AdventureTaco - turbodb's build and adventures

Great photo's! Well I think I found a potential spot for next summers overlanding trip.

By what time of the year do you think that area will be all dried out for travel?

 

Don't gimme that, this isn't the first time this has happened for you, ORBDR. It's not like they're super heavy, or have to be dry stored. You could just bungie them to the underside of the front of your rack. Hell jam em above the old spare tire carrier. Zip tie em to the sliders, turn them into a temporary set of cab top wings. 2nd and 3rd genners practically wear them all over the truck, Im sure you can find one sensible place to Tetris them in. Now if I asked you to store a blacksmiths anvil so we could forge new ball joints on the trail I'd expect this amount of hemming and hawing.

 

Eh. I haven't ever had good luck with Traction boards. Not sure they are worth it. PITA to haul too due to their shape and size. Only ever had them work well with trucks that are locked and good tires. In face, I'd bet a MT would have faired a lot better in that situation alone(Duh)

Id recommend just finding a friend next time to bring with you. More hands, more tools, more parts, always a place to tug off of and winch. And company is always fun.

Obviously that isn't as simple either since you two basically are on trips all the time.

Still, Im not sold on the traction mats especially in Mud. In snow I've have some success. But not that much.

 

This was my thought as well as I read that part.

 

Some cheaper options:

BUNKER INDUST Recovery Traction Boards Tire Traction Mat for 4X4 Mud, Snow, Sand Track Ramp, Pair Black Off-Road Traction Pads

https://www.amazon.com/BUNKER-INDUS...a-726880922860&psc=1&ref=&adgrpid=68750936843

LITEWAY Traction Boards with Jack Lift Base- 2 Pcs Traction Mat for Sand Mud Snow Track Tire Ladder 4X4-4 Tons Load Recovery Traction Tracks.

https://www.amazon.com/LITEWAY-Reco...a-567726812846&psc=1&ref=&adgrpid=62497261659

https://www.walmart.com/ip/GZYF-1pa...208893?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=3557

$130 Maxsa 20333 Heavy-Duty Escaper Buddy Traction Mats for Off-Road Mud, Sand, & Snow Vehicle Extraction and Recovery, Bendable, Unbreakable, Orange, 2 Pack

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AV2HONS/[artid|10060.g.1467[src|[ch|[lt|

If you're really cheap, there's also the old 2x4 trick:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8ie05PybBI

 

Thanks. It's definitely a cool place. I think in general it's dried out by July. I mean, the Playa is dry enough now (assuming it's not rained for a few days before you get there) but there's still lots of water in the surrounding area. Makes everything green and pretty, but obviously has drawbacks as well .

I'm sure I could fit them somewhere, but the truck's already heavy and it's not getting lighter . There's always something else to buy that does "sort of the same thing" as another tool - in this case, what a shovel and some branches accomplished.

As much as possible I like to have things with multi-function...and traction boards aren't really. Unless I used them as truck levelers in camp. But man, I don't know that I could stomach the #instafabulousness of that. I know I'd never hear the end of it from my camping buddies for sure.

OK, now I'm thinking maybe I should get some, lest we agree for too long.

And yeah, I would love to have a friendly couple in a second truck come along next time...I'll invite @BossFoss and his better half.

Hahahahaha, I think you two should come on more of these trips - @MissBlackdawg would have enjoyed the wild horses I bet.

Yeah, but the digging worked. So, traction boards would have been more redundancy, and to Monte's point...who knows if they'd have worked; and what a mess. Plus, when does the redundancy stop? Shovel + Traction boards + dead man? Have to draw the line somewhere.

My thought too as I wrote it . But then again, it did turn out that what I had with me was good enough (again).

I actually really like this - hadn't seen it before. I already carry some 2x6's, so this could be a good multi-use. Thanks!

 

I mean Brett is WAY better company than I am hahaha

I know she would. She is dying to get out. Wish we could this weekend but everything is snowed in hard here. Might look at going to *gasp* east MT this weekend

 

I first learned about the 2x4 trick when my neighbors got stuck in their back yard. They were about to do this when I pulled up and offered insisted on using our 4runner to pull out their frontier. I didn't believe them when they said that it worked, but the countless youtube videos don't lie.

This entertained me for 15 minutes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkI2qPsa96I

also a code to get 30% off maxtrax at the end of it should you decide to go that route.

 

See, I would have said it differently - my real life experience of always getting by without them. And to a large extent, yours. We've never had to use them on any of the trips that I've gone on with the 1st gen gang. I suppose one could argue that it's because with more trucks around, it's easier to just tug out.

So does that mean they are only necessary when going solo?

There have been times I've wanted them or when they would have made things easier - I said as much above. I've even spent a bunch of late nights trying to justify the cost of them...or of the competition.

But, I don't necessarily agree with the thought process of "what if the thing you had didn't work, would you have wanted them?" I mean, of course I would. But where does the slippery slope stop?

Go with me on this - what if the traction boards failed because the "other rear side/wheel" spun and I didn't have a rear locker? Then, would everyone say, "you should really get a rear locker." OK, so I get a rear locker, and that doesn't work either...does everyone say, "You know, if you had a front locker..."

That can go on forever - two trucks might not be enough, you might need three - or even four - to pull someone out of a creek in Boulder Basin because they didn't recall that the road turned to the right . At some point, you have to draw the redundancy line.

So, in my "gear," I've opted for a set of redundancies (I have both lockers for instance) that have worked. Could other things have worked in these same situations? Yes, likely. But would those same other things work in all other cases? Probably not.

So the trick is to choose the right "some" things vs. "every" thing. At least, in my thinking.

This is part of why I like @CowboyTaco's suggestion with the 2x4's - for a lot of other reasons, I have 2x4's and straps - those can be used for a lot of other reasons. They are a good "some" thing for a lot of situations.

I'm curious about the size issues you're wrestling with. I guess I always figured that these things are generally the same size and so who cares? Do you mean stackability?

===

Anyway, I think this is a totally valuable conversation to have - so please don't take my disagreement as anger or offense or anything. The some/every thing compromise is an area I'm constantly struggling with. As time has passed since my first trip (OBDR) where I had no spare parts, etc., I've clearly added things to my kit. At the same time, one of the best threads on TW (@DVexile's Diet Taco... trying to keep things light) is all about figuring out the balance. One of the things that's stuck with me since reading his whole thread is the following:

Don't develop a "just in case" attitude that brings 400 lbs of recovery gear and armor. Be realistic about the most likely scenarios and accept that in the worst case "stuck" just means an unplanned camp site and a recovery bill. Don't adopt the Boy Scouts' ethic of "it is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it". Hew to the ultralight backpackers' motto "if I don't have it I don't need it".​

That's poignant, especially given that I'm an Eagle Scout, hahahaha.

Also - and lastly for now - one of the things that I always keep in mind is my distance to help. In this case, we were either 8 (east) or 3 (west) miles from a place where I could get help - even if the helpers didn't want to, or if it was costly. So, easily walking distance. Plus, we had cell service (as seems more and more common). So again, more redundancies.


Oh - and I'm happy for anyone to join into this conversation, it's a great one!

 

Thinking of heading to Whitemore Overlook in a couple weeks... How long was the drive from St George and what route did you take... Hard to tell from you map pic. Did you happen to record it?

 

Other than Tools and most spare parts. Im trying to look at stuff with the "If it doesn't have 2 uses..probably don't need it".

 

Well..there's only one way really to get there from St George. Just head south. No right way or wrong way to do it!

 

You are the Hemingway of Tacoma explorations ! Truly a gifted writer. Thanks for sharing.

 

You'll have a great time at Whitmore - it was one of my favorite overlooks. And so accessible really! As Monte said, look on a map for a couple minutes to find the route south. Go until you can't anymore...and you'll be there.

Even with parts and tools, we're always making trade-offs. I mean, AFAIK, no one carries a spare diff. There is a point at which the right redundancy is a phone call and cash, I think. hahahaha

I don't know about that, but I have fun doing what I do! Thanks for the kudos .

 

Yeah i've got it routed a few different ways, didn't know if you had a suggestion. Just for planning purposes I'm still trying to figure out how much time to provide ourselves with for that portion of trail.

 

We took the "direct" route (which I thought was really the only route) and it took us about 3.5 hours with all our photo stops.

 

Thats kinda what I figured... and probably 1.5 hours from Whitmore to Toroweap?

Also I know you need a permit to camp near Toroweap, but did you need one for Whitmore?

 

I don't think either of us would get angry, just know that if you get stuck with us or we get stuck with you to expect laughing (and we expect you to laugh at us too) before we help each other. Of course wheeling together we all have one of something so shit gets done real efficient haha

 

I think you probably realized this, but I was using winches and lockers as an example of stuff we spend money on to make our rigs more capable and things that can arguably help in certain situations (just like traction boards). Not as "the" replacement for traction boards.

I can't be all that wrong if you've been doing this for 8+ years and still don't have any, and if they haven't been used through the last two years of multi-week trips . But I agree with you on the fuel, water, etc. And on the need to constantly re-evaluate. These Rig Reviews I've started are a good example of that, and really help to highlight things that are good or need improvement.

No idea on that timing, but likely longer than that - we don't do anything in 1.5 hours. But, you shouldn't really be basing your times on ours anyway. Just figure out your route and enjoy the outdoors for however long it takes.

Best way to figure out permits is to call the North Rim Ranger office; they'll get you setup - things change depending on the dates you're going.

I would expect nothing less. Actually, I'm just hoping Ben gets some boards, so he has some around the next time/if we need them.

 

I've had a cheapo set floating around for a while but going around in the desert the last few trips they never get dragged outta the gear closet. I don't know about you but I don't always bring the same stuff for each trip.