Be careful hitching up

[btd35]

My neighbor was getting ready to move his boat/boat trailer yesterday. He had a front bumper hitch and was nosed up to the trailer. He got out of the truck didn't realize it was in reverse with the parking brake, wheels cramped to the right. The truck started to roll back, and he attempted to get in and stop it. It knocked him down and the front wheel of his dodge 2500 rolled over his pelvis. Fractured it bad. It will be a long painful recovery. He is older, and has difficulty now, so possibly the end of these kind of recreational things. At least the neighbor on the other side heard the truck as it rolled down an embankment and across the drive into a tree.

Shook me up a lot. Lets all remember to take it slow when doing these things, especially when it's been since last season we got them out, and may not be used to doing it.

[wallacemf]

Sorry to hear about your neighbor, hope he recovers.

It's not too hard to overlook this sort of thing, especially if you are tired. When I was younger and worked for a contractor, I plowed snow in the winter time. I had been plowing in a big storm for over 30 hours straight, going from job to job, apartments and office buildings. I was exhausted.

I was at an apartment complex parking lot, and got out of the truck for something, don't remember what now. I put on the parking brake, but accidentally left it in drive. With my back to the vehicle, it started rolling, and the plow blade clipped the back of 7 different vehicles, including a Mercedes, two BMWs and a Jaguar. Not a good day....it happens though. Thankfully, nobody was hurt.

I managed to keep my job, but I heard gaff about that incident for years afterward...and the insurance company was none too happy...

[SpoiledRotten]

I've never run over myself and have only had two issues while hooking up.

DISTRACTIONS..... and mostly when you stop your process to talk to someone else. That is a prescription to accidents. Once, while hooking up my golf cart trailer behind the Jeep. The neighbor called me over to show me something. I went back and drove the cart up on the trailer. I, at that moment, found out that I had not secured the coupling to the hitch ball. Same thing happened again while loading the cart on the trailer when it was behind my F-250. I'm now shopping for another tailgait. 🙂

[Turtle_n_Peeps]

It might not be his fault.

Some more reading.

[campigloo]

Sorry about your neighbor. Hope he will be ok. Ditto to Reader1. All of my mistakes have been related to either being in a hurry and overlooking something or being tired and unaware. Take the time; drive rested.

[rhagfo]

ependydad wrote:

Old-Biscuit wrote:
NEVER leave a vehicle in gear when exiting........NEVER!

gbopp wrote:
That's a good reminder. We all probably get a little complacent after doing a task many times over the years.

Sadly, it happens. Last year after a tough day of travel got to a campground, put on the emergency brake but left it in drive. Got lucky that nothing happened and the wife put it in park. Scared me quite a lot at what could have happened, though.

First hope your neighbor has a fast and full recovery, fractured pelvis is a bad one, but at least he is still alive and may go camping and fishing again.

As to leaving the truck in gear, if my truck is in gear and I get out the engine dies, as soon as my foot comes off the clutch!!

[Turbo_Diesel_Du]

I seem to remember that there was a recall on the 2005 Rams about that very same thing whereas the lever would drop down out of park to reverse. Don't know what the fix was as my 2005 2500's number wasn't in the match.

[coolbreeze01]

Sorry for your neighbor. Sounds bad.

[ependydad]

Old-Biscuit wrote:
NEVER leave a vehicle in gear when exiting........NEVER!

gbopp wrote:
That's a good reminder. We all probably get a little complacent after doing a task many times over the years.

Sadly, it happens. Last year after a tough day of travel got to a campground, put on the emergency brake but left it in drive. Got lucky that nothing happened and the wife put it in park. Scared me quite a lot at what could have happened, though.

[gbopp]

That's a good reminder. We all probably get a little complacent after doing a task many times over the years.

[Reader1]

So sorry he was injured so badly. Thanks for posting this as a reminder to us, and thanks Spoon059 for the reminder to slow down and take those extra seconds. A couple months ago I posted a question about mistakes we don't want to repeat as we begin the new season. So many responded. We all make mistakes and we often get away lucky.

[DutchmenSport]

Thanks for the reminder!

Hope it does not stop him from camping. I would like to think that even if I get to the place where I'm attached to tubes to sustain me, I'll just have to power all those medical machines with my generator, and still take it all camping with me!

[Mvander]

Accident's happen. I hope He recovers fully. It's for this reason the kids stay in the house untill the trailer is on the ball and the truck is off. They want to help but you can never fore see the unexpected.

[Old-Biscuit]

NEVER leave a vehicle in gear when exiting........NEVER!

[spoon059]

Wow, hope he recovers fully. Pelvis injuries in older folks can be devastating. Be careful and take that extra 10 seconds each time to make sure you are being safe.