This is what your tire looks like.....in your nightmares
My yearly trek to Aiken, SC, began today with relative ease. I managed to take two days off from work in order to complete all my errands and pack everything I own, as well as everything my horses own (a lot more than my stuff). We set off at 8:30 am, packed to the gills with both Ella and Nyls safely stuffed into the back, with hay for the journey.
However, after only an hour and a half of travel, I heard a really loud POP while traveling down 29 south and sandwiched between three semi trucks. “WHAT was that?!” Then I heard and felt the wobble wobble of a flat tire, but not on my truck. I quickly pulled over to find my left hind tire on the trailer blown to bits (see above picture!). Thankfully my dad was there for the drive, and he changed the tire for me. Sadly, I’m enough of a princess to be unable to do this for myself.
We then went to the nearest tire store, in Grit, VA, to buy another spare…just in case. Grit is the hometown of country music star Ricky Van Shelton…and also one of the strangest abandoned south VA towns I’ve ever visited. However, after about an hour and a half, we were back on 29 and heading south again!
What's it like to take all the tires off your trailer with two horses inside? This is what it's like.
However, it was not to be! Only a short hour later, I felt another POP…followed by some choice swearing by both my dad and me. We pulled off, having just entered Greensboro, NC, and quickly trundled into a small gas station off the highway. Our second tire change was a lot faster than our first, as we were now professionals in the matter.
My dad decided that we should take the time to get ALL the tires replaced, at a tire shop down the road. The guys there were very accomodating, and gave us new tires quickly and jacked up the trailer with the horses inside and replaced all four tires. Nyls was very bothered by all the noises in the shop, and proceeded to act like a complete moron, snorting and jumping at every little thing. Ella, like the perfect girl she is, didn’t bat an eye, and simply continued to eat like a little pig!
At the tire depot, 8 hours into the trip, with four more to go. NOT happy, NOT chilling.
Finally we got back on the road, and our trip went smoothly from that point on. However, whole our arrival was supposed to be around 4:30, we got to our destination around 7pm, after ten and a half hours on the road! I felt so bad for the poor horses, and they were both really over it. Nyls was kicking and stomping like a kid having a tantrum.
After the whole disastrous drive, I realized two things. 1) Having a blow out on your trailer isn’t really as scary and godawful as you would imagine. It’s not fun, but it’s manageable. 2) Next winter, I’m getting my trailer inspected by a different auto shop….and getting the tires triple checked!
At the end of the day, Ella thinks the journey was worth it just so that she could roll in the sand all day long!
