Although certain kinds
of ATVs are setup for pushing through deep mud, the technique for
getting to the other side remains the same. When crossing obstacles
like mud, the biggest risk is getting stuck, which means coming to a
stop. Because of this, speed is your friend, although you can hit a
mud hole too quickly. However, hitting the mud with speed will
usually give you the momentum to slide over the mud hole and out the
other side even if your tires won’t grip much.
In some cases, you
may want to keep at least one tire on solid terrain, if possible, so
that your quad has something it can grip. You can do this by
straddling the ruts and staying on the high ground, or by leaving one
tire out of the mud. However, if the mud hole is too deep, you may
tip your ATV over into the mud.
Some say that you
should stand on your pegs when entering a mud pit so that you are
more ready to respond to the uneven terrain. However, keep in mind
that you may meet a lot of resistance when you hit the mud, causing
you to come to a near-stop very abruptly. If you are standing when
this happens, you might go for a dive in the mud. Although standing
up may work for some people, you need to be comfortable and balanced
enough to be prepared to unseen rocks and roots in the mud, as well
as the possibility of a nose dive, or suddenly catching traction with
the throttle wide open.
One mistake that many
new riders make is giving their ATV too much gas once they start to
lose traction. Once the mud starts to fly, more gas is not always
the solution, since flying mud means that your tires aren’t
gripping anything solid. Sometimes a tire that is spinning a little
slower will grab onto something that it would just grind against with
more throttle. This is especially true if you come to a complete
stop in the mud. When getting your quad moving again, easy does it,
since too much gas means nothing but slinging mud. However, to get
out of most spots after coming to a stop, some wheel spin is
necessary, but more wheel speed usually doesn’t mean more traction.
When you get into the
mud, keep in mind that the tires with the most weight over them will
be the most likely to get traction. So, if your quad is two wheel
drive, you will want to keep some of your weight over the back axle,
which will drive those rear tires through the slippery mud on the
surface and down to something it can grab. Shifting your weight side
to side can also help one of your tires get the traction it needs to
pull you out of the mud.
Four wheel drive makes
short work of a lot of mud that gives two wheel drive quads a lot of
trouble, but four wheel drive is by no means an end-all solution for
deep mud. Some mud pits may be entirely too deep for a stock setup,
and a snorkel kit and exhaust extension may be needed just to ensure
that your engine doesn’t suck in a bunch of mud and debris. For
mud this extreme, four wheel drive is a necessity, and a set of
aftermarket tires with a more aggressive pattern will also help pull
you out of the mud.
No matter what kind of
ATV you take through the mud, keep in mind that you may only have one
shot at getting through without getting a tow. The more you know
about the particular mud hole, the better, but an experienced rider
can tell a lot about a mud pit by its looks and how soft the rest of
the trail is. However, a hole you can get through one day may
swallow your quad after a good rain or may change drastically after
other people have ridden through. The key to conquering mud is
keeping cool and having several ways to get your tires to grip
instead of slip.
No comments:
Post a Comment