I'm bumping this old thread of mine due to some extremely unfortunate recent events in Moab.
Tip of the Day:
If you are new to driving Jeeps and driving off road, please wait a season or two before dumping a bunch of money into your Jeep to look cool and go play on the harder trails. Those of us that have been around for longer than YouTube often recommend that Newbies just get out and drive for a while before building up their rigs. By doing so, you learn invaluable lessons about your, and your vehicle's, limits. Give yourself time to learn how to read terrain, tire placement, trust of spotters, what to do when there are no spotters, and hopefully how to react in situations that are not going as planned.
I like to wheel with the guy/gal who knows their limits and isn't afraid to say "no" or "I'll go around this one"; I don't like to wheel with the guy/gal who says "hold my beer" or, even worse, says nothing at all and just pins the accelerator down while squeezing the steering wheel so hard the blood disappears from their hands.
Accidents happen for sure...that's why they are called accidents. With that said, I am fearful that the recent events in Moab are a reflection of the "gotta get me a JL, get someone to build it for me, and go make videos wheeling" crowd that has emerged as of late.
There endeth the lesson.