PRO
Rick, I've been enjoying your articles since way back in the day when I was just learning to drive (legally) and you were a 4WOR staffer. Today I'm writing to stand up for your Ultimate Adventure. In Letters (Feb. '08), some goof wrote in saying how the UA guys were having such a hard time on obstacles that he makes look easy. I don't think that you spent enough time blasting him. Tellico, Morris Mountain, and Gray Rock are all in my backyard and there have been many times where my old '79 K10 simply walked the dog over some guy's fancy rock buggy on a particular obstacle. Now take into consideration that I built specifically for that type of wheeling and that I tried that same obstacle dozens of times to his one time. The playing field was not level. Maybe the weather conditions weren't the same. Maybe the trail had changed. Bottom line is that this person should spend a little more time on the trail and a little less time getting all upset and complaining. If they had been out riding that day, they could have shown the entire UA group how it's done. Also, I would suggest that this person read the story in that very same issue about how to get their picture published.
Name withheld
via 4wheeloffroad.com
Editor: Thanks, that is what makes the difference.
CON
Are you deliberately trying to keep Jeeps out of your Ultimate Adventure? I have an '06 TJ Rubicon with a 4.5-inch lift and many extras including custom bumpers, skids, and lights. I meet all of your requirements on a daily basis-minus the ridiculous 35-inch-tire requirement. I have 33-inch Pro Comp MTRs that have taken me over everything I've thrown at my Jeep. I'm aware that the fullsize pickups your magazine seems geared towards run with larger tires as stock, and 35s are small for an off-road-modified pickup. However, Wranglers that run that size tire need to be lifted to a point that compromises reasonable CG, and most Wranglers that have monster tires and the extreme lift needed for such have been modified to the point where they are no longer street-legal, making them ineligible for your Adventure.
If your intent is to have the Ultimate Adventure open only to fullsize pickups, please state so in your magazine. If your intent is to include all serious off-roaders that are capable of multiple terrain types, then please consider altering your tire requirements to include a better variety of vehicles that are capable of handling this challenge. Thank you.
Staff SGt. Eric E. Rexilius
Attack Helicopter Inspector/Instructor
Editor: Um, I'm still trying to figure this out. While I'm sure your 33-inch-shod Jeep is very capable, I think that if you look at the number of Jeeps on our past eight Ultimate Adventures that have 35-inch or larger tires, they are very stable and street-legal. Since the difference between the tire sizes is only 1 inch in height, I can hardly agree that the 35s are less safe and stable or require massive modifications to fit. I have a feeling that you could easily squeeze a set of 35s on your ride and you wouldn't know the difference, except in performance.
Reader: I have an image of a vehicle you may once have had on your cover. I am looking to verify if it was indeed your mag that had this particular vehicle. There is a JPEG image that I have from FullSizeBronco.com that would aid you in helping me with this task. I have every issue of your mag from 1982 as well as every issue of one other mag from 1982. I really don't want to have to go through 624 issues of wheeling mags to find what I am looking for. Any help you could provide no matter how small would be appreciated.
Name withheld
via 4wheeloffroad.com
Editor: Whether it's a Bronco or any other vehicle, story, or photo, we really can't look through 624 issues for something that may have been in a certain year. While we love to help, we don't have the database or the resources for this type of search. I remember when I first started 13 years ago and got a similar question and looked for a week to help the guy. It turned out that the information he had was the wrong year and the wrong magazine, but I did find it. Even if we do find it, it's in a bound collection that can't be Xeroxed or scanned so that's a dead end too. Sorry, we wish we could help but it's just not possible in this situation.