Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree USA at Anthracite Outdoor Adventure Area July 28th-30th
The last weekend in July brought with it the 2nd Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree of the year at Anthracite Outdoor Adventure Area (AOAA). While the AOAA has been open just 2 years, this is the 5th year of the Jeep Jamboree taking place at this location.
This year Off Road Consulting along with Quadratec were asked to be trail leaders for a new trail group that would include green and blue rated trails. We spent the last few weeks laying out the route and grooming the trails with the end result being a 7 hour loop that consisted of several challenging obstacles such as "Fern Ridge" and a new trail that had been cut that we nicknamed "The Zika" trail.
Pre- Jeep Jamboree events kicked off Thursday July 28th in the evening but before this, Off Road Consulting had a private training class at AOAA.
While the Jeep Jamboree registration started at the AOAA event buildings at 5pm, the participants started forming a line around 4pm as the excitement was starting to build for the Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree. Quadratec handed out goody bags filled with Quadratec catalogs, stickers, pen and key chains along with Quadratec travel mugs.
5pm rolled around and the crowds began the registration process of filling out waivers, checking out Jeep Jamboree gear and then the most important part of all...deciding which trail group they would sign up with.
There were several different trail groups all with various trail levels. Some of the group names coincided with the coal history in the area, names like Breaker Boys, Coal Crackers and Mud Mining were a few of the trail group names. The Quadratec and Off Road Consulting trail group was named "Kyle's Follies" after the lead trail guide, Kyle. Along with Kyle we had two other trail guides with our group, Jenn Watson and George Soto. We had a great team and excited to meet the participants who would choose Kyle's Follies" as their group.
Registration was wrapping up and it was time to head home and get some rest because the next day was the Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree!
Friday Morning Quadratec and Off Road Consulting arrived early so we could prep our lead vehicle. There would be a driver's meeting at 8:30am to officially kick off the Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree. Folks who had signed up with our group started rolling in and we began organizing the vehicles and answering questions such as airing down and 4lo vs. 4 hi.
The driver's meeting was given by Steve Risk, the Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree coordinator. He made a few announcements, talked about trail etiquette and things to remember on the trail such as keeping the vehicle behind you in site at all times, etc and then before wrapping up Quadratec had provided a few Quadratec hats and Shackles as give aways for the participants. Steve threw the items into the crowd....yes, even the shackles! He just made sure they hit the ground first.
With the driver's meeting coming to a close, it was finally time for everyone to get seat belted in their vehicles and head out to the trails!
Kyle's Follies was headed to the western side of AOAA and not long after getting onto the trails we had our first trail repair on a YJ.......With the help of our trail ready trail guides, we discovered that the YJ had a few loose bolts which caused the driveshaft to fall out.....we managed to get the YJ repaired and we were able to continue on our route.
AOAA has 7,000 acres of various trail levels including easy green trails to serious red trails but it also has some beautiful views and scenic overlooks and while Jeep Jamborees are all about trails and terrain, they are also about the experience and the scenery you encounter.
After passing a few picturesque areas we started to enter the more technical areas in the Kyle's Follies Trail ride. We had planned the route so drivers had a chance to warm up a bit before taking on the challenging obstacles but with the rain the overnight; even the easier challenges quickly became difficult.
The first challenge was a tight, off camber uphill with rocky, loose and slippery terrain. Even with mud terrains and front and rear lockers this hill was still challenging and felt like a rock staircase.
The challenges didn't stop there, our next task was an off camber area followed by a steep uphill and then immediate downhill surrounded by trees. This was definitely going to test the driver's skills! With the trail leader at the top of the hill to spot folks through just in case, everyone made it through with an increased heart rate and smiles on their faces.
Next up was a section called "The Dozer Cut" and it was a steep uphill with a large horizontal log in the middle and with the advice of Off Road Consulting to take the line to the left of the log, folks made it up the hill with no problem.
What a rush! It was time to let the driver's calm down after what they had just drove through so we continued along on easy and more scenic green trails. The driver's needed their rest because next up was....Fern Ridge!
Fern Ridge was just that, a mountain ridge covered with ferns that made you feel like you were in a scene out of Jurassic Park more than in Pennsylvania. The rock gardens on Fern Ridge were impressive and we chose lines to avoid damage for the stock JKs but even with taking the less aggressive lines it was a challenge for all.
After Fern Ridge, it was time for much needed nourishment and we stopped for lunch along the trail. As folks were discussing the trails and sharing stories we had to do another small trail repair but this time it was a different kind of repair. We didn't need bolts or tools for this but a needle, thread and duct tape....one of our trail guides found that they had ripped their pants a bit up the middle but no need to fear! Kyle's Follies group is prepared for whatever the trails have in store! After some sewing and placement of duct tape the shorts were as good as new and we were ready for the second half of our day!
We continued on various green and blue level trails but we had saved the best for last! There had been a new blue trail cut a few weeks ago and it was a perfect way to end our trail ride! The trail consisted of tight, twisty areas with large rock sections. As we started navigating our way through this rather technical trail....they came....the mosquitoes. Everywhere! It was a challenge to get the stock JKs through the terrain and after stacking rocks and re-positioning the vehicle s it was time to break out the Maxtrax.
Weighing 8lbs each, these aids provided the traction the vehicles needed to get through the slippery, rocky sections. Did I mention there were mosquitoes? After battling through the entire group made it through and those who had to fight the hardest to get through had the biggest smiles on their faces! It was quite an accomplishment! It was time to start making our way back to the AOAA parking lot and when asked "What was the name of that last trail we did?" The first thing that came to mind was "The Zika Trail"! Our trail guides worked hard and we got everybody through the day with no major damage and everyone able to drive their vehicles back on their own.
Day 1 of the Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree was wrapping up but we still had one more day on the trails!
Saturday July 30th brought with it rain and foggy conditions along with a new group of participants on the Kyle's Follies trail ride.
After a repeat of the driver's meeting we were quickly back out on the trails and like the day before we had to stop for an early trail repair which was a TJ whose 4lo wouldn’t stay engaged. We knew exactly how to fix it and got it locked in for the rest of the day.
Driving to our first obstacle we came upon the Ho-BT trail ride who had a broken TJ in their group. After some shuffling around of vehicles our group was able to continue on to the first challenge. We changed things up a little from the first day due to weather conditions and this let us run a second section of fern ridge. It is just as technical as the section we ran on Friday but now there were two sections to tackle. With team work of Off Road Consulting, Quadratec and the other trail guides we were able to get everyone through unscathed.
After lunch we continued on green trails for a while and ended up with another broken vehicle...a heavily modified TJ that had broken a track bar bolt... ..after searching through everyone's tool bags Off Road Consulting had a bolt that was a perfect fit. After finding the bolt it was a quick and easy fix and we were back moving down the trails. We knew what was ahead .....Zika trail, which was such a challenge the day before and with heavy rain right over us we gave the drivers the option to drive Zika or take a bypass. Most of the stock JKs opted to take the bypass as they were growing tired from the day’s challenges. The rain was getting heavier and heavier and our Maxtrax's which were so useful yesterday getting folks through Zika quickly became essential rain gear for us trail guides.
We eventually got everyone who attempted the Zika trail through and it was time to head back to the parking lot and dry off as we were soaked from head to toe!
The trail riding part of the Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree had come to an end but the Jamboree wasn't over yet! The closing ceremonies which included dinner at 6pm and after getting dried off we were on our way to Massers Restaurant in Paxinos, PA.
After dinner the Jeep Jamboree coordinator had a few things to announce and thanked everyone who made this event possible. Then it was time for the Quadratec Giveaways which included a 125 piece Mechanic Tool Set, ARB recovery bag, Quadratec hats, shovels and 3/4 inch shackles. The giveaways were handed out to folks who stood out on the trails, such as the folks who drove the farthest distance or who suffered the most damage on the trails. At one point Quadratec hats and t-shirts were being tossed around room!
The Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree had come to an end. In the four wheeling community jeep clubs and groups are popping up everywhere but with the Jeep Jamboree you can expect a family friendly environment, professional trail guides that look after you and your vehicle and an experience that will last a lifetime.
