Category Archives: News

U-Joint Offroad 4×4 Vans – It’s all about the possibilities

Ask just about any guy (and some girls) what they think of 4×4 vans and the answer is that they’re “just. plain. cool.”

Have you ever dreamed of driving the ALCAN or watching the sunrise in the desert with no roads, power lines, houses or people in sight? How about waking up at your favorite fishing spot on a mountain stream, 10 miles down a poorly maintained gravel road? All these things a good driver could probably do in a Subaru, but all these things would be way cooler done in a van! Who wouldn’t want to drive around in a super-bad-ass 4×4 van and have everyone realize how super-bad-ass you are?

U-Joint Offroad owner Chris Steuber started converting vans to 4wd after catching the bug at a young age. His first van took him from east coast to west, where he developed what would become the UJOR 4wd van conversion kit. His goal has always been to create the ultimate all-purpose vehicle, a “daily driver, mountain bike shuttle, cross country driver, tow vehicle and camping rig, all in one.”

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by cydney on August 20, 2010 at 3:37 pm in News

Restoring Old Iron in the Wilds of Chatham County

Paul Dunn (hillbilly21 on the forum) has been restoring Willys Jeeps for 20 years. His dad, Perry Dunn, started collecting parts from all over when he retired and it became their hobby to do frame-up restorations of 1940s and 50s Jeeps. Paul soda blasts all the metal and repaints everything in his shop, his dad (who passed away in October, 2008) was a masterful transmission mechanic. Paul’s girlfriend, Kathy, says she’s been through many sewing machines in the process of outfitting 20 or 30 Jeeps with new canvas.

The Navy and POW-MIA Jeeps

One day, Paul told his dad that he had a dream of doing a Jeep for each branch of the armed services. They finished and sold Jeeps for the Army, Coast Guard and Shore Patrol, complete with decals by Crazy8Graphics. Paul completed the last of the group, the 1951 M38 Navy Jeep, in honor of his dad. The POW-MIA Jeep is dedicated to Kathy’s brother, a cousin of Paul’s, and several other named prisoners of war, along with all those unnamed. Paul has traveled with it to the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC. Read More »

by cydney on August 5, 2010 at 8:19 am in News

NC4×4 T-Shirt No-Sale Pre-Sale Ends Tonight

Reserve your shirt before midnight tonight

The No-Sale Pre-Sale has been going strong for the past week, but time is quickly running out. If you haven’t posted your pre-order in the forum thread, you have until midnight tonight to make the cutoff. Pre-orders will guarantee shirt availability and one lucky poster will get a free shirt.

Expect shirts to be available in the NC4×4 Store in mid-August. Pre-order folks will get an early-bird notification to finalize their purchases.

All shirts are $15/ea shipped, except for pocket tees and 2X and larger shirts, which are $16/ea shipped. Shirts are available in navy blue, olive green, and ash, and in regular adult, ladies’ cut, and youth sizes.

by NC4x4 on July 31, 2010 at 8:28 am in News

ECORS – “Prelude to the Q”

ECORS travels to Vale, NC this weekend for the last race before the Harlan KOH Qualifier. If you’re planning on going, check out this thread in the forum or get details on the ECORS website. Racing kicks off at 9AM on Saturday, so be sure to get there early.

Admission is $10 in advance or $12 at the gate. There’s also a $10 camping fee for this venue. Dirt bikes and quads are prohibited. Directions to the race course can be found here. As always, the race course is open to spectators on Saturday evening and Sunday, so feel free to bring your rig and ride after the race is over.

If the thought of off-road racing isn’t enough to get you excited about the weekend, there are some clips from the last ECORS race at the Flats below the fold:
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by NC4x4 on June 17, 2010 at 4:12 pm in News

2010 May Jam at Uwharrie Adventures

The annual May Jam returns to Uwharrie Adventures on Memorial Day weekend. The fun kicks off on Friday evening with a Back to Back Grudge Pull.

The action is non-stop on Saturday. First round qualifying on the race track runs all day long. Racers will run single car time trials, with the best times moving on to Sunday afternoon’s race. The Double Points mud race runs from noon until 4pm. The top five from each class will move on to the finals on Sunday afternoon. The Sled Pull and Freerock comp run on Saturday evening.

General entry is $12/day and $5/night to camp per person. Children are $6/day and $5/night for camping. Weekend passes are also available. Get the full schedule and event details at the 4×4Cross website or at Uwharrie Adventures or check out the thread in the forums.

by NC4x4 on May 26, 2010 at 9:29 am in News

Calendar of Events Added

You might have noticed a new addition to the navigation bar on the right side of the screen. We’ve added a Calendar of Events listing all the major 4wd events on the East Coast. This list is populated in part with information from the Upcoming Events section of the forum, but if you don’t see your event listed, just drop us a line and we’ll add it to the schedule. At a minimum, we need to know the name and date of the event, the name of the venue, the nearest city, and a link with more information. If you have a description of the event, registration information, or anything else, feel free to include that as well.

We hope that makes it a bit easier to plan your summer wheeling trips.

by NC4x4 on April 21, 2010 at 10:15 am in News

ECORS ‘Second Coming’ Photo Gallery

The next ECORS race is just days away. Gear up for a weekend of racing by checking out photos from last month’s “Second Coming” race at the DPG. Click here to view the photos.

by Shawn on April 15, 2010 at 8:37 pm in News

ECORS – Racin’ the Flats

Click for larger image

The third race of the ECORS season is coming up fast. This Saturday, April 17, ECORS travels to The Flats in Marion, NC. Like previous ECORS races, this event will be staggered-start endurance racing. Expect to see some rocks, a bit of mud, and everything in between. The course will be open for prerunning by registered racers on Friday.

Spectator fees are $10/person in advance, or $15/person the day of the race. You can purchase them online at the ECORS website. Children 12 years of age and younger are free.

Class A kicks off at 9AM, so be sure to arrive early if you’re driving in on Saturday morning. If you’d rather spend the night nearby, there will be primitive camping available on-site. There are also two hotels near the race course.

As racers and fans gear up for the Flats race this weekend, we’ll be taking a look back at last month’s race. Stay tuned for a series of posts this week recapping The Second Coming race at the Devils’ Playground.

Read Part One of the DPG Recap: Class A – Racing in a station wagon
Read Part Two of the DPG Recap: Class B – That Isuzu was too pretty anyway
Read Part Three of the DPG Recap: Class C – Big hearts and wide-open throttle
See all the ECORS Second Coming photos: Click here

by Shawn on April 12, 2010 at 12:31 pm in News, Upcoming Events

Uwharrie National Forest OHV Area Update – Spring 2010

Land of Many Uses

Off Season work is under way on the OHV trails system. NC Forest Supervisor Marisue Hilliard was in the Forest a few weeks ago to check out and approve plans and projects that Ranger Walker and her team at Uwharrie have in mind for this year and beyond.

Contract work funded by RTP funds (Recreational Trails Program, the RTP funds come from the Federal Highway Trust Fund) is underway. Heavy equipment is being used to grade and fill some of the chronic problem areas such as the mud holes on Rock Mountain Loop closest to the double parking lot and the erosion taking place coming down to FS 553 from the Rocky Mountain Loop/Sawmill junction. The major erosion that has occurred in this latter section has caused several illegal bypasses to be created, which on that extremely steep slope is causing even more erosion. PLEASE. Stay on marked trails and practice Tread Lightly principles.

Off Season also provides an opportunity for Adopt-A-Trail clubs to do specific work on their trails such as repairing the corduroy (log) bridges, repairing fencing, erecting illegal bypass barricades and cleaning silt traps. CTB, C.O.R.E., Palmetto Jeep Club, CNC and other Adopt-A-Trail member clubs are hard at work, in conjunction with the Forest Service to repair and prepare the OHV trails for the 2010 season.

The OHV season workday schedule is now being firmed up. Ranger Walker is planning for the 3rd Saturday of the month, May thru October, to be general FS workdays. While some actual maintenance issues such as fence/guardrail repair, silt trap clean out may take place on these workdays, more often trash pickup and general maintenance will be on the schedule. The OHV season produces some of the heaviest traffic in the Forest and with that comes trash. Unfortunately too many of our fellow users of the OHV trails do not take out all they pack in and during heavy use months this can build up quickly. We can do our part in keeping Uwharrie clean by attending these workdays as well as by taking the time to fill a bag or two anytime we are on the Forest OHV trails.

The FS filed RTP requests this year (January 2010) for funding to EXPAND the OHV trail mileage at Uwharrie. This is a HUGE boost for the morale of NC 4wd enthusiasts, especially in light of the recent closure of the Upper Tellico OHV area. If funding is approved, the expansion process would probably be a 2-3 year project. 2010 – Funding request and approval, 2011 – Survey and trail layout, 2012 – Construction and opening.

Several of the trails in the OHV area are being surveyed during this off season for re-routing. Daniel Trail and Sawmill Trail have several areas where the trail is too close to sensitive environmental or archeological sites and re-routing options are being studied. Also, several illegal bypasses on Sawmill Trail are damaging sensitive environmental areas. These illegal bypasses are being closed by Sawmill Trail Adopt-A-Trail partner clubs Carolina Trail Blazers and Palmetto Jeep Club. Some re-routes on Daniel are also being looked at but will probably not take place until next year. Again, PLEASE STAY ON MARKED TRAILS and practice Tread Lightly principles. That one time that you “couldn’t make it”, “went around someone”, “just wanted to see if your rig could make it”, “it was too wet”, “it was too muddy”, etc, is just more ammunition for those intent on closing all or parts of our trails.

Badin Lake Group Camp, the site of CTBs Fun Caravan for years is being improved. Contracts have been let for the shower house which will add two showers as well as flush toilets to the facility. Funding for this project is coming directly from OHV trail user fees. When riding in the Forest, PLEASE make sure to purchase your permit. The more we ride and the more permits we buy; the more money is available for these types of improvements.

Plans are in place to construct two actual bridges in the OHV area. One is being planned for Dickey Bell Trail at the Green Gap Road creek crossing. The other is being planned for Dutch John Trail. While these bridges may be unsightly from the 4wd enthusiast perspective and will take some of the fun and challenge away from these two creek crossings, the district Ranger, who at this time is sympathetic to 4wd interests, feels that this is preferable to closure and or re-routes of these trails.

The 2010 OHV Season is almost on us. Trails will open Thursday, April 1st and will close Wednesday, December 15th. Trail permit fees will remain unchanged from 2009. Daily use fees are $5 and yearly permits are $30 and are available at The Eldorado Outpost as well as other local merchants.

by JC on March 21, 2010 at 9:07 am in News

4×4Cross Season Opener this Weekend

Friday night at 7pm, 4×4Cross kicks off the 2010 season with a Straight Diesel Drag Race and Back-to-Back Truck Grudge Pull at Mooresville Dragway!!

Starting on Saturday the 27th at 9am, 4×4Cross travels to the Mud Devils Playground for an Open Invite and a FREEROCK competition, all in an effort to raise funds for the Efird Memorial Project.

Come out to either event and help raise funds for the cause. 4×4Cross will have a special Efird Memorial Shirt for sale at both events. All proceeds from the shirts will go to the cause as well.

It’s gonna be one sick event! All for a great cause! For more info, check out this thread in the forums or the 4×4Cross website.

by Shawn on February 26, 2010 at 12:07 am in News

Rescue Tellico Update 2-17-10

This is a statement from Blueribbon Coalition lawyer Paul Turke dated 2-17-10:

“The BlueRibbon Legal Team, in conjunction with Rescue Tellico and other interested parties, is in the process of implementing a multi-faceted response to the Forest Service appeal decisions dated January 15, 2010. These decisions affirmed the Forest Supervisor’s decision to continue closure of the Upper Tellico OHV Area to meaningful vehicle use. Federal court litigation, particularly in this setting, requires experienced counsel and other professional staff able to create or take advantage of unique circumstances to allow for any likelihood of success. Such a challenge will be heard not in a court of opinion, fairness, or even justice, but one of law. These steps cannot be properly taken in the heat of the moment, and we ask for the understanding and patience of our supporters as we proceed in this important effort.”

SFWDA and the Rescue Tellico Committee are proud of the efficiency of our legal effort and what we have done with limited resources. Any future success at Tellico will require further support from the OHV community and others implicated by the Tellico closure. To assist these efforts, you may make a contribution which will be fully dedicated to project Rescue Tellico via the following portals: http://sfwda.org/trails/tellico/donate.html

by JC on February 17, 2010 at 5:59 pm in News

Forest Service Releases Final Decision On Tellico OHV Area

The Forest Sevice Deciding Officer for the administrative appeals filed against Forest Supervisor Hilliard’s decision to close the Upper Tellico OHV Area has released his decision.

The Deciding Officer has decided for the Forest Service, concurring with and affirming the ARO’s, Supervisor Hilliard, October 14, 2009 decision for closure of the Upper Tellico OHV trails!

This constitutes the FINAL administrative determination on this issue by the Department Of Agriculture. Those who filed appeals are now free, under due process, to file suit in federal court.

by JC on January 20, 2010 at 11:54 am in News

Forest Service Malfeasance In Tellico Appeals Decision

As someone fairly new to the public lands access fight I continue to be frustrated and disheartened with the malfeasance exhibited by the Forest Service in relation to their Decision Notice to close the Upper Tellico OHV Area.

At issue at the moment is their blatant malfeasance in not following their own mandated Code of Federal Regulations, 36 CFR 215, in deciding the administrative appeals that were filed following the Decision Notice.

According to 36 CFR 215, and the time line as I understand it, the Forest Service Appeals Deciding Officer should have made a decision on the appeals by January 14, 2010. We have heard nothing from the Forest Service concerning this decision. Are these public servants not responsible to follow the same regulations that ordinary citizens are to follow?

Who is watching out for the American public’s interest in this attempt to close public lands to public use? Who will hold these employees of the American public accountable for doing what they are supposed to do? Why are the rules and regulations not being followed by those that work for us? Who will stand in the gap?

I continue to urge you to not let this issue be swept under the rug! Call, write or email your elected representatives, both state and federal! Call, write or email the NC Forest Service Supervisor and her managing agency, the US Department of Agriculture!

Continue to support, both financially and with your membership, those organizations that are fighting for YOU! Southern Four Wheel Drive Association, Blueribbon Coalition and United Four Wheel Drive Association need your voice to make them a strong and viable advocate for 4wd rights!

by JC on January 18, 2010 at 10:28 am in News

NC Trail Cleanup Weekend

Interested in helping keep public OHV trails open? There will be two cleanup events this weekend to remove trash and perform minor trail maintenance. The Uwharrie trail cleanup team, led by Chris Irving, will meet on Saturday, December 12, at 9AM at the Eldorado Outpost. On Sunday, Mike Burrell from the Trail Jammers will be leading the effort at Brown Mountain. Volunteers should meet in the Brown Mountain main parking lot at 9AM.

If you’re interested in lending a hand, RSVP in the organization thread.

by Shawn on December 10, 2009 at 9:02 pm in News

Last Chance To Act Before The Forest Service Decides The Tellico Closure Appeals

This is your last chance to make a difference in the Rescue Tellico fight before the Forest Service makes a decision on the appeals that have been filed. I’m trying to make this as easy as possible, it is up to YOU to follow through!

Go here: http://www.votesmart.org/index.htm , type in your zip and get a list of your elected officials email addresses. Copy and paste the following and send it to them ASAP!

Dear Congressman/Senator,

I know you are busy, especially at this time of year, but I wonder if you are actually aware of the issue at stake in the public’s struggle with the Forest Service over access to the Upper Tellico OHV trails! In short, The Forest Service has been negligent in performing maintenance on OHV trails at the Upper Tellico OHV area for 15 years. Now they have decided to close public access instead of fixing their mess! This type of shoddy work on behalf of the American public CANNOT be allowed to happen! WHO will be held accountable? If the FS is allowed to proceed with this closure it will open a door to closure of public access in the entire United States! Who will stand in the gap?

Here is a link to the appeal filed by the Southern Four Wheel Drive Association & Blueribbon Coalition: http://www.sfwda.org/forum/uploads/5/Tellico_215_appeal_11-30-09.pdf

Here is a link to the appeal filed by SFWDA Member Flint Holbrook, Flint is a Registered Professional Engineer in TN, KY, OH, WV, NC & SC and is a Registered Professional Hydrologist with over 25 years of experience in the field. http://www.sfwda.org/forum/uploads/3/Holbrook_Appeals_plus_FOIA_27Nov09.pdf

The FS has insisted on conference calls for contact instead of face to face meetings, has denied all off the requests in Flint’s appeal including 1 day access to the trails by vehicle to confirm FS assertions and his FOIA requests.

The FS is stonewalling access advocates at each turn and “checking off their box” as having followed the rules of mandate if not ethics!

Both of these appeals are professionally written and contain numerous scientific, procedural and ethical examples of FS malfeasance in managing the Upper Tellico OHV area!

I know my elected officials are having a hard time in DC right now with everything else going on but if the FS is allowed to exhibit this type of malfeasance and get away with it where will it stop? Who will be held accountable to the American people for not doing their job and when?

Without some type of pressure from responsible agency USDA and my elected officials the FS will continue to close public access to public lands at their own discretion!

The 45 day appeal window is now closed. The FS Deciding Officer, one of their own hand picked representatives, will make a decision by January 14, 2010. PLEASE help motorized recreation Americans protect our access to public lands!

by JC on December 7, 2009 at 8:27 pm in News