A Coos Bay, OR, motorist was cited Tuesday morning for towing a fifth wheel RV with its slide-outs extended, forcing a sheriff’s deputy to take evasive action to avoid a crash, according to the Coos County Sheriff’s Office.
The deputy encountered the pickup towing the extended RV on Seven Devils Road on February 18. The slide-outs extended into his lane, requiring a quick maneuver to avoid a collision. Earlier, the deputy had responded to a rollover crash where the driver swerved to avoid an oncoming vehicle partially in her lane. While the cited RV wasn’t involved in that incident, deputies said it posed a similar hazard. The driver received a citation for towing with extended slide-outs and a verbal warning for other violations.
Slide-outs
Hydraulic slide-outs are those movable sections on your RV that extend when parked to increase your living space. They’re fantastic for creating extra room when you’re stationary. When they’re left extended (or partially extended) during travel, they not only increase the width of your rig but also create a hazard for everyone on the road. Keeping slide-outs retracted while driving is essential for safety and legal compliance.
Driving with slide-outs extended
Driving with extended slide-outs can lead to several serious risks:
- Reduced maneuverability: Extended slide-outs can intrude into adjacent lanes, forcing other drivers—or even law enforcement—to take sudden evasive action.
- Increased collision risk: As seen in the Coos Bay incident, an improperly secured rig can potentially cause an accident.
- Legal repercussions: Law enforcement agencies are increasingly vigilant about towing violations. In Coos Bay, the motorist’s failure to retract the slide-outs resulted in a citation.
- Damage to mechanisms: Talk about unintended consequences! Driving your RV with slide-outs extended (even for a short time) can damage slide components, seals, and more!
It’s clear that even a momentary oversight can have significant consequences. Experts stress that slide-outs must be completely retracted before hitting the road. This is non-negotiable for both safety and legal reasons.
Best practices
Here are a few essential tips every RVer should follow:
- Always retract your slide-outs: It should be obvious, but never drive with your slide-outs partially or fully extended. Your owner’s manual will have specific guidelines on safe operation.
- Inspect before you go: Check that all slide-outs are fully retracted and secured. This not only prevents accidents but also helps avoid costly fines.
Following these practices not only protects you and other road users but also helps you avoid ticketing and fines by law enforcement.
Drive safe, and happy RVing!
##RVT1197b
Hold my beer.
There’s always mobile repair, or other ways to retract the slides manually.
“Kinder, Gentler Cancel” ??.😇😂
Indeed. Yesterday was the last day of my fiscal year so I figured New Year, new me! So much to celebrate. Happy days are here again. 🫶❤️
WOOHOO !! Congrats on finishing up the old year. And here’s to meeting the new you on the road some day for that beer ..
Kinder and gentler is good, but you have made some very valid points in the past, and you were never cancelled, that’s for sure!
😂
The way this reads, it appears as tho the driver did this on purpose with intent to leave it out! Initially I tho’t I would read he/she couldn’t retract it and was trying to get to service or home base for repairs. I can’t believe this was voluntary! That rates a loud OFFFDAAH!
That road is not in Coos Bay, it is somewhat near it. It is somewhat of a back road, I’ve been on it, not overly wide. If it were in Coos Bay, city police would have gotten him rather than a deputy, most likely. If the guy couldn’t get his slide in, better that road than on 101. However, I’m glad he got cited. He shouldn’t have been moving. As I look at trailers, I bypass the slides. It doesn’t say if it was done on purpose, but surely he would see it in a rear view mirror. The road comes out at Charleston, and the road leading to Coos Bay is narrower than Seven Devils. Hard telling what he was thinking.
“Here’s your sign.”
🤣
I wonder if he was in a hurry and forgot? Or maybe he has dementia. If going down a steep hill might have thought of additional wind resistance to assist inoperative trailer brakes.
If really your thought process “here’s your sign.”
A braking assist? I’ll try it!
Thank you for the news, Gail! It sounds as though this was more than a case of forgetfulness. Were the slides damaged? Was he moving between sites? No mention of ratchet straps, so maybe was mere forgetfulness. Strange. Have a great day and safe travels!
Hey neal, didn’t you see the photo at the beginning of the story?
I did, David, but I did not know if it had anything to do with the story beyond being a picture showing something similar. Safe travels!
Must not use his outside rear view mirrors much. Establish a departure check list and use it!
Absent missing mirrors, brain cells or a fast approaching wildfire, me thinks this was intentional. Dumb question but what other drugs are legal there?
It would be helpful if the article stated what the reasoning was for driving with the slides out. Was it an accident? Were they broken and the driver was heading to service? Was he drunk?
“Reasoning”!!! There is no reason. There is no excuse. I see so many rv drivers that never, and I mean never, check their mirrors. If this guy had once looked in his driver’s side mirror he would have seen the slide was out. Actually, he should have seen it before he left where he was parked. Gives a bad name to all rvers.
In my travels, I’ve seen slide outs-out while hitting the roads.
Guess no one did a walk around, or was shorter than I am…..