- Floatation is the key word when it comes to getting
to where you want to be when that place is in the sand.
Any tire will work better in sand if its floatation is
improved. The best way to do this is by letting the air
out of it. Not all the air, just some of it. Take it in
steps. With ATV tires I would consider a step to be no
more than 1 psi at a time - 1/10th of that for racing
purposes. Street vehicles seem to do well when the air in
their tires is let out to about 1/2 of what they run on
the asphalt. I drove my Ford Taurus in more sand than I
thought could be possible with a street car last year
when running 20 psi in the front tires and 17 in the
rear. When I take the RV there, I let the pressure of the
air in the dual rear tires down to 25 psi (from 70) and
it turns it into a bulldozer. It is necessary to air down
the front for steering purposes as well because it grabs
so much traction it just wants to push the front - even
at chugging speeds. I never go past the sand with this
little air in them.
-
- There is this section of soft sand that people seem
to have a problem with that's near where we usually camp.
It's so entertaining that we often set up chairs to watch
the action - so many vehicles get stuck, it's like
watching a fire - enthralling. Everyone has their own
ideas about how to get through it. I heard a couple of
people talking about pouring concrete there so they
wouldn't have to deal with it. A few others thought it
would be a good idea to bring along a small tractor with
a blade on the front to push the soft sand out of the
way. I thought I had seen everything until last year when
someone showed up with a 900 ft. long tow rope (actual
footage) that would be used to drag people from the good
sand through the bad stuff and into the good stuff again.
This section of sand was measured carefully. It was
determined that a tow rope that long could start out on
good ground, tow a vehicle that was stuck in the soft
stuff and not get stuck itself because of its long
length. We watched as a heavily built 4 WD pickup (with
$5000 into locking axles I was told) worked its magic
upon the stuck vehicles in their party. As great as the
sounds were that were coming out of that engine, it was a
joke to watch the technique they were using. With the
amount of stretch that strap would show, I knew I would
feel bad for anyone that would get hit by it if it ever
let go. Like the tow rope behind a boat when a skier
falls or lets go, it only takes getting hit by it once
before an idea comes to mind - they use safety nets there
now.
-
- Every time a new vehicle tried to get through it we
would go over to them and ask if they had aired the tires
down. The answers we got was that it shouldn't be
necessary. Well, I agree. It shouldn't be necessary, but
it is necessary. Because every year - and that time
included, we air down our RV's tires and we could drive
it across the soft section of the sand they were having
trouble with - towing a trailer (we would air it down
too). I asked how much the 900 ft. tow strap cost them -
I got back several laughs, a few rolling eyes (like if
you have to ask you can't afford one) and a general lack
of respect. Apparently it was several hundred dollars and
I should have known that. I asked why they don't just air
down the RV tires and drive through it... they replied
that they had no way to air them up again. I told them
perhaps they should have bought a $100 compressor instead
- they laughed at me. We left them alone, sat in our
chairs drank margaritas and watched the entertainment.
When we were ready to leave we drove out of our spot with
the same amount of air we drove in with. When we reached
the hard pack we fired up the compressor and aired up the
tires.
-
- When people get stuck in sand I'll offer up a couple
of suggestions to see what's been done and where they're
at in their thinking. I'll help them air down the tires
and offer to air them up again if they need. I'll offer a
real shovel to get them up off their knees. I'll do this
because I don't want to help them unload a trailer then
unhook it because its not helping. I don't want to dig it
out either and I don't want to carry water or pour
concrete. I want to be helpful but I can't be if none of
the suggestions I offer are taken seriously. There was a
time when I learned about sand - to drive through it I
must drive on top of it. To drive on top of it I must
float the tires on its surface. To float the tires on its
surface I had to let some air out of them. Perhaps there
is confusion when people say they need to drive through
some sand - maybe its a matter of semantics. From now on
I'm not going to say that I'm going to "drive through the
sand" to get somewhere. Instead I going to start saying
I'm going to "drive on the sand" to go places. Maybe the
wording will translate into better thinking.
-
- Rick
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