Scott Brady
Founder
Excellent images. Bruce is a good man, and an excellent trainer. Glad everyone had fun.
Training with Bruce Elfstrom
- Thread starter Streakerfreak
- Start date
Streakerfreak
Jan-Kee
Yes he is and he has an excellent sense of humor that made the training a blast.
IceCap4runnerORP
Adventurer
Great pics Rhode Trip :victory:
Nice shots too Chopped Liver........ I mean 7wt :coffeedrink:
Nice shots too Chopped Liver........ I mean 7wt :coffeedrink:
grahamfitter
Expedition Leader
It was a great weekend with a bunch of great people! Thanks, Phil, for organizing it and thanks to everybody (including Bruce, who's a great guy and excellent teacher) for making it so. Extra credit goes to John and Steve for driving up from below the Mason Dixon line. To Jeff for holding his own through the volleys of abuse he received for being from New York. And to Jenn who's knuckles got progressively less white as her smile got larger! 
If you're thinking about getting some training and live in this corner of the world I thoroughly recommend Overland Experts. I'd certainly like to go back for more sometime.
Ben and I were both fully expecting to drive the OEX Land Cruiser "spongemobile" with big floppy tires and big floppy suspension. I think what surprised and impressed both of us was how capable our stock Jeep Wrangler with "lousy in the mud" BFG ATs really is when driven properly and we used that the whole weekend.
Cheers,
Graham
If you're thinking about getting some training and live in this corner of the world I thoroughly recommend Overland Experts. I'd certainly like to go back for more sometime.
Ben and I were both fully expecting to drive the OEX Land Cruiser "spongemobile" with big floppy tires and big floppy suspension. I think what surprised and impressed both of us was how capable our stock Jeep Wrangler with "lousy in the mud" BFG ATs really is when driven properly and we used that the whole weekend.
Cheers,
Graham
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Streakerfreak
Jan-Kee
Absolutely not! I have been trying to save money to re-gear and now I will total nix that thought. I have found no major reason for it. Ask anyone who went to the training if I had any problems with not having the right gearing.
I have added two things to my list instead...a snorkel and 285's. I said I would never get a snorkel, my mind has been changed.
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Streakerfreak
Jan-Kee
A lot of time was spent talking about various situations, gear, etc. A lot of information on this board tends to be very desert oriented (sand and rock). What we encounter in New England and the Pacific Northwest is so varied that everything we do to our trucks is a major compromise.
I know this could start a fight, but it now makes sense to me. We spent a good amount of time on the differences between a skinny tire versus a wider tire so I can't do it justice and I can't remember the exact details. That is how my brain works, it soaks up incredible amounts of information, but when I need that info it won't let it go. Does anyone here remember our discussion on this?
Are there times when a skinny tire would be best? Of course, but a wider tire will be much more utilitarian for us. I'm also switching to a BFG MT or a KM2.
I really can't put a finger on what we talked about that made me change my opinion on getting a snorkel.
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Cliff notes from what I recall:
Skinny tires are better in shallow mud and snow, where the chance of digging down to a hard surface is good. In our case, the wider tires allow you to float a bit more on top of sand and deeper mud with greater surface area to better distribute the surface pressure of the tire. Wider tires may also help retain your bead while aired down, because of the greater pressure exerted on the bead.
Snorkles not only help alleviate water getting sucked up by your air box, but also provide a cleaner/dust free air source for your engine when in sandy/dusty conditions. I think you can also make the argument that it provides better air flow, but I'll defer to those who may now more about them.
Skinny tires are better in shallow mud and snow, where the chance of digging down to a hard surface is good. In our case, the wider tires allow you to float a bit more on top of sand and deeper mud with greater surface area to better distribute the surface pressure of the tire. Wider tires may also help retain your bead while aired down, because of the greater pressure exerted on the bead.
Snorkles not only help alleviate water getting sucked up by your air box, but also provide a cleaner/dust free air source for your engine when in sandy/dusty conditions. I think you can also make the argument that it provides better air flow, but I'll defer to those who may now more about them.
grahamfitter
Expedition Leader
With 7wt's truck the argument was the combination of ATs and skinny tires (235/85R16) isn't the best: ATs aren't good in the mud which is where you might want a skinny tire to dig down and ATs are better in the sand but the skinny tire breaks the surface.
I can't remember exactly why 285s would be great for your truck. It was something to do with larger tires making the most of the super articulation you've got. I don't think we got an answer on whether 285s would be better than 255/85R16.
I don't know what BFG MTs are like but the MTRs on my new Jeep suck on packed snow and ice. If I was getting an MT in New England I'd find one that works well in the ice. Haggis was recommending ******** Cepek FCIIs a while back. That's the extent of my MT tire knowledge: little enough to be dangerous.
I can: Bruce said its really important to keep water out of a diesel engine and by the end of the weekend your mastery of throttle control had everyone convinced your truck had one. You should totally do a ghetto snorkel build from PVC plumbing parts!
Cheers,
Graham
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IceCap4runnerORP
Adventurer
Totally agree, my next tires will be 285's - I also need the extra bit of distance between the ground and the diffs on my truck (as we all saw when I parked it up on the stump...:smiley_drive
Streakerfreak
Jan-Kee
Hey guys, I was trying to copy something and accidently deleted an entire post. Major brain fart moment. Sorry. This should be post #3
By the end of the day we were all pretty beat. A few of us went to Mystic for dinner and then called it a night.
Grahamfitter decided to stay in our driveway.
We all met again at the market. Graham started socializing with real New Englanders (which means very nice and accommodating people).
This day was a little more intense. More hills, moguls, water, and recovery.
Grahamfitter
Take a closer look...
By the end of the day we were all pretty beat. A few of us went to Mystic for dinner and then called it a night.
Grahamfitter decided to stay in our driveway.
We all met again at the market. Graham started socializing with real New Englanders (which means very nice and accommodating people).
This day was a little more intense. More hills, moguls, water, and recovery.
Grahamfitter
Take a closer look...