Why so slow?

[thirdstreettito]

Why do guys trail riding go SO SLOW?! I watch videos and get impatient because they crawl up little hills and bumps, I go normal speed(1100-1800 rpm in first - 4HI/2HI).

At about 2:54 he goes over tiny rocks like a snail on pot.

Rausch Creek trail riding with Jeep and CUCV....

Another example is DirtyLarry(no offense Larry)in his latest adventure.

Is there a reason guys drive SO SLOW? Is it because they are insecure or just bad drivers? Dont know the vehicle well? I dont get it. Maybe someone can shed some light for me.

/rant

[Redcap]

Originally Posted by thirdstreettito

Why do guys trail riding go SO SLOW?! I watch videos and get impatient because they crawl up little hills and bumps, I go normal speed(1100-1800 rpm in first - 4HI/2HI).

At about 2:54 he goes over tiny rocks like a snail on pot.

Rausch Creek trail riding with Jeep and CUCV. Video 1. - YouTube

Another example is DirtyLarry(no offense Larry)in his latest adventure.

Is there a reason guys drive SO SLOW? Is it because they are insecure or just bad drivers? Dont know the vehicle well? I dont get it. Maybe someone can shed some light for me.

/rant

Because most of us that play offroad have more brains than money and would rather be out wheeling than fixing a broken rig.

[DesertCat]

Originally Posted by Redcap

Because most of us that play offroad have more brains than money and would rather be out wheeling than fixing a broken rig.

^^^ ^^^

More than that though... people who respect the trail will do so in a way that they leave little or no trace that they were ever there.

Nothing worse than trails all torn up by idiots thinking everywhere off-road is a mud bog.

[71swb4x4]

Tiny rocks at 2:54?
Why don't you make a video of you hitting some of those "tiny" rocks at 25 mph and show us all the aftermath. Heck even 15 mph would be funny to watch.

I am not a 4 wheeler, but to me I would think the sport would be about going places few others go to. Part of that is understanding that if you break it out there, you fix it out there. The other part is that it's usually not your land; it's public land, or private land that you have permission to be on. You don't race around on the land tearing it to shreads.

[Monty]

also, it is NOT the object of the exercise to get back to 'civilization' as fast as possible.

[Redcap]

Originally Posted by DesertCat

^^^ ^^^

More than that though... people who respect the trail will do so in a way that they leave little or no trace that they were ever there.

Nothing worse than trails all torn up by idiots thinking everywhere off-road is a mud bog.

Agreed! And some of us are oldschool...the guys I wheel with have no compunction about walking over to stick a knife in your sidewall if we see you acting like a dumbass and tearing up a trail on purpose.

[Stocker]

Well, there's your answer, not much I can add other than agreeing with what's already been said. Respect and care for your rig, your passengers, and the real estate you are on. If you want to tear things up, do it on private land (yours, not someone else's).

[DirtyLarry]

Thirdstreettito,

Really? Are you seriously asking this question? Why do we drive so slow?? Dude, your off-road experience must begin and end at the couch watching monster trucks on TV. We drive slow because that is where the traction is at and less chances on breaking something. Real off roading about finesse, picking a clean line and with little throttle input, not speed unless you’re a redneck that can only find mud to play in for off-roading experiance. Plus, as mentioned above there are less traces of where of off-roaders have been when wheeling properly. Ever heard of Tread Lightly? For example, in my videos at Hole in the Rock we are 4 hours from the nearest paved road in Southern Utah. At that paved road it is another hour and half to the nearest town that sells gas and another hour and a half to a town that may have parts. That is not a place to be a foolish throttle jockey…..you can die out there if your rig becomes immobile! Finesse, my friend....finesse

Oh, and any video of mine that you see starting with "GoPro", you can rest asure we are not even going as fast as the GoPro camera makes it seem we are going. The GoPro seems to speed up time for some reason. When we are moving at 2 MPH, it makes it look like we are going 12 MPH. For your reference, 12 MPH is fast when off road.

[thirdstreettito]

I didn't mean to come off as an ass. If you look at the trails I ride you'll only see my tire tracks in the soft dirt. No abuse, because I cant afford to fix it and because I want to be allowed to keep using the trails. I wasn't saying floor it, I was just saying it seems excessively slow to me. No, I dont speed, but I also dont crawl. I see guys go too slow then complain they get stuck, then guys go too fast and complain they broke something. I like to keep it in between.

DesertCat - I try my hardest to avoid mud and to avoid going past 2000rpm. I do respect the trails, I dont tear them up, I just go a little faster. Big difference between rolling fast and flooring it like you suggested.

71swb4x4 - 25mph? WAY too fast. I'd definitely break stuff going that fast. I never go over 5mph. And like larry said, he does about 2mph. I just like it a hair faster.

Larry - I didn't meant to criticize you, and you're probably right, the camera doesn't do it justice.

I think some guys dont fully get the physics of it and are afraid they'll break something going up a rock the size of a curb. Many guys dont know what their rig can take. I have 10 bolts on 31's. I see guys on 10 bolts with 37's abuse them 4x as much as me, so I know I'm safe, but I also dont take it for granted.

[v30crewcab]

the first thing is, you're used to wheelin in the southeast. mud everywhere, even if it looks dry, theres clay in the mud and on everything. this means you need more wheelspeed to get over stuff, you can't just crawl up most rocks.
I JUST got back from wheelin where that video was taken. its a whole different kind of wheelin. traction is crazy on the rocks, just like out west. if you spin your tires with that kind of traction, it takes chunks out of the tread. I drove easy the whole time and my steering is all bent up from hitting rocks I couldn't see as well. Its very technical wheeling, when you're going over all kinds of rocks that can smash driveshafts, rockers, trans pans, etc. the only guys going fast on that stuff are buggies.
not to mention I was going thru one section, and the rear axle was hung up, and I eased on the throttle to see if it would slide over, and I blew the front ubolt on the driveshaft. Lucky I had spares. theres a reason they call it "rockcrawling".

[76k10]

The biggest reason I see to go slow is the ride! Ever tried going over rocks fast in an old truck with leaf springs on all corners? It is VERY bumpy and not fun.

[69GWC]

I did not see any Zombies chasing him so no reason to haul the mail....lol

Enjoy the ride.
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[mrdana60]

dont think you could climb this slow ??? lol tim is crazy nothing slow about his climbing

TIM CAMERON OWNS SHOWTIME HILL - GORILLA RUN!! ...

[vectorit]

Every region has a different style of terrain, each of which begs different styles of wheeling.

Here in the West.

Go fast, typically means breaking something be it parts or your head as you fly off road into a ravine or canyon.

Go slow, gives you time to think and your rig to do what it was designed to do and get you home.

That's what trail truck drivers are typically thinking.

Baja 1000, now that is a whole nuther ball game.

Do a little research.

[odog]

A lot of it has to do with where you are at. Like Larry said, if you are 8 hours from the nearest part store, in the desert, alone or even with a buddy, you are a little cautious.

Also thats just some peoples style, enjoy the ride and the scenery. I used to love to go fast, blow through the mud and sand, but you do that and end up on your top in a ravine a time or two and it makes you slow a little. I have been on trails where its uphill and boulder strewn, and you have to take it slow. You get good traction on a boulder and goose it a little and snap something, But Ive been on stair steps where you ave to goose it to get up.

Its just what you prefer and the type of terrain you are in. I dont think there is a "wrong" way to wheel, as long as you enjoy the time you have doing it, you are safe and dont destroy the land for others.

[thirdstreettito]

Originally Posted by v30crewcab

the first thing is, you're used to wheelin in the southeast. mud everywhere, even if it looks dry, theres clay in the mud and on everything. this means you need more wheelspeed to get over stuff, you can't just crawl up most rocks.
I JUST got back from wheelin where that video was taken. its a whole different kind of wheelin. traction is crazy on the rocks, just like out west. if you spin your tires with that kind of traction, it takes chunks out of the tread. I drove easy the whole time and my steering is all bent up from hitting rocks I couldn't see as well. Its very technical wheeling, when you're going over all kinds of rocks that can smash driveshafts, rockers, trans pans, etc. the only guys going fast on that stuff are buggies.
not to mention I was going thru one section, and the rear axle was hung up, and I eased on the throttle to see if it would slide over, and I blew the front ubolt on the driveshaft. Lucky I had spares. theres a reason they call it "rockcrawling".

Well said. It never even crossed my mind. Most of my wheeling is on dry terrain because I dont know anyone who can get me unstuck, and because it's a PITA to wash the truck especially because I dont have a pressure washer.

Well, off to Moab! Yeah, after tons and a bunch more stuff

[special-K]

Why go faster? If you're in a hurry,take the freeway

[Stocker]

Originally Posted by special-K

Why go faster? If you're in a hurry,take the freeway

That reminds me -- I should add a disclaimer to my prior post. When I was much younger, I used to hound hunt. That sometimes involved driving as quickly as possible over forest roads and trails without wrecking or breaking anything. But that's also not your typical off-highway experience. Luckily, the truck & I both survived.

[elvis.donnelly]

Going fast on trail . It will probably put you some place where you don't wanna go.

[special-K]

Even in mud,I like to go at it slow and see how far I can churn through it. Blasting into mud is what I do with a 2wd (or a poorly equipped 4wd). You can usually back out and try again. With mud it's kind of about seeing if you "can" get stuck,in a way,if you are really serious. There's no fun in mud you "know" you can get through. A solid axle/leaf spring design...even with all the flexy mods out there...is simply not conducive to speed over rough terrain. Horses can run crazy fast,but any cowboy worth his salt tippy toes his pony in rough terrain. It's about getting there,not how fast. Apologies to all hasty video viewers. Maybe it's like baseball vs football. Baseball is the Great National Pastime.But,since TV came along,football has taken over. Baseball is still better in a stadium because there isn't really a bad angle. Football you miss some things,but on TV they cover every angle. Maybe trail riding is best viewed live. Wait...it's definitely best live!

[DirtyLarry]

Thirdstreet,

If you ever made it out west for some off-roading it will make a lot more sense why we go slow.

Here is another video from Canyonlands

Here is another from Canyonlands (non-GoPro) where we are scaling cliff edges. This part of the trail path itself isn’t difficult but it is steep, tight turns with unforgiving consequences if you don’t do it right the first time. In both of these corners the front bumper is hanging over the edge while the tire is right on the edge. You can also hear the rear Detroit locker dragging the rear tires due to the steepness. Videos do not always serve justice as to why we go slow until you see the situation in real life.

[thirdstreettito]

Larry when I make it out there one day you have to promise to take me out there. I'll follow you Then we can argue all day long

[Zoomad75]

Brad- I think you've seen the point so far. It's not always required to go fast. Some of the mountain trails I've been on with DirtyLarry will rattle your fillings at anything more than a crawl even with aired down tires. Contrary to popular thought, going faster will not smooth out a bumpy road or trail by just riding on the top of the rough stuff.

Stuff breaks at any speed. I pretzeled my rear drive shaft when I was barely moving on a rough trail of rocks. We were an hour to the next town with parts and still had to climb over a 12,000 foot pass to get there. Larry had to pull my poor busted tail up to the summit of the pass since mine didn't have enough power or traction on the front wheels to drive on the front diff alone. Once at the summit, we unhooked and I drove the rest of the way off the trail and the highway home on the front diff.

Had I beat my truck up going faster I might not have been able to drive home.

I've not had near the amount of off road time as Larry has and he'll attest to my early tendency of having a heavy right foot. I made a couple of stupid moves with my overuse of throttle almost flipping my K5 backwards launching over a shale ledge and almost wiping out Larry's neighbor trying to climb a snow/icy section of a trail at 5,500 rpm in 4lo/granny gear. Nothing scares the snot out of you when all you see is sky out of the windshield and the truck is leaping up like a dog going after a milk bone.

I'm surprised I didn't break more stuff back then. I take it easy now. The ride is much more enjoyable. Besides hauling tail on a 11,000ft shelf trail isn't just stupid it's suicidal.