Did I do the right thing? What would of you done?

[Yendor]

I have mixed feeling regarding this so what better way to resolve them then but on a public forum right??.... well it's cheaper then therapy :). Sorry for the long post, I was trying to give a detailed explanation of events. Please feel free to skip to summary.

Some mates and I went for a wheeling session out at Glasshouse Mountains last night. For those of you that don't know the area, it has tracks ranging from easy to extreme, with most of the easy tracks being a clay like base that turns to mush after rain. It had been raining on and off for the past 3 days so our group had plotted out a rough course based on the track conditions, driver and vehicle capabilities (our group had 2x Patrols, a Great Wall and a Trition).

All was going well. After about 40 minutes we came to this hill climb. Those in our group that wanted to attempted it could and those that didn't would wait at the bottom for us to return.

I was first to go up. The hill climb was about 150 meters long steep and washed out in places but the base was firm so no real dramas. I get to the gates, that was the agreed place to turn around when I noticed a 4by sitting in the dark. All of a sudden this young guy walks up behind us and says "that's my vehicle, it has a busted CV and my mate is 30 meters over that way, hard up against a tree and can't move forward or backwards".

So I go over and have a look and they are trying to chop down this tree with a shovel. I lend them my axe, they chop down the tree and are able to drive the vehicle about another 5 meters before coming to a halt. I am unable to get my vehicle in a position to winch from the front and his vehicle has no recovery points on the rear. So we try to remove the towball so a shackle can through the hole. Once again I loan them tools, unfortunately the thread is damaged and we are unable to remove the towball.

From here the recovery became less then ideal and the risk/danger factor increased. Now, I won't going into details what we did to eventually get the vehicle out but I did try at all times to make sure everyone was safe and the risk to my vehicle was minimal.

In summary.

1. Our group gave up valuable time. (We're all old ...have family, work and life in general commitments. This makes it hard to get out 4bying). We made sure our route was suitable for our vehicles and the recovery equipment that we carried.

2. They had ill-prepared vehicles. Only had very basic recovery gear (strap and shovel) we ended up using our own axe, hand tools, electric winch, high lift jack and Max Traxs to get him out.

We lost about an hour and a half to two hours of our night helping these guys, basically because they weren't prepared for the conditions. Not to mention the unsafe recovery measures I had to use in the end to get him out.

Once again I'm sorry for the long post. Basically did I do the right thing? what would of you done?. We were split 50/50 in our group if we should of helped these guys or not.

[mudnut]

I am a sucker for punishment when it comes to helping those in sticky situations. I would help as one day you could be in a similar position due to unforeseen circumstances. Hopefully they have learned a thing or two from your example. A gold star for you.

[Woof]

You did the right thing mate, even if it did pi$$ you and your crew off.....................I would have done the same as you and would have been pi$$ed off as well hahahaha

[lucus30]

Ofcourse you did. I help any one out whenever I'm able. You can't just leave them there

[NissanGQ4.2]

I would say you done the right thing Rodney,

Regardless of the unsafe recovery measures you might of used you got the person out, and I'm sure you done it in the safest possible manner, just think how would you feel if you left them and found out a few days later that one died from their own stupid actions trying 2 recover themselves

[MyGU8]

I am sorry Yendor, I can't agree with you. Whatever the cause is attempting unsafe recovery is not acceptable at all means.
You cannot risk anyone's life for material recovery.
I would have ask them to contact professional recovery services and it would have learnt them a lesson as well without risk.

Sorry again

[BigRAWesty]

Unfortunately you do the best you can and recovery the needy..
If any equipment was damaged I'd be exchanging numbers and getting the gear replaced at a minimum..
Down this way as many now the sand can bite and take you in.. I have recovered a few now and most are very grateful and more than willing to pay something..
We never accept (well we did accept January last year as it was bloody hot and the darren and crew saved the day and we all shared a beer).
It's the ones that thinks it's their right that you must recovery them that piss you off..

Anyway.. I would have done the same mate.. I bet you would have felt guilty as hell had you left em there.. questioning if they were out, safe, feed or water even..

[BigRAWesty]

Out of curiosity was it the great Wall and triton drivers against the recovery??
😆

[Winnie]

You were not obliged to do anything at all Rodney, if you had have kept driving and left them, then that is not the wrong thing to do either.
You did a good thing though, well done.

[gaddy]

Your a good man Rod , i could not imagine you not helping , yep they maybe twats , but just maybe they learned a few things too .

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

[nissannewby]

Yeah good on you rod. Having been out with you mate I know it would have been undertaken in a professional manner.

[Rossco]

I reckon you did the right thing. It's human nature to help those in need (well for most anyway) and I'm a firm believer of what comes around goes around, were all going to need a hand a some point in time.



I am sorry Yendor, I can't agree with you. Whatever the cause is attempting unsafe recovery is not acceptable at all means.
You cannot risk anyone's life for material recovery.
I would have ask them to contact professional recovery services and it would have learnt them a lesson as well without risk.

Sorry again


When you say in an unsafe manner I'm sure that it was undertaken as safe as possible given the circumstances which you were presented with which sounded less than ideal for a number of reasons. The fact you mentioned it means that thought was put into the situation and steps taken to alleviate risk as much as possible by the sounds of it to me, without getting too much into the nitty gritty of it all.

[Yendor]

I am sorry Yendor, I can't agree with you. Whatever the cause is attempting unsafe recovery is not acceptable at all means.
You cannot risk anyone's life for material recovery.
I would have ask them to contact professional recovery services and it would have learnt them a lesson as well without risk.

Sorry again
That's cool. Thats why I'm asking. At what point do you pull out of a recovery?.

I felt I was commit as soon as I loaned them the axe.

To me the recovery risks increased when I needed to winch them out but there was no "rated" rear recovery point.

I did make sure as much as possible that no one's life was at risk but to be honest can anyone 100% guarantee this during a vehicle recovery?

[Yendor]

Unfortunately you do the best you can and recovery the needy..
If any equipment was damaged I'd be exchanging numbers and getting the gear replaced at a minimum..
Down this way as many now the sand can bite and take you in.. I have recovered a few now and most are very grateful and more than willing to pay something..
We never accept (well we did accept January last year as it was bloody hot and the darren and crew saved the day and we all shared a beer).
It's the ones that thinks it's their right that you must recovery them that piss you off..

Anyway.. I would have done the same mate.. I bet you would have felt guilty as hell had you left em there.. questioning if they were out, safe, feed or water even..

That's my thinking. If I had of been the one that needed recovering I would hoped that someone else would help me…

[MyGU8]

I reckon you did the right thing. It's human nature to help those in need (well for most anyway) and I'm a firm believer of what comes around goes around, were all going to need a hand a some point in time.





When you say in an unsafe manner I'm sure that it was undertaken as safe as possible given the circumstances which you were presented with which sounded less than ideal for a number of reasons. The fact you mentioned it means that thought was put into the situation and steps taken to alleviate risk as much as possible by the sounds of it to me, without getting too much into the nitty gritty of it all.

Thanks Rossco,
All recovery involved some degree of risk, but regardless of the recovery method, no method should be taken which would put a life in risk.
We all help each other (human nature), but not at the cost of another life.

I may have misunderstood the actual situation of the recovery, but these are my thoughts assuming that recovery had a chance of putting someone's life at risk.

Cheers,

[Yendor]

Out of curiosity was it the great Wall and triton drivers again the recovery??


Not sure I understand the question…. but I was first on the scene so I committed our group to the recovery. The only two vehicles that did the hill climb were my Patrol and the Great Wall. Would the other two vehicles of done the hill climb if I didn't commit to the recovery.. I don't know sorry. It was my vehicle doing the recovery.

[nissannewby]

Out of curiosity was it the great Wall and triton drivers again the recovery??

Neither. Yendors group with the great wall came across a couple of guys who needed recovering

[MudRunnerTD]

You did great Rodney. Even with the risk the fact that you identified the risk means you mitigated it as much as you could by removing people and communicating the risks.

Now reading between the lines I read that because you could not remove the towball you had to use the tow ball? Is that right? I read also that this was a WINCH recovery? So you TOWED the vehicle out using your winch on their tow ball.? This is a Low Risk recovery if this is the case mate.

High risk would be a snatch strap on that tow ball? Basically, presented with this scenario then a Snatch is off the table and a safe winch recovery using a winch blanket for the win.

Well done mate,

[the evil twin]

Hiya Rodney,
IMHO you did exactly the right thing, Cobber and given my understanding I would have probably done the same/similar.

ALL recoveries have risk even one as simple as pushing a vehicle.
The more experienced we are the the more easily we can understand the risks and the potential for damage or injury as a recovery becomes more complex.

Reading between the lines and at risk of starting some sort of poo fight I will add that I have in the past on many occasions (and will in the future if needs dictate) used tow balls for non-kinetic recovery IE static loads that can be managed.
Indeed it is only recently that Government Departments here have removed Tow Ball Recovery Plates from the vehicle equipment kits available for use.

Recovery techniques, hazard assessments, equipment ratings, choice of method etc are developed around mitigating risk.
If you assessed the situation as warranting the risks and took all possible precautions then that is all one can do.

[BigRAWesty]

Not sure I understand the question…. but I was first on the scene so I committed our group to the recovery. The only two vehicles that did the hill climb were my Patrol and the Great Wall. Would the other two vehicles of done the hill climb if I didn't commit to the recovery.. I don't know sorry. It was my vehicle doing the recovery.
Sorry bloody typo.. all good though.. just a bit of tounge in cheek..

Every recovery is a calculated risk.. it takes balls to pull out when that risk gets beyond your comfort or capacity.
But by the sounds of the comments it sounds like you are all over that sorta thing so I have no doubt that even though this recovery wasn't "text book" it would have been a very safe recovery..

[Bloodyaussie]

You did all the right things for a man with a conscience and there is no conflicting issues that i see...

You do what you can within reason and i would have done exactly the same.

Only a few weeks ago we came across a man in a hilux with 2 teenage kids who was ill prepared and we stopped to offer our help as best we could with reason..

A couple of the boys from patrolapart were already on seen and had arranged to take the dad to nearby farms to get the bits needed.

At the end of the day due to there being children we would never have just left them , at the point of leaving we had them in a position to make the repairs necessary with welding gear and so on and they were on the fringes of farm country so did not have far to go to get out.


Thought about them later in the day but as we met up with guy and mick they assured us they were fine the car was able to be driven out.

[Yendor]

You did great Rodney. Even with the risk the fact that you identified the risk means you mitigated it as much as you could by removing people and communicating the risks.

Now reading between the lines I read that because you could not remove the towball you had to use the tow ball? Is that right? I read also that this was a WINCH recovery? So you TOWED the vehicle out using your winch on their tow ball.? This is a Low Risk recovery if this is the case mate.

High risk would be a snatch strap on that tow ball? Basically, presented with this scenario then a Snatch is off the table and a safe winch recovery using a winch blanket for the win.

Well done mate,

I deemed that winching off the tow ball was too higher a risk. The rear cross brace of this vehicle's chassis was exposed (I couldn't tell you what type of vehicle it was but it was something like a short wheel base Daihatsu possibly an LJ or something similar). The strap was wrapped around the rear chassis cross brace. I connected my winch to the end of the strap. Yes dampeners were used. I made the owner of the vehicle fully aware of what might happen. I still think this was safer then connecting to the tow ball. The tow bar was connected directly to this cross brace anyway.

Yes a snatch recovery in that situation (in my opinion) was too higher risk.

The winch was was straight line pull but through some shrubs and small trees. So my best guess if I pulled the arse end of this vehicle off that between this and the dampeners this would hopefully stop it from hitting my vehicle. Once again I made sure all people were removed from the danger area.

[Yendor]

Hiya Rodney,
IMHO you did exactly the right thing, Cobber and given my understanding I would have probably done the same/similar.

ALL recoveries have risk even one as simple as pushing a vehicle.
The more experienced we are the the more easily we can understand the risks and the potential for damage or injury as a recovery becomes more complex.

Reading between the lines and at risk of starting some sort of poo fight I will add that I have in the past on many occasions (and will in the future if needs dictate) used tow balls for non-kinetic recovery IE static loads that can be managed.
Indeed it is only recently that Government Departments here have removed Tow Ball Recovery Plates from the vehicle equipment kits available for use.

Recovery techniques, hazard assessments, equipment ratings, choice of method etc are developed around mitigating risk.
If you assessed the situation as warranting the risks and took all possible precautions then that is all one can do.

Thanks mate.

[MyGU8]

I deemed that winching off the tow ball was too higher a risk. The rear cross brace of this vehicle's chassis was exposed (I couldn't tell you what type of vehicle it was but it was something like a short wheel base Daihatsu possibly an LJ or something similar). The strap was wrapped around the rear chassis cross brace. I connected my winch to the end of the strap. Yes dampeners were used. I made the owner of the vehicle fully aware of what might happen. I still think this was safer then connecting to the tow ball. The tow bar was connected directly to this cross brace anyway.

Yes a snatch recovery in that situation (in my opinion) was too higher risk.

The winch was was straight line pull but through some shrubs and small trees. So my best guess if I pulled the arse end of this vehicle off that between this and the dampeners this would hopefully stop it from hitting my vehicle. Once again I made sure all people were removed from the danger area.

From the sound of it, it looks like you have taken a reasonable risk, but I wouldn't consider this as HIGH risk.
I think you did the right thing.

[paulyg]

I though it was an unwritten rule that you help out a fellow 4wdriver,
But it does piss me off when the have no gear of there own.

[Sir Roofy]

You young man did what needed to be done I'm sure you thought each step through
and all worked together well done Rodney

[happygu]

I though it was an unwritten rule that you help out a fellow 4wdriver,
But it does piss me off when the have no gear of there own.

I can sympathize with you, but I was one of those young fellas... got my fourby and was straight out there, and didn't think about getting stuck...it was a four wheel drive afterall. Now we weren't completely without gear, as I had bought a strap and a high lift that I could use as a winch, but that was about it.

After getting hopelessly stuck, and finding out that the high lift jack was totally useless as a winch, we had to leg it and beg for help.

It is a matter of what you do next that differentiates your fellow four wheeler. Does he learn and go and get gear, or does he just continue on regardless?

[Clunk]

You did good Rod

[Clunk]

And yes it can piss off other members in a group, stuff em...... pay it forward I say

[jack]

Well done Rodney, I wouldn't expect anything else from you. Always quick to help others with with forum questions and I see that extends to out on the track.
I would have done all I could to help as well.

[04OFF]

To be honest, Id be happy to "winch" off a tow ball with a dampener in that situation Rod , tow balls are designed to pull stuff, (you would not think twice about hooking up a car trailer and towing a car) its the shock loads from snatching the should be avoided, what you did sounds safer again, going around the tow bar itself.

Knowing GH and going from your description, he was not in some huge bog hole anyway, and was obviously just on slippery clay mud, its like ice, so he just had no traction, not have the added suction of being stuck in mud bog, greatly reduces loads for a recovery.



As for if you should have helped, well, its good Karma my friend, never leave a man behind, and some one else may have come along and snatched off the tow ball etc.

[Irish]

You did the right thing mate, although once they were recovered I probably would have given em an earful about attempting the tracks they were doing with no recovery gear to speak of.

[threedogs]

I though it was an unwritten rule that you help out a fellow 4wdriver,
But it does piss me off when the have no gear of there own.

Hopefully they learnt something at the end of the day.
You did the right thing its an Aussie thing to help your fellow man if he needs it.
Regardless if he's a twerp ,,, Two thumps up and another campfire story lol

[mudski]

You did do the right thing. Kudos for that. But I reckon in your mind you would have been calling them all sorts of names. Haha!
If they were being stupid and caused damage to their vehicle from their stupidity it would be right to just leave them and tell them to call for help in my opinion.

[Bloodyaussie]

Funny this could be a whole new ongoing topic...

On my way to work today i noticed a 3 tonne truck full of steal mesh and concreting gear broken down on a busy 3 lane round about.... so i drive past and see these 2 blokes sitting in a bad spot and decide i will go back.

At first they were dismissive of what i could do to help but out came all the recovery gear and some quick instructions and i had them out of harms way and into bunnings carpark.. plus a third lane was reopened to morning traffic.

Many of us on here know only to help where we can and with all the negativity in this world little bits of help and good will goes a long way in feeling at least i little bit brighter..

The lat words one of the blokes said to me was "thanks so much mate karma will find you"..... cheers.

[mudski]

^^^^
Last time I stopped to help a woman broken down she told me to f%*k off and mind my own business. Makes me think twice about stopping next time...

[Bloodyaussie]

^^^^
Last time I stopped to help a woman broken down she told me to f%*k off and mind my own business. Makes me think twice about stopping next time...

You cannot let one person make you so cynical. .. i have helped about 20+ people and all were so grateful and could not thank me enough.. not one person was rude or ungrateful.

[Yendor]

And yes it can piss off other members in a group, stuff em...... pay it forward I say

I think they were annoyed because they spent the hour and a half, two hours sitting waiting at the bottom of the hill.

[Yendor]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Seems like I might have been too anal about using the tow ball as a winching point. So this is good to know that it is a possible option. How would you connect to the tow ball?. I'm guessing a winch extension strap with one end placed over the ball and the other end connected to the winch?

[Yendor]

You did do the right thing. Kudos for that. But I reckon in your mind you would have been calling them all sorts of names. Haha!
If they were being stupid and caused damage to their vehicle from their stupidity it would be right to just leave them and tell them to call for help in my opinion.

I did shake my head when I did my first assessment of where the vehicle was, as it just shouldn't of been there and his mate was in the back ground saying "I told you not to go that way".

At the time I was annoyed at the no real rear recovery point.

The drivers mate who was doing all the grunt work for us was pretty cool. He said to his misses, who he left at home with their young child that he was going out with his mate 4WDing and would " only be two hours" cracked me up. I bet he was in the shit when he finally got home.

No I wasn't angry at all with them. After all they were out for the same reason I was just for fun. But hopefully they have learned something from this and will be better prepared. I have at learnt something just from talking about it.

[mudski]

I did shake my head when I did my first assessment of where the vehicle was, as it just shouldn't of been there and his mate was in the back ground saying "I told you not to go that way".

At the time I was annoyed at the no real rear recovery point.

The drivers mate who was doing all the grunt work for us was pretty cool. He said to his misses, who he left at home with their young child that he was going out with his mate 4WDing and would " only be two hours" cracked me up. I bet he was in the shit when he finally got home.

No I wasn't angry at all with them. After all they were out for the same reason I was just for fun. But hopefully they have learned something from this and will be better prepared. I have at learnt something just from talking about it.

Yeah hopefully. But some don't learn unfortunately.
I used to do a lot of trail bike riding. I carried, a puncture kit and tube with tyre levers, a tool kit with assorted nuts and bolts, two chain links, a few other assorted spares and a first aid kit on me. I was surprised and still are when talking to riders, that they don't carry anything of the sort and don't even know how to repair a puncture. And they laugh about it.






As for if you should have helped, well, its good Karma my friend, never leave a man behind, and some one else may have come along and snatched off the tow ball etc.

Yeah good point. Last thing you want is to hear of an injury or worse from something that you decided not to participate in...

[threedogs]

Up Cape York in 1983 we took a left track to see where it lead to, walking towards us was a guy fully kitted out in Moto cross gear.
"SUP" I said ,,,he said "flat", my reply was where? as there was no bike to be seen, "back up the track a ways".
We drove a good 10 kays in 35 degree heat and finally came across his bike lying on its side. We had the back wheel out and tube repaired and back in inflated in about 10 minutes. This guy had no tools or know how on anything to do with his bike. Only thing he had was a little water
Anyway happy ending but if we never took that left track things wouldve been different

[Throbbinhood]

Yeah, you did the right thing. I've recovered a few people with no equipment, but worse than that - no idea...

While back, recovered a hilux dual cab that went a bit quick around the corner and put himself over the edge. Car was being held by shrubs, but was giving way slowly.
They wanted a straight line pull to my winch - wasn't gonna happen. If his car let go, it would take me and my car with it. Refused to go with my idea of running a pulley to a tree on the high side, making it safer for me, my car, and them... OK, that's fine.. We won't do it my way - which means we won't do it.. I got in the car, and got ready to leave when they came begging me for help..

Clear heads mean safer recoveries - they were all too distraught with potentially losing their car to make clear decisions, and speed was more important than safety to them. All in all, went with my idea, and car was recovered safely and with no extra damage. Win-win.

[katwoman]

You did a good thing, Rodney. Sometimes it's not about right and wrong. Sometimes It's about living with the decision afterwards.
And it's nice to read a thread of different opinions without it turning to sh!t.

[04OFF]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Seems like I might have been too anal about using the tow ball as a winching point. So this is good to know that it is a possible option. How would you connect to the tow ball?. I'm guessing a winch extension strap with one end placed over the ball and the other end connected to the winch?

First off , in the same situation, id do exactly what you suggested, and wrap your extension strap around the main support bar for the tow bar, on some vehicles this may not be possible or may risk the strap getting cut on the body work so is not a option.

Personally if i had to winch from a tow ball, I would use the extension strap like a slip knot, feed the strap through its own hole, and put the entire slip knot over the top and bottom of the ball, so it now tightens around the tongue, and the ball just stops the noose sliding off, the difference is that the load is now pulling on both the top and bottom (nut) of the tow ball, as well as a small amount of friction around the tongue, as appose to just all the force levering on the top section of the ball.

Plus off course doing it this way, the strap can't ever slip off, i reccon you would pretty much have to shear the top "and" bottom of the tow ball both at the same time to have the ball fail.

[pjhsv]

Once again I'm sorry for the long post. Basically did I do the right thing? what would of you done?. We were split 50/50 in our group if we should of helped these guys or not.

Personally, I think you did the right thing. You did exactly what I would have done.

It would be great if everyone who went out had the right equipment and knowledge to use it, combined with the right preparation. Fact is, that's not the case in many circumstances. I guess its no different to helping someone who has a broken down car because they didn't check the radiator water level before trying to drive from Melbourne to Sydney. Just because they didn't do the same preparation I would do, it doesn't mean I'm going to leave them on the side of the road.

I've been in a vehicle in the middle of the bush when we broke a trailing arm and were unable to get phone reception. 4 hours of walking in the rain later, and we came upon a homestead where a lovely couple gave us warmth, a telephone and drove us in to town to meet our friends. They could have just as easily said "Sorry, can't help".

Think of it as getting some good karma. For the people that were thinking of leaving them there, I suggest they take a look at the various 4x4 recovery & rescue groups on Facebook. Plenty of people willing to help strangers for no other reason than they can help someone who isn't able to help themselves (for whatever reason).

[blocko05]

it is always good to help someone out. hopefully they will know what gear to take with them next time.

[Kimbo63]

Always help if you can My job as a field service mechanic for Komatsu has taken me all over Western Australia's remote outback and I have always stopped and offered my help to people in need period!! The karma came back to me when after 19 hours in the ocean I got picked up by the sea rescue after been spotted by the Chanel 7 helicopter
Cheers Kimbo

[Maxhead]

I'm a prick so would have left them be and enjoy the day driving tracks...lol.Tossers like that won't learn if they have others do all the dirty work for them. I really don't understand how you can go 4WDriving and not be prepared to recover yourself.

You're a good bloke Rod, so if it feels good to you, you've done the right thing!

[the evil twin]

Before I say anything else I must say I would never EVER use a towball in a kinetic recovery.

Sooo...
Two methods for using a Tow Ball as an anchor point for a redirect or static pull
1. Banjo Plate, Key Plate, Anchor Plate or Recovery Plate- so named because they are a rectangular or oval plate with a keyhole shape cut out in the centre.
The hole of the plate is just large enough (52mm or 72mm) to slip over the Ball, spin 180 degrees and attack a shackle and the waist of the ball sits in the neck of the keyhole
2. Strap (pretty much as described by others). Folded eye strap is best.
With a 1/2 twist, roll the eye back on itself so you end up with a doubled eye that will slip over the tongue but some strap eyes may not be big enough.
Slip the 'double' eye along the tongue over both the ball and the nut and pull firm.
You should end up with a full turn around the tongue trapped behind the ball and nut, crossing at the top behind the ball and coming out in line with the pull.

There were shackle style products available that looked like a cross between a bow and a dee but, like recovery plates, they are no longer commercially available AFAIK

I need to reiterate that the above should only ever be considered when other options are exhausted AND there is a known and controlled static load involved

[mudnut]

Got a drawing of that method, #2, ET?

[the evil twin]

Got a drawing of that method, ET?

No... well, Yes... in my head :-)
or it is the first step in an Alpine Butterfly Knot

Will this do...
Hold anything with a loop in the end (string strap whatever) in your left hand with the loop pointing up.
Grab the top of the loop IE 12 o'clock, with the right hand and do a 1/2 twist (so you have a figure 8)
Fold the top of the eye down so the top 1/2 of the figure eight ends up behind the bottom 1/2
Voila... success.. doubled eye

Now just slide the whole lot along the tongue until it is the car side of the ball and snug up
You will end up with a full figure 8 around the tongue.

If the strap eye is too small... (I'm not keen on this one)
Take the full eye over the ball and nut to the car side, now do a 1/2 twist and lay over the ball.
You will only end up with a wrap not a figure 8 on teh tongue.
If I had to use this I would try and 'mouse the loop' so it couldn't slide back over the ball

[Bigcol]

I think you did the right thing Rodney

you obviously inspected what was the go
you informed them of their lack of preparation
you instigated the recovery with safety and knowledge

and

hopefully, they ALL learnt something, which in future they will use

score 1A for the good guys of 4WDriving

[Kimbo63]

Hopefully this will help those with mixed feelings to help others as you never know when you need help yourself sure some people do stupid things but you don't know that till you look at the hole story I'm surely happy that I got help when I needed it most http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/pray-to-everyone-for-the-return-of-my-nephew-rescued-fishermans-wife-20120811-2419s.html
Rodney your a legend for helping

[04OFF]

Ive been thinking Rodney, and i think the only thing you did wrong......
























You didn't take any pics ! ;)

[threedogs]

You didn't mention if they were thankfull for the effort you put in ??

[Yendor]

Ive been thinking Rodney, and i think the only thing you did wrong......
























You didn't take any pics ! ;)

I know, I'm sorry. I even had the camera in the car.

To be honest taking photos was the last thing on my mind.

[Yendor]

You didn't mention if they were thankfull for the effort you put in ??

I purposely left this out because I didn't want it influencing responses. After all you don't know if they will be thankful when deciding if you should help them.

After the vehicle was cleared from the last obstacle I didn't see the driver again.

His mate (the one that was only going to be out for 2 hours) Came over to me while I was packing my gear up and was full of thanks and praise for helping them out. He started cleaning my recovery gear for me and then helped me to do the 4 point turn to get my vehicle out of where I had positioned it to winch from and back onto the track.

[Bloodyaussie]

Ill say it again Rodney and that is good on you mate. ... i know in this age it is easy to become cynical from the nobs on this planet but dont let it stop you from doing what deep down you known is right.. yes every now and then it can be a thankless task but overall it is what is right and way more often than not the people you help will be so very grateful.

[threedogs]

Everyone tries to do the right thing helping out if we can.
what we cant do is tell ifsomeone is ungratefull for your effort.
Towed 3 ppl over a Levee banks in one day first guy left a slab of beer,
the second guy was so drunk he left $100 and the third thinking he was a smartie
said he'd be back with some beer, never saw him again, so like Meat Loaf said
"Two outta three aint bad." lol

[nissannewby]

Ive been thinking Rodney, and i think the only thing you did wrong......
























You didn't take any pics ! ;)

I thought it might have been that we didnt get an invite.......

:p

[04OFF]

I thought it might have been that we didnt get an invite.......

:p

oh, didn't you get yours Matty ?






hahahah !

[cltchrystal]

As a newbie to 4X4 I hope I don't get into the wrong situations, if I do I hope there will be someone like rod to help me out and even teach me what I could have done differently to avoid the situation.
I think you did a good thing helping someone in trouble. Good on ya, I hope to be able to help if needed as well.

[BigRAWesty]

As a newbie to 4X4 I hope I don't get into the wrong situations, if I do I hope there will be someone like rod to help me out and even teach me what I could have done differently to avoid the situation.
I think you did a good thing helping someone in trouble. Good on ya, I hope to be able to help if needed as well.
Majority 4x4 community will help, but that is made easier if you have your own gear..