By Bob Difley
Though becoming more balanced among couples, more men still drive their RVs than women. If you are the female half of a couple, imagine if you were out in the boonies and the driver were to become ill.
You would have to learn how to drive the rig quickly – and at a most difficult time while under extreme stress. Don’t wait for that moment to happen. Start learning to drive the rig now, and then share the everyday driving to stay in practice.
Don’t limit yourself to just learning how to drive
There are other things the regular “pilot” does to get the rig ready to travel. Do you know how to disconnect the power and water systems? Raise the automatic levelers? Hitch up the rig?
All these are important aspects of getting under way with your RV. You and your other half should draw up a checklist together, and thoroughly practice “how-to-dos” before the need arises.
696×181If you are the male driver, start giving your other half driving time – along with constructive and helpful assistance, and encouragement. If you can’t provide the support and the temperament to make it work, hire a driving instructor. Do it.
You can find Bob Difley’s RVing e-books on Amazon Kindle.
Rosie the Riveter appeared courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and is a public domain image.
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The keywords in the article are “constructive and helpful assistance”………….which is why I will not drive. Yes, I know I could do it if I really, really had to. When we farmed I thought nothing of taking off with our truck and 20 foot gooseneck trailer with 30 hogs in it…….he hardly ever hauled livestock to the sale barn. Had one guy at the collection point tell me I could back better than most of the men. Our 5th wheel is twice as big and I prefer not to. Coupled with that, the Spousal Unit is a lousy navigator; I am not. :>)
I make sure I have a way for the rig and my wife to get home if I am unable to drive. Wife will NOT ever drive the RV. Get insurance or join a group like FMCA.
My wife is a 15 year retired MARINE she can handle our 32ft class -C with the best of them I am a lucky man
I’m the female half and prefer to drive our rig, but we do take turns. I’m what my husband kindly calls a “control enthusiast” and I’m not the best passenger 😉
For the women who don’t think they can do it, I always ask people to think of the typical gender of driver of the hundreds of thousands of big yellow 35 foot vehicles out on the road, carrying our most precious cargo to and from school every day. They navigate neighborhoods, city streets, country roads, pretty much everywhere!
Hi, Kasey. Ha! That reminds me of a conversation with my neighbor a couple of years ago. Her husband had taken the car out of town for a couple of days and left her his big truck in case she needed to go anywhere. I asked her if she would be able to handle his big truck (compared to her much smaller car). Then I remembered that she had been a school bus driver for 25 years! (Not to mention all of the kids she had to deal with while driving the bus!) 😆 —Diane at RVtravel.com
We bought our first RV over 40 years ago- it was a Class C. My husband said “either you learn to drive it – or we don’t go – you never know when you will have to drive.” Shortly after, we moved from CA to Virginia. He drove the moving truck and i drove the RV, towing a car – with one child, 2 dogs and 2 cats. Believe me, it was an experience! Over the years we have upgraded and now have a 37 foot RV. We usually do the “2 hour drive” – he drives for 2 hours and then we switch for the next 2 hours. When we arrive at the camp site – or our driveway-I back it in! I am so glad he made me learn to do all the hook ups, etc. Thank you, George
My wife shares the driving chores.
Back in 2012 I took ill and she had to drive the F-350 pulling a 35′ 5th wheel from Illinois to Arizona.
I’ve done all the towing for the last 6 years due to husbands health issues. I can set up or tear down the trailer and all the towing. I even do the dumping! I didn’t want to be stuck somewhere and not know anything.
I am glad to be on the “She Drives” side of this. Years ago she decided that she was less comfortable on the way right side, so we found a large empty parking lot and she practiced. She liked it. Now, if it is daylight, she will probably be driving. This leaves me in the right seat to navigate and look for interesting places we might stop. This also makes long pulls, when they are required, much better as one driver can be “off watch” and even sleep. This is how we managed a 1101 mile day a few years back. (This is not something I suggest, but it was required.)
Many of our type specific rallies have a lady’s driving school, she often teaches. We have gotten many of the ladies to enjoy the coach travel even more.
My wife won’t drive our rig. I asked her what would you do if I dropped dead she said that’s why they make For Sale signs.
We had the reverse. I was a truck driver in the Army (proud Female Army Veteran) and pulled large horse trailers all over the country. When we went fulltime, I taught my husband how to drive and to do the hookups. Now he is a pro. I get to sit back and enjoy the ride. But I must say for marital harmony, I do all of the backing. 😜
I’ll learn how to drive when my husband learns how to pack and cook all the meals! LOL Just kidding. Thank goodness our motorhome is only 24′ and in a pinch I can drive it…and be watchful for low overhangs and trees.
My wife can do it all, with aplomb. On two occasions she has had to hook us up and drive home. She needs practice backing into our driveway but can do it. Fuel stops, rest areas, RV parks. No problem. The “We can do it” poster describes her to a “T”.
What a lucky man I am . . .
I offered to teach my wife but she does not want to. She does know how to hook up the TT to the truck. That being said I am not a big fan of my wife’s driving anyways. LOL But yes its good to have a backup driver.
When I first started dating my husband he introduced me to his class A. My first time driving was along I 8 where there are just miles and miles of straight road. After about 20 miles I was loving driving. Gradually I learned the numerous other items with driving, parking for the night and taking off in the morning.
There was a time when I thought setting up a tent campsite was fun !
My in-laws were boon docking in 1988 when he dropped dead in the campsite.
She had never driven or done any set up / breakdown.
She made it, but it was truly a nightmare.
My wife will either drive with towable rig on or off if need be, but she doesn’t like to.