After winding through more rocks and ravines the trail came to a few steps that had a few different possibilities for a good line.  Here Fred Swanson from Canyon State Components takes the right side option and shows off his Wrangler Spring Reversal and it’s awesome ‘droop factor’. Jessika goes to the left and shows how proud she is of her balancing act.

We caught up to the rest of the group having lunch at the first overlook. This was a large cliff that allowed an awesome view of the Colorado river, Moab and the snow covered mountains in the distance. It felt strange to see the snow when we were sitting in 90+ degree weather on the slickrock. But views like these are a large reason folks go to Moab for adventure. The group got stretched out again when we continued down the trail. It seemed a full sized Blazer decided to rip it’s steering box off of the frame, tearing apart the frame, the box and some bushings. He was down for the afternoon. After calling around for parts they decided to jump in the zooks and ride out to come back later with new parts.

The next major obstacle was the Golden Crack. This is probably one of the most photographed obstacles at Moab. It also has no bypass. On the left we can see Glenn taking the turbo diesel through without a problem. If you have bunches of articulation it can get downright boring, but if you have lockers and catch air easily – look out! This is a ‘max air zone’. Most made it through with no problem… until Jessika. She tried three different angles and couldn't get a tire on the opposite rock. A couple of younger spectators (kids) yelled a suggestion to her. She threw it into reverse, did a 180-degree turn and attempted the crack BACKWARDS! Yes folks, backwards… and she made it on her first try.

We then headed out to the Golden Stairs and continued on to the Double Whammy. When we got there we found that many had bypassed the obstacle. We saw one of the reasons… the Jeeps were exactly the wrong wheelbase to make it up the pair of ledges. After making it up the first ledge you start to climb the second with the front tires just as the back tires hit. If you goose it, the vehicle starts hopping and you lose your drive shafts. It was fun to watch a few attempt it until they backed off to let the zooks try. Don't get me wrong, there were a few Jeeps that made it, but they were not exactly stock and the drivers were well seasoned. The zooks made it by using a line the ‘Jersey Boys’ (the guys from Spidertrax) perfected. The crowd went wild when Fred made it look easy. And then came Jessika. We found out quickly that her volume rose in direct proportion to her tilt angle. When she got to the point where Suki Sue (her red ’90 sammy) was about to topple, Fred reached up and steadied the vehicle as we all heard her exclaim “I gotta pee!”. She was probably not the first person to come to that conclusion at that point, but she was certainly the loudest. She backed up, tried it again and walked right up the slickrock.

Gold Bar Rim

After that, the “Body Snatcher” seemed like just another tight notch in the rock to get over. I guess it would have been harder if we had less clearance. This was a good place to rearrange a rocker panel or two if you didn’t hit it just right. Now it was time for the relaxing trip to the end of the trail where we used the Gold Bar Rim to return to Highway 191. There were many sandy areas to play in and a few high-speed dirt runs that took us out past the “Gooney Bird” and on to the ‘air up’ area. No major damage for the zooks today, thank goodness. This was only Monday, we had to keep everything together for the rest  of the week! I guess seeing my zook dead in the campground was enough warning for anyone... check out the story if you haven't already.