Just like range anxiety is keeping some people from buying electric cars, the thought of being stranded in the middle of nowhere is probably why others haven't tried their hand at off-roading.
These days, the danger of getting genuinely isolated and having to walk for miles before reaching civilization, fending off coyotes and mountain lions in the process, are much lower thanks to the existence of marked trails and, just as importantly, mobile phones. Still, that doesn't mean the activity is completely peril-free, as this thrilling video will demonstrate in abundance.
The scenario is as follows: a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon JKU on what appears to be a set of 37s, not to mention other modifications that make even more off-road-worthy (bumper, winch, aftermarket fenders, lift kit) got stranded at the bottom (where else?) of the Hog Canyon trail in Utah. Not stuck, stranded, and that's because its engine went completely dead.
The task of pulling it out somewhere a mechanic could work on with all the tools they might need fell to Matt of Matt's Off Road Recovery team. Realizing this was going to be a mammoth undertaking, Matt decided to call his friend Paul, who brought a 1982 GMC Sierra turned into a full-on recovery truck. Don't be fooled by its looks (it reminds us of Cars' Mater, mainly because they both serve the same role and look rusty as hell) because that thing turns out to be a beast.
Matt himself came with a 1990s heavily modified Jeep Cherokee (it arrived on a trailer, which tells you everything you need to know) and met at the site with another Cherokee with similar trail-blazing potential. It's only fitting to see the classic, more experience models rescue the young one out of the tricky situation it got itself in.
The first job is to turn the Wrangler around so Paul's Sierra could pick it up. Simple enough, but the scenery around doesn't make it easy. It takes them twenty minutes to do just that, with steering the dead Wrangler proving to be an exhausting task. Those massive and deflated tires and no power steering don't make for a great combination.
However, they were soon about to find out that was actually the easy part, they just didn't know it yet. Maneuvering around a rocky narrow trail with a two-vehicle rig is as difficult as it sounds, and the operation almost inevitably ends with a few dents (13:49). But considering the risks involved, everyone involved should give themselves a pat on the back.
"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie) Full profile
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