Camper Trailer Wrecked on Interstate Highway

That's terrible. This is one time a "dash-cam" would have come in really handy as the victim would have had all three license plates on video along with what happened. These jerks should have stopped first of all. I don't know the towing laws in Indiana but I know that some of the western states have no limitations on speed when towing. Here in CA it's 55 max if you are towing or have more than two axles. NOBODY pays any attention to those laws unless there is a highway patrol car right behind them. Another reason I can't wait to get out of this state. Our law enforcement stinks. These guys are highly paid and all they do is hide out till a call comes in and then they might show up for clean up of the mess. With no actual presence on the road everyone just drives any old way they feel like. 

I feel for your friends and I'm glad no one was killed. It's time that the states got together and put these so called "professional" drivers where they belong. In the slow lane with absolutely no passing allowed. They are paid to do what they are doing so there is no reason for them to be in a rush.

Very scary... Anyone retrofit shocks in a trailer to help stabilize... I have a small truck and need a new axle to get trailer brakes

Costco has one right now... I think less that $100

Just picked this one up last week;

www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014KUCNF0?keywords=dash%20cam&qid=1452864390&ref_=sr_1_12&s=electronics&sr=1-12

I'm going to replace the 8 gig with a 32 for longer recording loops.

This is what I tell people I talk to about towing weights and tow vehicles. It's a good rule of thumb. 

Tow half the weight of your tow vehicle's rated capability. Include all the supplies and camping equipment including propane and water weight in your package weight. 

You see it's not important "what your vehicle is capable of towing". What is important is what weight your tow vehicle is capable of stopping. Having brakes on your camper helps that figure a great deal. Brakes prevents jack knifing and if your trailer has brakes you may go up to two thirds of your rated capability. You have to remember that just because you apply brakes to the tow vehicle, doesn't mean the trailer want's to stop. Just the opposite happens. The trailer weight wants to keep going because of something called inertia. You won't always be driving in a straight line on flat and level ground. And just because you are a good driver, that doesn't mean everyone else is. You won't believe the stupid, idiotic things people do on the road when you are towing. They do not want to be behind you. They will do anything and risk it all to get around you. They do not know how to merge onto a highway with people who are towing. Other drivers are too busy texting to be aware of your trailer and many times won't even know you are towing until they almost crash into your trailer while merging.

I have found that defensive driving doesn't help you while towing as much as Aggressive Driving does. No one cares about your turn signals. If you wait for people to hold off on passing you when you put your blinker on, you will never change lanes. My turn signal is not a request. It's a warning. The way I think while towing is that my turn signal means I'M CHANGING LANES IDIOT! So I wait till I see an open spot, hit my signal and move over. I don't wait for all the idiots who see my signal to pass me so I won't end up in front of them. That's what they do folks. They see your signal and to them that means I BETTER GET IN FRONT OF THIS GUY....

I stay out of the merging lane on freeways. Yes I know that we should stay in the slow lane but no one knows how to merge. They are busy doing other things and don't even realize there are others on the freeway in that lane until it's too late. People get stupid when they get behind the wheel of a car. So I stay in the next lane over. What I call the number two lane. I know they are numbered backwards but for our discussion let's call it the number two lane. Second lane over from the right. And I tow faster than the speed limit tells me. Here in CA the limit is 55 for towing. If you do that you will be run over. So I try to keep it 65 and under but I do it in the second lane.

I could go on and on about towing. I hate towing. And if I'm going to tow, I want to tow something small and light weight. Not a big self contained trailer. It's just too nerve racking out there with all the idiots on the road these days...

Now you know why I prefer tent camping...

What a scary situation. So fortunate that no one was killed.
On our recent trip we tried to avoid interstate freeways / highways, but sometimes it is impossible. I prefer smaller, slower 2 lane roads that allow people to safely pass us. I agree with Larry that if you have to get on a freeway, stay in that "number two lane" to avoid the idiots who don't merge correctly. Always leave as much room between you and what's in front of you as possible. (Of course the idiots will try to scoot into that safety zone, just because they can.)
My understanding was that trailer tires are only rated for 65 MPH, so in the back of my mind I was weary of a blowout and usually kept between 55 and 65 MPH. I was happy to find that in the few instances (for avoidance reasons) I had to go faster, I still felt in control even when being passed by the big rigs. Our tow vehicle was a Chevy Silverado with 7800 lbs tow capacity, camper weighed about 3200 lbs fully loaded and does have brakes which I believe make a huge difference in safety.

In the east and mid-west, many tractor trailer drivers were maniacs, going way too fast, ignoring signage prohibiting them from traveling in the left lane, and cutting back in front of us way too soon. They drive like they think they are in a BMW on a race track. For some reason the further west we went the more considerate and safety oriented they seemed. Towing safely does require paying much more attention and anticipating all of the bad things that could happen.

The first thing you must do when towing is make certain your tires are inflated to max pressure on both the trailer and the tow vehicle. Next make certain you have the proper amount of weight on the hitch. Then when setting up your rig as stated make sure your tow vehicle is rated for twice your trailer weight. I have seen many people say "my trailer only weighs x pounds according to the mfgs brochure", B.S. load your trailer as you would when on vacation including food, water, clothes, firewood, toys, spare tires, and the thousand other things I haven't listed. Now have it weighed, unhooked from tow vehicle then multiply that figure by .10. This is the minimum weight you should have on the hitch. Is your vehicle rated for your loaded trailer? Is there 10% or more of the weight on the hitch? Next is your trailer towing level? If not adjust your hitch so that it does.
I have towed trailers for well over a half century with no mishaps by following these simple rules. I have towed in eighty MPH cross winds (at a reduced speed) with no problems but I always make certain that tire pressure and hitch is correct. Sway bars are a band-aid for a bad setup, They won't hurt you in most cases so if they make you more comfortable install them but make sure everything else is right first. Think how many times you have watched a semi pass a trailer without a problem, this should tell you there was something wrong with the combination that got wrecked or the driver. I hope this helps it is not intended to hurt anyone's feelings but to maybe save someones life. Happy trailering.