Margin of Safety and a WDH

On 10-27 I posted a reply to a thread about WDH's and made a comment to the effect that in my research about the advisability of getting a WDH I was finally pursuaded by other fellow forum members -- particularly RockMtnRay -- that the extra margin of safety made the purchase of a WDH a reasonable bit of insurance even though my 2720SL and Ford F150 had traveled very easily through the rockies without one. (In other words, the ability to go up and down hills at speed is only part of the story.)

In an odd bit of irony, less than two weeks after the 10-27 post, I wish to report that I sincerely believe that my decision and the advice of my fellow forum members could possibly have saved my life this past Saturday!

At around midnight on I-70 about 30 miles west of St Louis while traveling at 60 mph a small herd of deer suddenly ran across the freeway directly in my path. By swerving left I hit only the lead buck, stunned the next one in line and missed two others completely. Had I not been able to safely swerve hard left and then right to stay on the freeway I would have hit the buck directly in front of my driver's position and two would have been directly in front of the c/l of the TV. As it is, the one deer I did hit hard on the passenger side did quite a bit of damage (Obviously the deer got the worst of it!); however, I shudder to think of the consequences had I hit three OR had my truck been slightly less stable. A nasty inconvenience--not to mention the mess--could have become a major disaster.

A truck driver following behind indicated that as he watched the deer appear before me he "thought you was a goner" and "...that was a good bit of driving -- especially pulling a trailer". (He was later interested in the TM but that is another story. ) By the way, these were the first deer I had seen that night.

Obviously, there is no way to know if the WDH provided a critical margin of safety or not. It certainly did not hurt! What I do know is that I very suddenly found myself in an emergency avoidance situation that was completely unpreventable. In this kind of situation, every little bit of margin helps and I am glad I had a couple of hundred more pounds on the front wheels.

When in doubt -- get a WDH. When in doubt, go with a longer wheelbase. When in doubt, get the bigger rig. You can only trust in luck for so long. I have driven for 35+ years without an accident but last Saturday all the experience and defensive driving in the world could not help me. I was unlucky.

It really is not worth the risk of totalling your very cool TM and/or risking life and limb. Like I said earlier, I have towed with and without. The setup is definitely more solid with and last Saturday, I was very grateful.

By the way, does anyone who resides in the Virginia Beach area know a good body shop? I am now safely and solidly planted at the RV park at NAB Little Creek for the next six months.

HAPPY VETERANS DAY TO MY FELLOW VETS AND TO ALL THE SPOUSES & PARENTS OF OUR SERICEMEMBERS! YOUR SUPPORT OF YOUR SERVICEMEMBER IS HUGE!

Thanks for sharing your experience. RMRay's advice stopped me from buying a TM a few months ago, and naively towing a 3124 with a short wheelbase Jeep Liberty. My TM plans are on hold until I can get a more suitable tow vehicle. Your incident does illustrate some of the points Ray had made. I'm sorry you had to provide that illustration, but glad the outcome was not as serious for you as it could have been.

A couple of years ago a deer jumped a guard rail at the top of what I thought was a sheer dropoff and, as you said, just suddenly appeared in front of me. His legs had just hit the street, when my vehicle hit his legs. And that was in daylight. I shudder to think of all the times I drove that road in full darkness, at the legal speed of 55.

Ditto on the best wishes for all the service people now sacrificing so much for our country, and you among them!

[countrygirl]

I have been meaning to post to this thread. This past Sunday we returned from 2 weeks in Northern Missouri. We also hit a deer ... we were not pulling a camper though! It was pretty scarey! It damaged our front bumper and also damaged our speedometer. It now looks like we are traveling in excess of 120 mph whether the vehicle is moving or not. LOL!

We debated ordering a stainless steel basket for the front of my truck and having a receiver hitch welded onto the front of the vehicle. We plan to do this soon...after the repairs are made and we intend to get the basket that fold upward to help protect the vehicle in the future.

We moteled it for this trip to Missouri ...it did get pretty cold. Our inlaws in their MountainAire had trouble keeping the unit warm and it is a 4 season motor home. Our Outback is not a 4 season camper. I have no idea how a trail Manor would fair under tempatures of 16 to 17 degrees with the wind chill factor.

Steve,
Thank God you were not injured and your vehicles didn't suffer greater damage. I fortunately do not have any expierence with body shops other than dealership one. (If the insurance is going to let me choose between the three estimates I will go for the "factory" facility every time.....)

Bill

[tucsoncarol]

We've never hit a deer, hope to never hit a deer, will do anything in our power to never hit a deer. Luck, however, is an unpredictable variable and a potent enemy at times. A friend of mine hit a cow and we were surprised at how much damage it did to her minivan. I think these real life experiences of other TM owners are invaluable. They are a major reason I belong to this forum. Thanks for sharing this story and we are glad you're OK.

[Bill]

You hate to hit a deer, you hate to hit a cow - but oh my, don't ever hit a moose! A deer and a cow are built low enough that the vehicle takes the brunt of the hit. But a moose stands up on those long spindly legs. When you hit it, the front of your vehicle just knocks the legs out from under it, and the moose comes across the hood, through the windshield, and in the best case, joins you in the front seat. But since a moose weighs a thousand pounds or more, it is common for it to shear off the entire top of the car. Needless to say, it is difficult to survive such an encounter.

I cringe when I see cars screaming around the back roads of Maine right after sunset. Same in most northern states, I imagine. But it does thin the herd (and I'm not referring to the moose herd).

Bill

I guess you could say I barely hit a deer. I had been working at one of our power plants down by Clinton, MO. It was dusk and I was headed back to Kansas City. A deer came from the the right side out of nowhere. I had basically no time to react. I followed him with my eyes to the left and in the driver's side window, all I saw was deer rear end. The hitting him part was I barely clipped him with the driver's side mirrow enough to get it out of adjustment. That was a little to close for comfort and a close as I hope to come to hitting one.