 Standing in mud to get the gear If you don't want this to be you, trying to get your recovery gear out of
that tight spot your stored it, while keeping the rest of your stuff from falling
into the mud then take a moment to listen to the lessons I've learned.
Getting ready for the Continental Divide Expedition was an exercise in worst
case scenario thinking on my part. Even though I knew there would be two other
rigs on the trail with me, I still tend to believe on being ready to handle
it all myself. The only limitation I had in the end was space, and FJ Cruiser
just doesn't have a ton of space to play with. I did leave a couple of things
at home since I knew the other guys would have them, a Hi-lift Jack (I prefer
my air jack anyway), and a Pull-Pal. Both of which we ending up using in the
end, so if you aren't sure about what others are taking make sure to talk it
over before leaving home.
Here is my recovery gear list:
Air Jack, 2 pulley's, 4 D-shackles, tow strap, 2 tree saver straps, shovel,
pulaski axe, Warn winch, gloves, Extreme Outback Onboard Air setup (great for
the Air Jack, re-seating tire beads and more)...check with Sierra Expedition
for any and everything you might need
Lesson #1 Pack it safely, no bouncing, shifting or rattling
You would not want to be killed by your very own D-shackle in case of an accident,
much less have a friend or family member injured by your gear. Make sure whatever
storage solution you come up with includes latches, straps or some method to
secure your gear.
A special note on noise here. If you are going to be in your rig for any amount
of time it is worth setting up your storage solution to be rattle free. Those
little sounds can drive you crazy and be a distraction from hearing something
that could be mechanically serious
Lesson #2 Know where it is, in the order you will most often use it
 Keep what you use often easy to retrieve Yes it is clear that I bring quite a bit of gear with me, then again we are
talking enough for 3 people for a month so don't be too surprised. The important
thing is that what we used most often like cooking, seating, clothing and such
are the easy to get to items.
 Moving things on level ground is fine, but try in on an incline also I did have to move things around to get the recovery
gear but I prefer not to need it as often as my chair! This leads to the next
lesson.
Lesson #3 Get it out before you need it
Standing in the mud to get what we forgot Remember don't let this be you, funny thing was we spent around 30 minutes
talking about the gear we would need, making sure we all agreed it was a good
idea to attempt the crossing and yet in all that we still didn't think to get
the gear out and place it in the front passenger floorboard or other easy to
reach location. That will never be the case again you can be sure. Even worse
was that Nathan had to carry the very heavy Pull Pal across the muddy creek
when it would have been easy to place it inside my truck before the crossing.
 Nathan bringing the heavy Pull Pal Having the gear ready only takes a couple of minutes and if it something simple
like a D-shackle and tow strap you can leave it in place all day. Just image
the difference in this recovery between having everything ready and having
to wade around in the muck.
 Michael happy to not get stuck in the mud  Mike going into the mud, would have been better to rig gear first Like the song says, time is on your side. Time at home to practice, repack
and think about your solutions. Time on the trail to either get your gear ready
to slop through the muck getting it after the fact. Time to rig things up properly
or time to think about the injuries or broken parts from not doing things right. |
