Women drivers?

[white laker]

sorry about the title , but I need some input here.
over the past four months I have been dealing with a Pituitary Tumour which after going through a sergury to remove it, has left me visually impared. my vision does not meet the minimum standards for our licence folks so my driving days are behind me. my mife has no problem pulling a utillity trailer with my bike on top. I still do the backing up into the driveway. She thinks that she wants to try pulling the AS so that we can carry on. My questions are....
how many women do the driving or share the driving now. Please this is not a sexist question but one that I hope will reassure my wife that this is normal.
Secondly, other that getting the training from me, do we know of any trailer training courses than we can look into.
this has been a sudden change or bump in the road, but we are trying to get beyond this and not allow it to define our future years.
I appreciate any input and hope to be on the road this summer. you may want to cut me a wide berth when I do the final parking!
thanks
Pete

[Becky B.]

I do the driving & the backing all the time. My hubby stays home & farms while I go with my extended family camping! My mother pulled their SOB white box when they went on extended trips. She didn't begin towing until the age of 55 or so. I'm sure MANY women will chime in here. It's just a matter of overcoming fear!

[DKB_SATX]

Lots of women drive tow vehicle-trailer combinations. Two friends in my unit are women who travel solo all the time, and one of them has 2 pickups and 4 Airstreams.

Men aren't born knowing how to tow a trailer, it's a learned skill for everyone. I know guys who couldn't parallel park a Miata and I've met women who drive semi trucks.

[kposey]

I tow my trailer more than the hubby. Just have to get used to pulling a longer vehicle-trailer combo and wide turns. One suggestion is to go to a large store parking lot to practice. That has helped a lot of folks.

Glad to know that this setback is not going to stop you from enjoying life. Get out there and have fun!

[m.hony]

My wife's cousin takes the trailer to the campground while her husband is at work. She also pulls horse trailers.
We know another couple with the wife doing all the driving. They have a 34' motor home. The husband has been blind for 10-12 years due to mini strokes on the optic nerves.
My wife often asks if I want her to drive. I would just rather drive. She does tow our utility trailer.
There are many widows at the RV rallies who drive their own rigs or couples with the wife driving due to some disability the husband has.
I have even seen women at the dump station. I wish I could get my wife to do that part.

[MrUKToad]

Originally Posted by DKB_SATX

Men aren't born knowing how to tow a trailer, it's a learned skill for everyone.

That sums it up, really. It's just practice and confidence, and confidence comes with practice.

My wife tows the Airstream sometimes and it's no big deal for either of us.

[overlander63]

My wife occasionally tows our trailer, and it is roughly the same as yours.
The biggest thing will be to make sure your tow vehicle is something your wife feels comfortable driving by itself, as well as letting her practice towing.

[SteveSueMac]

Sorry to hear about the effect of the surgery, Pete.

With training and practice, anyone can drive a rig like this. I HIGHLY recommend calling your nearest CDL (commercial driving license) center a seeing if they offer a safe RV drier training school. My wife and I did that the first weekend we had the trailer and it was a great investment.

And seriously - one of the tasks was to parallel park the rig which my wife nailed on the first try. Me? Not so much.

She left wondering - can men drive these things or what? :-)

Seriously - it's a learned skill that takes practice. That's all there is to it. Good luck!!

[Foiled Again]

I've been fulltiming as a solo for several years now. If I had a man, I'd share the towing responsibilities - but I'd never leave myself totally dependent on him.

Your wife sounds like she's 95% ready and trained to do the job right now.

If it's a confidence thing, look to a truck driver training school. Here in the States we have a CDL (commercial driver's license) that is required for over the road truckers. Many trucking schools offer a recreational vehicle course. I don't know what the Canadian equivalent is, but I'm betting there is one. Perhaps your local licensing office can point you in the right direction.


Paula

[overlander63]

If the problem is backing, I cleared a couple of acres at our farm, drove the truck and trailer there, and told her to back in figure 8's. After about an hour, she was doing pretty good.

[NJtoNC]

I and my husband share driving responsibilities fairly evenly. I prefer not to drive at night. In the beginning, i had the better knack for backing in. Now he is better and gets into position 1st try.

Here in the south, i often see female drivers pulling horse trailers solo at least 1/2, if not more than 1/2 of the time. At first i wanted to tell them "Hey i'm proud of you"!!!! but now i realize its just the norm.

It can be scary for anyone new learning to tow, especially a big trailer. i agree with the suggestion of a training course and/or practice at a shopping center.

Hope you'll update us.

[Jim Lee]

My wife and I equally share driving also. We used to work on the road and have pulled trailers all our married life....since 1973 . I'm a better baker, even if I say so myself. I'm a better navigator, using the iPad. I am a better baker but I'm also a better backer. Lol

[Jim Lee]

Our daughter pulls a gooseneck horse trailer to shows by herself. I just make sure she has a good, dependable vehicle, a spare and a cell phone. In ten years I only had to rescue her once.

[Stefrobrts]

I'd say women far outnumber men in the horse trailer contingency! At least around here!

I don't mind driving our rig, but I'm rubbish at backing it up, even though it's a tiny little thing! Maybe I'll look into one of these driving schools! My husband seemed to instinctively know right off how to back it up, and can back it into any tiny little spot we're given. That has made me lazy, and I just hand the wheel over to him when backing time comes. I guess I really should learn how, but when we're parking at a rally with people watching never seems like the right time!

[AldeanFan]

My wife pulled the trailer one time, I made her do it so that in the event of an emergency it would not be the first time. She's a good driver, but needed the confidence boost of seeing that she could do it.


We camp with one couple where the wife does most of the towing, but my mother won't even drive the truck, never mind tow a trailer. It's all in your attitude and what you're comfortable with.


Too bad you're not closer, my neighbor teaches truck driving!


Try to find someone who will give some lessons. When my parents bought their 5th wheel, my father had a friend who drives truck teach him to back it up (5th wheels turn very differently than bumper pull trailers). Ask around, you probably know someone or can find a friend of a friend that can provide lessons.


Also, don't be afraid to ask for help! Trailer folk are very friendly and usually happy to help. My parents have their trailer on a seasonal site, and my father always parks his neighbor's trailer for him because of a close by tree he is afraid of hitting.

[InsideOut]

My husband & I share the driving equally when traveling together.

I do all the towing when traveling alone which is several times each year.

In the 13 years we've been Airstreaming, my husband has yet to take the trailer out solo.

As others have stated, there is no difference between men & women when it comes to trailering - just confidence & experience. Take the trailer out with some cones to a vacant lot and practice backing & manuvering or sign up for a driving school class to build both confidence & experience...then hit the road!

The only difference is when towing alone, I usually make more rest stops and cover fewer miles, as any solo-traveler should.

Shari

[msmcv51]

While I was still working for the local natural gas company, I trained many women to get their Commercial Drivers License. They had to pass the test driving a big dump truck towing a heavy equipment trailer. The women did just as well as the men. Everybody has to take the time to learn and get comfortable.

[mimiandrews]

I do all the driving and towing. DH had cataract problems and had quit driving before we got the Airstream.

Towing is a slightly different set of skills, but any driver can learn.

Tell your wife to go for it.

[Someday'59]

I can't remember the last time my husband drove when we were towing.

[Jenniflow]

Same here, always did the driving and loved the driving more than most of my friends and family. The question may not be so much male or female, as ability to judge things in three dimensions -distances, sizes, that kind of thing. A lot of the skills can be learned though, including those types of judgments. It may just take a little longer for some, male or female, than others. Depends on how much she cares about doing it and where she's starting from, spatial-relations-wise.

I say go for it. There's great pleasure in being that mobile.