What's the deal with 2 trailers?

I'm sure you've seen it before: a pickup towing a camping trailer towing a boat. That always seems to me like it is illegal or something. I'm sure backing up would quite the challenge.

What's the general law about these kind of rigs? I'm sure it's different in Canada but I'm still curious if people need a special permit or something.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

here in michigan it is called recreational doubles and you need a endorsment on your licence it can only be done with a 5th wheel as the lead trailer and there is a lenght limit

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

Laws regarding towing 2 trailers vary by state/province. Here in Canada it is illegal in British Columbia but legal in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. I think it is illegal in Ontario and points east, but I'm not sure. In Alberta the lead trailer must have at least two axles and a 5th wheel hitch. Alberta's maximum overall length is 20 m. In Saskatchewan and Manitoba, tandem axle ball hitch and single axle 5th wheel lead trailers are also allowed. Maximum overall length is 23 m in SK and MB. You can tow these with a class 5 license so long as the trailers aren't considered commercial vehicles (AFAIK that means they need to be under 4600 kg).

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

it varies from state to state.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

In Texas you can tow two trailers but the vehicle and the trailers total length can't exceed 62 or 63 ft. I'd have to check but that is pretty close to the length. You don't need an endorsement on your license either. I've seen boat trailers with an additional hitch to tow waverunners, campers towing boats, etc.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

wgoodhoofd said:

.... I'm sure backing up would quite the challenge.

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You can't back a rig like that up more than a few feet.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

Yes you can back them up if you grew up on a farm and had to back up a farm wagon or two.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

When my family did this, my dad could back up about the length of the boat. Just enough to park the boat trailer near the boat launch before taking the 5th wheel to the campsite. Once we'd set up camp we'd come back and launch the boat.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

Titanium48 said:

Laws regarding towing 2 trailers vary by state/province. Here in Canada it is illegal in British Columbia but legal in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. I think it is illegal in Ontario and points east, but I'm not sure. In Alberta the lead trailer must have at least two axles and a 5th wheel hitch. Alberta's maximum overall length is 20 m. In Saskatchewan and Manitoba, tandem axle ball hitch and single axle 5th wheel lead trailers are also allowed. Maximum overall length is 23 m in SK and MB. You can tow these with a class 5 license so long as the trailers aren't considered commercial vehicles (AFAIK that means they need to be under 4600 kg).

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Lots of signs on the BC/Alberta border noting you can't do this in BC. And I agree with this. It's one thing to pull a train like this through AB/Sask/Man where you might have a left turn somewhere between you and the lake, but these things would be deadly on our BC mountain roads. But I keep thinking they'd be tough in any city.

If I ever move to AB, I'd dump my travel trailer and get a 5th wheel right away so I could take my 18' to the lakes as well as the trailer.

My understanding is most people pull into a campground, unhook the boat, set up the trailer then go deal with the boat. No real backing up involved.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

Silvertip said:

Yes you can back them up if you grew up on a farm and had to back up a farm wagon or two.

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Agreed. Some can, but there aren't many that have the skills. The vast majority of people would have it going bad in just a few feet. I'd say way way less than 1% of the driving population could do it.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

109jb said:

Agreed. Some can, but there aren't many that have the skills. The vast majority of people would have it going bad in just a few feet. I'd say way way less than 1% of the driving population could do it.

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i would say if you can't back up at least 10 - 15 feet you have no buisness pulling them

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

I've never seen this.
Must be illegal here in MD. Tractor trailers can pull two trailers on certain roads, but it is illegal to back up.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

I don't think there's any law banning it in NJ, I pulled two trailers in tandem back from NY a few years ago. I had a cut off pickup in tow when I found a boat for free on the way home. I hitched the boat to the ball still on the step bumper of the pickup trailer and off I went. I hung a spare trailer tag and a set of clip on tail lights and all was well. I was approached by an officer at a rest stop and other than being amazed, all was fine. I think he just wanted to see how I had it all hitched up. Backing up is not an option, but my alternative was a two hour drive back to get that boat, that wasn't worth the trouble or gas.
Neither trailer was very heavy, I still wasn't towing more than about 1500 lbs.
It all towed pretty well, no sway or other adverse problems. I could feel the second trailer buck the first one a bit on big dips or bumps but there are few on the open highway. It was only once I got back home that I got off and had to negotiate a few railroad crossings and rough crossroads.
I dropped the second trailer first not long after getting off the turnpike. I went back and got it the next day. I asked a few local police about whether there were any laws and none could find any. The only thing that could really apply would be something along the lines of "Loaded to spill" or creating a traffic hazard" if they deemed the rig unsafe.

I am sure the ideal situation would be to have electric brakes on at least the second trailer, that way you could straighten the whole rig out if it got out of shape.

On the back roads here, I've towed as many as three locally, but never in traffic or around town and only empty trailers. I doubled up a boat trailer off the back of my flat bed car hauler the other day too, but the second trailer was hitched to the bumper of the truck on the trailer and the truck was secured with axle straps and chains. It did just fine, I passed several police on the way back with it, none paid it any mind. It towed fine behind a half ton truck, but again, no serious weight or speed. I'd say top speed with that load was only about 40 mph or so and it was only about a 10 mile ride.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

ne7800 said:

i would say if you can't back up at least 10 - 15 feet you have no buisness pulling them

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10 to 15 feet isn't even a car length. What good does that do?? In my opinion backing 10 to 15 feet is no different than not being able to back them at all. Also being able to back them up says nothing about moving forward safely. My wife drives stretches with either our boat or RV in tow (single trailer) and she can't back it up very well, but is very safe when moving forward. She just doesn't get into a situation where she needs to back up and she has me there if backing is needed. 10 to 15 feet also won't jacknife either trailer so anyone can do that without even looking back, but one of the trailers will most likely be going haywire by this time unless you are used to backing dual trailers. The state of Michigan recommends against backing when pulling 2 trailers in their documentation on "recreational double" Her is what they say:

Backing
When driving a recreational double, avoid
backing up. Trying to back two trailers at the same
time can be extremely difficult and dangerous
? especially on a busy street. Backing up is only
recommended when you can safely stop the vehicle
and unhook the second trailer before backing,
such as when pulling into a campsite or similar
location.

My point was to answer the original posters question, and although some people can back up a double like this, most can't, but I'd think just about anyone can do the 10 to 15 feet. This is a "few feet" in terms of vehicle distance.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

Tacklewasher said:

Lots of signs on the BC/Alberta border noting you can't do this in BC. And I agree with this. It's one thing to pull a train like this through AB/Sask/Man where you might have a left turn somewhere between you and the lake, but these things would be deadly on our BC mountain roads. But I keep thinking they'd be tough in any city.

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We avoided stopping anywhere in the city, other than at the end of the trip home .

As for the prohibition on multiple trailers in BC, I could see a "Saskatchewan road train" with 2 ball hitches getting into trouble going down the hills, but the stricter Alberta regulations go a long way towards ensuring stability. 5th wheel travel trailers are much more stable than their ball hitched counterparts and are less sensitive to the change in weight distribution when you drop a hitch on the back. The 20 m maximum length also stops either trailer from getting too big - the truck will cover 4.5 to 5 m from the bumper to the hitch and the 5th wheel must be the longer trailer, which leaves a maximum of about 7.5 m (25 feet) coupler to propeller for the boat. Add some stricter trailer brake regulations and I think it would be safe, even on mountain roads. It's not that much different from the massive 4 m high, 12 m long "toy haulers" you see more and more often. The "toys" are just outside instead of inside.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

It's done all the time here in Oklahoma. Seems so commonplace - I don't know for sure if it is legal or what the restrictions/law is. I have seen some <long> landtrains I myself would only do it with a (fifthwheel) camper as the first and then the boat second. Of course, that is about the only way to do it anyway as pulling a camper behind a boat would be difficult- if not impossible. Backing up is like trying to ride a bicycle underwater, you can do it but, it is not a smart thing to do. It is nice to be able to take the whole rig to the lake and back without making two trips/separate trips. Of course, if you are early cuyler, you would have a truck-boat- truck. http://www.adultswim.com/video/?episodeID=cd9ab728b04f010070b68311f4c0bb0d

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

It is true that backing two trailers is very difficult. However, I drive a 18 wheeler for a living and I broke down once in southern LA. The tow truck driver that came and got me towed me to the shop and had to back the tractor and trailer up atleast 50 yards, at an 45 degree angle. It was amazing!

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

it's legal in minnesota with length and brake restrictions.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

Silvertip said:

Yes you can back them up if you grew up on a farm and had to back up a farm wagon or two.

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Yep, it just takes a little more work. Kind of like pushing a wet noodle.

Re: What's the deal with 2 trailers?

My Dad (Michigan) just bought a 5th wheel and an enclosed utility trailer to haul the quads and a small aluminum fishing boat. We have been asking alot of questions to those taht have done this. One thing we hear alot of is people not liking that you can't see the second trailer. I think we will put a flag or something back there so you can see the trailer. I would think that if you can't see the second trailer it would be very hard to back up. Both him and I have pulled "doubles" with a large tractor trailer style trucks so backing short distances shouldn,t be too bad. One thing to remember when trying to back these up (unless you are very experienced or lucky) is try to make very small corrections and try to back in as much of a straight line as possible. A large empty walmart parking lot and hours of practice I would recommend to anybody before attempting in a tight quarters campground with a lot of looky lou's watching you.

DougV>