TLCA and Toyota 4x4 mailing list trail ride at Paragon Adventure Park in Hazelton, PA August '98

Overall it was a good trip, but this was by far the toughest trail ride my truck and I had ever experienced.  I was runnin with some serious offroaders.  Although I had been to Paragon Adventure Park before, I had never been on the trails we went on, which were some of the toughest the park has to offer.  Somewhere along the trail I bent up my rear crossmember, which cost me a pretty penny to fix.  Otherwise my truck pretty much escaped other damage save for the fact that I dragged my rear bumper over a steep berm along the pipeline which is leading to minor rust and many new scratches.

Above you can see a few pics from where we set up camp.  I only stayed Saturday because my dad and I had planned to go surf fishing Sunday, but those plans went down the toilet when I bent up the crossmember.  Obviously Tralimaster didn't design that crossmember to hold the weight of a 4,000 pound truck.  Pitty because otherwise I am happy with the quality of the lift kit.

Above are a few pics from around the mini-Rubicon which you can see in the background of the first pic.  Three of us decided not to run it because we knew our trucks were not well enough equiped to handle the trail.  Mike Pelland though was kind enough to let me ride with him in his pickup so I could see what it is like.  Man, with lockers, he just crawled right through it like it was a paved street!  Well, almost anyway.

The trail above may not look like much, but not far from where these pics were taken the rocks get MUCH bigger.  This section requires picking a good line, lockers, good suspension travel, or a combination.  The first time through I got stuck because I have no lockers.  I had one wheel spinning in the front and the rear.  We piled lots of the guys in my bed to try to weigh it down to get the tires in contact with the ground, but that was no help.  The truck behind me gave me a quick tug and I was on my way again!  The second time through the trail was no problem for my truck and me.