Our St. Patrick’s Day was out for our first time with our 2016 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Backcountry edition for our first off-roading experience. Our intent with the purchase of the Jeep was really convenience in being able to flat tow it behind the motorhome. We have always enjoyed getting off of the beaten path with our trucks and sometimes we pushed it a little too far. We had an opportunity as part of the RV Entrepreneur Summit, that we are attending this week, to join a group of seven other 4x4s crawling the Stoney Lonesome OHV Park including explorateurs.us and jeepsies.com
We earned our first badge of honor from Jeep for our ride on trail 404. Badge of honor trails exist all over the United States, trails certified by Jeep as having certain types of difficulties. This program is exclusive to Jeeps and encourages getting them out on the trail. We are waiting for the physical badge to show in the mail so we can proudly display it on the side of our Jeep. This certified trail came at the end of our day, it honestly did not seem as exciting or as difficult as some of the trails we were on before that.
We did provide some excitement to the group at one point, Jason made an early turn taking us into a deep muddy pool of water. Fortunately, the trail lead aligned the rigs by their skills and technical capabilities. Our new friends Scott and JJ were behind us so they could pull and were able to tug us out with a winch and tow strap easily. No harm to the Jeep beside some embedded mud in and on the Blue Ox towing plate. No feet even got wet in the entire ordeal.
The entire day has brought comradery to everyone that we spent with through the day. A new bond among other full-time RVers that we have shared throughout our time here. This event has given us more confidence in our and our Jeep’s abilities, even though it may be stock it does have some good factory add ons that make it more suitable for the trail.
Our Jeep’s specifications:
- 2016 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Backcountry 4×4 24X Edition
- 3.6-Liter V6 24-Valve VVT Engine
- Dana 44 Heavy Duty Rear Axle
- Dana 30 Solid Front Axle
- Transfer case skid plate
- Fuel tank skid plate
- Backcountry Edition 24X
- 17-inch x 7.5-inch black painted alum Moab wheels
- Trac-Lok differential rear axle
- LT265/70R17C KO2 tires
- Rock rails
- 5-speed automatic transmission
- 3.73 front/rear axle ratios
There will be plenty of add-ons to come. It was clear that we are short, we need to evaluate raising our profile. What we need to do is determine what our goal is for what we want the Jeep to do for us. It is our only vehicle outside of the motor home, but without it being a daily driver to work we can be more flexible in the off-road capabilities. We can spend thousands of wasted dollars without a plan for the outcome and a roadmap on how to get there.
Thank you to also new rider friends for the photos: https://www.facebook.com/larry.macy.71 https://www.facebook.com/jen.w.kemper
Were the events after hours or did you have to take time off to go?
This event was an all day Sunday event. There have been attendee led events, like this one, all week. The RVE Summit sessions started Thursday at 1pm, then all day Friday, sat and sun. The schedule is meant to be a business day event like a professional conference with responsible social hours in the evening sponsored by corporates. So far a great event!