Driving down the road and having an incident where you see your trailer in your mirror starting to jack knife is every truckers worse nightmare. Luckily, this is a situation that neither Larry or I have ever found ourselves in. But when researching this topic the one thing I found is everyone has their own way of trying to recover from a Jack Knife situation. And while I don’t think one is particularly right or wrong I think it all depends on each individual situation you find yourself in. So today we will discuss some of the most popular ways of handling this scary situation.
I am referencing an article that was featured in Smart Trucking and an be found here at https://www.smart-trucking.com/jack-knife-skid/. The driver in this article has been a professional driver for over 40 years and has had years of experience all over the US. First thing he explains is what when you start to see your trailer starting to stray the first thing have to concentrate on is getting your trailer straight. So for example if you see your trailer starting to swing towards to the drivers side you want to SLOWLY turn your steering wheel in that direction. Steer into the turn.
It is human nature that if you see your trailer sliding that turn in the opposite direction. But in the case of a jack knife trailer you actually want to slowly turn in the same direction as the trailer. The other important thing he mentioned was making sure to turn the steering wheel slowly so that you are NOT over correcting and making the situation worse. The other important thing he mentions is to take your feet off everything. Remove your feet from the brake, the clutch and the gas.
Then start to concentrate and focus on just trying to get your trailer back in line and slowing down the speed of your tractor. Now along with Jack Knifing another scary thing out on the road is hydroplaning on wet pavements. Which can be especially scary if you are fully loaded. So I also researched some great tips on to prevent hydroplaning and what to do if you start to feel your truck starting to hydroplane.
So what is hydroplaning and how does it happen in the first place? So hydroplaning is caused when you truck tires lift off the pavement and a thin layer of water is underneath between your tire and the pavement. Essentially you are riding on a thin layer of water.
Most of the times this is a very brief but yet scary situation that goes away quickly.
Hydroplaning usually happens a short time after the rain starts to fall and it usually occurs due to a mixture of oil and water on the roadways.
Several conditions influence the likelihood of hydroplaning, including:
- Depth of water on the road.
- Road conditions like ruts, cross-slopes, grade, and width.
- The speed of the vehicle.
- Improperly inflated tires.
- Driving on worn tires.
What to do if you start to Hydroplane? First is to remain calm which I know is easier said than done. But remain calm and remove your foot from the accelerator or gas pedal. Do NOT slam on your breaks, you should actually avoid using your brakes until the hydroplaning subsides. Next if you are starting to drift off the roadway or into another lane of traffic than start steering in small movements so that you are not over correcting.
Ways to avoid Hydroplaning in the first place.
- Do not use your brakes and drive at a slower speeds
- Do not use cruise control
- Keep on your tires maintenance. Make sure your tires are properly inflated and in good driving condition.
- Pay attention to your surroundings to avoid puddles or standing water on the roadways.
