2009 Jeep Rally Program - at Great American Jeep Rally
Transcription
2009 Jeep Rally Program - at Great American Jeep Rally
WELCOME TO THE 8th Annual GREAT AMERICAN JEEP RALLY On behalf of the organizers and volunteers, thank you for your continued support of the GREAT AMERICAN JEEP RALLY. By supporting the Rally, you are also supporting the Northeast Association of 4 Wheel Drive Clubs (NEA4WDC), and our charities for this year: Educational Resources for Children, Inc. in Enfield, CT and the Ellington, CT Volunteer Fire Department. We are very proud of the time and effort set forth by Jeep and 4x4 enthusiasts to further the preservation of our sport along with maintaining the cleanliness and safety of our trails. The purpose of this rally is not only to raise funds for very special charities and the Northeast Association of 4 Wheel Drive Clubs, but to also raise awareness for the cause of offroading. Public and free trails throughout our region are being closed at an alarming rate!! Educating not only other wheelers, but also the general public is essential. The clubs joining forces with its members and associations forms a strong voice to stand up and fight for our sport. Please respect each other, and please respect the trails. This rally has been put together only by volunteers, through planning, hard work and a lot of time. We would like to thank all those who helped, as IT COULDN’T HAPPEN WITHOUT THEM. Distinguished thanks to Steve Miller of Miller Designs for the website. Hinckley Construction, Slanetz Construction and Bradway Construction for the equipment and rocks. John Davis for the new T-shirt artwork, also seen on this programs front cover. Scott Jones for being our great DJ. We are also extremely grateful to all of the volunteers here today to make sure the rally runs smoothly for all participants and that a fun filled day is had by all. They are wearing safety green staff shirts, so please feel free to say hello or ask any questions. Come on over, stay for a while and have a look around. There’s a lot of fun to be had, from the Rock Garden to the RTI Ramps. Enjoy the food and stop by some of the vendors to find about not only their impressive array of products, but to also learn how to do your next modification. Do you want to wheel, but don’t know how or where? Drop by one of the 4x4 club booths and find the right fit for you. The best way to wheel is with new and knowledgeable friends! DON’T FORGET YOUR RAFFLE TICKETS!!!! Proceeds of all raffle ticket sales go directly to Educational Resources for Children, the Ellington, CT Volunteer Fire Department, and the NEA4WDC. Thank you and enjoy the Rally, The Great American Jeep Rally Team Please Support our Sponsors. 1 GREAT AMERICAN JEEP RALLY ~~ SCHEDULE ~~ 09:0 Meet & Greet Fellow Jeepers 0 ALL Rock Crawl, RC Rock Crawl, RTI Ramps, Vendors, DAY Club Booths, Food (Mmmm FOOD) 10:00 General raffle #1. 11:00 General Raffle #2. 12:00 General Raffle #3. 13:00 General Raffle #4. 14:00 General Raffle #5. Trophy Awards: Street, Beater, Military, Antique, OffRoad. BF Goodrich Tire, Interco Tire, 50/50, 15:00 RAFFLES: Kids. Last Call for RTI Ramps and Rock Gardens. Clean Up. Please help out our volunteers!! Head em up, move em on. 16:00 Thanks for your support!! See you next year!!!! You MUST sign a Liability Release Waiver prior to participation in the Rock Crawl, RTI Ramps or Course. 2 Raffle Rules 1. RED = General Raffles. LIGHT BLUE = BFGoodrich & Interco Tire Raffle. DARK BLUE = 50/50 Raffle. GREEN = Kids Raffle. 2. General Raffle tickets (RED) may be dropped into the box corresponding with the prize of your choice. 3. We will draw and announce General Raffle ticket winners (RED) at 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 13:00 (1:00pm), and 14:00 (2:00pm). Unclaimed prizes will be posted to the white board on the stage. You will be responsible for checking the board and claiming your prize before 15:00 (3:00pm). Prizes unclaimed at this time will be re-raffled prior to the BF Goodrich Tire, Interco Tire, and 50/50 raffle drawings. 4. Kids Raffles (GREEN) will take place after the General Raffle at 11:00 and 14:00 (2:00pm). 5. Bonus Raffles will take place after each General Raffle. All non-winning tickets for the General Raffle will be automatically entered. Winners of the Bonus Raffle can pick their prize from the provided table. 6. The BF Goodrich Tire Raffle (LIGHT BLUE) will take place at 15:00 (3:00pm). 7. The Elias/Interco Tire Raffle (LIGHT BLUE) will take place at 15:00 (3:00pm). 8. The 50/50 Raffle (DARK BLUE) will take place at 15:00 (3:00pm). 9. YOU MUST BE PRESENT TO WIN!!! GOOD LUCK!!!!!! Our sponsors, advertisers and vendors provided all of the raffled items for this year’s Great American Jeep Rally in order to help benefit our mission. Please show your appreciation by visiting their websites and purchasing your Jeep and all aftermarket needs from them before shopping elsewhere. Thank you for your help and support!!!! 3 THE GREAT AMERICAN JEEP RALLY WOULD LIKE TO THANK BFGOODRICH FOR THEIR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF THE RALLY AND THE OFF-ROAD JEEPING COMMUNITY!!! WIN A SET OF ANY SIZE TIRES UP TO 35 INCHES LIGHT BLUE TICKETS: ONE TICKET FOR $5 THREE TICKETS FOR $10 SEVEN TICKETS FOR $20 4 Elias 4WD Center is a Full Service Shop for ALL of your Jeep needs. Specializing in Jeep suspension, drive train and aftermarket needs, from installations to modifications. Thank you Elias 4WD Center for your sponsorship of a Set of Interco Tires and an 8th year of strong support. Elias 4WD Center 178 Wallace Hill Rd. Townsend, Ma 01469 Tel: 978.597.8432 Hours: Monday through Thursday 8am-6pm E.S.T email: [email protected] 5 To protect and promote environmentally responsible OffHighway Vehicle recreation, while maintaining a harmonious relationship between OHV enthusiasts and landowners. To support and educate Local, State and National agencies in the preservation of OHV recreation. The North East Association of 4 Wheel Drive Clubs (NEA4WDC) is an organization representing the interests of the entire Four Wheel Drive Community in the Northeast Region of the United States. The NEA4WDC currently has twenty-seven member clubs with a combined membership of over 3,000. As the NEA4WDC continues to grow, we are looking for proactive, quality clubs that are sincerely and earnestly interested in working with us to help reach our stated goals. Member Benefits Quarterly newsletter in PDF format. Full color vinyl vehicle sticker. Affiliate membership to Blue Ribbon Coalition, United 4 Wheel Drive Association, Tread Lightly! Insurance available to member clubs for events and trail runs. Access to over 2200 acres of private land. Currently working on access to 82000 acres of land. Access to a database consisting of most, if not all, legal Class VI Roads in New Hampshire. Access to NEA4WDC sponsored events. Communication with member clubs. Access to United 4 Wheel Drive Safety Program. Access to Tread Lightly Master Trainers. Assistance in club formation and club direction. Each club has a vote. Several legislative and political initiatives. Current Club Membership Baystate Jeepers Berkshire 4 Wheelers Cape Cod Jeep Club Central CT 4 Wheelers Deep Woods Extreme Freedom Trail Riders JonFund Long Island Off Road Mass Mudders New England 4 Wheelers New England Jeepz New England ZR2 NEWJO North Woods Off Road Northeast Jeep Organization Northeast Toyota Crawlers Ocean State Jeepsters Off Camber 4x4 Patriot Jeepers Inc. South Shore Wheelers Summit Crawlers Twin State Jeeps N Things Underground Jeeps Vermont Jeep Association Western Mass 4x4 Yankee Toys The NEA4WDC builds bridges to cross environmentally sensitive rivers and creeks. Northeast Association of 4 Wheel Drive Clubs, Inc. P.O. Box 887 Derry, NH 03038 [email protected] Visit us at: www.nea4wd.org Forums: forum.nea4wd.org 6 WIN A GIFT CERTIFICATE FOR 25% OFF YOUR PURCHASE OF 4 TIRES!!! 7 Educational Resources for Children, Inc. Enfield, CT About ERfC and Our Mission ERfC has been working with the Enfield Community since 1994 providing innovative services to families and children after-school. Our mission is to team with kids, communities, schools and families to grow resilient kids. Through innovative community collaborations, we help kids learn, reach their goals, and contribute to their communities. Over 250 children in grades K-8 attend after-school activities at our Alcorn & Enfield Street Learning Center, the Barnard & Crandall Learning Center, and JFK After School. The Learning Centers operate from 3:00 PM until 6:00 PM at the elementary sites and from 2:30 PM until 6:00 PM at the Middle School– Monday through Fridays. Increase youth resiliency: Resilient youth are able to “bounce back” effectively despite exposure to multiple and sometimes severe risk factors. Resilient youth are characterized by their social competence, skills, autonomy, and sense of purpose and future. Increase community support for education: Studies of after-school programs have proved that if families and other community members are engaged in activities in schools, their commitment to their children and to public education increases. Increase collaborations that address intractable community issues: Best practices after-school programs are result from active collaborations among schools, town agencies, community organizations, and families who work to prevent the risk factors faced by many children. Increase involvement in community service projects: Children who work with community volunteers, and who are encouraged to volunteer themselves, show an increased sense of belonging and commitment to their communities. Educational Resources for Children, Inc. 103R Phoenix Ave Enfield, CT 06082 Phone: 860-253-9935 Fax: 860-253-9995 Email: [email protected] Web: www.erfc.us 8 SPECIAL THANKS TO AND FOR SPONSORING IAN JOHNSON OF 9 Ellington, CT Volunteer Fire Department "We are a group of highly motivated and trained volunteer professionals. Our purpose is to respond for fire suppression, rescue, emergency medical and hazardous materials incidents, and to provide fire prevention and education programs for the citizens of our response area located in the Town of Ellington, Connecticut." Chief, Michael D. Varney Ellington Volunteer Fire Department P.O. Box 911 Ellington, CT 06029 Routine calls: 860 870-3190 [email protected] 10 11 CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR SIX YEAR ANNIVERSARY!! The Biggest Online Jeep Gift Store Why Buy from All Things Jeep? We have a 100% Happy Customer Guarantee and 1000s of really happy customers. 99% of our orders ship within 24 hours of being received. We have received the Yahoo Top Service 5 Star Award by our customers. We protect your privacy, always. Our site provides safe & secure shopping. Our service is easy and friendly & returns and exchanges are pain-free! We are Jeep® owners also. We understand! www.allthingsjeep.com Introduction to Rock Crawling Rock crawling is a favorite past time of many wheelers. Some will drive for days to hit the best rock crawling in the country, and some pretty gnarly competitions have sprung up over recent years. Below are some driving tips for rock crawling. The sounds of whacks, scrapes and crunches are sounds that make the typical mall crawler wince. Real rock crawling is not for the faint of heart. If you loathe these sounds, find a different place to wheel. If you’re good at it, you’ll hopefully keep these sounds to a minimum. First of all, nothing is a substitute for experience. As you gain experience, you also gain judgment, which is the key element in rock crawling. Also, it helps to know the capabilities of your Jeep before hand. Learn the clearance and wheel placement of your Jeep. Jeep Upgrades You really want a vehicle properly set up for this. Stockers have a greatly increased risk of damage when crawling due to their low overall ground clearance and inadequate tires. You want the proper modifications to your Jeep to ensure greater capability and durability. Everyone likes to drive home in the same Rig they left home in. Consider the following for your Jeep. Suspension Lift: A suspension lift gets your chassis further off the ground by combining the height you increased your suspension. Additionally, a lift can allow the fitment of larger tires. Therefore, you also gain half the increased tire height towards clearance. Aggressive Tires: Bias Plys are even better due to their increased off road strength over a radial. Radials can be notorious for sidewall damage. You should run a durable 3 ply side radial on as narrow a rim as reasonable to minimize sidewall exposure to the rocks at all air pressures. The narrow wheel also better protects the bead on the rim. Consider aggressive all terrain tires or mud terrains, as they usually have more aggressive tread to grip the jagged edges of rocks. (Continued…) SPECIAL THANKS TO NEW ENGLAND JEEPZ FOR THEIR SUPPORT OF THE 2009 GREAT AMERICAN JEEP RALLY!!! 13 METROJEEP.com Log on or call 800-365-5337 for the Lowest Jeep Quotes in the area! 484 Boston Rd., SPRINGFIELD 800-365-5337 Stiffer Shocks: Vehicles lose ground clearance under critical components as the suspension compresses. Driving off that ledge with lumpy rocks below often ends in slamming the Jeep down on the front skidplate or cross member, or worse. Shocks with stiffer valving, or best of all, adjustable shocks on their stiffest setting in front and softest in rear will work well and help protect the underside of the Jeep from nose diving and doing damage. Skid Plates and Sliders: The stock sheetmetal skidplate cannot usually take a real pounding. Either build or invest in a full belly pan for the Jeep. It’ll cost you, but it pays for itself in saved damage and piece of mind. Steel of 3/16” or better should be used, as anything thinner doesn’t support the weight of the Jeep well. Quality plates can be obtained from Skid Row or and their resellers. The day will come (if you REALLY rock crawl) when that aluminum T-case gets split wide open on a boulder, or the auto transmission pan gets crushed. A quality rear diff skid is a good idea, and some do one better and truss the axle at the same time. Look for one that hugs the diff as closely as possible as not to hinder your ground clearance that bad. Sliders save rocker panels and can allow a vehicle to skid around a rock instead of smashing sheetmetal on it. Stock step bars are NOT up to this task and will cause more body damage than the rocks in some cases. Steering Mods: Anyone who wheels extensively knows the stock steering doesn’t always hold up well to extreme use, particularly when lifts and larger tires and rims are added. Unless you like going to the parts counter and coughing up $150+ for a new tie rod every Monday, you’ll build or buy one of the steering solutions out there. Whatever you choose, keeping as close to stock geometry is critical to the handling and safety of the Jeep, particularly on the way to the trailhead. It’s expensive, but pays for itself in stock parts fairly quickly. Sway Bar Disconnects or Sway Bar Removal: Those things hinder flex. Removal of that front sway bar, or use of disconnects allows wheels to act truly independent of one another and will allow you to keep more wheels on the ground, increasing traction. If you run without a sway bar on pavement, beware of the different driving characteristics of your Jeep. You will have increased body roll and less stability in cornering. Stiffer torsion bars and shocks help, but the point is to drive accordingly. If you’re a canyon carver, leave it on. (Continued…) 14 Al & Wendy Charpentier 20 Hammond Hill Rd, Charlton, MA 01507 508-248-4697 office 508-248-9155 fax [email protected] GREAT AMERICAN JEEP RALLY MENU: Hamburgers Cheeseburgers Hot Dogs Chili-Cheese Dogs Steak & Cheese Sausage (peppers & onions) Fresh Cut French Fries Cheese Fries Chicken Sandwiches Chicken Nuggets Cold Drinks Fresh Squeezed Lemonade Ice Cream Novelties Fried Dough AND MORE……. Traction Devices: A locker enables forward progress in much more off camber situations when crawling. A rear helps the most and can more easily handle the stresses a locker can place on axle components. If you already have a rear, you can run a front as well. Use it sparingly, however, as it’s difficult to steer the Jeep anywhere but straight with it engaged and greatly increases the risk of breaking something in the front. Don’t bother with a front locker if you don’t have a stronger steering upgrade. Air lockers are among the most popular aftermarket options. Recovery Equipment: Any recovery equipment can be helpful when you get in too deep or have breakage. Winches are best IF you have something to use as an anchor. That can be hard to find in the desert unless you got a buddy with you. Other things to have are a Hi Lift jack and bumpers strong enough to handle one, straps, shackle rings and tow hooks. Come-alongs and chains are also useful. Large blocks of wood can be used as jacking platforms, chock blocks, or to fill in a hole or be a ramp on the trail. Spare Parts: Pack spare steering components, and if you have them, hubs, CV axles, tire plugs, a full set of sockets and wrenches, jumper cables. Lower Gears: In rock crawling you’re better off the slower you can go. The lower the gear, the greater the amount of torque you can apply to your wheels. This is especially helpful if you’ve thrown larger tires on your Jeep. With proper gearing, even a four cylinder can turn the bigger rubber. (Continued…) 15 Driving Tips www.hi-lift.com Driving slow is the key to keeping the Jeep and you in one piece in the rough stuff. Select the lowest gears possible and run in low range. Obey your spotter (refer to spotting tips section below). If wheeling alone, get out of the Jeep and pick your lines before you tackle them. Keep tires on the high spots. If a rock looks too tall to straddle, look for alternate places for your wheels while keeping the Jeep on as level ground as possible. That’ll keep you from smacking the undercarriage. Be careful when driving off the large rocks. When the suspension compresses you can whack that rock with the rocker panels. Rock crawling with a clutch can be challenging. Rock crawling really favors the automatic equipped Rigs. Particularly with the high stock low range gearing, a manual transmission equipped Jeep can be a handful. You’re limited to slipping the clutch badly to go slow enough and power over an obstacle, or letting the clutch out and lugging it through as slowly as possible. The latter forces you to go through at higher speed, so you’d better have your line carefully picked out and not fear bumping a bit. (see skid plates section above) (Continued…) 16 Automatics give you the benefit of a torque converter, which mimics the effect of having lower gears by multiplying the torque. Also, there’s no popping the clutch or lugging it down to the point the engine dies. One disadvantage to the auto when crawling is the heat that builds up in the transmission. This will shorten its life and in some extreme cases, can cause failure. Running an auxiliary cooler helps. Manuals can smoke a clutch. Driving steadily without heavily gassing the Jeep is best. You’re in a high traction situation. Punching the gas when you are in low range and up against a large rock can easily cause breakage. Accelerate and power over obstacles as gingerly as possible. Be sensible. Your Jeep isn’t going to drive up that four-foot shelf. Drive within the means of you and your vehicle's ability. Know when you’re getting in over your head. Wait until your confidence and ability improves over less challenging stuff before really going for it. It can damage your Jeep and can also get you hurt. Wear your seat belt! Spotting Tips Let the most experienced in the group do the spotting. Use only ONE SPOTTER if going forward. If in a situation where the person needs to back off and try again, another behind the vehicle can be used. Be sure you understand basic hand signals. A good spotter uses two hands. One hand to wave forward or to give a sign to stop, and the other to indicate left or right. Figure this out before attempting the obstacle. Keep your window down and shut the tunes off so you can hear what your spotter is telling you. Trust your spotter and do what he tells you to do. He's directing you that way for a reason. Have everyone else SHUT UP. Two or more people yelling at the driver telling him what to do gets confusing and frustrates the driver and the spotter who the driver should be paying attention to. If spotting someone while backing up, be sure to stand where you can see the driver's face in the mirror. Conclusion There are hundreds more tips people can offer on this topic, and most are founded on their experience. First time wheelers aren’t up to the task of driving over the nastiest boulder you can find. Sometimes experienced ones aren’t too. Use extreme caution and good judgment and this pastime may prove to be a great challenge and a lot of fun. 17 RAMP TRAVEL INDEX / RTI A vehicles RTI or ramp travel index is a measurement of vehicles suspension (and frame) flexibility. In many situations off-road vehicles flexibility may be the determining factor of whether or not it can get over an obstacle. If a vehicles suspension is too stiff this may cause a tire or two to be lifted, loosing contact and traction, especially apparent in vehicles with open differentials. While locking differentials will help to maintain forward momentum when a wheel is off the ground, good flexibility will help to keep the wheels on the ground and more able to conform to the terrain. You may have seen at many off road events 4x4's taking a shot at the ramp. The ramp tells a great deal about a vehicle's capabilities on the trail. It's also very useful for evaluating suspension systems, examining shock length, finding interference points and other things that may only be apparent on the trail while under the extremes of wheel travel. There are several factors that make up the RTI score. First the ramp. In most cases the ramp is on a 20 degree angle. Some events measure the extremely flexible vehicles with a ramp of greater angle like the 23 degree ramp. The vehicle attempts to climb the ramp as high as possible without lifting a wheel off the ground. The distance the vehicle can travel up the ramp without losing contact with the ground is measured from the leading edge of the ramp to the center of the hub on the ramp. That number is then divided by the vehicles wheelbase (the distance between the vehicles centerline of the front axle and the centerline of the rear axle) and then multiplied by 1000 to calculate the average. For instance, if a vehicle with a wheelbase of 94 inches travels 62 inches up the 20 degree ramp then the RTI would be calculated as: 62" divided by 94" x 1000 resulting in a score of 659. This method of multiplying by the vehicles wheelbase allows one vehicle to compete with another vehicle like a CJ-5 to an F-250 Crew Cab on the same ramp test. While you can't "cheat" the ramp, you can get the most out of your shot at the ramp and in the process improve your vehicles ability to articulate the terrain. One the easiest things that can be done to improve your RTI slightly and improve trail performance is to "air down" the tires. Airing down the tires to an air pressure of about half of the recommended tire pressure for normal driving will slightly improve your RTI score but more noticeably it will improve your the vehicles trail performance by smoothing out the bumps and allowing your meats to conform to the terrain resulting in better traction. Some people air down to as low as 5 PSI on the trail however pressure this low can result in the tire bead separating from the rim. As a result bead locks are used to hold the tire to the rim. Always be sure to bring your air pressure back up to normal on-road driving pressure when you hit the road home again. Another way to improve the score slightly and smooth out the ride involves only to grease between the leaf springs of the leaf spring pack. Some folks say that this helps more than they would have expected when the hit the ramp. Other ways of improving the RTI score such as sway bar disconnects, compound shackles such as Revolver Shackles, better suspension systems all help to improve not only the RTI score but the performance off-road. (continued…) 18 How to Measure Your RTI Score Without a Ramp So you don't have access to a ramp and you don't feel like building one. How can you find out what your RTI score would be if it were tested on the ramp? Since the RTI score is simply mathematics it can be measure and calculated without a ramp. The RTI is a measurement of how high a tire can travel vertically you will need to safely raise one of the tires until one of the other tires almost comes off the ground. This can be done by using a forklift with the tire resting on a pallet or by using a floor jack and the tire resting on a flat surface underneath which is the floor jack. Be sure to do this safely. The main objective is to raise one wheel as high as possible before lifting a tire off the ground. Once raised measure the distance between the bottom of the tire and the ground. If using a fork lift you would measure where the tire meets the pallet to the floor. Since a 20 degree ramp rises at .345 inches per inch divide the height of the lifted tire by .345 (for 20 degrees). Next divide that number by your vehicles wheelbase. Multiply that number by 1000 to acquire an average and you have your score. While the ramp is a true measurement of your RTI this calculation is pretty close. Source: www.offroaders.com Go to www.offroaders.com/info/tech-corner/rti.htm for a calculator that does the math for you and allows for different ramp angles. BUMPERS, TIRE CARRIERS and MORE 19 GREAT AMERICAN JEEP RALLY SPONSORS Rubicon Class Sponsors: *All Things Jeep BFGoodrich Tires *Clayton Off Road Mfg. *Dr. Custom Werx *Elias 4 Wheel Drive Center PitBull Tires www.allthingsjeep.com www.bfgoodrichtires.com www.claytonoffroad.com www.drcustomwerx.com www.elias4wdcenter.com pitbulltires.com Cherokee Class Sponsors: Bushwacker *Classic Cuisine Concessions www.bushwacker.com www.myspace.com/ classiccuisineconcessions Wrangler Class Sponsors: *Metro Jeep Chrysler Ground Pounder Fabrication www.metrojeep.com stores.ebay.com/ Ground-Pounder-Fab Liberty Class Sponsors: ARB 4×4 Accessories Blue Ribbon Coalition Hi-Lift Jack Company Jeep Jamboree USA Meguiar’s Car Care Products www.arbusa.com www.sharetrails.org www.hi-lift.com jeepjamboreeusa.com www.meguiars.com Vendors: Bono Innovations 4x4 Group Buy www.bono-innovations.com www.4x4groupbuy.com *also a vendor at the 2009 Rally. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING JEEP ENTHUSIASTS!!! 20 Thank You to all the volunteers of the 2009 GAJR for sticking through all the rain and mud to make the day a great success. Over 500 Jeeps were on site, some with their tops down in the rain. One thing is for sure, Jeepers are a resilient bunch! An event like this can’t be rescheduled do to the rain because of scheduling of the vendors, fairgrounds and personnel. Thank You to all who showed up and made a great day of it. We had a blast! Rain OR Shine! We look forward to seeing you again on Sunday October 3rd 2010 For the 9th annual Great American Jeep Rally.