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Quote: Originally posted by Tony Headlam on 14/10/2008

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I find it easier to reverse around corners than trying to back up straight, .

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 Same here, as other people would have witnessed on the Graham Water CC last Friday......yes  that was me.  Luckily it was already dark and I was out of sight of the fish & chip queue though.

OH seems to think that I should be able to spin the car and caravan on a sixpence! 

Sometimes I manage to swing the van in to position first go, other times, like last Friday nearly ten minutes (and that was making use of the vacant pitch in front)

Quote: Originally posted by bordercaz on 14/10/2008

I did the C & C C towing course 6 years ago.

At the time it filled me with confidence but the trouble was I didn't practice enough as a follow up, and had a motorhome for 18 months at one point, so my caravan reversing skills are still very ropey and on a "more luck than judgement" basis most of the time.

It depends a lot on the size of the audience - left to my own devices I can do it, but the bigger the audience the more off target I go.

I have reversed current van in to my drive a couple of times successfully - but the last time I tried there was a queue miles long in either direction within minutes as it was a busy Sunday teatime and it all went hopelessly wrong so we unhooked and pushed instead. That put me off trying again so now we go in forwards and turn it all round later by hand when the traffic has died down.

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I have to say, there is no substitute for practice. The first time I reversed a trailer (actually a boat trailer which is easier than a caravan) I instinctively knew which way to turn the wheel, albeit I wasn't sure how far to turn it. I put this down to all the hours I spent as a boy with toy cars with trailers and toy lorries "reversing" them around the kitchen table. If you get it wrong with a toy, you can pick it up and start again. If you get it wrong with a caravan then it could be a lot more costly. You may feel like a **** but I would definately recommend getting a toy car and caravan and practice with them until you know the geometrics of reversing, then practice with the real thing to get used to knowing how much to turn the wheel.

strange you should say that, but years back when i started thinking about going for my hgv1, thats exactly what i did! as i have boys in the house they had the suitable toys plus a play mat for the floor, boy did i get some strange looks of them tho, sat on my bum playing with the toy trucks, it sure did help tho, a few xmases ago i bought hubby for his landrover collection a range rover and bailey caravan, may be he should spend some time "practising " again.

I'm the same as bigg-robb, I grew up on a big farm & was driving tractors & land rovers around from an early age, I've never had a problem reversing anything.

If I needed reversing practise, I'd go to a trading estate or car park with my caravan/trailer over a free bank holiday or weekend & have a play. Once you've been doing it for a while, you'll find it'll come naturally. You'll learn more from your own mistakes in a couple of hours than you will in a day watching others trying & being shouted at by someone in a reflective jacket.

http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/games/reverse.asp

BB

Quote: Originally posted by JTQU on 11/10/2008

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Well can one of the experts tell us the secret of reversing???
I manage after a fashion having used trailers of all sort over 40 years but I don't know what I am doing; I am self taught. I just look backwards at the trailer and progressively correct it, working at a subconscious level.
So what's the "proper" way?

Fit a Ball to your steering wheel at about 4 oclock. When reversing ,grip the ball with your right hand,watch the van in your rearview mirror and move it the way you want the back of your van to move.

 hi all,my OH belongs to the grand order of Invisible demented penguins so I bought a mover I use it every time on the premise that I paid sweetly for it so i,m going to

bloody well use it.