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Old 06-24-2012, 05:11 AM   #1
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First Run Coming Up - Like, Now...

Trillium's hitched, truck's gassed, kayak is loaded, food, clothes and dog are aboard - and I am just a tad nervous - never towed anything besides a small boat trailer, and that was a long time ago...
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Old 06-24-2012, 05:24 AM   #2
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You've checked the hitch 5 times, the lights 3 times, and the mirrors twice. Enjoy the ride. Raz
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Old 06-24-2012, 05:31 AM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Richard Hayes View Post
Trillium's hitched, truck's gassed, kayak is loaded, food, clothes and dog are aboard - and I am just a tad nervous - never towed anything besides a small boat trailer, and that was a long time ago...
Hi: Richard Hayes... No mention of wife, or if she's loaded...If none then your good to tow. ENJOY!!!
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie
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Old 06-24-2012, 06:53 AM   #4
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I know you are going to have a wonderful time. Don't forget to come back and tell us all about it.....with pictures.
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Old 06-24-2012, 11:04 AM   #5
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Hi: Richard Hayes... No mention of wife, or if she's loaded...If none then your good to tow. ENJOY!!!
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie
If wife is "loaded" ?
A few connotations here
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Old 06-24-2012, 11:24 AM   #6
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My personal advice for the nervous inexperienced tower? (Because I was one not long ago and am still darn cautious).

Go slow at first and pull over if you feel traffic is in a hurry around you and they can't easily get past you. Stop every so often just to stop and inspect, make sure all is holding up and nothing has opened up and spilling things banging things all over in the trailer. All of this is for piece of mind more than anything else until your brain adjusts to the new "physics". Just my limited advice in my limited experience.
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Old 06-24-2012, 03:31 PM   #7
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Thanks All

Arrived safe and sound, about 4 hours - trailer behaved well, no problems, and the venerable Ranger, despite a lot of click and clack over 4,000 rpm (Newfoundland has hilly terrain!), did herself proud. Kept speed about 90 kms/hr. on the flats, usually dropped a gear and slowed to to 80 on the hills, unless I missed the timing on a gear change, in which case it dropped a lot further and took a long, long time to regain.

Very good first experience, made doubly so by a very good and kind friend who has a trailer chasing me most of the way - big, big comfort factor there.

More later, hopefully with a few pix - a guitar picking friend just walked in...

Here's a link to a few Picasa Web Album shots..
https://picasaweb.google.com/rhayesn...CKSqgO262rKVag

Thanks to you all - your advice and encouragement, and the wealth of information this board provides, are largely responsible for my having the Trillium.
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Old 06-24-2012, 07:58 PM   #8
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If wife is "loaded" ?
A few connotations here
I thought the same. But if you look at Richards pictures on the Picasa link he provided. The truck and trailer are loaded too!

Big dog in the front seat might mean no room for the wife unless she likes the jump seats. Rear of the truck and front of the trailer are both down indicating a full load. No wonder he had problems on the hills.

Richard, you will soon learn how to pick up speed going downhill so you have more momentum going up. RPM's @ over 4K sounds a little high for the Ranger especially with the clicks and clacks. My best power seems to be in the 3K range, but I've got the 4.0.
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Old 06-24-2012, 08:09 PM   #9
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Richard,
Where do you live in Newfoundland?

It's our goal to make our 5th trip to your marvelous province the summer of 2013.

Of all of our tavels it is our favorite place - wonderful people and wonderful vistas.
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Old 06-24-2012, 08:40 PM   #10
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Lucky you with the 4.0 - the 3 liter isn't all guts, but it goes. Those old pushrod engines may protest a bit, but they're more bark than bite...if clatter could kill that old 3.0, I'd be driving a newer Ranger today...And hey, you ain't met our hills...lol...

Booah, by the way, wishes the world to know that she is a sleek and streamlined Samoyed cross at 35 lbs...the rest of the size isn't dog, it's fur (if you need any, let us know - Booah's willing to donate, and I'll pay the shipping...)

Yup, engine's good at 3K rpm - most of the high rev stuff (and there wasn't a lot of it) came when I just plain missed the timing on a change and she started lugging down to 2,500. Being pretty cautious about speeding up much past 100kms/hr when making a run for the hills - if I nail the timing, dropping a gear lets me bleed off speed to 80 kms/hr while keeping the rpm around 3K, which seems to be the sweet spot in the power band. The Isthmus of Avalon is famous for its continuous up and down, up and down, up and down - there's a long stretch where you're always climbing or descending....
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Old 06-24-2012, 08:58 PM   #11
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Richard -

Is that a skin-on-frame kayak on your truck? With that wonderful low rear deck it doesn't look like a commercial model.
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Old 06-24-2012, 09:27 PM   #12
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It's a stitch&glue ply/epoxy design called the VOLKSKAYAK - this one is slightly modified to cut down volume, as the original VK was designed to carry a load as a coastal touring boat. Don't need all that volume if it's used mostly for day paddles. I also flattened the rear deck a lot, since ease of re-entry and less windage trumps storage volume for my purposes. This is the third VK I've done, and I like it better every time I take it out. It's just a snugger-all-around fit than the VK Standard, which is still one heck of a kayak.
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Old 06-24-2012, 09:41 PM   #13
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Quote:
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...And hey, you ain't met our hills...lol...

Booah, by the way, wishes the world to know that she is a sleek and streamlined Samoyed cross at 35 lbs...the rest of the size isn't dog, it's fur (if you need any, let us know - Booah's willing to donate, and I'll pay the shipping...)

keeping the rpm around 3K, which seems to be the sweet spot in the power band.
I don't imagine your hill would be that much different than I might have experience between Edmonston NB to the Cabot Trail and back. Not much of an opportunity to use OD there.

My pups are more than 2x the weight and look 1/2 the size. Their fur is like eyelashes. Thank Booah for the offer though, ours already have mini horse coats and PJ's for the winter.

Yep 3K is the sweet spot for power, somewhere around 1650 gives the best mileage with some power. 80KM is a PITA for the auto and shifting under load in OD (same for 65-70 klicks in drive)
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Old 06-24-2012, 09:52 PM   #14
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The hills aren't steeper, but they seem continuous, whether you're coming or going - kinda like finding the boat always beating to windward when sailing...

My Ranger's so old I have to change gears myself - don't know if auto trannies existed back when it was built...lol...
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Old 06-24-2012, 10:48 PM   #15
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The hills aren't steeper, but they seem continuous
That sounds a lot like NB, continuous. Last time out we tried Highway 1 through Maine just to avoid the hills on the way back. Nice trip, really got a kick out of the Solar System done to scale along the highway.

The Maine Solar System Model

They claim to be the largest 3D to scale model in the world @ 1:93,000,000.
Distance from Pluto to the Sun is 40 miles (64.4 km)
Get this, the earth is 5.5 inches in diameter, made from a styrofoam ball covered in Fiberglass.

Wikipedia says Sweden's is bigger - scale of 1:20,000,000.
Distance from Pluto to the Sun is 300 km.
Earth is ~ 25.6 inches in diameter

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweden_Solar_System
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