My first rescue!

[Swingpure]

Nothing overly exciting, but when I bought my Ranger in the fall of 2020 and we were approaching winter, I wanted to have some “tools” to be able to help people that got stuck In the ditch. My step son told me don’t hurt your truck and have them call CAA. I ended up buying a recovery rope, a tow rope, a soft shackle and a rear trailer hook shackle.

Today I was ice fishing for several hours with no luck, but the dusk bewitching hour was approaching and there was close to a full moon rising, so I felt anytime now the tip up flag would pop. My cell phone rings and it is a friend from the lake, whose wheel caught the fake shoulder from the snow plus and his entire car went into the ditch. He had called CAA, but they did not know when they would arrive. He asked me for help. I told him I had to pull my tip ups, but would be therein 10 minutes.

Literally three steps from the tip up, the flag pops and a fish is on. I did not set the hook, gave it slack and it got off and I put the tip ups away and headed for the rescue.

His vehicle did not have a trailer hitch and did not have the place on the front bumper to screw in a hook. We found a place on the rear axle to wrap the recovery strap around, but I warned him several times, it sometimes could do more damage than good.

Although it took a bit for the car to come out of the ditch, the Ranger had no trouble moving him along And eventually out with no issues. I hooked the recovery strap to the soft shackle to the front tow hooks.

I finally got to use them. Colour me happy!

Sorry no pictures.

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[Tracy Bowman]

Nothing overly exciting, but when I bought my Ranger in the fall of 2020 and we were approaching winter, I wanted to have some “tools” to be able to help people that got stuck In the ditch. My step son told me don’t hurt your truck and have them call CAA. I ended up buying a recovery rope, a tow rope, a soft shackle and a rear trailer hook shackle.

Today I was ice fishing for several hours with no luck, but the dusk bewitching hour was approaching and there was close to a full moon rising, so I felt anytime now the tip up flag would pop. My cell phone rings and it is a friend from the lake, whose wheel caught the fake shoulder from the snow plus and his entire car went into the ditch. He had called CAA, but they did not know when they would arrive. He asked me for help. I told him I had to pull my tip ups, but would be therein 10 minutes.

Literally three steps from the tip up, the flag pops and a fish is on. I did not set the hook, gave it slack and it got off and I put the tip ups away and headed for the rescue.

His vehicle did not have a trailer hitch and did not have the place on the front bumper to screw in a hook. We found a place on the rear axle to wrap the recovery strap around, but I warned him several times, it sometimes could do more damage than good.

Although it took a bit for the car to come out of the ditch, the Ranger had no trouble moving him along And eventually out with no issues. I hooked the recovery strap to the soft shackle to the front tow hooks.

I finally got to use them. Colour me happy!

Sorry no pictures.

What a great friend!

 

[Radioman]

Nothing overly exciting, but when I bought my Ranger in the fall of 2020 and we were approaching winter, I wanted to have some “tools” to be able to help people that got stuck In the ditch. My step son told me don’t hurt your truck and have them call CAA. I ended up buying a recovery rope, a tow rope, a soft shackle and a rear trailer hook shackle.

Today I was ice fishing for several hours with no luck, but the dusk bewitching hour was approaching and there was close to a full moon rising, so I felt anytime now the tip up flag would pop. My cell phone rings and it is a friend from the lake, whose wheel caught the fake shoulder from the snow plus and his entire car went into the ditch. He had called CAA, but they did not know when they would arrive. He asked me for help. I told him I had to pull my tip ups, but would be therein 10 minutes.

Literally three steps from the tip up, the flag pops and a fish is on. I did not set the hook, gave it slack and it got off and I put the tip ups away and headed for the rescue.

His vehicle did not have a trailer hitch and did not have the place on the front bumper to screw in a hook. We found a place on the rear axle to wrap the recovery strap around, but I warned him several times, it sometimes could do more damage than good.

Although it took a bit for the car to come out of the ditch, the Ranger had no trouble moving him along And eventually out with no issues. I hooked the recovery strap to the soft shackle to the front tow hooks.

I finally got to use them. Colour me happy!

Sorry no pictures.

I am very hesitant about hooking up to a stranded vehicle that doesn't have a recovery point, but on the other hand, a friend in need changes things.

Good for you for a successful rescue and, wow, even gave up a fish.

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

Nothing overly exciting, but when I bought my Ranger in the fall of 2020 and we were approaching winter, I wanted to have some “tools” to be able to help people that got stuck In the ditch. My step son told me don’t hurt your truck and have them call CAA. I ended up buying a recovery rope, a tow rope, a soft shackle and a rear trailer hook shackle.

Today I was ice fishing for several hours with no luck, but the dusk bewitching hour was approaching and there was close to a full moon rising, so I felt anytime now the tip up flag would pop. My cell phone rings and it is a friend from the lake, whose wheel caught the fake shoulder from the snow plus and his entire car went into the ditch. He had called CAA, but they did not know when they would arrive. He asked me for help. I told him I had to pull my tip ups, but would be therein 10 minutes.

Literally three steps from the tip up, the flag pops and a fish is on. I did not set the hook, gave it slack and it got off and I put the tip ups away and headed for the rescue.

His vehicle did not have a trailer hitch and did not have the place on the front bumper to screw in a hook. We found a place on the rear axle to wrap the recovery strap around, but I warned him several times, it sometimes could do more damage than good.

Although it took a bit for the car to come out of the ditch, the Ranger had no trouble moving him along And eventually out with no issues. I hooked the recovery strap to the soft shackle to the front tow hooks.

I finally got to use them. Colour me happy!

Sorry no pictures.

Good job Gary. With that Nor’easter coming in tonight, you just might get called upon again. Good to know that hitch shackle came through - haven’t had to use mine yet.

Glad you’re getting some time in at the fishing hut.

 

[Swingpure]

Good job Gary. With that Nor’easter coming in tonight, you just might get called upon again. Good to know that hitch shackle came through - haven’t had to use mine yet.

Glad you’re getting some time in at the fishing hut.

You guys are going to get hit by the storm, it will go south of us, but I will be on standby in case the South calls. Lol

My wife and I watch the TV series Highway to Hell, where the professional tow truck operators rescue the trucks and vehicles in the mountains. I always joke with my wife how I would go about pulling out the big rig with my Ranger and recovery rope.

 

[JACKSMYDOG]

You are a good friend indeed!

Always try to avoid pulling with your truck in reverse. I know it's handy to see what's going on better, but it's harder on your vehicle and more likely to lead to damage.

 

[JACKSMYDOG]

You guys are going to get hit by the storm, it will go south of us, but I will be on standby in case the South calls. Lol

My wife and I watch the TV series Highway to Hell, where the professional tow truck operators rescue the trucks and vehicles in the mountains. I always joke with my wife how I would go about pulling out the big rig with my Ranger and recovery rope.

I've only had a few dustings of snow so far this season, none lasted through the next day. The weather man says up to a foot by this time tomorrow, WOO HOO!!!

 

[Chris M]

he wasn't dead yet, or even close....i woulda kept fishing while the fishing was good.

and from experience....and liability concerns, i will never tow anyone out of the ditch.
yes, I'll stop see if you're alright, offer what assistance i can, phone or whatever, but nope....there's no panic strong enough for me to risk damage to my vehicle or theirs. Tow companies who carry that liability will be along shortly to do the dirty work.

Its good to have no friends and never be put in this situation TBH

And that's where you're wrong, brother.
If you EVER get stuck in the snow here in Phoenix, call me.
I will come and pull you out.
And I'll call @AzScorpion to take pictures of the whole thing.
That's just the kind of guys we are.

 

[AzScorpion]

And that's where you're wrong, brother.
If you EVER get stuck in the snow here in Phoenix, call me.
I will come and pull you out.
And I'll call @AzScorpion to take pictures of the whole thing.
That's just the kind of guys we are.

This I would pay good money to see, even bring the popcorn. Of course if you had a damper you wouldn't be stuck in the first place! ? ?

 

[canyonslicker]

I’ll add one thing here.. throw a moving blanket over the recovery strap just in case it breaks loose so it won’t throw a shackle into your vehicle or theirs..

 

[puckdodger]

Nice work. Looking forward to some snow tomorrow since I don't have to work for a couple days lol

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

You guys are going to get hit by the storm, it will go south of us, but I will be on standby in case the South calls. Lol

My wife and I watch the TV series Highway to Hell, where the professional tow truck operators rescue the trucks and vehicles in the mountains. I always joke with my wife how I would go about pulling out the big rig with my Ranger and recovery rope.

That storm is definitely headed this way and tracking a bit south as it moves along. I’ll have about a foot to shovel off the sidewalks by morning - nature’s gym membership. ?

 

[jmurph]

I've just been using my tow strap or kinetic rope with a pin through the tow slot, and then either hooking to other people's shackles or doing the same to their tow hitch slot. effective and cheap don't see the need for an entire shackle that fits in the tow hitch receiver.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

Hi Folks,

Not a rescue per se, but a close call for my Ranger. My Good friend and neighbor shipped his Grandma's 1965 Chrysler Newport to Arizona to the fellow that was going to do a restoration. This one flight trailer towed behind a F450 Dual wheel pickup arrived at the shop, so as he is not able do drive due to not being able to see well enough to pass a license test to drive, called and we headed down to the shop...there sat the Chrysler at the top of this haulaway. Driver sees my Ranger and gets the idea that I should pull the car off the haulaway as it had 4 flat, rotting tires... He had a wire cable and wanted to hook it up to the Ranger and give it a tug or so.... I declined but I did have a tow strap, not Kinetic but not a wire or a chain. Guy was pissed but we got the car ready to unload and to our amazement with four flat tires this 5 ton beast rocketed down the ramps into the dirt and grass behind the trailer. If I had my Ranger in the picture, it might have been like the Ranger received a Chrysler enema. Whew...

Lesson learned is use the right equipment for the situation...

Best,
Phil

 

[Swingpure]

I live in a rural area and everyone helps everyone, it is different from the City. It is like the old days.

I was concerned about damaged to their undercarriage and warned them several times and I let him rig the strap underneath.

it was best hooking up to the front and watching them, just because of the situation and I am glad I did. In other situations I would prefer using the rear.

The only shackle we used was a soft shackle.

If this was a stranger, I likely would not have done it, unless it was an emergency, or if they had something designed to hook to.

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