Our First Major Blow Out

The culprit… A treadless, inflated tire, needed to build confidence

When we set out on this new life as “nomads” we knew there would be lots of first experiences for us. 

It was going to be only a matter of time before we were tested. 

We were heading east from the Salt Flats back to Cheyenne to recharge ourselves through some family time when it happened. 

Just 11 miles outside of Evanston, Wyoming, we heard a weird noise come from the trailer. 

The tire pressure monitor system had not signaled an alarm and indicated all four tires still had pressure. 

We were in luck, there was an exit close, and we pulled off almost immediately to see what had happened. 

To our surprise, we found the tires were still fully inflated, but the tread on one of them had completely peeled away from the center.  

We were fortunate this caused no significant damage to the undercarriage of the queen.

Jerrod on the side of I-80 changing the spare on The Queen

Thanks to YouTube and all the information available out there, I felt well prepared to change this tire on the side of the road. 

I had watched plenty of videos, inspected my tools and mentally rehearsed this moment many times over in my head. 

We backed the trailer up onto our leveling ramps, which elevated the tire we needed to change without the need of a jack.  With the speed of a NASCAR pit crew, we had done it. 

Changed the tire, stowed the spare, and were back on our way to our spot for the night at a local bowling alley in Evanston. 

In the morning we bought five new tires and continued east bound with a sense of accomplishment and confidence that we were ready for the challenges of this lifestyle.