How much wind is too much?

[stevec22]

I was planning a move tomorrow, but just watched the weather forecast and they are predicting a front to move through Rapid City SD tomorrow. Looks like they are predicting winds of 25 - 30 mph. There will likely be gusts higher.

I have driven in light winds but I don't think anything that high.

I am thinking that is too much to drag a TT through, Anyone have an opinion?

[Mike_Up]

stevec22 wrote:
I was planning a move tomorrow, but just watched the weather forecast and they are predicting a front to move through Rapid City SD tomorrow. Looks like they are predicting winds of 25 - 30 mph. There will likely be gusts higher.

I have driven in light winds but I don't think anything that high.

I am thinking that is too much to drag a TT through, Anyone have an opinion?

That's pretty common in Indiana. Do it often when towing but can't recommend it to someone whose not use to wind.

Oh, and expect super low fuel economy. Sometimes with wind real bad, I've seen 7 and 8 mpg.

[Old-Biscuit]

40 mph winds and I stop .....

[stevec22]

path1 wrote:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn3DQNqgzAA

Old, but still true.

yep, that was the video that went through my head, when I heard the weather report

[path1]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn3DQNqgzAA

Old, but still true.

[naturist]

Going across Oklahoma once, I fought a 40-50 mph headwind all day. It would have been impossible had it been a sidewind. And thank god Oklahoma is flat, and the highway I was on was straight. I didn't find out the wind speed until I stopped for the night, or I woulda never tried it. As it was, it was allI could do to make 50 mph, and my usual 14 mpg dropped to 9. I pay closer attention to such details now. It was exhausting.

[MarkTwain]

I bought the "auto shut down" option with my truck. When the winds hit 15 MPH and or snow starts falling, my truck turns off. I have 15 min. to turn around and start going in the opposite direction:):):):)

[jmcgsd]

I live in the West near the desert and the Sierras and routinely handle winds up to about 40mph. More than that gets uncomfortable.

Consideration needs to be given to the general direction of the wind. Headwinds and tailwinds are of course easiest to handle although they certainly impact your mileage. Crosswinds, especially gusty crosswinds are the most difficult and dangerous. Head down one of the famous California passes such as Cajon Pass with a crosswind and lots of traffic and you'll understand.

Obviously the vehicle and the load also comes into play. I'm pulling a 7500# TT but I'm doing it with a 1T Dually. Never have felt a need for either sway control or a WDH with this setup.

[dclark1946]

Several years ago my wife and I were traveling with relatives with each of us pulling 27-28 ft. travel trailers to Grand Canyon with a serious cold front moving through the area. Even though I was pulling our trailer with an F250 I was constantly being pushed around by wind gusts. It was worse when you came out of a section of highway cut through a mountain. These are the ones with a wind sock mounted on the side of the road so you can see what the wind is doing. I don't know how high the gusts were but I was not enjoying the trip. When we stopped for refueling we discussed if should we continue. We decided to push on. A few miles after that we came upon a fifth wheel on it's side and a few more miles later a tractor trailer also on its side.
Anyway we made it ok but I decided I would never tow in those conditions again.

Dick

[stevec22]

Thanks for the comments. It looks like most of the high winds are from Rapid City north. I am traveling south which should help.

Right now I am thinking I will just wait until Sunday and have a much easier drive.

I have a Yukon and a 25' TT

[K_Charles]

The Chesapeake Bay bridge tunnel stops campers and camp trailers and other stuff at wind speeds of 40 MPH.

[rbpru]

The wind buffets our TT similar to trucks and busses. We were smacked by a storm front said to have 25 mph winds and driving at 45 mph was okay. Once the rain hit the driving speed was reduced to 35 mph.

I had the advantages a 25 ft TT and a sparsely traveled road. Things would have been different with a higher fifth wheel.

A lot depends on how upset you get while driving in difficult situations.

The toll road limits semis and RVs in high winds but I do not recall the wind speed.

[mosseater]

I don't know if I've driven in 30mph winds specifically, but I've probably been close. We came back from Bowling Green KY one years and it was 15-20 mph the whole way back. It gets very tiring, you really have to stay on top of your driving. The problem with 15-20 is you never really know when 30 mph blast is heading your way. Take your time if you're going to do it.

[sch911]

It really comes down to your tolerance and skill level. I don't like driving with cross winds either but sometimes there is no choice. I have never not gone somewhere due to a windy forecast...

[mikensallyt]

Not really sure about the winds. But I'll be happy to read the posts. All I know if that from Feb-Mar the winds here in S Texas really kept me on my toes while driving a MH. And those winds were up to about 30 mph. Someone told me not to worry about the stripes on the road and just to keep it down the middle of the lane. Seems to work for me.

[gbopp]

My opinion is, don't do it. Wait a few days. It's not worth the risk.