Our nation has been getting A LOT of rain here lately, and I recently had a friend tell me a funny story about her son taking advantage of the rain and going "mudding" as the kids call it. If you're an old timer like me, I'll fill you in - "mudding" essentially is driving around in a big old truck or four-wheel drive vehicle through mud (abundant with all the rain we've been getting) in a field or on a patch of land just for the fun of it and just to make a mess. (Don't worry guys, our agency's got it covered no matter what shenanigans this teenage boy and his friends get into!)
I said it was a funny story because the kid and his buddies got stuck in the mud very late that night and had to call Mom to come save the day. Looking back on it, my friend said that she knows it's an experience she'll be telling friends about for years to come. One day they'll be able to laugh at it - although it wasn't so funny when Mom had to get out of bed to come help get her son un-stuck. In light of this recent story I heard, I wanted to share with you a few tips to do just that - help get you un-stuck if you enjoy mudding just like this kid and his friends do. This is really valuable info, parents!
- Rock It Out - As soon as the truck comes to a complete stop, put it in reverse, keep your wheels straight and gradually accelerate in an effort to get back where you started from-on solid ground. If the truck has four-wheel drive and you haven't already locked it in, do so now. If the truck bogs down after going only a short distance in reverse, shift into low gear and power forward as far as you can. If the tires spin, turn the tires side to side in an effort to get the edge of the treads to grip the surface. Increase acceleration gradually, giving it more and more gas as long as you are moving forward. Repeat the back-and-forward process as long as you continue to make progress. Passengers should get out of the vehicle and help push if necessary. This will also reduce the weight of the truck.
- Winch It Out - If you plan to drive through mud on a regular basis, outfit your truck with some sort of winch. Even if you don't have a winch, a come-along or a Hi-Lift jack can be used to pull the vehicle free provided there is a tree or other solid object close enough to attach a recovery strap around. Simply loop the winch cable around the tree and slowly pull it out of the rut.
- Pull It Out - Most of the time, the best and quickest way to get your truck unstuck is to just have another truck pull you out. Using a recovery strap, attach the strap to both trucks' tow hitches. (Never attach a strap to a bumper, axles, parts of the suspension or the hitch ball, as these parts can get easily damaged.) Once attached, the not stuck vehicle should pull most of the slack from the strap, leaving just enough room for the vehicle to get up a little speed before pulling on the stuck one. The un-stuck vehicle should accelerate gradually-never stomp the gas-and the driver of the stuck vehicle should put it in gear and begin applying gas as the vehicle starts to move.
I hope that you can use these 3 quick tricks if you ever find yourself or your kids stuck as my friend did after a day or evening of fun. Remember, if you have any damage to your vehicle after towing another car or any situation like this, call our office first so we can get the claims process started for you as quickly as possible and insure that it runs smoothly.