Ultimate Adventure 2001

We saw all sorts of strange sights on the Ultimate Adventure. We all thought that this gentleman at the hotel in Yakima was a prop from a movie, or possibly actually dead. When 50 grimy people get off the road all at once and rush a hotel, you'd think he would have woken up. Nope.

Steve "Snap-On truck" Sasaki winds his Toyota through the trees. These trails favor the shorter rigs, but careful maneuvering of a near fullsize rig keeps the top and sheetmetal safe.

Once the trail leader winched himself out of the mud, the Ultimate A1 plopped in and churned and burned to no avail. Tim Hardy saw the opportunity and gave a simple push on the rear, extricating the A1 forward. The Ultimate A1 was the only rig to make this obstacle as well as the entire Bitch Trail without a winch or strap.

Mud driving generally means hammering down on the throttle, but this pit was too much, even for the 38-inch tires on the Skyjacker Jeep. Tall tires helped on most trails we ran, while power, suspension, traction options, and a good attitude were the combination we all used to have one great Ultimate Adventure.

The access road to the Bitch had many of its own obstacles, and this mud hole provided great entertainment. Cole Quinnell thought he could make it around by going over the stump on his right, and almost did. In this wet environment, stumps aren't firmly planted like us desert dogs are used to, and it moved around enough to call for strap extraction techniques.

After 1,200 miles of hard road running and tough trails, Tim Hardy's Sammy finally gave up the ghost, as far as four-wheel drive goes. Both front axle cages were toast, and although he tried in vain to rig them back together, they wouldn't hold up to the rigors of the Bitch.