am so sorry than happened to you! I hope you get it taken care of quickly. It seems as if these folks have some great ideas for you.

reshecca · 09-18-2011, 07:39 PM

Thanks for the replies! I have a friend lined up to tow my Trailer back to California for me. Now we just have to get a brake controller installed in his rig. I'll have him call Intermountain Coaches in the morning. Hopefully we can use the one from my truck, but the wiring will need to be done for his late-90's van....

Thanks again!

Ag&Au · 09-18-2011, 08:36 PM

Glad to hear it worked out.

I am curious about what RV park you were in and what kind of accident could total your truck.

Ken

reshecca · 09-23-2011, 12:03 PM

I'm back home in California now, but I just wanted to give an update and say Thank You!

I particularly want to Thank those of you who recommended Intermountain Coach. When we called them on Monday morning about getting my friends van outfitted for towing and told them the situation, they could not have been more helpful. They did the work on the van immediately, and we were all on the road by 2pm (I was traveling with a group from my fire department for the Internat'l Fallen Firefighter Memorial).

Here's what happened last saturday morning, because I know inquiring minds want to know

I've just pasted the story here that I typed out for my Facebook page....

The RV Park demolition derby: the night before the Memorial ceremony, 3 of us from the Metro Fire contingent were staying in 3 different trailers parked in a row at the RV park. I had disconnected my truck from my Trailer, but it was parked about 6-10 feet in front of and in line with the Trailer. At about 9am I was in my Trailer standing at the stove making breakfast for the 3 of us. One of the other guys was sitting just inside the door of my Trailer, and Skipper was laying on the ground just outside. We then heard what sounded like a fast-moving vehicle and 2 loud crashes, so we ran outside. My truck had obviously been moved to the side from it's original parking place, and just across the way, a car was wedged under a 5th-wheel almost up to it's windshield. I checked for occupants of the 5th-wheel while my friend/co-worker helped the driver from her car. The driver was uninjured (aches and pains, transported and released same day) and the 5th-wheel was unoccupied. I don't know all the details, but it seems that the driver was moving the car into position to be towed behind a large RV. On the floor in front of the driver's seat was something called a "brake buddy". I had never heard of this device before saturday, but apparently it is a box about 1 - 2 ft square and has to do with applying the car's brakes while it is being towed by the RV. It is very likely that this box pressed on the accelerator and also blocked access to the brake pedal. Soooo, Kathleen came speeding through the RV park..... no other person was involved in the accident, and only one other 5th-wheel was grazed. A witness who saw the final impact estimated she was going about 40mph. She managed to steer around her RV without really hitting any of the RV's/5th-wheels on her left side, and then she managed to make a left turn at the corner of a building without hitting it where she then hit my truck and continued on to hit an unoccupied 5th-wheel. Had she just panicked and not been steering her car, she very likely would have plowed into the side of my Trailer.

The RV park is called Pikes Peak RV Park and Campground and is actually located in Manitou Springs. The people there could not have been more kind or helpful throughout the entire situation, and I will very likely stay there again next time I go to the FF Memorial.

3Ms75Argosy · 09-23-2011, 12:23 PM

Wow, I'm glad everyone was ok, and no one was in the way of the car. Scary!
Marc

garry · 09-23-2011, 12:24 PM

Sorry to hear about the really strange accident. I can't imagine trying to install a Brake Buddy with the engine running.

The brake buddy is usually installed "after" hooking the toad to the MH.

JamuJoe · 09-23-2011, 12:34 PM

What an odd accident! A runaway dinghy! We stayed at Pikes Peak RV Park just a few weeks ago, and from your photo it looks like we were in your exact spot! We rated it four stars - a bit tightly packed, but very convenient to old town Manitou Springs and Pike Peak itself.

pappy19 · 09-23-2011, 03:54 PM

This is a prime example of reality being more real than fiction. Who would believe something like this could happen in a 5 mph RV park!!!

Pap

GinMame · 09-23-2011, 05:34 PM

I'm glad that all were OK and that you made it back to California safely.

Wingeezer · 09-23-2011, 05:55 PM

Looking at the pics, I am surprised that your truck was totalled. Didn't look bad enough for such drastic action.

Still, I suppose with shop rates being what they are these days, maybe it doesn't take all that much.

Hope all works out to your satisfaction.

Brian.

Gene · 09-23-2011, 06:02 PM

Do you have travel insurance like Good Sam? They may have arranged to tow the trailer home or provide other services. You still may be able to get something.

The Tundra didn't look all that bad from the photo. Hard to believe it would be totalled.

Glad the trailer wasn't hit and no one was injured. Having a big box on the floor while trying to drive sounds a bit dumb. Did the driver get a ticket?

Gene

Ag&Au · 09-23-2011, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

Do you have travel insurance like Good Sam? They may have arranged to tow the trailer home or provide other services. You still may be able to get something.

The Tundra didn't look all that bad from the photo. Hard to believe it would be totalled.

Glad the trailer wasn't hit and no one was injured. Having a big box on the floor while trying to drive sounds a bit dumb. Did the driver get a ticket?

Gene

Hi Gene,

You should know better than I, but I thought it wasn't possible to get a traffic ticket when driving on private property. Is that something I perhaps remember from somewhere else I lived?

Ken

Skater · 09-23-2011, 07:43 PM

Why someone would try to drive a car with something BLOCKING ACCESS TO THE PEDALS is beyond me. I have little tolerance for stupidity behind the wheel. Unfortunately I see it every day here in DC.

Sorry to hear about your truck. I'd be livid. Be certain to forward any and all expenses to her insurance company. Also be sure to bill them for the interruption of your trip.

My parents had a similar campground incident: Someone hit their Airstream while it was set up on a site, with them inside. Apparently the driver was too busy talking on his cell phone to notice a giant aluminum thing in front of him.

reshecca · 09-23-2011, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamuJoe

What an odd accident! A runaway dinghy! We stayed at Pikes Peak RV Park just a few weeks ago, and from your photo it looks like we were in your exact spot! We rated it four stars - a bit tightly packed, but very convenient to old town Manitou Springs and Pike Peak itself.

I was in site 33, and I would also give the park 4 stars. I kept saying that if this had to happen somewhere, it couldn't have happened in a better place. There was a creek running behind my site which was a very soothing sound while I made all my phone calls and worked at the picnic table I called my "office". The woman running the place even took care of my dog for me while I went to the FF memorial, and they ultimately refunded all the money for 3 sites for the 3 days my friends and I were there.

reshecca · 09-23-2011, 09:20 PM

The driver was cited, even though it was on private property.

I finally heard from the body shop late this afternoon. The truck is not officially totaled, but the frame is beyond repair and will be replaced. The estimate came to $8940.39.
They are basically going to take apart my truck and put it back together on a different frame.... Allstate is my insurance company and apparently they Guarantee my satisfaction with this repair, so we'll see how it goes....
Of course I am saving all receipts for getting myself and the Trailer home, and so far the insurance companies have been very helpful and supportive. But, again, we'll see how it goes....

**azflycaster** · 09-23-2011, 09:22 PM

Sounds like the campground was very helpful, a good thing to know when looking for a place to stay in the future.

There is a bunch of damage to the Tundra. It appears that the frame is bent in the front where the other car hit it. For a small car to do that damage and move your truck the way it did, it had to be traveling at a pretty good rate of speed.

The good news is that no one was hurt. This could have ended much worse.