The New Trailer

I have been looking for a new trailer for the better part of a year. 

My first trailer was a very sufficient trailer.  It was older than I was and probably made in the 70s.  Small two horse bumper pull with the compartment under the manger.

I'm sure everyone knows the type.

But, it was reasonably priced when I had approximately .02 cents to my name, had good floor boards and bones, and was a trailer.

However, Chili hated it.  She fussed about loading and it was just generally an unpleasant experience.  She loaded fine on other trailers.  I know that really the horse should oblige, but in the end, Chili made her point known.

So began the great trailer search of 2015-2016. 

I looked at approximately 1740247 trailers online.  A few seemed to fall into the right category of "good price, reasonable distance, and have reasonably what I'm looking for."

I didn't think that I was asking for too much.  I was on the hunt for

• All aluminum or steel frame with aluminum skin
• Dressing room
• 2 Horse, preferred slant
• Ramp
• Reasonable condition
• <$8,000
  

  

  Random photo.  The Fjords at my barn are beyond cute

  
  Well, as it turns out, those were unreasonable parameters.  I also learned that people are a little frustrating.  I had several trailers sold out from underneath me, when I had appointments scheduled at the earliest convenience by the seller and then someone else popped in moments before our arrival and bought the trailer.  You'd think that once would be enough, but this actually happened twice while we were driving distances to the trailer, and once we actually had a couple hours notice.
  
  I tried looking at some more trailers, but I was a little disappointed that people still wanted $8 to $10,000 for ten to fifteen year old trailers, where the new ones of the same models were only a couple thousand dollars more.  I love my Corolla, but there's no way I'd pay near sticker price for my almost decade old car.
  
  So I began looking at the major equine expo.  I had every intention of coming home with a trailer, but once again, I felt like a bad date.  I had upped the budget, but was dismayed by sales people and some obvious issues like the exposed sharp spring by the tie ring in the Lakota, the weak latch in the Exiss, and the impossible jump in the Featherlite I looked at. 
  
  I really needed like E-Harmony for trailers at that point.
  
  I have always loved Hawk trailers, but the ones at the expo were a bit out of our price point.  However, after some creative internet sleuthing, I found a dealer that only stocked a couple on the lot in order to reduce overhead.  The dealership was a couple hour drive one way, but bonus, it was in the same town as my grandmother.
  
  
  
  
  Ta-Dah! 
  
  So there's the most expensive new purchase of my adult life, excluding my student loan debt and my house.
  
  It's a two horse Hawk, ramp, bumper pull.  Steel frame with aluminum skin.  Pulls easily, has a good sized dressing room, and the best part of all is that Chili now loads.
  
  So go trailer shopping and use the horse as an excuse.
  
  Chili approves of this message.