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Recovering on Side Slope


Chaitanya D

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Dear All ( especially @Rahimdad, @Gaurav, @Srikumar, @Frederic, @Emmanuel, @Asif Hussain, @Wrangeld , @Ale Vallecchi)

I would like to know the correct method for self recovery/assisted recovery when stuck on a side slope. While doing side sloping on extremely soft sand one tends to get stuck on a slope in one of the three positions as depicted in the pictures below - Line diagrams of cars.

Kindly opine How to recover in the Following situations - when shovelling /tug would be needed?

1. Stuck with car being horizontal - (MOST TRICKY and DEBATABLE ?)

Screenshot_20200728-121655_Gallery.jpg.cde78a9494c17c64f0a58aa161565564.jpg

 

2. Stuck with Car front pointing Up

20200728_131826.jpg.6b1620a5399208c54c0e86cd178615fa.jpg

3. Stuck with Car front pointing down

20200728_131902.jpg.f3ded01c577d610a308b660d0e69db86.jpg

Edited by Chaitanya D
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From my information;

1- You need to shovel under the tires to create room for car to came out itself. After the car move you can understand either it will go forward or backward. Than you will move accordingly and make the very gentle tug if needed.

2- From the position it is clear that car needs to reverse down. You need to clear the sand under the tires so car can reverse back. You can make very gentle tug from the position that Cruiser stays if only really needed.

3- From the position it is clear that car needs to move forward down. You need to clear the sand under the tires so car can move forward. You can make very gentle tug from the mirror position that Cruiser stays if only really needed.

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Hi @Chaitanya D I will give this a go and say a few basics, from my perspective. Seniors will corrrect/build on this no doubt. 

  1. Each recovery is unique. You need to look first at the situation before you can make the decision. 
  2. Safety is paramount. When you look at a stuck the first thought is not get the car out it is how can we make sure that this problem is resolved safely. 
  3. Gravity. Let gravity do it's work. If you forward heavy, try to recover forwards, backwards heavy, backwards. 
  4. Sand build up. On a side slope the risk you face is that sand built up on the wheels is a challenge. You want to be sure that it does not stop the car moving or run the risk of a roll over. 
  5. Dig or tug #1? T A tug is not always the quickest way out, especially in soft sand - remember, the tugging car needs to build up momentum and not get stuck itself. Having said that a tug may help gravity do its job quicker.
  6. Dig or tug #2? If you look at the situation and you feel that moving sand from the wheels will get some movement, that might be the best solution for that moment. 
  7. Horizontal situation. More challenging because you need to decide to move forward or backwards. The thing you for sure want to avoid is the car rolling over, so you have to be very careful in the decisions around where sand is displaced and why. 

Bottom line: Great to try and think this through for when you might be faced with the problem, but you really have to treat each situauton as a unique stuck.

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1 minute ago, sertac said:

From my information;

1- You need to shovel under the tires to create room for car to came out itself. After the car move you can understand either it will go forward or backward. Than you will move accordingly and make the very gentle tug if needed.

2- From the position it is clear that car needs to reverse down. You need to clear the sand under the tires so car can reverse back. You can make very gentle tug from the position that Cruiser stays if only really needed.

3- From the position it is clear that car needs to move forward down. You need to clear the sand under the tires so car can move forward. You can make very gentle tug from the mirror position that Cruiser stays if only really needed.

Agree - for scenario 2 and 3 gravity will be your recovery assistant, but aim is to go down straight.  Scenario 1: I guess preference will be forward, with some digging to allow you to use gravity. Using a rope I think will be tricky, giving the sudden movement? Just my 5c. 

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1 minute ago, Kalahari said:

 Using a rope I think will be tricky, giving the sudden movement? Just my 5c. 

Part of the skill with ropes is learning how to avoid that sudden pull ... you're 100% right in saying that it should be avoided on a side slope. If someone is in a nasty pocket, a yank might be the only option, but on a side slope with the risk of roll over ... I am not sure I would do that. 

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23 minutes ago, Wrangeld said:

Bottom line: Great to try and think this through for when you might be faced with the problem, but you really have to treat each situauton as a unique stuck.

Yes, I agree each situation here is different. But wanted to emulate the scenarios so that we are better informed when actually faced with a similar situation. Theory before the practicals🤣

21 minutes ago, Kalahari said:

Scenario 1: I guess preference will be forward, with some digging to allow you to use gravity

Forward or backward? to minimise the chances of rollover which is not a very comfortable situation.Going front /Back -  will reduced the chance of roll over?

 

 

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Just now, Chaitanya D said:Forward or backward? to minimise the chances of rollover which is not a very comfortable situation.Going front /Back -  will reduced the chance of roll over?

I prefer forward, as (1) you can dig the sand away from the side of the tyre, and then steer in that direction and (2) easier to control straight down going forward. But as Richard said, you have to make a decision where the momentum is most (back or front heavy), and go for that side  

 

 

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Wow excellent topic. As do not panic applies to the drivers the same applies to the trip lead and Marshals. Keep cool head. It does not matter if you can recover in 5 minutes or 2 hours as long as you come up with the perfect plan. Your plan might seem perfect to you with your experiences. But better to discuss with other seniors and get their point of view. Don't be me, in other words don't be stubborn. With years of experience around 3 years back we broke 3 tow ropes and spent 2 hours to be taught a lesson by the UAE nationals we think are very rough with their recoveries. Always keep yourself open to learn. Just my suggestion as everybody else has covered all points.

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@Chaitanya D, first of all, very good subject. The situation you have depicted is not that out of the ordinary, so it's very good to have a thread to go back to, and refresh one's memory and skills.

All of the above considerations, of course, are very appropriate and effective, so not much else to be added from my side. I actually have only seen one recovery of the #1 scenario (horizontal stuck) done with a tug (as usually the #2 and #3 scenarios can be self-recovered by pointing the wheels in the right direction, and letting gravity do its job).

It was a successful recovery, but as it almost went badly, so I'll try to indicate what I thought went wrong. The car was slightly heavier toward the back, yet it was pulled from the front: always check meticulously if the car is front or back heavy (even an horizontal stuck, it's unlikely to be 100% perfectly horizontal). No channel was dug (as suggested by Gaurav) in front of the front wheel (considering the frontal tug). This made the car bump onto the small sand mound that the stuck had created, with the risk of a roll-over. Lastly, even if this was not the case above, I suggest to not dig out the sand from both lower wheels (which may seem intuitive to do, since that sand is what is making the car being stuck): that's when you risk a roll-over.

What this means to me: take plenty of time to assess the situation, and confer with other seniors (each may see something different that you fail to notice), so you can always make the choice the minimizes any risk (including removing cars and people immediately below the stuck car, even it they are parked on the flat ground, down below).

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