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

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.

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Originally Posted by 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,

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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.

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Originally Posted by 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.

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Thanks mate.

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Originally Posted by Yendor

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.

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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.

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.

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

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Originally Posted by 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.

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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?

You did good Rod

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

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.