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DENNIS
Platinum Nomad
Posts: 29510
Registered: 9-2-2006
Location: Punta Banda
Member Is Offline
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Slow down.......and have a Merry Christmas. You came close to missing this one. Count your blessings.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64480
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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As Perry's sign photo interprets: ... Better Late than Never!
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mtgoat666
Select Nomad
Posts: 17295
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
Member Is Offline
Mood: Hot n spicy
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| Quote: | Originally posted by KevinFromUtah
The plan - me (23 years old), little brother, and best friend driving my '93 4runner down the Pacific side for a few days, camping and surfing, then
crossing over to Bahia Concepcion for a few days to hang out and kayak, then down to Los Cabos to meet up with some friends on a cruise.
Throughout the day rained pretty hard on and off. In San Quintin swapped drivers and let my brother take the wheel. Every curve I kept reminding him,
slow down, slow down. Finally I just told myself I needed to relax and stop back seat driving. After all, he's been driving for years, he knows what
he's doing.
Well, about 20 minutes South of Catavina, the rain was picking up again, and as soon as we came into the curve I knew we were moving far too fast. We
started to slide, then fishtailed majorly with each over correction. Finally slid off the left shoulder and rolled twice down the embankment.
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yikes! youthful driver learning through experiential education! glad y'all survived. expensive drivers ed lesson!
now your little bro knows that speeding not wise on 2-lane country roads. it's not just a mexico thing, is a truism for all country roads in rugged
terrain. it always seems like such a long drive, but jack rabbit or high speed driving only saves a few minutes or at most an hour or 2, and now you
know risks/rewards.
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willardguy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6451
Registered: 9-19-2009
Member Is Offline
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roadside shrines are always a good reminder!
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TMW
Select Nomad
Posts: 10659
Registered: 9-1-2003
Location: Bakersfield, CA
Member Is Offline
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Wow glad you and your brother are OK. As a survivor of a couple of wrecks in Baja be patient with the insurance company. Keep in touch with the
insurance agent. Since you will be in Utah what I tell you is very important to do. When I had my wrecks I did all the leg work on getting the various
people to sign off on the paper work. The insurance company told me what to do and who to see. The Feds were the hardest to deal with as they would
not speak to me in English so I had a good friend do the talking in Spanish. The insurance paid off on my sons Toyota and my Chevy but on my last
wreck I had my US insurance company total it out for me. Funny thing about my Chevy was they could not find it for several months even when I told
them it was at the house of the tow truck driver in La Rumorosa and not the impound yard.
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BAJACAT
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2902
Registered: 11-21-2005
Location: NATIONAL CITY, CA
Member Is Offline
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Kevin sorry to welcome you under this conditions, the good thing is that everybody is ok...there is plenny of 4runners in the USA..I agree with allt
he nomads H1 is not for speeding, even when is not raining. In all my travels to Baja I have seen an accident every time.It's beest if you take it
easy and soak in the landscape..don't worry Baja will be there for your next trip,We survive 12-21-2012, so you have time for another trip...
PS. I also have a 1991 4Runner 4x4 Manual..there fun to drive, but you can flip them so easy.Take care.
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Curt63
Super Nomad
Posts: 1171
Registered: 3-28-2009
Location: San Diego, Ca.
Member Is Offline
Mood: Fish tacos and Tecate
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A good lesson for all of us.
Just curious, were the rear tires balding or in good condition? Do you know what the tire pressure was. Also, condition of the shocks?
These are all critical factors when things get interesting (swerving and sliding)
No worries
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RnR
Senior Nomad
Posts: 836
Registered: 5-1-2010
Member Is Offline
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| Quote: | Originally posted by KevinFromUtah
Well, about 20 minutes South of Catavina, the rain was picking up again, and as soon as we came into the curve I knew we were moving far too fast. We
started to slide, then fishtailed majorly with each over correction. Finally slid off the left shoulder and rolled twice down the embankment.
Amazingly and thankfully, none of us had more than a few scratches. Sadly the same couldn't be said for my 4runner, which ended in some kind of
impound lot / junk yard in Punta Prieta.
[Edited on 12-24-2012 by KevinFromUtah] |
Glad that all of you are okay with nothing but physical damage to the vehicle.
And yes, I know that corner well. With the just the glimpse of the dry lake bed with the rock pile in the background, I know that it is the same
corner!
We came around that corner towing a 26ft travel trailer. Got hit by a huge gust of wind. The wind tilted the truck and pushed the wheels of the
travel trailer off of the pavement. With some divine intervention, I managed to get the travel trailer back onto the pavement, swerved across the
other lane, and eventually settled down without crashing. Whew!!
Out of the corner of my eye, while trying to save my own rig (or burro), I noticed another vehicle on it's roof in the lakebed. If you can believe
it, it was a Toyota 4Runner, too. Only difference is that it was towing a boat on a trailer that was upside down also. It couldn't have been 20 feet
from where your rig is! Same rock pile right behind it.
They were shaken up but okay, too. Deja Vue, from about 8 years ago.
Don't give up on Baja. It's a wonderful experience. Just don't let your brother drive ....
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64480
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Before any Baja trip begins, do have good or new tires... and a good full size spare full of air, plus a tire plug kit and air pump.
The suspension (shocks and springs) should be at the firmest setting or best condition as you are likely to have a heavy load on a Baja trip.
Facilities can be many miles apart, there is no cell phone coverage in the central desert and many areas... if your U.S. cell phone even works at all.
That said, I have been driving in Baja since I was 16 and never had a problem that was too bad to fix there or an accident or any criminal
incidents... so I have Baja in the highest light as do most Nomads I think... That you had such a terrible thing happen, and yet can talk so
positively surely shows the Magic of Baja has touched you, as well!
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Cyanide41
Nomad
Posts: 303
Registered: 1-7-2009
Location: Tijuana
Member Is Offline
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Welcome to the site Kevin, glad you survived.
[Edited on 12-24-2012 by Cyanide41]
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fixtrauma
Nomad
Posts: 389
Registered: 11-17-2008
Location: El Centenario & Lebanon,Oregon
Member Is Offline
Mood: Monomaniac
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WoW!!
I am glad you survived that double roll. No ejection from vehicle.....great. Seat belts.......wonderful!
Please give it another try and get more time in the Baja.
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Ateo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5847
Registered: 7-18-2011
Member Is Offline
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Just remember, a "Curva Peligrosa" sign means just that. Although sometimes you may find the next turn even more dangerous, unsigned, with no guard
rail and a 300 foot drop off.
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sancho
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2524
Registered: 10-6-2004
Location: OC So Cal
Member Is Offline
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I was older than 23 when I first drove the peninsula,
and I was guilty of a couple of things, not speeding,
but driving without Mex Ins and driving with a beer
between my legs. I'm sure I wasn't the only one
past or present. No negative incidents, just being
nieve
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woody with a view
PITA Nomad
Posts: 15937
Registered: 11-8-2004
Location: Looking at the Coronado Islands
Member Is Offline
Mood: Everchangin'
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Ateo
Just remember, a "Curva Peligrosa" sign means just that. Although sometimes you may find the next turn even more dangerous, unsigned, with no guard
rail and a 300 foot drop off. |
and when you see double signs that means SLOW THE FVCK DOWN....
[Edited on 12-25-2012 by BajaNomad]
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captkw
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3850
Registered: 10-19-2010
Location: el charro b.c.s.
Member Is Offline
Mood: new dog/missing the old 1
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remember "coke curves"
pepsi/coke curves !!
[Edited on 12-25-2012 by captkw]
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woody with a view
PITA Nomad
Posts: 15937
Registered: 11-8-2004
Location: Looking at the Coronado Islands
Member Is Offline
Mood: Everchangin'
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she was HOT!
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desertcpl
Super Nomad
Posts: 2394
Registered: 10-26-2008
Location: yuma,az
Member Is Offline
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| Quote: | Originally posted by sancho
I was older than 23 when I first drove the peninsula,
and I was guilty of a couple of things, not speeding,
but driving without Mex Ins and driving with a beer
between my legs. I'm sure I wasn't the only one
past or present. No negative incidents, just being
nieve |
driving with out a beer between your legs, thats just not right when driving in Baja 
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Ken Cooke
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8921
Registered: 2-9-2004
Location: Riverside, CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: Black Trans Lives Matter
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It doesn't get much worse than this...
Broken down Ford Ranger on top of borrowed Trailer (belonging to Tim Sanchez/Desert Bull) which is also broken down on the Observatory Road in San
Telmo. Yes, that is bad.
Thankfully, we had spare drinks in the cooler to hire the locals to help us pull the wheel off of the axle and put the spare on the axle. Desert Bull
wasn't happy about all of this, but I am still glad that he could help with my junk so far from home.
[Edited on 12-25-2012 by Ken Cooke]
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BajaBlanca
Select Nomad
Posts: 13165
Registered: 10-28-2008
Location: La Bocana, BCS
Member Is Offline
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Merry Christmas and we hope you buy that new car soon. You sound like our kinda people !
May the new year bring you a nice raise !
Thanks for sharing the story.
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KevinFromUtah
Newbie
Posts: 6
Registered: 12-3-2012
Member Is Offline
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Curt63
A good lesson for all of us.
Just curious, were the rear tires balding or in good condition? Do you know what the tire pressure was. Also, condition of the shocks?
These are all critical factors when things get interesting (swerving and sliding) |
The tires were in good condition with plenty of tread and proper psi. As far as the shocks, no problems that I know of. Right before the trip I had my
mechanic go over everything and make sure it was ready to go. Put in a new timing belt and water pump, repaired some radiator issues and a few other
odds and ends.
Unfortunately I think it was simply a matter of driving too fast, especially for rainy conditions, and not knowing how to react when sliding. Coming
out of a slide is pretty counter-intuitive for someone who hasn't learned how or had experience doing so.
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