long haul in bumper pull

[OTTBs]

@PaddockWood

Gotta have sway bars. MUST. I pulled my Trail-Et two horse with a V8 Tundra with no anti sway system and in high wind or on the highway with semi’s that feeling of it moving AT ALL was stressful.

Since my anti sway system was installed (maybe a total of $200 all in?) I have never felt ANY sway. Ever again.

I’m guessing you are also referring to a WDH, not a sway bar. I have always pulled by 3H Shadow with a WDH and have never felt any sway. First with an Explorer, now with a V8 Tundra.

For anything under 4h - GN or BP - I drive straight through.
Over 4h I stop at the 4h mark, offer water and just let horse(s) stand for a while so they got a break from constantly having to balance.

Now with the Tundra I can go 3 hours without stopping for gas. With a trailer I’d feel I was pushing it for 4 hours. Plus my gas level warning comes on with at least 50 miles to go, making me nervous.

[PaddockWood]

@OTTBs

I’m guessing you are also referring to a WDH, not a sway bar. I have always pulled by 3H Shadow with a WDH and have never felt any sway. First with an Explorer, now with a V8 Tundra.

Now with the Tundra I can go 3 hours without stopping for gas. With a trailer I’d feel I was pushing it for 4 hours. Plus my gas level warning comes on with at least 50 miles to go, making me nervous.

I could definitely be wrong with my terminology It’s mechanically where you rotate a bar to tighten it down after placing a piece of steel on two heads. Does that make sense?

[lawndart]

@SonnysMom

The majority of them have been with a 1500 with no sway bars and no weight distribution hitches and mostly with 1 horse. I live in SE PA and have been to OH, WV, VA, MA, near Syracuse NY.

Let us not forget the trail ride in Central PA. SonnysMom hauled two horses up a bumpy gravel road, long hill for many miles. no special equipment, truck and trailer were fine. Horses hopped off ready to ride.

I know a lot of people on this board don’t recommend towing with a half ton truck. Personally I don’t feel that way. I have towed for 20 years with a half ton with no issues and no I have not been towing in only flat areas. Yes I preferred my 2500 but that also had heated seats, leather and was a crew cab. The 350 is nicer but it also is leather, crew cab, diesel, heated/cooled seats, sun roof.

I agree with this statement. I used to haul a heavy Bee Goose with a 2500 diesel. When we sold that trailer, and went to a Hawk 2h BP, I went to a 1500. Truck has no issues with 2 horses on hills with power, or stopping. I rarely take a highway, but when I do, no issues with swaying, or bounce. But I am a very careful driver when I’m hauling, and hardly EVER go above the speed limit. In fact I’ve only done it twice while trying to get around something in a bad spot. IMO you get sway when you are moving along pretty good. Yes, I know you have to keep up with traffic, but you don’t have to pass everyone on the road either.

I don’t know anything about slant loads but I don’t see a problem with using a BP for longer trips. I think the same driving applies- plan your stops so you don’t brake quickly, be careful in the turns, easy acceleration. Don’t do anything quickly. I pay attention to that light that has been green a long time and figure it will likely be turning red soon so slow down a little bit so I have more time to stop. You see the car at the cross street ahead- plan on them pulling out ahead of you so they won’t be behind the “slow” trailer. I think that as long as the trailer is well maintained the biggest difference on how well a horse travels is if the driver can give the horse a smooth ride. Be alert and be very defensive in your driving so you have more time to stop and not jar the horse.

I find it a lot more difficult to drive where there is traffic, I’d rather take a one lane dirt road up the side of a mountain, then go thru a town with stop and go traffic. People do the dumbest things to get in front of you. I put a big grill guard on the front of my truck for just those special people. It makes them think twice.

[endlessclimb]

@PaddockWood

I could definitely be wrong with my terminology It’s mechanically where you rotate a bar to tighten it down after placing a piece of steel on two heads. Does that make sense?

Nope, yours is an actual sway bar.

[DMK]

BPs and long hauls… Sometime today I just put the 10,000 mile on a BP trailer that isn’t 18 months old yet. Most of those miles were from north of Atlanta to south of Ocala, so I can speak with some authority about brutal traffic and 7+ hour hauls. It’s a 23’ long BP pulled by an F250 crew cab/short bed, no WD hitch. Honestly, it hauls better than the regular 2H DR bumper pulls. There are days I hit some strong cross winds and those are by far more tiring than dealing with what is a major port to inland semi route (there’s a reason why Atlanta is Atlanta).

Now I did decide to add a WDH this summer, but that was because I am now hauling two carriages, one in the bed, one in the front of the trailer, so between that weight and all the other gear I drag along, that is all sitting forward of the axle, it seems like a good time to add a WDH. Before now they seemed like a PITA for every day use, and I’m probably not going to bother putting on the bars, etc. until CDE season rolls around so I don’t have to deal with it when I’m hauling locally to a trailhead or dressage show.

[IPEsq]

With a 3/4 ton vehicle you will be fine. I do still 100% recommend a WDH. I found it did help also with sway but the trailer I had just pulled so well…an old steel Bee. I had a 1500 and it struggled a little bit on some bigger long climbs but for most trips it did ok. A 2500 would have been a little better.

[moonlitoaksranch]

A lot depends on how you drive the trailer.

The weight distribution hitch, that is adjusted for the weight you are hauling, will help. If you put it on when you hitch up, you will have to adjust it after the horse is loaded. You might know that already, but I’ve seen it done wrong, so I mentioned it.