Rubicon trail report

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locrwln1

locrwln1

Joined
Sep 20, 2004
Threads
126
Messages
2,989
Location
Reno, NV
Ok boys, I talked to Ali yesterday and he said that it was a good trip.

Now where is your trail report and pics?

I heard the woodgrain was in danger and I told you that your rig would make it through Keith, glad to hear it went well.

Let's hear all about it.:bounce:

Jack
 
Not The Woody!!!!!!!!!!

NOT THE WOODY!!!!!!!!!!

That was a running line on this trip, every time the wood grain was in danger.
Keith did great, in tha garage building his rig, and on the trail. And Julie looked like she was having the time of her life.
I was to beat to upload pictures yesterday. I'll try to throw a few up tonight. Alvaro is working on an album of the trip, I'll share the link when it is done.

Weather:
We had a lot of rain and a little snow, in a way I think it made trail conditions better. This late in the season I think the rocks would have been coated in the talc dust and slicker than they were wet. It started raining Saturday morning before we broke camp and kept it up off and on the rest of the trip.
Saturday we camped in the private section of Rubicon Springs. The Caretaker was great, he told us we shouldn't be there then told us to go ahead and stay since we all had our camps set up. The trees gave a lot of shelter in that camp. I hit some snow going over Mt Rose summit but it didn't wipe the grin off my face. I am going to install seat heaters in the forty when I re-upholster them this winter. Temps were in the 60's during the day and the high 30's low 40's at night. It dipped almost to freezing going over Mt. Rose.

Carnage:
There were a few scrapes to the painted ladies put nothing to bad. No breakage that I know of to any of them. I managed to break my anti-wrap bar somewhere between the last obstacle on Cadillac and the observation point. To much skinny pedal and a little wheel hop on a tiny little rock ledge :doh: That will get some serious upgrading.

Trail conditions:
The switch back in Big Sluice is totally changed. We all walked right through it. And the pucker spot after that has been improved so it's not bad anymore. All in all Cadillac is now tougher than Big Sluice IMHO.

:hillbilly: :
Between the cold and our Friday start day the yahoo factor was way down on this trip. There was a big group at the good camping spot by Buck Island, but we were at the first spot after the slabs and you could barely hear them.

General:
Dining was everything I had heard it would be and the company was stellar. I'd go with those guys again anytime anywhere. And not just for the food. Everybody had a great attitude which always makes things more fun. Plus the sense of humor kept me grinning the whole trip.The experience level among the group kept things moving along at a faster pace than I would have expected. Lots of great spotting and coaching for the newbies and very skilled driving by the veterans. And they didn't make me stay in the back of the line the whole trip, just the last day. :grinpimp:

It was a great way to end the season.
 
An excellent trip indeedy.

Keith did a fabulous job and Woody Griswold Blotch (and his welding) held up great.

I think it's safe to say that an 80 with Slee 4" and 35" can conquer this trail w/o any damage. Of course, careful spotting is always the key.

Doug is a pro with his 2" lift and 33" tires and he proved it once again.

Dan and his crawler box makes me sick :flipoff2:

Jasper and Larry in the pristine 80 left with barely a scratch or two. I think Larry went straight to the Starbucks after Rubicon. :D

Rick in his 6" sprung 80 made short work of everything. He was amazed how well this suspension performed vs last year's run. I got to drive this rig and I was very impressed with the performance.

Brett is just an animal :eek:

Julie is great :eek::eek::D and makes a mean grub. She's much fun to hang out with and has a great sense of humor - absolute requirement amidst bunch of stinky men!

Tony did great with his SAS 4Runner. The narrowness of his rig took some pressure off I'm sure. Congrats on his second baby coming soon to a hospital near Roseville.

Alvaro, Nial and myself were the passengers.

Thanks for a great time and allowing me to ride along.

I'll post up pics on this post and videos as I sort them out.

Keith Video

Doug's video

Dan's video

Rick Stinky water video

Ali driving Rick's 80

Rick Big Sluice

Inverness pics

Ali's pics

Larry's pics
 
Last edited:
Nice video Alia, I hope somebody got some video of Keith sliding through the old line on the pucker spot in Big Sluice.:eek: The new line is much easier.


I forgot about Doug's bent Tie rod in my Carnage section. Rick beat it straight on a stump in a few minutes, that was an incredible trail fix.
 
Nice vid Ali...can't wait to see all the pics and write up!
 
Very cool guys!

I missed out :crybaby:




ken
 
Hey Keith,

I think I heard the driver's seat cushion tear on the video.:D:D

Cool video, looking forward to more...

Jack
 
IT WAS BITCHIN!
It definately lived up to its reputation!
When I pulled up to the staging area my hands were already shaking...
I was so nervous in fact, that I forgot to LOCK MY HUBS!:o I was sooooo embarassed!
Ill second the Caddilac hill that it was FU*KING SPOOKY, and Big sluce wasnt all that bad.
I had a lot of pucker moments (more than I ever had before), but Cadillac was the WORST of it, and the rain didnt make me any more confident!
Its was a GREAT time and a great experience!
The whole trip I was a nervous wreck while driving...I kept thinking to myself...Im holding everyone up...God, Im the ONLY ONE that needs a spot...SOME THING IS BROKE, I JUST KNOW IT IS! Did that weld just break?
Low and behold...my craftsmanship held up GREAT, and I was fretting for nothing! I guess that Im just a WEEE BIT insecure about my abilities both driving and fabbing/ wrenching!
The group was EXCELLENT!
Very welcoming, and understanding of the NEWBS! Alvaro, Ali, and Brett saved me from having a stroke behind the wheel on numerous occasions by spotting me, and Rusty gave me some moral support along the way!
My wife Julie is a ROCK! I thought that she'd be a MESS on this run, but she was cool as a cucumber, and even calmed me down! She even got out to spot a few times! Im VERY PROUD of her!
Though the woodgrain is safe and sound, my DS door didnt fair so well as it was smashed in by a tree when I slid off a boulder on a bad line! Im HOPING that I can just pop it out and all will be right with the world! Ill also need ANOTHER new DS mirror!:mad:
My next investment is going to be an ARB for the front, courtesy of this run! Then, a manual tranny conversion and crawl box! I was never aple to FULLY appreciat the deep gears till this trip! Theyre AMAZING!
Rusty kicked ass and for the most part could have read a magazine while doing this trail! He ran it with fine style!
The 80's AMAZE me everytime I wheel with them...they make it look as easy as Brett and Dan's rigs do!
Off camber has a WHOLE NEW MEANING for me! I had NEVER pushed my rig like I did on this run, and it didnt let me down!
The biggest problem with the rig is the DRIVER, otherwise it would have done A LOT BETTER!:o
Oh well, experience is the KEY IMO and theres only ONE WAY to get that!

Im gonna try and post the pics that Julie got to photo bucket and post the link!
Since we were the 2nd in the lineup, most of the pics are of Brett, Dan and me!

Thanks to Brett and Alvaro for organzing this run, and all the participants!
We had a BLAST!

Here is a pic of the rigs at the observation point!

K
rubicon07 091.webp
 
locrwln1 said:
Hey Keith,

I think I heard the driver's seat cushion tear on the video.:D:D

Cool video, looking forward to more...

Jack
Click to expand...

That was NOTHING compared to what happened in another 100 yards from there!:grinpimp:

K
 
rusty_tlc said:
Nice video Alia, I hope somebody got some video of Keith sliding through the old line on the pucker spot in Big Sluice.:eek: The new line is much easier.


I forgot about Doug's bent Tie rod in my Carnage section. Rick beat it straight on a stump in a few minutes, that was an incredible trail fix.
Click to expand...

How did I miss that!?
Where did that happen?

K
 
chicago said:
How did I miss that!?
Where did that happen?

K
Click to expand...

I missed it too, the only reason I know about it is Rick beat it straight on the stump behind my tent at Loon. It was bent to about a 120* angle, he must have landed hard on a rock.
Speaking of tents, mine is soaked and still in the bag. I had better get it set up and dried out soon.:doh: It and everything else I took on the trip, good thing I had my cheap Walnmart rain gear.
 
chicago said:
IT WAS BITCHIN!
It definately lived up to its reputation!
When I pulled up to the staging area my hands were already shaking...
I was so nervous in fact, that I forgot to LOCK MY HUBS!:o I was sooooo embarassed!
Ill second the Caddilac hill that it was FU*KING SPOOKY, and Big sluce wasnt all that bad.
I had a lot of pucker moments (more than I ever had before), but Cadillac was the WORST of it, and the rain didnt make me any more confident!
Its was a GREAT time and a great experience!
The whole trip I was a nervous wreck while driving...I kept thinking to myself...Im holding everyone up...God, Im the ONLY ONE that needs a spot...SOME THING IS BROKE, I JUST KNOW IT IS! Did that weld just break?
Low and behold...my craftsmanship held up GREAT, and I was fretting for nothing! I guess that Im just a WEEE BIT insecure about my abilities both driving and fabbing/ wrenching!
The group was EXCELLENT!
Very welcoming, and understanding of the NEWBS! Alvaro, Ali, and Brett saved me from having a stroke behind the wheel on numerous occasions by spotting me, and Rusty gave me some moral support along the way!
My wife Julie is a ROCK! I thought that she'd be a MESS on this run, but she was cool as a cucumber, and even calmed me down! She even got out to spot a few times! Im VERY PROUD of her!
Though the woodgrain is safe and sound, my DS door didnt fair so well as it was smashed in by a tree when I slid off a boulder on a bad line! Im HOPING that I can just pop it out and all will be right with the world! Ill also need ANOTHER new DS mirror!:mad:
My next investment is going to be an ARB for the front, courtesy of this run! Then, a manual tranny conversion and crawl box! I was never aple to FULLY appreciat the deep gears till this trip! Theyre AMAZING!
Rusty kicked ass and for the most part could have read a magazine while doing this trail! He ran it with fine style!
The 80's AMAZE me everytime I wheel with them...they make it look as easy as Brett and Dan's rigs do!
Off camber has a WHOLE NEW MEANING for me! I had NEVER pushed my rig like I did on this run, and it didnt let me down!
The biggest problem with the rig is the DRIVER, otherwise it would have done A LOT BETTER!:o
Oh well, experience is the KEY IMO and theres only ONE WAY to get that!

Im gonna try and post the pics that Julie got to photo bucket and post the link!
Since we were the 2nd in the lineup, most of the pics are of Brett, Dan and me!

Thanks to Brett and Alvaro for organzing this run, and all the participants!
We had a BLAST!

Here is a pic of the rigs at the observation point!

K
Click to expand...
You were not holding anyone up, I almost never saw another rig behind me. The 80's were taking their time. Bret, you and I have a lot less to fear in the body damage department. We can take more chances.:grinpimp:

"Rusty kicked ass and for the most part could have read a magazine while doing this trail! He ran it with fine style!" Thanks for the vote of confidence, I'm sure glad it looked that easy. I was shaking the whole time. :lol:
 
Doug's tie rod bent up, which in turn shoved the front dust pan thing upward, which in turn slit the lower radiator hose.

Added more videos on my first post.
 
YESSS!
However, theyre in REVERSE ORDER

K
 
spressomon said:
Good pics! I don't know what you were sweat'n about Keith?! The terrain doesn't look that tough...I'll bet Shotts could have easily done it in his hundy :D.
Click to expand...

I think he should come along on the 40 run through the Rubicon and show us how to do it. After all there are a lot of obstacles you can't go over in a 40 unless it has coil over 4 link suspension. :rolleyes:
 
spressomon said:
Good pics! I don't know what you were sweat'n about Keith?! The terrain doesn't look that tough...I'll bet Shotts could have easily done it in his hundy :D.
Click to expand...

Now Dan, you know that John's hundy can tackle any of the trails in AZ, which would embarass a 40, 80 or a Jeep (the L shocks do it), but is too big to tackle the Rubicon. He has been called out numerous times to put up or shut up and he backs out everytime.:D

Jack
 
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