Up till now, all the wheeling we have done with my jeep has been light duty, and really only for testing purposes. We are chomping at the bit, wanting to take the jeeps out to do some real trail testing. This weekend Joe and I took the jeeps up to Hull Mountain for a test run. He and Chris just completed a t-18 swap and wanted to test it. Unfortunately, something broke in the tranny after just starting up the hill and left Joe feeling a bit disappointed. I think it was Karma for leaving Chris in the valley at church and going alone, but I'm not superstitious or anything. :)

So Joe and I decided to take my jeep for a test run. After all we drove all the way up there, might as well do something fun on a Saturday morning. We drove around a few trails but the jeep was having problems idling. Could be the thin air, or just the carb is shot or needs a deep cleaning. We pressed on anyway, determined to have a good time.

We found a deep rut and I instantly got wood and had to try it. I wish I had pictures of this rut because it is a monster. Some areas were at least 6-7 feet deep and the incline was pretty steep to boot. I knew it was going to be difficult even for a jeep running well. My crappy trash bucket was running rough, and the steering box is totally shot to the point of uselessness.

I made two attempts to make the run. One straddling the rut but I fell in and was swallowed alive, and another running right up the middle. Neither attempt was successful. I made another attempt to straddle the cravas and was doing seemingly well for a moment. Then the rear tire started to slip in again. I tried to climb back out but that only made matters worse. The front being 4' higher than the rear, and the rear tires grabbing some traction lifted the front right off the ground and I just knew I was going to roll over backwards. I was happy as hell that I purchased a 4 point harnesses and that I was actually wearing the entire harness and not just the lap belt.

I was lucky enough to catch a break and did not go all the way over. The jeep rolled to the driver side, and the roll cage propped the jeep up against the muddy wall of the rut creating enough resistance to hold me there.

I was laughing up till this point and actually having a great time. Taking a moment to pose for a photo opp. I probably should have stayed strapped in to the jeep but fuel started pouring out of the carb giving me a nice little gasoline shower. I figured I had better get out and see about getting the rubber side back down and stop the fuel from spilling out.

We tried to push it over but since it was still in gear that wasn't going to happen. The granny low was in no way going to let us do that. I hopped back in and fired it up to throw it into reverse and see about backing it out easily. I almost botched it completely when I accidentally grabbed second instead of reverse. Pushing the jeep over backwards even more. (Dumb ass! I know... but everything feels different when your lying on your back looking upwards!?!)

To bring the story to a close, I managed to find reverse and inch the jeep back down to the ground and back to safety. I have to say the adrenalin rush was pretty awesome and look forward many more hairy situations.

I am sure your anxious to see some pictures so here you go.