Offroad Recovery Forces at Play - Breaking down the Arizona Fatal Incident
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- Опубліковано 2 сер 2022
- This video is monetized with permission from Woods Family. The first 60 days of UA-cam ad revenue will be forwarded along to the family. I never ask for likes/shares, but this time I am going to. Let's share the heck out of this so I can send them a nice check in October! Let's get the UA-cam algorithm showing this video to everyone!
Today we break down via video the fatal Arizona incident where Mr. Ryan Woods was fatally injured due to a receiver hitch failing and recoiling through the windshield. We're going to go over gear not to use, gear to use, and the ratings of that gear. Plus the stuck forces on the super duty.
The viral Facebook post can be seen at: / co4x4rnr
The main goal of this video is education. Education that will save your life of the lives of those you may be recovering from a similar situation.
PLEASE STOP USING TRAILER HITCHES/TOW BALLS. - Фільми й анімація
Thanks for helping spread the message. I’ve also had lots of encouraging messages where people are hearing the message and changing their approach.
We at Colorado 4x4 Rescue and Recovery love your channel. It's great to see others that share our passion. Next time you cross the sea shoot us a message and we will hit some Colorado Trails!
Hey I watch your stuff!!! Thanks for stopping by here!!
@@billpotter35 That sounds like a plan. I'm hoping to come over for King Of The Hammers. Stay tuned to my social channels
@@JustinKingOffroad Thanks heaps for the support I really appreciate it.
I actually first heard of this accident on your channel, then Justin's channel.
Good advice, both of you.
I’ve absolutely pulled others out of a mess using the ball hitch. And, I will never do that again. Picking up the proper gear today before I go on a multi day truck and bike off-roading trip.
Justin, thanks for making this video. I really hope that many people get the message. I’m an older guy that has done a lot of stupid stuff in my life and here is the safety lesson that I’ve learned. Everyday people do unsafe things and get away with them and in their minds it reinforces the idea that it is okay. They think and say, “I’ve been doing this and it always works just fine.” Until one day the odds catch up with them. This is true for wearing safety glasses, gloves, chainsaw chaps, seat belts, drinking and driving and countless other actions. The reality is each time someone does something unsafe, they are one step closer to the one that they will regret. We should always be asking ourselves, “what are the risks and is there a safer way to do this?”
Yes to all!!!
So true.
Justin Thank you.! I’ve been involved (aftermath= Retired Paramedic/Firefighter) 2 incidents where this has happened and the word needs to be relayed to use the right equipment. As always great video and 🙏Prayers to the family.
Good video! I’ve seen 4-5 of these incidents as a Paramedic and Safety Engineer. Every one was a story of the well intended getting hurt. Thanks again for putting this out !
If it stops more people from getting killed or seriously injured, it's worth the effort to try!!
Thank you Justin for shining a light on this. It’s things like this that shed light on how serious this can be. I was given a 20ft loggers chain to help move smaller trees out of the road, I think I’ll replace that with a 30ft tow strap. Prayers for this poor family out trying to have fun, no one ever thinks a day of fun would end this way.
Love the educational and pedagogical approach to an issue most people don't put their minds to. Lifesaving advice. Honestly, I thought this was going to be a useless video. How wrong I was.
Excellent video. I'm glad that you discussed the Hitchlink. I see a lot of people recommending running a hitch pin through the recovery strap loop, leaving the pin unsupported. The Hitchlink provides support for the pin across the span of the receiver so that it can only fail through shear force vs bending force.
Thanks to you and Colorado 4x4 Rescue & Recovery for the work that you do as a volunteer organization. I've never had an occasion to call but you're certainly in my contacts list and knowing that you folks are there provides great piece of mind when we're wheeling in the mountains.
My condolences to the family. Justin, thank you for posting this video. I learned about the danger of using the hitch ball and a static strap or chain watching your channel and Matt’s Off Road Recovery. I bought my niece a kinetic rope and soft shackle when she bought her Jeep. Keep educating the public. Lives will be saved.
Small thing, but because of this video I upgraded my hitch pins to Factor55 which have a “50,000lb+ shear strength.” ALL my other recovery gear is Factor55 or MasterPull and appropriately rated but I was still using unrated no-name hitch pins. Thanks Justin!
My mom served as the head of occupational safety for a large utility company and was executive producer on numerous safety videos … when I say thank you to co4x4 rescue &recovery for what you guys do so I don’t have to… it because I know my limits and standards … I have to walk away from situations all the time because the safety is not there and there are numerous times I’ve had to tell people I can’t help recover them because I know my equipment and I know I can ‘t safely control the situation … often I will give a ride or direct help to those persons … but it is not easy sometimes walking away knowing damage or harm is likely to occur despite your best efforts to keep it from happening. I have extensive rigging experience and have purposely practiced recovery like you stated but there is always something new to learn and always someone new to learn it from … thanks again for the efforts posted here! This is an education to many still need to acquire!
He was a great man and a loving father....such a tragic incident
An old farm boy who has been using cheap log chains to pull stuff out all my life, but I agree with you on their potential danger!
If you do a slow pull, it can work, but if you give any jerk, it will break!
Dad taught us to be pretty carefully about doing a steady pull.
And We/I were pretty carefully of where we hooked the chain.
I recently purchased a high quality recovery rope, and I love it! But I have a very difficult time giving it a yank. Old habits and old dogs.
I will have to get one those Factor 55 hitches or something like it. I have been using one of those tri-ball hitches, although it is a very heavy duty one with a solid two inch bar.
Quite frankly, I would probably tear off my bolt on receiver hitch before that failed. I barely trust it to pull my light trailer.
I am a bit of a chicken when it comes to very hard pulls, which has probably kept me safe all these years.
But now that I am (semi) retired, I want to start doing more serious 4 wheeling, and you are giving very good advice.
I am going to upgrade my equipment, but quite frankly, if I run across somebody seriously stuck, I will probably give them a ride somewhere where they can get competent help!
Thank you for sharing this!
Prayers for the family.. will be sharing this out.
Thank you for such an informative video. We are so sorry for the Woods family. Thank you to the family as well for allowing you to share to help save lives in the future.
Thank you for spreading the message!
Part of the problem with the drop hitch is the leverage factor. For every 2 inches down the force increases. Looks like a 10 inch drop, the stress on the bottom of the insert was 5 times as much as the force at the ball. 90,000 lbs. The insert failed at the bottom of the tube and bent up before separating. Most important concept is to pull directly in line with the frame rail of each vehicle. I read somewhere the pulling vehicle was a lifted truck and if he hooked up properly it would have provided some lift and helped with the extraction. Also only use American made shackles as they will distort long before they fail. I have some 1 5/8 inch Crosby screw shackles that will never come apart because they stretched an inch longer than new, but it did not fail
This is spot on. I saw that long drop hitch and immediately thought about the leverage. This is another benefit to the Factor55 HitchLink, besides having an ultimate failure of >50,000lbs it keeps the force inline with the receiver.
thnx so much for spreading the information to hopefully prevent accidents like this from happening in the future
Thanks for sharing... I might have done this... but now I will think twice before doing something with a standard hitch setup...
Justin, Thank you for the educational video. That situation could have been avoided. I know the person was just trying to help, but they didn’t understand their equipment. Prayers for the family.
Thank you definitely I've shared this over and over again
Thank you for putting this out there for people to see. I've never gotten involved in a towing/unsticking operations before so I am glad to have seen this before it became needed information.
Thanks for sharing this information and helping the family.
Great work as always Justin.
I’ve seen this happen once where it was fatal in my rural area as a firefighter/ AEMT. It still happens but as far as I know nobody else has died luckily. A lot of people don’t his way because they’ve seen others do it and don’t think about the dangers. Videos like this will help.
Praying for the family. Thanks for putting this information out there to educate people. I grew up farming and abused about any kind of hitch. Broke several been lucky myself
I never had a reason to pull a car. Never probably will have the need. I’m not a drive thru the mud for fun type by any means, but you sir has enlightened me a lot with this video. Thank you!
Thank you for caring and spreading the word and education.
Great stuff! My condolences to the family!
Very good and informative video. Hopefully you educated hundreds if not thousands of people with this presentation. Very sorry for the loss of the family involved. Thanks again!
Fantastically informative video, thank You so much 👍🏼
WOW THis is the best informative video I have ever seen ! soo important for safe recovery!
Thanks for making this.
Justin- I've learned so much from watching you during your recoveries. The level of safety and awareness you guys exhibit in your videos is always present. You guys don't take shortcuts and you do a great job explaining the risks and why you do things the way you do. Thanks for your contribution to the offroad community and for making people aware of the risks.
Thanks for watching! Safe doesn't generate a ton of clicks, but everyone goes home at the end of the day!
very good info, very unfortunate situation.
Justin thanks for taking the time to make this video. I don't know if you have heard of Casey LaDelle of Bend, Oregon. He does off-road recoveries. He just did a blurb on one of his videos the other day on this subject. I am 72 and farmed most of my life. I have pulled many vehicles out of the mud in my life and I was not aware of any of this. I was fortunate in that I never had a failure but I guarantee you that I will be looking at things completely different from now on. Again THANKS!!
Great information. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing and explaining. We have done that for years. Sure thankful I haven’t killed or injured someone!
Great vid.. 🙏 to all involved.
No more pulling that way!
Great info! Thank You!
Also forgot to add this is an excellent video and if it saves one life it has done its job. I would give more than one thumbs up and I hope for a million hits
thanks!
Great video thank you!
Good job of explaining what to use and what not to use.
Lots of good information. Thanks for the video
Thanks for watching
Before any recovery the recovery resistance has to be calculated. Rolling resistance is 5% of the weight per axle, Rolling Gravel resistance 15% per axle, non Rolling resistance 60% of axle weight, stuck in mud 50 to 200% ( if mired in mud to the frame). If there is an uphill add 25 % of axle weight at 15 degrees to the axle resistance, ( also transfer 25% uphill axle weight to downhill axle, if a truck is pointed uphill then the steer axle weight is transfered to the drive axle)
Thank you Justin!!
Thank you Justin. I've been pulling out vehicles stuck off road for years. On a normal day I carry a 7/8 kinetic rope, 12k winc, a 1/2 grade 120 chain, and various shackles. 90 percent of the time I use the chain and never apply a shock force. Most of my recoveries can be done with a static pull. I've seen too many people hurt by shock pulls.
Exactly!!!
What a tragedy... RIP Ryan, and keep the message going..... So sad.....
Great information Justin safety has to be paramount. Proper equipment is not much more cost than the wrong equipment. Do it right and go home safe!
Thanks for the informative vid when I’ve had to unbog a stuck 4wd i try to go around the shassie I never use the tow ball have seen to many of them snap and go flying
Great educational video sir, I learned a few important things thanks, sorry about what happened to that poor man ,
Thanks for watching
I never knew this. I haven't taken my Jeep Gladiator off road, but realize I have a lot to learn before going off road.
Great info!
Thank you Sir 🙏🏻
Our condolences to the family. We had a similar incident where the driver got lucky and the "steel projectile" broke while using a snatch strap and went thru the back windshield and right next to the drives headr and then out the front windshield.
Thank you Justin. I didn't know this! I never even thought about it. I'm so sorry that happened to that lady's husband. Again, thank you. I will let everyone I know,know!
thank you! this is exactly the reason for the video!
Being a tow operator we have to look at this on every job, is the equipment rated for the task. If not call in the right equipment. You might unknowingly get close to the wll but never get close or exceed the breaking strength. And if you have a winch use it, far more controlled. With a winch you can move almost everyone out of the way.
strait pulling is different from jerking . the flat strap is for pulling and the bungy is for jerking.
Great video. Thanks for sharing. Not only use the right rated equipment also open the hood for more protection from flying objects. I also shovel the front of the tires to reduce the load when i can.
so actually opening the hood really doesn't help on modern cars. they're usually aluminum and that chunk of steel isn't even going to care that the hood is open. gonna come right through it. best to just stay within the operational limits of the gear.
Thank you for taking the time to do this. Very unfortunate event and freak accident. The more we know the safer we are.
Thank God I watched this video!
Thank you.
Great video, and it's unfortunate it was created due to a Hard lesson resulting in a loss of life.
I don't pull out stuck vehicles because I know the risks, and I don't have proper equipment for the task. Now I feel better informed on what I might need if I wanted to carry recovery gear for emergencies, or how to properly choose equipment.
Thank you for creating this video
People underestimate the importance of proper equipment.
Great video! I also always put a leash on both sides of my gear so that even if it fails, it doesn’t go anywhere.
That's a great idea!
Geezo! That is so unfortunate. I have seen people use tow ball hitches(including long drop hitches) to do recovery on the trail and seriously cringe every time. Now I know why I never liked the idea. A truly tragic outcome.
I don't think you mentioned it but I looks like he used a tow strap and took a run at it (which you should never do), rather than a static pull. Probably had a lot to contribute to the failure (along with that drop hitch)
We always use a kinetic rope for recoveries, rather than a tow strap. Oh, and don't go flying out at 30 mph.
bingo!! i addressed the max speed for a kinetic rope in the facebook post. basically should NEVER exceed 5 MPH on a kinetic rope.
Condolences to the family. What a shame that happened .
Great info. Oddly enough I saw this first on Mad Matt4x4 in Australia, didn’t get location of the incident and just assumed it happened down under. Tragic nonetheless.
From an old man that lost his hand with a circular saw. He said. "Doesn't matter if u been doing it like that for 30 years when it only takes a fraction of a second to go wrong and change your life."
Something I personally do as well is keep my head as low as possible or duck below the windshield if there are excessive forces being used to unstick a vehicle using a hitch, chain, anything questionable. If you are really stuck, you will be able to feel when the truck pops out. Im sure this is obviously not the preferred method but something to add I guess
Valid point there!
Such a tragic story and a huge loss for his family. One point I think you missed was the type of vehicle they were using to go off-road with. A 3/4 ton truck, crew cab diesel is a poor choice. Too heavy, wide and long. It’s probably twice the weight of a Taco or Jeep, so recovery becomes so much more dangerous. Everyone has their preference, but I leave my crew cab Duramax on the pavement and use a tacoma better suited for off-road use. Be safe everyone.
It's not dangerous to wheel fullsize trucks. I wheel the power wagon. You just gotta have the proper gear.
FYI Home Depot chain is rated grade 30, the gold chain 5/16 grade 70 is rated at working load limit 4700 lbs.
Grade 70 is transport chain and only to be used to tie loads down. Grade 30 chain should only be used to chain a gate together but no load put on it, much less overhead lifting. Neither of these grades should ever be used to pull vehicles.
If unsure what grade chain is, grade 70, grade 80. Grade 100 and grade 120 chain will have the grade stamped on every link. Every hook or clevis will also have the grade on it and the WLL.
Sad people clueles about drop hitch and recovery. Slow and steady is safe. Worst thing is try to yank it out. Sad loss. That like 5 pound bullet coming through windshield , wow bent steering wheel before hitting his head /face. Ugly death. People need to learn basic kinetic energy and recovery methods . Great information and this will prevent this from happening to someone. So many off roaders are CLUELESS really
The bolts on the pintle are not in shear, so the failure points is in the threads of the bolt and nut and I have no clue what that would be, depending on diameter and grade of bolt . So you are right, why would you take the chance trying to do the math in your head when they manufacture proper recovery equipment. The next issue would be how is the hitch mounted to the truck because they would be in shear
you're right, i mixed up the words there on that pintle hitch. i didn't even catch that.
@@JustinKingOffroad sorry it’s the engineer/ journeyman in me. Many a times I have struggled trying to solve a customer’s problem, thinking I can’t be this dumb only to realize the description or words used do not match my word choice, and now I have a harder time remembering words in general 😂
@@jcar1417 no worries here! I watched this video a dozen times editing it and never caught it lol!!
The tinsel strength of a bolt is stronger then the sheer strength (something like 1.5-2 times but it depends on the material)
Even if a million people have seen this... more people need to see this. Stay safe
Share it far and wide!
What do you think a $2000.00 winch or $500.00 kinetic rope is worth now to the person that tried to extract Mr. Woods? If you don't want to carry the same burden that person now has to carry for the rest of your life. Spend the damn money for the correct recovery gear or don't attempt the recovery........ it's that simple!
Well done Justin. Thought and prayers to the Woods family.
Can you do a video showing how to use the ropes correctly or correct equipment to pull someone out?
so basically all my recovery videos are pretty much this, except we don't usually narrate the process. i could probably get something done here though!
@@JustinKingOffroad thanks, had No idea about any of this, we just pulled a swather out of mud with a hallow steel hitch, a few weeks ago. All the ratings on our hitches are long past being able to see them anymore, so glad it held! We will make some changes asap. Always pulling something out of somewhere on a ranch. Passing this video along!
I believe on your original video you listed the specific recovery equipment. Could you list it again please? Thank you
I'm sure anyone that's had a near death experience or bad accident, that the brain almost seems to slow down reality and can actually see and process stuff very quickly and the victim likely for split second saw the piece flying at his face. Wow
In my opinion you missed the primary issue in this fatal incident. The primary issue is doing a rolling pull using chain or a non-stretch strap. The incredible forces generated by a fast enough rolling pull with a chain or non-stretch strap will break some component or rip a hitch from a vehicle. The stronger equipment you shared is great and will reduce risk, but no one should do a rolling pull with a chain or non-stretch strap. I have done the math, the potential "impact force" generated in a fast rolling pull can be well above 100,000 lbs if using a chain or non-stretch strap, enough to break much of the equipment you shared or rip a hitch from a vehicle.
It's the drop hitch. Because of the moment (leverage), the tow force gets multiplied and exceeds the tensile strength of the steel receiver. This can be calculated by rearranging the formula, Stress = Mc/I, where M is the moment (pulling load times the drop hitch dimension), c = 1.00 and I =.911 (2 in sq tube, 1/4 wall) for the receiver. Tensile strength of the receiver is 58000 PSI (A500). Solving for P shows that failure occurs at only 5283 lbs of tow force! On the other hand, if the receiver were pulled in straight line with its axis, it would not fail until about 53000 lbs.
Should have used a kinetic rope and hooked to a zero drop ball if you're going to use the receiver.
Thank you for this Justin! Noted, and will never do again. Had my moments where it was definitely scary whether or not something was gonna fly. I do have one question, what do you recommend to do if all I got is a 2in hitch and rope or chain. What’s a safe alternative?
you really should have a 2 inch hitch insert like the factor 55 hitchlink. safe-xtract has a version of it too but they are a bit more expensive. you should never pull with a chain alone. you also need to know the rating of the chain. we use chain a lot, but it's very big grade 70 or higher links that have WLL well above what we're pulling or using it for. if all you have is chain and a hitch, just don't do it man. never. wait for someone else with proper gear. a winch, kinetic strap, something other than chain and hitches.
From my experience, the weak point is not the ball, it’s the curved part before the ball. That part always cracks.
it doesnt matter... dont yank on a ball hitch.
You never hook up to the ball hinch . Always hookup to the frame recovery hooks, and Always try to hook up to the rear of your truck or suv to pull somebody out.
When I see Matt's Offroad Recovery doing this I leave a comment to never pull from the hitch. I always get dumb ass replies about how I am wrong and it's "totally safe".
I know. they are genuinely good people and I watch their videos. But they really do need to stop doing that. It's under $100 for the proper hitch insert.
Lol yeah my dad used a shakel too its pretty think and solid he used it to to tug the 4Runner out the 3ft snow with his 4Runner were talking like 2 4Runners here and aways ways i press the gas pedal all the way to releaf some of the stress on the other car and it went out so easily
Very good advice, but I’m assuming the recovery truck got a running start to “jerk” the stuck vehicle out of the mud? If that is true, is that a sound method even using the correct gear?
If you are using the gear design to do that then yes it's fine. You should never exceed 5 mph doing that though.
Talking hitch pins. You said rated to 40-60k lbs. depending. None I have seen are marked. Why? I buy cheap, i.e. Harbor Freight, Tractor Supply, and Walmart. Are they ok to use? I live miles down a very bumpy dirt road. I have had two pins break on me about 5 years apart. Not sheer, they break in half. A local buddy has confirmed he saw that before too. What is going on do you think? My road, cheap products, or other. I stopped leaving my hitch in when not towing thinking the vibration driving over the dirt road, often washboarded, may have stressed my pin. Any thought?
with that factor55 shackle mount and how it can be rotated to be vertical or horizontal, what are the proper applications for which directions its supposed to be rotated?
it's just the direction you put it in the receiver. if you needed to do a bit of a side pull, i'd go horizontal so you're not side loading the shackle (in a vertical config).
Just trying to help. Put your hood up if your pulling backwards or being pulled frontwards. Hopefully if something snaps. It hits the hood. Hopefully this is helpful to the next person who tows. My condolences to the family.
Thanks for all the information. Do you believe in covering the strap or chain with a blanket or tarp? Does it help? I was taught this would dissipate some force if a breakage occurred. I witnessed a chain break once and came through the windshield, how my friend didn't get injured was a miracle.
Covering the rigging actually doesn't do much at all. We've done a lot of field tests where it just hurls the blanket with the line. Best to stay out of the danger zone.
@@JustinKingOffroad thanks again for helping to reduce injuries or worse. I must upgrade my supplies.
Dang just as I was about to comment on the pin you remembered, thanks. One thing you did not mention is using a tow rope damper, just how effective are they and would it have made a difference in that incident? I know the Australians (4WD 24-7) have done a vid on them on their site but I would like your take on them. Thank you.
typically speaking we don't cover any of our lines because the weight of that little blanket is ineffective at actually doing anything. we've seen in our own tests synthetic line just hurl a jacket/blanket 100+ feet with the rope. you're best to stay inside the limits of the gear and well outside of the snap zones of the lines.
oh and I love watching 4WD 247!! hooked on their epic offroading videos, love the cooking with shawno!
@@JustinKingOffroad Thanks for the reply, I'm sharing this vid and info with others.
@@truthdefenders- thanks a ton it really helps
What about a shackle directly connected to the safety chain loops next to the receiver? Hope that makes sense
hey there! yes i know what you're talking about. basically those are designed to catch the trailer if it came off your truck. if you were pulling on those extremely hard you'd pretty much tear them right off.
@@JustinKingOffroad good point thanks.
it plug to save someone else life. after see all the pictures of the event. i was more shock it hit the steering wheel..
thank you for doing this video
Do you guys offer a class for Weekend worriers like me? I would love to learn the proper way of recovery for when our Jeeps get stuck. So far I think we are doing it right, but would love to take a class so we know we are doing it right.
We do not but our trainer does! Look up "On Trail Training" Matt Balazs is awesome!
Where can I get one of hitch for recovery hitch
Don’t use chains also there not meant to be shock-loaded as there’s no stretch and when they fail they explode. Usually the cranes that use them are gantry cranes in where houses doing machine work. With either air or electric chain fall winches. The big Rigs like Truck cranes crawlers or towers use wire rope.
In that business Safty factor included
Over the working load limit. Its highest when lifting personal which is 10 to 1
If anyone here makes it out to beautiful British Columbia Canada and need a tow reliable towing operates out of most areas of bc and we do offroad recoverys and long hauls and if you have ama bcaa Allstate or any thing like that it may be covered