Spotter

[TacoBori]

I have been offroading a few times and know that the spotter is one of the most important things while out there. But i have also noticed that some of the best spotters i have ran into are Jeep owners (that i have encountered). Is their a reason for this? I would also like to know if their is a course i can take possibly to help me be a better spotter to my fellow offroaders.

 

[Gator]

I have been offroading a few times and know that the spotter is one of the most important things while out there. But i have also noticed that some of the best spotters i have ran into are Jeep owners (that i have encountered). Is their a reason for this? I would also like to know if their is a course i can take possibly to help me be a better spotter to my fellow offroaders.

Avoid using a spotter. Stay behind the the Jeep. If the Jeep rolls over, stop following it.

 

[Smitty]

In my opinion, if your "spotter" doesn't drive, especially off-road, don't use that person... Me personally I just full send and pray, luckily my gf helps me out a little bit if she sees I'm having a hard time or if she knows it's really tight she'll stick her head out of the window and "spot" me a little bit. Most of the time (especially on trails I know) I don't really listen to her cause I do in fact know what I'm doing. However she has been very helpful sometimes. And my personal rule is ALWAYS make sure you have at least one more vehicle with you especially if it's new trails/woods. People don't seem to understand that having another vehicle is the most useful tool if shit goes south

Hope this is helpful!

 

[StormRnr]

I've done a number of 4x4 obstacles with my wife. She drives, but not as much as me. We walk the obstacles together, come up with a plan, then I follow her lead. It works really well. Driving and spotting are two very different skills, so I wouldn't worry too about a spotter's driving experience.

I find spotting to be as much fun as driving. You get a better view and in a lot of cases you're in more control. I once helped a women in a JK with open Diffs get off a trail that was way above her abilities. It was a really cool challenge.

Spotting a Jeep is very different than spotting a Tacoma. It's the IFS. Those guys generally will mess you up if they aren't familiar with IFS.

I shot a feature on spotting on the Rubicon that might be helpful.

Original link: https://youtu.be/IJ5L3G2RIro


Here's a clip of my wife spotting me in our Tacoma:

Original link: https://youtu.be/BGvpPav04fo


If you look at other clips from that trip you'll see what bad spotting looks like:

Original link: https://youtu.be/pTwCWrIof14

Original link: https://youtu.be/uQ7R0l0UtBA


Without experience, it's hard to tell if your spotter is good or not...

-M

 

[Lava road]

One thing for sure , the more experience one gets , the better they become. Making mistakes often is the best teacher!