60 FRONT 14 BOLT REAR HOME BUILT BUMPERS SMITTYBUILT WINCH REINFORCED FRAME HOME BUILT CAGE HALF DOORS 35 INCH PRO COMP MUDD TIRES BLACK STEEL WHEELS DUAL BATTERYS TRIMED BODY AND ROCK RASH BODY PICK UP TAIL GATE

1.3 L Stock I-4 (Carb), Dual Yellow Tops with Hellroaring Technologies, inc. Battery Isolator/Combiner, Smittybilt XRC 8 Winch (Buy 4X4Him Jamboree Raffle Tickets: People really do win!!!) 105 Amp GM Alternator, Calmini  6.5:1 T-case, Front: Toyota 8? (Welded: Thanks So-Cal Guys!!!), 4.88:1 Ring & Pinion, Rear: Toyota 8?  Lock-Right, 35? Good Year MTR, Suspension: Stock YJ Spring over Axle 1 leaf added

Land Cruiser Steering box with high steer, Petroworks 15 gallon Fuel tank, Various Armor,  roll cage & skid plates

Cheap CB, Custom Drive Shafts made from Jeep, GM, Toyota & Suzuki Parts  and Lots of Body damage from tryin’ to keep up with 88JP, The General & the buggies 

Love The Lord, My Family & Wheelin’ with 4X4Him (in that Order)

My truck is a 2004 Nissan Frontier Crew Cab 4×4.

Suspension lift comes in around 5″, also have 3″ BL.
Front Bumper and Sliders are from Shrockworks
Rear Bumper is custom made by Hunter Offroad in Tempe Az.
Mile Marker 8000 Winch
Calmini SAS Kit with Fox Coilover’s using a 87 Grand Waggy D44
Nissan H233 rear axle.
ARB Air Locker both Front and Rear
Calmini 3.92 to 1 Transfer Case Gears
Axles equipped with 5.14/5.13 Gearing
Skid Plates supplied by Calmini and Hunter Offroad
3.3 V6 with Auto and working AC
Alpine Stereo and Amps, Sirius equipped, CB & HAM Radios
35×12.5×15 BFG KM2’s with Staun Internal Beadlockers.
Upgraded Radiator to a 2 Row Supercharger Unit to help with cooling.
Pinstripping provided by Arizona Brush and Cactus.

I purchased the Truck new in Jan. 2004, and a week later added the side graphics to make it stand out for the crowd.  I kept it looking new for about a year then found a local Nissan 4-Wheeling group (nissan4wheelers.com) and became hooked.  What followed over the next 3 year was a transformation from stock to fully modified IFS on 33″s, then in 2008 I removed all that money and spent more to SAS my little truck.  Have had it  tuned in just right and have not had to make any major modifications in the past 2 years.  In the past month, I did remove the chrome wheels and Stauns and installed ProComp Series 152 Black wheels. 

Breakage over the years include:
2 Driver side Motor Mounts
1 Track Bar – on Martinez Mine this year
3 Leaf Springs and 1 Shock – in Moab this year
1 Passenger side rear taillight.

I do drive this currently as my daily driver and I will try any obstacle that does not guarantee body damage (I do try to keep this looking nice).   One day I will make it to a Jamboree to Meet all of you, and I know it’s been awhile since I have been out with our local chapter (AZ KreationCrawlers).  Anyhow, thanks for my second win in this category (I believe I was your first winner when we started this).

150,000+ miles
46RE/NP231/HP D30/D44AL.  4.56:1 Yukon gears and rear Chromo shafts, rear aussie locker.
6″ total lift, Rubicon express.
305/75/16 Goodyear Wrangler ATS tires and aluminum wheels.
Flowmaster 50 deltaflow muffler.
Onboard CO2 Powertank. 

Specs:
2007 JK Rubicon Unlimited
Manual transmission
Dynatrac Pro Rock 60’s
5.38 gears
ARB lockers
4″ Teraflex long arm LCG lift
37 x 12.5 R17 MTR/Kevlar
Walker Evans beadlocks
PSC hydro ram assist
Aberle front and rear bumpers
Poison Spyder crusher fenders
Poison Spyder rocker knockers
PIAA fog lights (in the bumper’s hoop)
Warn Powerplant winch with synthetic line

She is a 2006 Jeep LJ Unlimited with a Hardtop
Sitting up on 33×12.50×15 Xtreme Mud Terrains mounted on Rock Crawler 15×8 Steelies with an RE 4.5 super flex.
Front  is a Warn bumper with winch guard to protect a Smittybilt 8K winchwith in cab controls.
Pushed by the stock I6 4.0L with 456 gearsand an OX locker in the rear thats breathing thru an ARB Snorkle with a K&N Air Filter.
Turning is handled by Currie Heavy duty Steering and a Warn Steering Skid.
It has a Teralow SYE driving a rear Woods CV shaft.
Further protection by a Skid Row Engine and Tranny Skid plate as well as Shrockworks Sliders and Aluminum corner guards.
An OR FAB Rear Rack holds the spare, a Water and fuel Can as well as the rear mounted air tank that is filled by the ViAir OBA.
Vision is aided at night with H4 Headlight upgrade, 6″ Windshield mount lights and 3 Rock Lights.
To get us to the right place is a Factory GPS and to talk to the group is a Cobra 75 One hand CB with 4′ Firestick and an Ext Speaker.
Entertainment is from a Kenwood indash w/USB and Aux in pumped thru Infinity speakers but, for in the canyons we have a Roady XM Sat interface.

We just sold her to a lady in Prescott AZ and are strarting a new build on a 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.9 Limited

Here are the specs on the rig…

Home built chassis by Joel Kelsey (Sacramento, CA)
Unimog axles – Mog9 front and narrowed rear
Modified Knuckles with 41 degree steering and full Hydro
3.8L supercharged v6 – GM 3800 (260 HP)
Chrysler 999/998 Tranny w/ art carr manual valve body
Atlas II 4.3:1
Wilwood brake components with rear cutting brakes
37″ Krawlers on WE 17″ rims
Lexan side panels w/ sheet metal hood – Alum roof
ProMod #37 competes in WE Rock West and Calrocs (9 events)
Thanks,
Craig Thompson

trailer jack and roller fairlead

I took the roller apart (it’ll make sense in a minute) and got to work on the jack. First I cut the mount off in order to get it spaced down since I was mounting it upside down to my shop table and using my vise to hold the tube.

jack and fairlead disassembled

Trailer jacks have a dimple in the body that keeps the leg in a track to prevent it from spinning. That was a problem for me since I needed the leg to spin in order to get different angles of notches. I decided to take the jack apart and cut the dimple out

nut and bolt to hold jack in place

Since i had removed the dimple the leg was now free to spin. Now all I needed was a way to keep it in place while notching. I already had it apart so the Simple fix was to drill a hole, weld in a nut with a set bolt.

Now back to the roller: In order to make the notcher I took the long bolt that went through the long side of the fairlead, choped the head off and threaded it and screwed the holesaw on, slid it in the short roller and blam!

fairlead bolt with head cut off to make notcher shaft

drill bit screwed onto new drill shaft

Now it was simply a matter of attaching the jack to the side of the workbench next to the vice. As you can see, I can adjust the height to control where on the tube the notch is drilled. To attach the short roller to the bottom of the jack you can simply take a piece of 2×4 tubing and cut a hole in it the same diameter of the fairlead roller and weld the roller inside the 2×4. Also, though it was not done on this notcher, you may want to consider drilling a grease zerk port on the side of the fairlead roller as this will lengthen the lifespan of the notcher. This is certainly not a replacement for a professional notcher, but for the guy who is building on a budget this should meet the needs of basic fabrication. Enjoy!

jack attached to table and ready to notch

preparing to drill

90* angle notch into tube

notching on lower side of tube for offset tube

TEHACHAPI PASS

      The next morning we went over the Ffoy. While we were going over the Ftoy John James lost a ring and pinion and there were these two guys working on his Ftoy I thought they were from Marlin. But it turned out to be Colin and Antony from Desert Valley tow. They were there to help us. It was nice of Colin and Antony to help John change his third member. Now we were waiting for Mark to bring us the power steering fluid. The Ftoy was ready to go prerun. They just needed to bleed the power steering fluid. LCQ was almost over so we went to go watch it for a while. I called Hobie and asked if they were out running but he said they were still bleeding the steering. So I got in the truggy and went back to the pits.

BLEEDING POWER STEERING

We bled the system and still no power steering. I got together with the other guys and we thought it must be the steering box. Hobie went and got some one to let us take their box off their 4runner and use it for the race. So Colin and I went out and took the box off and put it on the Ftoy. But it did not fix the problem. When we were trying to steer the Ftoy all of a sudden the ram jerked real hard. So I took off one end and started to pull on the ram shaft and it popped right out. I looked at the end to see if it broke but it had unscrewed inside. So I screwed it back together. I bled the system real quick and we got the steering back. Then Hobie went and got a PSC ram. But it had different hiem joints. So we cut off the old tabs and welded new ones on. Then we put the old power steering box and pump on. But we had no royal purple left to try it out. Se we put in ATF and 2 different power steering fluids. We go it bled and it worked great.

TRUNNION AND WHEEL BEARING FIX

While we were checking out the steering Matt leaned on the front tire and it moved. The wheel bearings were loose and the trunnion bearings were bad on the right side. So we did the trunnion bearing and tightened the wheel bearings. Now it was 2 am and we needed to run it to make sure all was well. So Hobie and I got in the rig and took it for a spin. All was good. But the next day Hobie still needed to see if the new BFG tires were going to work. So before tech and contingency Hobie and Mark took the Ftoy to the sand dunes. I got a ride from The Got Propane guy to see if the tires were going to work. But they did not do so well. So they went back to the pit. We washed the Ftoy and got into line for tech and contingency.

CONTINGENCY

While in the line we stopped at BFG and they were nice enough to change the tires back to the Krawlers. Now we still had to flush out the 31 flavors of power steering fluid and check the Ftoy over. 
      Later Matt came up to me and said they were going to take out some folks from Griffin would I like give someone a ride. So I took out Elton. We went to show them Back Door. Then off to Tack followed by Jack. I was leading up the lower part of Jack and we got to the waterfall. I asked Elton if he wanted to do the water fall and he said ok. We got up to the water fall and started to go up and was not going any where so I looked over and saw the rock wall to my left and turned into it.

JACK HAMMER

We got traction, up we went. Matt was right behind me. Then Rick went up. I asked Elton if he would like to do it again and he said yes. So we tried to run it open diff but the bottom ledge was too tall. I turned on the lockers and up we went. Now it was time to go back and wrench on the Ftoy.
 When I got back to the pit Bill, Howl and Howl’s son were there. We had a pit meeting and went over who was going to do what on the pit stop. The first try we did it in about 2 minutes. The next time we did it in 1:15 seconds. So all was well for the pit stops.

RACE DAY EVE

 We flushed the power steering. Then we put Wicking Lock Tight on all the bolts. Off to bed.
It was race day and we got up REAL early. Hobie and Mark took off for the starting line. While we were waiting for the race to start Seventh day Steve and his crew made us pancakes and brought it out to the starting line. Thanks so much Steve and crew that was all I had till dinner. Then it was go time for the race. Hobie was up against last year’s winner and he was not going to let him get a hole shot. So Hobie hit it and got the hole shot. When he hit it there was a real bad sound like the ring and pinion were stripped. But it was just the leaf spring hitting each other. Now it was a waiting game till he came back at mile 35. We watched John James do his pit stop. He started behind us so that hurt to see him in front of us. Then Hobie came. My dad stood out in front with the 4×4Him Banner.

MAIN PIT

 Hobie stopped and we went to work. Marlin and his pit crew helped us out. Marlin found the shocks loose so Bill and I hit them real quick. Thanks Marlin for the good eye. That pit stop took about 2-3 minutes. Hobie told me that they were getting bad millage and to get the 2 tanks filled. So Howl’s kid went and got them filled. So we were off to the BFG pit. While we were going there we could hear that some one needed a twin stick or something like that. We did not know that it was Hobie. So the Tinbender guys stepped up and got the spare out to the Masters Pit in ten minutes. The Tinbenders changed it for Hobie and off he went.  While we were waiting for Hobie Howl’s kid called me and said one tank only took a gallon. Hobie had blue tooth hooked up to his helmet so I called him to see if everything was ok. He said everything was good.  John James got to the BFG pit and had a longer than normal pit for them. But all was ok and off he went.

BFG PIT

Then about 20 minutes later Hobie showed up and we got him out in about 1 ½ minutes. Then we went back to main pit for mile number 90. Hobie came in about 10-11 minutes behind John. So he had made up some ground. We got him out of the pits in about 1 ½ minutes again. We got the last propane tanks and were off to the wrecking ball pit. It was a waiting game there. 
       Hobie called on the radio that they were doing self recovery and Mark was out of shape. They got going again. John came in and went out fast this pit stop. Then Hobie come in for his pit stop. My dad knew that Hobie had rolled. So he asked Marlin to come over and take a look at Hobie’s rig. So Marlin and the guys hit the pit with us. Mark told me that he was unplugged and needed it fixed. I jumped up and plugged him back in. But I got in the way of the camera guy. It took him some more time to get the camera going again. Then he was off to Jack North. It was cool to get to see him run down part of Wrecking Ball then in the desert and up part of Jack North. After we could not see him any longer,

WRECKING BALL PIT

 Shannon Campbell came through the pit going about 80 mph. So I radioed Hobie and told him that Shannon was on his tail. He then asked us to stay at that pit until he went up sledge. Then we got the call that Hobie put it on the side coming down Jack. Then Cotton Rod was helping them and rolled into him. So they helped each other get going again. He went up Sledge and we went back to the main pit. When we got there we heard Hobie was up sledge and past some more mile markers. We did not hear from them for a while. But then the relay lady (Carrie) told us he was right next to her at Fisher Mt. It was getting dark now. Then we lost radio with them. So I call him on his cell phone (blue tooth) with no luck. So his wife Megan called him, with no luck also, so she tried Mark and he answered but told her they couldn’t talk cause they were dealing with a problem. So we knew that they were still in the Race. 
     Then John came to the finish line. Then we waited and waited it seemed like 4 hours went buy. Some one said here comes Hobie. I didn’t see anything.

NOTICE DIM LIGHTS

 These two ¼ lit lights come out of the dark and it was Hobie and Mark. I felt so good to see them come across the finish line. All the work on Wednesday was worth it. Hobie got interviewed for a little bit. Some more people were coming across the finish line so we had to push the Ftoy. It had no more battery to crank it over. Things calmed down, Hobie and Mark got some food. Colin and Anthony were in the service truck so they came down and jumped the Ftoy. We got it started and I drove it to the pit for the night. 
       Saturday I helped cook the eggs for the Friends of Johnson’s Valley breakfast. I think around 500 people were served. Minimatt said they were going to take the Griffin girls and some other people for a ride. So I said I would take some of them. But I got held up for a while. They took off without me. I called on the radio.

GRIFFIN GIRLS

Rick told me to go down and see if any one wanted a ride. Two guys wanted a ride. So I got my dad and we headed for where Rick and Matt were. They played in the mud so we went to Jack to do the water fall. I wanted to give them a good ride so we were going fast out to jack. When we hit the start I just went way too fast and hit everything I  could as fast as I could. We made it to the water fall in about 3 minutes. People were looking at me like what is this piece of junk doing here. We went right up the water fall. Lots of people were cheering us on when we made it. One guy said do it again. So I asked if they would like to do it again. We hit a harder line in the beginning but could not make it. Then I moved over and climbed right up, one guy said how much beer have you been drinking. I said none. Then I asked them if they would like to go down the water fall. We headed down it. The front tire hit a hole and we almost went end over end. At the same time my coil spring fell out. I started to go and the crowd said stop. One guy came over and put the coil spring back in and off to camp we went.  I broke the right front axle and track bar brace. I welded the track bar brace up and went out with Scott to Claw Hammer. We hit traffic and decided to head back to camp. I broke the other axle on the way down. Scott had to give me a few bumps to get down but we made it back to camp. Megan’s Matt talked me into changing both front axles so we could wheel in the morning. We changed them in about 2 hours.

BROKEN AXLES

       The next day we went out to Jack and in the first ¼ mile I broke the rear yoke. It took about 2 hours to get out. I was really ready to go home now. We packed up and I got home at 1am. Hope you like the story.

CLICK PICTURE FOR MORE COMMENTS

BY RICH AND RICK

JACK HAMMER

Well minimatt came to me and said Tom Beebe asked us to take the Griffin girls out on a short run,

GRIFFIN GIRLS

so we did more then that and we taught them how to wheel starting with how to shift a manual transmission.  We left camp just as we finished serving breakfast to 500 people with the help from Friends of Johnson Valley. So it was time to do dishes and Matt and I had to bail. Thanks guys for covering for us.

KIM AND ASHETON

Matt and i drove out of the maze of RV’s and 4×4 to the lake bed then we jumped out and said its your turn to the girls in the front seat they screamed with excitement and terror at the same time, then informed us they didn’t even know how to drive a stick, WOW kids these days.  They caught on quick and we headed for tack hammer via the sand hill.  After we missed our first turn we made the second and we were off to the rocks.  Matt’s girl must have caught on quicker cause they passed us quickly. 

LISA PLUGS A TIRE

But Lisa was driving mine and soon regained the lead until she tore the side wall on my MTR.  After Lisa got out and fixed the hole and aired it up we were off again to the top of Tack Hammer, were we had a photo opp.

ALEX ON THE 2 METER

Alex then learned to talk on the 2 meter radios as we switched drivers and headed back down the trail to go to the lake bed and play in the MUD.

NON POSER SHOT OF ALEX

BY RICK

CLICK ANY PICTURE FOR THE FORUM TO COMMENT

THE 3 TOUR RIDES

Tom Beebe asked minimatt and me if we would mind taking a couple of the event sponsors on a mild trail run to show them the course and what it was all about. Of course I said we would be happy to do it. Well it turns out that we were taking Ron Beebe, the Pres. of Griffin and two of his business associates.

4X4HIM.ORG WITH RON BEEBE

RON BEEBE ON JACK

So we put Ron with Rick, Rick Ellstrom with minimatt and the other guy (California Radiator) with 88jp in his newly completed Jeep truggy. Ron made it clear he did not want to be scared, so we kept it mild, went to show him back door then cut across the desert towards Tack Hammer, found a young guy stuck in the sand so we stopped to help (happened to be brad DeHondagods son) so we pulled him out and carried on to Tack.  Ron was having a great time but I told him to tell when he has had enough, he never did, infact when I went to show him Jack Hammer and Sledge Hammer he asked if we could go up jack a ways? I said sure just let me know when you’ve had enough, he never did but I bailed out before the water fall.

RICK ELLSTROM WITH MINIMATT

Well, 88jp’s passenger and mine both wanted to run up the waterfall, so we both ran it twice, much to the enjoyment of both, and the crowd gathered around the course.

CALIFORNIA RADIATOR GUY WITH RICH

Apparently Ron couldn’t be outdone, so he and Rick ran it, but broke a P/S line in the process. As we were leaving, minimatt stopped to give a guy a jumpstart, and sheared his hub studs on one side when he backed away from him. So we patched our rigs back together and headed back to camp. During this trip, we discussed what it is we(4×4Him.org) do and what we believe with our passengers and we received a positive response from them and found out they were also believers.

4X4HIM.ORG BASE CAMP

Way cool…What a blessing it is when you are willing to give God can do increadible things.

by Rick and Matt

Click any picture to link to the forum for comments

FOJV AND 4X4HIM.ORG BREAKFAST

I will write more on this later when I have more time, but the majority of my week was spent doing PR-type stuff with racers, race fans, sponsors and the promotors. This trip exceeded my expectations 100 fold. I can not tell you how many people I had the opportunity to share 4×4Him with and the overwhelming positve response we had. Truly, God was in our midst. Here are a few pic’s of the breakfast we served

GRIFFIN GIRLS

500 people Saturday morning in collaboration with the Friends of Johnson Valley and also a pic during the little excursion we took the Griffin girls on Saturday after breakfast. Not pictured was the Saturday night Dinner for those that were still on the lake bed. served 50 people Tri Tip and Bacon wrapped Shrimp.

EW4C TACO BAR

Extreme wheelers 4 Christ geting involved with PR. in fact this is their 3 year of serving a Taco Bar Dinner.for more write ups click any picture

people on pirate who saw us pit, compared us to shannon campbell’s pit crew!. good job guys!!!! all in the same shirts and and all with a job and no chaos. i cannot explain how big this meant to me and to others there! 

PIT CREW

here is the report i posted up on pirate. i will add some more pics:

this race was more drama than the last 3 i raced. even the one i did with memphis jon where we lost the shocks at mile 1.

so here goes my story and a few pics.

the month before the race, desert valley towing steps up and buys me some much needed tires and other prep things for the race. edelbrock made me some one off resivoir shocks.

Hobie passing Shannon

once we got out on sunday before the race, we found that the race truck was faster than ever before. me and john james pre ran together and were learning the course and running about the same speed.

we were hoping for a wrench free week but that did not happen. as soon as my pit crews from 4×4him.org showed up on wednesday, my steering took a dump. we thought it was the pump. change it out, nope. we thought it was the gear box, change it out, wrong! finally we take the ram off and pull on it and it pops right out. the nut came off inside the ram!

of course PSC was on site and hooked me right up with a 1.5″ ram. i had a 2″ ram on there before so we had to do some fab work to get it mounted at 3am! once i tested it, i realized how much quicker the 1.5″ ram is and i loved it.

all night pit crew

the next day, BFGoodrich stepped up and gave me a set of BAJA TA KRT’s. we put them on and ran them and wow did it make a difference the woops. it seems as if they added 2″ of suspension travel. i tested at 25 psi and i picked up 10mph in the woops. the shocks seem to come alive and my front end was really light and i could hammer down faster than i have ever seen any formula toy go…..however….my f-toy was made for rock crawling and not desert racing and at those speeds and bumps, i knew the buggy would start falling apart and i was worried about the ring and pinion breaking from taking that abuse.

the next day, we put the krawlers back on which work better in the rocks anyways, so i ran those.

contigency day: i try to find some HID lights, as i only have some hella’s that are 10 years old), but to no avail. so now i am the only rig in the race without cool off road lights. i was worried about finishing in the dark because the last rail of the race was new to me.

Race Day

race day: as we line up in the vendor area, 4×4him guys show up with hot pancakes at the starting line!!! how cool is that! with the 20k people at the start and with the buzz of motors and announcer on the microphone, i think i about lost it. i had never been so stressed in my life. people were trying to talk to me and i simply couldn’t speak.

HOBIE GET THE HOLE SHOT

i started next to THE king of the hammers, jason schere. most of these guys cant get a whole shot to save their life, so if you look in the picture, you can see i was a car length ahead for a few seconds till i literally heard his engine rev over mine and then i never saw him again!

when the green flag dropped, i am zoned out, i am shifting at 6500. i am having the realization that all the time spent prepping the truck and wrench was not over and we are actually in this huge race!

so i calm down and all is good. but on mellville, the first lake bed, the morning dew was on the woops and making them hard to read. as soon as i said something to mark about it, i went air borned like bo duke! we nosed it and i thought the whole car came apart! luckily it was just all my tools that the boxes threw up my sockets and wrenches all over the course. we checked everything to make sure it was good and lost 10 minutes. thats when john blew by us but not without checking on us first! thanks john!

so i peeled out and off we went to crowbar to be hung up by all the full width huge vehicles.

after crowbar, we are passing people left and right and also being passed by dean bulloch and others. we found tracy jordan lost all forward gears and he driving the course in REVERSE!!! hahahaha. that was so cool! good on him not to give up.

we made it 35mi back to main pit where my crew and Marlin and his crew jumped on my rig like a white guy in south central. cameras were interviewing me and i didn’t know what to think. it was awesome as all the bender wives and 4×4him crew, and my wife, meghan and family was there to support me and give us water and food.

we peeled out and hauled to “after shock”. at the base of after shock, my muscle memory kicked in as i tried to grab the t-case shifter for low gear. to my surprise, i grabbed AIR! it was gone!!! compeletely. i said to mark james (co driver), “WHAT DID YOU DO WITH MY SHIFTER!!!” hahahaha. he yelled back at me of course. so i had no choice but to drive after shock in 2 to 1, which is high range enough to make it difficult and to burn up a clutch.

HOBIE GETTIN IT

we radioed for help but couldn’t hear any response except this lady who apparently was running relay just for the benders. we didn’t know this was going to happen. we had carrie steiner on top of fisher mountain, a legend actually running relay just for our 6 cars in the race! wow i couldn’t believe it, i felt so honored.

anyways, i have to winch the water fall as my high range bounces all over the place and i can’t get up it. i peel out to the emergency calrocs pits. my crew had headed over the BFG pits so they were of no help to me. luckily my fellow benders were called into action. mark carter found my front range twin stick on my trailer and flash hauled it out to the pits in 10 minutes arriving just seconds before i pulled in. brett porter’s pit crew filled in as my pits and wrenched on the rig for me. my close friend jan and my sponsors also made it out in time to help turn a wrench.

(i say that all to say, you can’t do this race without major support from you friends and family)

so off we go to sunbonnet. all was good and tires working good. my spectator crew drove all the way out to mile 60 ish just to see us and john james and mustard dog go by!

we make it to the BFG pits and i refuel. at this point i am 20 minutes behind john james and mike hendrix. me and mark are cool with this and race at a safe speed.

meanwhile, me and mark are the only car that don’t have radios in our helmets, so when we are in the desert, we cant hear what the radio was saying. so what happened is: carrie would ask, “car 10, whats your status?” and we wouldn’t answer. so john and mike, on the same channel or course, thought we were being sneaky and not giving our position away. they thought we were sneaking up on them! hahaha funny stuff.

HOBIE AND MARK

well after we get back to main pit, we are stoaked we made the 5:30 cut off. at 5:30, if you didn’t make it there, you weren’t allowed to race the rest of the course! whooo hooo! we made it!. next cut off was 10 o’clock. so off we went to run all the hammer trails.

we were blazing along and coming down wrecking ball when i heard over the radio that john was just 5 min ahead of us…i though hum, i might catch him here in the next hour. we’ll see.

well about a minute later, i flopped…hard! so there goes 20 minutes or so. we self recover and off we go.

we head up jack north, and down jack….we flop! again! i am pissed now. cotton rod comes by and says that she will pull us over, well she tried to get into position but flopped her self right next to us!!!

so now we have 2 flopped rigs on jack. long story short, we got them both upright about 30 minutes later.

we head up sledge and the people were like ants!! everywhere. they were running along side of my rig yelling at me where to go!

luckily i sent hal and cody deschamp up the trail to spot me thru the chaos. they helped me and john big time!!! hal and bill also pit crewed for me and were huge in their support with all their knowledge of ftoys.

i run up sledge like normal, no backups, just gettin it and i get to the plaque line and i try to crawl around the hole, just like i did last year. but i flopped..hard! it hurt. we winched and i took off.

at this point the sun is going down and i am racing to “spooners” and trying to get there before dark. i had been worried about it all day because i have never ran that trail before and i don’t have but 2 little lights.

of course spooners kick my butt as i took a wrong line and got stuck for 20 minutes trying not to roll. for the 4th time, the winch came out. it was my fault for not pre-running that trail.

spooners was long and i hated that trail. at the bottom we are stocked. we have but 5 miles to come back to the finish line and we have 3 hours to get there before cut off. no problem, right?

so now its dark and off we go into the woops as our weak headlights get darker and darker. with a sudden revelation that our altenator was gone, we knew we were completely screwed.

we unplug everything had. we try to radio, but the ham is out. we are all but in the dark with just a glow of headlights that give me 4′ of visibility.

mark says, “you better drive fast or we will run out of battery soon and we will be dead with nothing but glow sticks only 5 miles from the end!” i did not come all that way for nothing. so i floored it!!!!

you know how planes fly instrument only? well we did the same thing. mark zoomed in on the gps and told me…”slight left”, “straight”, “slight right”, “stop and 90 degree left”. we are flying thru the night at 40mph in the dark! scared out of my mind but determined to finish this abomination of a race.

at one point we passed a campe that saw us go by with light problems, they jumped on their trucks and tried to follow to give us light but they couldn’t keep up, lol.

race mile 131, we had 4 miles to go. 132, we had 3 miles to go. these were the longest miles of the race. at 133 we saw another race car in front of us. at 134 we caught that car!! whooo hooo. we could not actually see because of their lights. i was so thankful but still nervous that our car was going die. we thought about passing them, but i decided that wasn’t a good idea.

finally at race mile 135, we rolled into the final check point and found dave cole congratulating nicole johnson right in front of us. then he looks up and sees a rig in the dark rolling up and starts laughing as me and mark are coming unglued to the excitement of the finish of the race.

HOBIE ON TOP OF HIS RIG

we came into the finish with so many people there waiting on my axiously as they were nervous about our location when we lost radio contact. all my family and my friends were there and john james was the first person to shake my hand congratulate me for finishing 4 straight KOH races.

CONGRATS FROM RICK

side note, john and i both rolled our ftoys at stupid places. we found that we had both added so much compression for the woops, when coming down trails at high speed, this tended to be to stiff and bounce us over on our sides…going up the trail was no problem though. just someting to note for future reference.

By Hobie

1. Warnings, Cautions and Dangers!
2. Lubrication
3. Parts List.
4. Operating Instructions
5. Accessories

1. Warnings, Cautions and Dangers!:

With proper use and care, your Jack will give you years of dependable service. You can use the Hi-Lift® Jack in many ways, including:
Lifting stable loads. Winching loads. Clamping or spreading. Stretching wire. Raising vehicles or other mobile loads. (when properly chocked and blocked (stabilized))

INSPECT THE JACK BEFORE USE
Inspect the Jack carefully before each use. Make sure the Jack is not damaged, badly worn, or missing parts.  Check the pins to make sure that they are not worn or damaged. Check the main vertical bar to make sure that it is straight and that nothing is blocking the holes. Do not use the Jack unless it is in good clean working condition.  Do not use the jack unless it is properly lubricated. Using a jack that is not in good clean working condition or properly lubricated may cause serious injury. See “Lubrication.”

OPERATIONAL SAFETY
Do not use this Jack on curved or tubular vehicle bumpers. The vehicle could slip off the Jack and fall, causing serious injury or death. Use the Bumper Lift to lift most vehicles with curved or slotted bumpers. See Bumper Lift in “Accessories.” Do not raise inflated tire more than 2” (5 cm) above the ground. Never attempt to lift more than one wheel at a time.

When used as a winch, the top clamp will support up to 5,000 lbs. (2,273 kg). If you go over this limit, the top clamp could bend or break, causing the load to shift or the chain or tow strap to snap back. If that occurs it could result in damage or injury. The working load of each chain or tow strap must be greater than the strength of the Jack. If a chain or tow strap breaks while winching, the load could shift or the chain or tow strap could snap back. The maximum clamping force is 750 lbs. (340 kg). If you exceed this limit, the top clamp could bend or break, resulting in injury or damage. Always place the handle against the steel standard (bar) with the handle clip holding it up before moving the reversing latch. This will prevent the handle from moving up and down rapidly, which could cause serious injury or death if it comes into contact with any part of your body. Always keep your head out of the travel path of the handle. Lowering the load can be dangerous. During lowering, the weight of the load pushes UP against the Jack’s handle. If your hands slip off the handle, or if the handle is horizontal when you move the reversing latch, it may move up very quickly. If your head is in the handle’s travel path, it could strike you, causing serious injury or death.

Do not use the jack to support a load. Securely chock and block (stabilize) the load to be lifted. Never get under a raised load without properly chocking and supporting the load. If a raised load falls it can cause serious injury or death. THIS JACK WILL NOT STABILIZE THE LOAD. You must chock and block (stabilize) the load to prevent it from moving or falling. If a raised load falls, it can cause serious injury or death.
CHOCK & BLOCK (STABILIZE)
A chock is a wedge for steadying a body and holding it motionless, or for preventing the movement of a wheel. When you block a load, you secure and support a load that is being lifted. The block(s) or stabilizer(s) should have a weight capacity that is greater than the weight of the load which is being lifted.

2. Lubrication:

Jack is not self-lubricating. It will not operate safely without proper lubrication. If the moving parts of the jack or the steel standard (bar) are clogged, use air pressure, water pressure, or a stiff brush to clean. Use a non-flammable cleaning solvent or another good de-greaser to clean the Jack. Remove any existing rust, preferably with a penetrating lubricant. Then lubricate the Jack using white lithium grease, light penetrating oil, or a silicon or Teflon spray at the following points:

Steel Bar: Keep the front and back edges of the steel standard (bar) lightly lubricated and free from dirt and rust.
Pitman Pin: Keep the pitman pin lubricated or it will damage the handle socket and pitman.
Shear bolt: Keep the shear bolt clean and lubricated to keep it from wearing out.
Climbing Pins and Springs: Keep both climbing pins and springs lubricated and free from dirt and rust.

Do not use motor oil or grease to lubricate the jack.
IF YOUR JACK BINDS
As your Jack becomes older, the climbing pins may start binding in the holes of the steel standard (bar). This will prevent the Jack from operating properly and safely. Rusty climbing pins, dirt, or a worn bar can cause binding. Clean and lubricate the lifting mechanism. Test the Jack by jacking it up without a load. If the binding continues, have the jack repaired. If your Jack binds while under a load, use a jack with equal or larger load capacity to lower the load safely to the ground. Repeat the steps in this paragraph to the binding Jack.

3. Parts List:

Following are the parts for all Hi-Lift Jacks.

1 Top Clamp-Clevis Bolt
2 Top Clamp-Clevis
3 Steel Standard (Bar)
4 Handle Spring Clip
5 Steel Handle w/ Cotter Pin
6 Handle Socket
7 Pitman Pin
8 Hex Bolt
9 Pitman
10 Small Runner
11 Shear Bolt
12 Foot Piece w/ Cotter Pin
14 Climbing Pin Spring (2 required)
15 Climbing Pin (2 required)
16 Cross Pin (2 required)
18 Reversing Switch Cam Bar and Spring
19 Cap Screw w/ Washer
20 Reversing Latch
21 Reversing Switch Spring
22 Large Runner
23 Running Gear (assembled)
Individual parts may vary on some models

4. Operating Instructions:

Please read Warning, Cautions and Dangers section above before using the Hi-Lift jack.

RAISING A STATIONARY LOAD
1. Securely chock and block (stabilize) the load you are going to lift to prevent it from rolling or shifting as you lift it.
2. Keep the handle against the steel standard (bar) with the handle clip holding it when not lifting or lowering.
3. Place the Jack’s base plate securely on a firm, level, and dry surface with the steel standard (bar) pointing straight up.
4. Lift the reversing latch until it locks in the UP position.
5. Grasp the handle or the handle socket and raise the lifting mechanism until the nose is completely and securely under the load.
6. Grasp the handle firmly with both hands. Carefully pump the handle up and down to raise the load. Do not use an extension on the handle.
Always place the handle against the steel standard (bar) with the handle clip holding it up before moving the reversing latch. This will prevent the handle from moving up and down rapidly, which could cause serious injury or death if it comes into contact with any part of your body. Always keep your head out of the travel path of the handle.

?The load will be raised on each DOWN stroke of the handle.
?Watch the load and the Jack carefully. Stop jacking if either one starts to move. Do not continue raising the load unless it is safe to do so. When safe, stabilize and block the load.
7. When the load is raised to the desired height, place the handle in the upright clipped position against the steel standard (bar).
8. Block the load securely.
9. Lower the load onto the blocks.
IMPORTANT:
Handle force required to raise 4,660 lbs. is 177 lbs. at 34” on the handle.
Maximum rated load is 4,660 lbs. (2,273 kg) up to 48” (121 cm), tested to 7,000lbs. (3175 kg). Upper 12” of 60” jack is rated to 2,660 lbs. (1,209 kg) only, tested to 4,000 lbs. (1,818 kg). If you overload the Jack during operation, the shear bolt (located in the lifting mechanism) will break. If the shear bolt breaks, as it will at 7,000 lbs. (3,175 kg), the load should be supported, but the Jack’s handle will drop freely. Use a Jack with a larger load capacity to lower the load safely to the ground. Do not replace the shear bolt with a bolt of greater strength as this could cause the jack to fail and drop the load. Always use a shear bolt supplied. Do not replace the shear bolt while the Jack is under load.
WORKING WITH A RAISED LOAD:
THIS JACK WILL NOT STABILIZE THE LOAD. You must chock and block (stabilize) the load to prevent it from moving or falling. If a raised load falls, it can cause serious injury or death.

Always follow the rules below when working with a raised load:
?Chock and block (stabilize) the load to prevent it from moving or falling.
?Make sure the load cannot slip, roll away, or fall.•
?Never go underneath a raised load supported with just a Jack.
?Never push a raised load off the Jack.
?Make sure everyone is clear of the load before lowering.

LOWERING A LOAD:
Lowering the load can be dangerous. Keep your head clear of the path of the handle. During lowering, the weight of the load pushes UP against the Jack’s handle. If your hands slip off the handle, or if the handle is horizontal when you move the reversing latch, it may move up very quickly. If your head is in the handle’s travel path, it could strike you, causing serious injury or death.

IMPORTANT:
The Jack must have a load on it (150 pounds or more) to lower step-by-step. Otherwise, the lifting mechanism will slide down to the base plate, “dropping” your load.
1. Before you move the reversing latch down, clip the handle in the upright position against the steel standard (bar).
2. Move the reversing latch to the DOWN position.
3. Grasp the handle firmly with both hands. Carefully pump the handle up and down to begin lowering the load.
4. The load will be lowered on each UP stroke of the handle. If the Jack binds, see instructions above.

WINCHING OR CLAMPING WITH THE JACK
You may use this Jack as a winch or clamp.
For Winching:

Make sure the top clamp is in line with the bar. Install one end of a chain or tow strap securely to the object to be winched, and securely attach the other end of the chain or tow strap to the top clamp of the Jack. Use a shackle if the chain or tow strap will not fit through the Top Clamp of the Jack. Take another chain or tow strap and secure one end to a fixed, stable object, and the other end around the lifting nose on the Jack (do not attach chain or shackle to bottom hole of the lifting nose). If the fixed object is a tree, follow Tread Lightly principles and use a tree strap. Operate the Jack as you would for raising or lowering a load.
Also see the OFF-ROAD KIT (in “Accessories”) for everything that you need to winch with the Hi-Lift Jack.
The working load of each chain or tow strap must be greater than the strength of the Jack. If a chain or tow strap breaks while winching, the load could shift or the chain or tow strap could snap back. When used as a winch, the top clamp will support up to 5,000 lbs. (2,273 kg). If you go over this limit, the top clamp could bend or break, causing the load to shift or the chain or tow strap to snap back. If that occurs it could result in damage or injury.

For Clamping:

Loosen the top clamp bolt. Turn the top clamp 90° to the steel bar, and retighten the bolt. You can connect the top clamp anywhere along the steel standard (bar) to use the Jack as a clamp. Operate the Jack as< you would for raising a load.
The maximum clamping force is 750 lbs. (340 kg). If you exceed this limit, the top clamp could bend or break, resulting in injury or damage.

5. Accessories:

Lift Mate

The Lift-Mate is designed to provide a lift point from most wheels for quick and easy lifting. When used with the Hi-Lift jack, the Lift-Mate makes raising one wheel of most average sized vehicles an easy task.
In recent years, the Hi-Lift jack has been limited to its use on some of the newer trucks and SUV’s due to newer style bumpers that are made of plastic or are not compatible with a bumper-style jack.
The Lift-Mate is the answer to those problems, allowing the Hi-Lift to be used with almost any truck or SUV. Many trucks and SUV’s have larger tires and/or lift kits that require extensive lifting height ability from the bumper jack.
The Lift-Mate is designed to operate in a manner that allows the vehicle wheel to be lifted directly from the wheel, greatly reducing the amount of travel up the bar needed to lift the wheel an adequate and safe height.
Bumper Lift

The Bumper Lift is designed to fit slotted or curved bumpers for quick and easy lifting. When used with the Hi-Lift jack, the Bumper Lift makes raising one wheel of most average-sized vehicles an easy task. Bumper Lift has a 3,000-lb. capacity. BL-250 (Hi-Lift P/N)
Do not use this Jack on curved or tubular vehicle bumpers. The vehicle could slip off the Jack and fall, causing serious injury or death. Use the Bumper Lift to lift most vehicles with curved or slotted bumpers. Do not raise inflated tire more than 2” (5 cm) above the ground. Never attempt to lift more than one wheel at a time.

Jack Protector

Protects your Hi-Lift Jack from weather, mud, dirt and sand. Made of durable vinyl-coated nylon, the Jack Protector is waterproof, as well as mildew and decay resistant. Drawstring closure. Fits 36”, 42”, 48”, and 60” Hi-Lift Jacks. (Note: All working parts of the 60” Jack are protected. However, the foot piece and 5” of steel bar are exposed.)
JP-350 (Hi-Lift P/N)
Fix-it Kit

Keep your Hi-Lift jack operating trouble-free. The Fix-it-Kit has all the principal parts for servicing all Hi-Lift jack lifting units. FK-1 (Hi-Lift P/N)
Loc Rac

A convenient mounting and locking device for storage of your Hi-Lift Jack. Installation is simple. It can be mounted horizontally or vertically, with or without a jack protector. Your Hi-Lift Jack is mounted in the Loc-Rac to deter theft. It also places the jack in an easy to reach location. Loc-Rac is manufactured of high quality steel. Lock is included.
LR-200 (Hi-Lift P/N)

4X Rac

The Hi-Lift 4XRAC is designed for serious off-roaders who are looking for an easy, inexpensive way to stow their Hi-Lift jack in a convenient, secure location. Each kit contains 2 mounting brackets, 2 mounting bracket caps, a Velcro strap for securing the Hi-Lift’s handle, and all necessary mounting hardware.
4X400 (Hi-Lift P/N)

Off Road Base

The Off-Road Base alleviates jack sinkage on soft ground. This lightweight and durable base is constructed to withstand the high weight capacities of the Hi-Lift Jack.
ORB (Hi-Lift P/N)

Off Road Kit

The OFF-ROAD KIT contains everything needed to winch with the Hi-Lift Jack (user to provide tow strap) in one convenient case.
Kit contains:
1-Custom Nose Attachment
1- 8ft. Tree Saver Strap
1- Pair/Hi-Lift Gloves
Hardware and Carrying
ORK (Hi-Lift P/N)

Note: The majority of this information is copied directly for the Hi-Lift Brand Jack manual

Thanks

AZLugz

This is my homespun In-Cab Winch control setup for my Smittybilt XRC8 winch

I have seen this issue come up a lot and have been “Gonna do it” for a long time, well, I was at 4 Wheel Parts last Friday and was checking out Ethan’s Sami buggy and his homemade in-cab and decided to do it but a little different.

The research and design had to come first and I found that the XRC8 is a 3 wire control with White as the hot lead, Green as the In lead and Black as the Out lead…..Can you get any better than that…..the same color code as common house wire. So, first stop was Home depot for wire and sure enough, no helpers and I am in a hurry, the spool of cheap stuff is empty so off to the extension cord isle……AhA, I nab a 25′ 16/3 bright orange extension cord for $4.97, yes, a little more than the plain wire but quick. For those “not in the know”, 16/3 means that this wire has 3 conductors that are all 16 gauge. Typically extension cords are also stranded copper wire and run standard internal color code of Black=hot, White=neutral and Green=ground……that matters not in my case except that the colors match the project and make it easier, also, being an outside extension cord, the 3 wires are encased in a water and oil proof sheath. Makes running the wire easier and look better.

Next stop is Radio Shack for the electronics. I went a little extra because I wanted protection from accidental engagement and I wanted lights to verify direction and movement. Here is my rough schematic: (Disclaimer…….I worked in electronics for over 20years so I know the stuff BUT the schematic is so bad because I have NOT worked in MS Paint for 20 years!!)

So, I picked up an Arm/DisArm style Master switch so it could not be “bumped” on, a momentary push button, a 3-way (on-off-on) and 2 LED lights (red and green).

This install/build took place in the driveway at the RV park where my Parents are snowbirding here in Mesa, so it’s definately not a hard job!!!

I started off with the solenoid cover and on the Smittybilt it is riveted on, so I had to drill out the rivets. Next was to fanagle the wire from the winch to the firewall and inside to the location for the controls. Take time on this job, make it look good but make it safe and secure. Use wire ties to keep the wire in place so it will not get caught on something or rub a hole.

Since the winch is always “hot”, I wired the inside first….yes, I know, you should always disconnect the battery and I will say here that for safety, I suggest you do that even if I don’t,. I decided to use the small square panel where the ashtray used to be on the jeeps but mine does not have. This picture already has the pushbutton in:

Next was the master switch:

Then the 3-way and 1st hole for the LED’s:

I am not going to post the wire connection as I used push connectors as a temp setup and I intend to get a 12-pin connector for all the switchs on this panel and then solder all connections when I put the panel connector in. So, with all connections made inside but the panel still off in case troubleshooting is needed we head back to the winch.

Wiring is cut to length, half rings crimed on and screwed in:

I then secured the wire in place with tie straps (UV safe) and then reattach the cover using sheetmetal screws in place of the rivets. The wire coming out was also secured to the main winch wires with straps:

Back to the inside, we tested the setup and all works great so we reattached all the panels and completed the work. The finished dash…..sorry for the dirt but….1. its a jeep, 2. it was on the trails this weekend!!!!

With the system set up this way, the master switch has a red LED built in that comes on when it is engaged. The 3-way is flipped up for in and down for out. When you press the momentary button with the 3-way in the up position, the green LED will light while the winch will spool in, like wise, in the down position, pushing the momentary will cause the red LED to light while the winch spools out. I intend to have some small stickers made to denote directions and functions but I have to send out for them. We are going wheeling this weeked, maybe we will get to test it out!!! Must say thanks to my Dad and my son for helping along on this and other projects!!!!

Note: The small connector above the master switch is the IPOD input for the stereo.

Approimate costs:

Master switch… $4.99
3-Way.. $2.99
Mom Switch… $2.29
2 LED’s … $3.38
Ext Cord… $4.97
Straps… $1.79
Connectors… extras but say $1.29 for a pack

Brings it all in at just over $20 depending on the switchs and lights you choose, also, buying the wire off the spool in the lengthyou need will save a little.

Thanks
AZLugz

We played around a little on a couple rock groupings and I must give a big thanks to Jim at Shrockworks for the rocker guards/sliders on my Jeep, while playing on a rock my tire slipped off and I cam down with a teeth jarring BANG.  Pete said it echoed thru the canyon and I just knew I hurt something!!!  Pete yelled it was the sliders and had Ben take some pictures, I finished the crawl over the pile and then got out to check the damage………I scratched the paint off the slider, no dent, no gouge, no nothing, I did more damage to my teeth than I did to that slider!!!  Well, anyway, we headed on down the canyon to the right point and made a left to head into Martinez canyon.  One of the best parts of this trip is that the scenery is just incredible.  Some spots you can see for miles and the camera can not do it justice.

This run turned out to be a lot more rutted than it used to be but it was a very enjoyable, tho long run.  It took about 4.5 hours to make this trail one way and got worse as the trail progressed.  Overall, it was not bad for my jeep on 33″ tires but it did drag bottom and tail a couple times so good skid plating is a must as well as a lift and larger than stock tires.  Then we finally hit the Coke Ovens!! 

Our objective made, it was time to eat lunch and discuss the route back.  I had a kinship meeting at three and Pete had things at home to take care of so I, yes I will take full blame for this one, suggested that we try the south route out and cross the river.  We have heard about it several times and it is supposed to be easy and a lot faster!!  Well, we had no coordinates or anything to guide by except that it was the “SOUTH” route out and there was only one trail going south!!!  Problem solved and we headed south and really enjoyed it…..for a while!  We’ve been thru mud before, no big deal, so it is a few hundred feet long and deeper than we expected, we made it, finally.  Of course we didn’t know at the time that it was the easy part! 

Till of course we came upon the tree in the path laying over a smaller mud hole. This is probably a good time to remind you that looks are not always right.  Well, Pete used a tow strap and pulled the lower part of the tree out of the way and low an behold, the rest popped up in the air and I told Pete, dude, I think we can fit under the other part.  as it turns out, based on the depth of the mud, I was more right than I imagined!  OK, this is a good place to take a breath and say, BTW, we installed the winch on Pete’s Cruiser last night and it is a real good thing!!.  So 20 minutes to winch him out and I still have to go thru.  Now, did I mention that Pete rides on 35’s while I ride on 33’s and his rig weighs a lot more than mine, well I slide don into the mud and immediately high centered and sunk in about 3o inches of stinky mud! 

Well anyway, we made it and I the parts are still attached, plus a lot of extra weight in mud but we are about ready to roll.  I take on the job of spooling winches while Pete heads on down the way to find a river crossing.  We made it across the river and that mud hole at the other side that normally would have been a concern but after what we had just come thru, it seemed like nothing, at least with a good running start so you kinda slide across the top!  Now we are back on the trail and heading toward Florence but the trail dead ends in a major pile of flood debris and there is no way around so we have to turn back, past the river exit point we find another trail, kinda, it is actually where the water spills down from the RR tracks but we can climb it.  Pete walks up first to see if we can go anywhere  and all there is is RR tracks and no where else to get out.  The tracks west are blocked cause the are working on washed out trestles so we have to go FARTHER east. 

Well, 2 miles of RR tracks later we finally found an exit but, at this point I must say.  When you have to cross a trestle, even a tiny one like this but one that your tires barley fit on, it really makes you remember that RR tracks are not made for Jeeps.  My son pointed out the it was only about 3 or 4 feet above the wash so the fall would not kill you!!  That made me feel a lot better about falling off, I can survive long enough to have to tell my wife that I rolled her Jeep of a Train Trestle bridge thingy but it is ok because I came home alive enough for you to KILL me!!!!!  So, we take the exit and find a good dirt trail and I finally let Ben drive as he has been asking all day. 

We did make it out faster than the other way but still took several hours and was a lot more work.  We ended up on a dirt road about 25-30 miles SE of Florence and and very long way from where we were supposed to end up.  It was, however, a very enjoyable day of wheeling 

The pictures posted here can be expanded at, and others can be viewed from the link below.  Hope you have enjoyed the write up as much as we enjoyed our day.

FOR MORE PICTURES, ACCESS
The Kreation Krawlers Photobucket

With the van and the truck safely up on flat ground and the other group of winches starting on the car, we headed off to another spot where there was supposed to be 2 more vehicles abandoned in a ravine.  When we got there, the vehicles we already up on a flat surface and since the pickups were still busy hauling the the other wrecks out, we decided to tow these 2 back to base with the Jeeps.  The white jeep hooked up to the first wreck and headed out and we hooked up to the second.  A short way down the road after bouncing across the rocks at 5mph, we ripped the rear cross member out of the car and had to hook to the front cross member and turn the car around.  About 3/4’s of the way back, the lower part of the car broke in half and the only thing left holding it together was the roof.  We limped it the rest of the way to base and the strap broke as we were starting to pull it into place so we borrowed a chain and finished the job.  One other point to make here is a big thanks to Pete and he walked behind the wreck a big portion of the way back to base to pick up the pieces that kept falling off.  There were now 4 wrecked vehicles at the base camp.

With the wreck safely back at base camp we went back to the area we picked up the wreck to help in the garbage collection.  There was a roll-off dumpster in that area to handle  the trash so we started working.  Virgil was raking garbage into piles and the guys with shovels were picking it up, Sammy and I were picking up bigger stuff and filling bags and Pete was farther back helping a guy with a Jeep XJ, load big pieces on a mattress and tow it over to the dumpster to unload it.  It seemed that in no time the dumpster was 3/4’s full and we were being called back to base for lunch.

.  Once back at base there was more evidence at the amount of work that had been done, the dumpster there was full and there were 6 wrecked vehicles around it, there were also allot of happy people, happy about how the effort was going!!  .The BLM supplied pizza and drinks  and the Dirty SOB Quad Club was there cooking hamburgers and hotdogs for lunch. 

After lunch it was almost time to head back to Mesa but, since it was Virgil’s first time off-roading, we decided to run him down to Lower Raw Deal and hit the first part of the trail.  The trail looks like it will be real interesting to run full length but we just did not have time.  We went in as far as the crack and then turned back, besides, we couldn’t scare Virgil too bad on the first run!

After our little jaunt in the rocks, we headed back toward base to air up and head home.  Part way back we came upon a little (about 6″ diameter) wildlife trying to make it across the road.  Not wanting him to get run over, I got out and coaxed him with a stick.  he was not very happy with me but at least he lived to get squashed on the road another day!  From there we hit the base camp and aired the tires back up and took one lat look at part of the trash that had been collected.

All total there was 114 people that showed up to help clean the desert and these people FILLED 3-40yard roll-off containers full of trash and hauled off 6 wrecked vehicles.  Even the truck driver that came to take the roll-offs out commented on the amount of work that was accomplished.  Of the 114 that showed up it was estimated that about 85% to 90% of them were from organized OHV clubs.

I also want to give credit and thanks to the support agencies and 4×4 shops that helped and supplied materials, food and drinks for this event.

BLM
Game and Fish
Sheriffs department
4 Wheelers Supply (they were also a sponsor for our Jamboree)
Absolute Offroad
AZOHVC.

Thanks all for the help and support of our desert areas.

God Bless
Kreation Krawlers

FOR MORE PICTURES, ACCESS
The Kreation Krawlers Photobucket