Page updated: 04/16/2004 11:50 PM
Don't Go To Moab!
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For weeks, the voices in my head kept
telling me, "Don't go to Moab!" I guess I'm too stubborn to
even listen to myself... |
| So far this trip has been one for the books. The
voices in my head have been saying "Don't go to Moab" for the past three
weeks...yet, we went anyway! It all started with a pretty simple
miscalculation on my part. A week before we were to leave for
Moab, I realized that I didn't have the two weeks to work on things that
I thought I had. Thus began the race against time...Al vs. Moab. The first and foremost task was getting the CJ smogged and registered. Now, understand that I could have taken the YJ...and considered it many times, however, doing so would eliminate the ability for us to take our dog. So, the CJ it was. |
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| The CJ's smog history is an interesting one. I
purchased the rig after it had been sitting for a good couple years.
Over the past few months I'd been lazily acquiring various parts in
order to make it smog legal. I've also been lazily trying to get
it to pass smog. Before all the smog gear was plugged in, it
passed smog with flying colors...but failed the visual. After
plugging in all the smog gear, I suddenly became a gross polluter.
Someone remind me how this makes sense again? Sitting on the shelf
is a Holley ProJection kit waiting for installation, but, of course,
that's not legal either...regardless of how much cleaner it would make
the system run. Anyway, after having an obnoxiously loud exhaust
leak at the header fixed at a muffler joint, the shop started working on
it the Monday before we were to leave. The Jeep was running
insanely rich and I was told a couple days would suffice, and could
probably pick it up on Wednesday. I also worked it out so that
when I came to get the CJ, I'd drop off the Suburban and have some work
done to it, pick it up on Friday so we could leave Saturday. Ahhh, the 'Burb. Check engine light, failing transmission, leaking radiator, brakes squealing. The previous weekend was spent replacing the TH400 Transmission. I managed to lose my 2nd gear braking in the other tranny, this being only 1.5 years after the last rebuild. <rolls eyes> So, we put the new one in (thanks to the help of many friends and Bud's garage) and that actually seemed to cure the check engine light as well as the obvious tranny issues. <shrug> Don't ask me, I'm not complaining though. So, that left brakes and the radiator...piece of cake. Tuesday rolls around and I check up on the CJ. The guy says he's played with it a bit, but "things keep coming up" and that he's going to be able to spend some time with it later. Oh oh... "Don't go to Moab..." I hear whispering in the wind. Talk to him on Wednesday. Similar situation, has "played with it" but hasn't really been able to dig in. Also says there's no way he can get to the Burb, at all. Wrench in plans... I remind him that it's imperative that I get this Jeep back EARLY Friday so I can take it to another shop to get it smogged (he also told me the rig was apparently a Test Only vehicle...something I wasn't aware of). No problem he says. Meanwhile, I take the Burb to another shop in the area to check out the brakes and radiator. I'm told them I had to have it by Friday, and they said it would be easy...no problem. At this point I'm skeptical about everything, to say the least. I get a call within a couple hours saying the brakes are fine (70% left). I'm shocked, figured I'd burnt up way more than that...but happy. I'll deal with the squeal! The radiator's cracked and is on it's way to the radiator shop to see if it can be repaired or if it needs replacing. I remind them of my schedule, and they respond as confidently as before. I'm still skeptical. A couple hours later I get a call saying that it could be fixed, but they recommend replacing it. The prices are so close to each other, that I go ahead and have them put a new one in. By the end of the same day, I have my Burb back! Whoooo! Something that went right, I'm a happy guy. While all the Burb stuff is going on, I take the YJ (sometimes it's good to have three vehicles) and decide to stop in on the Jeep guy to see what's going on. After conversing for a while, he says he's going to get to the carburetor tomorrow and wasn't very convincing about being able to complete it before the end of the day. I reminded him that I HAD to have the rig by tomorrow, and he almost seemed surprised. I continued to explain that the whole reason I brought it in to him the first day of the week was so that this would get taken care of. He then says he'll start taking the carburetor apart tonight and get it figured out in the morning... I'm now officially a babysitter! It's Friday, I take the Burb up to Bud's place to return his video camera (see the CalROCS videos!). B.S. with him for a while and on my way back I give the shop a call... He's working on it, and making progress. Says it'll be a couple more hours. This is around Noon or so. On the way home I try to find some lug nuts for the Burb, because the shop that worked on the Burb shattered one of them and I was missing two already. Can't find the same style to save my life. They have a shoulder that goes over the threads...this shoulder is what the wheel rests on. Weird setup, but whatever. I think it's kind of old-school truck. Also decide to try and figure out my speedo gear situation. Oh, did I not mention this one? When we swapped out the tranny, the speedo gear the place I got the tranny from was apparently the wrong one. I was reading about 85 when I was doing 70. So, I decided I was going to put my old one back in from the original tranny. I let the rig cool a bit and had at it. Drive off for a quick test...nothing. No speedo reading! Hmmm...I take it all back apart and realize the original gear has a smaller diameter than the one that was reading wrong. It then dawns on me that I have my original housing for the gear in the garage, maybe it's different than the one they put in with the wrong gear? I'll be damned, it is...it's built to position the smaller gear closer to the matching gear inside the transmission! So, I slap the old housing and old gear into the new tranny and drive off. Damnit! It's reading the SAME as the new one! Way too fast. It appears that the gear inside the trans is considerably different. After a phone call with a speedo shop, he tells me they may not make a gear small enough to match up with the one in there to get the right reading. Great! <shakes head> I'll use my GPS for a speedo! After all this, I suddenly notice that it's 3:30 PM. I have heard nothing from the guy with my Jeep. Friday traffic is winding up quickly, and I'm 10 miles (side roads) from my CJ. The Test Only smog shop is right near my house and they close at 5 PM! I get on the phone, and he says he's buttoning up the rig right now...it's running good and is passing! I race out there, as fast as I can in bumper-to-bumper traffic, re-attach the CJ to the Burb so I can tow it to the Smog shop (nice feature when you don't have a 2nd person to take you there). I pull into the smog shop at 4:50 PM. Apparently they close at 5:30 PM, so I wasn't as close to the deadline as I thought. Regardless, it passes considerably well and I'm on my way home. Throughout this Friday from hell, I manage to forget to pick up my dry cleaning...which has a shirt that I'm wearing to a wedding that is on Saturday. The dry cleaners are closed, and not open the next day. Doh! See, the whole reason we have to leave Saturday morning is so that we can get to Megan's friends' wedding in Los Angeles that same evening. After getting the rig back, I park it in the garage and shake my head over all the work that needs to be done to it before we can leave. See, I expected to have it back on Wednesday...but, instead, I have it back the night before we're leaving. It's 5:30 PM. After repeatedly shooing off the voices in my head, 3:00 AM rolls around and I've finished doing everything I need. We're getting up at 7:00 AM to hit the road. Wheee! Tasks for Saturday: Stop by Mom and Dad's to give them a key so they can take care of the cat when we're gone. Go to a dog sitter in LA, drop off the pup at Noon (when they close). Stop by AAA in Los Angeles before 2:00 PM (when they close) so we can register the CJ now that it's smogged. Go to resort where the wedding is taking place, take a nap, go to wedding at 7:00 PM. Results of Saturday: Manage to make it to the dog sitters at about 11:50 AM. No joke. Make our way to the wrong AAA (that was closed), and then go the wrong way on the freeway heading towards the correct one. After being on hold (while driving the wrong way) we finally get in touch with someone that advises us of our directionally challenged situation. We flip a beotch and I'm haulin' booty back the other way. Oh...by the way, the Burb...with the brand new radiator...is running consistenly hot, especially on climbs. We're told we're 30 minutes away from the AAA we need to be at, and we have 20 minutes before it closes. Fast forward, and we pull in no more than a couple minutes before the bell tolls. Broke some land-speed records in the process. Registered, and tagged...we head out for some food and a seriously overdue nap. Megan fell asleep in the bath tub, wakes up and crashes next to me on the bed. Later, I'm woken up by a disoriented and slightly disgruntled girlfriend telling me we have 25 minutes to get the the wedding. We made that, just in time. Blah, blah, blah...on to the rest of the road trip. Virgin River Gorge, and a dead Jeep! Yup. No juice. Measuring good (well, OK) voltage...something like 10V. Figured that'd be enough to make a peep or something, but, I get nothing out of the dual Optimas. Tried jumping it, but it's not helping much. Tired of dealing with issues and last-second situations, so, I'll deal with it when we get to Moab. Yes, the voice are still telling me to turn back and go home after half-way through the trip. |
Stop by Napa to pick up some basics that I managed to forget at home (air fittings, air gauge, driveshaft u-bolts I left on top of the Jeep as we left the dog shop, blah, blah). As I walk out of Napa, something catches my eye. I realize that I've lost four bolts to my right front beadlock. Great. Somehow, I managed to shear off four grade-8 bolts. Go to a local shop, and a great kid helped me with air tools/jacks, etc. Got the spare on and headed off towards St. George. We were on our way to the Toyo tire shop, since they helped us on the way out to Moab last year. Luck had it, they had an 8-lug, 15"x12" wheel in the back "junk" yard and mounted (and balanced) the 35" SX on the new wheel for me. Don't need a beadlock for a spare anyway, right? On the road...again! What lies ahead? It's late when we get in, and we unpack. Bump into Jody and Sarah Everding, as they're apparently just a couple rooms down from us...we chat for a bit and talk about various trails and stuff going on. After doing so, I get on the Jeep and have the Burb power it up for a bit. After a while, my happy oil light comes on in the cab. Hey! Making progress...maybe the dual Optimas are just taking a while to charge. Finally get the engine to start turning and Megan comes out to tell me to leave the sleeping neighbors alone, since it's after 11:00 PM. Ok, I'll deal with it in the morning. Found a business card from CMeTopless on my windshield when I wake up in the morning, apparently she's in the same hotel too! Charging the rig up again in the morning, I get it to crank over. Blast around Moab for a while and let the alternator do it's thing. Rig's running solid, I park it and we get lunch with Megan's parents (Barney and Karen) who are also in town. Go back to the rig, and the batteries are holding charge. Appears that I must have turned the key too far forward and killed the battery on the way out... Anyway, it's good news. The four of us decide to head up to Dead Horse for a bit of a "dry run" for the CJ to make sure she's REALLY running good. Megan and I in the CJ, Barney and Karen in their newly lifted TJ. |
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| The road's mildly rocky, but the CJ's taking it like
we're riding over railroad ties! So, we air down and that helps
some. Crummy shocks, too much air, and a ridiculously poor
traction bar setup in the back account for a majority of the really bad
ride. Something to deal with another day... We stop after a
good 30-35 miles of driving, freeway and trail, to check out the sights.
On our way out, the CJ sputters a bit...then won't hold any RPM's.
Eventually it starts running, and we continue up Shaffer Trail.
There's a section of it that's got a lot of switchbacks...I mean, a LOT
of them. Big drop offs too! I'm lovin' it, Megan's hatin'
it! Then it happens again. Sputter, and eventually dies.
No joy getting it running again, so Barney straps me up the rest of
these switchbacks. There were a couple tough corners to make, but
by shortening the strap he managed to pull me all the way to the top.
At this point, I'm just wishing we would have brought the YJ and left
the pup at home. It's become readily apparent this vehicles is not
ready for Moab, or any trail for that matter. A drizzle starts, and I decide I want to try and get this thing started instead of just strapping me the remaining 31 miles back to Moab. Fumble around with some stuff, pull the air filter and play with the carb. Barney gets in and hammers on the gas to see if she'll fire. After a bit of sputtering, she revs up and runs like a champ. We're on our way home. I stop to check out a view point and on the way out, the rig starts sputtering again. Barney mentions "heat" being an issue because it's happening every time we stop for a little bit. The rig gets warmer 'cause the fan's no longer running...then we take off. The bells begin to ding in my head, temporarily obscuring the "Don't go to Moab" chanting that continues despite the fact that I'm already there. The dinging bells remind me that I had the guy working on the smog situation put in a thermostat, since there wasn't one in the rig at the time. I couldn't get the rig to run hotter than 150 prior to this...and now it's been sitting pretty consistently at 200 during normal conditions, higher during stress. I'm wondering at this point if he didn't put the wrong thermostat in, instead of the 180 degree one I requested. The rig sputtered again after stopping to make a right turn onto another freeway. Definitely something going on regarding heat... After getting to the hotel, we unpack and head out for dinner. Wednesday is fix-the-damn-Jeep day. Yes, it's become a "damn" Jeep. Brad Kilby and his cohort Valentine graciously offer up their help for the day, since they have nothing planned. I drive the CJ over, and we're on it. The t-case/tranny cross-mount (the one that stops twist) ripped a hole in my frame, so we needed to fix that. Valentine was going to be the man for this job. As well, the temperature situation needed to be fixed, so we pulled the thermostat. There was a 195 in there, instead of the 180 I requested from the shop. Super. Wonder why it was running so hot? So, off to CarQuest to get a new thermostat and Moab Offroad to get some metal for the cross-mount. |
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| Just outside of the CarQuest was the Jeep display...lots of incredible one-off rigs (including a TJ with a Hemi, a very well built Unlimited, one of the three official Tomb Raider rigs) and various other very nice looking vehicles I'd love to have in my driveway. Brad introduces me to Jeep engineer Dave Yegge...who, ironically, I've known since college! Small world. We chat for a bit, and it's off to get some parts. On the way out, I run into Mark DiPonio, who I knew from high school! Small world? He's working for Quality Metalcraft doing a bunch of custom stuff for Jeep / AEV. Very cool products...wish I had some pictures. |
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| Distractions and reunitings aside, I picked up a 160
and a 180 thermostat, and decided to put the 160 in to eliminate all
doubt of a temperature issue. In the meantime, Valentine started
working on plating the hole in the frame and re-welding the cross-mount
to the new plate. Then, the rains came. We packed everything
up and started drinking beers and watching Terminator 3. More
rain, more rain...then, the sun started breaking through. A slight
buzz and no lunch later, we got back to work on the rig. I ripped
out the driver side traction bar, since having two on the vehicle
obviously means no flex and a stiff ride. Valentine finished up
the welding, and I buttoned the engine back up. Filled the
radiator back up and fired her...fired her...fired...oh crap.
She's not starting. Cranks all day long, but no start. Damn
Jeep. So, we start debugging. Luckily, Cole Ford from Rockcrawler.com happened to stop by and has some of the very same MSD components that I've got in the CJ and he knew a couple things about them. After finding minimal spark coming out of my coil and plenty of gas going to the carb (and squirting out of it onto the engine...yes, we fixed that too), we started trying to figure out where the weak spot was. We swapped a few parts between rigs to determine what was working, and what was not... After many cross-wirings, jumpered wires, and engine cranks (not to mention clenched teeth fearing electrical shock)...it turned out that the coil was shot. Back to our friends at CarQuest, thanks for the ride Cole! Didn't run into any long-lost friends this time, but did manage to pay way too much for a coil. Gotta love the EJS pricing schedule. We figure we must have fried it while welding on the frame. Go figure. Plugged the new coil in, and she fired right up. WHOOOO! Ran the hell out of it South of Moab for a while...stopped, ran the hell out of it back to Moab...stopped for gas...and ran it back to the hotel. No issues, running solid. Al's happy again, and so's the Jeep. For now...? Anyway, we went to dinner with Megan's parents, Brad, Valentine, and Cole. Then met up with a Jeep engineer (Jim Repp), Kilby and crew at Moab Brewery...had some more beers and called it a night. So, it's Thursday and it's the first day of the vendor showcase down at the arena. Megan and I mosey our way down there in the morning to start peddling my upcoming Aholics.com storefront systems, and spend a good three hours there meeting and greeting. Off to lunch with Barney and Karen, and then back to the room. Megan crashes and I take a ride out in the Jeep to assure everything's working as expected. Went out and played around the Dump Bump / Hell's Revenge area and was happy with how the CJ worked. The goal is to hit Pritchett Canyon on Friday...we'll see if that actually happens! Brad and the Jeep folks co-sponsored a BBQ (affectionately known as a RedNeck.com BBQ) at Brad's swank-ass motorhome spot just South of town that night. What is a RedNeck.com Gathering, you ask? In the words of Jim Repp:
All kinds of Jeep employees of various flavors, Moab local legends, and various other "off-road celebrities" stopped by for burgers, hot dogs, carne asada, Cole-garitas (mmmmm...), beer, wine, and good company. Had a great time out there yappin' with everyone, and sharing old war stories from my days back when I used to work for Jeep! |
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| So, ever since last year I've been wanting to do Pritchett Canyon. Didn't get to last year due to various complications with the YJ... So, I talk to Brad Kilby about it Thursday night, and he's game. Friday morning, twelve of us gather at the Moab Diner (best freakin' green chile sauce ANYWHERE) for breakfast. Megan's sister Andi Kay, her husband KC (trail leader for Hell Roaring Rim) and kids Katey and Masey, Karen and Barney, as well as Megan's friend Cybil and her kid Sage, Brad Kilby and Valentine. We chow, then Brad, Valentine, Megan and I head out on our way to Pritchett. |
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| Pritchett sure seemed like it would have been a fun trail, if everybody in Moab wasn't already on it! We managed to run it from beginning to end, and back to beginning. We missed out on all the fun steps and obstacles at the end because there were 56 vehicles IN FRONT of us. Yes, I counted. So, instead of sitting around for 5 hours waiting for everyone to try and get through...we decide to go wheeling and head back. When we get to the beginning of the trail, there are 22 rigs trying to get up the drop off. So, we wait some more. The rest of the trail is pretty minimal from a 5+ trail-rating standpoint. There's a double step mid-way through the trail which had another pile of folks waiting in line for it, so we took the bypass, which...was a tough one. Brad made it through fine, but I needed a strap. The combination of big Dana 70 rear end, little 35" tires, and full-width (plus) axles forced my rear diff into a rock no matter what line I took. So, Brad gave me a little tug with a strap and I got made fun of by my girlfriend <sniff> ! On the way out we bumped into Jody Everding parked just off the trail with a broken tie-rod end and busted front driveshaft. Oh yeah, he lost his cell phone three times that weekend. The third time was permanent! At least, that was his excuse for not calling me back the day before! Hung out with him and Sarah for a bit while they waited for Rick to come back with parts. Due to the congestion trying to get out, they ended up walking the parts back to him. |
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| After a few beers at the Moab Brewery, I checked some
fluids in the rig, and we headed out to the raffle. Andi/KC won a
set of top-of-the-line Bestop seats which they ended up giving to a
friend (BR), and Karen snagged a T-Shirt after body-checking a few
bystanders out of the way (kidding...!) We called it an early
night so we could get ready for Hell Roaring Rim in the morning. So, it's Big Saturday. It's 7:30 AM, the dog has woken us up twice in the middle of the night puking, and we're exhausted. Let's go wheelin'! If you've got no idea what "Big Saturday" means, it's something you should at least see once in your life. Every trail in Moab has a crew that heads out at precisely the same time Saturday morning. The streets of Moab are shut down by local police, and each trail has a "side street" that they line up in anticipation of riding down Main street on the way to their trail. Hundreds of folks get up just to watch all the rigs head on out, as if it were a parade of sorts. The 9:00 AM bell tolls, and the first crew heads out...then the next...and so on...until the streets of Moab are empty, and regular traffic is allowed to resume. |
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| Andi and KC are trail leaders for Hell Roaring Rim, and have been for a number of years. It's not exactly your most difficult trail, but the scenery is incredible! After zipping around a sand hill, some rocks and dirt trails, we came across two overlooks with MASSIVE drop-offs and incredible views of the Green River hundreds of feet directly below us. If you've got any hint of vertigo, it'll come screaming into your senses very quickly! On our way out we made our way through Longs Canyon... Aside from the sheer beauty of the entire drive down it, there's a really cool rock that fell a couple years ago into the road that you actually to drive under! |
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| Somewhere along the way on this trail, Barney dubbed my CJ as a "Praying Mantis". Resemblance? I can see it! Might have some competition for naming, as "The Hulk" has been the uncontested candidate thus far... Figures, I have my YJ since 1996 and it goes without a name...while the CJ ends up with two in five months! You be the judge... |
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| Grab the crew, grab some dinner, and grab some sleep after a long but fun day. The dog was up again sick all night...and Megan woke up sick, apparently inhaling the entire trail into her sinuses. After an Easter morning breakfast at Denny's, we decide to head home a day early since Megan and the pooch aren't doing so well. |
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| Strangely enough, on the way home we ran into the exact
same issue that happened on the way out with another beadlock. It
was the spare that was put on the same right-front. As we walked
out of the McDonald's near Victorville, I noticed the right front was
flat. As I'm grabbing my air gear, Megan says that four bolts are
missing. Argh... After realizing I didn't have the 1-1/16"
socket requied to pull the tire (duh), I put my jack away and we drove
20 feet to a local shop that was open. We swapped in the non-beadlock
wheel from the trip out to Moab and headed home. Did I mention I
picked up a sore throat too? The voices may have been telling me one thing, but we managed to survive despite them. Don't go to Moab? Not if I can help it! |
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Click here to view ALL of the pictures taken during this trip |
