Gary Lewis Posted December 24, 2022 Share Posted December 24, 2022 Some of y'all will remember the thread called Big Blue's Trip To New Mexico where I explained that I thought my son and I were going to take Big Blue to run the New Mexico Back Country Discovery Route in October. But that didn't happen for several reasons, one of which included both Janey and I coming down with COVID in early October. So we moved the probable date to January/February, but it turns out that the NM route is closed as of Dec 31st. So now we are looking at the Ozark Overlanding Adventure Trail. But this trail is much more technical than the NM route as it has numerous water crossings and serious ruts in some places - as you'll see if you watch some of the video below. I've joined the Facebook page and asked a few questions, including what their thoughts are of Big Blue's capability of doing it. Basically all of the answers said we can make it but will need to be careful and are sure to get more "pinstripes". I'm ok with that, but the concern is the lack of a snorkel for the water crossings. So I'm going to tee that up in Big Blue's Transformation thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nothing Special Posted December 24, 2022 Share Posted December 24, 2022 Looks like a fun challenge! I think my biggest concern would be the off-camber muddy ditches that make you slide into the bank on one side. If it's soft mud that's one thing, but if there are rocks or trees that can lead to more than pinstripes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted December 24, 2022 Author Share Posted December 24, 2022 Looks like a fun challenge! I think my biggest concern would be the off-camber muddy ditches that make you slide into the bank on one side. If it's soft mud that's one thing, but if there are rocks or trees that can lead to more than pinstripes. Sorry, Bob. Missed this yesterday. You are right, those muddy off-camber ditches are worrying. Maybe it'll be dry when we go? But if not we will have to be very careful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted January 6, 2023 Author Share Posted January 6, 2023 Sorry, Bob. Missed this yesterday. You are right, those muddy off-camber ditches are worrying. Maybe it'll be dry when we go? But if not we will have to be very careful. Time for an update. It looks like Bret and I'll hit the trail in late February and spend the equivalent of two full days on it spread across three days. Said another way, we'll drive from home to the start of the trail on the morning of the first day, spend all of the second day on the trail, and then spend the morning of the third day on it and head for home that afternoon. I'm thinking we can do the OOAT's Day 1 the afternoon of the first day, Day 2 on the 2nd day, and then about 1/3 of Day 3 on the third day. That'll put us at a highway and we can head for home from there. We still have a lot of planning to do, but he's about to book his flights so it is going to happen. However, I've been getting a lot of interesting thoughts from the guys on two FB pages I'm on - the OOAT page and the Overland In Oklahoma page. In both cases some are telling me that Big Blue is too big. But others have stepped up and said "I did it in my Ram 1500" or "I did it in my late model F-Series". So I compared Big Blue to those trucks and found this: Truck Width w/o Mirrors Wheelbase Overall Length Big Blue R/C 8' box 77.17 133" 208.3" Ram 1500 C/C 5' 7" box 79.4 140.5 229.0 F-Series S/C 5' 6" box 79.9 145.4 231.7 So it looks to me like BB can make it since they made it. Now, if we can just thread the needle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted January 7, 2023 Author Share Posted January 7, 2023 Time for an update. It looks like Bret and I'll hit the trail in late February and spend the equivalent of two full days on it spread across three days. Said another way, we'll drive from home to the start of the trail on the morning of the first day, spend all of the second day on the trail, and then spend the morning of the third day on it and head for home that afternoon. I'm thinking we can do the OOAT's Day 1 the afternoon of the first day, Day 2 on the 2nd day, and then about 1/3 of Day 3 on the third day. That'll put us at a highway and we can head for home from there. We still have a lot of planning to do, but he's about to book his flights so it is going to happen. However, I've been getting a lot of interesting thoughts from the guys on two FB pages I'm on - the OOAT page and the Overland In Oklahoma page. In both cases some are telling me that Big Blue is too big. But others have stepped up and said "I did it in my Ram 1500" or "I did it in my late model F-Series". So I compared Big Blue to those trucks and found this: Truck Width w/o Mirrors Wheelbase Overall Length Big Blue R/C 8' box 77.17 133" 208.3" Ram 1500 C/C 5' 7" box 79.4 140.5 229.0 F-Series S/C 5' 6" box 79.9 145.4 231.7 So it looks to me like BB can make it since they made it. Now, if we can just thread the needle. And, WE ARE GOING! Bret bought his airline tickets today. He will get here on the evening of Feb 22nd and we will spend the night here, and then head out on the 23rd. And he'll fly back on the 26th, so we will have either the equivalent of 2 or 2 1/2 days on the trail. More later... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBrother-84 Posted January 8, 2023 Share Posted January 8, 2023 And, WE ARE GOING! YEEHAW !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted January 8, 2023 Author Share Posted January 8, 2023 And, WE ARE GOING! YEEHAW !!! Thanks, Jeff. It is exciting to have a date, but now I need to get a few things done on the truck. And especially the air intake system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBrother-84 Posted January 8, 2023 Share Posted January 8, 2023 And especially the air intake system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted January 8, 2023 Author Share Posted January 8, 2023 And especially the air intake system. That's cool, Jeff! I wondered what it would look like on BB. In fact I'd thought about Photoshopping it on but my PS skills aren't that good so I didn't try. But you even got the latest pic with the painted headlight doors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted February 7, 2023 Author Share Posted February 7, 2023 That's cool, Jeff! I wondered what it would look like on BB. In fact I'd thought about Photoshopping it on but my PS skills aren't that good so I didn't try. But you even got the latest pic with the painted headlight doors. Well, I think Big Blue is just about ready to tackle the OOAT. As detailed in his Transformation thread I've replaced the idler pulley as the old one was making a noise, and I installed new fan belts while "in there", placing the gently-used ones in the spares bin that will go in BB's toolbox. And I extended the vents for the front and rear axles to get them well above any water level we are going to meet. So I think we are "there". I'm sure I'll find other little things to do, but they'll be really minor, like cleaning the windshield. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts