quick question for those that tow their trucks out to ECXC

can you leave your rig at Rausch overnight rather than hauling it back and forth on 81? if you can, is it relatively safe?

also, can you leave the trailer and X in the front parking lot or do you have to leave your tow rig too? (can i drive the pickup to the cabin without the trailer)

I don't know about the overnight thing at Rausch, but I know Mike (svendog) has been able to leave his trailer in a designated parking lot of the camp, and then drive his pickup to the cabin.

Leave it at the campsite rather than rausch.. I think that you could probably broker a deal and leave it there, but there is a designated spot at the campsite that is convenient and much less stress to deal with. Yes, the loading and moving back and forth isn't a ton of fun, but it's possible to find someone to drive you around and you can leave your tow vehicle hooked up

cool, thanks...my dad and brother are coming in a separate car so i'll probably just use theirs and leave the ram hooked up

any other tips for trailering out there? towed an old jeep wagoneer a few months ago and it hauled like a champ, though the u-haul rentals don't have an electric brake...they have a hydraulic surge brake setup that doesn't do a lot on light braking, only on rapid deceleration

Brian, ya might want to stay on 78 west until you hit 81 north instead of taking the shorter (exit 13/105/443) route that has some pretty steep hills.

If you're using another u-haul, take it easy and leave a lot of distance between you and everyone else. Make sure that the truck is locked down at the front, rear and both sides so that there's no body role from the truck that causes the trailer to fish tail even a little

Basically, you want the truck and trailer to be one unit..

i usually go 78 to 81, but heading that direction towards molleystown rd is going to be a bitch and 78 isn't a picnic itself...thinking i might take 80 to 81 south and get off further north and cut through "town"

leaving around 4:30 AM, figuring it will take me 3 hours and change

yeah using uhaul again...last time i just put it in tow/haul mode and cruised at 55...gotta pick up some more load straps because the wheel tie-downs won't fit larger than a 31" tire

thanks for the tips

yes... don't use the tire tie-downs... at least not as the primary solution.
With the lift that you have, you need to get the frame locked down too. I lock the axles to keep the front to back movement in check, but also strap down the sliders to keep the pitch and yaw from being a factor. That allows me to go more than 55mph (when the speed limit allows) and be sure that the trailer keeps the same line that my truck does.

thanks

i have 4 10K lb trailer straps and a couple lighter 3K lb ones, should be good

smart idea locking the axles, didn't think about that...i'll lock the rear and put it in 4wd and lock the hubs too

i'll just stick with 55, no rush, leaving at 4:30 AM tomorrow

I use straps and went around the frame. My X never moved. Also if I would of gone to ECXC I was going to catch a ride w/ TJ so I can leave the Chevy and trailer hooked up at the Comfort Inn. Unhooking and hooking the trailer would totally sucked.

So how was it going up any of the hills on 81?

honestly, i thought 78 was going to be too hilly, but 80 was pretty bad....coming south on 81 from 80 is pretty easy, 75% of it is on a downgrade....worst part of the pull is going back north from 104 (exit for rausch) to about 107 (other exit for rausch), it is a very long and steep pull, lots of rigs in the right lane with flashers on...i did the same, about 45 mph with hazards on, cooking my trans isn't worth making it home 5 minutes faster

the trailer felt pretty stable, didn't get squirrely or shaky...i tried a few different variations of loading it down, i found the best is two traps parallel running around the lower control arms, two crossed in the rear around the axle, and two on the sides around the sliders keeping it steady side-to-side

next on the list is definitely a trans cooler, at the top of a few long ascents i was touching 205-210* on the engine temp....on a hot day with no load i run about there, fortunately it was cool out when i was pulling...had it been in the 90s, i would have been hesitant to pull very long without stopping for a few minutes to cool it off

i dont mind pulling again with the u-haul trailer, the only other gripe i have is about the hydraulic surge brake which doesn't do a whole lot on gentle braking, only on descents and harder stopping (exit ramps, etc.)....once i have a place to store one, i will be getting my own trailer with electric brakes

one other thing i noticed, trailering seems to have helped with the break-in of the trans, it definitely shifts smoother on hard acceleration now

Good to hear. I can't wait to tow my trash up to Rausch see how it handles the hills in WVA and PA. Hopefully by then I will have a programmer for it and that should help out.

lucky, i was all excited to get a programmer for mine and then found out from a forum that the '11 and '12 ECUs are not flashable

guess i'll just have to make do with 390 horsies

HAHAHA yea, yea