A Fellow Woody Boater Has A Trailer For Fellow Woody Boaters!
24 ft trailer
We got this email from long time west coast fellow Woody Boater Brian Toye, It all makes sense, if you have a specific need, and no trailer, and don’t have ADD like me, I still don’t understand it? I am sure it makes sense. Take it away Brian..
We are looking for a Woodyboater to tow the trailer from LA to Portland. After we unload the car within, the trailer then would be available to transport a boat (or car) from the Portland area (or even Seattle) back down to the LA area.
Now, with the Lake Tahoe show coming up, I am hoping that there may be a Woodyboater out there who needs to get their boat from Portland or Seattle to Lake Tahoe or LA. (Even with that, we could make other arrangements to get the boat from Tahoe to LA.)
The gas would be paid as long as the trailer is being towed.
Here are the trailer details:
(twenty-four) 24 ft enclosed, 28ft 8in overall length tandem axle, torsion bar suspension
electric brakes on both axles
2 5/16 inch coupler
8ft 6in width overall
8ft 7in height overall
Ramp at rear for vehicle loading
Cargo weight cannot exceed 4000 lbs.
To clarify – we have a car in the trailer in LA which needs to be towed to Portland, Oregon. After we unload the car, the trailer then needs to eventually be back in LA.
If a Woodyboater needs to transport a boat (or classic car whatever) to Tahoe for the show – great – we can make other arrangements to get it from Tahoe to LA.
From LA to Portland and then from Portland to Tahoe, the gas bill will be paid by us.
This is a great opportunity for a person for example that is in LA and needs to drive to Portland or Seattle empty (thus towing our trailer) to dump our trailer in Portland so that they can tow something back to LA or whatever as we would pay for their gas in what otherwise would be a trip driving empty. Perhaps one person does that and then another uses the trailer to move a boat from Portland to Tahoe or LA – that would work too. As you can see there are many scenarios possible.
After this initial trip is finished, the trailer owner would actually like to begin renting the trailer out to the Woodyboater community for transportation needs up and down the West Coast (mainly). Need an Scripps moved to Seattle and then to LA ?? – great etc etc. Rental fee to be negotiated later, but it would be far, far cheaper than U-Haul etc etc.
It can also double as an emergency crash pad when you spend $$$$$$$ on that Tahoe level restoration and your wife throws you out. Plus you can keep moving around so her lawyers can’t serve you.
Just a heads up if you’re towing this rig – I pulled a brand new one down to Florida for a friend with all his garage tools, miscellaneous non furniture items from his collection used to haul 1 of his 4 woodie cars to shows. After over 800 miles problem free, I unloaded and set up his tools and shelving in his garage “mahal”. On transporting to his “storage lot” I made a u turn following7 him thru left turn arrow. The corner of the trailer just caught the drivers side rear view mirror shell of a 2 week old 2012 Mercedes CL class ($120k). $2345 later to replace a rear view mirror, I’ll probably not make u turns on 6 lane divided highways any more, especially with a Mercedes sitting next to me
How is the poor bugger going to get his boat back to Portland, or Seattle, after the show?
I guess he could then rent the trailer.
The whole concept is ridiculous and self serving.
If they are paying the gas to Portland (Maine) I might just do it for the trip.
I beg to differ – few long haul truckers enjoy driving a trip empty in one direction – it makes little fiscal sense. I could easily fly to LA and rent a vehicle to haul back our car and leave the trailer in LA and that would be self serving – so we thought we could perhaps be a little creative, see if there was a need from somebody else, and if so then great, and if not, then no big whoop.
Sharing resources I do not think is self serving.
… Maybe the poor bugger is having his boat restored in the Portland or Seattle area, lives in LA where his new trailer will be built, and perhaps is looking for a way to get his “new” boat safely from PDX to Tahoe and then to LA…. or maybe some dude in Seattle just sold his Cobra to some dude in LA… the possibilities are endless. We are just trying to avoid an empty wasted trip.
Long shot
After reading the entire post I’m a bit confused and still having a question in my mind is like how is the poor bugger going to get his boat back to Portland, or Seattle, after the show? Un-predictable!!
Scenario:
Person A drives the trailer from LA to Portland. We pay the petrol bill.
Person B transports his boat from Portland to Tahoe. If he sinks his boat, then we pay for the petrol as he no longer needs the trailer. If he takes his boat in the trailer back to Portland, then he pays for his own gas to and from Portland. (For the use of the trailer while transporting his boat to and from Tahoe, he pays a very low rental fee to the trailer owner as well – much lower than U-Haul etc.)
Assuming that the boat is not at the bottom of Lake Tahoe and now that the trailer is back in Portland, Person C transports his newly purchased Ferrari from Portland to LA and once again we pay for the gas.
From here on out, the trailer is available for rental up and down the West Coast. The renter then pays for his own gas and a small rental fee.
How exactly do you plan on getting a boat inside the trailer? Unless you have a cradle, this trailer is fairly useless for hauling a boat. My single axle trailer would not fit inside, nor would most trailers that are the typical 8′ 4-6″ wide at the wheels.
Exactly my point.
Maybe they are expecting the boat owner to supply a set of boat dollies (500.00) to transport the (2,500 lb) boat in the enclosed car trailer, beat the hell out of the boat’s bottom for 950 miles down Interstate 5 (from Portland to LA) and then the owner of the trailer will want the boat owner to pay for the damage to the floor of the trailer from the dollies.
Most boat restorers will tell you that towing a wooden boat down a bumpy interstate at 75 MPH causes more stress to the boat’s bottom / structure than any normal use on the water. At least a professionally built boat trailer has bunks to help protect the bottom.