Personal rant---tailgaters when towing trailer...good grief...

[sixdogs]

Coming home today with an 18' trailer and 6800lbs of Kubota and tiller on it, I had to marvel at the people who felt they could arrive sooner by being 20 ft back from my trailer. Worse, they are too afraid to pass when they can easily see the coast is clear. Mind you, I'm going 50 or 52 mph on a 50 mph road in which most people travel 55. It was several women today (guys seem to stay back) with every one on the cell phone and at least one texting. What on earth are these people thinking? It's bad enough to tailgate that close but what if something were to happen? They could never stop in time. While I am an extra cautious guy, others haul things in ways they shouldn't and something could fall off or break and come barelling back like a bowling ball. Stuff happens.

If this were an isolated instance it would be no problem but it seems if you go a little under the flow of traffic speed, which may actually be at or above the speed limit, pilgrims get close enough to look in your tailpipe. Has the gene pool thinned to the point where people can't seem to grasp an understanding of personal responsibility and risk avoinance? What gives?

[njc110381]

It seems this sort of thing happens all over the world. I too share your anger and utter disbelief at some drivers!

I picked up my B4200 on the weekend and did about 9 hours on the road. I lost count of the number of people who appeared to be trying to hitch a free ride on my trailer - some were that close that I would be very uncomfortable following the back of my truck at that distance, let alone allowing for the fact that my 12' trailer was in that gap too!

I kid you not one guy was that close that I could have touched his car if I was standing in the trailer and we were moving at upwards of 50MPH!

It makes my blood boil, especially the car that finally overtook me and had a "child on board" sticker in the back window. I mean by all means kill yourself, but leave everyone else out of it right?

[2458n]

Took a safety course in driving heavy equipment on regular roads. If somebody is tailgating you do not get mad simply slow down. It works remarkably well. Truck and trailer same thing. If you try to speed up to get the tailgater off your bumper you end up going faster ,and the tailgater stays right with you. Try it and you will be as surprized as I was.

[Guido455]

I find that bugs me as well. Up here we have a lot of gravel shoulders, and for some reason, my truck and trailer seems to wander off just a little onto the gravel, once or twice, depending if the gravel pinging off there hood and windshield wakes the tailgaters up. For some reason, once they pass, or back off, the fishtailing seems to misteriously end. LOL

[bcp]

In their mind, they are "great" drivers, so they can drive just like they see on TV.

[joshuabardwell]

Took a safety course in driving heavy equipment on regular roads. If somebody is tailgating you do not get mad simply slow down. It works remarkably well. Truck and trailer same thing. If you try to speed up to get the tailgater off your bumper you end up going faster ,and the tailgater stays right with you. Try it and you will be as surprized as I was.

This is exactly what I do. I don't hit the brakes. I just take my foot off the gas and let the vehicle coast down until it reaches a speed where they choose to pass me. Obviously, this works a little different on a one-lane road than it does on the Interstate.

[RaydaKub]

People just don't have any clue these days that things can go wrong.

I was following my b-i-l through downtown Houston back in 1989. I was a little nervous following him so closely because we were doing 80mph in the left lane (matching traffic!!!). I was in my full size SUV, he was driving his van. Then some idiot in a 280Z pulled in between us. I couldn't even see his taillights over my hood.

[sixdogs]

Took a safety course in driving heavy equipment on regular roads. If somebody is tailgating you do not get mad simply slow down. It works remarkably well. Truck and trailer same thing. If you try to speed up to get the tailgater off your bumper you end up going faster ,and the tailgater stays right with you. Try it and you will be as surprized as I was.

Well, what really puzzled me was that I slowed down and they slowed down along with me and failed to pass even tough they could see clear. Beats me but I just kept tooting alond and they stayed on the phone or whatever.

[Lacal]

I see this all the time and these same idiots will pass while they are within 10 to 20 feet of the vehicle in front of them and you know they do not have a clear view of oncoming traffic. We had an RV in front of us towing a trailer and going down hill he was serving to the point that I backed off and did not pass him for a few miles and when I did he was on the phone in one hand and a sandwich in the other. Unbelievable.

[magicheater]

You may not believe this but I had a tailgater following me a few years ago. I was not towing a trailer, just in my truck. I timed passing the car ahead so I could shake her. I did for a bit and then she passed that car also and was right back up on my a**. I tried slowing down in opportune areas to encourage her to pass but she would not. Finally in a long straight stretch I slowed to a stop. She stopped behind me and just sat there, she was on her cell phone too!!!!! There is more to the story to what transpired afterwards but I still to this day can't believe that this happened. Oh, and by the way, I did not know the person. Go figure.