Pskhaat said:
EP? I'm blank?
T4WDO & AzLCA
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EP? I'm blank?
MaddBaggins
Remember the KnightRider!
ShottsUZJ100 said:
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ShottsUZJ100 said:
I agree and all I can say is, sorry John. I commented before seeing the article and quote in context.
:whoops:
Last edited:
John,
Thank you for clearing it up!
Like I said, I haven't yet read the article so have no opinion on it one way or the other.
Also... could you send me the original email to prove you're not a lying bastard
Thank you for clearing it up!
Like I said, I haven't yet read the article so have no opinion on it one way or the other.
Also... could you send me the original email to prove you're not a lying bastard
BMAN said:John,
Thank you for clearing it up!
Like I said, I haven't yet read the article so have no opinion on it one way or the other.
Also... could you send me the original email to prove you're not a lying bastard
Arizona has it all! Some might think that our country’s 48th state is a huge desert land with soaring temperatures. Well, they’re right, kind of. In the summer, temps often climb to over 110 degrees in the southwest deserts. In fact, the state record is an amazing 130 degrees at Fort Mohave. Glad I wasn’t there that day, though I was in Phoenix when they broke their record with a 122 reading. What a lot of people might not know however is that Arizona also sports very high altitude terrain as well, some even into the alpine tundra vegetation type. In fact, in eastern Arizona, the old ghost town of Maverick still holds the record low temp of -40 degrees! Precipitation in the forms of rain and snow obviously vary too throughout the state. Annual rainfall amounts below a single inch are common in the southwest part of the map whereas the mountain areas near Crown King and Globe can receive nearly 20-inches annually.
So what does all this mean to the 4-wheeling enthusiast? A lot! Arizona’s got rocks, rivers, plateaus, huge canyons (can I say the “Grand Canyon”?), sandy washes and hillsides, snow, ice, flash floods, and on and on. There’s coolness in the summer and heat in the winter. It all depends on your destination. In other words…Arizona has it all! Variety abounds throughout this very scenic state. Then consider the historic factor. Hoover Dam, two historic territorial state capital cities (can you name them?), mining, Route 66, the nations largest and smallest Indian Reservations, a civil war battle site, Wyatt Earp….I could go on for hours on history.
In 2001 my wife Rebecca and I decided it was time to search out places buried deep within our fine state. We knew we’d need a 4-wheel drive vehicle to do it. While I was far from the expert on what would make the best vehicle, we did agree that reliability was #1 on our list of qualifications. I had always heard that Toyota Land Cruisers excelled in this area. With a little research I confirmed this and to the dealer we went, where we ended up taking home a new 2001. We were excited! We were ready. Now, how do we find out where to go?
A couple months later we found that Arizona had its own Cruiser club, the Arizona Land Cruiser Association (AzLCA). Who better to link up with and learn the sport? So, we joined up and read about their next outing to the Reymert Mine in the Florence Junction area. The trail they said was rated a 3.5, which meant nothing to us at the time. They mentioned and recommended tires sizes, and lifts, and a locker for the trip though that information was foreign to us too. So, we just showed up. We pulled up to the meeting spot in our shiny new UZJ100 only to find that all the other Cruisers looked “different”. They were setting way up high, had huge tires, and had all kinds of accessories on them. We felt like midgets. At one point I was even wondering why they were letting air out of their tires? The next half hour was a revelation to us. The members welcomed us and immediately began to teach us what it takes to really build a truly capable trail vehicle. After all, that was our goal and these same folks that we met back then still today we consider to be some of our best friends. By the way, our stock UZJ handled that trail handily. We got some pinstriping and many times came REALLY close to our brand new body and rocker panels in the very narrow wash with really big boulders. Several times when we were slipping we heard crazy noises (the TRAC system) as the truck seemed to climb the rocks on its own. We didn’t know what all was going on, but we were hooked!
Since then, we’ve traveled trail after trail throughout the state with the AzLCA and experienced people and places we never could have had we not linked up. Some of our favorite places to four-wheel in Arizona are:
Sedona/Oak Creek Canyon and the famous Broken Arrow Trail
Florence Junction area including the Coke Ovens, Box Canyon, and Martinez Canyon
Bradshaw Mountains including the Crown King Backroad
Santa Catalina Mountains famous Charouleau Gap Trail
Reddington Pass’s own Chiva Falls
If you visit Arizona, look these up and I’m certain you’ll enjoy the ride.
Today, I’d like to share a recent AzLCA trip to Martinez Canyon where we ran the entire Canyon loop. Martinez Canyon is buried way back from civilization in the central part of the state near Florence. Many argue that Martinez is Arizona’s most beautiful canyon even topping the world famous red rocks of the Sedona-Oak Creek Canyon area. Getting to the canyon loop itself is a chore as it’s about two hours from pavement. The most popular way in is through Box Canyon which is a 4-wheelers delight in and of itself. The Box is a canyon several hundred feet high that narrows in many places to just wide enough for your vehicle to drive through. The canyon bottom also offers a moderate challenge in difficulty due to rocky ledges, boulders, and tight quarters. If summer monsoon rains hit you’ll want to exit this canyon immediately or risk a possible flash flood disaster. We were lead by Walter Philips in his well equipped and supercharged 1996 FZJ80. Walt had Tammi and James Fitzgerald on-board along with puppy dog Blueberry. Walt’s a great driver and always up for the challenge.
It’s obvious when one enters the actual canyon. The dry desert floor turns to green as you cross the wet trickle of the Papoose Spring. The trail’s difficulty takes a step up here so shifting into 4-low is the right choice. Continuing into the canyon you’ll see a cave where during the mining heyday in the late 1880’s the cave served as a cantina, or saloon. The “Silver Belle” Saloon also is said to have been the local bordello where loose women attached hooks to the tunnel walls to hang beds for their partners. Today, a quick walk in and a quick walk out of this dark and spooky cave was enough to get us back in our Cruisers. Shortly past the cave you arrive to the Red House and the White House which were parts of the then Villa Verde Camp. Now days, wheelers consider the Red House as “Martinez Cabin”. It’s here the beauty sets in. A more gorgeous lunch spot doesn’t exist. The towering metallic red colored mountainsides with jagged rocky sawtooth-type edges are nothing short of breathtaking. The Cabin area is the usual destination for the four-wheeler. It’s accessible, and in and out it makes for a full day that offers many trail-type challenges. Our group continued on to run the Loop. This is where the real challenge begins!
The Loop that lies ahead of us is extremely unique. It’s one of Arizona’s most popular destinations for the modified vehicle. Huge rocks, tall ledges, steep grades and narrow and very dangerous shelf roads, washouts, all make for a possible body damage adventure. One popular off-road publication rates the Martinez Loop as Arizona’s most challenging of popular trails (though tougher trails certainly exist in the state). Weather also plays a factor in popularity. The canyon seems to change in difficulty from storm to storm. This brings enthusiasts back week by week to see what changes occurred last. Sometimes due to the huge flash floods the canyon loop isn’t even passable.
Eight vehicles left the cabin to tackle the first section to the Martinez Mine. Joe Chott took over as leader as he’s traveled the loop before. His friend David Meer rode along and shot video while also taking some sweet pictures of our experience. Joe has a very capable and unique 1993. He’s downsized the vehicle by removing his side flairs, cutting the front and rear frames and having custom steel bumpers fitted. Joe’s design actually inspired me when we bought our 1993 and customized it. Having a smaller vehicle adds capability in tight places. With the size of these beasts every little bit can help on trails like this. Our club President, Steve Willoughby decided to be adventurous. He left his 60-series at the Red Cabin and rode the Loop by riding shotgun in his friend Stacy’s Jeep Wrangler. It’s always a plus to watch different vehicles tackle the obstacles differently and the Wranglers do just that...tackle it.
Before you arrive at the mine you have to climb the “Boulder Field”. On this day the obstacle was harder than anybody in our group’s ever seen it. It took both lockers and all our ground clearance along with excellent spotting by two of our club “experts” Brad Musil and Randy “Doc” Drwinga. These guys by the way are work in action. If somebody needs any kind of assistance these guys are “on it”! I struggled more than most did here as my ’93 power steering gave the ghost half way up as the fluid overheated. I learned immediately how easy we normally have it in these “mall cruisers”. Randy also struggled in his FJ40. He has a manual tranny in his 40 and on these larger sized rocks and very sharp turns it made it really tough for Doc! His 40 did make most of the other obstacles look like a walk in the park compared to the big and heavy wagons.
Since the boulder field took up so much time we passed on exploring the Martinez Mill at the Martinez Mine. The mill itself is very well preserved. The surrounding area does deserve a look around if you have the time. Ladders on hillsides, train tracks, road for the old ore wagons, mine shafts (careful here!), and the old Ingersoll-Rand steam engine in the mill all bring back the pre-1900 era.
The trail continues on and the challenges never seem to stop. Then you see it…Yellow Belly Ledge. Newcomers to the Loop said, “What’s that”? Old timers remember good and bad stories from before. Good stories often end in, “woo hoo, I made it”! Bad stories can end in either, “wow, what just broke” or “the side of my truck is toast”! Today, Yellow Belly had only 2 takers. Yellow Belly is an obstacle (with a bypass) that ramps you atop a truck-height ledge with a ramp on only one side. A ramp on only one side means you get way off-camber despite having excellent articulation. It’s just too tall a climb. First up was Joe Chott, our fearless leader. Joe crawled and crawled with his passenger front tire climbing farther and farther off the ground. Even his rear tire was popping off and on the ground just one slip or degree from a rollover. We were eagerly waiting for the front tire to start going DOWN. It seemed forever but it did happen. Great job Joe! Not a slip, not a slide, just perfect driving (and in an amazing vehicle). Brad and Alice Musil also took the ledge on in their 80. Brad’s technique differed. He lined the truck up and took a quicker pace up which resulted in more oo’s and aw’s from the group as that front wheel shot up even higher than Joe’s did. The rest of us decided to take the “smart” way up, the bypass (kidding Joe and Brad!) except for Tim Russert. He climbed a different line in his 80-series that added more challenge than the simpler bypass. Go Tim!
After Yellow Belly Ledge you finally leave the challenging rocky wash. It’s easy here to “relax” as the difficulty lessens. That feeling quickly changes when you round a corner and see what lays ahead…the switchbacks. Yezzz, the switchbacks. Personally, my 4-wheeling weakness are shelf roads, and these are steep, severely washed out, the drop-offs are long, and have huge rocks right in the pathway. Fearing I’d panic on the ascent, I asked Joe Chott to keep a steady pace so I could follow him up to see his “lines”. Sure enough, these were even more challenging and washed out than on my previous trip. There were many places where the rocks were so big and tight to the canyon walls that you simply had to stop to access the pathway. Then, about half way up to the switchbacks we came upon a HUGE washout that begged to swallow your truck. Joe and I kept on the gas and made it through okay and continued to a rest stop at the Columbia Mine. Below, we noticed that Walt had got eaten by that washout and was tippy right on the cliff’s edge. He was locked-up and hopping around while clawing for traction. Joe and I thought that one of us might have to go back down to assist. Just then, after several attempts, Walt did make it through and without damage. Next through the ditch were Chip and Nancy U’Ren in their really sweet Collectors Edition FZJ80. They made it OK, though right behind them Brad and Alice got swallowed in the washout even deeper than Walt had. In fact, it was strap time and Chip assisted putting good use to those recovery points in his Kaymar rear bumper. A few minutes later all had arrived at Columbia where we took a needed break.
While the Loop was nearing its end, challenges did continue. From the Columbia Mine you continue to switchback uphill to the hilltop. From there you descend down a steep section on the north side of the mountain to the Silver Bell Mine. Then, your last uphill climb to the very top continues. On the way up there’s a very dangerous washout that would swallow your entire Cruiser. What’s left of the road is extremely narrow and leaves no room for error though everyone did just great. We took pictures of the surrounding area from the top. The view of the canyon from here is amazing. You can see far away to the Phoenix and Tucson areas. You’d never know a place like this existed. What a trip.
We loaded back up with the anticipation of our last and most dangerous obstacle, the Luge. The trail drops from the top in a real hurry. That’s just the way the terrain is in this area. Today, the Luge was impassable. As you drive the Luge your road drops into a wash with a 90-degree left turn at the bottom (many take a rear strap here to avoid and endo). You then follow the Luge wash down back to the main road. This “drop” was washed out to the degree that no vehicle could safely handle it. The dirt cut a 6 foot shelf in the road, so everyone opted for the bypass. The bypass itself takes much care. You drop over an off-camber ridge then slide down the loose and rocky hill that has a sharp right turn at its bottom. If you slide off the road to the left you fall into the Luge and you know the result. Getting out of vehicle order at the top, I was leading this section and went first. Traction was pretty good today on the bypass. Everybody then descended while I shot pics. The trail then continues downhill to the Red Cabin where we took our last break of the day. From here, it’s out the way we came.
I must say that the 80-series Land Cruisers are amazing beasts. They seem to go where they’re pointed and without complaint or failure. The trail on this day is an honest 4.0 rating on the 5-scale system. While the difficulty was intense at times, if you really analyze how hard the 80’s were worked you’d decide that they could handle even more. What a great ride! What great people. What a great club. Thanks to Walter Philips for planning and leading this trip! I always look forward to the next AzLCA run. It doesn’t get any better than this!
John Shotts
'Some names were changed to protect the innocent.'
-Spike
-Spike
BWAAHAHAAHAHAAA!!! Nice one John. Hey rookie, from now on, this>> means I'm joking!
means I'm joking! BMAN said:BWAAHAHAAHAHAAA!!! Nice one John. Hey rookie, from now on, this>>
I know what you meant.
rode with both
I went on the payson trip with John had a good time except for the flat tire and the dog loved it.Went with Copper State Cruisers camping in Florance had a great time and great food dog loved it.I think it would be cool if at the next meeting everybody wears there Copper State Cruiser shirts so we look like a club not hobo's.Which is easy for some of us
me for sure .See everyone friday
I went on the payson trip with John had a good time except for the flat tire and the dog loved it.Went with Copper State Cruisers camping in Florance had a great time and great food dog loved it.I think it would be cool if at the next meeting everybody wears there Copper State Cruiser shirts so we look like a club not hobo's.Which is easy for some of us
me for sure
.See everyone friday 
clarkrw3 said:
You explained yourself...that's good, and I am very glad that you did and cleared up the air. Don't get yourself too hurt, if you could take a step back and look at it from our perspective I am sure you could understand. (one of our own members writting in a national mag that another club was "the" club in az would get under some of our skin) I realize now that that was editing and not your intention. GREAT!!
My dislike for the AzLCA comes from a few members..(I was a member some 9 years ago when they met at the High school I graduated from) some of which were at the last FJ run...they have an attitude I don't have time in my life for. We have talked several times online, and I was looking forward to meeting you on the trail...however, when I came up to you twice that day to introduce myself in person I am not sure if I got one word out of you and you turned your back on me both times. This could and most likely was a missunderstanding. However, with that, and the comment in your artical in T4WDO you can understand why I might start to lump you in with the rest.
The reason I love this club is that everyone is so welcoming, open to talking (BSing) and that everyone seems to be sans attitude, from the first meeting I attended everyone welcomed me. The fact that we have been growing so fast, I feel reflects this general attitude.
So, I am sorry I jumped to conclutions about you and your artical....Congrats for getting it published. Next time I see you I will once again introduce myself...as your twin LX. And lets all simmer down and have a couple
clarkrw3 said:
You are allowed to draw whatever conclusion you like Clark.
To draw a conclusion on the morning of that (Desoto) trip, and on the trip's planner (me), the planner who had 50+ vehicles show, massive chaos in Mayer, I was trying to keep things organized, blah blah. That's your right though.
All clubs have folks with varying personalities. One thing I can say about the AzLCA members? I would have NEVER been attacked like this over such a rediculous issue as the topic on hand. I might have been asked about it. Heck, Tim Russert didn't even get in any of the pictures, though I submitted pics of everyone. Tim didn't call me a raise hell his 80 wasn't in the article.
For those who have not seen the mag, here's the story:
http://shottscruisers.smugmug.com/
http://shottscruisers.smugmug.com/
Shotts, i guess you missed the point.
My previous post
You missed the whole thing...like I said take a step back...to not get a pic of your truck in a mag, and to slight a club that you belong too are two totally different things. I would have NEVER attacked you if my pic wasn't in your artical either, never would have crossed my mind, I could care less...do you see pics of my ride in readers rides....or whole write ups on my truck in mags. I didn't think so!
Did you stop reading by this point in my post??
The reason for my post was to explain the missunderstanding and appologize. I have made the effort to appologize to you publicly if it isn't accepted, I am sorry for that but I have tried, and that is all I can do.
from shotts
My previous post
You missed the whole thing...like I said take a step back...to not get a pic of your truck in a mag, and to slight a club that you belong too are two totally different things. I would have NEVER attacked you if my pic wasn't in your artical either, never would have crossed my mind, I could care less...do you see pics of my ride in readers rides....or whole write ups on my truck in mags. I didn't think so!
Did you stop reading by this point in my post??
The reason for my post was to explain the missunderstanding and appologize. I have made the effort to appologize to you publicly if it isn't accepted, I am sorry for that but I have tried, and that is all I can do.
Clark: If I see you on the trail I'll be glad to speak with you about this. For now, I'm done discussing this topic. Nothing personal. I'm just done with it. 
4WD Toyota Owner Magazine
SILVER Star
A little mea culpa here. John wrote a great article, first of all, and we did edit it, mostly for space purposes just to allow more photos to be published. Although the point of the feature wasn't to list all Arizona clubs, I learned a valuable lesson here: that from now on, we should include a sidebar of the various clubs/orgs in that state, even if the author of the piece doesn't mention them.
In closing let me say that 4WD Toyota Owner apologizes to the Copper State Cruisers as well as other Toyota clubs/orgs (such as TTORA, etc). We certainly didn't mean to leave you out--and acknowledge you fully! John, thank you for the article. Hope this all clears up and we can get back to wheeling--but again, we learned a lesson and we are sorry, we should have listed more AZ clubs.
Thank you for your time and consideration. Kind regards,
Dave
In closing let me say that 4WD Toyota Owner apologizes to the Copper State Cruisers as well as other Toyota clubs/orgs (such as TTORA, etc). We certainly didn't mean to leave you out--and acknowledge you fully! John, thank you for the article. Hope this all clears up and we can get back to wheeling--but again, we learned a lesson and we are sorry, we should have listed more AZ clubs.
Thank you for your time and consideration. Kind regards,
Dave
MaddBaggins
Remember the KnightRider!
Well, I thought is was a good article. I wasn't butthurt about the lack of mention. I guess I'm just not sensitive enough. Great magazine Dave, keep up the good work. The only real problem is that you haven't featured my rig yet, but hell, nobodies perfect
Great magazine Dave, keep up the good work. The only real problem is that you haven't featured my rig yet, but hell, nobodies perfect 4WD Toyota Owner Magazine said:
Thanks Dave
You have a great mag, that will only get better with experience and growth. I liked it well enough to order it for several friends of mine...keep up the good work. I really don't think that everytime you run an article about an area you need to mention every club in the area. I think the problem lies in that a member of our club wrote an artical that was editted to state another club was "the club in Arizona". You can look at Ih8mud and see that that isn't the case. We have the most active club forum on Ih8mud.
Everything cleared up!!! get back to wheeling...have a few beers and life is good!!
4WD Toyota Owner Magazine said:
No problem with this Dave. You did a great job. Thanks again! Some folks got worked up before they knew all the facts. That's not your fault. All is well.
WOW John 10 post in 1 thread with not one picture.....must be a record of some sort
That's funny right there! I don't care who you are!
-Spike
-Spike