Tim
started this obstacle with both doors on... by the time he was done, the
drivers door had gone away. The locking mechanism was so crunched, we had
to open it from the hinge side. From this top view, you can see the 'V'
notch that the vehicle had to land in after a twist to the right just
before the top.
This
obstacle is called 'The Abyss'. It took several tries before it could be
conquered. This is one of those wheelbase obstacles that put many of our
vehicles at a disadvantage. You end up having to try and climb a ledge
with the front -and- back tires at the same time.
When
the driver tries this from any angle, they almost always get twisted
around to face the ledges head on again. This is where brute power isn't
going to get you up there without a little finesse and a whole lotta
gription*.
Gription (grip~shun) adjective: used to describe the immense
traction needed to stick to the rock face like glue.
And
eventually, even the most stout hearted have to take to the winch. That is
why there are winch points at almost all of the major obstacles in these
canyons.
The waterfalls don't stop coming at you all the way through this
one. You can see two in a row in the picture to the right.