tight lots

Also, when you're waiting at a dock, watch (and pay close attention) to others backing in nearby. Note the ones who made it look easy. How was their initial setup? The ones who are having trouble ... from your vantage point, how would you try and get that trailer in? Does the driver need to scrap the approach and reset? Sometimes we get lucky and hit a tight spot the first time ... it's a little skill, but there is a lot of "luck", and often some "backing angel" was watching over that driver. So don't think if you don't hit it in fewer than 3 pull-ups, you're not doing well.

Until you learn (by experience) distance and gauging about where the rear Rt corner of your trailer is in relation to the next-door occupant, backing is a very nerve racking endeavor. And even old hands second guess themselves about this. When you get out to check your progress, make sure to go to the front of the vehicle and look back to gauge for angle and where it may be 20 feet into the backing maneuver. Looking from the rear of the trailer does not give you much information.

 

Great advice right here, look from the front to gauge what you need to do.

 

when i 1st started out, the academy had only taught me the 45 degree angle , where i would aproach the slot, line up the drives with the line, then turn the tractor 45degrees until it was facing away from the dock, then cut to the driver side 45 degrees which would set me up for an angled back.

prettY good setup if you had lots of room in front of the tractor. in places that were tight, i found it easier to make my turns alot shallower then 45 degrees, and leave just enough room on the driver side so that when i turned the wheel to the passenger side, while backing, i would angle the trlr into the hole and still have plenty of room on the passenger side as the tractor swung around. hard to explain in writing but easy to demonstrate in person.

 

Sometimes when I have extra time and am bored, I will practice backing for the heck of it, I'll go to a part of the truckstop where no one is parked, and I'll practice blindside backing.

 

And something I don't see mentioned much on these backing issues posts ... the "Reset".

If you're having a lot of trouble with a particular situation, at some point you may have to (or should) make the decision to "reset" and start over. But many new drivers don't truly start from scratch. They end up pulling into a bizarre position and "starting over from there" and this usually ends up making a difficult situation, even MORE difficult, if not impossible.

When you make that decision to reset, pull out and get lined up to back up AS FAR AS YOU CAN, even far past (before) your hole and try and get to a point where you're rig is straight and at a 90 degree angle (or almost 90) to the dock, and you can see your hole looking FORWARD to at least the 10 or 11 o'clock position, then begin again. At this point you may even want to slide your tandems back if you have time if for no other reason than to get a feel for the difference this makes. In some situations sliding tandems back all the way helps, in others it hinders. But only trying it both ways will you get a sense of how/when to do this. But it's important to note that the backing dynamics will be significantly different with tandems all the way back vs. tandems at typical operating position.

 

If it's really tight that 45 angle back you learned in school isn't going to work. What you do is pull up as close to the truck line as you can, line the back of your trailer up with the far side of the truck your going to back up next to, and jack knife it in. If you have enough room you can slide your tandems to the rear, this will help you keep from backing into the truck on the far side.

If that doesn't work just keep backing up next to someone sitting in the drivers seat and get about a foot away from their truck before you stop. They will either get out and help you or move.

 

View attachment 34891 Lets see if this makes any sense. From what I gather the dash line is your approach, when you get into a situation like this you cannot try to get lined up with the open spot. What you would want to do instead is setup at less of an angle, and ease everything around nice and slow. Always keep in mind your tail swing. When it comes to backing slow is the key, you get in a hurry and that is when you will tear up equipment and not make friends.

 

If someone could put together some birds-eye angle videos along with other ground level video angles of common truck backing scenarios, done properly, they could maybe make a little money selling DVD's. Seeing/observing a back (from several vantage points) is a great teaching aid but only if you're seeing it done in an efficient, "proper" manner that works well.

 

Don't forget. There are some holes to small. You just have to wait until someone moves. Some places they might have to move something for you. If I think it won't fit, I go in and tell them it's not happening. I'm not screwing someone elses truck up. just so they can get my truck "last truck" in. I have pissed off a couple of receivers with that.

 

A lot of times the reason why a spot is available is because it is too much trouble to get into.