Reader
Purple Trail-O-Kee
1989 Jeep Cherokee
Driver: Paden Saracino
Co-Driver:Clifton Slay
Stomping Grounds: Rausch Creek, Moab
Paden Saracino returned this year to give the Ultimate Adventure another round. Last year his old XJ had it pretty rough, but this year was better. He still had some long days (replacing a busted ring-and-pinion, amongst other issues), but with crony/shotgunner Clifton Slay he worked his way through the week. His purple machine worked great when they weren’t working on it, and it chugged its way over obstacles with ease. Saracino traveled all the way from New York to accompany the group, and his never-say-die attitude is just what we’re looking for when choosing readers to attend this event.
Drivetrain
Engine: 4.6L stroker I-6
Transmission: ’89 Aw4
Transfer case: NP231
Front Axle: Jeep Dana 44, 5.13 gears, Ox locker
Rear Axle: Ford 9-inch, 5.13 gears, spool
Steering: AGR hydraulic ram assist
Suspension
Springs & Such: Custom Rusty’s Off-Road long-arm in front, custom 4-link in rear, 7 inches of lift
Tires & Wheels: 37x13.5 Nitto Mud Grapplers on 17-inch Moto metal 957
Other: Rusty’s rock rails, Tuffy storage box, snorkel, Warn winch, Angry Duck hood ornament
Sponsor
Bubba Rope: Official Recovery Rope
1974 Chevy K30
Driver: Matt Kime
Co-Driver: Faron Tidwell
Stomping Grounds: FL, SC, deserts of CA
What started as a mistaken order of a wrong-size rope for a Florida sling company has turned into one of the best off-road extraction tools available. We’re talking about the Bubba Rope, a high-quality snatch strap with elasticity to assist in yanking big buried trucks from the deep mud. Faron Tidwell of Bubba Rope enlisted Matt Kime and his Hulk of a Chevy truck to represent Bubba and showcase both the rope and the new Tree Hugger winch straps. The Chevy big green Chevy had a good week until the second-to-last day, when the TH400 began to whimper and die (it is hard to explain the “No Whining” rule to a transmission). They unfortunately missed the final trail in order to save the trans for the long drive home.
Drivetrain
Engine: 5.3L Gen III small-block, tuned ECM, Howell Racing Harness, Hooker Headers, custom in-cab air intake, K&N drop-in, Flowmaster mufflers
Transmission: TH400
Front Axle: Chevy Dana 60, Detroit No-Spin, 5.13s, Superior 35-spline inner and outer, Yukon Super Joints, Dedenbeer turning knuckles, Warn hubs, Offroad Design high-steer arm
Rear Axle: Corp. 14-bolt, Detroit No-Spin, 5.13s, Ballistic Fab shave kit, Blue Torch Fab rear disc conversion
Steering: PSC hydro-assist with PSC box, pump, and ram
Suspension
Springs & Such: ORD 6-inch coilover conversion, King 21⁄2-inch coilovers, King 21⁄2-inch bumpstops in front; King 21⁄2-inch shocks, Tuff Country 4-inch leaves, Daystar urethane bumpstops in rear
Tires & Wheels: 40x13Nitto Mud Grapplers on 17x10 Spyder Locks
Other: Warn M12000 Winch, Hella auxiliary lights, ViAir onboard air, MasterCraft Baja RS Bucket Seats, Hi-Lift Jack
Old Crony
Original UA JK
2007 Jeep Wrangler JK Unlimited
Driver: Keith Bailey
Co-Driver: Alan Huber
Stomping Grounds: Gray Rock OHV park
Art Director Alan Huber is integral to 4-Wheel & Off-Road. He makes every photo look good, he designs the layouts, and he makes sure the action looks exciting and the tech interesting. Unfortunately, he unloaded his own Bronco a year or so back and needed wheels for the Ultimate Adventure. Old crony Keith Bailey was more than willing to give Huber a ride, but wasn’t sure his own Jeep was ready for a transcontinental road trip. So the dust and mothballs were blown from the seats of our old project truck the UAJK, aka the Rubi Wagon (Aug. ’07–Jan. ’08), and a library loan of sorts was offered to Bailey and Huber. This big Jeep was built by American Expedition Vehicles and Twisted Customs, and it’s pretty good for long-distance road trips, not to mention trail rides and recovery with the big Cummins six-cylinder under the hood. Bailey liked driving it so much that he went home with schemes of turning his Dodge Mega Cab into a trail machine!
Drivetrain
Engine: 5.9L Cummins I-6
Transmission: NV-4500
Transfer Case: Atlas
Front Axle: Dodge Power Wagon 91⁄4 with 4.56 gears and Power Wagon locker
Rear Axle: Dodge Power Wagon 101⁄2 with 4.56 gears and Power Wagon locker
Steering: PSC hydraulic ram assist
Suspension
Springs & Such: Dodge Ram 2500 front coils with Zone shocks, Dodge Ram 2500 rear leaf springs with Superlift shocks
Tires & Wheels: 42-inch BFGoodrich Krawlers on 20-inch TrailReady beadlocks
Other: Jeep body on shortened Ram 3500 chassis, Fab Fours bumpers, Warn 8274 winch, MasterCraft seats, ARB fridge/freezer
Support
Mobile Great White
Camera Crew
2007 Dodge Mega Cab
Driver: Bryan Howell
Co-Driver: Video crew
Stomping Grounds: Spokane
Every year a truckload of cameramen comes along to shoot the Ultimate Adventure for a DVD that you can purchase. This year Bryan Howell from Off-Road Power Products offered to come along in his massive Mega Cab Ram truck as the mobile video studio. Howell decided that the Mega Cab needed to stand head-and-shoulders above the average support truck, so it was fitted with 42-inch rubber and gobs of torque-adding diesel engine upgrades. The big truck had to be able to pull steep mountain passes so camera crews would be able to set up ahead of the group as well as run down the highways or trail should we need car-to-car or remote video footage. The big Dodge never wavered and happily rolled coal while hauling camera junkies and charging their various equipment from every 12V orifice it had. The best part is that sometimes our road days end up as trail days, and on one of them Howell got to weave the big rig down tight boulder-strewn stream crossings and narrow wooded trails.
Drivetrain
Engine: 5.9L Cummins
Transmission: BD Trackmaster 48 RE
Transfer Case: Stock
Front Axle: AAM 91⁄4, 4.56 Yukon gears, Dynatrac free-spin kit and ball joints
Rear Axle: AAM 111⁄2, 4.56 Yukon gears
Steering: Factory, Red Head steering box, Borgeson steering shaft
Suspension
Springs & Such: Carli 6-inch lift with Carli radius arms with King 21⁄2-inch shocks
Tires & Wheels: 42-inch Goodyear Kevlar MT/Rs, factory Power Wagon wheels
Other: DPP triple parallel BorgWarner EFR turbos, ZZ Fab custom head and plenum, Mahle Monotherm pistons, Carrillo rods, Diesel Pros DP4 cam, Hamilton billet pushrods, DPP custom crank, 6.7L 39 LPM injectors, Smarty SSR, Fiberwerx Glass fenders and bedsides, Addictive Desert Designs HD front bumper with rigid 40-inch and 30-inch light bars, 70w HID conversion, Edge CTS Insight FASS HD 260-gph pump with remote fuel pressure regulator