You cant park there mate

[macafee2]

Driver was out and on the phone. Not sure if ditch collapsed or he misjudged it and drove into it or ground just sunk.


macafee2

[roverbarmy]

It happens a lot here in rural Norfolk. Pull over to check the map or take a phone call and whoops, your nearside wheels disappear into a grown over ditch!


Many inexperienced youngsters have clipped the soggy nearside (none existant) "kerb", the wheel has dug in, pulled the steering wheel hard over left, the tail end swings out, then the car rolls several times, often ending up in the middle of a muddy field. Some with tragic loss of multiple lives!


Take care in the countryside.

[torque2me]

Originally Posted by macafee2

Driver was out and on the phone. Not sure if ditch collapsed or he misjudged it and drove into it or ground just sunk.

macafee2

A very similar event happened to me a month ago. It was pitch black with light drizzle. I took a wrong turn and quickly realised my error. Looked for a suitable turn point as the road was single carriageway. Saw a whitish track to my left (sign of compacted limestone) and decided this was the one for me!

Reversed onto it, back wheels dropped down and then the front ones. Rear wheels would not grip (even with TC) but rear slid onto sodden turf. Could not reverse and could not go forward. Reason for not being able to proceed forward?

Well, those wheel drops had placed me in a recently scoured gully made by excessive water due to the heavy rains, The created void was about 10 inches deep and the width was 18 inches. How do I know? The front wheel is 18 inches and the vehicle could not immediately climb the 10 inches either going forward or in reverse.

Who would have thought it?

Kev

[macafee2]

Originally Posted by torque2me

A very similar event happened to me a month ago. It was pitch black with light drizzle. I took a wrong turn and quickly realised my error. Looked for a suitable turn point as the road was single carriageway. Saw a whitish track to my left (sign of compacted limestone) and decided this was the one for me!

Reversed onto it, back wheels dropped down and then the front ones. Rear wheels would not grip (even with TC) but rear slid onto sodden turf. Could not reverse and could not go forward. Reason for not being able to proceed forward?

Well, those wheel drops had placed me in a recently scoured gully made by excessive water due to the heavy rains, The created void was about 10 inches deep and the width was 18 inches. How do I know? The front wheel is 18 inches and the vehicle could not immediately climb the 10 inches either going forward or in reverse.

Who would have thought it?

Kev

I bet that was a bit of a shock
How did you get out?

macafee2

[torque2me]

Originally Posted by macafee2

I bet that was a bit of a shock
How did you get out?

macafee2

Believe it or not a chap in a very upmarket Range Rover came along. Flagged him down and asked for assistance/push. Nada, the bonnet was too low down to get a grip. He put me up in one of the two hotels he owned and arranged for his "handyman" to take me back to the scene first thing in the morning. Pulled it out in reverse but his van struggled ;-)

A top drawer bloke and his partner. I'm gonna have to thaw out a bit and be less bitter now in life.
Kev

[mileshawk56]

what a nice man! Chris.S.

[Gate Keeper]

Sorry Torque2me for your experience. A happy ending for you.

A similar thing happened to us in a National Game Reserve in Kenya.

Our 4x4 was not dangling over a ditch, it was dangling precariously one side over a chasm and river in an area off road and off the beaten track. I was driving near an edge obscured by long grass.

Drivers front and rear wheels were not touching the ground and had no grip. We were stuffed!

That day it was terribly hot, about 40C and the surrounding bush was thick with gorse and dense shrubs and trees,

The problem with sweating profusely in the heat of the day, is the body scent can be picked up in the wind by predators such as lions and other dangerous wildlife, so we didn’t want any animal coming to investigate us. In Kenya it’s not uncommon for people walking in the bush to be eaten or killed.

The phone signal wasn’t that good, a blind spot for a voice phone call, but we managed to send a text message and pin location on what’s app to a relative.

She alerted the KWS, the Kenya Wildlife Service as to where we were…..we were told to stay where we were until help arrived.

It took 3 hours for a KWS tractor to reach us and pull us to safety. That was a frightening experience. The tractor driver was very kind and understanding, I gave him a big gratuity, which made his day even better.

I learned never to drive near a verge again. We also learned to take extra food, water and not to drive in areas off road where other cars do not go.

[torque2me]

Originally Posted by Gate Keeper

Sorry Torque2me for your experience. A happy ending for you.

A similar thing happened to us in a National Game Reserve in Kenya.

Our 4x4 was not dangling over a ditch, it was dangling precariously one side over a chasm and river in an area off road and off the beaten track. I was driving near an edge obscured by long grass.

Drivers front and rear wheels were not touching the ground and had no grip. We were stuffed!

That day it was terribly hot, about 40C and the surrounding bush was thick with gorse and dense shrubs and trees,

The problem with sweating profusely in the heat of the day, is the body scent can be picked up in the wind by predators such as lions and other dangerous wildlife, so we didn’t want any animal coming to investigate us. In Kenya it’s not uncommon for people walking in the bush to be eaten or killed.

The phone signal wasn’t that good, a blind spot for a voice phone call, but we managed to send a text message and pin location on what’s app to a relative.

She alerted the KWS, the Kenya Wildlife Service as to where we were…..we were told to stay where we were until help arrived.

It took 3 hours for a KWS tractor to reach us and pull us to safety. That was a frightening experience. The tractor driver was very kind and understanding, I gave him a big gratuity, which made his day even better.

I learned never to drive near a verge again. We also learned to take extra food, water and not to drive in areas off road where other cars do not go.

It's always easier not to be a chump when the obstacle/danger is able to be seen. At least I had no wildlife issues just -6 degC temps to contend with but by gum that hotel room was nice and warm and the beer spot on.
Kev

[Gate Keeper]

Originally Posted by torque2me

It's always easier not to be a chump when the obstacle/danger is able to be seen. At least I had no wildlife issues just -6 degC temps to contend with but by gum that hotel room was nice and warm and the beer spot on.
Kev

You are right.

I told my wife your story and how the gentleman in the posh Range Rover who owned the hotels came to your rescue, which showed the good and kindness in some people. Thank you for sharing that with us.