Congrats. You bought a new rig.
Maybe it’s a Jeep, Bronco, 4Runner, Tacoma, Subaru, or something else with four-wheel drive, a little extra ground clearance, and just enough capability to make you wonder where that dirt road goes.
So you take to the internet.
A few searches later, Facebook does what Facebook does, and you’ve found a local off-road group. Better yet, somebody invites you on a group ride.
Now what?
First, welcome. Most of us started exactly where you are.
The off-road and overlanding communities are generally full of people who genuinely enjoy introducing newcomers to the outdoors. But a group trail ride is different from exploring a forest road by yourself or heading out with a couple of friends. What you do—or don’t do—can affect everyone else in the group.
There aren’t many complicated rules. Mostly, it comes down to preparation, communication, respect, and knowing when to leave your ego at home.
Here are a few things worth knowing before your first group ride.
Get a Radio
Seriously. Get a radio.
Communications may be one of the least exciting pieces of equipment you’ll buy for your rig, but on a group ride it can also be one of the most useful.
Trail communications aren’t just for conversation. The lead vehicle may be warning everyone about an obstacle, an oncoming vehicle, a washed-out section of trail, a turn, or a mechanical problem. Someone farther back may need the group to stop. A spotter may need to communicate with a driver.
If you can’t hear any of that, you’re operating partially disconnected from the group.
Ask the organizer before the ride what communications system and channel the group uses.
Today, many off-road groups use GMRS, while some still use CB, FRS handheld radios, or amateur radio. Don’t assume.
If you don’t have the group’s preferred equipment, tell the organizer ahead of time. Someone may have a spare handheld, or the group may be able to pair you with another vehicle.
Whatever the solution, don’t knowingly head into a group ride unable to communicate and expect everyone else to solve the problem for you.
Ask About Requirements Before You Show Up
Not every trail ride is appropriate for every vehicle or driver.
Ask.
Does the group require:
- Recovery points?
- Recovery gear?
- A full-size spare?
- GMRS or another radio?
- Minimum tire size?
- Four-wheel drive?
- Low range?
- Lockers?
- Minimum ground clearance?
- Previous trail experience?
Most importantly, be honest about your vehicle and your experience.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with saying, “I’ve never done this before.”
In fact, that’s useful information. A good trail leader can account for it, help you choose lines, put an experienced driver near you, and tell you beforehand if a particular ride probably isn’t the best place to start.
What causes problems is exaggerating your experience or your vehicle’s capabilities.
A stock crossover and a stock Jeep Rubicon may both technically be “stock,” but that doesn’t mean they have remotely the same capabilities. Likewise, driving maintained Forest Service roads isn’t the same thing as navigating technical trails with a dozen vehicles behind you.
This is the time for humility, not ego.
There will always be another trail.
Show Up Prepared
You don’t need $20,000 worth of overlanding equipment before venturing onto a dirt road.
You should, however, arrive with a vehicle that’s ready for the trip.
Start with the basics.
Make sure your tires are in good condition. Check your fluids. Start with enough fuel. Bring water. Know where your recovery points are. Carry whatever recovery and safety equipment the organizer requires.
If something on your vehicle has been making a strange noise for three weeks, the morning of a trail ride probably isn’t the time to decide it’ll be fine.
Mechanical failures happen. That’s part of traveling off pavement, and most groups will happily help someone dealing with a legitimate problem.
Showing up knowingly unprepared is different.
Your lack of preparation can become everyone else’s problem.
Stay in Line
Here’s one of the simplest rules of group trail riding:
Keep track of the vehicle behind you.
If you make a turn, check your mirror and make sure they make the same turn.
If they disappear, slow down or stop somewhere safe. Let the group know over the radio.
This creates a chain throughout the convoy. Instead of the lead driver trying to keep track of twenty vehicles, everyone helps keep track of the vehicle immediately behind them.
Don’t blindly follow the vehicle ahead while leaving the person behind you wondering where everyone went.
And unless the trail leader says otherwise, don’t change your position in the group.
It’s a trail ride, not qualifying at Talladega.
Communicate
Need to stop?
Say something.
Have a mechanical problem?
Say something.
Not comfortable with an obstacle?
Say something.
Don’t understand where the group is going?
Say something.
There is no prize for silently getting yourself into trouble.
If you’re new and aren’t sure what line to take through an obstacle, ask for a spotter. Get out of the vehicle and look at the obstacle yourself. Watch a few experienced drivers go through it.
And remember that the person behind you successfully climbing something doesn’t mean you have to.
Different vehicles have different wheelbases, tires, ground clearance, traction systems, modifications, and drivers.
You are ultimately responsible for your vehicle.
A good trail group will respect someone who says, “I’m not comfortable with this.”
Don’t Drive Beyond Your Ability to Impress People
This deserves its own section.
Peer pressure on the trail isn’t always explicit.
Sometimes nobody says a word. You simply watch six modified Jeeps climb an obstacle and start thinking, Well, I guess I’m doing that too.
Maybe.
Maybe not.
Know the difference between stretching your abilities and doing something stupid because people are watching.
There is nothing embarrassing about taking a bypass, asking for a spot, stacking a rock where permitted, using recovery equipment appropriately, or simply deciding an obstacle isn’t worth the risk.
Body damage gets expensive remarkably quickly.
So do broken axles.
Your Instagram followers aren’t paying the repair bill.
If Someone Needs Help, Help
Eventually somebody is going to get stuck.
Or break something.
Or have a flat.
Or need a spotter.
That’s part of this.
When it happens, don’t just sit in your vehicle scrolling through your phone while three people do all the work.
If you know what you’re doing, offer to help.
If you don’t know what you’re doing, ask how you can help.
That doesn’t mean jumping into an active recovery without understanding what’s happening. Vehicle recovery involves tremendous forces and can be dangerous when done incorrectly. Listen to whoever is coordinating the recovery and stay clear when instructed.
Sometimes the best help you can provide is moving vehicles, watching traffic, getting equipment, or simply staying out of the recovery zone.
You’ll learn a tremendous amount by paying attention.
And someday it’ll be your rig stuck in the mud.
Respect the Trail
This one matters.
Stay on designated routes.
Don’t make your own trail around a mud hole. Don’t drive into a field because it looks fun. Don’t widen an obstacle unnecessarily. Don’t spin tires just to throw mud for a video.
Pack out your trash.
If you find someone else’s trash and can reasonably carry it out, grab that too.
Follow posted closures and restrictions. Respect gates. Respect private property. Follow the principles of Leave No Trace and Tread Lightly.
Public access to many of the places we enjoy is not guaranteed forever.
Trails get closed.
Landowners block access.
Communities push back.
Regulations become more restrictive.
And sometimes the reason is us.
A few minutes of stupidity can damage a trail—or the reputation of everyone who uses it—for years.
Respect the Communities You Travel Through
The trail doesn’t exist in a vacuum.
There are people living along the roads we use to reach these places.
Slow down around houses. Don’t dust out somebody’s driveway. Keep the stereo reasonable. Don’t block roads while the group waits for everyone to catch up. Be courteous at gas stations and restaurants when fifteen muddy rigs suddenly descend on them.
And don’t trespass.
“Somebody on Facebook said this road was open” isn’t permission to cross private property.
Part of responsible exploration is remembering that we’re visitors in somebody else’s community.
Act accordingly.
Respect the People in Your Group
Read the room.
Is this a family-oriented ride with kids along? Act accordingly.
Is the organizer trying to give instructions? Stop talking and listen.
Did someone spend weeks scouting and organizing the route you’re enjoying for free? Maybe thank them.
People come to the outdoors for different reasons and from different backgrounds. You don’t have to become best friends with everyone on the ride.
You do need to treat them with respect.
The easiest way to get invited back isn’t having the most expensive rig.
It’s being someone people actually want to spend another Saturday with.
Save the Drinking for Camp
Alcohol and technical driving don’t belong together.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re on pavement, a Forest Service road, or private property.
If you’re driving, stay sober.
Crack the beer when the vehicles are parked for the night.
Don’t Be Afraid to Be New
This might be the most important part.
Nobody was born knowing how to pick a line, air down tires, use a winch, cross water, navigate a shelf road, or recover a stuck vehicle.
Someone taught us.
Or we learned by making mistakes.
Usually both.
So ask questions.
Watch what experienced people do. Learn your vehicle. Learn why someone chooses one line instead of another. Pay attention during recoveries. Ask about equipment before spending money on it.
A good group won’t look down on you for being inexperienced.
What experienced people tend to have far less patience for is someone who is inexperienced and refuses to listen.
There’s a big difference.
Listen. Learn. Don’t Be a Dick.
The off-road community can be incredibly welcoming.
Some of my favorite experiences over the years have involved introducing someone to a trail, watching them discover what their vehicle can do, or seeing that moment when a person realizes an entire world exists beyond the pavement.
That’s part of what Expedition Georgia is about.
You don’t need to be an expert to start exploring.
You don’t need a $70,000 vehicle covered in accessories.
You don’t need to know everything.
You need an appropriate vehicle for the route, some basic preparation, good judgment, respect for the places you’re traveling through, and a willingness to learn.
The rest comes with experience.
So if you’ve been staring at that 4WD button and wondering what happens beyond the pavement, find a responsible group and go learn.
Just remember the three rules that cover almost everything else:
Listen. Learn. Don’t be a dick.
Places worth getting off the pavement to find.