If you’re going to play in the mud, you can plan on getting stuck at some point. Most of us learned this lesson as kids the first time we left our boots in a muddy field, and the same principal applies to our toys today. Unlike your stranded boots though, getting your ATV or Side x Side out of the muck is a whole lot more challenging.
BUBBA ROPE RESCUE
You find out who your friends are pretty quickly when your adventure ride turns into a rescue and retrieval operation. They’re the ones standing on the side, laughing at your self-inflicted predicament, and the best you can hope for is that one of them has the horsepower to help you out. It’s going to take something between the two machines, however, and that is where the BUBBA ROPE comes in.
Bubba Rope was originally designed as a tool to pull heavy military vehicles out. That means everything from a Humvee to an Abrams tank. Since the military is obsessive about their testing, you can be sure the Bubba Rope is built to last. Key features of the Bubba Rope are:
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100% double braided nylon rope
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Vinyl Polymer coating
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Built to same specs as their military version
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Water, UV and abrasive resistant
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Highest breaking strengths available and certified at their factory
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Made in the U.S.A
What makes the Bubba Rope work is something you learned about back in grade school: kinetic energy. In other words, the energy built up by an object in motion. It’s designed to stretch and then release that energy to pop your machine out of your predicament. There is a safety factor built into the Bubba Rope as well. We’ve seen tailgates dented, plastic broken, and parts bent when chains or safety straps failed. Unfortunately, we even know one poor fellow who was killed by a chain that snapped, whipping back and hitting him in the head. The failure of a snapped chain or strap is extremely violent and dangerous.
The Bubba Ropes work somewhat like the ultimate bungee cord, stretching to almost 20%, and then releasing their stored energy quickly in a smooth acceleration that doesn’t jolt either the tow vehicle, or the stuck machine. They are also designed for all seasons and all conditions. Sand, snow, mud, and rocks won’t bother the Bubba Rope thanks to their protective coating. When not in use, the Bubba Rope even comes with a protective carrying bag.
The Bubba Ropes feature large diameter braided loops at each end for easy attachment, but there is another option as well. Their Gator-Jaw is a soft shackle made with a unique knot that tightens as you pull, and won’t slip off during use. Since the Gator Jaw must grip on many different surfaces, it’s made from a material called Plasma which is the highest strength synthetic rope available. It is then coated with Bubba Rope’s proprietary vinyl urethane for abrasion protection, and then every Gator Jaw is pre-tested before it leaves the factory. There is another option for hookup, though.
FACTOR 55 FIXTURES
There is one problem with traditional winch hooks; if whatever you are hooking to doesn’t fit the hook, you are out of luck. Worse, hook openings are too small to fit both loops of a recovery strap, and hook latches can cut and fray the synthetic strap material. The ProLink and FlatLink system, from Factor 55, eliminates the traditional winch hooks by using a safer and stronger D-ring shackle setup. Made with 6061 aluminum, the Prolink and Flatlink are beautifully machined parts with an anodized coating. They are also simple to install on your winch cable with no splicing. Slide the cable loop into the Prolink or Flatlink, install the titanium pin, and you are ready to go. Thankfully, the surface closest to the winch fairlead has a rubber guard to protect the fairlead and eliminate vibration.
FIELD TESTED
We had our first trial of the Bubba Rope and Prolink with EB Lowman and riders at Rush Off-Road Park. Rush Off-Road has a little bit of everything for terrain, and that includes mud. As usual it didn’t take us long to find trouble, but this time we were ready.
Reeling out the Bubba Rope and Gator Jaws, we slipped one end into the D-Shackle and Prolink which we had already attached to our Warn winch. On the other end, a buddy attached the Gator Jaw to his machine and it was time to see what the Bubba Rope would do. Just as they said would happen, our cheeks clenched in anticipation of a solid jerk, the Bubba Rope stretched, and then in one motion we were whisked forward. It worked perfectly! This is a cool rescue tool and you can bet others were anxious to use it also!
RESCUE ROPE
Bubba Rope has ropes of every size and strength rating, with some so large you could probably tie a supertanker to the dock. Whatever you ride, they’ve got a Bubba Rope for you. We definitely give these products a THUMBS UP for making it easier, faster, and safer to get yourself out of any sticky situation.
Bubba Rope
Phone: 877-499-8494
Factor 55
Phone: 208-639-1674
