Do you let your wife 'help' you back up?

[Dean Upson]

This is a real good post, but I will never show it to my bride of 36 years . She tries, but I never saw any hand signals like that in my life, sadly, prompting me, in frustration, to use the famous one finger salute. The FRS radio will end up saving our marriage.

Last spring we camped with Fireman, Casey Balvert and their wives (great people) for a few days in Tennessee, Fireman came in way after dark. His wife, Lisa was really great helping him back into a treed very dark site.



Dean

 

[Tony T.]

Originally posted by y-knot

My wife is absulotely great at helping out while backing. She and my son are both really good, and I trust them both 100%. Weather it be backing up to the hitch (gooseneck for me), or backing up the trailer, we all seem to get along, and get it done. We have a 36' tri-axle and there are many times that you can not do it by yourself, and the extra set of eye's are needed. I think most of the guys that try and leave there wife's out of the "loop", are missing out. If they would take the time and explain what they need from them in the form of signals, they would have a much better time. I think most of the women, would like to help, just they don't like to be yelled at or put down. Maybe just a few minuets explaining what it is that you are trying to do, and what you need from them, would have everyone working in the same direction.

DITTO! I guess me and y-knot must of choose from the same mold before they broke it. I must admit my wife helps out a lot with trailer, weather it's helping backing or hooking up, she's pretty mechanically inclined. Watching for low hanging limbs, and obstacles, etc. Never really had a problem "Knock on wood". I guess I'll have to keep her. Oo.

 

[y-knot]

I think alot of people expect there wife's to be bad with mechanics or anything that might not be the "norm". So that is what they get. And then there are alot of women that have never been exposed to anything outside of the kitchen and household, so they prefer to leave well enough alone. And if that is how both like there relationship then there isn't a problem, and I think that is wonderful. My parents were like that, my dad did everything outside of the house, and my mother did her thing inside the house. Of coarse I was always there to help my father, and he had the attitude of "your mother is an idiot, leave her in the house". This kind of worked for them, but I always thought it was sad, when two people that love and live with each other, could not work together with a common goal and desire. Maybe that is what influenced me when I was dating, Or maybe I just didn't want that type of a relationship so I included my wife? What ever was the case, I am much happier for doing it . We do almost everything together, no she doesn't weld or cut metal. But she will help hold, lift,carry things, and with her small hands she is the one that gets to start that hard to reach nut, or retrieve that dropped wrench. I wish more people would include there spouses, we have built race cars together,atv's,and diesels. She might not know all the tech stuff, but she sure knows were it goes, what it does, and how much that piece cost. We also both enjoy cleaning and maintaining the stuff, and often find ourselves talking as we clean this or polish that, it is almost like a therapy session, no doc, but we get things ironed out.

 

[GIT-R-DONE]

Shoot, why should I have to back it up? I let her do it for me... ..... That way there never is any :-{} ... ... ... ... ... and she does a good job to boot... .

 

[smartineau]

Her job now (if she is around) is to yell and wave her arms IN TIME FOR ME TO STOP BEFORE I back into anything. So far it is a good arrangment I have yet to back into anything, but he odds are?



steve

 

[fmj]

For the most part she does a good job. She gets me right on the hitch, and even allows for the "movement" caused by shut off and break set. The hand signals do change from week to week, and at times are followed by WTF? But its worked and she can get me into garages with only a couple of inches on each side of our 24' enclosed trailer. HOWEVER, I will never let her move the truck and trailer again. A month ago we were loading up my Willys pro street coupe, and there was very little parking on our street. The plan was to park the trailer/truck, pull out the car, have me go around the block, park the car and then move the trailer back about six foot to allow access to rear ramp. She convinced me that she could move the trailer back, while I went around the block. I have no idea what made me agree with the statement "I can move it back that far, whats the problem?" I told her to watch the trailer and keep it straight. Huh, huh. How you can move a trailer back six feet and kink it that bad I'll never know. It was pinned against a telephone pole, the curb and no room to move. I now have to repair the trim. I am going to teach her to back up my 13' fishing boat on a three car wide ramp this winter when no one is around. It will probably help her understand the concept of trailer movement better. I know it will help my marriage.

 

[Steve M]

y-not, Quit brown nosing the ol' lady. Are you really that hen-pecked? I do all the cooking and cleanup. She takes care of the yard. We both do maintenance on the 5th wheel. She'll help with the truck and her Durango at the drop of a hat. I don't have a "honey do" list and she doesn't do the "little woman" routine. I simply prefer to park the trailer with no help. Even if I have to get out and size up the spot once or twice during the process.

 

[lizzyhermit]

my wife (of 28 years) and I really are enjoying this thread. we have this understanding when it comes to parking the TT. she holds the two poodles in her lap in the truck so I can see da mirrors. .



one night recently I asked her to hold the poodles outside standing by the rear of the TT. no, I didn't squash the dogs (or her) but her hand gesture (after my tirade of verbal abuse) was understandable throughout the entire known world.



I normally do the backing alone, both hitching and parking. Just works out better that way... ... .

 

[OTRPU]

Back when I had a real job and got weekends/holidays off, hauled doubles camping bout every weekend. Told her plain and simple if I can't see you I ain't a movin. Her family, (w/5 large brothers), would never believe it was an accident. The boat is the most fun, first time I was in the boat, she driving the F350 CC Dually, tried backing to the ramp with the help of a passerby. He finally became so frustrated he yelled, don't back all that distance, just drive it around in a big circle close to waters edge, then back a short distance. She got it there before the sun sat. Her solution. . . I do the backing. . . she's in the boat. Gotta admit, if it ain't too windy it works well. Someone outta shoot videos of this. Course on this board all may say no wonder, making her drive a thing like that.



Cheers,

Steve J.

 

[Moterhead]

Heck, my wife is lots better at backing than I am. She grew up showing horses. Leaned how to thread the needle with a dually and 35 to 40 foot horse trailer. I do most of the backing and hookups just because I'm the one who needs the practice!

 

[DEickhoff]

As a woman and a CTD driver I actually give my husband good backing up directions. We are both experienced with backing up with a trailer so we can get both within a few inches of exactly where we need the trailer to be.



And yes we have been told all of our lives that 1" equals 6".



Dawna

 

[Forrest]

Absolutely have her help backing up, especially when it's raining. :-laf

 

[Big MAK]

OK... OK... ..... OK... ... ... ... . CRUNCH.



stop now!

 

[DIESELMAN]

Originally posted by Big MAK

OK... OK... ..... OK... ... ... ... . CRUNCH.



stop now!

Been there, done that... ...



OK..... OK..... OK... ..... CRUNCH,... ... DID YOU HEAR THAT??

 

[merryman]

Saw an interesting veriation a few years ago. A big rig was delivering a segment of a manufactured home. When the male driver got the rig in position to back it into the spot, he got out and the lady who drove the pilot car got in; the truck driver than stood out in front of the tractor and by hand signals instructed the lady driver on how to turn the wheel. It went very smoothly and easily got the manufactured home half into a very tight spot.



Back in the '70s, my wife was a horse 4-H leader so we were constantly hauling horses, but we had a 300 foot driveway with no way to turn a truck and trailer around at the house, so every time either of us came home with the trailer on, we had to back it the whole length of the drive, then around the corner of the garage to where we parked the trailer. The first dozen or so times were neighborhood entertainment; after awhile it became easy.



Vaughn

 

[DwayneKelch]

It depends on the mood my wife is in whether I let her help me back up the boat or trailer.



When she's tired and ready for bed... . never again. Once, she guided me (in the darkness) over the top of our flower planters. Thought it was a little bumpy and required a little more throttle than normal, so I got out of the truck to see what was going on. Yep, destroyed them.



Of course I asked why she allowed me to back over the planters... "I'm tired and didn't want to waste any more time trying to back the boat in". Obviously she has witnessed my backing skills before.



I honestly think she did it on purpose so she'd get new flower planter boxes, and to keep me from going fishing for awhile.



Rest assured that I practiced backing until I wore out the reverse gear in my transmission... have to keep fishin'.





Dwayne