TSF Day Trippin': 2/20

[TORX]

With it being my birthday weekend this year, all I wanted to do was get out and wheel some trails. The plan was to meet up Saturday for a simple day trip out to TSF. When Saturday morning came around, half the group had already bailed. :looser:

I knew a few folks were still committed so I loaded up, and headed to Rogers Camp for the 0900 rendezvous. Damon (Zsport) was already there taking care of the morning air down duties. Shortly after, Joe and Lloyd rolled in, and lastly Comanche Dan arrived. Solid group.

We headed out for the trails 0930. Sun was out, and a fresh dusting of snow covered the area making for some perfect conditions.

Started the day warming up with a little Cedar Tree action.

Joe.

Damon and his XJ Dan dubbed "the Pitbull"

FB5, first section.

MJ Dan getting ready to peel out.

Headed up to the second hill climb which is becoming a monster obstacle by itself. Deep holes, big undercuts, loose rock, and peanut butter mud. I slammed down on my front bumper backing off a ledge (which is a great example of how deep the holes are getting), which in turn readjusted my mechanical fan to winch clearance for the worse. Massaged the bent blade with my Leatherman, and we were back in business. (photo by dan)

With some great spotting by Dan, I got my jalopy up the trail clawing for every inch of ground. Good times! Group of Toyota's passing by. The rest of our group wisely bypassed as we had more wheeling to do!

We continued on up the second and third sections. Dan put the pedal down on the third sections and warmed up his Fox's leaving me in his dust. That little pickup truck scoots!

Threading the needle through some trees.

Bringing up the tail. (photo by dan)

Passing by Crushers, as the snow deepened.

 

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We BS'd for a bit above Crusher's, and then started breaking trail over Saddle Up. (photo by dan)

Dan coming through the top filter.

Lloyd.

Exiting the bottom filter. Saddle Up has become a pretty fun trail. It would have been a challenge to run it from the bottom to top in those conditions. Next time!

From Saddle Up we rallied over the top, and headed up the moderate side of 7-Up breaking trail the whole way up. That was not a fuel efficient trail.

Poser.

Dropped down to go run good ole Hogsback. Casey met us in the staging area, and asked if he could tag along for the day.

The Pitbull.

Lloyd.

Dan using his extra length he was gifted with.

I had my sights set on ending the day at Waterfall. From Hogsback we hopped on Archers and ran it at a good pace to Waterfall.

Joe had a good run through the filter.

 

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Casey.

Dan was the first one through the filter, and opted to try the left side ledges first. They were slick, but he gave them a valiant effort making it about half way up. (photo by mrs.dan)

In the end it just wasn't happening. Traction just wasn't there, and a little too much overhang out back.

Dan was determined to get up under his own power, so he backed down and tried the right side corner instead. You can see his fresh battle scar on the bedside corner.

Peeling out, what Dan does best.

Lloyd had a quick run up, I didn't even have time to focus.

Joe had a good line going up, but unfortunately got wedged up against the stump. One tail light later...

While Joe was working his way up, I decided to put some tires on the center face. This pretty much sums up that line.

Another ~8-10" of wheelbase, and a front suck down would have been the ticket. Since I was already on the face, I decided to winch up for "practice". (photo by dan)

I didn't want to end my day on the rope, so I dropped back down the ledges, and finished the day off with a fun run up the right side corner. We all called it a day from there, and headed back to Rogers to put some air back in the tires.

Thanks to all who made it out. Great conditions, fun trails, and good people!

 

[Dan3540toys]

Dude great day of wheeling Dustin. And your trip reports are awesome. Spot on the money recall of the day. I fixed the little bit of body damage and she's all happy. When are we going again? Let's hit up hoodoo ohv area next!

 

[rookies]

I had a great time, the weather was a little bit of everything from sun to rain to snow back to sun. The trails where plenty challenging. The wheeling had a great variety also, from mud to snow. You could not ask for mutch more. Not mutch carnage other than sheet metal and plastic.

Dustin. Did you figure out what the problem was with you fan?

Joe

 

[TORX]

Dustin. Did you figure out what the problem was with you fan?

Joe

I haven't looked in depth at it yet. Looking back at my winch mount build, tolerances were a bit tight. LINK.

I had about a half an inch of clearance between my fan and winch. Since then I've built new block brackets for the motor, which might have altered that dimension by a little. I never checked for sure.

When I dropped off that rock and landed on the bumper, my hunch is that the drivetrain moved enough for one blade to contact and get bent out of shape. It was the type of hit where I flinched from inside the cab. Once I got that single blade bent back enough to clear, I was golden the rest of the day. I'll take a closer look at and see what I come up with.

Although, this setup is very intriguing. The price tag, not so much.
https://www.flex-a-lite.com/radiato...nd-electric-fans-for-87-01-jeep-cherokee.html