Don’t Let Roadblocks Stop Your Off-Roading Adventure

The WON welcomes Morgan Rogue to TeamWON. Morgan is a freelance writer who lives and breathes all things Texas. She especially loves off-roading in her Jeep. With this new column, Armed Rogue, she takes us out there, on adventures in the wild parts of our country. In her debut column, she tries a trusty barricade kit from the column’s sponsor, Extreme Terrain. ~The Editors

As a Jeep owner, I live for not taking the beaten path. Paths that take you high into the mountains and show you views you’ve never dreamed of. The Jeep life allows our family not only to explore places that we never would have otherwise, but also to create new friendships with those who share our interest for exploring the outdoors in a 4×4.

Armed Rogue is sponsored by Extreme Terrain

When exploring unknown places, it’s imperative to be prepared for the unexpected. Our Jeep is filled with different kits and items that help us handle any situation. We have a tool kit, specific to our Jeep, in case of breakdowns, whether our own or someone else’s. We have a first aid kit in case of injuries. We have extra food, water, toilet paper and much more. We’ve had occasion to use every single kit or item in our Jeep at least once, if not more.

These items are especially important for off-roading trips. When you’re venturing into the middle of nowhere, regardless of if you have a vehicle or not, you need to be prepared.

 

When we were in Colorado with a group of Jeepers, we encountered some snow that our fearless leader, Shane, attempted to pass through first. It looked suspicious, so we didn’t want to all go barreling in without knowing if it was passable. It wasn’t, and Shane’s Jeep got stuck.

It was a good thing we didn’t follow, so we could help hoist him out. It took a team effort of all five Jeeps in our group. We were right behind Shane’s Jeep and had a winch that would reach, but our winch alone wasn’t enough. It took some time, as well as tools that other Jeepers had, and a collaborative effort to finally get him out.

The time we spent extracting him would have been drastically reduced if we’d had the Barricade Recovery Kit from Extreme Terrain.  

 

We tried for a while to simply get him out with our winch, but it wasn’t effective. We needed an anchor point; one of the other Jeeps in the group climbed up the other side of the hill and parked there to do that. That Jeep didn’t have a winch, but we did. What we didn’t have was the other tools needed to use his Jeep as an anchor point. Luckily, some other members of our convoy did.

This Barricade Recovery Kit includes a couple of those crucial items. The first item is the shackle, which we attached to a D ring on the anchor Jeep’s bumper. The second was a snatch hook, which attached to the shackle that was attached to the D ring. The winch crossed through the snatch hook and over to Shane’s Jeep. We pressed a button that told our winch to pull, and voilà—he was free!

It was that additional anchor point, along with those tools and the winch, that helped free Shane’s Jeep from the snow. Had we already had the Barricade Recovery Kit, we would have had him out in no time.

Luckily, it all worked out; while we weren’t fully prepared on our own, as a group we had the goods. After that experience, you better believe we learned some lessons, and are even better prepared now.

Not only is the Barricade Recovery Kit excellent in situations where we need to help others, it’s also effective in getting yourself out of trouble when you’re wheeling alone.

If you’re alone and you get stuck, you can use the gloves, strap, shackle and snatch block. Put your gloves on, tie the strap around a tree, attach the shackle and snatch block to the strap, and feed your winch line through the snatch block.

The tree is now your anchor point, and you can begin to pull yourself out. Depending on the severity of the situation, you should free yourself in little time. Take it slow and make sure everything is done correctly. Getting stuck is stressful, but having this kit close at hand removes a lot of that stress.

 

If you run into a roadblock, in order to use your winch to pull the obstruction out of the way, you’ll need the gloves, drag chain, strap, shackle and snatch block.

 

Put your gloves on, wrap the strap around a nearby tree, and attach the shackle and snatch block to the strap, along with your winch line—just like you did when you were stuck.

 

Tie the drag chain around the object. Make sure it’s nice and snug, then hook the end of the winch line to the drag chain. Take your time and slowly wind the winch taut to pull the obstruction slowly out of the way.

 

With this kit, you’ll be out of any sticky situation in moments.

 

This kit is extremely easy to use, I was able to do everything by myself. Everything is high quality and it’s much more affordable than kits from competitors. MSRP: $132.24.

I have one minor complaint: The kit has a one-size-fits-all type of glove, which is standard in these types of kits. These gloves swallowed my hands and made some of the tasks a bit difficult. Despite that, I’d rather be using super-large gloves than no gloves at all. But if the included gloves don’t fit you, you might want to find an extra set that does.

Overall, this kit has found a new home in the back of our Jeep. We’re confident in its ability to help get us out of any situation we encounter as we climb mountains.

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  About Morgan Rogue

  Morgan lives in Texas with her husband, daughters and 2 dogs. She spends most of her time getting outdoors with her daughters, prepping for emergencies and disasters and teaching others how to be prepared. She also enjoys archery, hunting, fishing, firearms, hiking, camping, HAM, Jeeps and generally getting out and exploring life through epic adventures! View all posts by Morgan Rogue →