Community Forums

RVThere · 03-02-2010, 05:55 AM

According to my wife, I STILL need to learn how to drive a motorhome...

jackrobinryan · 03-02-2010, 06:30 AM

69RoadRunner....bought ours in Thurmont too and made much the same first trip, but continued past our old home near Dulles and on down 95 to Richmond. The only enjoyable part of that route for me is the Rt15 portion at the beginning, just love that stretch up to Gettysburg PA.

Having lived in N VA for many years, I now avoid the DC beltway any chance I get. (but it is an interesting place to live and work)

safe travels
jack

PS. A 69 RoadRunner? awww man that is sweet! My second dream car. My first was the 67 Chevelle SS396 I had to sell to pay for college.

Bob N Deb · 03-02-2010, 10:22 AM

20 years of driving charter busses for highway experience then 10 years of driving fire trucks for city experience .Now driving the motorhome is easier than driving the car.

69RoadRunner · 03-02-2010, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jackrobinryan

69RoadRunner....bought ours in Thurmont too and made much the same first trip, but continued past our old home near Dulles and on down 95 to Richmond. The only enjoyable part of that route for me is the Rt15 portion at the beginning, just love that stretch up to Gettysburg PA.

Having lived in N VA for many years, I now avoid the DC beltway any chance I get. (but it is an interesting place to live and work)

safe travels
jack

PS. A 69 RoadRunner? awww man that is sweet! My second dream car. My first was the 67 Chevelle SS396 I had to sell to pay for college.

Actually, rush hour is easy. When you barely move, you can't get in much trouble.

Yeah, I've had the Road Runner since New Year's Eve 2003. It's a year older than me.

Always-RVing · 03-02-2010, 11:26 AM

After several collisions, two cliffs and three dead horses later, I decided it was time to learn.

Superslif · 03-02-2010, 11:38 AM

Start small....go big....Started with a pop-up..moved up to a 24' trailer...hope in the future to move again to a 5er. Actually with the 24' TT now, I have gotten into many very tight sites. A can say I have mastered the art of backing up. On the road I'm always looking ahead to the "what if" that guy turns into my lane. Or that person pulls out in front of me......We can all say that has happened to us.

brakes

:e ek: I figure I'm on vacation, my sites are reserved, why rush.....58 to 60 on the freeway is fine by me...plus I get 1 to 1.5 mpg for going slower.....

My wife gets so nervous when a construction zone hits. She usually closes her eyes and not look. Especially on the PA. pike. She has only driven the trailer from the site to the dump station. And once thru the campground road (state park) to the main road.

Teach · 03-02-2010, 12:09 PM

During college I worked for a trucking firm, starting with "jockeying" trucks on the lot and then progressing to short deliveries, then over the road. RVing started with small trailers and progressed over the years.

Cruzer · 03-02-2010, 12:45 PM

Same here. When in high school I got a job as a diesel mechanic (that was before they were called Service Techs

). We got all the tough jobs trying to fit semis into tight spots, and also enough road time. We eventually got good enough to spin donuts with the tractors

. After that I drove just about everything with wheels (and tracks) in construction equipment.

Still, the first time I drove that big wide box (Suncruiser) down a 2 lane highway it was "different".

RovinOn · 03-02-2010, 01:14 PM

Drove Fire Apparatus for 20 years. I have also driven other large vehicles and heavy equipment in my lifetime.
Back in the late 70's I had the chance to drive my future FIL's 24' Itasca Class C from Pa. to Fl. We all took a vacation to Disneyworld and I got to drive the night shift!

Never had any "Professional" driving lessons so to speak.

Regards,
RovinOn
05 southwind 37C

Lorna · 03-02-2010, 01:16 PM

First RV was an 12 ft Apache pop-up that I learned to pull when David was working in another state (easier for me to pull into a campground and he would meet us there). Current RV is a 22 ft Class C.... left Franklin, NC for Cordele, GA (about 350 miles)... drove straight thru Atlanta during afternoon rush. I was a bit unnerving but I did it. I also came up with a route to bypass Atlanta. I haven't driven the 40 ft skoolie yet but I will.
Tiny(?) steps!

AFChap · 03-02-2010, 01:20 PM

I grew up driving farm trucks and over-size (height & width) loads hauling harvest equipment. Hit the ditch a few times, rolled a trailer when the hitch broke off my truck (safety chains held maybe 30 seconds), bent a few side mirrors, pulled down at least two serious power lines in my teen years ...all of which taught me what I needed to pay attention to!!!

In most of those cases I was driving equipment that belonged to my uncle ...I sent him a thank you a few years ago for letting me learn by abusing HIS equipment rather than mine. ..

dsbike · 03-02-2010, 01:25 PM

My experience comes from driving not flying large aircraft in tight places. You need to know your vehicles limits as far as turning radius and width. As an aircraft mechanic I have been towing or driving aircraft for 30yrs. I have also driven tow trucks, fuel trucks and small to medium tractors over the years. One thing different with driving the MH is the lanes are only 10' wide compared to 50'+ for a taxi way.

doc · 03-02-2010, 02:29 PM

Bumper cars at a traveling fair.
Actually I have been around trucks and heavy equipment most of my adult life. If you can drive a farm tractor on a gooseneck trailer and then back it off, you have it made. Track loaders, cab-over trailer trucks, livestock trailers are much tougher sometimes than backing a 40 foot coach into a narrow site at a state park.

MoRV · 03-02-2010, 05:09 PM

We had a fifth wheel for several years and I NEVER drove while we pulled it. DH did try to teach me to back it

.........once......that didn't go too well. I've still not been behind the wheel of the MH, but DH hopped in in NC where we bought it, and drove us home to Missouri..........