NEW Rock Run Park

So a few of us rock raiders ventured up to the Rock Run Park. It was mostly the Rough Riders with myself, Matt, Nick, and Kat. Saturday it rained like you wouldn't believe. We were glad we took the blue/black route. Our guide was good about picking the appropriate trails to challenge all of us. we had about 12 vehicles in the group. Very interesting terrain. there were a lot of hill climbs, humps in the trail, rock gardens and enough to keep it interesting. if it were dry it would be a good trip for vehicles on 33" tires but when wet it was tough on everyone. there was a lot of 2nd and 3rd gear hills while bouncing off the rev limiter because of the wet leaves and mud. Sunday we tried Guru after sitting in the blue/black line for a couple hours not making much progress because of all the little jeeps. we teamed up with a guide in the back of the pack and hit a Black/Red trail. definitely a red trail in the rain. there were a lot of obstacles that reminded us of Whompum and voodoo but with mud and wet leaves. Lots of Winching. Oh yeah and my rear ARB locker is still not working. busted my track bar mount off the front axle. Again it was a rock Krawler brand product and it didn't bust at the weld. It sheared the 1/4" metal in half. Needless to say I had to evacuate the shortest way out and limp back to the trailer. Matt and Nick finished the trail and exercised the winches heavily. I'd like to go back when I get the rear locker replaced and get the track bar mount rebuild. I think I'll gusset my control arm mounts while I'm at it.

It was an awesome trip. Saturday was a different kind of wheeling that I haven't done in a while. It was VERY wet and required massive amounts of throttle!! The Guru trail we ran today was badass. Easily more difficult than Otter's trail at Rausch. Actually I think it's harder than any trail i've ever ran at Rausch.

I think some more traffic through there will bring the difficulty level down to a more enjoyable level with less winching! The last rig we had through it ended up clearing very smoothly since we found a clean line. It was frustrating after a while though because it was constantly catching both diffs. You knew where you didn't want to go but the slick rocks made holding lines a constant battle. On the last leg of it I just started crashing my way through then winching - we were all spent and just wanted to get out of that trail since it was 4:30 already. We started it around noon and didn't finish till 5.

My highlight of the day was almost flopping on matt...he moved pretty damn fast! You'll see the one pic with my back right skying pretty high. That was probably one of the coolest parts of the trail where you rode a slim rock and dropped off a 3-4 ft ledge.

Pictures are uploading. I'm not sure if the video will go through on Picasa but if it does there's video of Bill doing an awesome hill climb. It looked like a fun ride!!

I'll post a pic link once it's up.

There are the pics...they're not very organized and there is a lot of the same thing but there are some good ones in there. The pictures don't even come close to doing that trail justice!

http://picasaweb.google.com/njf128/RockRun_10_2526_08#

Thank you for the pictures, looks like a great time and challenging time was had by all.

Hey guys. Thanks for coming up to Rock Run. I hope we met your expectations, and you had a good time. We've been working our tails off to get a nice trail network up there, and we're working to double the trail network soon.
Saturday was the first trail ride we've had there in a monsoon. We've had snow, but never anything like that. It's a whole different place when it's dry.
I'm glad you liked the Guru trail. I'm the crazy man that laid that one out. When we went back to clear it, the people helping me cut it thought I was insane; that was the compliment I was hoping for. It's really becoming a great trail. The first time we ran it, all of the rocks had a solid 3" of moss and roots on them. Everyone had to winch and bounce off the rev limiter. The more we run it, the slimy stuff gets washed away.
Did y'all get to see any of White Knuckle and Overpass?

we did not get to see the other trails. We sat in line with the smaller jeeps for about 3 hours sun morning and then Rob turned us around to head back out the way we came to run Guru and the day was saved. It is a really great trail and I look forward to going back when it is not so wet. I had to winch out at the up hill climb portion due to a broken front track bar mount. Saturday we ran the "lighter" trail but it turned out to be a good run with lots of challenges due to the rain. Dry 33" tires is fine without lockers, wet 35" tires with two lockers and a winch. I look forward to coming back next spring.

Hey dan...AWESOME trail. I wish you could have seen my reaction when I saw it. We were moving at a snails pace through that zig zag trail and while we were waiting Bill and Matt discovered Guru. They called me over and I crawled through to brush and popped out to that and Matt said I had a smile ear to ear. We got the ok from the tailgunner and the guide and we were heading for that trail like giddy school girls!!

Rick in the CJ made some comment like "i think dan wanted to see how many rigs could defy gravity on this trail". It was a blast. Next time we need an earlier start and time to run the second exit with the pink markers. I do agree with you that the trail will become better and better.

This is an awesome property and there seems to be HUGE potential. I can't wait to see what you come up with next! We didn't get to see White Knuckle or Overpass - any pics?

Locked_N_Loaded wrote:

Hey dan...AWESOME trail. I wish you could have seen my reaction when I saw it. We were moving at a snails pace through that zig zag trail and while we were waiting Bill and Matt discovered Guru. They called me over and I crawled through to brush and popped out to that and Matt said I had a smile ear to ear. We got the ok from the tailgunner and the guide and we were heading for that trail like giddy school girls!!

Rick in the CJ made some comment like "i think dan wanted to see how many rigs could defy gravity on this trail". It was a blast. Next time we need an earlier start and time to run the second exit with the pink markers. I do agree with you that the trail will become better and better.

This is an awesome property and there seems to be HUGE potential. I can't wait to see what you come up with next! We didn't get to see White Knuckle or Overpass - any pics?

Excellent. Glad you got to run that one. The zig zag trail is called Sidewinder. We originally called it Power Steering Pump. lol

Here are some pics we took a few weeks ago.

Jeremy on White Knuckle - He is on 42s to give some sense of scale.




Me on White Knuckle...smokin' the stickies


Brandon on White Knuckle





Jeremy on Guru

I had a great time. Cant wait to go back. Now I have to figure out why my lights come on when I bounce the engine off the rev-limiter which happend a lot this weekend. Nick thanks for finding the cabin it made the week end even better. It was nice to be able to take a shower after being the rain all day. By the way there are some easy trails there so it can be fun for all, not just "rough riders." so don't be scared.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXpNQ75cY1M

There is the video of bill climbing the hill near the lunch spot. 3rd gear full throttle = very entertaining!!

Hey dan, how did the black/red group end up on saturday?

Locked_N_Loaded wrote:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXpNQ75cY1M

There is the video of bill climbing the hill near the lunch spot. 3rd gear full throttle = very entertaining!!

Hey dan, how did the black/red group end up on saturday?

They did pretty well. They're a super experienced group with capable rigs with big tires. I've run Guru more than anyone, so I know the little tricks to get rigs through the tricky spots. We ran Guru, Sidewinder, tried White Knuckle, then Overlook. They covered it pretty well.

Overall, good trip?

Looks like you guys had a good time. Also looks like you found a new place to go to once in awhile to switch it up.

How was the house you stayed at ?

Cant wait to go for a ride soon. I have not been out after ADA.

To much work no time ,everybody wants power (cry babys). It should slow down now Im ready to go (on sundays after all it is archery season here in PA).

The house was great...it would have been a miserable weekend without it!

The house was a great idea. Camping would have been freezing cold this time of year. so much nicer to go back after wheeling and take a hot shower, hang around the fire or TV and socialize while comfortable. The property is comparable in size to Rausch but only like 5 miles of trails have been cut so far. what has been cut has been divided between Black/Red and Blue/Black. Looking through the woods while wheeling there is a lot of really awesome terrain to use so I know only good things will come in time. This is especially true because the people setting it up know what they are doing and are taking it to the next level. I would like to see them organize the check in a little better even if it is a sign for people to line up behind when they are ready and have better communication through the trail ride (CB would be all that is needed there).

BTW...my shoulder is finally starting to feel better today. Free spooling cable is a work out after a while! I'll never forget that trail!! I'm still seeing the clean lines through it and tricks to making it when i try to go to sleep. I think i have issues

That funny, but I do the same thing. I think we all need redemption.

I agree. I need to weld gussetts on all the remaining Rock Krawler brand products before I go back though. I'll build my own track bar mount but can't start on that til this weekend. Redemption Run at Rock Run Park.... Coming soon......