High above the smog-filled LA basin lies the green forests and blue skies of Big Bear. It's here that the Inland Empire Four Wheelers club of San Bernardino, California, hosts its annual Big Bear Forest Fest. Otherwise it would be called the Not-Hosted-in-Big Bear Forest Fest. Or maybe the To-Take-Place-in-Generic-Location Forest Fest. Either way, it was a fest and it was held in a forest and we went to check it out.
The Forest Fest takes place in late August, when temperatures on the valley floor below hover near the triple-digit range, but temps on the trail, some 8,000 feet above, are much nicer. It makes the wheeling much more comfortable and the participants smell much better.
This year the club had eight runs going, ranging from "easy" to "most difficult." There's nice scenery and all that happy, touchy-feely crap on the easy runs, but we hopped in with the group heading for the popular John Bull trail, which carries a "difficult" label. While the wheeling isn't like Johnson Valley or some of the harder trails in Moab, there is lots of fun to be had and plenty of cool sections to test even built rigs. Attendance fills up quickly for the difficult runs, so if you're hankering to go next year, visit the club's Web site at www.ie4w.com for info, and sign up early.
Hazel has a thing for longer...
Hazel has a thing for longer CJ-6 and CJ-8 Jeeps, so he was visibly drooling over Craig MacDonald's '84 Scrambler. Craig's big CJ runs the 4.2L and five-speed from the factory, but the engine now sports a fuel-injection system and some cylinder-head porting. Other niceties are 4.88s and Detroit Lockers in the diffs, 33-inch Dunlops, a 4-inch suspension lift and three rows of seating for six passengers.
Brad Chuck managed to two-wheel...
Brad Chuck managed to two-wheel his '89 YJ through a deceptively difficult off-camber section without laying it on its roof. The YJ runs the stock 4.2L, five-speed and NP231 case, but the rear axle has been upgraded to a Currie 9-inch with a Detroit and 4.56 gears. The front Dana 30 sports like gears and a Detroit. The lift is a 4-inch Currie with a 1-inch body lift to clear the 35-inch MT/Rs.
We had a good time watching...
We had a good time watching George Biddlecombe weave his '03 Wrangler X through the trail with smallish 32s. The BFG Muds on 15x8 black rockcrawler rims clear the fenders thanks to a 2-inch Pro Comp suspension lift and a 1-inch body lift. The axles and drivetrain are stock.
Our tail gunners for the day...
Our tail gunners for the day were Randy and Diane Javonicco in their wide and low '82 CJ-7. The rig runs a built-up six with a T-18 trans and Dana 300 T-case with a 4:1 gearset. The stock Dana 30 front has crossover steering, 4.56 gears and a Detroit Locker, while the Model 20 rear features a Detroit Locker and 4.56s. The gears and 6.32 low in the T-18 help turn the 35-inch SSRs on Allied bead locks.
The John Bull trail offers...
The John Bull trail offers interesting scenery but also some cool little boulder patches, as Rocky Barnes (no pun here, folks) discovered. Rocky's '86 CJ-7 sports 35-inch BFG Muds on Allied bead locks, a 258 engine with a Mopar fuel-injection system and auto tranny and a Dana 300 case. The suspension is via 4-inch Alcan springs, and the rear axle sports a Warn full-floater kit.
Tim McLaughlin's CJ-7 was...
Tim McLaughlin's CJ-7 was sporting a sweet drivetrain swap in the form of a 5.3L Chevy Vortec, a 4L60 four-speed auto and an Atlas II T-case. Unfortunately, Tim was also running the extremely weak factory front spring hangers, which snapped like balsa wood on the first obstacle. Cappa used Hazel's Powermaster welder to zap it back together in no time.
Quinn "Medicine Woman" Moss-Pultz...
Quinn "Medicine Woman" Moss-Pultz spent some serious time modifying his '91 YJ. Doing all the work himself, Dr. Quinn swapped in a 4.3:1 Atlas T-case, a Dana 44 front and a Dana 60 rear with 5.13 gears and ARBs. A set of 37-inch BFG Krawlers on Walker Evans rims dangle under the frame and move according to the spring-over front suspension and Bilstein 5150 shocks.
Dave Nicholson was our trail...
Dave Nicholson was our trail leader in his ultra-clean '95 YJ. Dave's Jeep is way set up with a spring-over suspension modified for a 98-inch wheelbase, Currie axles in high-pinion Dana 44 front and high-pinion 9-inch rear flavors, a 4.6L stroker six, an Atlas II T-case and 37-inch Krawlers on Walker Evans bead locks.
The Rubicon contingent was...
The Rubicon contingent was out and strutting its collective stuff. Pat Yates brought his '04 factory crawler sporting 4.56s and swapped-in ARBs in the Rubicon Dana 44s. The four-speed auto rig flexes with Teraflex long arms and Rubicon Express 5.5-inch springs, while Currie track bars locate the 35-inch BFG Muds on black steelies under the frame.