Hello to all -
Last Saturday, we wheeled in the Puerco in the morning with Tom (TrickyT) from CA. Graham and family and Rudy joined us. Tom was riding with Rory in his 80. In the afternoon, Rory, Tom and I wheeled in the Manzanos (started off on Forest Road 462 and came out by Cedro Peak and Juan Tomas Road).
We met up with a group in an FJ-62. We told them that we were with the HDC group and that we were having a meeting that night (Jan. 12th), and we invited them to join us for the meeting or for a run sometime. The guy explained that he had met some people from HDC and that they were jerks (My word - his was much more colorful).
We chatted for a while, then went on ahead. Then today, I got this e-mail from Jennifer at TLCA - a complaint from the guy in the FJ-62.
****************************
hi, my name is Doug,
my membership number is 17059, i was really quiet upset with the situation that i encountered today. I was traveling down a forest road in tijeras, NM its a trail that we take quiet often, I encountered a few members of the high desert cruisers chapter on the trail, we spoke briefly about the chapter seeing as how i have not joined the chapter
myself yet, do to the rudeness of the chapters members on other occasions while driving. they were polite at first. I moved my vehicle aside to allow them to pass, further up he trail we got stuck and they were about 30 ft in front of us, I flashed my headlights and 2 of my friends and I in the vehicle jumped out to chase them down to get help!
we were running and screaming right behind there vehicles with there windows down they ignored the calls and continued to drive and act as if they didn't hear or see us. From what i go by and understand if there is a fellow 4 wheeler in need of assist you stop and help! Any attention in this matter would be appreciated! Thank you Doug Janiel
********************************
Here is my response to Jennifer:
Last Saturday, we wheeled in the Puerco in the morning with Tom (TrickyT) from CA. Graham and family and Rudy joined us. Tom was riding with Rory in his 80. In the afternoon, Rory, Tom and I wheeled in the Manzanos (started off on Forest Road 462 and came out by Cedro Peak and Juan Tomas Road).
We met up with a group in an FJ-62. We told them that we were with the HDC group and that we were having a meeting that night (Jan. 12th), and we invited them to join us for the meeting or for a run sometime. The guy explained that he had met some people from HDC and that they were jerks (My word - his was much more colorful).
We chatted for a while, then went on ahead. Then today, I got this e-mail from Jennifer at TLCA - a complaint from the guy in the FJ-62.
****************************
hi, my name is Doug,
my membership number is 17059, i was really quiet upset with the situation that i encountered today. I was traveling down a forest road in tijeras, NM its a trail that we take quiet often, I encountered a few members of the high desert cruisers chapter on the trail, we spoke briefly about the chapter seeing as how i have not joined the chapter
myself yet, do to the rudeness of the chapters members on other occasions while driving. they were polite at first. I moved my vehicle aside to allow them to pass, further up he trail we got stuck and they were about 30 ft in front of us, I flashed my headlights and 2 of my friends and I in the vehicle jumped out to chase them down to get help!
we were running and screaming right behind there vehicles with there windows down they ignored the calls and continued to drive and act as if they didn't hear or see us. From what i go by and understand if there is a fellow 4 wheeler in need of assist you stop and help! Any attention in this matter would be appreciated! Thank you Doug Janiel
********************************
Here is my response to Jennifer:
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Hello Jennifer - [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Well, this is quite an interesting story! I can say that because I was there, and you are right, there are two sides to every story. Here's my take on the afternoon. (I'll warn you now - this turned into a long story!)[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]We had two 80 series Cruisers in the woods near Tijeras, NM last Saturday. There was not a lot of snow, but the road was very slick and had also melted into some messy mud with very deep ruts on the road. Anyway, we were proceeding along without too much trouble when we came across this FJ-62 parked in the road. There really was no way around them, but they were nice enough to move over so we could go past.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]We (our club members) are always on the lookout for Toyota 4X4s of any type, but especially Land Cruisers being used off road. My two friends in the 80 series were in front and I was driving behind. They stopped to talk to the other driver (who I assume was Mr. Janiel) and I was talking to a young lady who I believe is his wife. We didn't get out of our trucks, but just chatted with them as they were standing by the side of the road. [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]I was not involved with the discussion at the front truck, but I chatted for 5 minutes or so with his wife. We talked about their Cruiser and she was also telling me about a modified 4Runner that she owned. I explained that our club was always on the lookout for new members, and that we were actually having a club meeting that evening (Saturday, January 12th). Everything was very cordial with her.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]After Mr. Janiel wrapped up his conversation with my friends, I stopped for a minute to chat with him as I was driving by. I told him that we were having a meeting that night and that they would be welcome to join us. He explained that he was a member of TLCA, but had not joined the High Desert Cruisers because he had met some of the members and they were jerks (he used much more colorful language, which I will not share with you). That really surprised me, because I couldn't imagine anyone in our club giving such a bad impression to another Cruiser owner. I told him I was sorry he had a bad experience with some of our people and asked him who he had talked to. He didn't remember, but repeated his bad impression of the people. I told him that we had a great group of people in our club and told him I couldn't imagine who he might have talked to, but that he was still welcome to join us sometime for a meeting or a run. At that point, we parted ways and the two 80s headed down the road.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]After we stopped later, the other two guys told basically the same story as my conversation with him. They invited him to join some club activities, and Mr. Janiel explained that the HDC people he had met were jerks. We all thought that was very strange.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]The bottom line from there is that we did not see or hear from their group again. I think they were sledding in the snow when we passed them and I assumed they would be coming out the way they came in - opposite from the direction we were headed.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]If we had known that they needed help, we certainly would have gone back to help them, but I never saw or heard anything. I was in the back of our group, but my windows were definitely up. It was cold! I don't know why he got the impression that the windows were down, and that we were ignoring him. It was very noisy sloshing through the mud and ruts, so that would probably explain why I didn't hear anything. [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]They would have been welcome to join our group to drive on through the trail, but they didn't ask. Personally, I didn't offer because I thought they were sledding and would have gone back out in the other direction. I do remember thinking that I wouldn't want to be out in those conditions all by myself (with just one truck), but I also didn't feel the need to lecture them on traveling alone.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]So I guess I should have paid more attention to what was going on behind me, but I just didn't expect them (or anyone else) to be following us. I will post this info on our HDC e-mail list to see if anyone in our club remembers meeting Mr. Janiel in the past. [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]I'm not sure where we go from here, but I would be happy to contact Mr. Janiel by e-mail or phone if you think that would be helpful. I have a feeling that nothing I could say would change his mind that this was somehow an intentional snub, but I'm certainly willing to give it a try.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]That response got long-winded, but I wanted you to understand this from my point of view. It was an interesting encounter. But we would be willing to help anyone out - in a Land Cruiser or otherwise. We've got capable trucks with tow straps, winches, etc. That's just part of the fun if you can extract someone from a problem. [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Thanks for listening![/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Evan[/FONT]
***********************************
Now, if you've read this far, here's my question for you High Desert Cruisers. Does anyone from our club ever remember meeting this guy? If I recall,the FJ-62 was blue and not in pristine condition. He's pretty young - maybe 30-ish. I can't imagine who he might have run into in our club that would leave him with such a bad impression. I have no idea where he might have met any of our club members.
I did tell Jennifer that I would e-mail him and explain the situation. There is no way we would leave someone stuck in the snow if we had been aware that there was an issue.
Evan
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Well, this is quite an interesting story! I can say that because I was there, and you are right, there are two sides to every story. Here's my take on the afternoon. (I'll warn you now - this turned into a long story!)[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]We had two 80 series Cruisers in the woods near Tijeras, NM last Saturday. There was not a lot of snow, but the road was very slick and had also melted into some messy mud with very deep ruts on the road. Anyway, we were proceeding along without too much trouble when we came across this FJ-62 parked in the road. There really was no way around them, but they were nice enough to move over so we could go past.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]We (our club members) are always on the lookout for Toyota 4X4s of any type, but especially Land Cruisers being used off road. My two friends in the 80 series were in front and I was driving behind. They stopped to talk to the other driver (who I assume was Mr. Janiel) and I was talking to a young lady who I believe is his wife. We didn't get out of our trucks, but just chatted with them as they were standing by the side of the road. [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]I was not involved with the discussion at the front truck, but I chatted for 5 minutes or so with his wife. We talked about their Cruiser and she was also telling me about a modified 4Runner that she owned. I explained that our club was always on the lookout for new members, and that we were actually having a club meeting that evening (Saturday, January 12th). Everything was very cordial with her.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]After Mr. Janiel wrapped up his conversation with my friends, I stopped for a minute to chat with him as I was driving by. I told him that we were having a meeting that night and that they would be welcome to join us. He explained that he was a member of TLCA, but had not joined the High Desert Cruisers because he had met some of the members and they were jerks (he used much more colorful language, which I will not share with you). That really surprised me, because I couldn't imagine anyone in our club giving such a bad impression to another Cruiser owner. I told him I was sorry he had a bad experience with some of our people and asked him who he had talked to. He didn't remember, but repeated his bad impression of the people. I told him that we had a great group of people in our club and told him I couldn't imagine who he might have talked to, but that he was still welcome to join us sometime for a meeting or a run. At that point, we parted ways and the two 80s headed down the road.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]After we stopped later, the other two guys told basically the same story as my conversation with him. They invited him to join some club activities, and Mr. Janiel explained that the HDC people he had met were jerks. We all thought that was very strange.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]The bottom line from there is that we did not see or hear from their group again. I think they were sledding in the snow when we passed them and I assumed they would be coming out the way they came in - opposite from the direction we were headed.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]If we had known that they needed help, we certainly would have gone back to help them, but I never saw or heard anything. I was in the back of our group, but my windows were definitely up. It was cold! I don't know why he got the impression that the windows were down, and that we were ignoring him. It was very noisy sloshing through the mud and ruts, so that would probably explain why I didn't hear anything. [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]They would have been welcome to join our group to drive on through the trail, but they didn't ask. Personally, I didn't offer because I thought they were sledding and would have gone back out in the other direction. I do remember thinking that I wouldn't want to be out in those conditions all by myself (with just one truck), but I also didn't feel the need to lecture them on traveling alone.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]So I guess I should have paid more attention to what was going on behind me, but I just didn't expect them (or anyone else) to be following us. I will post this info on our HDC e-mail list to see if anyone in our club remembers meeting Mr. Janiel in the past. [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]I'm not sure where we go from here, but I would be happy to contact Mr. Janiel by e-mail or phone if you think that would be helpful. I have a feeling that nothing I could say would change his mind that this was somehow an intentional snub, but I'm certainly willing to give it a try.[/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]That response got long-winded, but I wanted you to understand this from my point of view. It was an interesting encounter. But we would be willing to help anyone out - in a Land Cruiser or otherwise. We've got capable trucks with tow straps, winches, etc. That's just part of the fun if you can extract someone from a problem. [/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Thanks for listening![/FONT]
[FONT=Default Sans Serif,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Evan[/FONT]
***********************************
Now, if you've read this far, here's my question for you High Desert Cruisers. Does anyone from our club ever remember meeting this guy? If I recall,the FJ-62 was blue and not in pristine condition. He's pretty young - maybe 30-ish. I can't imagine who he might have run into in our club that would leave him with such a bad impression. I have no idea where he might have met any of our club members.
I did tell Jennifer that I would e-mail him and explain the situation. There is no way we would leave someone stuck in the snow if we had been aware that there was an issue.
Evan
(sorry, i've been dying to get to use that wall emoticon
