A Safety Reminder and Being Made Whole again...

[westcoastas]

I've waited three weeks to post this in order to complete a process. It is not to shock but rather to remind how easily a dream can end. Perhaps this won't apply to most here but if it makes just one Airstreamer think twice, it will be worth it.

This is what happens when a Tundra meets a cow at around 45-55 mph:

While traveling on a Saturday and eastward from the California Sierras to Snow Canyon State Park, Utah to start our camphosting gig I drove into a full-grown, black cow who happened to walk into our lane at around 9 PM in the middle of Nevada open range. Its eyes were turned away from me only to turn her head toward us at the last few seconds and share the shock of her life as well as ours. I only had two seconds to hit the brakes, swerve a bit, utter a four-letter curse word (which described the poor cow's reaction along our truck and Airstream), and turn to reach for my wife before the bags deployed; my last thought before the collision was that I had accidentally gotten ourselves killed. I am sad to say the cow did not survive the collision but fortunately the Tundra's crumple zone and height saved us. I lost our engine, lights, and power steering but luckily had a good level shoulder to make our way off the highway. My instinct was to try and swerve around the cow but as the photos show, the truck's passenger side took on the damage up front - so much for chivalry. My wife Coffee has two bruised knees and she is walking with cane while the still painful one heals; I walked away without a scratch. Didn't even break my glasses. Fortunately we were able to get a cell phone signal and called Triple AAA. They must have called Highway Patrol for us because amazingly we had three very kind troopers show up in the middle of darkness within 10 minutes and helped us get over the shock. They checked on the cow for us while we set up our warning reflectors and assured us that it had indeed bounced off the highway. The trooper said we would be responsible for the cow and that typically the insurance company covers it. We got a 164-mile tow and flatbed carry from a very nice tow truck driver (Triple AAA saved me again!) all the way to Snow Canyon. The Airstream was untouched except for the spray of excrement which I washed off the next day.

We were a bit unlucky but blessed at the same time. I thought 55 mph was slow enough - it was not. I thought I would see a cow in open range with time enough - I did not. I must have taken my eyes of the road for just a moment because my high beams should have picked up the cow from farther away than what seemed like 50 feet. Of course, being a black cow and walking into our lane didn't help. I have always preferred driving off the main highways and nighttime hadn't bothered me up to now. Lessons learned: if driving the smaller, two-lane highways, stick to the daytime; and if driving through open range, drive MUCH slower.

I wanted to give a shout out to my insurance carrier - Progressive. My agent is Miller Insurance out of Lake Oswego, Oregon. They are well versed in fulltiming and got us insurance for our truck and our Airstream. Our trailer has an agreed value - the price we paid at the time of purchase - and coverage for our possessions up to $10,000. Progressive came in just above NADA guidelines after they evaluated our truck as a total loss. We greatly miss our beloved blue Tundra but in the end we will be made largely whole again. One thing that benefited us was that the evaluation was based on our old California zip code. I've been frustrated that I haven't been able to register the truck in Utah but now that fact helped us out with a higher evaluation. As it turns out the insurance check will be only about $1,000 less than what I paid for two years ago, and we've been able to find a two year newer Tundra at CarMax! We are waiting on a delivery of our next used Tundra from St. Louis - that cost us $749. Hopefully the truck will meet our CarMax expectations. The price out the door and the delivery cost will be right around our evaluation; we will have to pay out of pocket for the replacement tonneau lid. Still, a relatively small price to pay after such a loss. We still get to follow our dream.

And no, we didn't get any steaks.


Jeff

[MsTara]

I am so happy that you and your wife are well after such a horrendous accident. I am not surprised that your truck did not survive, however shocked that the Airstream incurred no damage. That was some amazing emergency maneuvering not to have a complete total.

I really appreciate you sharing this message as it is an important reminder about not only driving at dark regardless of towing something but the unpredictability of life itself.

Thank you,

MsTara

[pcskier]

Wow. Just WOW. I also cannot believe the AS was spared, no jacknifing and possibly rolling. How 'hard' was your stop, i.e. did you stomp on the brakes or come to a more gradual stop even with airbags deployed? Did the TV or AS skid at all? I wonder had you swerved, if the outcome would have been different rather than just taking it straight on.

Just read a bunch of posts tonight about what speed people travel at, it was really a tire discussion, laced with some thoughts on overall safety. While your circumstances were darkness, black cow, and fortunately lower speed...things could have multiplied in a bad way at higher speeds.

Thanks for sharing, and glad to hear the outcome wasn't worse, hoping your wife has a full recovery---soon.

p.s. I can't believe that ranchers can 'open range' their cattle, but the drivers are responsible for the cost if they wander into the road. I've seen them just off to the side at night, and yes they are HARD to see.

p.p.s. My worst fear, even on interstate highways at night, are deer. So often they come out of nowhere at the last second.

[OilnH2o]

Happy that your outcome was as good as it ended up - and that you all survived a scary situation. That said, the saying here is that "There is nothing as black as a black angus on a black-top on a black night in eastern Montana..." where even if it isn't open range, there are still plenty of deer, antelope, elk, even moose (as well as black angus, red angus, charolais, and on and on that can ruin your day).

I'm also pleased about AAA - we've got them - the premium membership -- as well and nice to hear their service. Also glad to hear your instinctive actions worked well between tow vehicle and trailer. It gives us even more confidence in the product we all share!

Thanks for sharing your story.

[Len n Jeanne]

So glad your accident wasn't worse and that you both are safe.

Having been in an accident in 2014 when haggling with the insurance company was the second traumatic episode associated with the event, we're also glad yours has been supportive.

[Lily&Me]

Oh my god!!!

How horrible this must have been for you, and I'm so sorry you had to go thru this.

Glad you are both okay, tho driving at night will never be the same again.

Hugs to you both.


Maggie

[westcoastas]

Yes, I cannot say enough good things about AAA - they have never left me wanting. We, too, have the premium coverage and it really came through for us, although the tow driver gave us a break and didn't charge us the extra mileage for the trailer tow.

We have an Equalizer hitch and I'm guessing that helped. Our first year just outside of Chinle, AZ on our way to Canyon de Chelly, we were towing late at night (again!) and I had to take the Airstream off onto the shoulder to narrowly miss a drunk and/or sleepy Datsun pickup driver - he swerved at the last second before side swiping the entire length of our trailer. I'm thinking maybe it was good that I hit the poor cow at a slight angle so that it bounced off to the side, otherwise I may have run over it twice. The poor cow sprayed the truck and trailer pretty high so it was very close in the air as we drove by it.

What really bugged me was that we had just spent seven weeks often driving carefully home to our Airstream in the dark after closing down a Sierra lake while fishing and missing many, many deer. I think the deer are harder to miss since they will just jump right in front of you, so I would be driving much slower. I had crossed Nevada open range a few times and even had to come to a stop for cattle but that was during the day. I did slam on the brakes that night but really didn't have much time to swerve - probably a good thing.

Looking back, I really didn't want to pull over and sleep overnight in the desolate part of Nevada; I was 20 minutes away from the small town of Caliente, NV. We like the freedom of being spontaneous but I will be doing a better job of planning ahead in the future.

[cabinetmaker]

Holy Cow! (no pun intended)...Glad you two survived. Here in Texas we have deer in the roads at night. They will run right out from nowhere. Some truckers will not drive back highways at night because it's just not safe. Deer can come through the windshield on you. Again, glad your both still here. Thanks for sharing. Just made my rule of always planning my trips to arrive before dark that much more important.

[xrvr]

Glad you are okay. There's nothing you can do to avoid this type of accident short of not driving at night. It's an accident, don't beat yourself up over it. Be grateful you were unhurt. Keep airstreaming.

[PaulnGina]

So glad to hear that you two came though as well as you did. Thank you for reminding us of such hazards. Having hit a deer a couple of years ago (same kind of damage to our Mustang, but on the left front corner), I cannot imagine hitting something that much heavier.

[Boxite]

I don't know about Utah, but here in Texas if it's "open range" (i.e., posted as such and no fencing) hitting the cow would be considered your liability. However, otherwise it's the farmer/cow's fault and they would have to pay for the damages.
Of course, in either case your insurance should handle those details and make you "whole" again, or nearly so. In the event it's the farmer/cow's fault, the ins. co. should not charge your deductible, and you should have recourse against the farmer/cow/their insurance co. for the full value of any/all losses, i.e., you should be able to recover completely...tonneau cover, time and expenses, pain/suffering, etc....but you may have to sue in civil court for it.
I'm not a lawyer and I'm not offering legal advice.... I'm just someone who's also gone thru hitting animals on the highway at night and going thru it all.
I'm glad you're OK, and I'm sorry your wife was injured. Hope she recovers fully and you guys are able to continue enjoying the AS.

[millertimeUS]

I never understood the expletive "knocked the $h/t out out of....." until just now!

Glad you all are ok. My doctor keeps telling me that too much meat is bad for you, guess he was right.

[Lily&Me]

One day....this event will be in your rear view mirror, and just a story to share around a campfire.

One dark and moon-less night in Nevada, there was this cow....


Maggie

[centennialman]

I towed my Airstream only once at night and swore I wouldn't do it again. Nearly hit two deer the same night. Thanks for sharing your experience and it's good to know that you two will be safe. I hope your wife mends quickly and that you enjoy many more miles on the road.

[switz]

Had a herd of deer cross in front of me at night on I-10 heading East towards San Antonio on my Honda GoldWing. Was a laundry generating experience, but I did not hit any of them. Was running 65 mph versus the posted 80 mph. Slower is better at night.

[Lily&Me]

We were driving thru a town out west at dusk a number of years ago, when we passed an enormous bull standing right at the side of the busy, four-lane road.

It looked the size of a Volkswagen, and could have caused a serious, multi-vehicle accident if it stepped into traffic.

When I called 911 to report it, the dispatcher asked if I knew whose bull it was....I told her no, that we were from Illinois, and I knew only that it didn't belong there.

She said they would send someone right out.

Maggie

[perryg114]

Glad you made it out ok. Could have been worse. What damage did it do to the Airstream?

Perry

[mayco]

.......all that and no steaks! Sure glad youre ok!

[Boxite]

Towing at night, even along Interstates, ... in fact simply driving at night anywhere.... carries this hazard.

A few years ago while towing up the Interstate 37 (2-lanes northbound separated by a wide esplanade from 2-lanes southbound at night) from Corpus Christi area toward San Antonio, doing about 65 mph.... for absolutely no reason other than boredom from the deserted highway....I switched from the right-hand northbound lane to the left-hand northbound lane.
Suddenly, out of the darkness, standing stationary in the just-abandoned right-lane, flashed by 6 black wild hogs about the size of office-desks!
Thank you, Guardian-Angel!

In the darkness, the long and lonely concrete stretched far away.....

[Hittenstiehl]

A very good posting Westcostas. Thank you for sharing.