4x4wire.com - Drew's 3rd Annual Rubicon Bash

By: Tim Stucky. 6/2002

----------------Rubicon Trail--------------------

Trail Rating: 4WD Difficult
Experienced Driver
21 miles, avg. time 15 hours
Good Weekend Trip Rock Crawling Trail
Mountain Scenery, Lakes, Granite Slabs, Forested Areas

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The Rubicon trail is one of the most written about four wheel drive experiences in the United States. The name "Rubicon" originally comes from a river in northern Italy, but has also been defined as a boundary or a limit that once crossed, commits a person irrevocably. The same can be said about the Rubicon trail. With that in mind, the motto of the weekend was that which does not kill you only makes you stronger

Lined up on the slabs

Making the squeeze through pinch rock

For the third year in a row on Father's Day weekend, Toyota truck and 4Runner enthusiasts committed themselves to the wrath of the famous Rubicon Trail for Drew's Third Annual Rubicon Bash. After the success of previous years, Drew Persson, formerly of Persson Off Road Systems, planned another run for 2002. Like last year, this run was an informal gathering of Toy's and lacked an entrance fee or signup sheet. However, this year's bash was limited to mini trucks and 4runners for parts compatibility in case of breakage. My parents and I left the Central San Joaquin valley; them in their '88 4Runner and myself in my '84 pickup around 4 P.M. Thursday afternoon. After numerous stops, we arrived at Loon Lake, our destination for the evening by 11 P.M. Not wanting to drive the trail in the dark late at night, we found a nice spot within a stone's throw from the water and setup our tents for a good nights rest. Drew's plan was to have the entire group assemble on the granite slabs at 9 A.M. Friday morning, take some photos, have a short drivers meeting and hit the trail. That morning, we got up to get an early start to give us time if something went wrong on the trail before we reached the slabs. We were on the trail heading through pinch rock by 7:15 A.M. A short while later we arrived at the slabs where a few wheelers from the group had already gathered. By 9 A.M. most of the group had arrived and were all lined up for the photo. About 25 built Toyota trucks and 4runners ready to eat rocks, were lined up and ready to go. It was quite an impressive sight! Before hitting the trail, we poured over each other's rigs, caught up on everyone's latest round of modifications, and took pictures of the group. Following a short drivers meeting, we were en route to the little sluice where we would stop for lunch while the more daring wheelers would put on a show!


Jim's truck on its side	Line of trucks waiting

The trail itself is rocks, rocks, and more rocks and we were not let down by the terrain and beauty of the trail. About an hour following our departure from the slabs, I heard over the CB that someone had rolled. It turned out that Jim from Idaho had rolled his Toy in a gully a ways past the flats. Fellow group members helped him get the rubber side back down and we were on our way again. On the way to Buck Island, the group made brief stops at the tough sections when spotters were needed or desired. After the flats we came to Walker Hill and then to the Soupbowl where some of the group walked right up it while others didn't! (I was one of the ones who didn't! Go figure!!) Shortly thereafter, we arrived at the Little Sluice, which was looking particularly rough this year. Several guys who were looking for a challenge jumped right in and went through the sluice much to the delight of envious onlookers. After having lunch there, we continued on to Buck Island where we set up camp for the evening. Many of us tightened bolts on our rigs, check fluids and poured over them before dinner to make sure they were ready for the following day. By this time, the smell of BBQ's and good food in camp reminded me that it was dinner time. Shortly after breaking out the BBQ, I found myself talking trucks with other attendees while enjoying a good hamburger! What could be better? We ate our food, relaxed and talked trucks around the campfire for the remainder of the evening.


Participants tackle the Little Sluice

Drew Persson and Steve Sasaki fix up Jim's spring mount

Saturday morning, we awoke to great weather for wheeling, packed up the trucks, did our safety inspections and were off. About a half mile past Buck Island lake, Jim from Idaho radioed in that he had broken a front spring mount. The hangar had torn right off the frame and needed to be welded back on. Luckily Steve Sasaki, maker of the Powertank air system had an onboard welder and an array of air tools. With Drew's help he was able to weld Jim's spring mount back where it belonged. By noon we were at the Big Sluice fighting traffic coming up the trail. Everyone made it through rather uneventfully thanks to good spotting, driving, and capable rigs. We continued down the trail and pulled into Rubicon Springs around 2 P.M. where we ate lunch by the water. Some stayed to camp there while much of the group decided to press on and get off the trail that day. My parents and I decided that we would drive out that night and get a room in South Lake Tahoe so we led a smaller group out. The rest of the trail was uneventful and we were saying our goodbyes while airing up by 6 P.M. that night.

A big thanks to Drew Persson once again for taking the time and putting forth the effort to plan and organize this event. Everyone appreciated his willingness to put on this event despite the fact that he didn't even have a rig there! Be sure to stay tuned to the Toyota 4x4 mailing list and BBS for future trip announcements and to 4x4wire.com for reports and news. Also, check the gallery for many more action shots.