|
First of all, I'm new at this, but a couple of the things I'm going to tell you have nothing to do with knowledge of off-roading, they were just plain stupid. The sad part is, it could have been life-threatening. Here's my tale...
My wife and I make our first visit to Death Valley this week. I've got my new 2005 KJ Sport and want to see some of the sites that the tourists don't get to see. I decide that the "Racetrack" would be a pretty easy trip for the KJ, and since we only have one full day, I want to do it quickly. That was my first mistake. We head out and reach the start of the 26 mile dirt road that leads to the Racetrack. I have read here and on several other pages that airing down the tires is a good thing for this road. I look at the road and it appears pretty decent, and airing down is a pain, so we start off without airing down the factory tires. That was my second mistake. The first several miles the road is pretty bumpy, filled with grapefruit size rocks and smaller, but we make it through OK. About 19 miles in, the road improves, so I kick up the speed. That was my third mistake. My wife says "Do you hear a hissing sound?" Yup, back left tire is rock punctured. We pull over and I get out the factory jack. Now, it's been years since I've had to jack up a car, which is no excuse, but this next mistake is really stupid on my part. I put the jack under the rear suspension, looking like it's on solid ground, and never set the parking brake. Fourth mistake. I jack it up and the jack, resting on a large smooth rock, just under a thin layer of soft dirt, slides out and forward, bending the jack screw. Jack is wasted and pinned under the axle. I drive the KJ forward to clear the jack and the desperation sets in, we're 20 miles from nowhere with a flat and no jack. At this moment, a couple on a motorcycle comes by. They offer to find a Ranger and tell them where we are. OK, not so desperate now, but still feeling like a complete idiot. My wife and I just have to sit and wait. The good news is, it's only about 75 degrees out here, if it were 110, it could have been deadly. We did have several gallons of water, which was one smart thing I did do. So we wait and wait. I decide to remove the lug nuts off the tire, to speed things up when the Ranger gets here, or another vehicle comes by with a jack. Stupid mistake number five. Several more hours go by and my wife, bless her heart, has an idea. Why don't we drive the KJ up the side of the embankment at the side of the road, block up the axle with rocks and dig out the flat tire! Wonderful idea! Why didn't the macho male think of this? I hop in the KJ and drive over to the side of the road, totally forgetting about the removed lug nuts. I drive up the embankment, when it dawns on me, THE LUG NUTS! Yup, the tire is cantered over, barely hanging on the hub. NOW I REALLY FEEL STUPID. I sit there beating my head with my hands trying to figure out what to do now. I'm worried that if I even touch the jeep it will fall off the rim. At this moment, our guardian angels arrive, seven guys on antique motorcycles come up and ask if we need any help. We manage to get the axle blocked up and the tire changed. They wouldn't take any money, but were grateful for some water. They continued on while I air down the tires and turn around and head back. Seven miles back, we encounter the Ranger, going like a bat out of hell in a full size Hummer, looking for two people with a flat. We explained our situation and he smiles, says "take it slow" and he heads back in front of us. We make it back without incident.
We didn't get to see much else of Death Valley on this trip, it was dark by the time we got back to our hotel. We'll have to make another trip someday.
I learned some valuable lessons on this little trip, I hope newcomers here who read this, also learn from my mistakes.
The only good thing about this was my wife let me buy some better tires, I now have a set of Goodrich T/A's on the KJ. I probable paid WAY to much for them, having to buy them in Bishop, California, but we're planning on doing some more off-roading in Mammoth, where I'm typing this from now.
_________________
2005 Liberty Sport, Full Skid Plates, Front and Rear Tow Hooks, Hella 500 Fogs, Yokohama Geolandars AT/S 235/70 16.
Julian, California
|
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
You already got the new tires, you still have an excuses for a good air pump, a highlift jack, and of course some good rock sliders to hook the jack to. 
