FJC Fins n Things

[Pathrat]

Admin put the idea in my head so Saturday late afternoon we decided to try it out. I don't have a picture of the steepest descent off a fin where I was very afraid I was going to face plant, but here is a decent representation. I want to go back and finish the trail.

http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x102/pathrat40/Moab62008/DSC01665.jpg

http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x102/pathrat40/Moab62008/DSC01667.jpg

http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x102/pathrat40/Moab62008/DSC01672.jpg

I like the view.

http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x102/pathrat40/Moab62008/DSC01669.jpg

[Tye]

WOW

[Chris]

Nice pics! I'll be there next week. The first time I did that drop in the first pic people were telling me to ease my truck down more slowly that I was. I followed their suggestions and ended up with my hitch grabbing the rocks and front wheels digging into the sand.

I was stuck and needed a tug to get down. :lol:

[Funrover]

I really need to get out there!

[Tye]

I really need to get out there!

Lets do it...

[Pathrat]

then lets go! I would much rather do the harder trails with you guys along!

[Pathrat]

Nay, did the full Poison Spider, Gold Bar and Golden Spike as a passenger. I did the first couple miles of Poison Spider Sunday (am working on the post tonight) and it was A LOT harder in my FJC than I remember riding shotgun in a Frankenstein rig.

Still, the thought of my back end trading places with the front, lying on the sand upside down like a wounded turtle, did cross my mind on the steepest descent I encountered. I was more afraid of my bumper deciding to take a nap in the sand below, very afraid!:D

Great pictures you posted!

[Pathrat]

I... I always think it's useful to see pics of your rig on steep stuff, they help you see how much worse it feels than it looks. ..

You got to the Wedge, so as I said in the other post, you did what people run PSM for. My bet, given how much you seem to dig Utah wheeling, is your next mod is a rear bumper because Moab tends to drag rear ends pretty badly if you want to get a bit more technical, both on ascent and descent. I think if you had the bumper and a couple inches of lift you'd do everything you wanted to do out there at the reasonable 4+ level (say Golden Spike, but not Pritchett) - we had a stock 80 on 33's on Spike at CM08, and while he left half of his tow hitch on the trail he made it without any major issue (lockers do help when you are dragging your arse all over the place).

In Colorado I tend to spend a lot of time mangling my rear control arm mounts, but in Moab it's all rear bumper. I don't think I hit a mount the entire time at CM08 but had to repaint my bumper when I got home :D

Looks like a great trip, I'm jealous :cool:

It did feel as steep as it looked! :D

I was actually more concerned with the front end on some of the descents on Fins. I seem to have a decent approach angle but I would like to protect the lights and radiator should something go awry. I did beat the crap out of my tow hitch, I think that is what it is for since I do not tow anything. I don't like leaving marks in the rock, but I would like it even less if I were leaving a trail of pieces of bumper. I think the hitch lets me get down without damage, beyond paint scrapings off said hitch.

I would like a couple of inches of lift, ideally 2" all the way around, but that is a whole nother thread (and is somewhere around here) that is still in the R and D phase. And regarding the mounts, I will do my best to get the 'after' pictures posted tonight. I did whack twice, just enough to prove the plates over the CA mounts worked.

I must say, I like wheeling in Utah better than here. I enjoy the techical challenges offered in the desert, the slickrock and the scenery. Nothing against CO; there is much to be said for foliage and reasonable temps, but I do prefer sticky domes over sandy, gravelly boulder fields.

[Pathrat]

I agree - there is really no comparison in the wheeling dept, not that both don't have their advantages, but when you are up on a high mesa wheeling in Utah there is just nothing like that.

Every time I go out there I start collecting real estate, at least until I realize it's 75 degrees at my house and 103 in Moab :eek:.

I'd love to live out there for a few years though, once the kids are grown. I come back changed every time I go.

Almost time for the "Moab in October" trail planning thread, first or second week :D.

HA! Know how many copies of Moab Happenings I have? The online real estate guide is bookmarked on my laptop! I was looking a few years ago and then they started getting stupid out there. Sure, the Salt Lake market is hot, but they have these things called jobs and don't rely solely on tourism for the life of the town. 300k for a condo in Spanish Valley my butt! 103 degrees can be aleviated with fans, ac and a pool. I love how the town wakes up after sunset.

I will have to see about October. My manager from the depths of Hades is having a baby in September and while she is gone, time off is at a premium. This year I am finding that the majority of my disposable (and not so disposable) income is going to gas and road food.