Tiger Tail ATV Tow System Review

A tow strap is one of those items that many riders feel is an absolute must-have on an ATV or SxS but, for various reasons, choose not to carry. First off, a general lack of storage space, and second, dealing with it after you've used it in wet or muddy conditions. After pulling people who are stuck in a swamp filled with stagnant water, the last thing I've ever wanted to do was wind up a strap and stow it with the rest of my gear or anything else I have in my storage. In developing the Tiger Tail ATV tow system, the company has realized this and bestowed upon the world its Tiger Tail AT/UT self-retracting tow strap.

When I first opened the box containing the Tiger Tail ATV tow system, the bright orange color of the synthetic rope and housing instantly caught my eye, and then once I removed it I was able to see how nice of a package it was. The rope features a hook that is secured in the housing's integrated hook storage when completely coiled up and prevents it from hanging up on debris or banging around on your machine when riding. The recoil mechanism is completely sealed from any muck that you might subject it to and has been tested to work flawlessly for over 14,000 cycles. The unit gets mounted and secured with four bolts to whichever mounting plate you order with your Tiger Tail, and for my testing purposes I went with the Polaris RZR 11/4-inch receiver.

When out on the trail with the Tiger Tail ATV tow system in place, I never had any problems with ground clearance issues except during some technical rock crawling. Other than that, this piece is nicely out of harm's way and won't put you in a bind. At no point did I ever get stuck and need to find out if the rope lived up to its 8,000-pound strength claim, but it did come in handy to tow broken-down machines back to their respective camps. Winding up the rope must be done properly or not all of it will get back onto the spool, but once you do it a few times you become a master at it. Some people might balk at the $159 price tag for a simple tow strap, but when considering the quality and convenience the Tiger Tail offers, I feel it is well worth the price. If you need a second opinion from a private party, then look to page 12 of our September/October issue for Matt Morrissey's firsthand testimony to the value of the Tiger Tail ATV tow system. -Eli Madero