My first Green Laning run
Discussion
Hi all, I went out for my first Green Laning run today, with a couple of chaps from a local off road club. 
We did about a dozen lanes, and it was really good to start to learn when to use what gears etc. We saw some deep rutted sections, and a splash or two! You guessed it though, inexperience on my part led to this:-
Oh well, all part of the learning process. Must got my tow bar removed!!
We did about a dozen lanes, and it was really good to start to learn when to use what gears etc. We saw some deep rutted sections, and a splash or two! You guessed it though, inexperience on my part led to this:-
Oh well, all part of the learning process. Must got my tow bar removed!!
Edited by eltax91 on Saturday 1st May 20:16
Quinny said:
Its when your in the middle of nowhere, and on your own, and somthing like that happens
Been there, done that, one of the worst bits was when I crouched in the river trying (vainly) to put branches under the wheel and realised my mobile phone was in my pocket a foot underwater so I had knacked that too.Creative is not the word.
f
k bd ing wk is the word.Quinny said:
Great fun
Its when your in the middle of nowhere, and on your own, and somthing like that happens
Thats when you have to get creative
Yeah! I don't think I'm brave enough to go out alone, well, not proficient enough yet. I've got a mate visiting next Sat, and think I'm going to repeat the lanes! Hopefully I can find someone near Leicester to come with me or I might have to get creative. Its when your in the middle of nowhere, and on your own, and somthing like that happens
Thats when you have to get creative
might be worth getting some training- its a bit of a trek but have a look at www.4x4adventures.co.uk
I'd stick 235/85s on the disco & hack the rear arches like the camels had to run 7.50s. Disco axles are too near the floor with the smaller tyres. Most ruts on lanes tend to be deep enough to just drag diffs with defender size tyres - disco wheels will be off the floor at that point.
Nice photo and looks like a comfortable laning car.
It is well worth learning to straddle the ruts - if you can't feel what the tyres are doing with the traction available it doesn't matter how big your tyres are you WILL get stuck.
Learn to drive what you have first before spending too much money "improving" it!
100SRV
It is well worth learning to straddle the ruts - if you can't feel what the tyres are doing with the traction available it doesn't matter how big your tyres are you WILL get stuck.
Learn to drive what you have first before spending too much money "improving" it!
100SRV
100SRV said:
Nice photo and looks like a comfortable laning car.
It is well worth learning to straddle the ruts - if you can't feel what the tyres are doing with the traction available it doesn't matter how big your tyres are you WILL get stuck.
Learn to drive what you have first before spending too much money "improving" it!
100SRV
Absolutely! After beaching in the same ruts twice I started to straddle the deeper stuff. Interesting to take a different line to others and more challenging than just letting the tyres follow the ruts to be honest.It is well worth learning to straddle the ruts - if you can't feel what the tyres are doing with the traction available it doesn't matter how big your tyres are you WILL get stuck.
Learn to drive what you have first before spending too much money "improving" it!
100SRV
eltax91 said:
100SRV said:
Nice photo and looks like a comfortable laning car.
It is well worth learning to straddle the ruts - if you can't feel what the tyres are doing with the traction available it doesn't matter how big your tyres are you WILL get stuck.
Learn to drive what you have first before spending too much money "improving" it!
100SRV
Absolutely! After beaching in the same ruts twice I started to straddle the deeper stuff. Interesting to take a different line to others and more challenging than just letting the tyres follow the ruts to be honest.It is well worth learning to straddle the ruts - if you can't feel what the tyres are doing with the traction available it doesn't matter how big your tyres are you WILL get stuck.
Learn to drive what you have first before spending too much money "improving" it!
100SRV
Hooli said:
eltax91 said:
100SRV said:
Nice photo and looks like a comfortable laning car.
It is well worth learning to straddle the ruts - if you can't feel what the tyres are doing with the traction available it doesn't matter how big your tyres are you WILL get stuck.
Learn to drive what you have first before spending too much money "improving" it!
100SRV
Absolutely! After beaching in the same ruts twice I started to straddle the deeper stuff. Interesting to take a different line to others and more challenging than just letting the tyres follow the ruts to be honest.It is well worth learning to straddle the ruts - if you can't feel what the tyres are doing with the traction available it doesn't matter how big your tyres are you WILL get stuck.
Learn to drive what you have first before spending too much money "improving" it!
100SRV
The point I'm trying to make is that you have to ask whether it is reasonable to try and use a lane that is badly rutted to require 35" tyres or whether you should try and attempt a repair first to allow passage on sensibly-sized tyres - it is green laning, not the camel trophy! A bit of work with a mattock and shovel by you and your laning colleagues will quickly allow passage by reasonable sized tyres and make life easier for all users - maintenance as you go I suppose - stop it getting worse or go elsewhere.
Further on from this point it is my firm belief that an ideal laning car should look like it belongs on the road but has got muddy and found slightly larger tyres - save the "competition" or "challenge" style look for off-road sites. If the car you are using blends in with local traffic it draws less attention and less contention. In that respect a Discovery on larger tyres (but otherwise appearing stock) is ideal - the choice of many to get around so it doesn't deserve a second glance by the casual observer.
All good points I accept. It's been a few years since I had a 4x4 but considering it again so looking back in to see how things have changed.
I'm trying to think of the lane that'd be a perfect example of one needing bigger tyres while ok to drive. I think it was High Button & lead up to the Devil's Punchbowl. It had some fairly massive cross axles combined with ruts on the way up. The ground that flexi plastic mesh dug into it so the ruts didn't get any worse, but it wasnt levelled before that was done.
The lane leads through a SSSI which had a problem with people going 'off-piste' in places leading to Plod surveillance. Indeed I got a producer halfway up it once when rolling back off a crossaxle with a little too much power on I snapped the rear prop & bent the radius arms. I'd almost climbed out so was throttling up for that & then rolled back the foot or so to the other side. Plod had been watching from up the hill, had a nice chat, said we had done nothing wrong but general policy was to give producers to everyone using the lane as they believed a lot of the damage was illegal bikes.
To get up that lane easily you needed 32-33" & at least a rear locker or massive articulation.
I'm trying to think of the lane that'd be a perfect example of one needing bigger tyres while ok to drive. I think it was High Button & lead up to the Devil's Punchbowl. It had some fairly massive cross axles combined with ruts on the way up. The ground that flexi plastic mesh dug into it so the ruts didn't get any worse, but it wasnt levelled before that was done.
The lane leads through a SSSI which had a problem with people going 'off-piste' in places leading to Plod surveillance. Indeed I got a producer halfway up it once when rolling back off a crossaxle with a little too much power on I snapped the rear prop & bent the radius arms. I'd almost climbed out so was throttling up for that & then rolled back the foot or so to the other side. Plod had been watching from up the hill, had a nice chat, said we had done nothing wrong but general policy was to give producers to everyone using the lane as they believed a lot of the damage was illegal bikes.
To get up that lane easily you needed 32-33" & at least a rear locker or massive articulation.
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