Winch Challenge
This is the most recent, and usually the most difficult, form of course trialling. Again, a course is laid out with a series of gates and vehicles must complete as many gates in a course as possible. However, these events take place on very difficult terrain- difficult to the extent that vehicles are not expected to be able to complete the course without the use of a recovery winch. Winching is a definite skill in itself, aside from off-road driving, and brings elements of team-playing into the trial, as a successful (and safe) vehicle recovery needs at least 2 people to complete. Some trials are for teams of 2 or 3 vehicles, each helping to recover the others through obstacles. A Winch Challenge may extend to other off-road driving skills, such as building a log bridge to cross a river.
At its most basic, a Winch Challenge vehicle will be a CCV-spec machine with a front-mounted recovery winch. However, a distinct breed of vehicles adapted for Winch Challenges has evolved. The small, open-topped CCV vehicles is not well suited to carrying the often large range of equipment needed for winch recovery in difficult terrain. A larger vehicle with some form of protection from the elements is desired (the short-wheelbase Land Rover Defender, especially in 'Hard Top' guise, is a typical and common basis for a Winch Challenge vehicle). Vehicles often require extensive modification. Under-body protection is needed, given the severity of the terrain involved, and suspension and drive train upgrades are used to get vehicles as far as possible before winching is needed. Roll-cages and 'snorkel' air intakes are required to prevent vehicle damage. The vehicle's electrical system often needs upgrading, with multiple battery banks and high-output alternators being needed to cope with the large currents drawn by a winch. Vehicles increasingly sport winches mounted at the front and rear to greatly increase the options available for recovery.
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