Perfecting Your Off Road Driving Skills - Practice Makes Perfect

If You Think Back To The First Time You Sat Behind The steering wheel of a four-wheel-drive, maybe you can recall the excitement of your first adventure, how you became hooked, and how you thought about perfecting your off-highway driving skills. Perhaps your four-wheel aspirations weren't about conquering the toughest rockcrawling trails or wheeling up the tallest peaks; maybe they were just about being able to explore the backcountry with confidence and skill, knowing that if you found yourself in a tough situation you would have the ability to skillfully and successfully negotiate your way out of it.

Whatever hobby or sport we consider our passion, there was a point in time when we knew very little about it, and for some of us, four-wheeling was that sport.

Anyone can get in a truck and drive, but do they know how to read the terrain ahead of them, and will they know how to react and handle the vehicle and its suspension when it's placed in precarious or dangerous positions? Do they know how to safely spot another driver over an obstacle? Reading a vehicle and terrain at the same time is a skill that's learned from hands-on experience. Basic driving skills are used on the trail, but many factors of automotive physics need to be addressed and there are literally hundreds of other things to consider when driving off highway, such as knowing when it's appropriate to clutch, brake, and accelerate.

Wheeling doesn't always have to be extreme and hard-core, and the staff here at 4-Wheel & Off-Road is always looking for trail time of any form, so when the opportunity to ride along on a rock training clinic for novice four-wheelers popped up, we jumped at the chance. Tom Severin, president of Badlands Off-Road Adventures, holds training clinics and overl and adventure outings around California and the Western U.S. Severin is certified by the International 4-Wheel Drive Trainers Association and is a professional 4WD off-road training instructor with more than 40 years of experience. To top off his credentials, he's an easygoing, nice guy and a fun person to hang out with on the trail.

Learning the physics and mechanics...        read full caption Learning the physics and mechanics of a four-wheel-drive vehicle and its suspension takes experience and lots of seat time. This isn't something you can learn from reading a book-you need to be able to feel the vehicle to successfully negotiate tough terrain. Choosing the proper line over an obstacle takes practice-a line is the path through, around, or over an obstacle on the trail. Choosing the path of least resistance usually works best unless you are trying to damage your vehicle.	Spotting a driver while they...        read full caption Spotting a driver while they negotiate an obstacle helps tremendously. From the driver seat, it's difficult to see the tire position and the lowest points of the vehicle's undercarriage. If you are spotting, make sure you stand in full view of the driver, and remember they could be depending on you in a situation in which components could easily be broken and the vehicle could be left stranded, or worse, personal injury could occur.	In some situations one of...        read full caption In some situations one of the basic rules of wheeling rocks is don't accelerate quickly and spin the tires. When the tires are spun, traction and control are lost. First- and low-gear crawling keeps the tire's contact patch gripping the terrain. Spinning the tires also leads to bouncing the vehicle which should be avoided at all costs. Bouncing almost always breaks parts.
If you're unfamiliar with...        read full caption If you're unfamiliar with an obstacle, don't be shy-get out and walk it. This is the great benefit of instructional driving courses: a good trainer like Severin will walk the trail and obstacles with his students. This way he can teach them firsthand what to expect, where to place the vehicle's tires, and how the vehicle is going to respond and react to challenging terrain.	Off-highway lessons should...        read full caption Off-highway lessons should always include instruction on properly and safely using recovery equipment. Winching can be extremely dangerous, and serious injury or death can occur if proper usage isn't observed and care taken. Don't stand next to the cable or line while winching, and make sure everyone else has cleared the areas around the vehicles.	Good four-wheeling can quickly...        read full caption Good four-wheeling can quickly go bad. If this FJ were to slide an inch or two to the driver side, an expensive repair could be in order. In situations like this, knowing when to accelerate, brake, and turn the steering wheel is critical. When driving with an automatic transmission, it helps to brake with the left foot and accelerate with the right. This two-footed technique alleviates the delay between switching pedals and could prevent the vehicle from rolling back into the rocks.
Staying on the rocks around...        read full caption Staying on the rocks around holes keeps the differentials and lower points of the chassis from getting hung up. This also keeps the wheels from getting trapped in a crevasse or deep holes. Look under your 4x4 first and remember what side your differential is on and where things like oil pans and driveshafts are. If there is a vehicle ahead of you, watch the line it takes and adjust your line according to what the other driver may have done right or wrong.	The two rocks in the center...        read full caption The two rocks in the center of the trail are definitely a diff-stopper. By staying on top of the rocks, this Jeep easily makes it through this tight notch without becoming hung up. Picking a good line through squeezes like this also keeps the side of this vehicle from sliding into the rocks. Memorize the size of obstacles and what will clear the lowest points of the undercarriage without hitting or hanging up, and place smaller rocks between the differential and wheel.	This little waterfall may...        read full caption This little waterfall may look extreme to some novices and easy to others. Longer-wheelbase vehicles offer more stability in situations like this, while shorter-wheelbase vehicles may have a tendency to flip forward or stand on their nose. The key to negotiating a steep downward obstacle with a short-wheelbased vehicle is not panicking and hitting the brakes. If you feel the rear of the vehicle starting to flip forward, it's time to make a split second decision. You can let the vehicle roll forward and out of the situation or you may need to tap the throttle for some additional forward momentum from the front wheels pulling you.