The title of this video is “Super Duty, Super Stuck” as in “Super Duty truck stuck in sand in the Arizona desert.” The moral of this story is to not only know the normal condition of a road you’re about to travel on to a perfect boondocking site, but to know its CURRENT condition.
You can’t tell hard-pack dirt from sand using Google Earth.
In this video, a tow truck responds to a fifth wheel and its Ford Super Duty truck that is hopelessly bogged down in sand between Cane Beds and Elephant Gap, Arizona, near the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. When the tow truck arrived, the truck was sitting on its axle, and the trailer leaning heavily to the right.
The first job was to pull the truck and RV from the sand. But there were two additional challenges: finding a place to turn around and then get back out to the highway without getting stuck all over again.
##RVT965
I have seen a rig bogged down on a city street in Arizona. Many cities and counties, in the state, smooth the sand, pit down two inches of asphalt and call it a road. When the temps get high the asphalt buckles and cracks, causing chunks to dislodge. The solution is to patch the holes and put tar in the cracks. A rainstorm, although rare, undermines the pavement. Enough water and enough weight and down you go.
Ya can’t fix STUPID!
Don’t try this with a standard tow rope or strap. Use a kinetic energy strap or rope. They are made to stretch and then pull. It’s easier on both vehicles.
I used to drive semi in Michigan, the company I drove for would send out a 4wd Chevy with a long snatch strap for semis stuck in snow or on ice. Very seldom that they did not get them out. They pulled me down a ramp with three feet of wet snow when the truck by itself would not move. It was done by jerk and try again. It works!
It looks to me like that F-250 is 2WD – rear wheels dug down to the frame, but no sign of digging at the front. With no trailer, I could imagine it. But with that behemouth, what was he thinking? I got into deep sand just like that in my little 4WD Jeep Wrangler with oversize knobbies, in the Butcher Jones wilderness east of Mesa, AZ. For 3 miles, it was boggy but steady going, until I met a full-size 2WD Chevy pickup with street tires going in the other direction. He didn’t like my advice, but I was able to convince him to turn around and let me lead him out. If he hadn’t done so, he would be there still.
NO, go to 1:33. It’s an FX4. Something didn’t seem to be engaging though. Front hubs not locked-in?
Those old Cherokees were simply amazing. A properly equipped machine with an experienced driver can work miracles in the boonies.
Personally, I would not have jerked that hard with a unibody vehicle though.
Snatch straps is the answer. They give a lot,store up the energy and then give a lot of force. No jerking on either vechicle. How much was the recovery?
Those new ‘stretchy’ straps are the cat’s meow. Much better than the old “Snatch-em Straps”. I still have old ones in my truck though. Better than nothing.
We watch this YouTube channel quite often. Hard to believe what people get themselves into .
Been there, outside Barstow CA. Lots get stuck in deep gravel at Lake Mead, even tow trucks.
What kind of damage is the jerking from a flying start doing to the truck? I’m surprised they didn’t try “traction mats” on both the jeep & the truck on wheels that weren’t deeply buried.
My thoughts exactly…maybe “getting a run at it”, given the weight difference was the key.
If it were me, I’d have walked that road…(arroyo) a ways before point that combination down it.
They use “kinetic energy” straps. They stretch and take some tension before they pull 100%.
Actually, no damage or strain at all. He uses a kinetic tow rope which softens the pull quite a lot. He was also hooked to the trucks tow hooks which are bolted to the frame, so again no issue there as well. I also carry a kinetic rope in my Jeep.
This towing outfit has a regular YouTube site. I’ve watched several of their videos. Some of their extractions are cool, some, not so much.
A four wheel drive does not keep you from getting stuck – but it does let you get in a bit further before you do get stuck !
If you’re going to drive off pavement, always carry a good compressor and let some air out of your tires. Reducing tire pressure to achieve 20 to 30% sidewall deflection (vs. 10% or less deflection at highway pressure) will do wonders, especially in soft sand. Keep your speed to less than 20-25 mph while on the trail and maintain your momentum. The longer contact patch of the tire on the ground sufficiently reduces ground pressure to essentially allow it to “float” above the surface. ALWAYS reinflate to proper highway pressures before getting back on the pavement!
It is almost magical how much of an impact matching tire pressures to conditions can have. Heavy concrete trucks in the southeast, when equipped with centralized tire pressure control systems, have largely eliminated the need for costly and heavy AWD systems.
WHAT are these people thinking??? Oh, ya…..they’re not!!
How much did that little mistake cost ??