3 Lessons Learned When I Had to Move My Golf Cart

I live in central Florida. It is a part of the world where there are as many golf carts as there are actual cars. I own a golf cart myself. And when my wife and I sold our home and bought a new one, we decided to take the cart with us. We also decided to move it on our own.

The journey between houses was a mere 15 miles. It was no big deal. Still, I learned a lot of valuable lessons along the way. If I ever have to move the golf cart again, I will be much better prepared the second time around.

Speaking of lessons learned, here are the top three I took away from the experience:

1. Golf Carts Are Bigger Than They Appear

Have you ever seen those stickers on car mirrors that say, “objects in the mirror may be bigger than they appear”? Well, lo and behold, the exact same thing applies to golf carts. They look relatively small and compact until you try to load one on the back of utility trailer. Then, without warning, your golf cart seems more like a monster truck.

I measured my cart multiple times. The friend who lent me the trailer did numerous measurements on his end. We were both convinced I could get the cart up on the trailer with plenty of room to spare. We were both wrong.

For starters, I had to back the cart on and allow the back bumper to hang over the edge of the trailer. That was the only way we could get the ramp up. Second, I had less than an inch to spare on either side. Needless to say, it was a tight fit.

2. Tiedown Straps Aren’t Just for Cars

Prior to this particular experience, I had seen multiple instances of cars secured to flatbed haulers with tiedown straps. The straps were more or less webbing straps that went over the wheels and were anchored to points on either side. I know they work because tow operators use them all the time.

Guess what? They also work well for securing golf carts to utility trailers. I used four tiedown straps from Rollercam. I could have just as easily used ratchet straps from Walmart. Regardless, the Rollercam straps worked like champs. I tied down the cart at all four corners and it didn’t budge.

3. Securing the Windshield Is a Good Idea

The only real tragedy from this experience was the loss of my golf cart’s plastic windshield. If you’ve never seen a golf cart windshield, it is basically two pieces of plastic with a rubber hinge in between. The bottom piece is securely fixed to the cart frame while the top piece swings up and down.

I failed to secure that top piece prior to departure. The need to do so never dawned on me. A few miles up the road though, that need made itself quite apparent. A gust of wind took hold of the top section and ripped it right off. Thank goodness there was nobody traveling behind us. It would have done a number on any car it hit.

I should have used one of my extra tiedown straps to secure the windshield. I could have wrapped it clear around and pulled it tight. That would have solved that problem.

All in all, moving the golf cart went as well as could be expected. We’re glad we purchased this house and brought the cart with us. New carts are expensive. Moving the one we already had was a wise choice.