Big Bear Labor Day Report.

[Jeri Lyn]

WILD! Glad Rick and Sarah (and JillDog!) are ok. I totally agree that the MJR folks are the best to wheel with.

[blkTJ]

Great weekend.

I'll echo the sentiment that things could have been much worse than they turned out and I'm very glad they weren't.

I couldn't have a better group of friends. :yay:

Yes Chuck, it really was great to be on all 4s again. :cactus:

Brian.

[sarah]

Thanks everyone, for your thoughts and concerns. It really means alot to us, and I can't thank our friends enough for not only getting us out of the mess, but sticking by our sides throughout the weekend. I know it helped keep my mind off of things. I couldn't ask for better friends!

For anyone interesting in running Holcomb Creek this year, double-think your actions. Do not go alone. Be very careful of the many ledges that put you off-camber. WEAR YOUR SEATBELT AT ALL TIMES. And even if you think, "Big Bear is safe, nothing will happen there," remember that even a very experienced driver like Rick can still make a small mistake there, and get into alot of trouble.

The main things I learned from this:

Always strap/tie down your cargo.
Always leave some food back at camp, so if something does happen on the trail, you're not left empty handed.
Purchase a roll cage, and
Be sure your seatbelts are worn properly and work properly.
Even if you are "just a passenger," don't let your mind wander on the trail. Pay attention, and follow your instincts. Your instincts will guide you through the event and keep you safe!

[paulhead]

Glad you guys are ok.

[Dukes69]

It could have been worse, indeed. Thankfully, Rick and Sarah are fine. The Jeep survived suprisingly well . . . just a few dents and dings and a broken windshield. Pretty amazing, all things considered.

On a side note: Holcomb, while not the toughest trail, is screwed up. Rick, Erik, Brian and I all have stated that there are certain parts of the trail that need some serious attention. Big Bear is border-line easy for us. I will argue to the death with anyone who has the balls to say that we need learn how to drive. No-one got hurt here, but what about the asshole in the unimog, drinking a beer and driving 6 kids around in the back WITH NO SEAT BELTS!. Lets wait for him to roll down the same hill, popping his children's heads open, KILLING them...till we fix the trail AND/or get it closed down. That is fuked! Wake up morons.

<Rant maybe off>

[king4wd2]

Glad to hear that Sarah, Rick and Jill Dog are okay.

Erik, nice avatar!!

[saki669]

Purchase a roll cage...

Sounds like you guys had some fun after we passed you on the trail! We'll actually have to get together sometime, and not just pass by.....

Glad everyone is OK!

[Navy-Jeepster]

Glad everyone is all right.

Good advice to all out on the trails.
We where up at Shaver lake, on Bald Mountain. Not a lot of people there.
Not sure how many where on Swamp trail though.
We did not see many jeeps in the area.

Glad you all had a good time, and everyone is safe.

Todd & Teresa
Navy-Jeepster
Gold Digger

[avnative]

Man!! sorry to hear what happend, but am glad to here that everybody is ok, The jeep can be replaced or fixed, but good people like rick and sarah (and the rest on this board) can never be replaced..

[cjdirtbiker]

What???

Rick and Sarah rolled???? WTF - Yikes!
Glad to hear you're both okay. This was Rick's or Sarah's jeep?

There are some pretty off-camber sections on the Sherman Pass trail we were on this weekend. They usually don't bother me but I had three passengers and only one other jeep. I was a little nervous.

Geez, I'm amazed. Holcomb Creek trail huh? Damn, I can't believe it.

[sarah]

Wild times, yes indeed. It was Rick's Jeep. Thanks for everyone's concerns.

The FS is asking for any photos we can give them. Please, if you have photos, please send them to me asap. Also, if you have any comments regarding this event, please also send them to me. Pm or email, your choice. Some of the info will make it to the club that has adopted the trail, via Old Fart.

Hopefully, we can get this part of the trail fixed.

[6Spyder]

I'm glad to hear Shara , Rick and Jill Dog are safe and its great to hear how MJR group helps out in situation like that great job to everyone. I haven't ran Holcomb Creek in a long time and I hope they fix the prolblems soon!!

Once again great job MJR!!

[bullseye]

hey guy sound like you had some excitement this weekend , glad that everbody is sofe and got all their fingers and toes , Rick and Sarah sorry to hear about your misfortune i will try to stop by later and check out the damage . sorry i missed it but i had a very busy weekend ,
by the way how was jill strapped in to the jeep ? just wondering

[RUBICONN]

Thank God you guys are ok!

Michael

[rick]

Thanks for everyone's concern for our safety. Now think about your own. I will reiterate one simple thing - get a proper rollcage before you screw around on the rocks. I don't want to be too much of a pessimist, but if you log enough trail hours, eventually something (whether in your control or not) will probably happen. I cannot believe the minimal damage the Jeep sustained in spite of the distance/slope of the hill we tumbled down. The body is mostly straight enough to put the hard top on thanks to Chris and Brian's help on Monday. I still need to do some careful inspection and measurements to ensure there's not axle bendage and/or frame cracks, but thus far I couldn't find anything other than sheetmetal damage.

Also, when you start pulling a wheelie on a sidehill, stop before I did. Honestly, I've lifted a front tire waaay higher in the air than I did when this happened and I'm still scratching my head over what it is about my suspension that contributed to this (aside from the obvious - height). I believe in part that having slightly longer rear bumpstops would have helped, but perhaps more importantly the weight on the rear of the vehicle was probably simply to great. The cantilevered rear bumper I had on did not help (gone already), nor did the fact that we had a full 40 quart cooler, many many tools, jerry can partly full of fuel (now I have a good reason to not fill it up), and miscellaneous other junk that probably was not really necessary on the trail. I think more careful attention to what is actually required to be in the back of the Jeep and perhaps coordination of shared tools will be on my agenda in the future. I usually carry so many tools that I could completely rebuild a transmission on the trial, and that is going to change. Driveline tools and that's about it will be going with us from now on.

And yes, there are a few areas on that trail that could use some attention to reduce the "pucker factor", but like I said, I have been in much worse situations and not flopped it over. So I'm writing this one off to operator error. I believe if I had not experienced so many instances when I lifted a front tire I never would have had the (false) confidence that I did when I assumed it would not roll over. Call it a learning experience, call it stupidity, hell even call it crappy driving, but I still know one thing - it happened so fast and unexpectedly that I challenge anyone, regardless of wheeling experience, to tell me that they feel safe without all of the above mentioned precautions and safety gear (cage especially). Keep that in mind the next time you are out, especially if you are still holding off on that cage or if you think you simply don't wheel "hard enough" to even need one... That cage could very well have saved our lives.

Rick :shades: