6 towing tips for beginners – please learn from my mistakes

I had a trip coming up, and I wanted to feel comfortable enough to reverse my camper trailer into the campsite. So what steps did I take?

By Evan Spence 8 Min Read

I’ve got a confession to make. You see, while I’m in my happy place behind the wheel of a 4WD, once you put a trailer on the back I’m not so confident. And being that I work in the off-road media game, towing a trailer is something that pops up from time to time. Rather than continue to bury my head in the sand, I thought – why not buy a lightweight camper trailer, that I can practise on, and if all else fails, I can just push it into location. Perfection… until it wasn’t.

Not my finest work, but a reminder that work was needed

The day I picked the used camper trailer up from a nice family up the coast, I jackknifed it leaving their driveway, smashing my rear bumper (and remaining pride) in the process. In the first minute of camper trailer ownership, I’d already messed up. It was time to do something about this, because I had a trip to Pebbly Beach coming up, and I wanted to at least feel comfortable to have the skills to reverse said trailer into the campsite. So what steps did I take?

Do a course

Wanting to not develop bad habits in the early stages of my towing career, I decided to speak with a towing expert and do a towing course under supervision. It was an experience I’ll never forget and would urge everyone who tows anything, from a box trailer to a dual-axle caravan to do. You have to make mistakes to learn and grow, and I can’t think of a better environment to make these mistakes. On private property, under the guidance of someone that teaches towing for a job.

Get a UHF or two

I have a UHF radio hard mounted in my 4×4, and decided when looking at which UHF to install, that I should grab a 5w handheld unit as well. My thought process was more for rock crawling off-road than boat ramps and caravan parks – but I couldn’t have been more wrong. There’s no way I’d tow without having a UHF radio or two. That way I can have a set of eyes outside the vehicle when parking up for the night, who can clearly and easily communicate back inside the vehicle. It’s also very handy to be able to contact other motorists and truck drivers on the road.

Learn how to hitch up correctly

There are a few different types of hitches on the market like these from TAG Towbars, so it’s vital to know how to use your preferred trailer hitch properly. Once you know how to attach and remove your camper or caravan, you are half way there to being safe. You also need to cross over your safety chains, connect the breakway system and plug in the electrical side of things. If any of that sounds like gibberish to you, as it did to me, then you are in the right place. We want to help you improve your skills – if you change yourself, you change the world – not only does your safety depend on correctly hitching up whatever you’re towing, every other vehicle on the road could be affected too. If in doubt, there is professional towing help available, as I have since found out after doing a course.

Give way to trucks

What I’m really saying here, is don’t get cocky, you need to be in a zen-like state of mind when towing. If you are pulling out onto a highway, and see a truck is coming along, just wait a few seconds to let them in. Trucks have reduced visibility, greater stopping distances and are usually carrying massive amounts of weight. Show trucks and other larger vehicles respect, and I’d like to think that respect will come back your way. Besides, you are on holiday… where’s the rush?

Towing mirrors are your best friend

I’m an absolute convert to towing mirrors now. They make reversing the trailer so much easier, as you have excellent visibility. They are helpful when towing forwards, as you have a better line of sight visibility of what you are towing. And to be honest, they just offer better vision in day-to-day driving without a van even attached. If whatever you are towing is wider than your vehicle, guess what – they are also a legal requirement as well. I’d personally not bother with the clip on units, and go straight for a replacement towing mirror, they offer so much better vision every time you drive the vehicle.

Practise makes perfect

This is honestly the most important piece of information. You wouldn’t enter a marathon without training for it, so why would you park your camper trailer or van up and only use it twice a year? Like anything that requires skill, practice makes perfect. By hitching up your camper or caravan and going for a ride, say once a month, you keep your newfound towing skills sharp, as well as ensuring mechanical components such as wheel bearings and brakes in good working order.

RV resources

During the learning process, I found the rvSafe Handbook to be a very useful guide, full of information for someone who needs to brush up on their towing skills. It covers a wide range of topics, and best of all we will email it to you free of charge thanks to the CMCA, just enter your details in the form below and you will receive an email from our sister publication RV Daily with the download link.

Coming soon to the big screen

To learn more about using UHF to communicate with trucks and other RV drivers and see what a truck driver sees from their viewpoint in the cab, tune into Channel 10 on Saturday, September 7th, 2024, at 12:30 pm for the first episode of a new towing safety series called: Are You RV Safe

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