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56th Annual Rubicon Trail Jeepers Jamboree - The Original56th Annual Jeepers Jamboree From the November, 2008 issue of Jp By Pete Trasborg
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We've all heard of Jeepers Jamborees and the Rubicon Trail. Sometimes at the same time, sometimes separately, but they are always being referred to as something that a Jeep person wants to go do. First off, let us clear something up. The four-day run over the Rubicon Trail you are reading about right now is the oldest "Jamboree" event with "Jeep" in the name. And, it only happens in one place; The Rubicon Trail. There are other runs across the country that are called jamborees. There are other jamborees with the word Jeep in the name. But there is only one, inimitable, "Jeepers Jamboree". For 56 years now, the run has started in Georgetown, California, and travels east on pavement past Uncle Tom's Cabin to Loon Lake where the wheeling begins, then past Spider Lake, Buck Island Lake, Rubicon Springs, up Cadillac Hill, and back onto pavement for the run into South Lake Tahoe, California. All said, it covers about 45 miles with about 19 miles of that in four-low. We are talking about a four-day event over the trail that started it all with spotters, mechanics, and meals all provided. If you ever thought of running the Rubicon, the best support crew you've ever had wheeling is here for this event and should make for a no-brainer as to when to run the trail. Once you make it to camp, there are all kinds of things to do, including a trailer race, live music, an ice-cream stand, a vendor's row, "goin' down the river", and so on. Of course, if you get the hankering to get out and do some more wheeling, you'll never find a better place. For more info about the Rubicon Jeepers Jamboree go to jeepersjamboree.com.  If your Jeep makes it to the...  If your Jeep makes it to the Rubicon Springs camp and if you aren't a magazine editor running around taking pictures of other people relaxing and whatever cool Jeeps you find, you can spend the middle days on or in the river cooling off and just hanging out.  The sleepy little burg of...  The sleepy little burg of Georgetown, California, becomes inundated with Jeeps and Jeepers for the check-in for the Jamboree. If you forgot your inner-tube for floating in the river, there is a tire shop in town that stocks inner tubes for old vehicles.  You've heard of the Budweiser...  You've heard of the Budweiser girls and the Doublemint twins. It is our pleasure to introduce the Gen-Right girls. From left to right, Michelle, Niki, Danielle, Tamara, and Kristi. We don't know how the company did it, but we saw girls in Gen-Right tank tops all over town and on the trail for the duration of this whole event.  Friday and Saturday night...  Friday and Saturday night a live band plays a combination of classic rock, rock, and country music. You can take it upon yourself to show just how poorly you dance, and yes this is ten miles from the nearest paved road.  This year, for the 56th annual...  This year, for the 56th annual Jeepers Jamboree there were fewer attendees than usual. We thought it was thanks to gas prices, but we were told that the year right after a big anniversary usually saw lower numbers. Also, even though we've been talking about this being the 56th annual Jeepers Jamboree, which is only true for the four-day run. There has also been a three-day run for the past 30 years that coincides with the four-day run. So, sign up for the four-day and leave civilization on a Thursday, or the three-day run and leave it all behind on a Friday. Each year, the event organizers cap the number of vehicles to 250 each day. With the required passenger, that makes for a maximum of 1000 people in camp. This year, the four-day run had 241 vehicles and the three-day had 83 vehicles.  Everyone was loaded to the...  Everyone was loaded to the gills with equipment. You are going camping for four days, and driving over 10 or so miles of an extreme off-road trail to get there. So in addition to all the camping gear, you need to bring parts, tools, and the regular wheeling gear you take with you on any trail. Many Jeeps had stuff strapped to the roof or roll bars.  One of the cool by-products...  One of the cool by-products of an annual wheeling trip that has been going on for so many years is that it attracts a lot of vintage Jeeps. We saw more flatfenders and early CJ-5s on this one trip than we've seen in a single place for easily the last ten years.  We opted to get on the trail...  We opted to get on the trail early. The event organizers start handing out box lunches that are plenty hearty at 6:00 am. We grabbed our box of fried chicken, Subway sub, cookies, chips, and fruit and still managed to catch this shot. The Rubicon is in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, and we started at over 6,000 feet of elevation. Even if the days are beautiful, the nights can get chilly.  The old WWII military trailers...  The old WWII military trailers were designed to float. And, 60-plus years later, they still do kind of float. After getting lowered into the river while sitting in the trailer at the end of a winch cable, competitors get to bail water until everyone is feet wet. Then it is a 300-yard race down river. Only one trailer made it to the end of the race without sinking before getting pulled out.  We saw a lot of super flexy-Jeeps...  We saw a lot of super flexy-Jeeps with gear loaded up top come within millimeters of tearing their doors open on this rock. This four-door JK with the added interior cargo room and resultant low center of gravity had no problems squeezing by.  This is the main shop area,...  This is the main shop area, just outside the Rubicon Springs camp. If you blow up some part out on the trail, the Jeepers crew will provide you with a new one for whatever it costs, and they have mechanics and tools on hand to get the part put in for no labor charge  This is photographic proof...  This is photographic proof that you should check your beadlock ring bolts before heading out on the trail. Especially when your Jeep has run the Rubicon from end to end almost every weekend in the last few months. To give her credit, it wasn't Michelle's Jeep, she just drove it the whole way. It was her boyfriend, Brian, who failed to tighten the bolts.  Most of the pictures that...  Most of the pictures that you see of the Rubicon are dry, dusty obstacles with huge rocks plunked in the middle of them. Well, that is because there are a lot of huge dusty rocks. There are quite a few water crossings too, and while they don't require a snorkel, some of the optional crossings do.  This is one of the optional...  This is one of the optional wheeling spots right outside camp. Sean Kelso and Alex Giltz decided to tackle it in this '65 CJ-5. It was Sean's first time driving in this kind of mud, but with a V-8, Super Swampers, and a heavy right foot, he made it through just fine.  It didn't matter if the rock...  It didn't matter if the rock was as big as the Jeep. If there were optional lines, odds are good they'd be taken by someone. This was on the way out, and while most people were in a rush to get home, some took the scenic route over the Volkswagen-sized boulders.  There wasn't much rain before...  There wasn't much rain before this run, and with perfect balmy temps during the day, there was a lot of dust and silt in the air. We are still blowing silt out of our nose. It is all part of the experience.  If the still pictures just...  If the still pictures just aren't doing it for you, check out jpmagazine.com for some videos shot on and off the trail at the Jeepers Jamboree.
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