Big THANK YOU to the Hollister Overland team!

[Maximus Ram]

Great pics, but....I thought the dress code at these Overland functions was kakhi....I'm not seeing much kakhi in these photos:Wow1:

:elkgrin:

 

[djsixbillion]

Sweet 80 series

Hey that's me! Just another proud owner who had a great time at the event. It was very cool meeting the "industry insiders," all of whom turned out to be very down to earth, interesting people. Can't wait to see the results from the trophy, and I hope this becomes a recurring event in years to come.

 

[Christian P.]

I have a question about the rigging for Bill's recovery on Truck Hill, also posted here:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=4862516#4862516

it looks like the winch line that went thru a block, and used to bring the Van upright, was anchored somewhere on the climbers right side of the hill?

Does anyone know what they anchored to? Was there a vehicle there (on side hill in the bushes) too, for a total of 3 vehicles doing the recovery?

I wonder if there would have been any way to anchor Bills Van until help arrived, so he would not have had to try backing down the hill.. for example a pull pal? http://www.pullpal.com/

The issue was that Bill did not think he could not keep his foot on the brake without his muscles fatigueing or cramping before help could arrive..

Jon,

it was great to see you at the expo. thanks for joining the forum!

 

[jon_slider]

> Harold and I set the anchors to the base of two stout bushes

there you go!

that is exactly what I was asking..thank you for the detailed response

if I read you right, one vehicle over the top of the hill was used to anchor Bill's Van, and that vehicle had a second vehicle linked behind it, that acted as a second anchor weight.

A third vehicle over the top of the hill ran a winchline thru the block anchored to bushes, and then to Bills downed Van, and was used to pull Bills Van back onto its wheels..

Anchoring to Bushes was a Brilliant Idea!

For the future, short of installing a winch on the vehicle, carrying a winchline extension sounds like a great option. Do you think a PulPall would have worked as an anchor on that terrain? How about the 3 stakes approach some people use? Just brainstorming an anchoring kit..

> The seatbelt had locked up and was not useable.

I wondered how Bill got out without cutting his belt.. I also wondered if he was in shock (he seemed fine, all things considered, when he first got out of the van, and later at camp), as I could see he was not the driver during the recovery..

note to self, install seatbelt cutter, mounted in reach of locked seatbelted driver.. second note to self, go up truch hill when there are lots of skilled recovery personnel around.. third note to self, ride up truck hill with a buddy, so they can go for help after anchoring the vehicle..

btw, there IS cell phone reception, I know cause I tried to call for help, at the top of Truck Hill, but not down in Area 5 Camp.. a walkie talkie would be more effective..

Thanks for the warm welcome, and the great event!

 

[Willman]

Looks like everyone had a good time!

Gear....
Justin rolled the Chaser today at the Trophy and it appears that our field repair at the rally is holding BUT there is a new problem - the plate that holds the control arm to the frame is cracking... Unless we can get this welded somehow we are spending the night here.

More later

Home safe - more tomorrow on the rolled Chaser.

Any updates or details?

Sorry to hear about this Justin!

:Wow1:

 

[miolnir]

Hi Jerry,

Can I use your pics from the Syncro recovery for our website?
thanks
Thor

thanks for looking! if anyone else has a story to tell or pics to add, please do! i'd love to see and read about it.

- jerry

 

[miolnir]

Hey Jason, how did you fix the pin for the drive home?

Home safe - more tomorrow on the rolled Chaser.

 

[BattleWagon]

... with me in it. I think there is a crease in Bill's seat now. The seatbelt had locked up and was not useable. Communication was constant, so there was always a safety system, whether it be a second winch line or me standing on the brakes with the truck in gear. If there had been a multiple system failure, myself and / or spectators at the bottom of the hill could have been seriously injured.

The cold beverage back at camp hit the spot upon our return! :sombrero:

I was just glad to have three of the most experienced individuals in the world as part of the recovery team. I knew I was in good hands.

Of course you were the guy in the van for the recovery...

 

[miolnir]

....JUSTIN, sorry dude

Hey Jason, how did you fix the pin for the drive home?

 

[stevegsmith]

yet another thanks

Though most of this has been said, I'd like to add to the thanks.

To ALL of the Overland Training team, special instructors, and special presenters, that was a blast! Thank you thank you. Hot as hell, but a blast. I took one class and had intended to take more but the heat kept me in the shade with a Pacifico and surrounded by great friends, new and old. Call me lazy but that's one of my favorite places to be. Thanks to all who stopped by the G-wagen camp to say hi and share a beverage and stories. Whenever I went out wandering, I met more lovely people.....as anticipated. The pig roast was great thanks to the "Snow Peak" guys. The slide shows and movies couldn't have been cooler. Outdoor theaters are awesome and that was a perfect venue.

Tacodoc's first aid class was exceptional. The perfect first or refresher course. Something everyone should do and often. Dude, you covered a lot of ground in a little time. Very very well done. OT was lucky to have you.

BTW, I swear the token Hummer was not just a cover to make us look more diverse or less-exclusive. Kenny is actually a real friend and was not paid for his time.:ylsmoke:

BTW#2, the G-wagen folks have two main forums, www.clubgwagen.com/forum and www.pointedthree.com/disc. Like most forums, it's non-exclusive, especially some of our impromptu rallies. Death Valley tends to be an easily planned outing in/around October that has happened annually for the last few years. Please feel free to join if you can.

Hope to see all of you again someday.

Happy Trails,
Steve Smith

 

[jpthunder]

Kudos!

Thanks Christian for cleaning up my pictures, you posted a great selection!!! I am trying to get back to work, but my mind is else where, I have so many ideas for next year... It was an amazing crowd and I am very grateful of all the help we got to make this event happen! Kudos to all volunteers, the organizing team and everyone that believed in this event and showed up at Hollister Hills. Merci everyone, see you all next year!!!

Overland Rally - an organizer perspective.

Well, I am not too sure where to start. I think I am still "high" from the weekend...



I think at this point it is safe to assume that the Rally has been a tremendous success. We worked really hard to create this event but it exceeded my expectations.
I really want to thank everyone who participated - no matter how. I think we have managed to strike a good balance between classes, presentations and great conversations.

The list of persons I wish to thank is too long so I am sorry I will be missing a bunch...Andre, Brian, JP worked really hard with the logistics and operations. The guy from Overland Gourmet (John and Zach) fed us with first class cuisine the entire time. All the vendors (Paul, Martyn, Alan, Tom, etc) were totally available to chat. Thanks Paul again for your glass of cold orange juice...nice way to start the day!
All the presentations were excellent - thanks again Ben from riding your KLR all the way from Boston. Dave also for your class. Micheal the photographer. All the volunteers (Tacodoc, Mr. Leary, etc) I think I should even thanks Bill for rolling over his Syncro and giving us the opportunity to witness a real life recovery. Thanks for the guys who flew just for the event.

Thanks everyone again.

Personally, I really appreciated the fact that there were so many different vehicles on site. It is a very diverse crowd that comes together because of common passion, not because you are driving a specific brand.

Enough said, time for the pictures.

Ben's class (www.afewmoremiles.com) gave us some good advices about riding your KRL to Tierra Del Fuego:

Myself getting ready for an "impromptu" class on how to replace a tire:

The G-Wagen camp getting bigger and bigger

Recovery class

Getting ready for the great Dakar presentation

The "Incident"

 

[Dave Bennett]

Looks like everyone had a good time!

Any updates or details?

Sorry to hear about this Justin!

:Wow1:

I'll let Justin tell his story about the Chaser's demise, but I can tell you we got it back home without too much trouble at all.

The Chaser was amazingly easy to repair in the field though, a true testament to the robust simplicity of the design

 

[off-roader]

I think Christian would probably agree that unfortunately this image while a great shot of the rolled rig just doesn't underscore the precarious position he was in since the rigs below look so close...

I find this image taken from the rigs below to be a better indicator of just how high up the hill climb he was. Talk about "pucker factor".:Wow1::coffeedrink:

And for those unaware of that hill, it's so steep it's even hard to hike up it.

 

[Dave Bennett]

Tacodoc's first aid class was exceptional. The perfect first or refresher course. Something everyone should do and often. Dude, you covered a lot of ground in a little time. Very very well done. OT was lucky to have you.

Thank you, it was a real honor to teach such a diverse group of enthusiasts in a setting like the Overland Rally!

Man, it was hot in the shade too!

 

[vanderpooch]

How many cameras were there??

Whole lot of strokin and scratchin goin on,lol!

:chowtime:Where's all the pics?!?!?:drool: