After work yesterday, we drove to Topeka and picked up my Jeep.  I'm really pleased how it is leveled out with the 1" coil spring spacer in the front.  I also like the addition of the red aluminum tie rod in the front.  This winter, I'm going to get the whole front axle cleaned up and painted.  

On the way home, I met up with my friend Nick to do a parts trade.  His rig is really looking good after adding 4.5" springs, adjustable control arms, a 1" body lift and 40" Milestars like mine.  He is going to weld on my rear truss and lower control arm skids in the next week or two.

We went to dinner with some good friends and then they joined us and another couple to watch a classic rock band.  The music was awesome and we really enjoyed the evening out. 

I'm shooting an older model tomorrow morning and then I hope to get the 5th wheel hitch out of my truck.  I picked up some Husky Liner floor mats yesterday so those will be going in as well.  

We are back from St. Louis and our Christmas time with family.  It was fun to be around all of the little ones as well as catch up with the adults.  It was a good time and wish we could do it more often.  We will have Christmas with Justin, Megan and Jayson this coming Sunday as they didn't get to go due to Justin't work schedule.   

After work today, I plan on running out to Topeka to get my Jeep and then we are meeting friends for dinner before heading to see a band we saw at a Jeep event earlier this year.  We were impressed with their playing of classic rock so we thought we'd try to see them some time this year and that will be tonight.

The forecast for the New Year's Day wheeling trip looks great with sunshine and a high in the 50's.  I don;t think we could expect better and I'm looking forward to getting out on the trails with a lot of friends. 

If only I didn't have to work the weekend I would be off until next Thursday after today.  This is bogus. 

I have a new type of photo shoot tonight I'm going to try.  It's for a body builder/fitness contestant.  She called after seeing our sports work and thought she would love to have some images like that for her.  She's 35 years old and I'm both anxious and excited about the shoot.  If it works out well, it could add a new line of revenue for our dead months.

After a quick shoot with a couple of my models yesterday afternoon, Jodi and I headed to Belton, MO to join others from our offroad club to sort, package and load thousands of toys for the U.S. Marines Toys for Tots drive.  When we arrived, it was amazing how many toys were there, collected from toy drives and the boxes you see put out at retail stores to what was purchased by the Marines with cash donations.  They had just purchased $32,000 worth of toys that day!

We started with unloading a box truck that was jammed full and then we started counting and sorting by age group and gender.  From there, we bagged them up and loaded them in storage pods which would be delivered to one of 140 organizations the Marines give to.  In the course of three hours, we accomplished what the goal was for the evening and some.  It was a lot of work but it was fun and rewarding too.

My Jeep now has King bump stops installed on the front and they are working on a couple other things for me while it is there.  I'll get it back next Monday probably and we will give it a good test on New Year's Day at Tuttle. 

My Jeep is now at the shop and I'll get it back some time next week.  While I was there, I ordered some Weathertech floor mats for the truck.  Now I just need some LED headlights and a remote start.  

While at the shop, we loaded up a vehicle lift on my trailer that my friend Bill bought from the shop owner.  On the way home, I swung by the powder coater and picked up his bumpers that were ready and I hauled it all to his place.  Afterward, I met Jodi at our favorite Italian restaurant for a late dinner. 

I've been reading up on a DPF/EGR delete.  It would definitely help fuel economy and make the engine run better after a tune but I'm pretty sure it would void my extended warranty.  I should probably wait until that is up before doing it. 

JD went to the doctor yesterday and they are treating him for the flu.  Hopefully he gets over that quickly.  Luckily for him he was off work already using up his personal time.  He has a couple more days to recover before he is scheduled to go back to work. 

We still have some Christmas shopping to complete.  It's suppose to be real nice this weekend so hopefully we can get that wrapped up.  I have to work both days at the plant but then I'm off for a few days.  They just announced that the signups for retirement incentive buyouts start January 27th and close on February 28th.  I hope to retire April 1st based on this new info but it is based on plant operational needs.  I think they'll have my replacement chosen and trained by the 1st of April and I'll be able to go.  

 

We wound up with about 6-7" of snow the past couple days.  It was easy to move off the drive being a light powder so I'm thankful for that.  I just used a push boom which is my go to for the light weight snow.  We are suppose to get back in the 50's for quite a few days starting this weekend. 

I'm heading out to 4x4 Land this morning after I work a half day.  I'm hauling back a hydraulic lift for a friend who is installing it in our new clubhouse.  It will be nice to have a lift available when need be. 

This past Friday, I wound up picking up a new trailer.  I went with a 22' Load Trail with Maxx ramps.  The length will allow me to mount a job box on the front so I can carry extra parts with me like a driveshaft, axles, fluids, tools, etc...  The truck/trailer combo is a bit too long for the drive.  I will be storing the trailer at my friends place that is about 15 minutes away.  His new 48x72 shop with an 18' lean to that runs the full width across the back is our new "clubhouse" and we look forward to hanging out there and working on our Jeeps. 

 

Saturday morning, I got up early and met some friends and club members to attend the Wreaths Across America event at Leavenworth National Cemetery.  After a brief ceremony that featured a 21 gun salute and the playing of Taps, we placed wreaths on the graves of those buried there.  Some dated back to the Spanish American war.  I found the bugler from Kansas for a company in WWI.  It was an emotional experience for sure.

Later in the afternoon, I headed to Nick's house to help him finish up his coil spring install and a few other things.  We wound up working about 8 hours.  While there, I tackled the clockspring replacement on my Jeep.  It went pretty well overall and it definitely was the problem, thankfully.

Tomorrow, my Jeep heads to Topeka to get King bump stops installed in the front and a good look over before my wheeling trip on New Year's Day at Tuttle.  

I picked up my newly powdercoated aluminum tie rod yesterday and look forward to getting that installed soon.  The list I have is quite long but for the most part, most of the projects are small and don;t require a ton of time.  The rear axle truss will be the biggest project.

My Jeep goes out to Topeka next week for installation of some bump cans in the front which will house some King bumpstops that I picked up on the cheap.  While they are doing that, I'm going to have them put in the coil spring spacers in the front to help level out the Jeep.

Today, Jodi and I are going to a trailer sales place to hopefully bring home a Jeep hauler.  We will officially be known a s a trailer queen after that.  Of course, I will still have fun on the street with it but when we go wheeling, it will be on the trailer. 

We still have quite a bit of Christmas shopping to finish up.  Kyle and Justin are pretty much done so it's in laws, nephews and nieces, etc... to finish up.  We will head to St. Louis for Christmas Eve and Day but since I have to work on Thursday and Friday, it will be a short trip. 

I still haven't settled on a trailer.  I may just get a 20' trailer and be done.  It'll be fine for hauling my Jeep to the places I want to go although it may not have enough room for a job box on the deck with the pro ramps out back.

I just witnessed a really bad accident on my way back to work from lunch.  A tractor trailer next to me went off into the median to avoid the calamity taking place ahead of us.  I had to lock up my brakes and make my way to the shoulder to avoid getting involved.  Debris was going everywhere as vehicles went sliding every which way.  A Chevy SUV went rolling down the hill and wound up against the fence against the service road.  The bags blew so hopefully they weren't injured too badly.  I called 911 as some people made their way down the hill to check on the driver.  I was fortunate to not be involved. 

I went shopping for a trailer but didn't find the right one for me.  I'm planning on getting a 102x22 pull behind that has drive over fenders, 7K axles and spring assisted Pro ramps.  I do like the gooseneck trailer but I think it's a bit overkill.  

I spent Saturday at a friends helping him pull his rear axle and weld on a truss.  We will be doing mine next along with some other work. 

Well, we own a truck.  Surprisingly, Jodi was the one who supported this purchase more than I.  Sure, it would be  great to have a truck to haul the Jeep to our destination and not have to worry about breakdowns, but it's a vehicle that will sit a lot and we won't use much.  I guess though that if I really didn't want one, I wouldn't have shown it to her.  :)  So here we are, with a dually again.

I have to admit, it is a sweet ride.  It is White Pearl Tricoat and in Lariat trim with the FX4 Offroad package.  The 6.4 diesel only has 53,000 miles on it.  It has a black leather interior, new Michelin tires all around, back up camera and lots of other goodies.  I insisted on a 4 year bumper to bumper warranty and that's what we have.  Now we just have to find a trailer.

Before going to buy the truck, I was able to get my hard top back on my Jeep.  I wound up pulling the spare tire out of the tub and removed the carrier.  I probably won't run a spare if I have one on the trailer wherever we go. 

Today will be a good day to get my Jeep cleaned up after the SMORR trip.  Temperatures are suppose to be in the mid-50's the next few days so I really need to take advantage of the mild temps and get some outside work done.

I'll be taking over the helm of the Offroad club February 1st and I'm looking forward to what lies ahead.  We will be offering a lot more club sponsored wheeling events including some that will be out of state.  I just scheduled an event for our club for New Year's Day called the Hangover Krawl.  I won't have one but some might!  We will be wheeling at Tuttle ORV outside of Manhattan, KS.  Hopefully it will be dry, cold I don't care about. 

We made it back from SMORR without any carnage so the trip was a success.  The weather wasn't ideal but we still managed to do some of the tougher trails.  One of the Jeeps that joined us doesn't have lockers and I was able to spot him through every obstacle we attempted but one.  He just didn't have the clearance for it.  He didn't  have much offroad experience but he had a blast and gained a lot of confidence on this trip, although he admittedly was puckering on some of the obstacles. 

The sun actually came out on Saturday and we had nice weather, albeit still very wet.  We decided to do Rocky Road and that is when my friend Bill wound up losing all of his brake fluid when a boulder took out a brake line on his LJ.  No brakes and on a tough trail at the back of the park.  It's about to get interesting.  Luckily we were going up Rocky Road so he was able to drive out of it but then we had a situation after that.  We had to go downhill and we had two options, a really steep easy trail or a tougher technical trail that wasn't as steep.  With the wet conditions, we chose the technical trail.  We strapped his rig to mine and I served as a 6000lb anchor to keep him under control.  We made it out and nobody died.

We wound up leaving not long after getting him back on the trailer and we headed back to Kansas City for a meet and greet with Litebrite, who were in town.  I met them at SEMA for the first time and we are looking forward to wheeling with them at SMORR this summer.  They are good Jeeple and are very accommodating to all, which is one of the many reasons they are popular on Youtube and in the off road community. 

Jodi has just a few more sessions to edit and then she gets to take a hiatus from her computer for awhile.  We will be having our Model Crew Christmas party later this month and will be working on some marketing stuff for next year.

This coming weekend, there is a Jeep and Truck Fest on the Kansas side we will be attending and the following weekend, some of us in the club are heading to Leavenworth National Cemetery as volunteers to lay wreaths on the graves of the veterans buried there.  We missed out on the opportunity last year but glad we can do it this year.  

We've been discussing our travel plans for next year and it looks like we are going to head to Jeep Beach in Daytona in April and then in August, we are going to go to the Great Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion in Pigeon Forge, TN and then wheel Windrock Park while in the state.  A trip to Moab the following month may also happen too.  

 

Last day of work before a 4 day break.  I'm looking forward to getting out of town for a bit and having some fun.

Last night we had a very good sales session and we have another scheduled for tonight.  We will have three more left for the year once we finish up this week.  We were fortunate the weather cooperated well enough to get all of our sessions in.  We already have several sessions booked for next Spring and we plan to offer something new for clients over the winter. 

A friend dropped by yesterday and picked up my aluminum tie rod to take it to the powder coater as he had some parts he was going to go drop off.  It will be red to match my inner fenders, roll cage, etc..  Over the winter, I'd like to do some other suspension parts in red as well. 

Only two work days left before we head to St. Louis for some Turkey Day festivities with Jodi's family and then it is off to SMORR for a rainy weekend of wheeling.  Is what it is. We will be with friends and out on the trails.  We may not get to do some of the more serious rock krawling we like to do but it's better than not being on the trails.

I ordered an Artec rear truss this morning, taking advantage of their 15% off Black Friday sale.  My friend Nick will get it welded in this winter when he does his.  Next week, my rig is probably going out to Topeka to get some bump stop cans welded in so I can run some King bump stops in the front.  Got a great deal on them from a friend.

Another frickin' week of day job has arrived.  Apparently they don't know when the buyout period will open so I can get the hell out of here.  Just sign something that says I get the check when it is offered and I'll leave now. 

We got the death wobble fixed on my friend's Jeep on Saturday.  We discovered his track bar and tie rod a bit loose.  Tightening them up seemed to do the trick.  We had a good time hanging out at my buddy's new shop and we are looking forward to many wrenchathon's there this winter.

Jayson stayed the night with us Saturday night and we took him to the lighted Christmas parade in Excelsior Springs that some of our Jeep friends participated in.  Afterward, we came home and ordered pizza and wings and had a fun evening at home.  The next morning, we met JD and Megan at The Big Biscuit for breakfast.  Afterward, I spent some of the day organizing my tools.  I then went grocery shopping and grilled up pork steaks for dinner. 

A friend and I got together last night to flex out my Jeep and see what kind of issues we could find after installing the 6 Pak shocks.  I know my track bar had hit my front axle truss recently and I had some rubbing in the fender flares.  I also had one of the hydraulic lines on my ram come loose a couple times while out wheeling so that needed to be addressed as well.

In regard to the ram, it appears that when flexed out, the hose fitting was hitting the track bar adjustment sleeve.  We rotated the sleeve about 30 degrees and that resolved that issue.  To resolved the track bar contact with the truss issue, we turned the track bar mounting bolt around which game more clearance.

We also discovered that I don;t have upper bump stops in the front which is allowing the tires to get up and into my fender flares.  Apparently when I did the coilover shocks, some of that was removed and never put back when I returned to coil springs.  I need to order some bump stops that screw into the upper coil spring mount.

In the rear, my upper control arm jam nuts are still hitting the frame when flexed out.  Our plan is to drop the arms and grind the point off the nut that is making contact.  We also are going to fab up and weld some lower control arm skids as my mounts have taken a good beating.  

Tomorrow morning, I'm heading to another friends shop to help another buddy with his death wobble issue.  I may try to wire up my KC Hilites chase light that I've had for awhile, which will serve as my license plate light and my third brake light.  I still need to get my aluminum tie rod powdercoated as well.  

Well, I won the election for President of our offroad club.  Looks like i will have something to keep me busy in retirement.  I appreciate the support of all of my friends.  I'm looking forward to some fun things ahead in 2020.

This afternoon,  I'm meeting up with a friend and we are going to use a couple forklifts to flex out my Jeep and make adjustments as needed.  Need to check some clearance issues as well as length of hydraulic hoses for my ram.

Now that my photo shoots are over, it's time to take care of a few things that I've been needing to.  One is the brakes on the Taurus so it's in the shop today to figure out why the brake pedal is low and the stopping power is not what it should be.  I just replaced the rotors and pads on the front so it may be the booster or master cylinder.  I should know something today.

My Jeep has the traction control light on and it isn't the steering wheel off center so it's either a clockspring or wheel speed sensor issue. It goes in Friday to have that looked at.

We have a sales session tonight and Friday night and then we will have a couple next week as we try to get caught up and put the wraps on the year.  We will then get a 4 day break at Thanksgiving and hopefully we are going to SMORR after a quick Thursday trip to St. Louis for a day with Jodi's family.

My last photo shoot of the year has arrived and we have a great day for it.  I am so ready to put down the camera and take a long break.  Jodi should be wrapped up with her part in the next few weeks and we can enjoy some rest together.

I'm hoping to get to SMORR for Thanksgiving weekend if my co-worker will work my Saturday for me.  I've offered a bribe so we'll see.  I'd like to get one more trip in this year with my friends.

We had a little bit of a rough week last week as Jodi and I got sick after coming back from Vegas.  Jodi wound up in the ER on Friday, apparently dehydrated.  Fluids fixed her up and she has been fine since. 

I felt well enough Saturday to head to Tuttle with a few friends.  It's been underwater for most of the year due to all of the flooding but it finally has dried out for the most part and we had some fun on a nice Fall day.  The 6 Pak shocks seemed to perform well.  I'm hoping to get to flex it out with a forklift this week and adjust the bumpstops, etc...

We are back from SEMA!   Our flight home landed about 8pm on Sunday and JD, Megan and Jayson picked us up at the airport.  It feels good to be home but we really enjoyed our first trip to Las Vegas. 

I'm not going to recap the whole trip in one post but we got in late Tuesday night, checked into our hotel and then we hit the casino for some gaming action before getting to bed.  I won a quick $250 so we were off to a good start.

The next day,w e got on a shuttle after breakfast and headed to the convention center.  It was packed.  This show draws tens of thousands.  It is crazy as to how many people are there.  We just started walking the convention floor, hall after hall in an effort to take in as much as we could.  Obviously our interest was mostly in seeing the Jeeps but we also got to take in all of the exotics like Ferrari's, Lamborghini's, McLaren's, etc...  There were also plenty of muscle cars there too. 

The first auto celebrity we ran across was Dennis Gage who was signing autograph's at a booth we passed by.  I got my picture with him and then we ran into Stacey David for another photo op. 

We walked probably 7-8 miles throughout and outside the convention center before heading back to the hotel to await the arrival of our friends.  They came in late but we met up and did a little gambling before we called it a night so we were ready for another day at SEMA.  More on that soon.  

This will be my last blog post until next Tuesday when we return from SEMA.  We are really looking forward to our trip and getting to see all of the vehicles and product offerings.  The weather is suppose to be upper 70's every day and all sunshine. 

One more photo shoot scheduled for today before we leave.  Can't believe we got everyone in with the weather we had but it worked out.  4 sessions to do when we get back and then we get to take the winter off. 

Kansas Rocks was pretty wet on Saturday so I didn't get to test out the new 6 paks much.  That will have to wait for another day.  I did have a good time hanging out with friends though and I won a couple small prizes in the raffle. 

While I was at the Krawl, Jodi and family were with Megan shopping for her wedding dress, which she found the perfect one for her I am told.  Things are moving ahead as they get all the details taken care of. 

Yesterday I had a consultation with a client in the morning followed by two photo shoots.  Today I have a photo shoot followed by a consultation and tomorrow I have a photo shoot prior to hopping a jet for SEMA.  It's going to be a busy two days but we are getting it all in, thankfully.  This Fall has been a struggle to say the least.

We have a tentative agreement and it's looking like I may have a January 1st retirement date if all goes as it seems it will, as long as the contract passes.  I'm voting No and I don't mind extending my stay here to get a better deal.  We shall see. 

Well, we lost all of our photo shoots this week so I'm shooting two on Sunday to get back on track.  It's all I can do to get these shoots in with us leaving in just a few days.

Tomorrow is the Kansas Krawl at Kansas Rocks and I got my Jeep back the other day from getting the Metalcloak 6 pak shocks installed.  Now with 15" of shock travel in the front and 13" in the rear, I should have quite a bot more articulation.  I'm looking forward to the event.  Hopefully I continue my winning streak in the raffle drawings too.

While I'm out wheeling tomorrow, Jodi and her mom, sister and aunt are all going wedding dress shopping with Megan.   I know they are all excited to do this and they should have a fun day together.

Only 4 days left until we leave for SEMA.  It is going to be awesome and I can't wait to get there.  The forecast is mid 70's all week.

The weather for SMORR was far from ideal but we had fun anyway.  We got in on Friday afternoon and met up with 5 others for a few hours of trail action before calling it a day and heading to the hotel to meet up with others who had just arrived for dinner. 

Saturday morning our group of nearly 25 rigs met at the park and we aired down, ready to hit the trails.  It was raining so the really hard trails were out.  I took the the lead for the hard core wheelers while a friend took the moderate group.  We started out on Log Jam which is a solid 4 and we all made that without issue.  We decided to go down Cheap Trick as going up was probably impossible without carnage.  It was fun going down but was definitely a little slick making the entrance a little challenging, and probably a little scary for those that had not done it before.  All went fine though and we all made it down the waterfall at the end.  It was lunch time so we headed back to the staging are for lunch with our group.

Someone had the great idea to do Rocky Road after lunch.  I'm not going to mention his name but it starts with Dave.  Anyway, we took 7 rigs to do the trail and I made it half way through before a hydraulic line on my steering ram assist started leaking.  Luckily it was just a loose hose so a quick tightening of that and I was through the trail.  I spotted Nick through next and then total carnage.  As we tried to get my friend Chris through the area I had to make repairs in, he totally bent his draglink.  I mean bad.  Seriously.  Bad.  Look at it.  How it didn;t break the sector shaft in the steering box I have no idea.

So now we have him halfway through this trail on a boulder the size of your living room sofa and he can't steer.  We hooked a winch to the draglink and straightened it out some but it just bent right back when he tried to move forward.  Our only option is is to straighten it the best we can and then use winches and snatchblocks to get him down the trail and back to the main road where once there, he can probably drive it back to the staging area and back on his trailer.  Perfect example why should trailer if you're going to do extreme wheeling.  Me, I don't listen to logic.  Drive there, drive home. 

Well, we managed to get him and the three Jeeps behind him backed down the trail and on the main road and he was able to drive it back to his trailer.  That was...interesting.  Oh, I failed to mention this all took place in a light rain that turned into a heavy rain and then back to a light rain before the operation was over.  So now we are soaked for dinner and I already have a head cold.  I wound up buying a new hoodie at the SMORR office and we wound up eating our group dinner in their cafe.

We were all done by the end of dinner with the exception of a few who went out night wheeling.  We wound up heading home the next morning as I had a photo shoot yesterday afternoon with our models, which went well by the way.

Next up, my Metalclaok 6 pak shocks go on tomorrow morning and then it's time for the Kansa Krawl this weekend after all the snow headed this way mid-week.  Yes, our photo shoot schedule is an absolute mess right now and leaving for Vegas is probably the worst thing we could do right now but there is no going back.  We will survive this all somehow.

Lastly, got a great shot at SMORR in the fog.

It looks like the GM tentative agreement is going to pass so that means they will likely move to us next.  Hopefully they bump up that buyout a bit and I can get out by the end of the year.  I have places to go and people to see. 

We had this boy's image reveal last night.  He is a golfer so we got a little creative with him. 

We have two consultations this afternoon and another sales session this evening.  I hope to then go pick up my Jeep afterward.  It was promised to be ready today.  If so, I think I'll take off work tomorrow and we will head to SMORR early to get more wheeling in.

I've been promised my Jeep back tomorrow.  That's pushing it as I now intend to go down on Friday.  So much for break in time!  LOL  We have a BBQ dinner planned for Saturday and the weather may or may not completely cooperate.  We shall see. 

I have a photo shoot today followed by an ordering appointment.  Another long day ahead but we are just a couple weeks away from a nice break.  We are looking forward to that.

Two more weeks of business and then we are off to SEMA.  We do have a trip to SMORR planned for this weekend, IF I get my Jeep back.  I will be calling 4WP every day hounding them I can promise you that.  I'd like it done no later than tomorrow so I have still have time to get my 6 pak shocks installed. 

We've been dog sitting since Wednesday and it has been fun having one around to play with.  I sure miss ours.  Hard to believe it's been over a year now since we lost Angus, who was our last one. 

No Jeep yet.  This is the kind of stuff that makes one go elsewhere with their business.  It doesn't take this long to get a set of Yukon gears in.  They've had my Jeep for over two weeks now and it will probably be three before I get it back.  With me leading a trip to SMORR next weekend, I need my frickin' Jeep!

Only 18 days remain until we hop a plane to Vegas for SEMA.  It's going to be awesome. 

One shoot down and four more to go this week.  Jodi had a nice ordering session last night and we have another tonight where based on the client comments, we think they will spend big.  Good!  I need to pay for some Jeep parts.  :) 

Megan and JD have set a date for their wedding and it is June 6, 2020.  They just put a deposit down on the venue here in KC yesterday and things are moving forward quickly.  A big event is scheduled for early November where all of the ladies will be going dress shopping with Megan. 

My winning streak at the casino ended Sunday night as I lost $200.  It was a good run though as I was up $2350 still in the two week period.  No more casino visits until Vegas for me!

Speaking of Vegas, our SEMA passes arrived the other day and we just purchased our tickets for SEMA Ignited which id the big parade of vehicles and other events on the closing day.  I can't wait to see Vegas and attend the big show. 

Friday evening we met up with two other couples at the shooting range for some practice and fun.  Jodi was shooting her .22 Ruger pretty well after I dialed in her sight a bit better and I shot two of my 1911's, My Glock 19 and my .357 Magnum.  My friend also let me shoot his Desert Eagle .50 and his Smith & Wesson .500 Magnum.  The whole range stops shooting when they hear those hand cannons boom.  I shot 5 rounds through the Desert Eagle one handed.  That was something. After our range time, we went to Houlihan's for dinner.  It was mediocre at best but we enjoyed our company and conversation. 

Another couple had asked us earlier in the day what our plans were.  We told them what we had going on but mentioned contacting them when we finished up and when we did, they were at the casino that JD works at.  We said we would meet them there and joined them for some gambling entertainment.  Our friends left earlier than the 1am departure Jodi and I had but it was hard to leave when I was on a roll at the Blackjack table.  I walked off with $800 so it was another good night.

After going to bed at 2:30am, I was up at 8am to meet some friends from our club to deliver their t-shirts they had ordered but couldn't make the meeting to pick them up.  We met at Dunkin' Donuts and I got some to take home for me and Jodi.  I haven't had their donuts for some time. 

We wound up going out shopping a bit later and wound up at Boot Barn where I got two new cowboy hats and Jodi got a new pair of boots.  We did a little more running around before heading back home, grabbing our guns and some food to take to a friends for shooting, dinner and a bonfire.  We all had a great time on the shooting range at their property.  We shot everything from AR's to 44 Magnums.  I hit a bowling pin at 60 yards with my 1911 and I won the little contest us guys had by splitting a playing card with a .22 pistol at 7 yards in 4 shots.  After shooting, we had dinner followed by a huge bonfire.  The flames had to have been going 40 feet in the air.  It was a fun day and night with our many friends. 

I slept in until 9:30am on Sunday.  I cleaned up a bit around the house before going to get a haircut and then we met friends for lunch at Texas Roadhouse.  We wound up spending 2 1/2 hours there just talking.  It was a fun weekend.

This week we have five photo shoots and three sales sessions.  It's going to be a very busy week and I have to work Saturday as well plus we have a wedding to attend after I get off work.  I'm already looking forward to Sunday for some relaxation.

I hope to have my Jeep back mid-week.  I'm ordering Metalcloak 6 Pak shocks for it today and plan to get those installed by our SMORR trip which is less than two weeks away.  I'm really hoping we have some great Fall weather for the trip. 

We went to our club meeting yesterday and we won $75 to use at the Cheesecake Factory in the raffle.  We enjoyed hanging out with friends and there is now one month remaining before elections take place.  I am running against one opponent for club President.  

It doesn't look like I will get my photo shoot in due to the rain today so I may wind up with a free evening to do other things.  My Jeep won't be back until sometime next week as the gears and axle shafts won't arrive until Friday.  As long as it is back for our return trip to SMORR, I am fine with that.  

We have a busy weekend ahead as we will be going shooting with friends Friday night, then attending a get together at a another friends property for some shooting, food and a bonfire.  On Sunday, we are going to lunch with another couple at Texas Roadhouse.  This is what a Jeep can do for your social life!

I had a fun photo shoot with our client last night.  Horses are always fun to be around and her horse was very well behaved.  His name was Gumby and he did really well with the flash although he didn't like my reflector, which seems to be typical with horses. 

We have another shoot scheduled for tonight along with an ordering session and a consultation.  I'm photographing a boy and we will finish on the gold course with him.  Jodi will handle the 5pm sales session and might have to start the consultation for me since i may not be home just yet.  So, today's work day will end about 8pm.

When I get my Jeep back, it will have a new ring and pinion and upgraded axle shafts.  It appears I broke a few teeth on the gears.  I haven't been wheeling since Labor Day so I'm not sure what caused the issue as it was fine up until the other day.  At least it was covered by warranty and I won't be out the expense of new gears and labor.

  

I still haven't heard anything on my Jeep but expect to hear something by the end of today.  I did locate some Carbon Offroad rear axle shafts that were in stock and they ship to me tomorrow.  I got them on sale and with free shipping, which was a nice bonus. 

On Saturday, Jodi and I went to a movie for the first time in forever.  I wanted to see Joker so we invited our friends to join us at the new theater in Liberty.  We really liked the reclining seats which made watching the movie quite comfortable.  I'm glad I didn't fall asleep because the movie was really good.  Afterward, we sat outside on the patio of the Jazz bar and restaurant that is in the theater and had an adult beverage before going to dinner at a new BBQ joint south of us.

After dinner, Jodi was going to climb in bed and watch TV so I decided to go to the casino for a little entertainment.  JD was working as usual and I wound up winning $400 at the Blackjack table.  It was a good night.

Yesterday we spent the morning cleaning the house and then I did some errands before my photo shoot with our model team.  I grabbed some dinner for Jodi and I on the way home and we watched the first half of the Chiefs game before I fell asleep.  I was out by 9pm.  I did get in a better night of sleep though so I must have needed it.

Today I have a photo shoot with a client which will finish with us at a horse stable with her horse.  It should be a fun evening. 

Yesterday, a friend and I trailered my Jeep out to 4 Wheel Parts to have them inspect my rear end as it is making a noise.  I took it there because I have a 5yr/60,000 mile warranty on the gears install.  I hope to hear what is wrong with it today and if the repair requires pulling the axle shafts, I will be having them install chrome moly shafts while we are at it.  Unfortunately, it looks like the Carbon Offroad shafts are on backorder until the end of the month so I may have to go with another brand.

We don't have much planned for this weekend other than a photo shoot with our models and a Ferrari on Sunday afternoon.  I may just work on some website updates I've been wanting to do since there won't be any Jeep fun. 

I took another day off work yesterday as my back was bothering me a bit again.  It's just hard to get up and go in the morning.  Really lacking motivation to do so.  Waiting for the GM strike to be over so they can move on to the next company. 

It's the same old, same old around here as we head into our busiest month of the year.  I'll be glad when October is over so I can take a break and relax for awhile.  I know I won't feel this way once I no longer have to get up each morning and head out the door to a day job.  I only have one consultation tonight and then we are going to a birthday dinner gathering for a friend. 

It doesn't look like the weather is going to cooperate for my photo shoot today so I might have a Friday night off.  I might have to hit the casino or something since I'm on a winning streak. 

Carbon Offroad axle shafts are currently on sale.  I wasn't planning on upgrading until I really needed to but I'm tempted.   

We don't have too much planned this weekend but may try to hit a fundraiser on Sunday that is somewhat Jeep related.

Our SEMA tickets arrived yesterday so we are all set.  We are looking forward to the trip coming up in just about 40 days. 

I have a totally free afternoon and evening today as I have nothing scheduled business related.  The weather is suppose to be pretty nice so I'll probably do a couple wiring jobs that need to be done on my Jeep.  I need to pick up some things in the garage as well as I made a little mess trying to organize things a bit.  At least I reclaimed some floor space by getting rid of some larger items. 

We are heading back to SMORR the last weekend in October for some Fall wheeling.  We plan to follow up with the Kansas Krawl at Kansas Rocks the next weekend.  If the weather cooperates, I'd like to get out in the next couple weeks as well.   

We spent most of Saturday installing the hydraulic assist steering on my Jeep.  It took some time to get everything as it should be but overall the install went well.  I need to get it out on the trails soon and test it out in the rocks.  My next upgrade will likely be upgrading the axle shafts to Carbon Offroad's offering.  That should wrap up what I intend to change/modify on my Jeep. 

I was contacted by a friend while working on my Jeep to see if we wanted to go to dinner and the casino that evening.  We wound up meeting them for a late dinner and then we went into the casino to gamble a bit.  JD was working so we got to chat with him a bit.  I spent my time at the Blackjack tables and won $300 for my efforts. 

I spent some of yesterday cleaning out the garage and trying to get it better organized.  I got rid of some things to reclaim space and my next step is to get my hardtop hung from the ceiling. 

We have three photo sessions, 5 pre-session consultations and 2 ordering appointments this week.  We head into a busy Fall season with Jodi currently caught up on her work.  She took the entire weekend off which was good for her mentally and physically.

  

My back is feeling much better today for which I am thankful.  Since I will be crawling around under my Jeep on Saturday, that's a good thing.  I have confirmed that all of my parts will arrive on time although I had to pay a chunk extra for two day shipping to get the steering setup here. 

Yesterday afternoon, my assistant came and did some work for me that I had no desire to do which gave me time to change the oil in my supercharger for the first time.  It was recommended to do at the first 2500 miles.  It was relatively easy to do and it should be good for 7500 miles now. 

After a late dinner last night, we wound up meeting some Jeep friends for ice cream.  They are the ones we are going to SEMA with so we talked about Las Vegas and the show a bit.  We also talked about our off road club and some of the happenings of late. 

I took yesterday off work to give my back a rest.  Mornings until about Noon are pretty rough.  I made it to work today, maybe slightly improved over yesterday.  Luckily I don't have any business stuff until tomorrow.  

Rain this weekend so it will be a good weekend to spend in the garage.  I still don't know if my hydraulic assist steering equipment will be here or not.  I'm waiting to hear if it shipped or it will ship in time.  

We have our Las Vegas SEMA trip all planned out, hotel and airfare booked thanks to my nephew, Kevin.  It should be a fun trip with friends.  

Got some things done on my Jeep in preparation for the hydro steering.  All of the product needed has been ordered and I'm crossing my fingers that it is all here by next weekend so it can be installed.

I'm hoping my back is better by then too.  Not sure what I did but I was laid up most of yesterday and it isn't feeling all that great today. 

With GM on strike now, I don;t know when our contract might get settled and voted on but I'm fine with a delay.  Getting to December 1st earns me 5 weeks of personal time and vacation which I can cash out. 

Two words for today:  Molon Labe

Last night we had a club meeting where some bylaws changes would be voted on.  I had come out against the bylaws changes on our club Facebook page and even made it known that I would run for club President in the upcoming election.  The bylaws changes would effectively keep a member from serving as President unless they had previously served a full calendar year as a Board member and it would keep a member from serving on the Board of they had not been a member of the club for at least one year.  These were both nonsense to me and many of the members felt the same.  When it came time to vote, I motioned for discussion on the floor which and there was an attempt to rebuff me but that attempt failed quickly.  After I expressed my concerns and some further discussion, the vote was taken and there were probably two hands raised in favor.  We shut it down.  I am now able to run for President unabated.

The meeting went much longer than usual because of all of the club business that needed to take place and we wound up staying after talking with friends, having a few beverages and the next thing we knew it was 11:30pm and we still had a 40 minute drive home.  Needless to say, this morning's wake up call was not appreciated by me.

I've started the process of converting my Jeep to hydro assist steering.  With the 40's, it will make steering on the rocks and trails much easier.  I am going to do the Redneck Ram instead of PSC but unfortunately, they will not port a PSC steering box.  I'm going to send them my stock box and put that one back on since the ram supposedly takes all of the stress off the box.  I'll keep the PSC box for a bit and then sell it off at a later date.  I ordered the Doetsch aluminum tie rod and mounting bracket for the ram and it will be here soon.  I want to get it powder coated red before I put it on.  I still have to get some steering travel measurements to provide to West Texas Offroad to place the order for the ram, hoses, brackets, etc that make up the hydro system.  It takes about a week to get the box ported.  Hopefully in the next 2-3 weeks, it will all be installed.

We took some time to ourselves this weekend as we went out shopping on Saturday, even though some of it was business related.  We bought some new fashion options for our studio closet to change things up a bit for Fall.  While we were out, I mentioned to Jodi she should add to her Louis Vuitton purse collection.  We were looking at some that were on display at Dillard's and the salesperson mentioned they had quite a bit more in a room in the back if we wanted to take a look.  After telling her we did, she paged an armed guard to unlock the room and he stood watch while Jodi shopped.  She wound up choosing one and while we were paying for it, I saw Jodi looking at a Michael Kors purse too.  After walking around the store a bit, I took her back and told her to get it too.  She also got a wallet for it.  She doesn't spend money like I do so I have to make her sometimes.  She deserves it.  We wound up having a late dinner and then had friends join us for dessert.  It was a nice change from the every day grind we seem to be stuck in.

On Sunday, I installed our replacement dishwasher that was delivered the other day.  The old one had a part fail on it and it was no longer available so we got a new one under the warranty.  Not sure why these things don't come with a power cord and water line already attached but after getting that all done and hooking up the drain line, it's working. 

This week we have three photo shoots, three consultations and three ordering appointments.  It's a trifecta in all categories.  Next week pretty much looks the same.    

We likely won't have much fun the next couple weeks as we work our way through a swamp of work.  With school back in session, things are crazy and Jodi is pretty buried right now.  Two more months of madness and then things should slow down for us, about the time we head to SEMA in Las Vegas, which will serve as a nice break/vacation.

I found a new premium soft top last night at a really good price, much less than what I paid for my first one.  We picked it up after I finished up a sales session and consultation and  then we had dinner before heading home and relaxing for the rest of the evening. 

Day 2 arrived and we had a group of 4 ready to go out and hit some of the tougher trails.  We headed to the waterfall first and you have to do Rocker Knocker first.  Last time there, I found that I could drive right over the huge boulder that causes so much damage.  We weren't trail lead today so I watched the built crawler of my co-worker go left, which is an off camber line.  Next up was the heavily modified CJ and he had trouble on that line but finally managed to get through.  I was next and I went right, driving right over the top of the boulder, which kind of surprised everyone because that is not the typical line.  The 4th Jeep tried going to the left and couldn't make it so I convinced him he could take my line.  He made it but hung up on his rear shock mount.  He's on 37's and hasn;t relocated his shock mounts.  It took a few times of backing up and trying not to hang on the mount but he made it.

100 yeards ahead was the waterfall and when we got there, we discovered a disabled JKU at the top of it.  The steering knuckle had completely blown out of it.  It had been there since 5pm the day before as they could not locate a spare knuckle anywhere.  Their friends didn;t want to lose a day of wheeling so they kind of left them on their own. Well, we couldn;t leave them there so the recovery effort began.  The first task was to get a log or two under it to use as a skid.  That was relatively easy enough but the next challenge was to get it turned and positioned to go up a rocky ledge and then up a trail to get it to the main road where a trailer could get to it.  It looked like we had a bout a half mile challenge ahead of us.  It tooks osme serious winching skills to get it to where it needed to be.  Luckily, my co-worker is a rigging expert since he is the trainer at the plant for our skilled trades.  We used snatch blocks multiple time to lift the Jeep over rocky ledges and then the winch to drag it forward to get it lined up behind our three Jeeps we strapped together which would be the team to get it up the trail. 

Once in position, we started the climb.  Our Jeeps worked in tandem quite well and we only had to stop once to get him around a tree on a tight turn.  The logs that were under it did the job for the most part and we wound up getting it on a trailer after a three hour recovery effort.  The owners were from middle Nebraska, both in law enforcement and had to be at work the next day.  Thanks to us, they made it.  They told us that if they ever pull us over to remind them we helped them!  All kidding aside, they were very grateful for our help and it made for a great story to tell.

After this rescue, we decided to head over to another location where we heard a JKU had rolled after losing its brakes going down a trail.  When we arrived on the trail, it was in the process of being brought up by members of their group.  The bags were blown, a lot of glass shattered, and some significant damage was apparent but fortunately, the airbags did their job and the occupants escaped relatively unharmed.  

We didn't get in a whole lot of wheeling in on Day 2 but we did get to do a few trails we had never done before that were extremely fun.

We hung out with the club at dinner and wound up siting by the campfire, listening to music and socializing until almost 1am.  I actually drank a six pack and shared a bottle of Cactus Juice with our group.  It was a fun evening and we headed back to the hotel to sleep in a bit before heading home later in the day.

Looking forward to another run to SMORR this Fall.    

Our trip to SMORR this past weekend was a fun one as usual.  We arrived Friday night, had dinner with friends and then hung out by the firepit at the hotel for awhile before we called it a night.

We awoke early and had a great breakfast provided by the hotel before gassing up and heading to the park.  Upon arrival, we checked in and then met up with the club in the campground where many chose to stay for the weekend.  We divided into wheeling groups and I was chosen to lead the extreme wheeling group.  I like that because my group size totaled 7 rigs while other groups had 15 or so. 

I took my group out on the trails and we immediately headed to Log Jam, a solid 4 rated trail.  It's rocky with a few ledges along the way.  We had a young lady in a unlocked, manual TJ that wanted to test her Jeep and capabilities and we had to spot her through a section but she made it.

We then did Holy Cow, an overrated 5 that has a steep uphill climb at the end that proved difficult for the TJ but a running start and wide open throttle got her up after several failed attempts. 

After that trail, we headed to Cheap Trick, a trail rated at a 5.  It's a tougher one with several rocky sections, a tight squeeze through some large boulders, an off camber drop and then a 3-4 foot drop off a small waterfall.  Several in the group were pretty nervous and I would say "relieved" when we finished it.

It was now about lunch time so we headed back to the cafe for lunch and then followed that up with some afternoon wheeling.  A couple dropped out of our afternoon session so we just had 4 with us this time and I led them to some fun trails before dinner with the club  back at the campground. 

After dinner, it was time for some night wheeling.  A couple friends jumped in with us to do Rocky Road at night and that was a pretty fun challenge.  We just had two Jeeps for this and I coached my friend through who had never done the trail before.  This trail has boulders the size of small cars on it and it was definitely fun to do with the light bar showing the way.  We wheeled until 10:30pm before airing up and heading to the hotel.

I'm saving Day 2 action until tomorrow. 

Friday is finally here and ...rain.  At 10pm last night, I bit the bullet and took the trail doors off, put the full doors on and put my bent soft top back on to make the trip.  Is what it is.  Hopefully the rain subsides by tomorrow morning and we get to wheel with the doors and top off the rest of the weekend. 

No more blog posts until Tuesday when we return so have a great Labor Day weekend.   

Jodi and I have been busy this week with photo shoots and sales sessions primarily.  She's been doing the sales sessions while I'm out on photo shoots and that works out pretty well because it usually frees up a night per week where we don't have any business to conduct.  

We get a small break this weekend as we head to SMORR for some 4 wheeling at one of my favorite places to do so.  I will be leading a group that likes to test out their rigs a bit and we found some new trails on our last adventure that I'd like to try traveling the other direction on.  Our club will have a pretty large group there, probably 50+, so it should be a fun weekend. The weather looks really nice too.  Hopefully no rain pops up as we will be going topless again as I have not found a new premium top or frame for mine yet.  

  

 

I'm in the process of changing out my tailgate vent cover and license plate holder to one made by TMR customs that will accept the Rigid Chase light, which will serve as my 3rd brake light as well as my license plate light.  Seems like a great solution to get me back "legal". 

We are looking forward to our Labor Day weekend trip to SMORR with many others from our off road club.  There are a few trails I want to revisit as well as some I have never done that I want to conquer.  We should have a good group of wheelers with us and the evenings spent around the campfire should be fun too. 

The weather has cooled down but we are seeing quite a bit of rain this week.  We lucked out and only booked one session this week so we won;t have any reschedules because of that.  We do have three ordering appointments and consultations so it worked out perfectly.   Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.

On Day Two, we hit the trails early with the intent of doing a few 4 star trails and maybe checking out a 5 star or two. The first trail we hit was a 4 and it was downhill.  There was a significant off camber situation about half way down that took us some time to navigate.  This is why Jodi doesn't like us leading because I'm the one that has to figure out the right line for everyone else.  We managed to get everyone through it safely and were on to the next challenge.

We decided to do our first 5 Star trail of the day and it was quite a challenge.  The line I really wanted to take was going to finish in an off camber flex that we weren't comfortable with so we opted to take an easier route and then cut back across the top of the obstacle and then up the trail from there.  Jodi didn't like this one much but I got some spotting help through it and we did just fine.  Everyone else did the same. 

We wound up doing several 5 star trails with my favorite being Slammer.  We wound up wheelling until about 6:30pm, finishing in the Rock Garden.  This trail go the best of me as I wound up in a precarious situation that had Jodi freaked out a bit.  I told her to get out of the vehicle, 1) because she was stressing me out and 2) for her own safety.  If my right front would have slid off the rock I was atop, we may have flopped.  Everyone in the group was pretty worried  and I had to take a route across a huge boulder to escape the situation and was still off camber throughout.  I even had someone standing on my passenger slider for ballast to get out of it.  After I made my way out, everyone else chose to opt out of this trail. 

I'm looking forward to a return trip, maybe late this Fall or next Spring.  It is a great park, probably the best we've been at and the challenges are many. 

It really sucks to go back to work today after a great weekend of off roading with friends.  I would have loved to have at least one more day to explore the park but that just means we will have to go back again soon.

We met up with a couple others on the road around Fayetteville, Arkansas and we finished the rest of the trip together arriving in Hot Springs around 5pm.  As we rolled in, we were hit by a microburst and took cover under a gas station canopy.  It rained hard for 15-20 minutes with high winds and the water was running deep through the streets.  As the skies cleared, we made our way to the hotel to only get hit again and this time, no cover.  We said screw it and just finished the few remaining miles to the hotel.  We were soaked but... Jeep life.

After getting cleaned up, or more like dry, we headed to dinner since the rest of the group wouldn't be getting in until close to 10pm.  We had a nice Italian dinner across the street from the hotel and enjoyed some great conversation. 

The next morning, we enjoyed a pretty good breakfast at the hotel and then headed to the park for a full day of wheeling.  When we arrived, we checked in, aired down and headed out on the trails. As usual, I got to lead and Jodi navigate.  We decided to do the Jeep Badge of Honor trails first and then follow that up with some more hard core trails.  It took nearly three hours to complete two of the trails and we had one breakdown where one driver lost his steering stabilizer.  It took just a few minutes to gather some tools and remove it and we were back underway.

Our plan was to hit the 4 star rated trails as we had heard the 5 stars were really tough.  The first 4 star we did was Ultimate Adventure and it was challenging but nothing that was crazy.  I had no issues navigating the obstacles as most didn't.  After that trail, we decided to do a trail called Four Fingers which showed as a 4 on the sign but 5 on the map.  It was a great trail and it was definitely tougher than Ultimate Adventure but still didn't max out our will. 

We wound up doing the third and final Badge of Honor trail in the afternoon and completed many 4 star trails too.  Our goal was to do all of the 4's while there and we actually came up short, leaving just a few for another time.

The second day was a bit more adventurous and I will share that adventure tomorrow.  Enjoy some pics from the trip.