Rubithon 10' , who's in ? (1 Viewer)

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Quick trip report

I broke 8 times (or had 8 repairs?).

Monday it took 10 hours to make it in from staging to the springs. We shovelled for hours and hours. 6 ft high drifts. Deep water crossings.

I broke a power steering mount, Gary welded it. Broke the bolt, BK had one. Backed into a tree after slipping into a tree well, broke my roof top tent.

Tuesday as we were leaving the springs I pulled my tie rod end out. BK welded it. We had to winch several times going up big sluice. Massive bolder / rock movements from the winter. As I was climbing the top corner, we discovered that my carb breather tube was actually preventing it from breathing. Jeff had some tubing, so we fixed that.

Wednesday Jim and I had lunch at little sluice while Gary and Jeff went out to get the run people. BK and Gary decided that this might be the last year that Little Sluice is still tough, so they decided to run it. Mudrak made it all the way, with the only damage being his driver slider (you'd bend too with 6000+ resting on you).

Gary made it the whole way. BK flopped on the way in, rear tire blew a bead.

Lots of snow still on million dollar hill.

As we were going though the water near the top of old sluice, lost my front diff plug. Fixed that, drove about 10 feet, broke my rear pinion climbing a step.

BK called home to get a hold of the Knorr brothers, who had a diff with them. They hauled it in the next day.

Thursday, BK and I replaced the diff. While he was trying to tighten / stake the pinion nut, he asked someone to press the brakes. No rear brakes! BK had a new master cylinder, so I replaced that.

As BK was installing the rear driveshaft, he noticed that the xfer case moved. Found 3 transmission to bell housing bolts loose. 1 missing. BK had a bolt. BK also found 2 engine to motor mount bolts loose.

Started going again. BK blew another bead on the slabs. Ran the rest of the way into the springs.

On sunday I discover that my distributor cap wasn't clipped on. Fixed that. Ran great.

Needed tugs/winching up Caddy, since I was open in the rear. Crag Park helped there. After we left observation, I sheared the studs on the driver rear, and screwed up the rim lug holes. Jim had a set of new studs, still in the Toyota package. BK had som lug nuts. As we repaired the axle, found out that the c-clip fell out, because we didn't install the center block.

Fixed all of that, got to staging, tightened the lugs again. Drove to Tahoe City, wheel was loose again. Decided at that point it was time to exercise my AAA Platinum tow service (200 miles).

Got home about 9 PM.

PS -- I figure I'm a lock for the Bonehead this month. We don't even really need to debate it.
 
I dunno Ross, I had roger puttin the trunion on the wrong side of the knuckle, leaked chicken juice all over ARB fridge, didn't call home with Sat phone as required, ran one tank so low on gas it picked up some chit and almost quite runnin before we reached Loon, and the topper, I left a whole day before I officialy had too. What a vacation, best in years, next year the 7mm chain saw is comin with.
 
The only thing I can even think Ross would be up to bone-head would be something about not tightning, something during a swap somewhere. Otherwise Trail Breakage , unless doing something extremely stupid, is not worthy of Bone-head.

But now Jon, not calling home when he had the means to,
MAJOR EPIC BONE-HEAD
 
I guess we'd have to hear from others in the group if there were bonehead choices made...I'm sure Ross feels like he qualifies. My bonehead was not taking a flashlight to the bar.
 
Behind the rocks Rubithon stlye?...kind of a back porch (with a view) to PMC flat. We really enjoyed the camp. Missed the water, Didn't miss the long walk from Dirty Dozen to main camp. But...you still need a flashlight after the Marauder Bar:D...got a couple bruises to prove it.
 
definitely only forget your flashlight once when traveling back from M-bar. You'll always remember it now!

Bonehead award? hmmm... let me see if I remember any bonehead moves ??

Oh ya, I recall one really good bonehead maneuver.

Not too long ago on a trail not too far away, there was mini truck driver who had a winch...

I'll let someone else who has posted here finish the story. :) It's OK, he knows who he is. and I'm sure he'll spill the bonehead beans.
 
That leaves tony out, he has no winch.
 
definitely only forget your flashlight once when traveling back from M-bar. You'll always remember it now!

Bonehead award? hmmm... let me see if I remember any bonehead moves ??

Oh ya, I recall one really good bonehead maneuver.

Not too long ago on a trail not too far away, there was mini truck driver who had a winch...

I'll let someone else who has posted here finish the story. :) It's OK, he knows who he is. and I'm sure he'll spill the bonehead beans.

I resemble that comment....

Well once upon a time I went wheeling with Tony and the Mog Crew for a short jaunt into the Rubicon Springs. Our Trail leader for the day, Phil, held the all important drivers meeting. He asked if there was anyone with out a CB... Tony raised his hand. He asked if their is anyone with out a winch...Tony raised his hand. Phil decides that we will run in pairs so that know one is left behind and if you run into trouble call on the CB. Tony and I get paired together. Phil tells us to get our straps and winching equipment out. I get my strap and tree saver out but figure my controller is in the glove box readily available. Tony doesn't have any winching stuff, but pulled out and readied his tattered and well used strap. Tony and I were at the back of the group which was fine as JeeperRon was due to come in behind us and we figured he would catch up. So after a few more minutes of hearing the story about the Rubithon Double Locker Donner Party Run taking over 10 1/2 hours to get to the springs and our goal is to make it before the sun goes down we head off. (Mudrak and Crew thanks for shoveling some of the snow out of the way. We could still see your shovel marks). Tony and I are at the back of the group, I in front of Tony in case I need to winch through and pull Tony with me. Just as we take off Tony tells me to show him good lines. Well I had a Fj40 with a V8 in front of me taking different lines than Tony and I could. Well he comes up to a hole in the snow with a drop off to the driver side and tight on the passenger side to get by. The 40 got his front end by the hole but his rear drops in. He hits the skinny pedal and motors out. I come up on the whole drop right in in it and hit the skinny pedal and with all 4 cylinders and tires doing their best I stay in the hole. I give it several more tries to climb up and out (at least a 4 foot snow bank) and getting no traction can't get out. Tony spots me several different ways, He shovels some snow (that's what good friends do), we throw some rocks and logs under the tires, but to no avail. Tony says let the guys ahead of us know your are stuck. I get on the CB but hear nothing back. Try again and nothing. They are out of range. Tony laughs, that is why I have no CB they never work when you need them.
Tony says, "break out the winch". I open my glove box and everything falls out....but the winch controller. I proceed to tear a part the inside of my truck looking for it. Nothing. Tony laughs, he has no winch as you only need them to pull your friends out. I blame my kid for taking the controller out of the car when he was playing in the truck (isn't it is always someone else's fault when you forget something). After some thinking Tony connects my strap to his strap then to a tree saver and positions his rig behind me the best he can. We connect the strap off of mine, around a tree in front of me and run the strap back to Tony behind me. Keep in mind Tony's rig is on Snow. Tony gives it a tug and I floor it and am still stuck. Tony can't get any traction.

So, we manually unspool my winch and run it to a snatchblock, that is connected to the tree saver that is wrapped around the tree and then the 2 straps back to Tony's truck. This allowed Tony to be able get his truck on solid a surface and get some traction. A couple of Tugs and I pop out of the hole. The whole time I keep thinking Jeeper will be pulling up and he will winch me out. Funny, no one from in front of us ever wanders back to see where we are. Tony says no problem we'll catch them. After about an hour of screwing around to get me out. I spot Tony around the hole (he questions my spotting after having watched me go in the hole) and we boogie down the trail. Sure enough we catch up to the rest of the group in the about 15 minutes. Stopped in the Trail. One of the trailers had the tongue of the trailer break in half with the mog crew preparing to weld it back together. I run up my one piece of scrap metal I carry in my tool bag and we wait for the repair to be done. While we eat lunch we hear Jeeper motoring up the trail and he catches up to us. So while Tony recounts our journey to Ron (Ron starts figuring out how to make his Ramsey Controller work in my Warn) I go back and start tearing a part the cab of my truck looking for the winch controller, as I can't believe I left it at home. I then remember I did not look behind the drivers seat for the controller and sure enough there it is. (I think I had hid it their so my son wouldn't play with it and I wouldn't forget it.) As I I hold it up to show Tony he starts laughing and yelling bone head. Not just because I found my controller but because I fell on my Arse in the snow when I was holding it up. (that's what I get for blaming my son for something I had done) After the trailer was fixed we all start moving again and I get stuck coming out of the next hole. We connect the winch to the tree saver and to a tree and I am unstuck in a matter of minutes and on top of the snow drift. Tony gets stuck after me and we connect a strap to Tony's truck and to the back of my truck and pull with the winch and all my 22R power and pull Tony through. Jeeper spanks it.

From here on out we motor pretty well until I stop again as my steering is not working well. Jeeper and Tony quickly identify a loose tire rod end which they tighten, but laugh at the wood sticking out of the side of my tire. Since the tire is still holding air, we decide to leave it and continue on into the springs. The Tire held air on the trip out as well.
 
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What a AWESOME trip!
One of the best Rubithons ever!

Thanks to everyone from PMC for the stories and laughs at the campfire

Tony and everyone one for the hard work and Dave for a great raffle.

Thanks to Don G for the tug when I tried to bury the truck in a snow bank and Courtney for letting Katie ride along

Don't think he had any problems at all.

I was very lucky only finished off taking off a side marker that was hanging and put a hole in a fender flare that already had a crack in it.

But most of all a huge THANKS to Don and Courtney for the GREAT company we had a BLAST

Don`t want no s.... d... man

Can`t wait till next year!!!

And my dumb moment: thinking I needed my winch control that was buried in a tool box in the back covered up with all my stuff. It now has a place in the cab.
 
I would offer the bonehead component of that story was when I publicly noting finding it. I think I would have just left it stashed behind the seat. The immediate slip and fall on arse was simply dessert on the untire scene.

Now as Dave notes, he did later have to winch himself with me attached like a sturgeon, to get me out of a hole. Thus I have no desire to nominate Dave... thanks Dave for tugging me!

also, on the way out, that same big hole now on the passenger side, when Dave went in, both Keith and I see his rear tires catch some air as the front falls in, then he febbly gives a try on the other side, backs up... and Hammers it big time! Catches more air in the back, lurches hard to drivers as you make that slight bend at the top, and spanks the exit of that nasty hole. I was not so lucky and needed another strap. I think when he hit it so hard and lurched to drivers, it kept the undercarriage from loading up with snow and stopping him. that is what was stopping me, the ruts were too deep, and too much snow in the center. His first tug did not work, I had to back off the snow bank and then have him pull me thru it.

So Kudos to Dave! Excellent driving and got me in and out safely. I think he's ready for the Hammers now!
 

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