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Remember that video of a Tesla Cybertruck getting stuck in the snow in California’s Stanislaus National Forest from last week? Two Ford pickups pulled the EV back onto the trail, and the video went viral. In fact, that video got so popular, it’s prompted the US Forestry Service to suggest to Tesla that their respective representatives should meet to develop an educational program to train inexperienced off-road drivers to avoid problems like this in the future.
“We feel confident that had the driver of the Cybertruck had a better understanding of the topographical feature indicated on our maps, practiced Leave No Trace principles, and generally been more prepared, this whole incident could have been not only avoided, but also provided much-needed education to many new off-road users,” Stanislaus National Forest Supervisor Jason Kuiken said in a statement.
Kuiken expects the Cybertruck to attract new people to off-roading, but these people might not be familiar with the proper trail etiquette. “We would invite executives of Tesla Motors to sit down at the table with us and develop an educational experience for new Cybertruck owners,” he said.
The incident happened on the 13.9-mile-long Corral Hollow OHV Trail. It’s a “moderately challenging route,” according to Alltrails.com. The route is dry and dusty in the summer but sometimes closed in the winter due to snow.
It is unclear how the Cybertruck got so far away from the trail. The person who shared the videos and photo of the incident said he wasn’t sure. The US Forestry Service statement said the pickup “apparently lost traction and slid down an embankment.”
Regardless of how the Tesla got into the predicament, the driver couldn’t get the Cybertruck back to the trail. The videos showed it spinning the tires and kicking up snow and dirt. The “RC” plastered to the side means this was a pre-production Release Candidate, rather than a regular production Cybertruck. Allegedly, a software issue kept the traction control from working. It also lacked the recovery points from the production version.
Some online commentary suggested that if the Cybertruck driver had tackled the situation differently, they might not have needed the Fords’ assistance. Rather than going straight up the hill to get back to the trail, it might have been better to climb the slope diagonally, allowing for a more gradual ascent.
Maybe if the Cybertruck driver went through the proposed educational course with the US Forestry Service and Tesla, the pickup never would have needed Fords to rescue it. Whether Tesla will agree to the training has yet to be seen, but something tells us we won’t be seeing an official collaboration any time soon.
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