I decided to take the Chevelle with me this past weekend up to our beach house in Birch Bay (just south of the Canadian border) for some beach crusing over the 4th and I'm glad I did but...

Since I had so much stuff to take up I decided to put the car on the trailer and my son-in-law and I took off at about 5:30pm Friday heading north. We were just north of the Tulalip area on I-5 crusing at about 65mph in the fast lane and my rear passenger side tire blew on the car trailer! The back of the trailer was swaying all over the place and I looked in my outside mirror and at one point the back of the trailer was approx 4" away from the concrete barricade... Well, since I was in the far right lane and I wouldn't have room to change the tire there, I told my son-in-law to start waving wildly out his window and as soon as there was a little break I jumped over all 3 lanes to the other shoulder (that was REAL fun and quite a butt puckering experience). So, I get off to the side as much as possible to allow for a safe tire change, jacked up the trailer, took the spare off the mount, went to install it and it was the wrong lug pattern (thank you discount tires who checked it and said it was the right wheel when they ordered it and mounted a tire on it).

I had to disconnect the truck from the trailer, took the wheel with the shredded tire on it drove up to the 172nd street exit, got back on the freeway heading south and went to Walmart (only place I could find open) and after about an hour got a new tire on the wheel. The guy told me I was already and the paperwork was printing up inside so I went in to pay... there at the "Automotive" counter was a family (and I mean the stereotypical Walmart shopper family) buying milk, eggs, baby food, etc; all the while questioning everything that was being rung up! I went into overload at that point! No more Walmart (ever) for me! Anyway, finally got back, changed the tire/wheel and got to Birch Bay about 3.5 hours later (it is normally a 1 hour trip). About 6 beers later I got the car off the trailer...

BTW - On the way home, I lost all the trailer lighting as well as the turn signals on my truck! Got home, had another 6 beers and got the car off the trailer!

Life is good, I still got to spend the weekend with the family and the outcome could have been much worse!

Greg