Thoughts on MAR 2004

[cptyarderho]

What a muddy weekend! Island stayed closed, two trucks rolled that I know of, but my group had a great time. I wish there had been more space for camping, but with no island not much anyone could do. Not all the trails were accessible unless you had a pretty sick rig, but we did run the West Powerline and some other good stuff. Any other opinions? How was your weekend?

 

[flippedrover]

Great time for being my first. Most mud I have ever seen wheeling. The last count I had heard was 5 trucks rolled. With one recovery needing a dozer. All in all a good time.

 

[southerncross01]

Like the choice in lyrics, I am a huge parrot head myself.
Great event, we left Saturday night to get back. We stayed safe, my only complaint this year is the traffic getting to the far camp site. Next year will see us camping on the island (pending hurricanes again) or the first field you get too. I was so sick and frustrated of making it half way to the far camp ground then having to back up again as a D90 comes barreling past us...

Other than that, great show from Bill Burke and didn't loose my bumper this year, we will call it successful!

--Chris

 

[flippedrover]

Thought it appropriate given the Buffett tags I've got.

 

[D Chapman]

I would have liked to see the truck that needed a dozer to get un-stuck, sounds intence.....

The trails were hell this year. Easy trails turned to hard trails by the second day, but I see it as a good thing. Usally, all the trails were a cluser, but for the guys with a "tricked out" truck, they could get to places where there was not much traffic. Goat Hill was awesome this year!! Andritties* Hill started really cool, but by the third day it was a highway.

Although I feel MAR was not as "fun" as last year, I will surly be back next year, the people are great!!! Putting names to faces with not only other Rover owners, but the vendors too. Great Time!!!

I know most people were gone, but mid-day Sunday a tree fell on the Farm House. Went right thru the 2nd story and mangled the pourch. I hope this has no effect on next years event. It had nothing to do with ROAV or the MAR crowd. Just an honest mistake or mis-judgement.

 

[WILL.TILLERY]

Mar

Considering the conditions I agree it went well.
If I could only make one suggestion to the ROAV group it would be to have a marshall at the beginning of each trail to judge whether a vehicle is capable of going through or not.

We spent 4 hrs on Saturday stuck in a mess because a couple of stock d2 trucks with stock tires tried to run the riverside trail which was hell on an equipped vehicle.

People get their packets at the MAR pull out their shiny stickers and toss the map in the back...You really cant .unfornuately, expect folks to read those things (although you wish they would)...Better enforcement would make for a smoother day for all.

On the flip side this year was different than the past...The trails that were even beginner were pushing it. The tank trap on the powerline trail pulled in quite a few victims. The group was great and like Daniel said it was nice meeting people you write or talk to everyday but havent met in person...In fact I finally got to meet Daniel.

 

[Roverlady]

I agree Will.
We had a good time, although it didn't feel as fun as other years b/c I didn't get to drive as much!

Luckily, because we know the trails and our trucks, we didn't do anything other than Lake Loop....wish I had gotten to the West Powerline before everyone else, but after a while, it was not a good idea with stock suspension. We had a great time riding with other folks though....and got to see a lot more.

There were a lot of trucks out that shouldn't have been. We winched a stock RRC that was wrecked and dead in the tank trap...and it had to be towed through the rest of the trail. Took forever! We never made it past the first 1/3 of the log bridge trail b/c there were so many people clogging it up. Amazing. I saw a few trucks on their sides and saw one rolled. Lots of mud....

Otherwise, the camping was good, comraderie was great and I met a few other folks. Got some new lights and am on the lookout for a lift.

Daniel, we never did see you....looked for your truck though.

 

[skydiver]

The trails were hell this year. Easy trails turned to hard trails by the second day, but I see it as a good thing. Usally, all the trails were a cluser, but for the guys with a "tricked out" truck, they could get to places where there was not much traffic. Goat Hill was awesome this year!! Andritties* Hill started really cool, but by the third day it was a highway.

I did the west powerline trail on Sunday and had to winch 2 times. Those ruts were just insane after being hammered for 4 days. I also popped the bead on my front left tire near the end of that trail. Thankfully the leak was slow enough that I was able to get out before it went completely flat!! Bill Burke wound up doing a mini-demo for me and another guy in my situation on using the hi-lift to clean and reseat the tire.

I know most people were gone, but mid-day Sunday a tree fell on the Farm House. Went right thru the 2nd story and mangled the pourch. I hope this has no effect on next years event. It had nothing to do with ROAV or the MAR crowd. Just an honest mistake or mis-judgement.

Damn!! When did that happen. I finally got my tire fixed about 12:45pm and bailed shortly thereafter.

-Tommy

 

[bigred]

It was the exact opposite of most years... Usually it is mostly dry with a few good muddy spots. This year it was all mud with a couple of less muddy spots. It was fun though, other than having tire envy when I am already running 33" m/t's. To have enjoyed it fully you would have needed at least 35"s, with lockers.

 

[Steve]

From a person who DOES use the map provided, I think that it is very hard to differentiate between the pink medium trails and the red hard trails. At night, you can forget telling either apart. Other than the new trails, the ratings appeared the same as last year for existing trails. These were a bit misleading when you have the conditions that preceded the event. Several have pointed out that the easier trails from last year were not so easy this time around. People should be checking in for updates at Rally Control for existing trail conditions as well.

As for having an individual at the trail heads checking vehicles, I don't see how it would work. Having enough volunteers doing other tasks is hard enough. You also have to contend with experience. How do you judge this? I could see it easily leading to a trail-side argument.

I was on the log bridge trail and followed a guy through a section who was locked up with bigger tires who had to winch out (like most others) while I made it fine. The difference? Pure luck. The guy in front of me has way more off road experience than I and a "better" vehicle. You surely can't factor in luck.

 

[Steve]

...To have enjoyed it fully you would have needed at least 35"s, with lockers.

I think that is purely subjective. I run 235/85s w/o lockers and had a great time.

 

[skydiver]

From a person who DOES use the map provided, I think that it is very hard to differentiate between the pink medium trails and the red hard trails. At night, you can forget telling either apart.

I was going to make the same comment.... I wound up writing *'s in the trail name boxes for quick glances. * = easy, ** = medium, *** = hard. (Of course, those wound up being medium, hard and very hard. )

 

[WILL.TILLERY]

tires

I agree it would pull from resources...I guess a strong recommendation from trail heads would work better. The tires are truly subjective...Some people would say the trails wouldnt be so torn up if it were not for the 33 up ...Others would say they wouldnt hit the trails with anything else..

The weather and conditions were the deciding factor this time..At the end of the day Saturday (after the short rain)...on the River Trail you were toast at the end without a winch.

 

[cptyarderho]

Considering the conditions I agree it went well.
If I could only make one suggestion to the ROAV group it would be to have a marshall at the beginning of each trail to judge whether a vehicle is capable of going through or not.

QUOTE]
I think that is a great idea, at least to have someone give them a heads up as to what it looks like, We had to abandon the same trail because the line was ridiculous on Saturday afternoon... As a member I would be happy to volunteer to come up a day early annd run some of the trails to get a clearer idea of the difficulties and monitor the beginning of a trail for a couple of hours. i am sure some of the stockers would appreciate the heads up so they do not end up with unwanted damage.

 

[bigred]

I was joking about the 35's and lockers (mostly), but I damn sure wouldn't have wanted to be there with a stocker on street tires.

 

[syoung]

If you guys and gals have suggestions for improvements, please feel free to email me. I'll collect those suggestions and bring them up- the 05 MAR planning starts in just two weeks!
The trail map MUST be redone- it's far too ifficult to read.
We had planned to put in definitions for what each difficulty level meant- as far as experience level and suggested equipment (lockers, winch) but even if we found time to make the signs, it all would have been moot as the conditions changed. The water level changed constantly through the first few days...
Please keep the suggestions coming and feel free to email me. I had a great time meeting some of you who I haven't met before.
Do I at least get some credit for getting the first roll? Turns out that I think I lost my wedding ring in that incident, which sucks.

 

[bigred]

That sucks Steve! I can't imagine having to come home and tell the wife that I rolled the truck, and by the way lost my wedding band too.
Were you the freelander that slipped into the tank trap?
BTW, what was up with the local deputies cruising around in the 110? I have never noticed police there before. Were they expecting someone to get out of hand?

 

[Roverlady]

I think it's mostly subjective...we were riding in a DI with about 6" of lift and 31" tires. He did great, even where we saw others winching....we actually went around the tank trap, twice, with no problems. Others tried and hit the gas too hard and slipped in. Driving skills are 80-90% of it....but I knew that I didn't want to wreck my truck and/or slow anyone else up by doing a trail too difficult for my mod level.

I think the map is OK....conditions notation (although not availble for printing ahead of time) is definitely necessary though, if anything, people just need to be proactive in paying attention. I saw a stocker DI pull up to the bottom of the Hill Climb and we all stared in disbelief...luckily someone told him to forget about it!

I've got lift envy....and now I want a Freelander for my daily driver.

Overall, a good time as usual!

 

[Steve]

BTW, what was up with the local deputies cruising around in the 110? I have never noticed police there before. Were they expecting someone to get out of hand?

They were doing DUI checks and running radar. I got a ticket for slinging mud in a No Sling zone. LOL.

 

[Blue]

did anyone get shot?