Drilling rig with torque carrier

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Therefore, according to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a telescoping rig with an upper mast telescopingly received within a lower mast.
A torque carrier is formed of an upper part suspended within the upper mast and a lower part attached to the lower mast.
The lower part may be secured to the upper part when the rig is in operational position, and is movable to allow the upper mast to move into a telescoped position within the lower mast.
According to a method of the invention, a rig having an upper mast and a lower mast is readied for transport by disconnecting upper and lower parts of a torque carrier, moving the lower torque carrier laterally within the lower mast to allow the upper mast to telescope within the lower mast; and telescoping the upper mast within the lower mast.
A torque drive may then remain in the rig during transportation, and remain attached to the torque carrier, preferably the upper torque carrier, thus facilitating transportation of the rig.
According to a further aspect of the invention, the lower torque carrier is attached to the lower mast by pivots, for example swinging arms that swing in a vertical plane downward, to allow the lower torque carrier to swing out of the way of the upper mast when the upper mast is moved into the telescoped position.
These and other aspects of the invention are described in the detailed description of the invention and claimed in the claims that follow.