Short afternoon in the snow

[Smash81]

Karla and I did a quick run up to Yankee Hill with the dogs yesterday.
It's our old stomping grounds, lots of fun stuff up there including some tight ATV trails that we used to run with the Dash.

I have some outstanding first impressions on this run, our first on our own with Rhino.

1. Who shrunk the trails??

I felt like I was driving/riding in a land yacht most of the time as
I am so accustomed to running that area in the Subaru.

2. Mud tires really suck in snow.
I was wishing I had the Winterforces that are on the Subaru!
Was very very nice not to get high centered constantly though.
I see a set of chains in our very near future.
4 for sure, to keep that fat *** in line.

Drive up was awesome as always.
I love this crest on I-70 on your way out of town.
The buffalo were out in force as well.

Those who have followed Dash's forays, will recognize this spot!
Looked nice and big with the Forester in this spot, now, not so much!

Got up this steep hill to the turn, but the turn proved to be a little difficult because of the deep snow and the mud tires not wanting to grip.
As we were along with no winch, we opted to come back down to safer ground.

Turning around requires some serious room!
Or.... Just go vertical.

 

[Smash81]

Some random shots...

Karla took the wheel next on the way back down.
She really enjoyed the low range.
Talk about making life easier and much less complicated going downhill!

Next we played with the long wheelbase....

Really just to get this shot!

 

[Smash81]

 

[Smash81]

All in all a really nice afternoon. We didn't want to push things (I didn't even air down), just wanted to get the dogs out and go play in the snow. Definitely a learning experience attempting to control the back end of something this long in the deep, narrow tippy sections. We will for sure be investing in a set of 4 chains to help with this situation, especially since right now we don't have and can't afford a winch. With chains, we had no doubt that we could have gone further.

We had a blast laughing at ourselves and taking silly pictures. We are both learning the dimensions of the truck as we go along, although the overhangs still have us a bit stumped. We tend to underestimate what the truck can handle, which I guess is better than vice versa! We are both alternating driving and spotting so we can switch roles at any time on more difficult trails.

 

[mr turbo]

Great pics Smash81, you really know how to have fun.

Regards
Mr Turbo

 

[carljwnc]

Nice day out!!!:biggrin: Looks like the Rhino handled it incredibly well. How is the learning curve going small to extra large?

 

[Smash81]

Great pics Smash81, you really know how to have fun.

Regards
Mr Turbo

Life is short! Make the most of it. :biggrin:

Nice day out!!!:biggrin: Looks like the Rhino handled it incredibly well. How is the learning curve going small to extra large?

So far? Uh..... interesting? It's the first time we've had Rhino out on a trail. Man everything looked tiny! Our butts were definitely puckered shut on the way up the hills in the deep snow with ruts on both sides and the rear end wanting to swing around! We're starting to understand the dimensions, the overhangs still baffle me. I understand where the diffs are, but will probably be using karla as a spotter for a while longer until I really learn how low they are. Once we drove around for a bit we both commented that we were getting used to the wheelbase rather quickly.