To Trailer or Not to Trailer?

[DonRotolo]

Originally Posted by Carol

What kind do you have?
How often do you use it?
Where do you store it?
Who pulls it? How many mentors/parents are able and willing to pull the trailer?
What are the annual maintenance costs?
How do you manage who is authorized to pull the trailer?
Do you have training sessions for authorized operators?
Do you find the trailer more or less convenient than a pickup truck or van?
Do you have insurance for it? How much does it cost?

Since we are not affiliated with a school, we have to organize and pay for our own transportation and the insurance that requires.

All advice is appreciated!

We rent a trailer from a local place - one team member's brother works there, so we get a better deal. It is about 5' wide by 8' deep x 6' tall. We find it more cost-effective to rent it (something like $40/day) than to own it - no storage or maintenance costs. At the moment, only the coach has a vehicle that can pull it, but it's light enough that anyone with a hitch shouldn't see any problems.

The nice thing about the trailer is that we can go near or far and not have to worry about weather, or if the 'bot will fit in the van. The inconvenience is that for even a minor event, we have to go through the process of renting it.

A trailer is a great idea, if team funds permit it, get one.

Your points abut insurance and driver training and authorization are all very valid, and should be dealt with in writing.

Don