What Do I Need for Beach Driving?

I love the OBX, it's a blast. Usually I let the air down in my stock tires to 19ish PSI. Not only does it aid in traction but it also makes the ride a lot softer, especially if you get on washboarded areas. To add to what the others are saying, stay away from the water and when you park, pay attention to what the tide is doing. The sand under your tires will soften up before the water ever gets there, so be proactive on moving it out of the way. If you decide to go over the dunes into Carova, it takes 4LO and full-send to get it on the first try, so consider having a spotter. Have fun!

 

Looking back I wish i bought a kinetic rope instead, but hey, my arb works well enough.

 

Kinetic ropes are great for mud and sand. I bought the 3/4” Ranger Rope from Amazon and it has been awesome.

 

I’d like to try a rope, but my arb snatch strap stores too well. If I had a large vehicle where storage wasn’t an issue, I’d get a rope

 

If you have anymore then you need your 14 year old son to drive for you.

 

I won't even drive after 1 beer, not worth the risk imo. But if i'm heading out someplace to camp/spend the night then I'm happy to load the ice chest with a 30 pack or so.

 

^^ Exactly what he said lol. I almost lost a frontier I had because I left it parked up near the water at the point which at the time was safe and rode with a buddy to pick up some friends that were parked at the lighthouse because there car was not cut out to drive on sand. Well story short, we made a run to pick up fresh bait because someone forgot then a run to the place to pick up some more beer and one of the girls to freshen up for that time of the month. Welp got back to the fronty and the water was coming up to about 3 feet behind the truck and then we realized the tires sunk halfway down just sitting there.

 

Permits to park on the beach as long as you don’t park no permit needed

 

Does stuck up to the axles = parked?

Asking for a friend.

 

Lol idk about that. I’d probably just buy the permit then you can stop if you want

 

The only time I ever got stuck on the beach was when I had a truck with manual hubs. Since I had to air down and up on and off the beach I'd lock/unlock my hubs as needed. My well-meaning but mechanically challenged buddy offered to lock my passenger side hub for me and I said sure, sounds great. He locked it for me, and off we went.

It was about 9:30 at night at Race Point down the Cape and I went out to the so-called Sugar Bowl and I started to dig. I had been through that area before without issue earlier in the day. There were four of us in my old Xtracab and everyone was starting to get nervous. I threw it in 4 LO and backed up and dug and dug and dug. At the time I had BFG KOs down to probably 11 psi, so I was totally baffled. I finally gave up and I had my back bumper on the sand. A nice couple in an F-150 with white walls (yes, whitewalls) drove up and asked if I needed any help. I got lectured by them asking if I had let any air out of my tires. I had Load C or D tires on it, which were way too heavy for the truck so it looked like I had no air out of them. I dropped them down to 8 pounds and kept digging.

The nice couple pulled me out. I hopped back in, threw it in first and started to dig again. I got out trying to figure out what was going on with my truck. I finally put a flashlight on the front hub. My friend didn't fully engage it, so I had no 4WD. I spun the knob, got in and drove out. It was a very quiet ride to the beach. My friend was quiet because he was embarrassed, I was quiet because I got us stuck, and my now-wife and his now-wife were quiet because they were terrified.

The best part of this story is that a few months later my friend asked me all concerned if my truck was okay after all was said and done. I told him my transmission blew two days after we got back. He turned ghost white and went to get his checkbook. I had to profusely apologize, but it was kinda funny.