Musical Trailers

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Musical Trailers

Postby calden » Wed Sep 06, 2006 11:39 pm

Hey all:

Now that I've been enjoying my boat all summer, our family has come upon an unexpected problem. I've been towing it with our Mazda MPV minivan. No problems, even with the trailer that came with the boat - a 90's EZ Loader made for a heavier boat. That trailer weights near 1,000 lbs.

The problem is that our daughter has started driving and can't yet drive a standard, which our other car, a VW Vanagon van, is. (We're also dicey about letting her drive it - it's less than worthless in a head-on collision.) But I haven't been able to drive the boat and heavy trailer with the VW because, well, it can't haul that much weight safely (only 95 HP.)

So I bit the bullet and got a new, lighter trailer. Oh, I tried looking for a used one, but around here they are a rare breed indeed. A new trailer will allow me to haul with the VW so I won't be the Bad Guy on days I go out with the boat, thus preserving family harmony. It also is better, much better, for the boat, because the suspension on this trailer is tailored more for a lighter boat and the boat suffers less road shake. It will also be less stress on the Mazda. (See how easy that was to rationalize?)

Tomorrow I get the hitch put on the VW. Today I offloaded the boat from the old trailer, changed over my custom-made bunks to the new one, and put the boat on the new trailer - all in my driveway. Lots of physics, some sweat, a few curses, and it's now sitting nicely on the new trailer. Which is, by the way, a Carnai 16 1200 (used to be Caulkins) made right where I live. I bought it from a dealer in Idaho about 30 miles away, but was able to pick it up in Washington at the factory. It's fully galvanized, and it's smaller size makes it look more like it belongs under this boat.

No public announcements as to cost, but my good friend, who is a sailor, said that "BOAT" simply means "bring on another thousand." Little did I know.

Carlos
DS I #1653
calden
 
Posts: 362
Joined: Wed Oct 05, 2005 2:39 am
Location: Spokane, WA

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