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Date:   Wed, 22 Dec 2004 19:33:36 -0800
Reply-To:   mark drillock <drillock@EARTHLINK.NET>
Sender:   Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:   mark drillock <drillock@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject:   Re: If stuck in snow pull tab to open (gotta see this)
In-Reply-To:   <001c01c4e896$b2722520$640fa8c0@ttower17def>
Content-Type:   text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

Years ago in my wilder days some of my VW bus driving buddies and I took off in our buses the day after Christmas for a remote mountain camping area just north of Los Angeles. Being an impromptu affair we just threw some adult beverages, some girls, blankets, and so on into the backs and headed out. We got there after dark, 20 miles of abandoned paved road and then 5 miles of dirt to a place we called "party peak", named after many fun VW adventures camping there. Right as we arrived a brief ice storm hit and we holed up in our vans until it ended. Everything outside was white with a crust and being from LA we did not have the warm clothing needed to be comfortable, to say the least. We spent the whole night throwing gasoline on piles of fallen wet branches, desperate for a little warmth, waiting for first light so we could drive back down out of the mountains. When it was light enough to leave we headed down the dirt road, coming to a steep section of one lane switchbacks. Man those old buses were impressive off road. Halfway down we came to a couple of 4x4 pickups blocking the road trying to get one of their trucks unstuck. They were also leaving due to the ice storm but one of them had slid sideways into a deep rut. They were clearly annoyed to see a pack of VWs driving down the frozen road almost like it was nothing. Since we could not pass we all got out to watch as they hooked up a tow strap. They looped it over the bumper and then down to the front suspension, putting the hook onto a tie rod of all things. They did not seem to want any input from the VW hippies so we just stood back and smiled. The lead truck put it in gear and gave it gas. One end of the bumper popped right off the stuck truck but he kept gassing it, not getting anywhere with his tires spinning on the icy slush. Suddenly the tie rod broke off and he slid off the road on the downhill side. That gave us the opening we needed so we piled back in and drove through the carnage, laughing our heads off.

Mark

Doug in Calif wrote:

>Sudhir, >Oh, well, I had never seen it and thought it hilarious for some holiday >cheeer. (sorry if a repost to you) > >Its my belief that SERIOUS metal is still attached to the bumper that tore >away from the chassis. It ripped the steel welds apart and once it started >to go >it could pull the whole rear section. The right side metal did not pull out >the same way just the left did where it separated from the chassis. > >If as you say they had only attached the hook to the rear plastic bumper >material the hook would have ripped the plastic on the first tug. > >He hooked it securely, the problem is the car had enough bite into the snow >to anchor it, something has to give, the Ford Explorer or what ever the tow >vehicle was had enough weight to ripp the steel apart. > >He also allowed slack in the tow strap and then gunned it. so you have a >stationary mass issue that could have done this even if the vehicle was not >stuck. > >Doug > > >


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