Basic Offroad Recovery Essentials

The following post outlines the bare minimum suggested off-road recovery equipment for C.A.M.O. members and groups.

Recoveries with C.A.M.O.

It doesn’t matter if you’re a seasoned offroader or still wet behind the ears; eventually, you’re going to get stuck. Today, I want to talk about how to safely recover your rig without causing any (more?) damage to yourself, another vehicle, or even a bystander and cover the gear that you need to make sure you get off the trail safely. 

Recovery Essentials Per Person: (The Bare Minimum)

Structural Recovery Points: 

Good to go! My truck came with a nice cast steel tow hook! Wrong. Most factory tow hooks have 2 primary issues when it comes to a safe recovery. 

1: The tow hook is not rated for a shock load.

This means that if a force is applied quickly (a snatch recovery, we’ll get into that later) that the forces exerted on the hook can cause it to shear and become a projectile. 

2: It’s not a secure anchorage point.

If a vehicle needs a tug out of some wet grass or at most, a ditch, constant pressure can be maintained on a tow hook and the rigging will not fall of. The same cannot be said for bouncing through mud and rocks or over varying inclines or declines.

An adequate structural recovery point is:

1. Anchored to the vehicles frame or a structural member designed to withstand constant loads AND shock loading.
2. Able to secure rigging without the possibility of the rigging falling off
3. Rated by the manufacture
4. Available at BOTH ends of the vehicle. A rear tow bar with a rated shackle is an adequate rear recovery point, the tow ball is NOT. 

Synthetic Tow Strap:

1. The purpose of a tow strap is to provide a simple, quick recovery when a constant force can be applied to the rigging in order to safely perform the recovery. 
   1. Examples: Front end of a vehicle is stuck in a ditch, a vehicle needs to be towed down the road, a winch line needs to be extended, etc.
2. You can source your tow strap from any reputable company. For critical uses, it is strongly suggested that you use a tow strap from a manufacture that rates their rigging. (winching applications, high risk applications, etc.)
3. Store your tow strap in a dry place away from sharp objects. If/when your strap gets wet, hang it to dry when you get home. Never use a strap that is damaged. 

Shackles:

1. Shackles are used to join your rigging to your anchorage point. Recently, soft shackles are making their way into the market and becoming more popular. Both steel shackles and soft shackles have their pros and cons.
   1. Steel:
      1. Pros: Cheaper, Stronger (often), More Secure
      2. Cons: Heavier, can become a projectile in a failure, most are not technically kinetic load rated
   2. Synthetic/Soft:
      1. Pros: Very light weight, easy to fasten, will not become a projectile, often times rated for kinetic loading, wont ding up your paint.
      2. Cons: Some are not as secure as a pinned shackle, expensive, can be damaged by sharp edges
2. Regardless of your choice in shackle, it is imperative that you do not “cheap out” on them. Buy from a reputable company that rates their rigging. 

Personal Protective Equipment:

1. Leather/Synthetic (non textile) gloves. Handling winch line or rigging bare handed looks cool on Instagram, but tearing your hands up isn’t.
2. Sturdy Footwear. If you’re stuck, it likely means you’re on rough terrain. Keep the high tops in your closet and opt for ankle height boots.

Recovery Essentials Per Group:

The following items should be present on an outing in addition to the items above that EACH PERSON should have.

Vehicle Mounted Winch: (Trip Dependent)

1. I didn’t include this as a per-person necessity because, well, it isn’t necessary, “but it helps.”
2. I could write an entire article on winches, but for the time being, I’ll save everyone the bore. Refer to the bottom of the C.A.M.O. Page for safe winching techniques.

Kinetic Rope:

1. A kinetic rope is a purpose built, load rated recovery rope that is designed to stretch and store energy when snatching, and release that energy to aid in the recovery.
2. Kinetic ropes have 2 primary benefits.
   1. A kinetic rope will not give you the “whiplash” feeling by tightening immediately and jolting the vehicles like an improperly used chain or tow strap.
   2. A kinetic rope aids in recovery by providing extra “umph” upon releasing its stored energy as the tow vehicle drives in the direction of the recovery. 
3. Ah yes, the snatch recovery. This is for when you “really dun did it” and got very, very stuck. Sand, over a hillside, buried in the mud, etc. 
   1. Snatch recoveries are performed by attaching a kinetic rated rigging device between two structural recovery points. The tow vehicle gets “a running start” and stays in the throttle as the rope gets tight. 
      1. Safety:
         1. Identify the line of fire: Remove bystanders 1.5x the length of your rigging.
         2. Take care to not drag the stuck vehicle into the back of the tow vehicle
         3. Verify that the tow vehicle will not careen into anyone/anything with its forward momentum

Snatch Block:

1. Unlike its name, a snatch block is not for “snatch” recoveries at all. Snatch blocks are pulleys attached to a rigging point. The snatch block can be attached to an anchorage point. Snatch blocks are another item that must not be “cheaped out” on. There are 2 primary uses for a snatch block:
   1. Doubling your line load capacity. By using a snatch block, the capacity of your winch line doubles. By using two snatch blocks in a traditional layout, your capacity increases 4x. Think about how easy it is to lift up heavy objects when they are run through one or two pulleys. It’s the same principal. 
   2. Directionally recovering a vehicle. Consider the following scenario: A vehicle slides off the LEFT side of a 1 lane road and is hung up against a tree on the downward side of an embankment. Pulling the vehicle forward or backwards would result in one or both vehicles going over the hillside. The snatch block can be deployed to a tree on the RIGHT side of the road. The winch vehicle can position behind the stuck vehicle but safely winch the vehicle back onto the road.

Hi-Lift Jack (A Farm Jack)

1. It has always been my opinion that Hi-Lift jacks should only be used when absolutely necessary. Hi-Lifts/Farm Jacks have the potential to be much more dangerous than a winch or standard jack to the user. Before using a hi-lift, be sure to research the safe use, likewise, if someone else is recovering you, make sure they are competent in the safe use of a hi-lift as well.
2. Recoveries that would require a hi-lift:
   1. High Centered on an obstacle. The vehicle can be safely stabilized then lifted so that stones or traction boards can be stacked
   2. When a winch is not present. A hi-lift jack can be used as a come-along in critical situations
3. A safe rule of thumb is that a hi-lift should only be used to get your OUT of a critical situation until a safer means of recovery can be used to complete the extraction. 

Please keep in mind that the information above is not meant to be a guide, but rather a reference. Personal skill level, experience, and exposure will all affect your personal recovery load out.