Protect, promote and provide 4x4 opportunities worldwide
December 2014 • Volume 41 • Issue 3
Board of Directors President Tom Mandera– president@ufwda.org Past President Jim Mazzola III– pastpresident@ufwda.org Vice President Pat Brower - vpresident@ufwda.org International Vice President Peter Vahry – intlvp@ufwda.org Treasurer (vacant) Bob DeVore – treasurer@ufwda.org Director of Membership Richard Hiltz - membership@ufwda.org Director of Public Relations Liz Wirgau - prdirector@ufwda.org Director of Environmental Affairs Jerry Smith - landuse@ufwda.org
Extended Board of Directors
4WD Awareness Coordinator Craig Feusse - 4wdawareness@ufwda.org Website Administrator Milt Webb Design – webmaster@ufwda.org
Legal and Marketing
Legal Counsel Carla Boucher – attorney@ufwda.org Business Development Manager Travis Howell - business@ufwda.org 231-557-7189
Editorial and Design
Editor, Peter Vahry Consulting Editor, Phil Hanson
UFWDA Office and Contact PO Box 316 Swartz Creek, MI 48473 Email: info@ufwda.org Phone: 1-800-44-UFWDA
Old mining road on San Diego Peak (Frank G. Whiston)
Departments:
Introductions:
6
Comment: Trasharoo: why you need one ‘Alaska Off-Road Warriors’ Is Motorized Recreation Politically Insignificant?
17 18 30
News and Events: 24th Annual Chile Challenge So. E. Tavaputs 2014 BF Goodrich Introduces Their New KO2 All Terrain Tire CORE Black Friday Trail Ride Polar Mesa /Onion Cr. /Delores A Great Opportunity Every November in Albuquerque, NM Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival 2015
9 19 26 36 41 48 50
Lists: Business Members Member Organizations
53 54
Cover photo of Daniel Montano in The Narrows during Chile Challenge (Jack Dickey) Stories and articles are submitted from various Association Members and other contributors. The views and opinions expressed in the stories and articles within are solely those of the individual, or individuals who submitted said stories or articles. United Four Wheel Drive Associations neither advocates, endorses, nor recommends any of the said views or opinions.
Introductions Tom Mandera UFWDA President
United isn’t the President. United isn’t the BOD. United is just that - all of us, United. I look forward to working with all of you - all of us - to protect our hobby, to better our opportunities, and to help guarantee my children and yours, the opportunities to enjoy the outdoors that we have reveled in. Thank you, -Tom Mandera
Hello friends! Thank you for the honor of this opportunity to serve as UFWDA President. I had the pleasure of spending a week wheeling with Past President Jim Mazzola a few years back, and have spent a lot of time with former President Rob St. Clair. I am a former long-term President of the Montana 4x4 Association, an inperson Delegate in attendance at two UFWDA Annual Conventions, and have been actively involved in organized 4x4 activity since 1998 when I went on my first trail ride with the Frontier 4-Wheelers of Helena, MT and spent the day on the wrong end of a rope. I fell into International Scouts when my high-school partner in misadventure took the sensible route and opted for the family Subaru, making their 1972 Scout II available for my acquisition. I still have it, and several more. I’ve been trail riding ever since, whenever mechanical reality and work schedules have allowed. For 11 years I was also heavily involved in 4x4 racing, including straight line drag racing, obstacle races, short and long course endurance racing, and at least two rollovers, the latter leading to the retirement of that racing Scout II. My racing speeds are second only to my fabrication pace, so the replacement racer continues to occupy a bay in my garage, proceeding at its glacial pace. Getting my two young daughters out into the woods on trail rides takes priority. I have called Montana home for over 20 years. My wife and I have been married 11 years. She has her own 4x4s, and has more racing trophies than I do, including the fastest 100-yard pass my racer ever turned. Our two daughters are in kindergarten and 3rd grade, and are thrilled to take off into the mountains to go exploring. The oldest is a veteran of the United Convention 2007 in Grand Junction, Colorado.
Pat Brower Vice President
Wow, it’s been a quarter since I last wrote you for a Voice?! My parents always warned me that life was like a roll of toilet paper, the closer to the end you get, the faster it goes. I guess that it doesn’t help that I haven’t looked up from my work since then. It’s been a busy time around here. Last time I wrote, we’d recently been joined by Jerry Smith of Colorado, as our new Director of Environmental Affairs. This quarter’s efforts have yielded a number of new additions to our ranks. If you’ve followed our Facebook Page or Twitter feeds, you’ve already seen my welcoming announcements for our new President, Director of Membership, Director of Public Relations, Business Development Manager, and 4WD Awareness Coordinator. By the time you see this copy in print, you’ll also see an announcement welcoming a new Storekeeper as well! Please join me in welcoming Tom Mandera as our new President. Tom hails from Montana where he’s served as the President of the M4x4 Association for nearly ten years. Montana is also home to our new Director of Membership, Richard Hiltz. Michigan is home to three of our new Board Members; Liz Wirgau, our new Director of Public Relations, Craig Fuesse, our new 4WD Awareness
Coordinator, and Jeff Traynor, our new Storekeeper. Like Jerry, our new Business Development Manager, Travis Howell, rests his hat in Colorado at the end of the day. I think it’s a well-rounded Board, representative of a pretty good area of North America and world … almost. My term as VP is up at the next AGM and I’ve no intention of running again. I’ll continue to be a fixture at United as your Operations Manager, but I want to see yet another volunteer in the VP position adding even more energy and capability to the organization. I want to reach out to Mid Atlantic, Indiana, and Southern to find someone to fill the role, because they’re three of our larger associations and none of them have a representative on the Board. I think all three are big enough to warrant supplying a member to fill a role at the national level. Besides, what better way to make sure United goes in the directions that your association would like, than to have your members steering the organization right from the top?
across Australia and New Zealand. You can find episodes on www.youtube.com.user/4wdTVtube Again we have summer down here in New Zealand, with the promise of four wheeling opportunities... but for many of us around our biggest city, Auckland, the venues have suddenly shrunk in number. A 4x4 park has closed until Easter as it’s in a pine plantation forest with a fire risk, another trail that had major maintenance done last year has been closed because the work has generated silt in waterways during rain and now expensive remedial work is needed to correct that problem. A wet Spring prevented machine work on another popular trail and it now is in poor shape, which limits the use and raises the risk of silt problems. I did get out for a weekend at the end of November to help cut back vegetation on a popular trail known as the 42 Traverse that winds through the Tongariro Forest in the central North Island. Sixteen 4x4 volunteers managed to cut back 2.5 km of trail, but
Peter Vahry International VP
This being the last edition for 2014, UFWDA wish everyone a Happy New Year and one that makes a difference for four wheeling. Internationally our reach is gradually growing, as we watch the limited online readership data that we can identify. It was interesting to recently receive an email from Chris Evans of 4x4 Spain, to say that they are working on a project to connect with European four wheelers through www.4x4channel. tv We certainly wish them well and thank Chris for promoting UFWDA too. Australia’s www.4WDtv.com.au was a pioneer in the field of televising 4x4 events and excursions and has grown into a weekly half hour program running on free to air and community stations
there’s still another 14 km that really needs work. I’ve kept the picture small of this vantage point, so the ‘pin striping’ of the paintwork is not obvious! I too would like to welcome the newcomers to the UFWDA Board and there are some exciting ideas about raising awareness of our organization among the 4x4 community. Thank you for volunteering and with most of our existing roles covered for the while, it will be interesting to see what we can achieve. If you’ve not noticed it elsewhere, I’d like to remind of the UFWDA survey that we are running. You will be asked for an email address, but those are never used outside UFWDA. My final reminder is that we need your input to keep UFWDA Voice relevant and interesting!
Richard Hiltz, Membership Director
Liz Wirgau, Director of Public Relations
Hello fellow wheelers...
Hello UFWDA!
My name is Richard Hiltz. I recently took on the position of Membership Director for United and I was asked to provide a little info about myself. Here goes the Reader’s Digest Condensed version (If you understand that reference then you have an idea of my age.)
I am the newest Director of Public Relations for UFWDA and wanted to take a moment to introduce myself. My name is Liz Wirgau, I am a lifelong Michigander, drive a pink truck and have a cat named Tranny, short for Transmission.
I have lived for at least a short time, in almost every state, a few outlying territories of the US and a few other countries. I spent some time falling out of perfectly good aircraft for the Army, was with the US Border Patrol and worked for the State of Montana…etc. These days I own a small business in Helena Montana. I have been driving 4x4s since I was about 11 (on ranches) and Jeeps since I was 17. I traveled mostly alone until relatively recently, when in 2009, I started wheeling with some of Montana’s 4x4 clubs. I am currently President of the Frontier 4x4 Club out of Helena Montana, a member of the Continental Four Wheel Drive Association of Butte MT, a member of the Beaverhead Backcountry Pioneers 4x4 Club of Dillon MT, a member and past VP of the Montana 4x4 Association and I commonly wheel with members of other clubs. So yes, I get out on the trails a bit. I enjoy this great back yard I have here in Montana and I actively support all efforts to keep the “public” in and on public lands. So there you go. My whole life in a paragraph.
My husband and I have been members of UFWDA for 15 years along with being members of various local clubs throughout Michigan. We each have a full-size, off-road capable vehicle and spend the majority of our time enjoying the lifestyle including attending Jeep night at the local BBQ shack, sanctioned mud bogging, trail clean ups and trips to Silver Lake Sand Dunes and our local ORV parks. Our favorite event is always Sno* Blind in West Branch, Michigan each February, both for the snow wheeling and for the people that host and attend. Two feet of snow, ice and cold temperatures can really change a trail! We’ve been attending this event for almost as many years as we’ve been UFWDA members. When we’re not driving, we can be found wrenching because keeping two rigs in working condition can be time consuming but we enjoy the build almost as much as being behind the wheel.
If you have membership questions, complaints or just need information, contact me at membership@ UFWDA.org and I will do my best to take care of you and your concerns. Wheel safe my friends. Thank you; Richard Hiltz Membership Director United Four Wheel Drive Associations
Some of my favorite memories growing up include blueberry picking in the backwoods with my family in a CJ, trail riding on four wheelers through state land and breaking a motor mount on my first vehicle, a Jeep, because I wanted to try driving in the sand pit behind my parent’s house. Now, as an adult I especially appreciate being outdoors and spend as much time as possible enjoying nature which is why I have decided to volunteer to be a part of the UFWDA Board of Directors. I am excited to begin working on promoting and growing UFWDA and while this is only a short introduction, I welcome any questions or comments so please feel free to email me at PRdirector@UFWDA.org.
Happy trails!
24th Annual Chile Challenge Southern New Mexico October 15-18, 2014
Words by Frank G Whiston Phil Negotiating Off-Camber on San Diego Peak (Frank G. Whiston)
This year presented some major changes, as the Las Cruces Four Wheel Drive Club (LCFWDC) continued its more than two decade tradition of putting on the nationally recognized Chile Challenge event. With difficulties in working with the local land agencies, increasing costs, and timing conflicts with other national 4x4 events; LCFWDC made the hard decision to change both the date and location of their annual event. For the past 23 years, the Chile Challenge held the event west of Las Cruces, NM during the week of President’s Day in February. This year, the location was moved about an hour’s drive north of the club’s hometown to Caballo Lake State Park. The date moved to the week of Columbus Day. As a participant, both of these changes were great! New trails and great weather made for an awesome experience. LCFWDC had trips planned for a person who had just bought a new 4x4 and had never shifted into low range before all the way to the seasoned crawler with a purpose-built buggy. Years ago, I was labeled as a “tweener” by fellow New Mexico 4-Wheelers member, Mark Werkmeister. I had just set up my LJ on 35’s and wanted more challenge than the small tire group within the club, but didn’t care to do the extreme stuff that the larger tire group typically ran. Today, I am still comfortable in the same place, so that is the perspective from which I am writing. LCFWDC came up with a 12 point trail rating system and I signed up for trails rated from 4-6, pretty much right
in the middle, so yes, I am still a tweener! The first day, I signed up for Apache Canyon, rated a 6 on the twelve point rating scale. Here is the description as posted by the event staff: “The Apache Canyon trail begins at the Caballo Lake Dam. The trail goes through Apache Canyon and continues to the top of the Caballo Mountains. Most of the trail could be rated at 1 or 2, but two sections of ledges (12” to 18”) and large rocks (12” to 20”) must be negotiated. There are no by-passes for these obstacles. There is one optional ledge of about 30” for the adventurous, but this obstacle can be by-passed. The trail takes you to the top of the southern peak of the Caballo Mountains then runs along a ridge to the northern peak. The views east and west are spectacular. From the northern peak you can see Elephant Butte Lake and the town of Truth or Consequences. Along the ridge line, Space Port America can be seen with a good set of binoculars”. The trip was as advertised and a long day in the dirt (69 miles). This trip was perfect to run at the event for a couple important reasons. First, an agreement was made with the NM State Parks to allow us to drive across the Caballo Lake dam to access the trail, eliminating extra pavement travel. Second, there is a locked gate in Apache Canyon and the LCFWDC contacted the rancher who gave the combination and permission to the group to travel the route. The views and challenges did not
Frank R. Whiston flexing his Call of Duty in Apache Canyon (Frank G. Whiston)
disappoint. I had not visited this area in October before and the desert was alive from the monsoon rains that were received during the late summer. The hills were covered with yellow flowers and the ocotillo had leafed out and greener than I had ever seen. Could this possibly be the namesake of the neighboring Green Canyon which contains some world-class rockcrawling? Day two would take us to San Diego Peak, one of only two trails run this year that had been run in past Chile Challenges. This was rated a 4 on the twelve point scale, but could have been rated higher due to a lot of off-camber sections that had been eroded by the summer monsoons. Here is the description as posted by the event staff: “This trail starts in the desert near I-25 and follows power lines and sand washes for the first part of the course before entering a rugged mountain pass. An old mine road climbs through the pass until it reaches a saddle near San Diego Peak. For those wanting a challenge, the trail climbs to the top of San Diego Peak where you are rewarded with 360 degree views of the surrounding desert and river valley. The peak climb is very difficult without a locker. The trail then heads east back to the trail head. This trail has many boulders and washed out areas. Lots of fun and challenges await you on San Diego Peak”.
The challenge began right at the foot of the mountain where an optional loose dirt climb got us ready for what was to come. From there, the group would wind their way up an old mining road which would make one think that no vehicle had traveled this route since the mines were active, despite being included in this event for many years. The views of the pecan groves and chile fields in the valley below were spectacular. Several vehicle issues, coupled with slowly traversing some offcamber sections, the group decided to leave the last leg to the top for another visit, it had been a long day. We signed up for a brand new trail called Rattler on day three, which was rated as a 5 on the twelve point scale. Here is the description as posted by the event staff: “This trail starts in Green Canyon arroyo and turns out of the main canyon into an ascent to the top to the top. A few challenges will be present as you cross in and out of the canyon bottom before reaching the top. Depending on the size of the group, lunch will most likely be at the mountain top, taking in the views of the area. Following lunch you will descend down the backside, dropping off a few ledges along with tight turns before exiting back into Green Canyon. The trail covers less than a mile and depending on the size and capability, it should take approximately half a day to run.
Airing down for Rattler/Breath Taker (Frank G. Whiston)
A rear locker will help, if you don’t have a locker you may need a strap or winch or a good friend close by”. Our group ran this trail very quickly, despite a YJ that broke something in his rear axle. Once off the trail, the YJ limped back to civilization under its own power while my father and I escorted. The rest of the group went on to run another new trail called Breath taker which is rated a 7 out of twelve. Here is the description as posted by the event staff: “After a short time on a graded road you will drop off the side of the mountain heading down to the trail head. This trail is narrow and tight in places causing you to straddle V-shaped canyon bottoms. A few obstacles that will need to be climbed are steep and tight on each side. Providing mothernature doesn’t reshape the trail before we get there, it should it should be a good trail for off-road vehicles with 33-inch tires. One locker will be most useful negotiating the trail. Approximately two thirds of the way from the top, the trail will fork. For those of you that want to go bigger, the right fork will prove more challenging”. We headed back early as volunteers for the New Mexico Off Highway Vehicle Alliance (NMOHVA)
who partnered with a local grocer to sponsor the Ice Cream Social. That evening, NMOHVA served up ice cream provided by Bullocks Shur Save of T or C, NM to all the registered participants in souvenir cups. There was also an articulation ramp that participants could play on. Other members of the New Mexico 4-Wheelers went out on harder trails and a good time was had by all. From a participant prospective, the new location and new date was great! Sierra County seems to be much more friendly, even promoting 4x4 recreation in their tourism books. I certainly hope that LCFWDC will bring the Chile Challenge back again in 2015!
Dave Plaster on optional San Diego Peak Climb (Frank G. Whiston)
Join our community of Adventurers expeditionportal.com
Trasharoo: Why You NEED One! By Jerry Smith Director of Environmental Affairs, United Four Wheel Drive Associations For many years it has been a standard practice to pick up OPT – (Other People’s Trash) while out Jeeping the Great American BackCountry. It’s another obsession that goes along with fighting trail closures… something I’ve been doing since the middle 1970’s. OPT is something we should ALL be dealing with. Both picking it up, and educating those who leave it… with a 2x4 if necessary! During most of those years, a garbage bag on the floor of the passenger side was used to collect this mess. Broken glass and torn or shot up aluminum cans caused a lot of grief by cutting holes in the plastic bags allowing trash to leak and/or dump inside the Jeep. Yuuuuk!! A few years ago, I invested a few bucks in one of the handiest tools for dealing with all that OPT. Now when I make one of those quick stops, it’s jump out of the Jeep, pick up the OPT item(s), take it to the back of the Jeep and place it in my Trasharoo. It stays outside --- always!! I have a neighbor who spends most of his days rummaging around in dumpsters collecting aluminum cans and other recyclables he can turn in for cash to supplement his income. I help him by separating the aluminum from the other OPT and give it all to him. We both win – he gets an extra dollar here and there and I remove a little more OPT from places it shouldn’t be. When we are out on a Jeep trip, the Trasharoo is always available for the after lunch trash for anyone who desires to use it. Keeping the smell, dirt, and the convenience
of having it ride outside makes sense. It’s also handier when it comes time to dumping. You just drive up to a trashcan or dumpster and dump it. I line mine with a plastic trash bag or two for added convenience and to keep the Trasharoo cleaner. I urge you to seriously consider getting a Trasharoo for your own OPT. The fine folks at Trasharoo generously give $5 from each sale to the United Four Wheel Drive Associations or one of some other organizations very worthy of your support. This means you support having clean trails and the United Four Wheel Drive Associations. You can find your Trasharoo in the United Four Wheel Drive Associations store: or at the Trasharoo website: Let’s keep the trails clean and help the United Four Wheel Drive Associations keep them accessible. Last… when you come to a fork in the road --- take it!!
“ALASKA OFF-ROAD WARRIORS” By Jerry Smith
UFWDA Director of Environmental Affairs The “History” Channel has developed another “historical” reality TV epic that has been receiving a lot of attention in the various forums, FaceBook pages, and other sources lately. Thankfully, nearly every comment is negative. After several attempts to contact the producers of the show, the History channel, the Alaska BLM and USFS offices, all to no avail, it is finally time for the United Four Wheel Drive Associations to voice a total disdain for “Alaska OffRoad Warriors” and the perception of deranged, irresponsible individuals this “show” depicts. As someone who is working on his 40th year to diligently cast an image and a physical reality of sound environmental stewardship of public lands, and the roads and trails we love so much… let me say that this is one sad day. The depiction of Off-Highway use of our beloved Great American BackCountry sensationalized by this *&^%$ show is just simply appalling and about as far from “Reality” as one may go. There are a million reasons we could state why watching this failed attempt of “entertainment” is revolting to any responsible human being, but for any responsible member of the 4-wheeling public, this is a total disregard of the way we act, the way we teach, and the way we live!! Phrases we use and live by every time we go out wheeling tell a completely different story.
Tread Lightly! Stay the Trail Pack it in --- Pack it out Leave No Trace Leave it better than you found it THIS is the image of the “true” Wheeling public. This is “Reality”! Check out the Tread Lightly! link: http:// treadlightly.org/quick-tips-for-responsiblefour-wheeling/ This is a good example of what the “true” wheeling public acts like. If you must entertain yourself with this kind of “Reality TV”, just remember it is NOT REALITY!!! Don’t learn anything from this kind of behavior unless it is DO NOT DO IT!!! Join any and all organizations that promote the “Real” reality of how to cherish and take special care of our Great American BackCountry. You will benefit much more from living in REALITY than some sensationalized garbage on your wide screen TV. Now… go out and enjoy a day in the Great American BackCountry. Do it responsibly. Enjoy the “REALITY” OF LIFE!! And remember this: When you come to a fork in the road ---- take it!!
So. E. Tavaputs 2014
By Jerry Smith November 2, 2014
Luke had posted short notice of a club Jeep tripinto the South East Tavaput Plateau area for Sunday, so 6-rigs were lined-up at the Fruita McDonalds after a prolonged night of rest. Setting the clocks back one-hour has at least on advantage. After leaving Colorado on I-70, we turned north at the Westwater exit and followed the Bookcliff Ridge Road to the “fork in the road”. The paved portion of the road is getting worse than the unpaved. Years of neglect have allowed major potholes to develop that are hard on one’s suspension. Early morning rains had wet the road, so dust was not much of a problem as is usually the case. The question was; would the higher country be wet and sloppy? South of the Three Canyons Ranch, we encountered a large herd of elk. Over 50-head were mingling near the road until we came along and sent them scurrying up the hill. One short side trip was done to “study” a Wilderness Study Area boundary road that climbed a steep hillside. It proved to be only slightly interesting, so we backtracked and continued with the original plan. Near the turnoff to East Canyon, we stopped for some pictograph and petroglyph hunting and photographing. This is where the famous Antoine
Robidoux inscription resides along with other area rock art. Some, or most of this art is on private property, so one must be very respectful of the owner’s rights. Evidence of degradation by people and Mother Nature was witnessed at most of the ancient sights. The lower part of the Robidoux inscription has separated and dropped off the cliffside from natural causes, but the other damage was from thoughtless individuals who seem to think recording their passing was more important for us to know about than the ancient inscriptions. Turning up East Canyon, we began the long, winding climb up to the Bookcliff Ridge Road. It was obvious that there had been some major flooding earlier this year in East Canyon. Watermarks and debris from floodwaters were well out of the normal wash banks and county road crews had repaired damage to the road. As we ascended the Bookcliffs, the weather took on a new significance. The temperature began to drop, a slight dusting of snow appeared, and fog along the ridge tops began thickening. Along the top of the Bookcliff Ridge Road, we stopped for a foggy lunch. Near the conclusion of our repast, the fog broke and the views opened to some nice scenes off to the north and south.
Traveling on, we eventually turned onto the Seep Ridge Road. The initial road was extra slick with mud. At the intersection of several roads, a vehicle was stopped and looking lost, so Luke gave them some directions to I-70. They had come up the recently paved highway from Vernal thinking it to be an easy way to the interstate. At the end of the new pavement, the world and the road suddenly became “remote”! Slogging on to the paved portion, we followed it for several miles. The new highway is wide, smooth, and seems like extreme overkill for the region. Passing lanes on the hills, wide roadsides, and freshly painted lanes on the new blacktop seem very out of place in this remote land. We continued on to Wood Canyon and turned west toward Willow Creek. Along the way some deer entertained us. Dropping into Willow Creek is another experience in scenery. The winding creek with a fairly wide valley bottom with vertical, multi-colored cliff walls are hard to describe and be fair to the absolute beauty. Even a really good camera cannot capture the extreme color ranges adequately to show the contrasts as layer after layer of different colored materials adorn the craggy cliffs. This long, narrow, spectacular valley is home to many deer, wild turkeys, and occasionally, the wild herd of bison are known to come down from the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation and frequent the lush grasses in the creek bottom. We stopped to look at some rock art in Willow Creek and again at the mouth of Bull Canyon. The road through Bull Canyon had been graded and was in much better condition than our last trip in 2012. Though quite short, this is another piece of road that is scenic and slightly challenging. At the top of the canyon, you are on the Winter Ridge road. Winter Ridge is a looong, mesa top that is fairly open. Wild horses frequent this area, and a few graced us with their presence and posed for pictures. At the Three Pines intersection, the road forks in what seems like a dozen directions. We elected to go down the Book Cliff Ridge road toward Hay Canyon. For a few miles, the road is a steep 9% grade.
Some of the upper shelf road is very scenic, but you better pay attention to your driving. Nearing the bottom was more evidence of the rainy summer and flash flooding that had taken place in this region. “Gully-washer” style flooding had inundated large, wide areas near the usually dry wash. Waters well out of the wash had left debris stacked in the sage and rabbit brush far from the normal wash bottom. Again, county road crews had already healed the damage done where the water crosses the road. Nearing the Three Canyons Ranch again, another large herd of elk was encountered. Speculation of it being the same herd we had seen earlier proved to be false as we saw them again further down country. But first, we tried to take another side-trip up what I believe to be Maverick Canyon. This is another fork of the road where we “studied” the Wilderness Study Area earlier in the day. We had not traveled far before we came upon more flood-ravaged area. The road had been obliterated as floodwaters had swollen to about 60 feet wide and as much as 5 to 6 feet in depth by the looks of the devastated area. We walked a fair way up the wash just to see if it would be passable. It would be… but it would require a great deal of work. As the sun was getting low, we came to the first fork of the day and gave some thoughts to further exploration to the state line. After a couple miles and another look at the map, it was decided to head back to the old highway and home. Some of us headed directly to the car wash while the mud was still damp and pliable. Others would suffer for their sloth. Between the weather (rain, snow, fog, sunshine, clouds, dust, mud and muck) and all of the wild animals, it was a very enjoyable day. Throw in all the spectacular scenery and you had a wonderful day. Add to that all the camaraderie, and it was a great day. It was one of those days that when you came to a fork in the road… you took it!! Happy trails. Copyright: Happy Trails 4wd – 2014. All rights reserved.
34° 24’ 12” N 116° 35’ 33 ” W
THE NEW KO2 TAKES ON THE ROCK AND THE HARD PLACE
ALL-TERRAIN T/A
®
Our toughest all-terrain tire ever. Find yours at bfgoodrichtires.com
© 2014 MNA, Inc.
BF Goodrich Introduces Their NEW KO2 All Terrain Tire!
Words; Pat Brower Photos; Bower Media
BF Goodrich invited the UFWDA to Baja Mexico to test out their new KO2 All Terrain tires in a realworld off road environment. We traveled over 300 miles on rocky, harsh desert trails at speeds reaching over 75 mph; enough to completely destroy most tires! Before I give you my thoughts and impressions about the new KO2 All Terrain tire, I’d like to begin by giving you my impressions of the current KO. I think that if you know where I stand on the old, it’ll help you appreciate my position on the new. I ran the original KOs on my Wrangler for a couple of years and have to admit that I was not impressed. While they may work well on the rocky terrain of the desert and mountains, where I live it’s all about the mud, sand and snow. I found the old KO just didn’t clear the tread surface of mud unless it was particularly thin and soupy. The same was true for the snow. Unless it was an extremely cold snow that didn’t pack well, the tire just didn’t clear the tread. Without a fresh, clean tread surface each revolution, it was basically like running a bald, treadless tire. Obviously, that’s not any good in the back country! I disliked them enough to switch over the very next time I needed tires. The new tire has rectified this problem and MANY more. The BFG engineers have really outdone themselves. The engineers sat down and looked at the causes of any failures in the old version of the tires and addressed each of them in turn. The new KO2 is the first consumer tire to incorporate CoreGard™ technology. CoreGard™ was developed and quality proven on the Baja T/ A® KR2 tire in the off road racing circuit. They’ve also extended the tread wrap-around at the tire’s shoulder. They utilized computer modeling to predict object paths. This has allowed them to create a sidewall design that’s angled perfectly to deflect most objects away from the sidewall and bead seat areas. This combination of features has made the new KO2’s side walls 20% stronger than the original KO! They’ve also modified the tread pattern and rubber compound used for the tire. The new pattern provides for more uniform wear patterns. They’ve included stone ejectors in the larger voids in the pattern to help push rocks out of the tread pattern. This will prevent stones from “drilling” in to the tire. The compound they’ve come up with, is designed to reduce chips and tears on gravel. These features all work together to improve the tire’s tread life by up to 15% on pavement and DOUBLE it’s
expected life on gravel! The new tread pattern has also addressed my biggest concern with the old tire; pattern cleanliness. They’ve added side-biter lugs to the sidewall to improve traction in snow, mud or on the rocks. They’ve added small, “Mud-Phobic” raised bars in the voids to help with the release of snow and mud. When the tire rotates to the position where it comes into and leaves contact with the ground, the bars will flex. This gives air a pathway to get under any material packed in the void, breaking the vacuum that keeps it attached to the tire, allowing it to drop away easily. The inclusion of 3-D siping also creates biting edges for improved traction in all temperatures of snows. This and the mud are the two areas I was most concerned about. BFG had their engineers and testing personnel on site available for questions. I grilled their snow testing crew on their methodology
and the conditions in which they performed their testing. I admit they were extremely thorough! I worried that they might not recognize that differing temperature snows provide very different surface conditions.
TREADLIFE, and improved TRACTION. And for those of you who prefer something a little more aggressive than an all-terrain, there’s rumor that a new mud-terrain will be coming in just a couple of years too.
They quickly put my mind at ease. Snow testing occurred in Houghton Michigan; a place with PLENTY of the white stuff! They tested in a variety of snow temperatures, packing conditions and depths. All testing temperatures resulted in improved traction over the old KO. This has resulted in 10% better traction in mud and 19% better in the snow! Combined, all of these features coalesce into an all-terrain tire that performs as well as many mud terrains. It certainly out-performs a variety of the competitor’s AT tires that I’ve witnessed on the trail. When placed next to many other ATs, it’s my opinion that the others look more like an all season radial than an AT. I found it to be a truly outstanding tire!
Pat Brower UFWDA VP
By the time this review hits publication, the new KO2’s will be available (as of Nov 1st). Initial release will include a dozen of the most popular sizes with additional sizes coming out in 2015. The MSRP starts at $222 US. The next time you go to buy an all-terrain tire, remember the 3Ts: TOUGHER sidewalls, increased
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Is Motorized Recreation Politically Insignificant? The Simple Answer is YES! By Jerry Smith Director of Environmental Affairs United Four Wheel Drive Associations
A few days ago, we (my Jeep Happy Trails and I) took a day trip looking for places we had never been before. Within a 100-mile radius of Grand Junction, there are still a few left, but the list is growing shorter. One area that we had not completely explored is north and west of De Beque, Colorado on the Roan Creek drainage. Back in 1985, when we first moved to Grand Junction, this area was one of the first trips into the Great American BackCountry of western Colorado. Then, my blue CJ5 was tied almost as closely as Happy Trails and I are now. Jeeping has been a major passion in my life since being discharged from the US Navy in December 1972. Actually, my introduction to 4-Wheeling, Jeeping, whatever, was in 1966. During todays trip, much of the day was spent either within or very much around a “Dude Ranch” called the High Lonesome Ranch. Their website claims they own or lease the rights to nearly 400 square miles of land. Let me tell you, THAT is a bunch of country. The reason I bring up the size of this ranch is to give some perspective of what we westerners have in the way of public lands to recreate on… that is, what’s left open to motorized uses (for now anyway). This day went from about 6 AM to nearly 7 PM. Most of the day was spent rolling along some natural gas and county maintained roads. Pretty easy going considering the majority was on backcountry dirt roads. Granted, there was no particular hurry, and we stopped for some pictures and some hiking to some spectacular overlooks. We also had to do some wild game watching. Sometimes you just gotta suffer while having a great day Jeeping. The majority of the day centered around one large, ranch. Think about that a minute. A long day of Jeeping for all intensive purposes on one piece of
property, and we didn’t cover but about half of it. Today, I am reading some articles about some wheeling done in the eastern half of the US. In one article, they are telling about a new 300-acre “adventure park” in Michigan. One acre equals 0.0015625 square miles, so this 400 square mile ranch is approximately 256,000 acres. That area equals about 853.33 of these “adventure parks”. I don’t believe there are the many in all of the US. Another OHV park mentioned was a 272-acre piece of land in Minnesota that they are running into some strong aversion to from the neighbors. Seems like no one enjoys having OHVs for neighbors. So where are they to go?? They are about to spend nearly $130,000 for two studies just to see if this 272-acres is feasible. It’s in no way a for certain deal and they will spend $130K to “study it”. The article says that the “lead firm, I + S Group, of Fairmont, Minnesota, will work with Great Outdoor Consultants, of Fort Collins, Colorado, and the nonprofit National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council of Great Falls, Montana” to begin the work. Most, if not all of this money will be in the form of grants if the neighbors’ pleas don’t muddy that beyond repair. The point here is that motorized recreation, be it in the east on private “Adventure Parks”, or in the west on public lands, is under terrific pressure of being completely shut down. Every “environmental” preservationist group on earth is creating new terminology for set-aside lands to protect this or that wildlife or plant life. You would think that the animal and plant world has but one week of existence on this planet to hear the preservationist pleas to lawmakers. If you are in one of the many mineral extraction
businesses, just to be interested in a piece of public land to conduct a study of its potential will cost you millions of dollars and years of labor to wade through the governmental red tape. And then you are likely going to set in court while several “environmental” groups sue to stop you and the land managers from “laying waste” to the very last piece of “sacred land” in existence. “Motorized recreationists were not politically significant!” is what the Governor of Idaho in 1987 said, and then he implied that Wilderness was more important than motorized access to public lands. Would I have loved to prove him wrong in many ways? So, you who are reading this… do YOU feel “Politically Insignificant?” That may have been said in 1987, but I’ll bet if you ask an honest politician (IF you can find one), you will find that they hear from Motorized Recreationists far, far less than they do the anti-access crowds. And let’s not even mention the money the anti-access representatives drop in their election and reelection coffers. So, what can or will you do to prevent the closure of YOUR favorite trails on public lands? I’m going to borrow some ideas from Del Albright of the BlueRibbon Coalition to give you some ideas. He calls it going to J-A-I-L. First: Join. Join any clubs, state associations, and/or national
associations. If you can afford to, join them all or pick the ones that are doing the most to support you and your area. Become aware of what they are doing on your behalf. Donate when they ask for funds to fight in court. Second: Advocate. Do things like speak up to your family and friends. Even do more than just talk: “Adopt” your local fed (USFS Ranger or BLM Manager). Motorized recreationists by far are out-numbered when it comes to being a familiar face around federal office buildings. Environmental radicals, on the other hand, are well known. So that means we gotta get our faces in the offices of our local federal land managers and get to know them on a first name basis. Take them on club runs. Take them on rides. Go with them on field trips. Find out what you can do to make their lives easier. Third: Include others. We must re-establish our image (motorized recreationists of all types) so the public sees that we’re really the good guys. We are the true conservationists and environmentalists. The opponents to off pavement motorized recreation have developed our image for us: they make us look like we’re bad guys. We’ve got to change that. We’ve got to police ourselves. It takes all of us working together and doing our part. We need to build membership in organized recreation by recruiting anyone and everyone who has an interest in keeping public lands open to the public. Get others to write letters, adopt their local fed, and
reach out to recruit even more folks. Fourth: Letters – write them Write letters -- handwritten works just fine. But tell your elected officials what you believe in. Write them once a year at least. For every time you go on a ride, write one letter (or make one phone call) Number 5 is something I have added to J A I L - S Fifth: Stay engaged. Find websites or forums of organizations that have a monthly or quarterly publication. Keep up to date on the local, state, and national issues and legislation. It will help you stay current on the issues of the day that will keep you fresh when talking with others or when writing to your elected officials. Knowing what your local BLM or USFS offices are up to will help you know when and where meetings you should attend are. It will give you a good reason to visit the BLM field office or USFS Ranger district office. Getting on a first name basis with these folks is something you will never regret. Ask them for information about specific trails and what you can do to maintain motorized access to them. In the Grand Junction BLM field office, many if not most of the people know others and myself in our local Jeep club. We attend many of the same meetings every year and because of the overwhelming participation in many things like submitting comments on their Resource Management Plan (RMP) and Travel Management Plan (TMP). The Grand Mesa Jeep Club generated over 800 comments on the Grand Junction Field Office and the DominguezEscalante National Conservation Area RMPs and TMPs. (Resource Management Plans and Travel Management Plans) This brought us national recognition by the BLM in DC. Since 2008, I have reopened three local trails on my own and have instigated reopening of three others with help from Jeep Club members. That’s about 95-miles of trails that are available today that not long ago were closed by Mother Nature… some having been closed for upwards of 20-years.
Four of these trails we reopen each spring as weather allows. Three of them require miles of brush trimming and/or erosion repairs either every year or every other year. Not all of you will have that kind of opportunity, but let me tell you, when you can say you have reopened and maintain a class 6 or 7 trail every year, your reward is so great, you can’t help but be proud. And this doesn’t include the work the Grand Mesa Jeep Club does on our adopted trail up on the Grand Mesa. To say we have a very active and wonderful group of people is a terrible understatement. I tell you all this not to brag about it, but to give you an idea of what is possible and what you can do in your own neck of the woods. Granted, not all of you will have trails that Mother Nature has
closed for years. But what about finding one or more that needs some attention either annually or after weather events? Would adopting those trails be that much of a burden that your club couldn’t handle? These are just some of the possibilities you can pursue. Fund raising is another good way of supporting our sport. Organizations like the United Four Wheel Drive Associations, BlueRibbon Coalition, Colorado Off Highway Vehicle Coalition, and others are ALWAYS in desperate need for money. The work they do in support of maintaining access to public lands is enormous with what little money they have to work with. Think of what could be done if they could have some very good law firms working on developing Motorized Recreation friendly legislation to hand to our elected officials. What about having some paid lobbyists calling on those same elected officials regularly to voice OUR needs and desires?
What could be done in courts to fight many of these trail closures that have NO scientific or logical reason for being done? Many of these closures are happening just because the land managers are feeling pressures from the antiaccess groups that they are NOT feeling from the Motorized users. I know that most of you just don’t have time to commit to these needs. Hey, been there, done that! Even the time it takes to write a simple letter is hard to find. We understand folks!! Not all of us even have the passion to do this in the first place. No problem. But getting past those obstacles, there absolutely IS something you CAN do… you MUST do! You must go to JAILS!! If you can’t do that for some reason, you can send a donation to the organization of your choice. Think about this --There are around 50-million US citizens who recreate regularly on public land. Statistics tell us that on average, each of those 50-million spend 26-days in the Great American BackCountry. Surveys tell us that the average user spends
between $100 and $150/day. That’s an incredible combined $130 Billion to $195 Billion that we collectively spend on motorized recreation. That’s a small economy all to itself.
nothing -- or even less than nothing? Is it fair that people willing to carry the load in supporting YOUR recreation must also fund the expenses of that load? Really??
Now what if each of those 50-million people would send in just $1.00? Do you think we could support a few lawyers to help fight some court battles? How about writing some motorized friendly laws to be passed to our elected officials? Do you think that might make a difference in the number of trail closures every year? We might even find a few dollars to support some lobbyists that could frequent the offices of those elected officials.
Get out and go to J A I L S. You will find that it makes you feel better and may keep YOUR favorite trails accessible. What could be more important than that??
Statistically speaking, somewhere between 3% and 4% of those 50-million people will join a club, association, or organization. (Between 1.5-million and 2-million people) Even if just those few would donate $10/year, we would have $15-million to $20-million to spread amongst the organizations that are supporting motorized recreation. Yet, we don’t see anywhere close to that much in reality. If that were happening, just 75-organizations (50-state and 25-national) would each have $200,000 to work with. That would be many times what most of these organizations are currently operating with now. These are primarily VOLUNTEER ONLY organizations. Very few of these folks are even reimbursed for the travel expenses they incur each time they travel across their state to attend a meeting. And in most instances, they are asked to spend $10 to $25 for a cheap meal that also pays for the meeting room. We often hear the question: “What are they doing for us?” Well, how much do you expect volunteers to do for
Happy Trails.
CORE Black Friday Trail Ride Author: Mike Vincenty
The CORE Black Friday trail ride has been a club tradition for many years. This is my trail ride to organize for the club to allow those of us who would rather get away from the holiday shuffle and bustle of the crowds and go some place a bit more adventurous and have a good time with friends. This year our adventures took us to Rausch Creek Off Road Park (www.rauschcreekoffroadpark.org) near Tremont PA. Joining us this year, for this annual CORE event were: • Mike in the white Rubicon TJ (CORE) • JC in the black Jeep TJ (CORE) • Paul and Anthony Lepine in the silver Rubicon LJ (guests) • Joe and Dan Eberly in the white 1988 GMC Suburban (guests) • Ryan Leonard in the green 1998 Jeep Cherokee XJ (guest) • Brad Twinam and Rich in the dark green 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee (guests) • Gerry Viglietti in the Black 2014 Jeep JK (guest) • Billie Cox in the silver 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee (guest) Based on prior experience I knew that we had to hit the road from Urbana MD by 6:30 AM to get to Rausch Creek Off-Road Park at a reasonable time to allow a full day of wheeling and adventures. This year JC from CORE met me at the Urbana Exxon for this trip with guest Paul Lepine.
I was a bit disappointed that more from CORE could not make this trip, but prior commitments and family functions this holiday season prevented many from participating. Little did I know that Paul had lined up a full suite of guests and others to join us on this trail ride. JC apparently was really looking forward to this annual trip because I came to find out that his work shift ended at 4 AM, he caught a short nap, and met us at the Urbana meeting location by 6:30 AM. Wow! On the drive up to Pennsylvania we encountered some light snow flakes. I watched a beautiful sunrise off to the east welcome the day as we proceeded up route 15. As we reached the higher elevations in Pennsylvania we could see snow still clinging to the trees, signs of the snowfall from the recent days. I wondered to myself what awaited us at Rausch Creek and about the conditions on the trails. We arrived at Rausch Creek with a chilly 27 degrees and overcast skies. We checked in, got our trail map, and hooked up with Paul’s guests. So a trail ride that started out with three vehicles ended up with eight. This was already turning out to be an interesting day. On this annual trail ride I planned a typical route to follow trails comprised of green and blue rated trails. Our convoy began the ride on green trail B on the East property. This trail is the main trail that cuts across the East property. What amazed me this year was the sheer number of deep muddy ice-filled water holes along the trail every few hundred yards. Each of these water holes was anywhere from six inches to two feet in depth. You never knew what rocky treasures awaiting you as crossed these holes. The water holes looked like a partially melted Oreo cookie smoothie with floating blocks of ice. With all of the rocks and ice I felt like a bobble head doll bouncing left-right-leftright… We made our way to the entrance to green trail 1a.
Folks tried their hand on a nice hill climb to the right of the trail head entrance. Paul attempted first and made it look easy, even with all of the snow cover. Brad and Rich in the black Grand Cherokee also climbed this hill. On the hill climb, JC hit a boulder that popped the bead on his right front tire and damaged the steering box to the point where it was steadily leaking power steering fluid. A good trail Samaritan assisted JC, helping to reseat the tire bead with his CO2 tank. Soon we were back on the trails moving forward again. Another technical trail challenge arose with Joe Eberly’s 88 Suburban when he realized that his front axle was not engaging in four-wheel drive. While the front left was manual hub was engaged, it was clear that he did not have four-wheel drive. While the repairs on JC’s tire bead were taking place, a quick removal of the left front hub on Joe’s Suburban and a couple of light raps with hammer got it engaged. The next trail to hit was “club friendly” blue trail #2. More challenges awaited us on this trail; more rocks and more snow. At the end of this trail we encountered a rather large water and mud hole on the Pole Line trail. I watched cautiously while a group in front of us made their way through this hole. By watching, it became apparent that the line that hugged the power line pole was the shallowest and could be navigated without much problem. From here I brought the group onto green trail D where Paul’s son Anthony in the LJ and Bill in the Silver Grand took a side trip up blue trail Crawler Ridge. Crawler Ridge is a very challenging uphill climb made even more so by the fact that there
was very fresh snow and ice cover. With Anthony at the wheel, the LJ made its way up the hill over large boulders and navigated a very tight rock crevasse that temporary hung up the Jeep. With a little bit of backing up and repositioning, Anthony expertly climbed over the rock and was on his way – what a great job! We proceeded along trail D where I intended to make my way over to one of my favorite blue trails, #4. On my way there I missed a turn and ended up on the South side of the park on a blue trail I have never visited, “Topless for Tatas”. This trail turned out to be one with lots of twists and turns, and lots of boulders. I would characterize this trail as very technical requiring your constant concentration and focus. It is a very long trail that seemed to go on forever. What was interesting, is that this trail was created several years ago by Rausch Creek in support of a charity fund raiser event for breast cancer awareness and research. Sponsor signs peppered this trail every 50 feet or so from many familiar companies such as Warn, American Expedition Vehicles, Quadratec, Rusty’s Off-Road Products, and many, many others. This trail comes highly recommended by me! At the end of this trail we broke for lunch, relaxed a bit and traded prior four wheeling experiences. From here we headed over to the West property for more exploring. When we registered we were warned that all of blue trail J was closed due to the danger of ice. This is what is great about Rausch Creek, they know their trails and will tell you of any potential danger areas so that you have a good time and most importantly stay safe.
As we made our way to the West property I worried a bit about our descent into the valley. Occasionally I noticed a sideways slip in my Jeep and hoped that there would not be too much ice to make this trip dangerous. It was at this point that I really noticed that colors in the park this time of the year were strikingly comprised of only white, black, and brown, for the snow, black muddy water, and deep mud holes. Very cool. We descended into the valley on green trail H where we hooked up with green trail 11. This trail brought us to what I thought would be mild mannered green trail 14. This trail turned into quite the challenge. Initially this trail cuts into the trees and has lots of twists and turns which are not difficult. However near the end of this trail things totally changed. After clearing a very rocky mud pit we were faced with attempting a very large climb of a muddy uphill “wall”. I attempted to make this climb taking a line to the right but failed miserably. I opted for the by-pass. This is another great thing I like about Rausch Creek. If there is a challenge you cannot make, there usually is a by-pass to get you out of your difficult spot. After I cleared the “wall” climb I looked in the rear view mirror to see the white 88 GMC Suburban behind me with its left front tire several feet off the ground powering through the “wall”. Needless to say Dan in the driver’s seat pulled his vehicle through the obstacle. Very impressive! After emerging from trail #14 I learned that JC
suffered yet another popped tire bead, again on this right front tire. We stopped for a bit on green trail 11 while we worked to reseat and inflate in tire. From here I took a turn onto blue trail 19-A. This was an uphill turn into a rocky section of the trail that also required constant concentration and focus so as not to get hung up. This was a horseshoe shaped trail that took one up, across, and back down the hill back onto trail 11. The entire group completed this trail with no issues. We continued our exploration of the West property along trail 11. After a while we came upon a Burgundy Jeep XJ Cherokee stuck in several feet of deep mud on a side trail. We all stopped along the trail to watch the show. It was clear that his vehicle was stuck on something hidden deep under the mud. He could not make forward or backwards progress. We watched as a winch cable was attached to a vehicle on the main trail to pull his vehicle forward over the hidden obstacle. But needless to say Brad and Rich in the dark green Jeep Grand Cherokee in our group just had to also take a run at this mud hole. With Brad at the wheel the Grand entered the mud hole and powered through up to the point where the hidden obstacle stopped all forward progress. Nothing Brad tried could free the Grand. Again, out came the winch cable. With a couple of tugs from the winch, the Grand make forward progress and soon was free. Very impressive to watch.
Our group finished up trail 11 and hit the green Power Line trail to make our way out from the bottom of the valley back to the top. This trail is very long and very straight. This trail follows the power lines and is a full uphill climb the entire way. Ice and snow was my major concern on this trail, as now it was getting late into the day. No major difficulties were encountered as we made our way back out of the valley. Near the top a few folks played on a hill climb to test their skills and vehicles. Time was approaching 4 PM and I thought it wise to get the group back to the assembly area so that folks could air up and prepare for their travels home. We met at the assembly area, reconnected our sway bars, aired
up, and said our goodbyes. On the drive home I watched the sunset as our day of adventure and fun came to an end. This was a very nice trip. We had a few minor breakdowns that were solvable; we were challenged by the snowy ice covered trails; but most importantly all remained safe and had a good time. I hope that you can join us on future rides. Mike Vincenty is an active member of CORE and MAFWDA. He may be reached at mvincenty@core4x4.org. Pictures courtesy of Mike Vincenty.
Polar Mesa / Onion Cr. / Delores
By Jerry Smith Copyright Happy Trails 4wd 2014. All rights reserved. November 8th, 2014 began at the Orchard Mesa City Market with 9 Jeeps waiting to strike out for adventure. Our trip leader Cody said number ten would be waiting for us on Hwy 141 at the Gunnison River. With totally blue sky above and perfect temperatures in store, we were anticipating a marvelous day in the Great American BackCountry. As usual, the Unaweep Canyon along Hwy 141 graced us with its’ eye-popping beauty. The change from the pale red low desert canyons to the granite colored higher canyon country and back is always a cause for wonderment. Paying attention to your driving can be a challenge as you do your best to take in all the scenery. After a quick stop in Gateway to air down and hit the convenience store, we crossed the Delores River and turned up John Brown Canyon. John Brown showed signs of some heavy summer storms having ravaged the area. The normally docile creek bed and some of the surrounding area had some major erosion damage. The road had a freshly bladed surface, so the very little wash boarding was encountered. The road beyond the state line also showed signs of recent rains where someone had left deep tire
tracks in the muddy road. This is not a good road to attempt when wet. At the intersection to Polar Mesa, North Beaver Mesa, and Fisher Valley, we turned and followed the road to the end of Polar Mesa. Just a little way from the intersection, there is a spectacular view of the Fisher Valley that many of us paused for the “Kodak moment”. Looking down at the Fisher Towers and the upper end of the Top of the World trail on the cliffs above is always a view to ponder. The road to Polar Mesa is relatively easy going, but has some sights along the way that make the trip worthwhile. Primarily an old mining road, it takes you up the side of the mesa to an elevation that supports the growth of Ponderosa Pines, only to drop you down into the Juniper and Gamble Oak forest again. We stopped and scouted some old mine sites where some of the mining equipment still haunts the hillside. Old head frames and shacks in various conditions of disrepair make for speculation about living conditions back when the mines were operating. From a historical standpoint, having the buildings and equipment still on site makes exploration much more entertaining. In their zeal to make everything
a Wilderness, preservationists tend to want all of this removed and reclaimed. We wish they could see the value of our culture and history and “preserve” some of it instead. Lunch “with a view” was served overlooking the country to the north and east. It sure helped make the food taste better. Heading back toward the intersection to Fisher Valley, the group split. The majority headed for Moab and some Jeeping on the slickrock and a night on the town. Harley, Marty, and Jerry had other plans. We dropped down into the Fisher Valley and followed Onion Creek to the highway. Onion Creek had apparently suffered more of the long, wet summer like John Brown had. Much of the Onion Creek road had been recently graded after what looked to be a serious gully washer down through the entire canyon. The creek now flows along the roadside for a considerable length. The grader had reopened the road that appeared to have been seriously
damaged by flooding and had pushed the creek back of to the side.
most of the year as it tends to be much more shallow than the upper ford a long mile upstream.
There are still 27 stream crossings; not counting the one bridge crossing, so getting wet along the way is no problem. The Onion Creek canyon is still a narrow, craggy, steep sided geological wonder that has many photo ops, but the amount of traffic encountered left little time to stop.
Crossing the lower ford with no problems, we struck out for town. But coming to the upper ford access, Jerry just had to show Harley and Marty where it was.
Harley’s suggestion that we cross the Delores River and take the back way to Grand Junction sounded good, so we headed for Dewey Bridge and the Kokopelli trail. Not far up the Kokopelli, we turned off and drifted down through the sandy canyon bottom to the lower Delores River ford. This is the easier ford
The upper crossing is dramatically different than the lower one. The lower ford is typical. You drive straight across the river above a small riffle where the water is fairly shallow and swift moving. The upper crossing has some new twists to it. First, the water is quite slow. You’ve probably heard the saying; “Still waters run deep.” That applies here.
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Next, rather than just going straight across the river, you must travel either up or down stream for over 100 yards, depending on which side you start from. The entrance and exit are barely visible from one to the other. Add to that the fact that the Delores River is much like the Colorado River in clarity. You “feel” your way along an unseen bottom hoping there are no deep holes or large rocks in your path. The pucker factor is high as you traverse blindly up and down the watercourse. Jerry was the only adventurous one of the three. A thorough undercarriage cleaning later, we returned to the road to town. Again, Harley came up with an alternate plan. Ryan Creek Canyon is a seldom-used way back to the big town. Having just driven it just a few
weeks prior, and nearly having spent the night there stuck in a deep wash crossing, Jerry knew it was OK to go that way, but also knew it would be significantly dark before we reached the other end. Marty had never been through Ryan Creek, so this would be covering new territory for him. Too bad it was mostly in the dark. We did get some pictures of “Snoopy” just as the sun was dropping below the horizon though. Upon entering Grand Junction after another superb day of Jeeping, a very good Mexican dinner was had by Jerry and Harley at Dos Hombres. Today was a testament to Jerry’s old aphorism; When you come to a fork in the road… take it!! Happy Trails.
A Great opportunity every November in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Words and photos supplied by Jennifer Chapin 2014 marked the 7th year for the New Mexico 4-Wheelers to participate in the annual food drive to support Road Runner Food Bank of New Mexico. KOB4, the local news station hosts this food drive at ABQ Uptown to collect food from various groups and know they can count on the 4-Wheelers to bring their Jeeps and 4x4’s with lots of food. Along with food donations, our club also makes a monetary donation. To me this event is a great opportunity to bring people together and help those in need. An
added benefit is that it shows our community that 4-Wheelers are good people who make a positive difference in our communities. Club members collect food from family, friends, and co-workers to fill their Jeeps and 4x4’s. If you plan to be in Albuquerque in November, come join the New Mexico 4-Wheelers Annual Food Drive. Any other time of year, check our website and join us for some 4-wheeling. www.nm4w.org
New Mexico 4-Wheelers with the big display check
Jennifer with 6 barrels of food in the Raptor
Jeeps will make history in Butler again! In celebration of the 75th birthday of the Bantam Jeep, the Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival plans to break its own Guinness World Record as part of the 5th annual event on June 12-14, 2015. The Guinness World Records Largest Parade of Jeeps will take place on Friday, June 12 with up to 2,500 Jeeps driving from Butler County Community College to downtown Butler. The record-breaking attempt is expected to attract more than 20,000 parade-viewers to the city, much like it did in 2011 during the inaugural Festival when the first record was attained with 1,106 participating Jeeps. “The Jeep’s 75th birthday is the perfect time to attempt to break our record,” said Patti Jo Lambert, festival director. “Jeeps owners still can’t stop talking about the fun they had making history during the first Festival. We’re excited to repeat this special event so we can bring more notoriety to Butler as the birthplace of the Jeep. The parade will be the signature event for the Bantam Jeep’s 75th Birthday Bash.” Up to 1,300 of the first Jeeps in the parade will proceed north through the city, followed by 1,200 that will park downtown to begin the popular Jeep Invasion street party. The Jeeps will be parked at the direction of the Rodfathers of Butler who
are once again supporting the Festival. The Jeep Invasion features music, food vendors, and the camaraderie of thousands of Jeep enthusiasts and regional residents. Complimentary shuttles will transport the occupants of the first Jeeps to the parade and Jeep Invasion from parking lots on the outskirts of the city. “We’ve been planning this event for several months and have many details already worked out,” said Dave Zarnick, Butler Township Commissioner, who along with Butler City Councilman Richard Schontz, is leading the parade planning efforts. “Many meetings have already been held with City and Township Police Departments, the Butler County Sheriff’s Office, the mayor of the City of Butler, City of Butler Bureau of Fire, Butler Downtown, Rodfathers of Butler, BC3 and Festival Committee members. We are all working together to make sure this is a fabulous event for all of Butler County and the thousands of Jeep enthusiasts who come here for the Festival.” Like the 2011 parade, Jeeps will travel in the righthand lane on Route 8 North, with through traffic moved to the left lane and then detoured over the Picklegate Bridge. Traffic detours similar to those typically planned for Downtown events will be implemented. Some Township Roads will also be closed to accommodate the parade.
Planning to meet the regulations to obtain Guinness World Records certification for the parade is also underway. “Guinness has many rules that we must follow in order to set a record,” said Jack Cohen, president of the Butler County Tourism & Convention Bureau and the person responsible for making sure those requirements are met. “The Jeeps must provide specific information when they pre-register for the event, the Parade flow has stipulations and we must document the parade using a variety of witnesses and other evidence,” said Cohen.
pre-register for the parade when online registration becomes available in mid-January. Many other activities are being planned for Bantam Jeep’s 75th Birthday Bash. For more details about the 2015 Festival, visit www.bantamjeepfestival.com. Join us June 12-14, 2015 for Bantam’s 75th Birthday Bash and the Guinness World Records Largest Parade of Jeeps! Remember, the Festival does NOT fall on Father’s Day Weekend this year and the Parade starts on Friday, June 12 at 2:30! Registration will begin in late January 2015.
Jeeps of all models and years are encouraged to
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Business Members 4 Wheel Drive Hardware (330) 482-4733 www.4WD.com 4x4 Wire (619) 390-8747 www.4x4Wire.com BF Goodrich (877) 788-8899 www.BFGoodrichTires.com Badlands 4x4 Adventures, Inc. (310) 347-8047 www.4x4Training.com
Jeep Action Magazine +61 02 6656 1046 www.jeepaction.com.au Moses Ludell’s 4WD Mechanix Magazine www.4WDMechanix.com Muirnet.net (619) 390-8747 www.4x4Wire.com Olathe Toyota Parts Center www.parts.olathetoyota.com
Big Dogs Offroad (410) 440-3670 www.BigDogsOffRoad.com
Poison Spyder Customs (951) 849-5911 www.PoisonSpyder.com
Bill Burke’s 4 Wheeling America, LLC 970-858-3468 www.BB4WA.com
Quadratec (800) 745-2348 www.Quadratec.com
Blue Springs Ford Parts (800) 248-7760 www.BlueSpringsFordParts.com
Survive Off Road LLC (602) 321-0833 www.surviveoffroad.com
Bushwacker (503) 283-4335 www.Bushwacker.com California Assn of 4WD Clubs, Inc. (800) 4x4-FUNN www.Cal4Wheel.com DreamSeat (702) 338-2511 www.dreamseat.com Expeditions West (928) 777-8567 www.ExpeditionsWest.com ExtremeTerrain (800) 988-4605 www.ExtremeTerrain.com Hi-Lift Jack Company (812) 384-4441 www.Hi-Lift.com
Susquehanna Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, Ram (717) 252-2412 www.Susqauto.com Tom Wood’s Custom Drive Shafts (877) 497-4238 www.4xShaft.com Trasharoo (714) 854-7292 www.Trasharoo.com WinchBin www.WinchBin.com X-Treme Mobile Adventures (800) 370-3308 www.XTremeMobileAdventures.com
United Four Wheel Drive Associations would like to thank our Direct Members, Clubs and Associations for their support. 4 Lakes 4 Wheelers, Inc. (Wisconsin) http://www.4l4w.org/
Middle Atlantic Four Wheel Drive Association http://www.mafwda.org/
ACES 4X4 Club (Michigan) www.aces4x4.com
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Capital Off Road Enthusiasts www.core4x4.org
Arizona State Association of 4-Wheel Drive Clubs www.asa4wdc.org
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PA Jeeps www.pajeeps.org
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Eagle Valley Off Roaders www.eaglevalleyoffroaders.com
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Mid-Atlantic Jeep Club www.midatlanticjeepfestival.com
Association of All-Wheel Drive Clubs-Southern Africa http://www.aawdc.org.za/ Badgerland 4×4 TNT Club http://www.badgerland4x4.org/
Midwest 4 Wheel Drive Association http://www.mw4wda.org/
Baltimore Four Wheelers http://www.baltimore4wheelers.org/
MN Trailriders http://www.mntrailriders.org/
Between the Hills Trailheaders 4×4 Club http://www.trailheaders.net
Montana 4×4 Association, Inc. http://www.m4x4a.org/
California Association of Four Wheel Drive Clubs, Inc. http://www.cal4wheel.com/
New Mexico 4-Wheelers http://www.nm4w.org/
Central North Carolina 4×4 http://www.cnc4x4.org/
New Zealand Four Wheel Drive Association, Inc. http://www.nzfwda.org.nz/
Central Ontario 4×4 Club http://www.co4x4.com/
Rim Country 4 Wheelers, Inc. http://www.rimcountry4wheelers.com/
Colorado Association of 4 Wheel Drive Clubs, Inc. http://www.hightrails.org/
River City 4X4, Inc. http://www.rivercity4x4.org/ Rock Crawlers for the Preservation of Future Access (RCPFA) http://rcpfa.com/
Creeper Jeepers Gang 4WD Club http://www.creeperjeepers.org/ Demon 4×4 Demon4x4.com Four Wheel Drive Australia http://www.anfwdc.asn.au/
Rough Country 4 Wheelers http://www.rc4w.com/ Scrambler Owners Association http://www.cj-8.org/
Great Lakes Four Wheel Drive Association http://www.glfwda.org/
Seven Hills Jeep Club http://sevenhillsjeepclub.org/
Hall of Fame 4×4 Trail Riders http://www.hof4x4.com/
Southern Four Wheel Drive Association http://www.sfwda.org/
Havasu 4-Wheelers, Inc. http://havasu4wheelers.org/
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Carolina Off Road Extremists (CORE) http://www.core4x4club.com/
Indiana 4 Wheel Drive Association http://www.ifwda.com/
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Carolina Trailblazers 4WD Club http://www.carolina-trailblazers.org/
Mesa 4 Wheelers http://www.mesa4wheelers.com/
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Cumberland Off-Road http://www.cumberlandoffroad.com/
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Damn Locals 4×4 Club http://www.damnlocals4x4.com/
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East Tennessee 4WD Club http://www.et4wd.org/
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Extreme Ridge Runners http://www.myspace.com/extreme_ ridge_runners
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Georgia Bounty Runners 4WD Club http://www.gbr4wd.com/
Blue Ridge Rock Mafia richard.wiggs@nolenfrisa.co • Capital City Fourwheelers www.capitalcityfourwheelerssva.com •
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Hard Rock Crawlers www.hardrockcrawlers.org
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KMA Off Road Jeep Club www.kmaoffroad.org
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Middle Tennessee Trailrunners 4WD Club http://www.mttr4x4.net/
Lost Jeepers www.lostjeepers.com
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Ohio River Four Wheelers http://www.orfw.org/
Mechanicsville Mudders varokcrwlr@juno.com
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Rattlerock 4-Wheel Drive Club http://www.rattlerock.org/
Mid-Atlantic Jeepers www.midatlanticjeepers.com
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Rocket City Rock Crawlers 4WD Club http://www.rocketcityrockcrawlers.com
Middle Peninsula Jeep Association www.mpjai.com
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Rock Solid Jeep Club (No web site)
Off Chamber Crawlers www.offchambercrawlers.org
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Rocky Top Trail Riders http://rockytoptrailriders.org
Poor Boys Four Wheel Drive Club www.poorboys4wd.com
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Scenic City 4WD Club http://www.sceniccity4wd.com/
River City Trail Runners www.rivercitytrailrunners.org
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Smoky Mountain Trail Runners http://www.smokymtntrailrunners.org/
Seven Hills Jeep Club www.sevenhillsjeepclub.org
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Southeast Toyota Land Cruiser Association http://www.stlca.org/
Shenandoah Valley 4 Wheelers www.sv4w.org
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Southern Mini 4×4 www.myspace.com/443172858
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Southern Jeeps http://www.southernjeeps.org/
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Southwestern Virginia 4 Wheelers www.swva4w.org
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Trick ‘n’ Traction 4WD Club http://www.tnt4wd.org/
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Tidewater Fourwheelers www.tidewaterfourwheelers.org
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Southern High Rollers 4×4 Club http://www.southernhighrollers.com/ Southern Illinois Jeep Association http://www.sija.org/ Southside Jeepers http://southsidejeepers.com/ Sundowners 4×4 Club http://www.sundowners4x4.com Two Trackers http://www.twotrackers.org/ Virginia Four Wheel Drive Association http://www.va4wda.org/ •
Bay to Blue Ridge Cruisers www.bbrcva.org
Western Maine Mountain Jeepers http://www.jeepmaine.com/ What Lies Beyond Jeep Club of Michigan http://whatliesbeyond.org/ White Pine 4-Wheelers jeeptrailcat5440 (at) yahoo.com Wisconsin 4 Wheel Drive Association http://www.w4wda.org/ Wisconsin Off Highway Vehicle Association www.wohva.com Wolverine 4-Wheelers http://wolverine4wd.org/
Please tread lightly and travel only on routes and in areas designated open for motorized vehicle use. Remember, Respected Access is Open Access.
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