Anyone ever pull two trailers at once (double tow)?

So I'm rattling around in my head how to get both race cars to the track at once.

Currently I have a small tilt trailer (700lbs) that I use to tow  either the 1600lb Datsun or the 740lb F500.  I tow with a E250 Camper Van.

The easy solution is a longer trailer but the space on the side of my house barely fits the existing trailer.  The F500 is only 10ft long and I could store it on a small trailer in the garage. 

I know that towing two trailers is legal in the states I would be in but the question is what's it like towing double............bad idea or no problem?

I've towed tandem with a Bobtail pulling munitions to the flightline.  That gets sketchy over 35mph.  Does that count?

In reply to Tom1200 :

I'm not sure I've seen any combo other than a 5th wheel camper pulling a single axle utility or boat trailer. In that situation I think the weight of the camper would mean the 2nd trailer had minimal impact on its towing. If you're taking about a 2300lb trailer with a 1500lb trailer behind it I think that could get a little sketchy sometimes?

The way to do this is have a flatbed truck or ramp truck, and then have it tow a trailer. 

Or use an enclosed trailer with a lift inside so it can holds two cars..when you have funds to spill out the back as you drive.

Or you are creative and talented, and you can build something like this, which is kinda on my todo list..

In reply to Tom1200 :

In 1968 While waiting to catch my carrier I was TAD (Temporary  Assigned Duty)  in Subic Bay. In the Philippines  after a week of boredom I was asked if I could drive a stick. I confirmed I could and was assigned to drive the mail truck to Manila. 
 

The mail truck was a USA. ( actual brand name ) from pre WW 2 era. Handsome  truck with a monster Aluminum Grill like a Giant 32 Ford.  A 6 cylinder Flathead of enormous  size.  A Convertible  top  and two 32 foot long trailers behind it( It's called a double bottom arrangement I guess, or so I was told.  
 My Guide and co-pilot was a local Philippine  elderly Gentleman who appeared slightly older than Moses.  Spoke very poor English but pointed when I should  turn in time for me to confirm and start preparing for the coming turn. 
The trip took all day and apparently I never drive fast enough to satisfy him. Even though my foot was flat on the floor most of the trip.  The transmission was a 5 speed with a tripler  and 2 speed rear end.  I think it had 5000 forward gears and at least 30 in reverse. ( not that I ever used reverse.) 

Subic bay is at sea level and there is a steep switch back up and over the mountains.  Double bottoms cheat the corners so you need to really swing wide. 
You start with the fender just about scrapping the rocks and your back trailer wheels usually has 1 tire cutting the corner in the air. ( 2 tires off and I don't want to think of the consequences ) 

Buses in the Philippines are call the rabbit lines and apparently the drivers are required to set land speed records from one stop to the next  on pain of death. That and they are braver than Dick Tracy. I quickly learned that I needed to pull my mirrors out of their  way when they passed me.  Oh and their horns announcing the passing could be heard miles away. 

In reply to Tom1200 :

I once built a 28 foot long enclosed trailer to carry 2 cars. The second car was on a ramp over the front of the first (installed backwards) 

Yes, sort of.  I used to work at an automotive testing center my father managed. We had a 1970s Ford wrecker with a 460 to fetch breakdowns.  

My dad's racing buddy had one of his employees drive a Chevy double cab 3/4 ton dually with a gooseneck flatbed loaded down with enough stuff to build a hunting cabin in Colorado.  The 396 in that truck died in the heat of summer pulling that load.  

I got called and instructed to go fetch it.  I wanted to drop the trailer and tow the truck.  After lots of phone calls and arguing I was instructed to tow the whole thing.  The wrecker clutch damn near died getting that thing rolling.  For the next 150 miles I rolled through every stop knowing it'd never get moving again.

Dad drive it across the truck scales the next morning...  wrecker plus truck and trailer was over 40k.....  never again.

If you are towimg two cars, get a rig designed to do it.

Pretty sure it's only legal with a 5th wheel connection on the front trailer. 

Both cars and the single trailer only come up to 2900lbs, a trailer that would haul the F500 comes in under 400lbs so the whole set up would be 3300lbs. The van is plenty capable of that. 

I posted because I thought it was not the best idea but sometimes things you think may not be good turn out to be OK.........this likely isn't one of them.

The alternative is fabricating some kind of double deck or add a folding rear ramp gate that can also act as a deck extension, that way I can get the 18ft long deck I need. The trailer would fit in the hole on the side of the house if you could fold the rear up out of the way. 

I is not legal in many states to double tow. 

You can tow doubles in Alberta but the lead trailer has to be a 5th wheel.

Too much to go wrong IMHO.

I can only imagine what it would be like if you ever needed to back up.

Years ago, a friend used to haul his Formula 440 to races INSIDE his full-size Chevy van and towed a small Production race car behind it.  He built ramps inside the van to accept the formula car, sort of an enclosed ramp truck for a really tiny car.

I see a team at Lemons races every so often with an ad for Doctor Harmony Organic Ear Candles on the Excursion. It has a weird setup. The hitch on the Excursion can swing in about a 50° arc side to side when unlocked. Behind that they tow the racecar in a decent sized(25'?) trailer behind which they tow a small(10'?) utility trailer. I've only seen that setup in SC.

On one of those "Most Epic RV" shows, a guy had a Freightliner with a 40 ft. trailer (home) pulling a 25 ft. boat.  Double Bottom semi trucks are legal in some places when driven by qualified trained drivers.   Us?  Maybe it falls under the rule that would allow you and I to drive a >18,000 lb. Class A.

Check your local listings?

I don't know about the legality of it here in Pennsylvania, but I have seen one Ohio team tow a regular 2 axle flat open car trailer to the dragstrip with a utility trailer hitched to the car trailer. The utility trailer carried the team's pit vehicle/ golf cart.

Reversing would be crazy I think.

Greg

In reply to nimblemotorsports :

Wow. I cant think that a mopar 3.0 from that era could haul that much weight. Maybe all the roads are flat in that part of Ontario!

If you're hauling a car with a trailer hitch on the front trailer, you're good to go.

Ontario is as flat as Michigan or Ohio.

I've wanted to pull a trailer with my ramp truck for a long while, but I was just going to pull a small pop up camper. I'm sure it could handle a formula car on a trailer.

Not me personally, but this is fairly common.  My Uncle did this a ways back.

oldopelguy (Forum Supporter) said:

Pretty sure it's only legal with a 5th wheel connection on the front trailer. 

This.  There are specific rules, including that the primary trailer must be fifth wheel or gooseneck, and there are specific rule (differing by state) that determine percentages of weight... for instance if it's 70% and the 5th wheel is 10k, the trailer can't be more than 7k... and of course, the total towed weight can't exceed the tow rating.

Some states (Utah maybe?) the total weight is also reduced.  For instance if you have a truck that can tow 10k, that doesn't mean you can tow a 6000 lb gooseneck plus a 4000 lb trailer behind it.  You have to reduce the total weight by a certain amount.

Many states require a Tandem endorsement on a commercial license

I never really did it because I rarely lived in a state that allowed it non-commercially, and the states that allow it are few and far between.  Since most of my camping/hauling/trailer trips are multiple states, I can't get there from here with two trailers.

So you have a 15' car and a 10' car?  That sounds like a flatbed and your tilt trailer, or a 24' trailer and let 1' of each car hang over the edges with a foot in between them.

Intense complexity with having two trailers, one needs to be a 5th wheel or gooseneck, and two registration/insurance (if your state requires it).  Plus you'll still have to store both trailers.

I would suggest just getting a trailer that will take both cars.

12.5' car and 10' car; The only reason I gave the slightest thought to a second trailer is I could store the F500 on the trailer in the garage.  The longer trailer is an issue because of the space on the side of the house, The trailer is backed up against a wall and the Van is backed up right against the trailer.

I really would love to bring both cars to vintage races but I guess I'll need to choose one or the other.

A double, as I suspected is a silly idea...........  

Not silly at all, just that it needs to have a pretty notable need to be worth the hassle and hoop-jumping.

As my grandfather said, there are no stupid questions, just stupid people.  (I'm kidding)  I'm the king of asking dumb questions here.  I challenge you to take my title.  

Did some quick research, people seem to do it.