Deciding to attend my class reunion, I hitched up my trailer and headed east for Pennsylvania. I left on a Tuesday so I could spend Wednesday with my cousins in Missouri, leave Thursday and arrive at my campsite Friday with plenty of time to visit some friends in Pennsylvania before the Saturday event.
All was going according to plan as I left Missouri Thursday morning. It was after dark by the time I reached Columbus, Ohio, so I decided to get gasoline and find a spot to stop for the night. Unfortunately, I picked a poor exit for getting gasoline and ended up in a complex of restaurants. Finding my way out, I headed back towards the highway. Seeing a gasoline station I went in and filled my tank. Heading out again and trying to backtrack, I became totally lost. After several u-turns, I found myself in a Cracker Barrel parking lot. Looking around for the exit, my foot slipped off the brake, the truck rolled forward over the curb and became suspended in the thin air. Upon passing the balance point of the truck — Crash! The front end fell to the ground. My truck was at a 45 degree angle with the camper in the parking lot, the rear wheels on the curb and the front bumper smashed into the ground.
Climbing out of the cab, I was rattled. A nice man rushed over to see if I was all right. Ascertaining I was, he proceeded to calm me down. With his helpful suggestion, I called my insurance company. The lady on the other end of the line was not helpful at all. After answering the basic questions and telling her I was in Ohio and needed a tow truck, she responded, “I’m in Omaha. I think you called the wrong number.” I ended up hanging up.
The nice man then found a number for a local towing company. They had no one available that night. A second and third company had the same response. Finally I asked the man to try Triple A. They could help with a tow but I had to belong to AAA. So I joined right then and there. The man insisted he would stay until he was sure I was ok.
While we were waiting for the tow truck, an elderly couple stopped on their way in to eat at the Cracker Barrel. They wanted to make sure everything was ok. Finally the tow truck (roll back) arrived. A nice young man looked the scene over, called his boss, took pictures, checked “tow books” and after about half an hour, it was determined that because of the complexity of the job with the trailer still attached, I would have to wait until the morning when two or more drivers would be available. Apologizing profusely, the tow truck driver made sure the camper was safe to sleep in and left. The Cracker Barrel manager had come out and given me permission to stay there. The first nice man had left and the older couple had stopped back after eating to make sure I was still ok.
I had finally fallen asleep when, about 12:30, there was a knock on the door. “Police,” said the voice outside.
Two polite young policemen were checking to make sure I was ok. I told them the story and thanked them for their dedication. After checking my ID, they told me everything was fine and I should try to get some sleep.
The next morning I had breakfast at the Cracker Barrel while waiting for the tow truck. The friendly staff found me a table with an electrical outlet to plug my phone into while I waited.
Two young men came in the tow truck (roll back) to get me out of the ditch. They were professional and managed to winch my truck out with the trailer still attached. Another older couple stopped to watch and make sure I was ok. This couple offered me a guest bed if the damage required more than a day to be fixed instead of staying in a motel.
Once the truck was out, the tow truck drivers went over everything and I thought I would be able to continue on my journey. The bumper was badly bent and the one headlight was better for shooting down airplanes than finding the road but there seemed to be no damage to the running gear.
By the time everything was done, I felt it was too late to make it to Pennsylvania for the reunion. I headed back for Nebraska and not wanting to risk driving after dark with my maladjusted headlight, I stopped early at a rest stop for the night. While I was there, the second older couple called to make sure I was ok and not stranded at Cracker Barrel.
There were more helpful people in this saga than I have mentioned, but the whole experience showed the generosity and caring of the American people. The people living in and around Columbus are to be commended for their true American spirit.
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