A few simple rules of thumb and a cavernous rut can be your friend, rather than your enemy. Ruts will be encountered on slopes due to water run-off and erosion. The soil type and terrain differences will determine the size and severity of ruts. However one thing will remain constant; you will have to tackle ruts at some stage…this is how.
UP HILL
Gravity sucks and so when heading uphill, anything that restricts progress is to be avoided. As such, our approach to almost all ruts when heading high is to straddle where possible. If a rut isn’t too wide to fit between the wheels of your 4WD then try to keep the rut under your rig for as long as possible. Although daunting, even the deepest, gnarliest rut will be utter insignificant if you can straddle it. To be aware of at all times is the possibility of slipping into the rut and the consequences of doing so. If you are in doubt, a spotter out front is extremely valuable in making sure your wheel placement is as close to the edge as possible without slipping in.
DOWN HILL
When tackling ruts on steep down hill sections of track, the rules can change slightly. Again, where possible the best tactic is to try and avoid the rut altogether by straddling it, however this may not be possible and when so, the complete opposite approach may just save your bacon. By actually driving in the ruts they can act as guides, keeping your 4WD in a straight line. This can be especially useful on slippery, clay or mud surfaces where traction is hard to find.
CROSSING RUTS
At some point you will have to cross a rut and doing so can be especially tricky. Our rule when it comes to negotiating a rut crossing is to do so with your 4WD on an angle, effectively making sure the rut is tackled one wheel at a time. This allows your rig to achieve maximum articulation and helps decrease the risk of bottoming out due to approach or departure angles and also minimises getting hung up due to ramp over angles.