Backing up a 5'ver.

Like any skill, it just takes practice and patience. When I first got the 5er, I would stress out at the RV storage lot due to a sharp turn and "only" having 3 feet on each side of the trailer. Now, at my new house, my entrance gate only leaves about a foot on each side of the trailer. I was sweating bullets the first time, but now it's one shot and in. You will become a master if you challenge yourself a bit.

5000 miles going forward is easy, 50 ft backing up...well. don't compare apples to oranges. 5ths have their own issues. Concentrate on the 5th wheel, it is NOT an A,B,C and not a travel trailer, it goes it's own way. Just practice. Some very good advice to follow the wheels. Just scope your area first so you know the hazards including overhead branches. Been doing it for 11 years an still get tense backing up.

I would suggest for every 5-10 ft you back up, pull back forward 1/2 the distance getting your vehicle and 5ver more into a straight line. Each time you pull forward you are making the angle less sharp.

Best advice I can give you is to get a set of good walkie talkie's. One in the truck-- put it on the seat and the other for your spotter. Follow all the other advice about practice, mirrors, etc., but listen to your spotter.

Enjoy the road. We do.

bigdon68

Thanks everyone for the advice. Bit's and pieces have really made a lot of sense to me. Now that it's all in my brain let see if I can send it down to the steering wheel.

My biggest challenge is with a Class A you can see straight down the sides, and on a bumper pull trailer the wheels aren't that far back. Both aren't true with a truck/5'ver, and I think that is what was defeating me.

John

Practice, practice, practice, and take it slow, back, stop and check, pull forward, back and check. I (DW) and the spotter for DH using radios. He's had me in the driver's seat with him as a spotter so that I understand how important clear directions are. I have found that I get him back to a certain point, then I ask him to come back and check so that he can determine if he needs to move forward a little or continue coming back. We've just now begun to understand what "follow it back" means. It's not uncommon for us to take our fiver to the local school parking lot with our orange cones and practice backing. I do a really good job and you're right about backing on the driver's side. It makes a huge difference. As confident as I am in a lot, I haven't backed it into our side yard.

Here's our biggest challenge - our side yard. As a spotter I run back and forth in the back, while DH is slowly backing, watching that he clears the roof line, the gate and what you don' see, the mailbox. I'm usually pretty good and between the two of us, we can get her parked in about 15 minutes. When we first got her, it took us nearly an hour of struggling to get it backed, but we didn't give up and even refused letting our neighbor back it for us.

Practice, thats about it. As others have said, try and make your turns on the driver's side if possible. Like JesLookin, I focus on the wheels. It can help to put down a target to aim for like a chock.

When it comes to spotters, the best thing we ever did was buy a pair of walkie talkies.

Practice makes perfect... Go slow and steady... Ignore the spectators ... Practice... Find an empty parking lot and cans or cones.... Try a few different configurations ... You will get it....

Something I do is back up watching the 5er's wheels - keeping them on the path I want them to go. I spent a couple years trying to back the whole trailer into a spot, very frustrating. Guiding the wheels seems much easier. Just don't forget that the rest of the trailer is attached to the wheels and will bump into stuff.