WeBeJeepin’ Moab

Four rigs: 3 Samurai’s and 1 Jeep, turned up at the Slickrock Cinema for the Pritchett Canyon work day. We made our way to the trail head, aired down, and worked our way quickly to Chewy. This obstacle never ceases to amaze me. I’ve been driving Pritchett for less than a year and this hill has gone from bad to worse. Everyone had a little trouble getting to the top but eventually we were all up and began working. We repaired the fence-AGAIN!

 

Once this was finished, we began working our way to a couple of spur roads between the Rocker Knocker obstacle and Axle hill. Our next job was to shut down these dead end spurs to all traffic except hikers.

In the meantime, a little fun was had. This area is an optional route that leads through a rocky wash.

 

 

Then it was on to the waterfall…….

 

 

And quickly up to Rocker Knocker. This obstacle was kind today and everyone made it on their first try, no spotters needed. I love this obstacle and it’s such a good feeling to get it on your first attempt, so tippy yet really fun….

 

 

Now, we began by replacing the existing Carsonite sign from saying ”Dead End” to the new sticker ”Route Closed”. If you’ve been on this trail before, you might recognize Pritchett Arch in the background. Work began, signs were placed, rocks were put over the trail to signify that this route is closed.

 

 

The weather turned absolutely delightful. Coats and gloves were quickly shed and we sat in the sun and enjoyed our lunch. If you’re into timing our passage on Pritchett, we started the trail at 9:00am at the Cinema and got here (including work time) by about 11:30am.

 

After a leisurely lunch with some ravens for company, off we went up to the end of Pritchett. We investigated a large rock that had falled on the unnamed obstacle bypass. The Carsonite currently says “easy” to the left and harder to the right. With the rock in the way, both ways are pretty hard. Jeff took the left hand route and made it after a couple of tries to get over and around the rock.

Up Axle hill, no problem………

Jim made quick work of the next obstacle, “Son of rockpile” while Gary Lee decided to put his tires on the regular Rockpile. Jeff went up to help him get the right line. I could barely stand to take the picture. Would this be Gary’s first roll-over??

Nope. He made it! Great job Gary. What next? Maybe White knuckle? Jeff and I also made the Rockpile and it was up to Yellow Hill.

Here’s the entire motley crew at the top of Yellow Hill, the end of Pritchett trail…….

We made it here just before 1:00pm. We took our time from here on, stopping to fix a few posts around Pritchett arch and then took the option through Hunter Canyon and up to White Knuckle Hill, a prominent Behind the Rocks trail obstacle.

Jim lead the way up this portion of the trail……

After a couple of tries, he was up White Knuckle. Everyone else made it today unassisted and we made our bumpy way back to Hwy 191. Great trail and the most beautiful day of the year……to this point……

Also, for those of you keeping track of Jim’s trails….remember he needs to beat 85 which was his record for 2008…..this is trail number 11 for him on the last day of January. Crazy, huh? Must be nice to be retired…..I only have 10 trails so far.

See ya on the trail!

Trail Reports

A nice sized group from the We be Jeepin’ met at the Cinema to do a Fins N Things run including the Steven’s new pup Mesa.

At the airing down spot Jim suggested that we do the best of Fins (avoiding the bumpiest sections) and then head over to play on Hell’s Revenge. Everyone agreed and we were off….

Up and over some of the Sandstone Fins that gives this trail its name.

Here’s a shot of the dinosaur in the rock.

Before lunchtime, we were off the Fins trail and over at the Hell’s trailhead. Jeff and Susan’s little pup Mesa had a little carsickness (Jeepsick) issue and threw up all over Susan. So, she decided to skip Hell’s Revenge. Larry went home with a back ache so it was down to 5 rigs.

We proceeded directly to the Hell’s Gate obstacle and dropped in from the backside to have lunch in a less windy spot. This would be Melanie’s first trip up and needless to say, she was a little nervous. After lunch, Jim led the way up and I followed. Melanie was third and had carefully watched the correct line. If you’ve never seen or done this obstacle before, check out some of the videos on YouTube. If you miss the right line, you can get a BIG wheel lift or even roll over on this very steep and long challenge.

Melanie drove it like a champ. I promised not to tell everyone that she was shaking and cussing all the way up so I won’t!!

Next, the group made their way over to Mickey’s hot tub. Gary had never tried this one and I think he was a little nervous too. Jeff went first and made it fine. Gary got down in the tub and realized that he had lost the shackle on his axle that allows him to use the winch to draw it up. So, he had to come up anyway so just went for it. He made it!!

Now it’s over to the Escalator obstacle. Three rigs went through and everyone had a moment or two that felt……well, tippy!

Jim and Jeff made it up. Then it was Gary’s turn. This obstacle defeated him just a couple weeks ago and now he was determined.

As you can tell from this last photo……he MADE IT! Not a bit excited about it either. Nice job Gary!

Here’s the group coming through the Squeeze and ending the trail. The sun came out in the afternoon and it turned out to be a beautiful day. Everyone had lots of stories to share about the fun day.

A few of us had to go back to Salt Lake and while we were playing in the 50 degree Moab sun, it was snowing like crazy in the Valley. Can’t wait to get back to Moab!

Trail Reports

Does the title say it all?? U betcha! Do you even know what all those letters mean?? Me neither! But, ask any texting teen and I’m sure they can tell you.

A group of four rigs assembled to make the sacred, yet dangerous journey into the heart of BFE……of which we ALL know the “B” stands for BEWARE! Like the summiting of Everest, where percentage of death (or breakage in this case) are widely known to be 25%, 4 rigs means SOMEONE is 100% likely to break. WHOOOOOO could it be????

But, I digress…….

The day started with lovely sunshine and a little bit of snow in just the right spots.

No trip to BFE is complete without completing the GATEKEEPER! This used to be a *&$#@*$ obstacle but now mother nature has filled it in, it’s relatively tame. All went through and barely warmed up the old tires. Jim’s was the most dramatic, he aims for the tire lift. NICE!

After the Gatekeeper, we turned away from Helldorado and went up Minor Threat. I really like this trail as it has options and bypasses to allow everyone to have a good time. Of course, everyone was built today and went for the hard line.

After Minor Threat, it was over to Green Day! Jeff has never climbed this optional obstacle so we all gave it a go! No one got it today either.

Then, back to the main trail. Again, Green Day has an intermediate route which we would have used for Tip-toe attendees but no one was interested so we went on the main trail. Here’s Gary showing his flex.

Now, comes the sad part of the story. Here’s old Redroxx on the Green Day waterfall. You see that rock on the left? You have to put your tire up on it and it’s an axle eater. The last time I tried this (last June), I broke that axle but now I have brand new chome-moly’s and this is my first trail with them. So, guess what? I broke that dumb axle again. It actually exploded out and a u-joint cap hit Gary in the chest from where he is taking this photo. Is it time for a Dana 60? Maybe time for a Samurai?………

In case you are wondering what’s the big deal with that obstacle, let me show you….

Here’s Gary giving it a go. He looks stuck but was actually able to drive up with a little strap help to pull his passenger side down.

Here’s Jim. The photo does not do justice for just how much wheel lift he has. This was an incredible show and he drove right through it as the next photo shows. Jim is an awesome driver. Great job.

After this it was a stop for lunch and then we made our way back. Jeff needed to get home and old Redroxx needed the axle pulled…………AGAIN!

Super fun trail and a great day!

Trail Reports

A very small group (2 rigs) made a quick run up to Moab Rim on Sunday. Jim’s gotta beat his 2008, 85 trail season and I think he’s trying to do it by EJS!

Being a rider today, I decided to make the hike up to the Devil’s Crack to catch the rigs coming over it. Whew! No wonder they call it the Moab Stairmaster, that trail is steep!

Here’s Jim coming over…….can you see the ice chunks in the Colorado river?

Next is Gary Lee in his new rig “Chaco”……

Jim and Gary Lee were going so fast up this trail that most of my pictures were blurry. The sand hill was wet and easy, Tire test hill was fun coming down.

I did include one more photo of the two guys up at the overlook. What could they possibly be seeing?

They never would tell but some possible answers I came up with include:

A. They saw the gas prices going down at the Maverick. Now it only costs $4.93 to fill up a Samurai! Hurrah!

B. Look! There’s a Jeep trying to go up Potato Salad hill! UH-OH! Roll-over…..

C. I think Larry’s over at Jeff’s house.

D. Does that say “Beer Sale” at City Market?

Anyway, whatever it was, we were back in Moab before you knew it. Good trail, fun day. I think that’s number “5″ for Jim this year and it’s only the 11th……

Trail Reports

Is spring actually coming or am I being too hopeful? The sun was out and temperatures were warmer (still only around 40 but much improved over the past few weeks.)

A fellow from Yuma, AZ named Brian came out to Moab and got in touch with us through Ber (and our forum). He requested to run Hell’s Revenge and we decided to give it a go.

There were 5 rigs and Melissa in Redroxx took the lead position. Off we went over the slickrock domes that make this such a special trail.

If you don’t notice the little patches of snow here and there, you might think it was summertime.

After a short break to stabilize Brian’s bent up tailpipe, we made it out to the overlook. Yes, Brian bent his tailpipe on an unnamed obstacle that we will now name Brian’s boo-boo. (Sorry Brian) Luckily Rick had just experienced this same TJ phenomenon on Metal Masher a couple months ago and was well stocked with wire.

We took in the view and then had a discussion about Hell’s Gate. Jim said we should just go down there and see what the obstacle looks like, no need to scout from above.

So, we did…..

Although this is a picture after I got to the top, you can tell that there was some snow to contend with. Everyone except Brian gave this a go. (I think Rick told too many scary stories about roll-overs at the overlook) Brian rode along on this obstacle with Jim.

Here’s Gary (a bit off the line) but he still gave it a good run and his rig flexed right through with barely a wheel lift. Everyone made it safely and we were off over the slickrock again.

The trail was a bit tough to find at times (those black tire marks were faint in areas and the yellow flame paint was too). But eventually, we made it to the CarWash (or bellybutton). This is the smallest and easiest of the hot-tubs. Everyone went through, no problem.

We bypassed the big hot tub and Mickey’s as well. Mickey’s was full of ice so no one tried it today. Instead we decided to go down the Dragon’s tail to have lunch.

At lunch we talked about the Escalator and agreed to give it a shot. I was surprised that everyone in the group wanted to give it a go.

Jim lead the way and went up with only a slight wheel lift.

Rick was right in line and went directly up until he found….the hole filled with water. He got stuck, no forward and no back so he needed a line. Other than a little paint lost, and some damage to that fancy top (who needs it anyway!), he was up with a small pull from Jim.

Gary Lee went next and he just didn’t want to take “no” for an answer. The Escalator was mean today and meant to keep everyone out. Gary sure gave it a try……..

First he flopped over one way……….

Then he went over the other way. He kept saying “one more try” but eventually Jim forced him to take a strap. Again, a short pull was all that was necessary and Gary was up.

Next was Brian. He had studied the line and made it up the first portion spotlessly. He started on the next line and looked great too. Suddenly, he found……..the other hole.

Brian had to take a strap too. Great first effort for a guy who’s never been to Moab before……

Lastly came big and wide Redroxx. I like to say she’s big-boned (she’s a little sensitive). But sometimes being wide is to an advantage and after one little flop and some expert spotting from Jim, we came through.

After a moment to compare battle wounds, we made our way over to Tip Over Challenge. This obstacle doesn’t get much sun in the winter and the snow and ice were present. There were some slipping moments but everyone got safely to the top.

Jim took the lead and we went the long way around to Rubble Trouble and then down through the squeeze. Brian is admiring all the colors of paint on the rocks while trying not to leave some of his own. (Is it Beryl Green?)

Great trail for a January run. Jim has determined to beat his trail run record from 2008 (85 runs). So, we’ll be busy trying to help him out. (what are friends for?) Give a shout to webejeepinmoab@yahoo.com if you’d like to run with us or watch the Upcoming Events on the homepage.

See you on the trail!

Redroxx

Trail Reports

Hurrah!

The day dawned sunny and not quite so cold. Could this be a sign of spring? Probably not, but we’ll take the warmer temps. A group of 7 rigs met out at the South Shell station to run Steelbender trail.

Jeff elected to lead the group and we made our way out to the “airing down” spot. (I hope this isn’t contributing to the inversion!)

The group worked its way down the switchbacks and across the creek crossings without incident.

Gary tried his Samurai, named “Chaco” on a small shelf.

Next came the obstacle called Diane’s bump. This turned out to be more than a bump and a few struggled to get up this wall.

Larry did the “Moab wave”

So did Gene.

After everyone went up or around, we continued to work our way over to the lunch spot and the “draggin’ tail” obstacle.

Although this obstacle looks intimidating, its not so bad. Everyone went down (funny how gravity works that way) without incident and we took off through the snow.

Up to the snow covered and muddy “dragon tongue”. Everyone who wanted to take this line made it although it was very slippery and some had to give it a second try.

After a brief stop to address a shredding fan belt, we worked our way out to the end of this trail. Everyone had a great time (as always) and we finished with plenty of daylight.

Nice trail in the snow. The ice and mud gives this trail an added edge and we had lots of excitement. Two thumbs up for the second trail of the year.

Trail Reports

Yes, once again, the day dawned bright yet cold. Today the trail left at 10:00am instead of 9:00. This gave those who stayed awake for the new year to get a little sleep before the trail and also allowed the temperatures to reach double digits.

Six rigs reported at the cinema, 3 jeeps and 3 samurai’s. Jim volunteered to lead and we headed up the Potash road to the Poison Spider trailhead.

We made our way up the switchbacks, leading towards the waterfall.

The slickrock appeared to be snow-free and dry, leaving us hopeful that the waterfall would also be clear.

Once we arrived at the waterfall, we found a large group from Colorado working their way up.

The trail gunner knew Jeff and told us that would could go around them as they had a rig running “open”. In that somewhat spooky way that our members work sometimes, every rig hit the waterfall and went right on up, no spotter needed. We quickly and efficiently made our way to the “wedgy”.

Rick was on his first trip on Poison Spider but you’d never know it. I don’t know that I would ever have made it without a spotter on my first time through the wedge. Rick looked like a pro…..wait, maybe he is a pro…

Jeff; however, looked like a show-off……

After the wedgy, we worked our way up to the lunch spot at Little Arch.

This arch can be seen from the Potash road and looks quite small. From the top though, it’s quite a beautiful and stately monument. Some chose to explore the arch while others stayed behind and visited with a group of 3 jeeps from Colorado. This group seemed quite surprised to run into a local group all the way from Moab.

After lunch, Jim took us directly over to a portion of Golden Spike trail. We found a couple spots with snow on them….

The Launch Pad was in the sunlight so it wasn’t a big obstacle BUT the snow covered hill opposite this challenge turned out to be a big deal.

Jim made it up on his second try and most had to give it at least 2 tries. I was happily taking photos and laughing at others……until it was my turn……

Here I am, giving it a shot. The photos never reflect how steep the hill actually is…..

I didn’t make it up and as I started to slide back down, my Jeep turned sideways and continued sliding. Needless to say, I was terrified and bracing for a roll-over at this point.

When the Jeep finally coasted to a stop, I was facing back the way I had just come. Apparently, I had given the group of spectators quite a show and amidst laughter and encouragement, I gave it one last shot. On this last attempt, I got stuck halfway up but was told to keep going and made my way to the top with much tire spinning. Well, that was a scare I haven’t had in a while…..

After this, we tied back into the Poison Spider trail and made our way uneventfully back down. Other than a couple of sliding spots coming down the Waterfall, we got down to the Potash road without incident. Another great trail day with no breakdowns.

Have I already asked when spring is coming again???

Trail Reports

The day dawned super cold and those who received seat heaters from Santa had them cranked up to maximum power. A large group of 8 rigs reported to the Cinema to run this potentially icy trail. Yours truly was asked to lead the trail and I nervously agreed. We made our way out to the trail head under a winter sky that was sunny but NOT warm.

We began the trail and all was well. We warmed our tires up on a few little obstacles before getting to the creek crossings….

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gary wanted to check the flex on his new Samurai…..seems to work well

Then we began the 50-60 creek crossings. I don’t know exactly how many there are on this trail but I can tell you that all of them were filled with ICE. My Jeep became an ice breaker. Luckily the creek’s not too deep this time of the year and everyone stayed dry.

After a cold and shady lunch stop, we worked our way up to what Jim refers to as Hamburger Hill. This is a ledgy part of the trail that often leads the line very close to the cliff edge. With snow and possibly ice, we were a bit worried. Luckily the sun was shining down on this part of the trail and although it was wet, most of the snow was melted.

After spending a bit of time getting everyone through this part of the trail, we made our way along the cliff to the waterfall area. We were surprised to find that this obstacle was quite easy. Apparently this trail has received some “repairs” in the not so distant past, leaving this former obstacle as barely a bump in the road.

Other than a broken air compressor and a temporarily malfunctioning front locker, there were no casualties on this trail. Everyone had a nice time and felt this was a nice end to 2008.

Trail Reports