When All You Need is a Good Pull

The Porsche 911 was down to its chassis in a Jumeirah sandlot and was minutes away from being torn apart, fortunately I arrived just in time to stop the well meaning, but clueless, rescuer from attempting to drag the sports car out (and to pieces) with his 4x4. Even from a distance the recovery set up just did not look right and on closer inspection I saw that the strap had been looped around bits of the rear suspension. It was also a static strap with no give. One tug and the Porsche would be expensive spare parts. Within a few minutes I'd reset everything, using the proper Porsche towing eye, a dynamic recovery strap, correct shackles and, with very judicious use of the accelerator pedal, eased the 911 slowly from its sand trap. Recovery skills are not only for the desert, I've done similar recoveries on the beach, as the photo at the top attests, and even in front of a shopping mall.

Having seen far to many botched, damaging or just plain dangerous recovery attempts over the past few years I thought an article on choosing and correctly using recovery straps was long overdue. Just yesterday I witnessed a guy pulling a car free on Sufouh Beach and, although his technique was acceptable, the strap he was using was the wrong type and he failed to communicate what he was doing with the stuck driver and so used far more force than was necessary (and coming close to damaging he rescued cars steering.) Recovering a stuck vehicle starts with buying the proper equipment, not just whatever you find at the hardware store, and then knowing how to use it properly. Even my teenage son knows the drill and has assisted other drivers in rescuing vehicles, much to their macho-image detriment, but at least no cars have been ruined and no-one has been injured.

What's a snatch strap?

Recovery straps. Snatch Straps. Kinetic Ropes. Tug-ems. They go by a variety of different names, most are some form of webbing while some are braided ropes, for simplicity I'll use 'strap' for both types. A recovery strap and a tow rope are two vastly different things, even thought they look the same to the uninformed, all proper recovery straps have the following in common: Firstly they are dynamic, not static, which means that the strap is designed to stretch, not only does this cushion the impact of the pull but it stores kinetic energy in the strap, more on this critical property later. Secondly they have loops at both ends that are either sewn or, in the case of some braided ropes, spliced; they DO NOT have big steel hooks permanently sewn into the ends, avoid these at all costs as they are a fatality waiting to happen. Good recovery straps are not cheap, my main strap (I also carry a spare) cost me AED500 a few years ago and has been worth every Fil. It always amazes me that newbie off-roaders will spend tens of thousands of Dirhams on their cars but will buy the cheapest recovery gear they can find, risking serious damage to the same expensive car or injury, even death, to themselves or bystanders.

The 3 straps to the left are for lifting or towing and are not suitable for recovery.
The two on the right are proper kinetic straps with plenty of stretch and rebound.

You can buy decent recovery straps from most good 4x4 suppliers and some hardware stores but don't expect the salesperson to know what they are talking about, very few do. Look for gear marked for 'recovery' (not towing) and that indicates the strap is designed to stretch. If in doubt stick with well known brands like WARN, Bushranger and SecureTech amongst others. Some strap sets have both a recovery strap and a tow strap in the same bag but a tow strap is NOT a recovery strap as it does not stretch, so if you buy a combined set make sure you know which is which and use the correct strap for the job. Snatch straps should not be used for towing any more than tow straps should be used for recovery. Some hardware stores sell slings that are designed for static loads, these are not suitable for recovery as they do not have the stretch of dynamic webbing, using these means it's a matter of time before you break something (or someone.)

Shackles, shmackles ... aren't they all the same?

Along with a good quality dynamic strap you will need some Bow-shackles. To be precise, you will need rated shackles, not just any old ones you bought off the shelf. Rated shackles come with a working load limit (WLL) stamped or raised on them, common ones in the UAE are 3.25t and 4.75t shackles. I'd recommend a minimum of 3.25t for most off-road use. The pin of the shackle should be the screw-in type, avoid the stainless steel shackles with a simple push-through pin. Firstly they are not rated and secondly the angle at which you sometimes need to pull can severely distort, even break, the shackle. The impact of a highly tensioned cheap shackle breaking under the load generated by a 2.5 ton vehicle trying to free another 2.5 ton vehicle is scary.

A pair of rated recovery shackles, the orange day-glo paint is my addition,
in case I drop the shackle it makes finding it in sand a lot easier.

 In general you will need two shackles, one for each end of the strap. Some vehicles have a recovery hook bolted to the chassis but most vehicles, especially the Japanese ones, have a recovery eye underneath. Make sure your shackles will fit through the recovery points before venturing off-road, the older Jeep Wranglers have a very small recovery loop on the front bumper and I've come across more than one stuck in the desert with gear that didn't fit the vehicle. I now carry multiple sizes of shackle to ensure I can cover any vehicle that needs rescuing.

The recovery eye bolted to my Land Cruiser's chassis. 

So, I just tie them together and tow? Right?

Even the best drivers get stuck now and then, if you don't get stuck you're not trying hard enough. Being able to do a snatch recovery is a basic and effective, but often misunderstood, technique and one that requires practice. As a start, as the name implies this is a snatch and not a tow. Actually, I think the term 'tug' is a better description, snatch implies far more force and speed than is generally necessary, but snatch is the commonly used term. I once ventured out with a friend who had some off-road experience and I assumed, to our detriment, that he knew how to do a snatch. I managed to get my vehicle stuck in a tricky situation and set up the straps in text-book fashion as described below, expecting an easy recovery. Unfortunately my friend tried to tow me out and kept spinning his wheels, digging himself in. By the time I realised what he'd done both cars were stuck and joined by highly tensioned webbing. It took some careful work, a lot of sweat and steady nerves to sort it all out.

The basic technique is that the strap is set up between the stuck and rescue vehicles with a fair amount of slack. The rescue vehicle then pulls off at a moderate pace until the strap stretches taught, storing kinetic energy, it then contracts and it's the strap, rather than the towing vehicle, that pulls the stuck car free. This is why you need a stretchy, dynamic strap so there is no sudden hard jerk to wrench bits of vehicle free and to store kinetic energy, the stretch and subsequent contraction should do the work. If you pull too hard or use a static strap you risk snapping the strap or breaking something on the car. If you ever use steel cable you should be held down and severely beaten with it, imagine a steel cable snapping and flailing through a group of bystanders, especially kids.

This is the routine I have used successfully for many years :

1. Assess: Firstly, check if the car is really stuck. Perhaps they need to lower tyre pressures a bit more to simply drive out. Often a good push will suffice. With vehicles stuck on a ridge, digging sand away from the chassis may be enough to allow it to drive out on it's own. If snatching is required take some time to assess the situation and determine the best direction to do the recovery. Take into account slopes, churned up tracks, soft patches and the length of strap available. Sometimes it's easier to pull the vehicle backwards, other times it might be easier to go forwards. Also consider if you, the driver, will be better off going forward or reversing.
2. Clear: The stuck vehicle will have dug up a lot of sand, push away as much as possible in the direction of pull making a gentle ramp for the wheels. On heavily stuck vehicles also clear any sand from in front of the chassis cross-beams, axles and differential housings. Reducing drag makes recovery easier and safer.
   
   

   

   This configuration allows the shackle to swivel in the direction of pull, putting the pin
   through the eye causes the shackle to distort and this makes removing the pin difficult.
   The pin only needs to be finger tight.

3. Attach: Attach the shackles to the recovery points on both vehicles. Do not simply use the tow hitch or the bumper, the forces generated could tear it loose. Always use the recovery point that is fixed to the chassis. Don't over tighten the screw pin, just finger tight. The tug will cause the pin to tighten anyway and make it difficult to remove afterwards, so don't make matters worse. Because one rarely has the luxury of doing a straight-line pull I tend to put the round part of the shackle through the recovery eye and the strap around the pin, this allows the shackle to swivel in the direction of pull. If the pin is put through the eye then it will slip until the ring is in one of the corners where the pin passes through the shackle. The strap will move to the side of the ring opposite this and you'll have a transverse load that can deform the the shackle (even if it's imperceptible to the eye.) This deformation is why it can be very difficult to remove the pin after a recovery*. Smaller recovery points that don't allow the shackle to pass through might force you to do it pin first, some of the stock recovery eyes on Jeep Wranglers seem to be too small to pass a shackle through.
4. Layout: You need a bit of a run-up to build momentum, so there should be slack in the strap. A good technique is to lay the strap in a zig-zag pattern between the vehicles. This allows you to see if the strap has passed through itself which would result in a disastrous knot when doing the snatch. Knots severely weaken the strap and in a hard tug can sever the strap immediately, I had this happen once while crossing the Wahaiba Sands in Oman and is why I always use the zig zag technique and always carry a spare strap. The remains of the snapped strap hang from a tree in our garden as a swing for my kids and a reminder to me to properly supervise a recovery. To prevent broken recovery points from whipping about and sending a lump of steel through a windscreen or person, cover with a tarp or blanket to act as a damper.
   
   

   

   The strap is laid in a zig zag and covered with something to dampen its speed should something break.

   
   
5. Communicate: Now, don't just jump into the vehicle and speed off. First have a chat with the person being rescued and explain what you plan to do, how far you intend pulling them, the direction to go and that they must ensure their front wheels are aligned with the pull. Make it clear that they are expected to help by driving out, but without spinning their wheels. Explain any hand signals you will use (being in different cars you won't be able to hear each other.) My hand signals are simple: Thumbs up for 'Ready' (and they must acknowledge) and a closed fist for 'Stop'. If you cannot see each other clearly, arrange for a passenger to stand at a distance and relay the signals. Tell your recoveree that if they drive over the strap after being freed that you'll push them back in the hole and leave them there. No, seriously, tell them.
6. Away: Chase all gawkers and bystanders far away. Children are especially curious and so very vulnerable, make sure all spectators are at least two strap lengths away from the recovery and off to one side. Never let anyone stand between the vehicles during the pull. Remember, two vehicles exerting a combined weight of a few tons can send a detached shackle through a crowd of people without stopping, even a strap on its own could be lethal to a child. Keep them far away. On some heavy recoveries I've even raised the hood so that any flying projectiles will strike it first rather than pierce a windscreen and the driver.
7. Recover: Now it's time to do the actual snatch: The stuck vehicle signals that it is ready and is in the appropriate gear depending on if it's to go backwards or forwards. The rescuer drives off at a moderate pace, building momentum. Don't be hasty, a couple of firm tugs is more effective and a lot safer than one almighty jerk. You should feel a gentle tug as the strap tightens, carry on driving for a few metres and then put on the brakes. DO NOT spin your wheels and try to tow the other car out, all you'll do is dig yourself in and then two vehicles will need recovery. After a few seconds you'll feel the strap contract and hopefully the other vehicle will be firmly but gently pulled from its resting place. If the first tug doesn't do it, go back again without driving over the strap, make sure there are no obstructions that you missed the first time and repeat with a bit more gusto, but just a bit mind you. Sometimes it takes more than one pull but avoid repeated, heavy jerks as this weakens the strap (it's not a tow rope, remember.). Once the car is free keep driving to the pre-arranged firm spot. You might need some pliers to loosen the shackle pin, even if it was only finger tight in the first place.

My strap is all dirty, what now?

Even the best quality straps have a limited lifetime, some manufacturers only reckon 10 or so recoveries. In my experience having good technique increases the number of pulls you can get out of strap while poor technique can destroy it in one go. Don't walk, stand or drive over a strap as it forces small sand particles into the fibers and weakens it. If people are getting stuck repeatedly it's a good idea to alternate with your spare strap, the dynamic nature of straps mean they need a rest period to return to their original length and strength. Muddy straps, or those used in salt water, should be washed with fresh water and left to dry in the shade, avoid leaving them lying around in sunlight or packing them away wet. Store them carefully, some come in a strong canvas bag but I made a dedicated recovery box that is permanently in my 'Cruiser.

The recovery procedure sounds a lot more involved than it is, most of these steps are just common sense. I'd rather do a bit of prep work and have an easy pull then struggle or worse, get my own vehicle stuck. If you've never done a snatch before I strongly recommend doing a few practice runs with a friend before venturing far off-road. And please, open that wallet and buy some quality kinetic straps and proper rated shackles. It's cheaper and safer in the long run.

*My view on proper orientation of the shackle, strap and recovery eye is based on experience and having done some reading on industrial rigging. If there are riggers who disagree with this approach I'd be happy to hear from you and make any corrections. 

sunburnt ... and in need of a shave

We No Longer Need to Eat Green Meat - A Solar Panel Review

Bleached turtle bones attest to the abundant sun in Oman,
perfect for a solar powered 12V fridge system

I well remember the look on my fellow campers faces when, on the fourth day of a particularly warm spell, I pulled some lamb chops from the cooler and they were tinged with green, the ice having long since melted. It was the last food we had, so I just cooked them well over the fire that evening and my son and I ate them. Although we were fine afterwards, eating greenish chops was the catalyst for me to look into a 12V fridge and some means of powering it for extended camping periods.

Fast forward to our latest trip to the east coast of Oman, a fairly remote region where you need to be self sufficient. This trip was a shakedown for  my new set-up for keeping food fresh and drinks cool, and with my wife and two kids along I couldn't really afford to fail.  So what follows is a personal review of the equipment I've used in preparing my Land Cruiser for multi-day camping trips, focussing on using a solar panel for powering 12V equipment.

Our base camp where the desert meets the beach,
somewhere south of Al Ashkarrah, Oman. 

In my Land Cruiser I have:

• a dual battery setup, one main starting battery and an auxillary 12V battery for powering stuff.
• a solar panel to keep the batteries topped up while we're not driving.
• a fridge/freezer for keeping food and drinks fresh for a few days.

In a future post I'll do a detailed review of my 12V fridge/freezer, I want to use it a bit more to get a good idea of it's strengths and weaknesses. Suffice to say that for this trip I used a 52 litre National Luna Weekender. At the start of the journey I set the thermostat at -6 C and despite the daily temperatures reaching 35 C the NL coped admirably. Most importantly, the adult beverages where always nicely chilled! 

Obviously, you can't run your fridge freezer from your starter battery and so I have a dual-battery system, using a National Luna split charger and dual battery monitor. Despite what you may be thinking by now I have no affiliation with National Luna and chose their split charger with dual battery monitor simply because I was able to buy it off the shelf and fit it myself even though I'm no auto-electrical boffin. On starting the car the split charger first ensures enough charge is restored to the starting battery before it also directs charge to the auxillary battery after a few minutes.

My split charger is mounted on the left fender, just behind the starter battery.
The red canvas flap folds down to cover it and keep it protected from grease and dirt.

I've had the split-charger for over a year now and so far it's proved simple and reliable, my only gripe is that the connector that slots into the dual-battery monitor is flimsy and could do with beefing up. This was made obvious when I compared the auxillary battery read-out on the monitor to the battery indicator that is built into the fridge, the former indicating a far lower charge until I jiggled it a bit to make better contact. From then on I used the fridge indicator for checking the charge of the auxillary battery.

The dual battery monitor mounted out of the sun next to my gear lever.
The white connector could do with some beefing up.

While we're on the road the fridge/freezer runs off the auxillary battery and the battery is, in turn, kept charged via the split charger from the dynamo. From Dubai to where we camp on Oman's east coast is a good 10 hour drive, so the whole system works well. But it's when you reach your destination that things are a bit more tricky and I needed a method of keeping the battery charged while stationary for days at a time. Seeing as the Middle East is abundant in sun the obvious choice was to go for a solar power, and so I set out to find a suitable solar panel.

Oddly enough, despite year round sunshine, finding a good solar set-up in Dubai was neither easy nor cheap. Off-the-shelf units, like those made by GoalZero, while seemingly well made, where very expensive and only delivered 30W. I'd need at least three for my requirements which put them way over my budget (as an aside, my wife gave me a GoalZero portable panel for charging my phone and iPod and I find it very useful.)  I also wasn't too keen on a rigid panel so spent time combing 4x4 magazines from South Africa for ideas and found suppliers of flexibile panels that you can roll up and stow away, like the Kalahari from Flexopower. I liked these, especially the 166W power output, but the rolled-up size seemed to take up a lot of packing space which is something I don't have in abundance.

It was a business trip to South Africa and a chance visit to an Outdoor show that finally put me in contact with a company supplying fold-up solar panels and after a series of emails between me and the owner (answered VERY promptly*) I decided this was the route to go and I ordered a 90W folding panel from Just Solar. The owner, Theo, embodied good customer service and went out of his way to drop the panel off at the hotel I was staying at, despite it being after hours and well out of his way, he even soldered a second battery coupling for me there and then in the back of his 4x4. I was really impressed.

Six individual panels make up the full 90W panel. 

The Just Solar folding panel consists of 6 individual cells and according to Theo these are made by Kyocera but I was not able to verify this. Once folded for packing, the surface area is the size of one cell plus the surrounding laminate. As can be seen below I was able to lay it open on my car's bonnet** without it hanging off the edges. On an earlier test run at home I placed it on my roof rack and left it there to top up the main battery while I was away for a few days, it worked perfectly.

The material surrounding the panels is very robust and Just Solar's website describes it thus "The polymer encapsulation is partially constructed of durable ETFE, (example, Tefzel®) a high-light-transmissive polymer." I'll have to take their word for it.
On the face of the unit are small 'bubbles' between the outer laminate and the solar cell and Theo took great pains to point out that these are a normal part of the manufacturing process and do not affect the efficiency of the unit. In my experience this was the case and they seem to be aesthetic issues, not practical ones. When I get the opportunity I'll look at flexible panels from other suppliers and see if this is a common trait.

Small imperfections on the face of the panel did not seem to affect performance in any way.

Each corner has a grommet allowing you to fix it down or hang it from a tree (can you see the great forest where I was camping? Ha!) I would have liked one more grommet at the middle of the longitudinal edge, just for peace of mind, but I don't think there is enough space between the cell and the edge (unless one uses a smaller grommet.)

The surrounding material is very robust and has grommets on each corner.

All in all the whole unit is solidly constructed and looks set for years of use (and, in my case, abuse.) Pretty much like my Land Cruiser, really.

As portability and packing volume were strong criteria in choosing a fold-up, rather than a roll-up, panel I took out my tape measure and old fishing scale and here is what I found:

• Opened up, I measured the panel at  88.5cm x 83.5cm (34.75" x 33.5".) On one end is an additional flap with the power cables, this is also edged with velcro and wraps around the panel to hold it closed when folded.
• Folded closed, I measured it at 42cm x 30cm (16.5"x 11.75") and about 3cm thick (1.25") not including the regulator. It comes with a carry bag that also holds the regulator and cable, the bag is well constructed and not flimsy, an area often overlooked by gear manufacturers. A good quality YKK zip down the side would be desirable as the bag is a tight fit and it takes a bit of jiggling to get the panel to slide in. 

My old Leatherman gives you an idea of the size when in its carry bag

• With the panel, controller and cable in the bag my scale showed a total of about 5kg (11lbs.) Easy enough to carry around and load in and out of a car or lift on to the roof rack.

At 5kg it's a very portable unit and combined with the compact size makes it easy to stow.

A Charge Controller is supplied with the unit and Theo took great pains to emphasize that the correct connection procedure was to first connect the regulator to the battery and only then connect the panel to the regulator, using the mnemonic 'BP' (Battery before Panel.) He also told me to ensure that the regulator was set for 'Volt' and not 'State Of Charge' (SOC) but to be honest I forgot about this and can't really tell you what setting I had it on during operation, but things seemed to be OK. I'll take more care next time. The picture below is how NOT to use the controller, I didn't have time to mount it anywhere before the trip so at first just hung it from the hood ornament (all Gulf spec Toyotas have these.) Later on I moved it under the bonnet to keep it out of the sun. The long term plan is to attach it with velcro so I can remove it easily when not charging. I just need to figure out where.

The Controller - Battery cable (grey) routed through the grille.
The Controller - Panel cable (orange) draped on the Toyota badge.

A full review of the Controller is beyond the scope of this post, it comes with a 15 page instruction manual giving all the various readouts and features. I would have liked to mount it permanently under the bonnet but the manual says the maximum permitted storage temperature is 80 C which is below the 86 C operating temperature listed in my engine workshop manual, so I'm not taking any chances.

The panel has two types of connectors and two cable colours:

• Attached to the flap is a pair of Photovoltaic connectors and running from these is a long orange paired cable that plugs into the controller. I could not see any makers marks or logos on these but assume these are ones made by Anen. (see bullet point below next photo.)



The flap on the panel showing the PV connectors and start of the orange cable.

• The orange charging cable was roughly 7 metres (23') long, allowing you to place the panel quite far from your vehicle. As I didn't want anyone walking on the panel I placed it on the bonnet and draped the cable over the hood ornament. The length and the fact that it's two separate cables means it tends to get a bit tangled, I'd have preferred a single length of bonded wire (two strands joined together) but I'm not sure if you get it in the required gauge. I might cut it shorter in the future as I think the bonnet, or sometimes the roof, will be my standard placement.

My auxillary battery on the right fender showing the Anderson type connector.  

The Controller's connector simply plugs into this and has another for the panel.
The cables at the back run to the  fridge and the split charger.

• All other connectors, Controller and battery, are of the 50A Anderson SB type. A close inspection of the connectors revealed them to be made by Anen Power and a quick Google search didn't seem to reveal any link between Anderson Power and Anen Power but perhaps one makes these for the other. Either way, the connectors are very solid, fitted tightly and look to be of top quality. 
• A nice touch is that the cables coming from the Controller had their wires colour coded, orange for the panel connection and grey for the battery connection.  A simple visual aid during setup and this may be why a bonded wire was not used. Colour coded connectors and bonded wire would be a good combination.

The flap wraps right around the folded panel and keeps everything tight and secure.

All I needed to do was wire a matching coupling (also supplied) to the battery and it would be ready to be connected to the coupling on the controller. A minor gripe I have is that I would have preferred the battery connectors to have red and black cables for positive and negative respectively, rather than have both cables being grey. While the couplings have '+' and '-' markings, colour coded cables would have prevented me from connecting them to the wrong battery terminals the first time round, luckily I double check before hooking everything up.
If you study the photos you'll see that I routed the cable through the grille, this was in order not to pinch the cable when I closed the bonnet. It worked well but was a bit fiddly to do.

So, the big question: How well did it all work?

Before answering, I must confess that the auxillary battery was not a proper deep cycle unit, as it should be, but just a plain old starter battery rated at 95Ah. Also, despite the pictures showing us in splendid isolation, a group of friends arrived later and I repositioned my car with the bonnet facing north instead of south (Oman is in the Northern Hemisphere) which meant the panel was not truly facing directly into the sun but tilted slightly away, reducing it's efficiency. Despite these two 'faults' the setup worked surprisingly well, far better than I expected.

We drove all night to get there, arriving just before sunrise, so I had a full day's worth of testing for the first day. So on the first day I experimented by attaching the panel to my main battery and letting the split charger handle the power requirements between the starter battery and the auxillary (I have a current leak in my starter circuit that drains the battery over a few days requiring me to run the engine periodically, and I'm damned if I can find it.) I wasn't sure if the split charger would handle this but it kicked in after a few minutes of charging the main battery and started routing charge to the auxillary as well. Even with charging two batteries the panel provided far more power than the fridge/freezer could draw, ensuring that both remained fully charged and the drinks ice-cold.

The second day went just as swimmingly, all battery indicator lights showing full charge as long as there was sun, even if the panel was never quite at the correct angle. The panel was surprisingly efficient even in the early morning and late afternoon. However, after sunset on the second day the auxillary battery charge dropped more than expected (but not into the 'red' zone) and I ran the engine for a few minutes to charge it for the night. Once again the charge dropped a few notches but never drained the battery entirely overnight.
In the morning, the panel kicked in again and I had full power all day, even with the fridge being regularly opened to slake 4 people's thirsts while mid-day temperatures hovering around 35C.
I put the sudden drop in charge in the evening down to the fact that the battery is not a deep cycle battery (nor very new.) Over the 4 days we camped it never drained completely or even dropped below the fridge's cut-out level which I'd set at 'Medium' and not low. As long as the sun shone there was power aplenty. Our last package of meat, having spent 3 days and 3 nights in the bottom of the freezer was still frozen when I took it out and I had to thaw it for that evening's fire.

I have a few tweaks to do, firstly I need to find a proper deep cycle battery that can handle slow current draw. I''m certain this will address the sudden drop in battery power after sunset. Secondly, I need to have a better mounting system for the Controller as mentioned above.
Thirdly, I want to make sure the Anderson coupling fixed to the battery is dust and water protected, I've seen dust caps for these units and intend to fit one.
And finally, I will start adding some lighting for the evenings, a 12V charger for my Maglite and maybe even a small inverter to charge camera batteries.

All in all I'm very pleased with the set-up and particularly pleased with the solar panel, although not very cheap I think it was money well spent. I was concerned that 90W might not be enough, but it was ample, and these panels can be daisy chained if one is not enough.
And once gain, I was very impressed with their customer service.

So next time you see me out there, stop by for a cold one.

*Any supplier that takes more than 24 hours to respond to an email query gets stricken from my 'buy from' list. If they can't answer a simple email quickly then they'll probably be laggards in sales and service.

**American readers, we use 'bonnet' where you would use 'hood'.

sunburnt ... and in need of a shave

No Chance To Surf, So Break Out The Camera.

Once again I found myself in Oman over the Islamic festival of Eid Al Adha, but unlike other Eid trips I didn't witness the death of goats at dawn. Instead, we spent a few days on a remote beach on the east coast of Oman, a favourite area for surf.  Due to unforeseen circumstances I had to leave my surfboards behind so spent the days sipping Tiger beer, playing with my kids, spooning with my wife and enjoying the company of (non-surfing) friends. It also meant I had time to whip out my camera and tripod and to take a few images.

Seascapes are some of my favourite pictures, but they're not easy to get 'just right'. Waves have a mind of their own so it takes a few tries to get something worthwhile. Both images above where made within 20 minutes of each other, notice the dramatic change in colour temperature as the sun went down.

sunburnt ... and in need of a shave

De-stinking Vibram Five Fingers

Do your VFFs smell like dead squid?

A few years ago, as the sun spilled over the horizon, I bought some fresh seafood from Dubai fish market for a paella I was making later that day. In amongst the bags was some glistening fresh squid and when I got home I discovered that some of the squid juice had leaked from the bag and saturated the car's carpeting. To make matters worse it was my wife's car!
No matter how much I washed the carpet, the Dubai heat ensured that the car smelled like a corpse left out in the sun for a few weeks. The wife was somewhat unimpressed, as you can imagine.

Despite all my efforts nothing seemed to help until my wife suggested using cat litter, an old trick her Mom had taught her to keep tennis shoes (those old canvas types) smelling clean. So I soaked the affected area with fresh water and piled an inch deep layer of  cat litter over it. It took two treatments but it worked and she happily drives her car to this day, making sure I take plastic container with on my trips to the fish market.

So, when my much worn and loved Vibram Five Fingers developed a definite funk (in Dubai heat your feet sweat even if you're just wearing flip-flops, never mind toe hugging black textile) I thought I'd try the same treatment.

1. I first tossed the shoes into the washing machine for an initial clean. They were damp when I took them out but a quick rinse under the tap made sure they were wet again.
2. Holding the shoes so they hung toes down I poured handfuls of litter into them, making sure to push some into each toe pocket. I don't own cats so don't know much about cat litter other than its odour eating properties, but my bag of kitty litter has quite fine granules which are perfect for getting into toe pockets.
3. I left the shoes outside to dry for a day or so. Things dry fast here despite the humidity.

4. Once dry I poured the kitty litter out and rinsed the shoes again to get all the little bits out, especially those in the toes. I don't need kitty litter pebble induced chafing or blister, thank you.

The Vibram's smell much better now, no funky fug. I wouldn't do this treatment too regularly as it's time consuming, but I think it's a good treatment every now and then for when things get a bit much.


sunburnt ... and in need of a shave

Powered Parachuting over Ras Al Khaimah

Aerial view of a semi-feral donkey in Ras Al Khaimah

“When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return.” - Leonardo Da Vinci

(A version of this blog was published in outdoor uae magazine. )

A warm breeze swirled the dust of the runway as Captain Kevin Donaldson and I walked across the concrete slab and past the microlight aeroplanes shimmering in the sun. From the shady depths of the hangar an assistant wheeled a large three-wheeled cage with a propeller at the rear. The trike, looking like something from the Mad Max movies, was constructed of lightweight aircraft aluminium and stainless steel. Behind the tandem seats a two cylinder, two stroke engine was mounted which powered the triple bladed propeller.

PPGs are simply an engine in a cage and a fabric wing.

The Captain started the engine and let it run for a few minutes to warm up, then killed it again. Lying on the rear seat was a large black bundle which he picked up, carried to the rear of the trike and opened to reveal a mass of brightly coloured rip-stop fabric and kevlar lines. The engine was the power and this was the parachute. Clipping the ends of the lines to the cage he spread the fabric out in an arc behind the trike and folded the leading edges over to make sure it didn’t catch the propeller wash prematurely.

Headphones are essential for communication over the engine noise.

A two seater PPG has the pilot up front.

“Ok, in you go!” he said and I clambered into the rear seat and clipped into the four point harness which held me firmly in place. Two headsets hung over the top bar, one for each of us. The Captain took up position in the front seat and started the engine, the headsets muting the engine noise and allowing us to chat over the in-built microphones.

“Are you ready?” came over the headphones and I gave the affirmative. He pushed the hand-held throttle lever and the trike lurched forward gaining speed and then, the lines pulling suddenly taught, the parachute inflated and rose up behind us. Gunning the engine we trundled down the runway as the parachute rose higher and then, crabbing slightly in the wind, we broke free from gravity’s hold and were airborne.

The captain guns the engine and as we lurch forward the tension on the lines pulls the wing up. Photo: Maria Reynolds

I have always loved flying and the best flying is done in a small open craft where you can feel the wind in your hair and see the far-off earth below your feet. Not to be confused with powered paragliding, where the motor can be on the pilot’s back, a powered parachute has pilot (and passengers) sitting in a vehicle with an engine and wheels. The wing of a Powered Parachute is similar to the square wings used by skydivers while a paraglider has a higher performance airfoil allowing foot launched flight. Called PPCs for short, they come in single and tandem styles so that a pilot can fly solo or take a passenger. They are one of the least expensive forms of powered aviation and are used by private pilots, farmers, search & rescue and law-enforcement agencies around the world. The low centre of gravity in relation to the ‘wing’ and resistance to stalling means that PPCs are also a very safe form of flying. Currently only Jazirah Aviation Club in Ras Al Khaimah provides both flights and training for PPCs and according to Captain Donaldson it can take as little as 15 hours to become a PPC pilot. My half-hour flight was a birthday present, courtesy of my wife (bless her.)

The wing shows the typical aspect ratio of a parachute.

Far below us the sun sparkled on the waters of the Gulf and the long white beaches stretched out from Ras Al Khamaih down to Umm Al Quwain. The sea was dotted with blue jellyfish, visible even from this height, and every now and then I’d get a bird’s eye-view of a big turtle coming up for air. I must’ve seen ten in as many minutes. The water was clear enough that you could see the turtles descend onto the sea-grass beds. We flew over the ghost town of Jazirat Al Hamra, abandoned buildings built in traditional Arabic style where Jinns are still rumoured to wander, and I felt like an explorer flying over an ancient lost city for the first time.

Aerial view of a semi-feral donkey in Ras Al Khaimah

As we reached the northern limits of our flight the Captain pointed out a huge sunken and rusting barge: “In this area, when it’s cooler, we sometimes see big Manta Rays,” he said to my surprise “and you can often see sharks cruising along the reef back there.”

We turned back towards the flying club and cruised over lush green lawns standing out against the desert, water skiers carved lazy curves in the marinas and kids splashed off the beaches, waving at us as we passed overhead.

4WDs leave tracks on the beaches.

Waterskiers on the lagoon of a residential development.

Labourers play cricket on an industrial lot.

A golfer searches for a lost ball amongst date palms.

Crossing back over the coastal highway we slowly descended and he cut back the engine. “See, she doesn’t fall. We control climb and descent with the throttle speeding up makes you climb and slowing down lets you descend. Turning is done through footpedals that are linked to lines fixed to the trailing edges of the canopy.” We cruised low over the desert scrub, our shadow jittering back and forth as dunes raced below us. He pointed out some burrows in the dunes and said that in the cool of the evening desert foxes would come out, popping back to into their earths if they saw you flying over. We approached the landing strip from the desert as the wind was onshore, all flying craft land and take-off into the wind.

Coming in to land.

Photo: Maria Reynolds

We drifted ever lower until, with a gentle bump, we touched down and rolled to a stop. Slowly the wing deflated and collapsed gently behind us. For a few moments I just sat and reflected on how much fun it had been, it was a great way to spend an afternoon and I’ll be back again for another flight, maybe I’ll even do my PPC license.

sunburnt ... and in need of a shave

Steam Clouds in Tatopani

"Om Mane Padme Om" carved on Mani stones at the start of the long climb, our day's destination being the far ridge.

Anabatic breezes slipped slowly in succession up the mountain causing the long trains of prayer flags to rise high, flutter momentarily and then gently descend, only to rise again on the next waft in a long slow cadence, like God breathing in slumber.

Gently rising prayer flags over Tatopani

Clouds of steam drifted up to be teased apart and fade into nothingness. The only sounds were the susurrating splash of steadily streaming water and quiet conversation. It was evening in Tatopani and villagers had come for the evening ritual of a wash in the geothermal springs that poured perpetually from the belly of the mountain through elegantly decorated stone conduits, followed by a convivial wallow in the swimming pool sized tubs built into the slope.

A cool evening makes for lots of steam.

The evening's bathing ritual enjoyed by all, youngest villager to the oldest.

Mothers, wearing only a simple cloth shift, scrubbed naked children and chattered quietly with husbands standing under the steaming cascades. After a day's climb that took us from Thambuchet at 1700 metres to Tatopani at 2607 metres the hot soak was the perfect end to a superb, if exhausting, day.

Sitting makes things less precarious on the slick stone floor.

That morning we'd woken early for a frugal breakfast of Tamang style pancakes, a thick doughy slab somewhat like a large crumpet, and hot sweet tea. People were already gathering around yesterday's bus for the return journey to Kathmandu. Asheesh briefed us on the day ahead while Yong-tashi produced a well frayed rope and proceeded to strap our two backpacks together. He'd carry both our backpacks over the next few days while all we carried where daypacks.
I've walked many a trail over mountains and along coasts and never had anyone carried my pack for me, but every dollar pumped into the local economy makes a big difference so I was happy to swallow my pride and pay for a guide and porter, although I still had my misgivings about the size of the packs versus the size of the porter.

Yong-tashi our porter, my son and Asheesh our guide at the start of the 1st day's trekking.

Thambuchet was slowly awakening, a woman with a large basket on her back was rhythmically harvesting nettles for cow fodder. After a swish of her long handled sickle she'd sweep the cuttings into her basket with a pair of very long tongs. Most of the houses had animal shelters below and the living quarters above. Hand looms, some with partially finished cloths, stood waiting for the days weaving.

Long tongs mean the nettles don't sting and you don't have to bend.

Tamang weave fine, brightly striped cloth which is made into a number of useful items.

Humans on top, animals below. Dwellings make the most of limited space.

We left Thambuchet and headed up the valley on narrow pathways threading through paddies, across a small suspension bridge and past the first of many chortens and mani we would encounter along the way. At the entrance to another small village we met three small girls, destined for a tough life of hard work, carrying large bundles of straw. They watched us pass with shy smiles and dirty faces.

Chortens, flanked by carved Mani, marking the way. We were supposed to pass on the left but these stones only had one path to the right. The locals didn't seem perturbed about dogma.

No fashion toys or sleepovers, these girls live a life far removed from that which western girls take for granted.

For a second time we crossed the river and then the climbing started. The path contoured tortuously, switching back upon itself so that at times a few steps would put you directly above the person behind you. Up and up we climbed and my legs became like jelly and lungs pumped like bellows, living an easy life at sea level was not translating well to hiking at altitude. I was also monitoring my son, this was his first hike and the start was the stiffest climb he'd ever done. Would he whimper and give up or vasbyt*and keep going?

Just as I was wondering how much further before I could rest my aching legs we topped a ridge and there, on a flat ledge cut into the mountain, was a kiosk with red plastic chairs and a million dollar view. Time for tea! The view was spectacular, to our left the valley with the tiny houses of Thambuchet in the distance, to our right the ridges soaring to snow covered Ganesh Himal, dazzling white against a baby blue sky.

Incongruous plastic chairs at the mid-morning break.

My fears about the strength and endurance my son and our porter were unfounded on both counts. We'd hardly made it through the first day of the trek before my son, once he got his breath back, started jabbering about where we should go walking next and kept pumping me about hikes I'd done in the past; where were they? what where they like? was it harder than this one or easier? A ceaseless, but enjoyable, jabber on all things outdoors and adventurous.
You can read all the parenting books you want and subscribe to all the theories, from Dr Spock to the over-the-top Tiger Mothers, but all you really need to know about being a father is to listen and take heed of the lessons in "Cat's in the Cradle". Money, toys and gadgets no substitute for time with your kids. We were enjoying ourselves immensely.

A Tamang child eyes me warily.

And what of Yong-tashie and the double backpacks? While we were perspiring and panting he hardly broke a sweat, bounding up the mountain while chatting to Asheesh without so much as breathing hard.
The phrase of the day was bistare bistare (bee-sta-reh) meaning slowly, take your time and walk at a pace you can handle. Why is it that "slowly" is a repetition in so many languages? I've picked up Swahili's pole pole (Pow-leh Pow-leh) while in East Africa and Arabic's shoei shoei (shway shway) in the Middle East and, now, the similar double-barrel phrase in Nepali.

After the initial steepness the path eased off drastically, but still a steady climb through forest and fields. I recognised the first shoots of potatoes pushing through the soil while other fields stood waste deep in oats, their green heads drooping but not yet golden.
Glittering streams flowed chattering between rocks and the sun released the heady smell of wet earth from their banks. Butterflies flittered about and unknown insects buzzed and chittered in the overgrowth. There were expertly packed dry stone walls everywhere, even many of the large buildings of more than one story where built without mortar, expert hands making sure the corners were true and crisp.

With little flat ground in Langtang, most buildings are cut back into the slope. This house was built entirely from dry stone walls.

We reached our destination a lot earlier than I expected, just in time for lunch. The menu was surprisingly extensive but because cooking fuel is scarce (wood, in a country suffering from deforestation) I consulted my son and we agreed that we'd joined Asheesh and Yong-tashi in their usual Dal Bhaat. And so it would be for the next few days with rare exception, Dhal Baat for lunch and for supper too, with some meat or delicious onion soup (home made from locally grown onions) thrown in where available. But hunger is the best seasoning and we inevitably wolfed it down as if it was the finest caviar.

The guesthouse owner was named Bamen (at first I thought Asheesh was talking about him being the barman) and he was very hospitable and kept his guesthouse very neat and clean. At breakfast the next morning he proudly produced his own yak milk cheese which was exceedingly good, hard and strongly flavoured.

Bamen's wife and children enjoy some family time as afternoon rain brews.

Cloud shrouded peaks of Langtang Lirung from our guesthouse balcony. Almost all houses take in trekkers for much needed cash, you could walk for weeks in these mountains and never need a tent.

After lunch we put on some swimming gear and walked to the springs after which the village was named, I was expecting some rocks and a trickle of water but to our surprise we found three large cisterns built into the hillside, each with it's own twin-inlets.
The drains of the two outer baths had been plugged and they were slowly filling with ochre coloured water, one still knee deep as it filled and the other above the waist.

Elegantly carve mythical beasts spew (almost) scalding water.

My son thought he'd try the 'showers' first and he'd hardly stepped under the flow when he yelped and sprang out like a ... well ... a scalded cat. The village was named Tatopani ( tato being hot and pani meaning water) and from the inevitable quick leap of most who stepped under the water for the first time it was obvious why.
We spent a few hours lazing around the springs, alternating between standing under the hot flow, wallowing in the waste deep baths and sitting on the edge to let the mountain breeze cool us again.

A mountain life of hard toil shows in the muscle and sinew.

By the end of the day the ochre coloured water had stained our swimming costumes dull red and turned my son's surfer blonde hair a tawny gold that would take days to rinse out.

Even in these remote parts you can get a beer and as I sat sipping my daily ration on the guest house 'terrace' with the million dollar view I replayed the day in my mind.
At last, trekking in Nepal, one more life-goal achieved.
What would my son go on to do in his time?

sunburnt ... and in need of a shave

*vasbyt, pronounced 'fuss-bait' - Afrikaans word meaning to persevere under difficult circumstances. Literally translated as 'bite down hard and hang on'.