Talk about bad luck - My father had an accident this weekend

[Guest Close Quarterbore]

I got a couple phone calls today that cost me some time in doing the upgrade... My father was going on vacation this weekend and he has a new truck (I think he has had it about 6-months at most and it is a new F350 Supercab 4x4 Diesel) and a brand new toy hauler camper (he just got that a week ago) as well as a Polaris ATV (Big sucker where 2-people sit side by side).

Well, it seems he was on an interstate in VA or West Virginia heading down a mountain on I-77 (I think that was the interstate he said) and they must have been repaiving the road and when he tried to cross the center of the road to get into the right lane the truck and trailer jackknifed.

Their brand new trailed is a complete loss and he does not know if the truck will end being totaled as well yet or not. The brand new ATV still starts up but it will need new wheels and is nicely dented as well. Aparently this happened last Thirsday and they never bothered to call us until today but this was one hell of an expensive crash...

The good news is that the truck never rolled and both my Father and his wife (my mother died when I was 17) were not hurt too bad in the crash but it was quite a shock as we had no idea anything happened...

Oh well, so much for the "it's my life soap" for today...

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

Thank god there OK. You can replace a truck but not a life. Thinking like a parent, They most likely did not want to call you so you would not get worried. I am sure They wanted to be sure every thing was OK first before calling and worrying you.

[barndweller Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close barndweller]

So sorry for the bad luck but glad to hear the folks are okay.

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They also said they had a bit of a problem finding a rental truck... I guess it took hald a day to get a U-Haul and then they had problems getting access to the truck and trailer to get all of their stuff so that they could haul it home.

The truck and trailer are still in Virginia as there was no trailer strong enough for him to haul that F-350 back home... They likely got lucky he got that huge truck as it is built to withstand this kind of thing much better then a smaller 150 or even 250...

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

Toys can be replaced, but a father can't. Glad he and his wife weren't hurt. Were they wearing their seat belts?

[Guest Close Quarterbore]

Toys can be replaced, but a father can't. Glad he and his wife weren't hurt. Were they wearing their seat belts?

Yes, they sure were...

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

Ken, I am relieved to hear that they are alright. That's all that counts, the rest is just inconvenient by comparison.

And you got the site up and running!!

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

I am sorry that the toys are broken but truly glad your Dad and his wife walked away without a scratch! They must have had an angel with them in the cab of the pick-up.

Trailers can be tough to pull especially if they are bumper hitches.

[Guest Close Quarterbore]

I am sorry that the toys are broken but truly glad your Dad and his wife walked away without a scratch! They must have had an angel with them in the cab of the pick-up.

Trailers can be tough to pull especially if they are bumper hitches.

Yea, it was a hitch trailer and my father said any replacement will be a 5th wheel. He said once it started to push down that mountain there was just no way to correct and the weight of the trailer just spun the truck right around.

They got real lucky it was late at night so there was not a lot of trafic so they didn't have anyone else involved as I forgot to mention but when the trailer jacknifed it did fall over on it's side. He said the truck remained attached to the trailer but the hitch bent in some wild angles as the truck stayed on it's wheels.

Oh well, we are headed out to go shopping... I'll be back in a few hours... Any problems, please call me on my cell and I will fix ASAP!

[JudyS Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close JudyS]

Glad your dad & his wife were OK! That must have been pretty scary for them!

[falmouth3 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close falmouth3]

Glad to hear they were OK. That's certainly a scary situation.

[wackymother Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close wackymother]

Thank god they're okay! They must have been pretty badly shaken up. Trailers always look very tricky to me, it must be hard to compensate for the extra weight and length as you drive. He must be a great driver to have controlled the truck as much as he did.

[Faust Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Faust]

I am glad to hear you’re your family was wearing there seatbelts and was not hurt.

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

Yea, it was a hitch trailer and my father said any replacement will be a 5th wheel. He said once it started to push down that mountain there was just no way to correct and the weight of the trailer just spun the truck right around.

Yeah the 5th wheel or goosenecks are the only way to go when you are pulling serious weight. We barely feel the trailer with 3 horses in it with the gooseneck.

Seen some nasty bumper pull and tag-a-long accidents in my day.

Scarey. Scarey. Scarey.

Glad he can even think about his next set-up after that.

[taffy19 Gold Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close taffy19]

Ken, I am so glad for you that your Dad and his wife are OK. Seatbelts do save lives. Our friends found this out too and walked away from a car accident but the car was totaled. They were on their way to a cruise ship and the State police helped them getting there and they had a great cruise.

I hope your father and his wife can continue their trip too somehow.