jscott82

If you are seriously paranoid, or don't have room for error (roll-out area) and are outside the car. Have wheel a chock on hand and "follow" the rear wheel with the chock.

Shandingo

Another's guy with 19" wheels told me the same thing. I have 20" wheels and have not had an issue with this so far. You have had this issue with 20s?

Shandingo

I was thinking about this approach myself. Have you tried it before? Does the wheel chock work when the car is on the ramps?

Mussl Kar

WARNING!

Most trailers will have the tongue fly up in the air if not coupled to a truck when loading/unloading. And very bad things happen in seconds after that. Open or enclosed trailer. Friends GF decided to load his Boxster while he was occupied elsewhere. Enclosed trailer went tongue up. As this happened the side door started to close because it was now higher then the pile of tires holding it open. She panicked and backed out, door bottom came down on pile of tires. Tires OK, door severely jacked up.
I have seen people do it while attached, they just pick up the truck a bit in thr process.

jscott82

I have a tilt bed trailer, so don't have ramps.. But yes, anytime I am not in the car and there aren't straps holding it in place, there is a chock behind a tire (trailer has a front guard, so not worried about it going off forwards)

Would work fine on the ramps too... You just need to be quick so the car does not get any momentum going before you stop it. Just like hitting the brakes.

Shandingo

Thanks. How far behind the wheels do you position the chock generally?

wgn

Heed this advice. ^^

I've loaded and unloaded so many times it's almost autopilot. Featherlite open, race ramps, drive on and off. Driving on I get to where the tires first hit the ramps, stop, and lean out the window to make sure I'm lined up on the ramps. I've put tape on the trailer where the front wheel should be, with wheels on the rack and without, and can line that up by leaning out the window.

The only time I've had an issue loading or unloading is when someone else was "helping". Actually left a race ramp at the side of the road 1.5 hours from home when I had someone else helping with the load up.

I politely decline help now as it's much easier to just go through the routine myself.

TXE36

Shrug. About the only reason I would want a winch is if I had to load the car not running. Perhaps I'm lucky, relatively narrow car and wide, low, flat trailer. I recall ShakeNBake loading his old GT3 on that open Trailex and it was tight.

Often, I just drive it up, immediately following the last session of the weekend. Skip to 10:15 if impatient:

TXE36 Trailer Loading

I greatly second the advice about not talking to people while loading/unloading.

-Mike