 |
| On the driveway again. Yes, I do know that the tow vehicle is not facing in the optimum direction for towing. |
As we went to hitch up on the dealer's lot, we gathered an audience (of one), which is not always a good thing but especially bad when you've not "performed" for six months. The car was parked about 50 yards away from the trailer, at right angles to it, so I just stuck it in reverse, did a big backwards arc and went straight for the first time connect. Bingo! Straight back, click, on the ball first go. Our audience was impressed!
When we'd hooked up the weight distribution and raised the jack, both Towed Haul and the Toadmobile looked resplendent in the afternoon sun and drew some nice comments from a couple of prospective buyers who were looking at units on the lot. Maybe we persuaded them that an Airstream was for them. If so, are we on commission?
As Towed Haul was running very light, I tightened up the sway control more than usual and set off down the 401 towards home. It felt odd with the weight making the Toadmobile sluggish in acceleration, but after about ten minutes I'd pretty much forgotten she was behind me. A steady 100km/h (the speed limit, you know) and our only concern was the horrible gas consumption; no worse than usual for towing but a shock after six months driving without a trailer.
The big fail of the day was the Tim Horton's outlet at the rest area being closed whilst the menu panels were replaced. No coffee! Tsk.
Back home and parking on the driveway went very smoothly, more or less in one fluid movement. Well two really, as we settled the trailer slightly closer to the edge of the drive on the second go. Now that we've worked out what to line her up with, it's a lot easier. I'm not sure that I'd ever describe backing up a trailer as easy but, with practice, it becomes easier.
Then it was Willow time. The dog needed to acquaint herself with her occasional home and, finding lovely soft seats and a squishy foam mattress topper, she took to it pretty quickly.
 |
| Willow gets comfortable |
What actually camping with Dog Face is actually going to be like is another thing, but she certainly didn't seem bothered about going in and out of the trailer. Mind you, the screen door, complete with dog guard, was confusing her; outdoor sounds through a door? Curious!
So, it just remains for us to restock Towed Haul (with a pared down inventory from last year) and we're off on our first expedition of 2012 in a week or two's time. The Toads of Towed Haul are back!
