Winter is coming...

[GTGallop]

I have...

• The D-Shackle in the hitch receiver all of the time.
• A static tow strap that's like 30 to 50 feet long.
• An E-Tool (shovel)
• Snow Chains for the REAR only (not enough clearance in the front with the Spindle)

Why does a guy in phoenix need with winter gear? Well Arizona is two states from a climate perspective. Around Phoenix or "the Valley of the Sun" as it is known (actually a larger area that includes Maricopa County, Pinal, Yuma, and La Paz) ranges in elevation from 400 feet above sea level to about 2000 feet above sea level. This is where AZ gets it's hotter than Satan's Nut Sack reputation. easily 115 to 120 in the summer and in the winter only as low as 35 on freak occasions. Once every 5 years we get a light dusting of snow.

But North of Phoenix, literally 20 minutes north of my house, it goes from 1,800 feet above sea level to 5,000 feet real quick and with that elevation change, the weather changes too. Eventually you end up in Flagstaff at 7,500 feet. The rule of thumb is that Northern AZ is usually 10 to 20 degrees cooler than Phoenix, so Northern AZ is no stranger to sub freezing temps and lots of snow. And that's where all the cool shit to do is located.

Just 5 days after typing that I had a bed full of sleet and ice in Phoenix and then drove up north to camp in it.

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[IdahoRanger]

Winter is here!

 

[12Bravo20]

I did vehicle recovery while in the Army and can say that a good shackle setup is a must. NEVER use a tow ball!

A properly rated winch and snatch blocks will always be the best method. Granted not everyone has a winch or snatch blocks. If a winch is not available, then use the proper shackle setup.

One of the toughest recoveries I did was pulling a M728 Combat Engineer Vehicle out of the mud that also has one of it's final drives locked up. The vehicle was mired up to the top of the road wheels.

The M728 is basically a M60 tank with a dozer blade on the front and an A frame boom mounted to the turret. The combat load weight is right around 50 - 52 tons. We used a single M88A1 tracked recovery vehicle to pull the M728 out. But we had to have the M728 crew dig out the final drive so that they could break the track before we could even budge it.

The main winch on a M88A1 is rated at 90,000 pounds and we still had to use a snatch block to get the M728 out. The M728 was stuck in wet clay which made it worse than soupy mud.

I keep my entrenching tool (folding shovel) along with a good shackle setup in my Ranger for vehicle recovery. I also have a good tow strap and good snatch rope. I also keep a couple of extra shackles in the truck too. I do need to get a couple of soft shackle though.

Work safely and smart when you pull a vehicle out of snow or mud.

 

[JohnnyO]

Work safely and smart when you pull a vehicle out of snow or mud.

Couple years ago I had to pull my wife's minivan out of a ditch. Has 4 Blizzaks on it but the street was icy and up a steep hill and it slid off the side. Less work to pull it uphill the way it was facing but my truck couldn't get enough traction. Pulling it out of the ditch downhill worked although there were a few more obstacles in the way. A little help from gravity.

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

If I’m headed to a place where I have to worry about getting stuck, I’m calling up @12Bravo20 to tag along with me! ?

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