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Old 03-11-2015, 08:10 AM   #21
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It probably is scant comfort, but as hard as he obviously hit, at least the Airstream didn't roll. That would have done it in. Among all of your repairs, have the dealership inspect the piece that the ball fits into and the lock - damage there can be overlooked, then the newly repaired trailer pops off the ball and then bad stuff happens.

Once it's repaired, it will look like brand new again, and you'll be able to fergit about it. I'm betting 20K inside and out, with some floor and wheel work being needed. You could run a raffle and give away an Airstream Keychain to the winner on the actual cost. Hope the kid has good insurance - and really hope he dropped a load in his jeans and got the invulnerability scared out of him.

I remember Artstream had blue neon (or maybe rope lights?) installed under his trailer - they could be illuminated while the trailer was underway. It's amazing how many accidents happen because "I didn't see it" In my case it happened twice in three months when compact cars changed lanes, moving left, into the side of my old RED Silverado 2500. Both on city streets with traffic having me slowed to a crawl. How did they not see something roughly the size of the Great Wall of China?!

Most of all I hope you get to go camping again within 3 weeks.

Paula
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Old 03-11-2015, 09:45 AM   #22
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I'm ALWAYS watching for merging traffic on those on-ramps, especially when I'm driving with the trailer on. Too many people seem to think that everyone has to move over and make room for them when they enter the highway, instead of them slowing down or speeding up to MERGE with traffic instead of INTO me!
Glad you are ok, and hope the kid is too. Possessions can be replaced, but not people.

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Old 03-11-2015, 10:35 AM   #23
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I drive a semi and if I am in the right lane and there is traffic in the left, and somebody is coming on the "get on", I always look to see if they are looking for traffic or just looking straight ahead. If looking straight ahead, they get a little air horn music, which means, "wake up idiot". It's amazing that so many people don't know the meaning of "YIELD".
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Old 03-11-2015, 10:40 AM   #24
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As a cyclist, and a motor scooter rider, I've learned to "drive as if I'm invisible." It helps you to stay out of trouble.

But, s*** happens. Maybe that's why, twice, while driving my car, I've been backed into while stopped at stop signs, by other drivers who decided to back up, and said they didn't see me behind them! One stupid girl (also an 18 year old, by the way), backed into me, and then went forward a little bit, and then put it into reverse and backed into me again. WTF?!!
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Old 03-11-2015, 11:01 AM   #25
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We are also glad that you, your family and this silly young man were not injured more than this. The trailer, while the photos make my stomach roll, can be repaired.

Both my husband and I see many people texting while driving and it is infuriating. I would love to have a neon sign on our vehicle that flashes STOP TEXTING, YOU IDIOT. But, alas, no such luck...yet.
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Old 03-11-2015, 11:47 AM   #26
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Ouch. Makes me ill thinking about it. Anything you can walk away from, is ok with me. Could have been worse. Guardian Angels (PS 91) have their work cut out for them, for sure.
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Old 03-11-2015, 11:48 AM   #27
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Everyone on this forum jumps to the conclusion that people are always texting and driving, but maybe he was just not observant. I can't count the number of people who cut me off and never look in their mirrors, move their head to look behind them. They just come over, assuming nothing is next to them.

Assumption is the greatest risk on the road. Conditions change within seconds, and you assume no one is there because no one was there 3 secs ago, except for the speeder who just entered your blind spot. BOOM.

It's called situational awareness and reality is, a lot of people don't have it.

How about pay attention. Not texting is a good start, but not the end all be all.

And this is just one more reason I advocate cameras recording in your vehicle at all times. If they where doing something, it sure is useful in court to prove it.
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Old 03-11-2015, 12:00 PM   #28
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I hope the young man is OK too. I'm sure it wasn't the highlight of his day to end up in the hospital and have his car wrecked. At 18 he hasn't been driving very long and just doesn't have the experience of this older crowd.

My son is 19 and tries to be very cautious on the road. He doesn't text or even hold his iPod. He plugs it into the radio and just listens to the music. He drives below the limit and tries to stay out of everyone's way. People are so nasty to him, blowing their horns, giving him the finger and nasty looks. I've ridden with him, he isn't doing anything wrong except being very cautious so as not to hit anyone. He keeps his distance, signals way in advance of turns or lane changes. He's rewarded by being ignored or cut off from the lane change by people speeding up. No thought about when they started out driving.

I would probably be upset if a new driver had hit our car or the trailer but I'm glad that everyone seems to be OK.
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Old 03-11-2015, 12:34 PM   #29
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Thank you for posting about this very scary incident. I didn't realize how common it was to be run into! I don't yet have a rig and wonder what I can do to it when I get it to avoid such accidents. Install lights on the rig to flash when approaching on ramps? An unusual-sounding horn? Diagonal stripes in neon colors? I'm serious. What should I do to be seen? Again, thanks!
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Old 03-11-2015, 12:42 PM   #30
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If an 18-year-old own a cellphone, they are texting -- 24/7.

One of our granddaughters is 16 and just started driving. Two of her girlfriends have already totalled new cars -- The reason: texting.

Fortunately, both incidents were in residential areas where the speed limit is 25 mph; and neither involved injuries. One had a head-on collision with an on-coming car. The other, clipped a parked car, stomped on the gas instead of the brake, and drove through someone's block wall and backyard, stopping against the back of their house.

I have driven accident-free for a little over 50 years, but was involved in a six-car collision on city streets a couple of years ago. The person who caused the accident was texting and rammed five cars stopped in her lane at a red light, at 45 mph. Besides texting, she was also applying makeup, eating a breakfast burrito, drinking coffee; and she exited her car wearing big, fuzzy, house slippers and immediately began looking for her high-heels on the floor of her car.

Many new drivers drive like they learned on a video game, and they seem oblivious to what's going on outside of their cars. If texting with their friends is so important, perhaps they should let someone else drive.

Note: I acknowledge that there are responsible drivers who don't text while driving, and the above comments are in reference to those who drive erratically and are involved in accidents collisions (these are not accidents).
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Old 03-11-2015, 12:44 PM   #31
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Glad you were able to maintain control. What kind of hitch/sway control were you using?

Pat
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Old 03-11-2015, 01:13 PM   #32
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WendyW. View Post
I don't yet have a rig and wonder what I can do to it when I get it to avoid such accidents. Install lights on the rig to flash when approaching on ramps? An unusual-sounding horn? Diagonal stripes in neon colors? I'm serious. What should I do to be seen? Again, thanks!
Trying to be a voice of reason here…

Being more visible isn't always an answer. You might even say that since critters with short attention spans are distracted by shiny objects, being more visible might make things worse.

Drive with your headlights on (which also means driving with your taillights on) any time, day or night. Many newer tow vehicles have headlights that come on automatically as soon as the engine starts, but the taillights and trailer lights do not come on with them! Turn on your light manually.

Your trailer or motorhome will already comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) that were in effect at the time it was built, including visibility standards. You are under no legal obligation to add other conspicuity (visibility) devices to your RV beyond those it was built with. And since conspicuity devices have specific meanings based on type and placement, you might confuse other drivers by adding more or different ones. Don't fix what ain't broke.

Take a towing course if you can, or at the very least a defensive driving course. This won't help the idiots see you, but it will not only help you avoid them, it will help you avoid being one of them! Towing courses require hand-on training and a significant time commitment, but approved defensive driving courses are available online. And best of all, your insurance company might give you a discount for passing a defensive driving course! Some do, some don't, so be sure to ask your agent.

And make sure you're fully insured in case the other guy isn't.

All accidents are avoidable in theory, but only if all drivers involved make the effort. There will always be a driver somewhere, sometime, who doesn't make the effort. And common sense says, the bigger you are, the bigger a target you are when an idiot driver turns his car into an unguided missile.
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Old 03-11-2015, 01:21 PM   #33
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I have noticed a distinct difference in everyday driving in traffic especially in the last year. I'm always seeing people who don't notice the traffic light has turned green, wander out of their lane, or way too slow. Just not paying attention.
Invariably it is the texting--you can see their classic texting posture.

Yes, texting and the use of portable devices is illegal here. Doesn't seem to matter. Have you noticed this too--and is it illegal in your states as well?

Marc
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Old 03-11-2015, 01:31 PM   #34
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Yes, texting and the use of portable devices is illegal here. Doesn't seem to matter. Have you noticed this too--and is it illegal in your states as well?
I don't see so much texting, but I see plenty of folks driving badly with a cell phone held to their ear rather than using hands-free devices. Could it be because the educational system in New Orleans is so bad and our drivers are too illiterate to text?
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Old 03-11-2015, 02:44 PM   #35
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I sometimes think about the possibility of cars pulling into my lane right after I pass, not realizing that there's something else back there. I know a time or two I've been surprised to see a utility trailer behind a car as it passes, but never saw it prior to it going by. An Airstream is big enough that you'd think it would be obvious in the rearview mirror, but there are a lot of drivers out the who just aren't paying close attention, for one reason or another.
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Old 03-11-2015, 05:07 PM   #36
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I'm doing my part here in Florida to wake people up who are on the phone:



Oh I'm sorry, was that in your ear? GET OF YOUR PHONE!
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Old 03-11-2015, 05:13 PM   #37
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That's a great solution!

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Old 03-11-2015, 05:20 PM   #38
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Originally Posted by TWA640316 View Post
I drive a semi and if I am in the right lane and there is traffic in the left, and somebody is coming on the "get on", I always look to see if they are looking for traffic or just looking straight ahead. If looking straight ahead, they get a little air horn music, which means, "wake up idiot". It's amazing that so many people don't know the meaning of "YIELD".
Driving in the right lane approaching an entrance ramp with entering traffic I will move to the left if I can. But if I can't move to the left lane there is a lot of entering traffic that just assume you will let them in
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Old 03-11-2015, 05:50 PM   #39
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Makes no difference how cautious you are, there are a-holes out to get you. We have been on the road for two days now and I have lost count how many times oncoming traffic has started to drift across the yellow line towards us. You just wonder when they are going to wake up. And this morning at a stop light the guy in front of me puts it in reverse and starts backing up! WTF!

Anyway my sympathy to you for the assault on your AS. Thankful it wasn't worse.
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Old 03-11-2015, 07:44 PM   #40
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Having had my '12 28' Intl CCD rear-ended a couple of years ago by an inattentive driver (road construction narrowed two lanes to one, and the guy who was following me wasn't paying attention), I know the feeling of angst when your beautiful aluminum trailer gets bent. BUT, "things" can be repaired and made whole. My dealer and insurance company took care of it, and while he claimed to be insured in the long run it turned out that he had no insurance at all. I suppose if you kept your trailer safe by keeping it parked you could avoid accidents...but that's not why we buy an Airstream. We buy them to travel and enjoy places far and near. Don't let this daunt you from continuing to get out there. A bunch of new panels, access doors, etc. will take away the visual discomfort. I've been there and it'll be fine.
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