The Brave Wheelers
Love your mag, been a fan for years. My name is Andy Borst. I’m a sniper in the U.S. Army currently deployed to Afghanistan and a big off-road enthusiast. I’m from Oregon but live at Fort Lewis in Washington. I own an ’84 Toyota Xcab pickup. It is my baby! I purchased it in 2010 after about three months of searching, which didn’t make the wife too happy since we only had one car at the time and two kids. She didn’t like to wake everyone up at 0530 to take me to work so she could have the car. She thought I was being too picky, but I just wanted the right solid-axle Yota I have wanted since I was a teen.
I’m writing to see if you would put a picture of my truck in your magazine so I can brag to the guys around here. It’s nothing fancy just yet, as it is still stock, but during my time here I was able to order up the classic front and rear 5-inch lift kit from Trail Gear, along with the dual transfer case adapter for that extralow range. I have two close friends back home, Justin and Jason, who are putting everything together so we can hit the trails as soon as I get home. I know my daughter is excited as well. She is becoming a little mud enthusiast. She also seems to think that this will be her truck when she turns 16. Guess we will have to wait and see.
I was planning on running the new Maxxis 37X12.50R17 Trepador with a set of black Fat Five rims from Method Race Wheels. Everything was going to plan with my build till the family car decided it wanted to start breaking down. So I thought it was time for us to get rid of it for a nice reliable car since we do a lot of moving around in the Army. So I bought my wife brand-new minivan for her and the kids using the rest of the savings I had for the build. But as long as the wife is happy at home and I don’t have to worry about her breaking down on I-5 again, I’m OK with it.
So it looks like now I will have a lifted Yota on 31s. Well, at least till I can get more funds, I hope. Other mods I would like to make down the road is add 4.70:1 gears to one of my transfer cases, front and rear tube bumpers, an internal cage, Weber carb, and lockers front and rear.
I have also attached a pic of me, my rifle, and the newest copy of your magazine I was able to get my hands on when I did a refit at a big base here in Afghanistan.
Thanks for your time and an awesome mag to read to pass the days.
Sgt. Andy Borst
U.S. Army Sniper
Kandahar, Afghanistan
Thanks for your brave service, Andy. We are happy to post your photos here and thank you and your comrades in arms for their service keeping the rest of us free.
Reader Rant
What club?
I haven’t gotten my first issue from you yet (new subscriber), so I bought the July issue. I wonder if I made a mistake buying your mag—or buying a new Jeep with an automatic. In the In Box department are a couple of guys who don’t care for JKs. The fellow that wrote “It’s a Wave Thing” seems most upset with the likes of me and others who drive automatics.
I started in Jeeps with a ’75 DJ-5—very modified—with a 727 automatic and two-wheel drive. It got me to every dried-up old town/fire trail the other guys wanted to go to. I waved in it, and I wave in my 2-month-old JK. (I may miss a wave sometime when I’m dodging a rental Taurus next to me.) My new JK will be modified over the years, but you know, it really is a Jeep. If because it’s not a “straight shift” I can’t be in the club, so be it. However, because 4-Wheel & Off-Road is about more than Jeep stick shifts—Fords, Toyota, Chevy, and so on—I’m sure I’ll learn about new ideas (even if I am a 73-year-old broad with bad knees).
Janis
P.S You can stop laughing now.
Thanks, Janis. We are still chuckling. You are spot on: Everyone should be in the off-road club regardless of what they drive or how it’s outfitted. That is what makes us Americans. Thanks for pointing it out, and keep on wheelin’!
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