Also, ignoring an extremely cheap and easy way to protect a very probable area for damage is ridiculous. Additionally, not having proper recovery equipment simply because you have never needed to use it before is ridiculous.
I'm no real expert, but I have common sense. I hope that all newbie members to this site do also because I'd hate for poor advice/methods to be followed by newbs resulting in their things getting messed up. I love offroading, it's an awesome hobby, but you've got to be safe about it. Having the right equipment and knowing how to use it is very important. Also protecting vulnerable areas of your vehicle is important even if you think you're so great that it won't ever happen to you. People say they won't get an STD during unprotected sex...it happens to them. People say they'll never break an axle offroading...it happens to them. People say they won't hit their diffs hard enough to damage them...
