Trail Tour turned 6 years old this year, and 4WD&SU Magazine once again was lucky to be included in the festivities. We've covered all six of these Scott Frary-organized events, starting back in 2005 when the Trail Tour was held in Washington state. Over the years, the Trail Tour events have bounced all over the Northwest, always lead by Frary, with help from local 'wheelers representing the areas the 'Tour visits. After the inaugural '05 run in Washington, the '06 event was held in Montana, '07 in Oregon, '08 in Idaho, and '09 was back in Oregon. For 2010, the 'Tour came back to Frary's home state of Washington, where we spent a week in June in and around the eastern slopes and canyons of the Cascade range in the center of the Evergreen State.
So why does Trail Tour exist? The 'Tour is a chance for the owners of some big names in the 4X4 industry to get out of the office, hang out with each other, and enjoy the sport of four-wheeling together. This is something many of them don't get to do often enough as they are too busy making stuff for the rest of us to play with. Many of the companies participating have been on all six 'Tours, so a lot of camaraderie has built up over the years. Attending a Trail Tour is like a weeklong high school reunion with all the partying and shenanigans that go along with such a gathering.
The list of 2010 manufactures included Mastercraft (seats), Dynatrac (axles), Kilby Enterprises (on-board air), Aqualu (aluminum bodies), Tom Wood (driveshafts), Off Road Evolution (suspension, armor, and custom fabrication), PSC (steering), Trail Ready (wheels, bumpers), Old Town Customs (custom fabrication, comedy shows), and Advanced Suspension Design (suspensions). Besides the owners (and wives) from these companies, each Trail Tour is made up of several "roadies," who are also multi-year attendees. Without these guys and their rides (along with wives, friends, siblings, etc.) contributing all their help, Trail Tour would never come together each year. For 2010, the "roadies" included Tony Fox, Alan Hewitt, R.G. Dickey, Jason Redfield, Dick Moss, Andy Burleson, Mike Waclawski, and Ryan Galford. Rounding out this cast of characters was our esteemed colleague from the Great White North, Albert Vandervelde, editor of Canada 4WD and this humble 4WD&SU freelance scribe.
Twenty rigs made up Trail Tour 2010, all of them some form of Jeep, with the exception of one renegade Land Cruiser. As always, the main rule was no trailers allowed. We must drive our rigs to the trail heads each day from our cozy motel rooms, 'wheel them all day, then drive them back to the motel or on to a new overnight hangout. This arrangement also requires that we carry all our stuff that we need for the entire week, so prudent planning and preparation is the order of the day. All in all, it is an event we look forward to being a part of each year and we enjoy sharing the fun with our readers. Check out all the photos and their captions to get a feel of what Trail Tour 2010 was all about.
Trail Tour 2010 began in beautiful...
Trail Tour 2010 began in beautiful downtown Cle Elum, Washington, at the Traveler's Inn on a not-so-bright Monday morning. As you can see, we faced grey skies and rain drops. Not that anybody cared. We were headed for mud and were just glad to be together again.
Exercising our No. 1 rule...
Exercising our No. 1 rule (no trailers), our fearless leader Scott Frary lead us out of Cle Elum towards the Liberty 4X4 Trail System, in his spotless Flatfender-ish, TJ-ish, Hemi-powered Jeep. It wasn't to remain spotless for long though as mud was the order of the day.
We hadn't been on the trail...
We hadn't been on the trail more than a few minutes before we were axle deep in Washington's finest. This particular mud hole proved to be a nemesis for many in the group. Multiple tries, lots of strategic log placing and judicious amounts of throttle got everybody through.
Here is another view of the...
Here is another view of the first big mud hole as Larry Trim, owner of Trail Ready, drops his "ain't no mall runner" Grand Cherokee into the goo. Larry's '97 GC is no stranger to 'wheeling, having been a test mule for Trail Ready products for ZJs since 1999. The OE 5.2L V-8 breathes through a Safari Snorkel and blows through a Dynomax exhaust. The 35-inch Mickey Thompsons are spun by a TerraLow 4 :1 231 T-case coupled to Dana 30 and 44 axles with Superior 'shafts, CMT joints, and ARB Air Lockers. Of course the Baja Claws wrap around Trail Ready's latest HD15 beadlock wheels equipped with World Series Rock Rings with a 5-on-5.5 bolt pattern. The SUV's tender body is protected by Trail Ready bumpers front and rear, along with the company's Rocker Guards and T-case and fuel tank skidplates.
This shot pretty much shows...
This shot pretty much shows what the trail was like all day when it wasn't a big wet mud hole. Carl Yarbrough of Old Town Customs romps his trick, copper-colored TJ through the slick abandon logging roads that make up most of the 'wheeling trails in this area.
Lizard and Dorothy Fonnegra...
Lizard and Dorothy Fonnegra were our rookie 'wheelers this year. Representing Mastercraft seats and owner Robbie Pierce, Lizard was making obstacles look easy right from day one, causing more than a few of us to scratch our heads at his claim to have never 'wheeled before. Maybe it had something to do with Robbie's borrowed '07 JK Unlimited. This Jeep is a showcase for displaying Mastercraft seats in a JK, but also sports Dynatrac Pro Rock 60 axles hung from a Fasteck 6-inch long arm suspension featuring Fox Coilover shocks. BFG tires and Walker Evans wheels round out the look of this Mastercraft graphic-covered JK.
Jeff Trammell and Advanced...
Jeff Trammell and Advanced Suspension Design were newcomers to Trail Tour for 2010, but their '97 TJ was up to the task. Spinning 37-inch IROKs on Trail Ready wheels was a turbocharged Jeep 4.0L hooked to an AX15 manual, a Klune-V 4:1, and an NP231. The suspension featured the company's control arms mixed with ZJ and TJ coils. TNT front tube fenders gave the TJ a unique look with help from Advanced Suspension Design's aluminum half doors and top.
Although most of the day was...
Although most of the day was spent deep in the trees (and mud), we did pop out on top of a mountain at one point to take in this view of the snow capped Cascade peaks.
This shot pretty much sums...
This shot pretty much sums up day one of Trail Tour 2010. Carl Yarbrough of Old Town Customs is all smiles after giving the mud his all in his custom TJ. The result? Mud: 1, Carl: 0. He buried the Jeep (and himself) and had to resort to the winch cable.
Did we mention that Monday...
Did we mention that Monday was Mud Day?