I have had a few that I hope others can learn from.
Driving through a bad snow storm on my first trip with 17K GCVW from IL to FL and saw a plow truck approaching from behind. As it passed it threw up so much snow and slush that my windshield was block for 1-2 seconds with the wipers on high which seemed like an eternity to me. The highway was so slippery I barely had control of the combination anyway. Luckily I stayed in the lane. I pulled off next exit and pulled over on the exit ramp and waited a few hours. When it was over the whole truck and trailer was covered with 1 1/2 of ice!
Lessons:
Check weather before trip.
When semis all pull off highway IT IS unsafe (I was only one on highway).
Never let vacation deadlines override safety. I had 5 souls onboard that counted on my driving.
Rushing to get my 26' boat out of storage I did a quick once over before leaving the boat yard. About 4 miles from yard I stopped for something and discovered that my tongue hitch lock wasn't locked. I was pulling that 8K on the highway at 65 mph so if it came off the tongue it wouldn't have looked nice.
Lesson
Never rush and always double check everything twice. Better yet prepare a written checklist like airliners do because our memory isn't always good under pressure.
On another IL to FL trip got off work at 5am and spent all day loading trailer at home then headed off in middle of day (instead of crack of dawn). Downed a few energy drinks and pushed on through the night trying to make up for lost time. Driving past the 12 hour through area with no guardrails I heard a rump rump and noticed that I had an extended eye blink and was on the edge of the road about to leave the roadway. I regained control and exited next exit and got hotel room. Next day after when we continued on I didn't see anymore of those road strips that saved our lives and realized that I was extremely lucky.
Lesson
Energy drinks do give energy but crash quickly so fast you might not notice. Rest is the only safe/healthy way to address fatigue. Never embark on a 20 hour trip without first getting rest.
On another trip from IL to FL which I believe was also the first I bought a new GPS and followed it and wound up on a 2 lane road in the middle of nowhere in FL with semis flying past us on the opposite lane at night with their bright headlights blinding us. Turns out the GPS took the shortest distance so took us off highway to some short cut that obviously the truckers loved but gave my wife fits and had me worried. It was a narrow road that didn't leave room for error.
Letting out slides I noticed it slowed down but I kept going. I normally go out and look before and during slide extension but this time I was in a rush (see a trend) and just forced it open. Going outside I saw that it hit the water spigot mount and bent the trim on my slide and moved the spigot.
One time bringing the slide in during a rush (not again) I heard it bind but kept going. Turned out there was something on the floor that got jammed in between the slide and the trailer. I was able to close the slide but when I got home it would not open and took 2 trips to the dealership to fix it. First they adjusted it but it still didn't work right then they replaced the motor assembly. Luckily the trailer was in the last 2 months of the extended warranty I purchased.
Always take your time, don't rush and always check the progress of what you are trying to do.
Lesson
Look at maps beforehand and know the trip and possible reroutes. Allow the GPS to help you not blindly lead you to your destination. You can't always turn around in areas that that it may lead you to.
I was lucky in my travels in that I have never had an accident or damaged anything besides what I mentioned above. I have been towing boat/auto trailers since 95 and TT since 07.
