August 11, 2000

I figured that it just wouldn't be right to own a Jeep and not try my hand at off road manoeuvres at least once. At first, when I saw the sign-up for the Jeep 101 class, I thought it was really cool. That is, until I realized that I would eventually have to DRIVE. The trail guides assured me that it would be a lot of fun and there would be no reason to be nervous. Yeah, right.

My first day was filled by a little breakfast and a lot of anxiety. After the drivers' meeting (talking about sponsorship, rules, etc) we had our Jeep 101 instructional meeting. Our head "cheese" was named Jeff. He was quite friendly and knowledgeable. He started off by talking about hills, riding clutches, riverbeds and such. We had instruction on how to approach inclines, how to ease off the clutch, how to hold the wheel, how to shift into 4-low, and many other common aspects of off-roading. Someone asked about gear ratios and that got onto the topic of Tera-Low gear sets. At this point, we all had a bit of a dazed look on our faces. We were lucky we all understood "riding the clutch" let alone gear ratios.

After a brief question/answer period, we were off to a closed course. The course was developed by a couple of the trail guides and included steep inclines, diagonal articulation, ravines, riverbeds, sharp turns, and a little bit of rock crawling. We watched as one of the guides made their way through each of the obstacles. At this point, I was ready to go back to the hotel and drink beer. Unfortunately I was parked in the middle of the pack, so I had to stick around.

As my turn to handle the first obstacle approached, I had my first forward motion in 4-low. My nickname is now "Lurch." It was amazing how much torque the Jeep had in 4-low. Remembering to ease off the clutch, I crept towards the steep incline. Getting to the top of the hill wasn't too much of a problem but I had to stop at the top. This was not easy when your knees were about to buckle from waiting to get through the course.

I managed to make my way through the course, and got stuck only twice (I actually went through the course twice, but got stuck in the same area both times). The problem was keeping the momentum going through some of the obstacles.

We then went off to do some trails. I'm happy to report that I never touched a skid plate, nor got stuck. The scenery was amazing and the sky was blue (that is, what I could see through the dust).

The course, for the most, part wasn't very difficult. The hard part was keeping track of everything else: listening for the cb, watching the guy behind, watching the road, watching the lines, and still enjoying the ride (not too mention trying to listen to the person beside you commenting on how bumpy it was). Actually, I tried to hit as many bumps as I could, just to get back for the times I was a passenger and he was driving.

The most difficult part of the trail was an optional final climb. Only one driver backed down from the climb, everyone else gave it a try. I was at the back of the pack, so I had to watch as nearly all vehicles made their way part way up, only to have to reverse back down. Not enough momentum. At one point, it was getting so late with everyone getting three or more tries, I was afraid that I wouldn't get my shot. There was no way that I wasn't getting at least one kick at the cat. My husband, Andre, was in the vehicle, giving me extra encouragement. Finally, I got my shot. The trail guide gave me a starting point, and I gave it as much gas as I could without totally spinning out of control. All I could here from Andre was "give it more gas!" There were actually 3 different inclines along this trail and I had to stop in two places for the driver in front to make their way up. They said tread lightly, but sometimes you have to hit the gas and go like hell. It was an exhilarating experience to make that climb in one shot. I found out the next day that the climb was actually the beginning of a level 6 trail called the "Green Dragon". Needless to say, I was quite proud about climbing the hill and I hope to work my way up to harder trails next year.

Overall, the course gave me a better understanding of off-roading techniques. I used to be a little nervous (ok, a lot nervous) when I went with my husband. We would tackle steep inclines or descents but I didn't really understand the limits of what the Jeep could and could not do. I didn't know that the Jeep could maintain such a steep diagonal until I was sitting at a 40-degree angle and was told that this wasn't even pushing the envelope for what the Jeep could handle.

I also got a better handle on such areas as what a difference in tire pressure makes (a lot less sliding and more control), how the vehicle handles both with and without disconnects, and what "Tread Lightly" means. The best advice I received was to picture myself making perfect tire prints in the dirt. If I could this, then it meant that I was getting maximum traction and should be able to go anywhere, without damaging the terrain.

I felt more comfortable once I understood, through experience, that these vehicles were designed for just this task. Now, whether or not I'm driving, I feel more confident about the surroundings. I stop worrying about where we're going and start enjoying the ride. It will take me a little more time and practice to feel completely comfortable with driving off-road, but I do now find myself looking at the terrain and thinking, "Gee, can I make that climb?" Andre seems pleased but he should actually be worried. He hasn't yet realized that I now expect him to start sharing some of the driving. I want to have some of the fun from now on!

The temptation to crawl under the Jeep and hide was overwhelming, but I aired down instead.	One of the trail guides showing us the "right way" to climb a hill.	First first attempt to climb a hill in 4-low.
Woohoo! Success, and now I'm on the way back down.	A diagonal crossing. Two of my tires are too light to get traction so I'm hooped.	Here they're trying to teach me how to get comfortable with side hills. Unfortunately, my breakfast was starting to feel very uncomfortable.
A simulated river bed.	The rock climb. I could see a hand and nothing but sky.	My last obstacle!

Stacy Buchanan