Backing up the motorhome.

RV's are great, we love living in ours, enjoying the scenery, stopping along the way for lunch. We are the "Happy Campers" people talk about.

One thing that tests our happiness and I believe tests 90% of RV'ers is backing up the rig.

Why?

Well here's my take on it. At the end of a long day of travel you may both be tired. Then you get checked in to the campground and they say "It's a back in site". The fun begins.

I am talking about a motorhome (MH) now because I don't have much experience backing up with a trailer on. You MUST unhook a towed vehicle before attempting to back up any MH.

MH's have BIG blind spots. There is no rear window to look out of. They may or may not have a rear view camera. Directly behind is hard to see. Overhead is completely blind. You have to trust your rear view mirrors, not many drivers use their side mirrors when backing up.

Most people have difficulty parallel parking a car, but MH's are much more difficult because of a phenomenon called "Tail Swing"

Tail swing is caused by the large overhang at the back of most MH's. The rear wheels may be 10' in front of the rear of the vehicle, when you turn a corner the rear of the vehicle follows an arc pivoting about the center of the wheel closest to the inside of the turn. It's very easy to forget about this and hit an object close to the side of the vehicle going either forward or backwards.

Because of the blind spots and tail swing I think it is essential for the safety of people around you, and to prevent accidental damage to your rig, that you employ a "Spotter" when backing up.

Here's where the pain and anguish start. Even after doing this full time for 3 years we STILL have to be really patient with each other when backing up the rig.

When you first set about it you think it'll be easy, the spotter will tell you when to turn the wheel and Bingo you'll be in the spot.

NOT SO!

First the spotter can't be heard over the noise of the engine. 
Second the spotter may stand where you can't see them. 
Third if they give a hand signal what do they mean by it and what do you THINK they mean by it? 
Fourth you are reliant on your rear view mirrors and (if you have one) your rear view camera. 

Experienced campers pull up a chair to watch the fun when a rookie team attempt to back up into a narrow camping spot! Before long the yelling starts, tempers flare, the rig is all over the place. It's entertaining because we've all done it.

So how to avoid the agony?

Be methodical, and talk over what you're going to do, where you want to be at the end of it BEFORE YOU START.

I think the best RV accessory we ever bought was a pair of those little walkie talkies. They cost us about $40 and they are worth their weight in gold. We rarely use them except for backing up. We tried cell phones but occasionally we got in a CG with no cell reception.

BUT sometimes we forget to get them out or we think it'll be easy enough with hand signals. WRONG.

It is essential that you both agree on what the hand signals are going to be and what you both think they will mean. Great anguish comes from failure to communicate clearly in what is a high stress environment. Always use the same hand signals.

It is also essential that you agree where the spotter will be and what will happen if the driver can't see the spotter.

For Barbara and I we agree (most of the time) that her hand signals with her facing the driver or passenger side mirror and standing at the rear of the MH will be.

Both hands pointing to the left means keep backing but swing the REAR of the vehicle to the left.

Both hands pointing to the right means keep backing but swing the REAR of the vehicle to the right.

Both hands held vertically, parallel to each other means straighten up, come straight back.

Hand crossed above the head means STOP!

If at anytime the driver can't see the spotter STOP. Safety first, don't run over the spotter. They will not appreciate it.

That about covers it, should be simple, but it gets confusing when the spotter is facing away from the drivers mirror and their left is now the drivers right, or the spotter tries to tell the driver which way to turn the wheel to get the back to move in a certain direction and the driver thinks they mean something else.


This is where the radios are so helpful. I can stop and ask "What does that signal mean?" or "How far back can I come" or "What's over us, are we clear of those tree branches", "where are you? I can't see you".

Practice backing up in a big empty parking lot before you go camping for the first time. Pick a line on the asphalt where you want the rig to be at the end of the maneuver. A couple of orange cones helps.

Get out of the MH and walk the proposed maneuver with the spotter. Agree where they will stand at the beginning and the end of the maneuver.

One of the key pieces to this is to know where your rear wheels are and how the rear of the vehicle acts when you turn the wheel. Because the rear may be 10' behind the rear wheels you have to be much further past the point you want to reverse to when you start turning the wheel. We find it helps for the rear of the MH to be about 20' past the place we want to end up in.

Our ideal  place for the spotter to be in the beginning is about where the rear wheels will be when the turn starts and about 6 feet off the side of the MH. The spotter MUST be able to see the driver in the appropriate side mirror.

The rear of the MH should be positioned about 20 ft past the desired end point and about 6-8 ft out from the front of the site. This is important because the rear of the MH will turn fairly slowly and the rear wheels need a radius clear of ditches, other peoples camping stuff etc. It is also important that the driver is aware of where the FRONT of the vehicle is so as not to hit anything up front like other RV's, parked cars, curbs or anything.

Can you feel the anxiety rising?

There is more! Be very aware of trees, both as a driver and a spotter. The driver can't see anything above except directly ahead. That's why it is essential to both walk together around the site before backing into it. Talk about low branches, obstructions, power pedestals, picnic tables, curbs and concrete pads. Trees not only have branches to aware of but they also make it dark behind the MH and the rear view camera may not give a clear picture. There may be picnic tables or other obstructions lurking in the shadows. Don't forget the bicycle rack which may add another 3 or 4 feet to your length back there.

So from the start point assuming we are backing into a site that is to the drivers right side, the spotter is standing at the front right edge of the site. The MH is about 20' past the site and about 4' out from the site at 90 degrees to the site.

The spotter looks all round to check for approaching cars, bicycles, walkers, golf carts etc then looks at the driver in the side mirror giving the both hands pointing right signal.

The driver checks his mirrors and rear view camera and looks out for vehicles overtaking on either side of the MH. When it's clear the driver engages reverse and begins backing and swinging the rear of the vehicle to the drivers right.

The spotter watches where the rear wheels of the vehicle are going and gives signals to guide the rear wheels into the right spot while watching where the back of the MH is relative to obstructions around the MH.

The driver watches both the rear view mirror and camera, observing the spotter's signals but also checking the front of the MH as it swings and the left rear corner of the MH which is blind for the spotter.

As the turn progresses the spotter should move to the rear of the vehicle but make sure they can see the driver in the mirror as they do so.

REMEMBER IF YOU CANT SEE THE DRIVER IN THE MIRROR THEY CANT SEE YOU.

DRIVER, IF YOU CAN'T SEE THE SPOTTER STOP.

If the MH isn't going where you want it whether you are the driver or the spotter STOP. If you need to, drive back out and position the vehicle better, then start again. If you are just a little off track stop, drive forward and try again.

As the MH gets deeper into the site the spotter may want to move to the other side to watch for obstructions. Stop the MH, move across then give the hand signals again. Keep your eyes moving and start deciding when to stop the MH in the final position.

This is pure teamwork. Practice is essential. Don't get angry when things don't go exactly to plan, it will only make things worse. Think from the other persons perspective, can they see what you see, are you being clear in your signals, can they see your signals? If it gets out of hand STOP. There aren't any points for getting it right first time.

That's where we love our radios. We can actually talk about things and GENTLY remind each other about obstructions we talked about before we started. Enjoy the satisfaction of getting it right.

Lastly there are campgrounds where they provide people to back you into spots. DON'T ASSUME THEY ARE GOOD AT IT! We've had CG "Guides" back us into a bush, I've stopped the MH because they were backing us into the power pedestal and into tree limbs. A couple of times they have been so unclear with their hand signals I've told them "Stand aside, my wife knows what she's doing and you don't". 

In the end it's the driver who's responsibility it is to move the vehicle safely, but having a good spotter makes life so much easier.

Then when you make that sweet smooth sweeping turn into a narrow spot and the crowd sitting in the chairs say "Nicely done" you can bask in the glory for a while.





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