row2k Features
Coach Trick
The Trailer Flat Fixer
August 12, 2014
row2k hackers

We hope your trailer made it through a long spring and summer of regatta-going without the trip-stopping drag of a roadside flat tire­ but even if you made it through this past season unscathed, your next flat is still waiting to happen. Here is a hack that might save you some time the next time you are stopped on the side of the road: The Trailer Flat Fixer.

We got this suggestion from Nick Dawe, whose coaching up in New York City puts him in a spot where a roadside flat could leave him stranded on the Cross-Bronx Expressway. With tough roads like that to conquer, it is maybe no surprise that he has a quick fix that does not involve unpacking the truck to get out the jack.

According to Coach Dawe, to get that wounded wheel up off the ground, you skip the jack, and instead use a long block of wood that you can pull the trailer up on to with the good wheel you have left. If you plan ahead, the same blocks you use for unhitching the trailer could serve double duty for this sort of emergency

If you have the right size block, then the method he uses is simple: “As you would for any flat tire, loosen the lug nuts first. Drive up onto the blocks with the good tire. Your flat tire is now elevated off the ground. Remove the lug nuts and bad tire and replace with the spare. You're good to go and can still get to the regatta in time!”

Pretty slick trick, we have to admit and, as long as you have the right piece of wood or a cinder block on board, this hack will never fail to save you at least some of the time that a trailer flat is going to cost you.

Have a great way to make your trailer-trips go smoothly? Share your tips--and hacks--in the comments below.

Have a great rowing hack to suggest for future inclusion here? Send it to us!

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