Westbound and Down: The LGAA planning thread

BahahaI know, right? No biggie.

 

Just think of the stories we will have. Dude do you remember when so and so died on the trip to Colorado? Yeah he really sent it, right off the side of a mountain it was epic!

 

Let's just hope it's not one of us!

 

Morrison isn't bad but should not be taken lightly. 2 people died on it this year...not kidding. Just pay attention and you'll be fine. Which shouldn't be an issue given you're on a cliff most the time so the adrenaline is flowing good!

Anything bigger then a 1st gen had better be ready for body damage. Some of the corners have gotten bad.

Otherwise you should have no problems!

 

I remember one of your trip reports was going up some super gnarly switchbacks. Which trail was that? I couldn't find the thread.

 

That was Morrison.

Trip report for The S.O.S. Report https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/the-sos-report-the-full-story.348932/

Chapter 3 is Morrison.

Was a nuts day for a lot of reasons. But that trail kicked our ass that day. I'd run it the year before with no issues.

It's more beat up now. But after the couple died this year someone was supposed to do some road maintenance on it. Haven't been on it since then.

 

Wow. Such a good write up/trip report. I guess the questions I have if you don’t mind asking. Are dclb up to the task of switchbacks like black bear pass? If your old man had 35s would he have been in any better of a situation on this trip?

 

I don't think 35s would have helped. He was on 34s..bigger tires hurt turning radius too and that's big on that trail.

Black bear would be fine there is only two tight switch backs that require multi point turns really. And only one of those is kind of steep. With a spotter you'll have no problems.

 

Thanks for chiming in Monte. Better to hear that's it doable directly from someone who has done it rather than just in theory

 

Doing some thinking today...

We should get the full crew that's attending this trip together a couple months before departure to make sure we're all compatible and on the same page on the trails. I don't foresee anything being an issue but a shakedown run wouldn't be a bad idea just so we're already all comfortable together when we hit the roads/trails on the "big trip."

 

but what trails here (east coast) compare to the trails that we are going to?

 

Not necessarily saying we need to hit trails similar to those out west, just need to get out and run a few trails together. Rausch or AOAA would be fine even

 

Not a bad idea, but honestly I feel like the TW guys I've met have all been pretty cool. We all seem to get along well with each other. Maybe I'm not thinking about the compatibility in the same way you are though?

 

I think he's just saying meet up to make sure we are all on the same page and have prepared well enough to venture out.

 

have we thought of minimum communication mediums? CB, HAM, smoke signals?

 

CB should be fine if the group is small enough but Im getting ham for sure

 

Alright so my routes that I had previously made were lost awhile back due to a short blackout the morning after I made them. I finally redid them and changed it so that we are going down black bear and up towards Ouray. Black bear can only be run going down which I did not know at the time I made them before.
Here is a link to the route on google maps:
View
and here is a GPX download:
http://www.mediafire.com/file/ma2d033m07esr6a/jy8m6om5b_Colorado-Passes.gpx

 

Oh I agree fully, the guys from TW I’ve wheeled with are the nicest and most capable that I’ve been on the trail with.

What I’m getting at is forcing ourselves into difficult situations when we know the controlled circumstances in which they’re happening. Of course we can hope nothing goes wrong out west and that everything is all dandy but inevitably there will be issues. It’d be nice to know who’s most capable in terms of spotting, recovery, etc etc etc. so if we end up in a bad situation nobody is fighting or like stepping on each others’ toes

 

Hopefully that makes more sense haha

 

Agreed

I'm interested in the HAM as well. @Subway4X4 have you played around with it yet? Thoughts? Easy to figure out?

Gotcha. Yeah that would be good. In that case we should hit some trails and each of us should be made to lead, tail, and spot to get a feel for and understanding of each role.

Also maybe all of us should practice with each form of recovery in a parking lot or on the trail. Kinda get one truck "stuck" and then we all participate in getting it unstuck. Also, changing a tire. I know that sounds dopey, but it at least should be gone over.

Maybe in the meantime a list of essential hand and power tools can be made? A bare minimum tool list for those that don't have a ton of stuff. Same with recovery gear. I know I'm severely lacking in the recovery gear arena, but have a shitload of tools...