Cruise Moab Live (2015)

[BigMike]

I'm having fun with this. Using my optical zoom-less cell phn (iP5S) isn't the greatest but it allows for live updates

Saw our first Triple Trailer, possibly delivering Marlin Crawler parts to a rig near you

[BigMike]

Fifth top-off, now offering 85oct I went with 87







The last leg yesterday had a lot of climbing and I had gotten caught up talking to some people at the Pilot about what we do (Rock Crawling) while Marlin took off. I had to do 85 MPH and run hard solo through the steep and long grades. Result? Only 17.8 MPG

[BigMike]

First time I've seen snow since 2014

[blackdiamond]

BigMike,

Hopefully, you don't get a ticket for your extra-driving activities.  You should have driven a little bit later last night so that you could arrive a little earlier today in Moab and hit the Moab Rim trail before anyone noticed that you had arrived.  You guys need some magnetic black panels to make your trucks more difficult to spot.  Just hang a right at the McDonald's and unload the Crawler at the trail head, it's only about 5 minutes from the McDonalds!

[BigMike]

The Utah highway patrol are very sneaky. More sneaky than back home. They are hiding behind plants, road signs, and down in low gorges in the dirt in the center of the interstate.

I've been trying to get a pic of this but they are so elusive I can't get my camera ready in time.

Speed limit for all vehicles--towing included--is 80 MPH. Hear me now and believe me later, the 18-wheelers run no less than 85 MPH.

We are on SR15 twenty-five miles shy of our SR70 turn off.

Regards,
BigMike

[blackdiamond]

I should be able to tell visually, but what tires are you running?

[BigMike]

Hopefully, you don't get a ticket for your extra-driving activities.

I'm well ahead of ya buddy. Before the trip I checked all three state laws and posting-to-a-rock-crawler-forum is not found in any state legislation Besides, my copilot is doing it all

arrive a little earlier today in Moab

We stayed at the Virgin River Casino which is the same stop Marlin has been doing for years and years. We had planned to leave earlier this morning but Marlin didn't sleep well last night so we slept in for quite a while (the bonehead had too much ice tea before going to bed).

You guys need some magnetic black panels to make your trucks more difficult to spot.

!

We just merged onto SR70 and should be to Moab around 4:30p.

Regards,
BigMike

[BigMike]

I should be able to tell visually, but what tires are you running?

Newish radial 37x12.50R15 Interco IROKs on Allied 15x8" steel beadlocks. Have done Rubicon once, Dusy twice, Hollister once, and Blue Canyon once on this set so far and they still have nipples on the inner sidewall.

Finally got a pic of this awesome sign:


Wish we had these back home

[BigMike]

Beautiful Beaver County

[BigMike]

It's very pretty out here



Wow a Dairy Queen? Haven't seen one of these since I was a little kid @_@



Red layers

[BigMike]

Last stop for fuel before Moab!

$2.87/gal 87oct (however 85oct is available). Truck doing good, 20.2 MPG on this leg.





Can anyone guess where we are based off this nifty mileage chart?

[BigMike]

We passed this awesome 1st gen Toyota Sunraider camper but I couldn't get a good pic of it. It finally caught up to us here at the FlyingJ so Marlin promptly went over and started talking to the guy about his truck-

Marlin asked him how his 4speed was doing, carefully described how it is a stronger design than a 5spd as the 5th gear in a 2WD 5spd is poorly designed and leverages against the mainshaft and always wipes out the input. Marlin also discussed how the guy can upgrade to a stronger rear axle. He was so amazed that Marlin knew so much.

It's these sort of times when I always think to myself, "Man, if only this guy knew who he was chatting with."





It is an October of 1981 with 110k miles. Very clean interior. Cool cool cool!!

We are just over 700 miles now, only 2-1/2 hrs remaining!

Regards,
BigMike

[BigMike]

Went up and over Fishlake National Forest. Had a few long gradual climbs. Enjoying the drive-

[BigMike]

[BigMike]

Forgot a pic from earlier. We've seen a lot of horses today:

[BigMike]

Moar pics!

[BigMike]

MOAR

[BigMike]

BigMike's Fuel Saving Tip #37: This one is for all you EFI guys out there. Get an Air/ Fuel Ratio gauge (AFR) and monitor the gauge to go as fast as you can while your ECU remains in a Closed Loop. This works with both OBD-I and OBD-II setups.

My scanner reads no lower than 18 MPG while in Closed Loop and instantly drops to 12 MPG or lower when Open Loop is needed.

For my truck on a flat road with no headwind this transition occurs at 78 MPH. So I simply slow down a lil and gain an instant 6+ MPG. If I'm on a long grade and not in a hurry, then I can back out of the throttle to find my Closed Loop and then just hang at that speed till the top. Guarantees a minimum of 18 MPG in the hills and saves a lot of stress on the entire truck.

Here is my good ol trusty Split Second narrow-band AFR gauge. Bought it in the summer of 1999:

[BigMike]

Just went down Spotted Wolf, a five mile 6% grade. I turned my engine off and coasted the entire thing



There are a lot of these and if you know anything about Marlin then you can just guess how much radio chatter Marlin keeps talking about I'm pretty sure he's getting himself in trouble with Mrs. Crawler in the cab:

[BigMike]

Almost there!

[BigMike]

I'm pretty sure we're gonna see Lightning McQueen at any moment

[BigMike]

Moab at last!

It has been seventeen yrs since my last visit here!

[BigMike]

Made it safely to our cabin! Marlin can't go anywhere without being recognized!

[blackdiamond]

You have time today to run the Rim before dark!  Take some PTO and go for it!

[BigMike]

Home for the next few days :-)

[BigMike]

LCs of all types are running around like ants out here

[BigMike]

Welcome to Cruise Moab!



Official Driver's Meeting:

[BigMike]

Also in attendance:

[BigMike]

Gonna edit this post multiple times with info from the meeting as it's discussed:

Announced that last year the event raised over $9,000 that was donated to the Blue Ribbon Coalition and other local trail advocates.

Attendance this year is lower than last, about 180 officially registered at the moment.

Discussing the efforts behind the event. Had to get Temporary Utah Sales Licenses, City of Moab special use permits, inspection from local fire authorities, etc.

Discussing different skill levels of participants, help others as needed, only one spotter per obstacle, don't get in the way of the spotter, don't leave anyone behind, use your CB often (it is required in order to register), don't feel shy to speak up and let someone know something doesn't look right on their rig (broken or part falling off), et cetera.

A few new trails this year: Pickle, Jack Strap (?).

Trail Reports: The Easter Jeep Safari typically stacks a lot of rocks so its always difficult to predict trail conditions.

Discussing Vendors who are here. Many many in attendance. 50 to 60 different Co's on raffle list, at least 15 vendors officially signed up for vendor night.

Discussing trails that are closed for night wheeling tonight.

Meeting adjourned!

[BigMike]