Wow,
I must say i am impressed with the amount of and depth of discussion on this mishap, thank you every one for your help and possible insights. I had a discussion with Anderson and essentially it boils down to user error. Ever since the first time I unhooked the trailer, i was never able to get the triangle plate back on without loosening the chains and then re-tightening them. I was unaware that raising the trailer would introduce slack in the chains enabling one to reconnect it (thank you Mike and Buzzy for that clarification). I also, unfortunately paid little attention to the number of threads that remained, essentially just eyeballing it and tightening away. After thinking more about it and talking to Anderson it appears that one chain must have been significantly more tight than the other, couple that with the weight of the trailer, road conditions and speed....the pin was literally ripped free of the bracket. This is further supported by the finding that the hole in shaft is no longer perpendicular to the ball, it must have taken a scary amount of force to twist that shaft. I've posted a picture of the shaft, I took the picture straight on trying to demonstrate that the hole has shifted, draw an imaginary line down the middle of the ball and you'll see it. I hate to say, i have struggled with this hitch since the first day i removed and tried to get it back on and prior to this happening, had thought about getting rid of it, but i invested in it and i am the one who screwed it up so I'm going to give it another shot. I'll replace the parts (ouch), take everyone's good advice, read the instructions, watch the video and try again....Oh yes this is a learning experience, thanks....Leigh