I want to apologize for not stopping to help change a flat tire. We were on I81 in Pennslyvania, around mid-late afternoon, on Friday 6/27. It was raining heavily, lots of traffic. A TH being towed by a black Dodge (with a sign saying something about Stroudsberg in the window) passed us, and we couldn't help but notice that the right front tire on the TH was flat and shredding. It took a couple more miles of slow (30mph-ish) heavy traffic before we finally caught up to them on the right.
I rolled down my window, honked my horn, and a cute young lady rolled down her window. I gestured and shouted that they had a flat. We rolled our windows up, they fell back and pulled over. My wife said that I had done my good deed, letting them know so that they could pull over safely. Well, as they recided in my rearview mirror, I suddenly realized....Why didn't I stop to help?! At this point they were well behind us. Afterwards, I went over what happened, and figured I should have told them to let me fall back to make room for them to pull over in front of me. Then I should have pulled over with them to help change the flat.
It was raining, heavy traffic, precisely why I should have helped! I just wasn't thinking fast enough at the time.
I don't know if they are members on this forum, but I apologize and promise I will pull over to help if I see another RV'er on the side of the road. I hope everything went okay for them.
See you on the road, hopefully never again with a flat tire!
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2008 F-250 CrewCab 5.4L,
2004 21' Forest River Surveyor
I wouldn't sweat it too much. At least you were nice enough to say something. Besides, two rigs and a bunch of people on the side of the freeway in bad weather might have contributed to an accident.
2005 GMC Sierra 4X4
Duramax Diesel - Edge w/ Attitude / 4" exhaust / Cold Air Intake
45-gallon TransferFlow Tank
4" Lift
Air Bags
Weekend Warrior LE3905 Toy Hauler
TomPro Mini-Rail - Turbo Hayabusa
Raptor 700's for the Wife and I
250EX - Daughter's
SoCalDesertRider wrote: I wouldn't sweat it too much. At least you were nice enough to say something. Besides, two rigs and a bunch of people on the side of the freeway in bad weather might have contributed to an accident.
I agree 100% ! You did good.
Steve & Tracy Webber
'07 F250 6.0 PSD LariatFX4,AirLift,Edge Insight
'07 Jayco Eagle 314BHDS "The Cramalot Inn II"
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We do not stop playing because we grow old, We grow old because we stop playing!
Thanks for the responses... I just felt kind of bad about it. Hindsight is always great, thinking of all the different ways I could have done something.
This incident also reminded me that I haven't yet "practiced" changing a tire on my trailer... in another thread earlier this spring people were posting back and forth about how to change a flat on a trailer. Someone then posted the simple fact of: "all this talk is great, but have any of you actually had to change a flat?". I swear I am going to do that soon!
I had to change a flat in my 1500 mile trek East in 18 degree weather. I drove up onto my leveling board till the flat hung over the end of the board, then lifted the axle with the truck jack. Didn't take more than 20 minutes.
I strongly suggest a bottle jack. They can lift much more than a floor jack. My little Walmart special came in a nice plastic case (don't think they sell them like that anymore) and they are small. I slide mine under the seat in the truck. I don't want to have to use the truck jack. This one is much better. I've changed plenty of trailer tires (Carlisle - old trailer).
Make sure you have a few blocks of wood with you at all times. You may need something under the bottle jack if you get off onto a softer surface and you'll want to chalk you tires as well. The last time I had to change one, the wood came in handy as a knee-pad (had shorts on in gravel).
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