Wed, Oct 25, 2017
The 2017 PowerStop Trail to SEMA presented by Lucas Oil is finally here!!. The first episode covers our travel from Chicago to Denver, and then on to Grand Junction where we meet up with Jason Lewis Autoedit and JC Whitney in their Jeeps. As with any other road trip, we have a few hurdles along the way.
Mon, Nov 6, 2017
Episode 2 is where the pavement ends, literally. We finally venture off-pavement just outside of the Colorado National Monument and begin making our way towards some light wheeling in the wide open desert, a river crossing, and of course Moab, UT. Before we could hit the trail "we" (mostly Jhon Incaudo) executed a 7am water pump swap on Johnny's JL Wrangler. In the end it was a team effort getting Johnny on the road (and trail), and this teamwork would become a theme of the trip going forward - with no Jeep left behind. Today's trail day was made possible by the generous team at Vision Wheel, most of the rigs on the 2017 #TrailToSEMA were riding on Vision Manx wheels. The Manx Beadlock has been our go-to wheel to take all of our abuse and to get us home, even after a long day at 9psi.
Tue, Nov 21, 2017
We're finally in Moab. We got into town earlier than expected so the first thing we did was head to Fins n Things for an intro to Moab. Once the group was well acquainted with the Moab slick rock, trail-leader Kris from PowerStop decided to up the difficulty by taking everyone to Moab Rim. Our first timers, as well as our more experienced team members, got to test their skills on one of the most obstacle-dense miles of trail in Moab. We tackle the devil's crack and Z-turn on our way up to the rim that gave us a view of Moab, Arches National Park, and the La Sal Mountains. Once the team has cleared the first mile of trail, Kris heads back into Moab to handle logistics for the rest of trip leaving the rest of the group to explore the rim and get back to civilization on their own. The video finishes with a MAJOR upgrade to one of the Jeeps - almost. Our time on Fins n Things and Moab Rim wouldn't have been possible without the support of Rugged Radios. All of our rigs were outfitted with the RM25R Waterproof 25 Watt Dual-Band Base/Chase Kit for vehicle-to-vehicle communications. Additionally, we carry a set of 6 RH-5R handheld 5-watt radios for the spotters and camera crew. Communications on the trail make everything safer and just generally help to smooth out everything we do, from when to stop for gas on the highway to pointing out cool stuff to see along the way.
Sun, Dec 17, 2017
After a couple of tire failures on Colin's Scrambler we take matters into our own hands and get a set of 37" Maxxis RAZR MT's and Vision Competition bead-lock wheels - and of course a sawzall. After a quick trip to the tire store, we had some time to burn and took an unplanned field trip to buy another truck to add to the group. We brought the new rig and the new tires back to our hotel and get straight to work. In addition to the new larger tires and the necessary body modifications on the CJ8, we also install a bunch of Daystar Cam Cans which came in handier than we could have planned in the coming days. Once the work was done we got a bit of a late start out to Kane Creek, one of the longer and more diverse trails in Moab. What Kane Creek lacks in difficulty it makes up with scenery. The late start definitely caught up with us as we hit the biggest section of obstacles "Hamburger Hill" at twilight, and then on to finish the rest of the trail in the dark. It was a long day, but we made the best of it and got some incredible wheeling in, on one of the most unique trails in Moab.
Thu, Jan 25, 2018
After an evening exit from Moab, UT the #TrailToSEMA crew heads west towards US-50 "the loneliest highway in America" and begins the search for one of Eastern Nevada's ghost towns. As this turned out to be easier said than done (apparently ghost towns can come back to life as industry and mining return), we gas up and head back into Utah to explore Sand Hollow and it's many trails. Along the way, we make a few roadside repairs to one of the support rigs and fill up our Daystar Cam Cans which turns out to be a SMART move. Running out of gas is no fun, but if you roll prepared it's barely a hiccup. As this was our first trip to the Hurricane, UT area we hadn't made an official plan. Luckily the area is extremely trail dense and it didn't take us long to stumble across John's Trail - and that is when we fell in love with Sand Hollow. The amount of traction here is unreal, that gave a few of the guys a bit of confidence to step out of their comfort zone and just send it. With Las Vegas just a few hours away, Hurricane is located in the perfect spot to serve as the final Utah stop on the Trail to SEMA.
Fri, Feb 2, 2018
The Power Stop team is finally in Las Vegas, and while we have to say goodbye to the CrawlTV crew we are looking forward to the last trail day. Rocky Gap Road is a forestry service road that traverses the ridge between Lovell Canyon and Red Rock Canyon west of Las Vegas. It's been the last stop on the Trail to SEMA for 3 years now, and with all of the loose granite boulders it's a total change of pace compared to the sticky slick rock in Utah. We finally get to conquer a demon from last year, but not without plenty of attempts. It's a bittersweet end to the 2017 Trail to SEMA tail, we have met so many new friends and while we are tired from the 11 days on the road we are already planning the 2018 trip. And all of that abuse on those Dana 44's would literally not be possible without the internal parts they hold. The Nitro Gear and Axle 35 spline shafts spun by OX Locker CO2 actuated locking diffs and 5.13 Nitro gears gave us the confidence to look at every trail with nothing but excitement.
Wed, Feb 21, 2018
Now that the Jeep and Ultimate Mustang we build with Vaughn Gittin Jr. are safely on the SEMA show floor, we take a few minutes out of talking to people about brakes to walk the show floor. The SEMA show is something different to everyone. For some people it's a chance to see the craziest custom cars in the aftermarket. Others go to find the newest products they can sell in their shops, bringing the best of the aftermarket to you at home. Some even go to see what the biggest Automobile manufacturers in the world have for the coming year. For the Power Stop team, it's the final stop on a yearly pilgrimage that crosses the map from Chicago to Las Vegas looking for the best wheeling we can find. Come walk the floor with us and visit some show cars and booths we found interesting.