This is the second time in as many years that we got to go out to this trail located in western Massachusetts. The trail is owned by the town it is situated in, and the guys who go wheeling on it are concerned that the town will close it down if every Tom, Dick, and Harry goes out there hootin’ and hollerin’ and tearing it up. For that reason, we agreed to be rather vague about the trail itself. Let’s just say that years ago the trail was cleared to run phone wires into the town. While the wires are gone, the clearing remains and offers just over two miles of some of the most fun we’ve had wheeling in the northeast.

We’re not sure how the grippy, dry, sandpaper-like rocks of Moab, Utah, have garnered the name slickrock, because the name is much more fitting to the slime-covered rocky outcroppings of middle Tennessee. In the town of Cowan you might think there is no such thing as six-cylinder engines, crawling with ultra-deep gears, keeping a Dana 44 alive, or tires smaller than 42s. Most of the trails are dry slab-like rock creekbeds that just turn flat-out nasty when they get wet. Some of these trails are right in the backyard of Erik Cole. He literally has trails that meander up the mountain on his property less than 100 yards from the back door of his shop. Some people have all the luck.

Let us set the scene for you: We were sitting on the side of a road in rural Massachusetts at 6 a.m. It was a narrow road barely wide enough for two Jeeps to pass. Not that there were two Jeeps-there was just the one we were in. The temperature outside was a balmy 10 degrees, it was still dark, and the crew we were to meet was nowhere to be found. We were wishing there were fewer regulations about travelling with firearms.

One might think the same Jeep show year after year would get old or boring, but we find ourselves back in York, Pennsylvania, at the Expo Center year after year for the PA All Breeds Jeep Show and are never disappointed. We arrived at the show to find people lining up to get in with stock, built, ugly, pretty, common, and rare Jeeps of all kinds that earned the name of All Breeds.

Jeep owners will argue over pretty much everything. It could be anything from what the best tire is, to what programmer makes the most power. But the one thing that nearly all Jeep owners can agree on is how much they look forward to wheeling or going on road trips. And if you can put those two together to create an adventure, then you have undivided attention.

For over a decade, the Chile Challenge in Las Cruces, New Mexico, has maintained a reputation for offering some of the hardest wheeling in the country. And for nearly as long, the Las Cruces 4WD Club has been fighting land closures in the Robledo Mountains, where the event is held. In 2010, the Bureau of Land Management played a much larger role in the event, with BLM employees riding along on the trails and enforcing restrictions on tow rigs parked at the trailhead. The theory was that the tow rigs attracted locals who not only come out to watch, but also cause environmental damage since they are not as informed about land use issues as most Jeepers. With the added restrictions piled on top of an already weak economy, participation was down for this year's Chile Challenge.

What better way to spend the first weekend of the new year than by going wheeling?

Hazel plays his cards close to his vest. Cappa and Trasborg were completely in the dark about what this contest would hold until literally seconds before the first event began. In hindsight, they should've known that the Sh!%box Derby would be more about having fun than actual competition. After all, Sun Tzo wrote in The Art of War, "If you know neither yourself nor your enemy, you will always endanger yourself." And what sh!%box pilot isn't familiar with Tzo? If knowing nothing of Hazel's nature didn't tip them off, they should've caught a whiff of something in the air when he told Trasborg he'd get extra points if he showed up with a bale of hay and overalls. Cappa chose to forgo the Fonzie jacket and hair grease that he was asked to bring, but at least he got the mechanics overalls and handcuffs. But more on that later.

We were long overdue for a summer wheeling road trip. It's generally too hot to go off-road in the local Southern California deserts in the summer, so we made a call to a buddy and told him about our cabin fever. He said he had just the cure. Within a few weeks, we were on a plane to Michigan for four days of road trip and wheelin'. He even pulled some strings to set us up with a Jeep you may recognize, the Mopar Underground Sarge.

It is hard to imagine trails like Patzcurro's Revenge and Tabasco Twister being boring, but if you live in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and regularly take your Jeep on these famous rockcrawling trails, eventually they start to lose some of their luster. So, members of the Las Cruces 4WD Club started to look for other trails to run. While exploring old mines and ghost towns they kept an eye out for washed-out roads and trails and searched for rocky canyons to traverse. Eventually all of this hard work paid off, as they found some extremely challenging trails north of Las Cruces.

One of the perks of the job is that our company pays to fly us around the world and check out trails and events that hold promise. We also pay attention when people talk about wheeling this-or-that trail since we are always on the prowl for the next big thing. That has made us human encyclopedias of cool trails. Like any other group of people, each of us have different likes and dislikes.

We've frequently labeled Moab, Utah, as the off-roader's Mecca. And it's anaccurate description as far as we're concerned. But what if you don't own a Jeep? Or you live thousands of miles away from Utah and just don't have the time in your schedule or funds to trailer your junk to and from Moab? Outta luck, right? Never gonna hit those red rock trails? Doomed to walk the Earth without ever experiencing the seal-like bark of your tires clawing the slickrock? Not so. There are several companies in Moab that not only rent Jeeps, but rent them equipped to handle some of the more scenic trails like Golden Spike, Hell's Revenge, and more. So read on for some fly- or drive-in Jeep rental options and consider Moab for your next Jeep vacation destination-even if you're from the other side of the world.

We're the kind of guys who have to drop goldfish in the Oscar tank at the pet store. Sure, that big hungry-looking fish in the tank can clearly swallow the much smaller feeder goldfish, but we want to see it happen. If you're at all like us you really like to see things for yourself, too. The larger 4x4 industry events are typically closed to the public, but not the vender's row at the Moab Easter Jeep Safari. You can walk up, fondle the merchandise, ask questions about the new products, and feed the vendors goldfish-only they might not eat them.

The Dakota Territory Challenge is the kind of event that reminds us of why we got into Jeeps in the first place. Beautiful scenery, great food, and friendly people have all been hallmarks of the Black Hills 4Wheelers premiere event for nearly three decades. Add in some of the most challenging trails in the country, and it is easy to see why so many people keep coming back year after year. Members of the Black Hills 4Wheelers span multiple generations and drive everything from near-stock flatfenders to Jeep tube buggies. The trails that they lead at the Dakota Territory Challenge represent the same diversity, ranging from smooth fire roads to nearly impassible rock washes. At the end of the day, everyone returns to the Whispering Pines Campground for a hot shower and Brad Wagner's famous barbeque dinner before swapping lies around the campfire and patching parts together for the next day of fun. And really, isn't that what Jeeping is all about? For more info on the 2010 Dakota Territory Challenge go to bh4wheelers.com.

Editor Cappa ruffled more than a few feathers with his March '07 editorial in which he claimed, "Rockcrawling is boring." If that did not put enough of a bull's-eye on his back, Cappa went on to praise the Formula Off-Road competitions of Scandinavia and asked, "We have the American know-how and components to build these things here, so where are they?" The answer, as unlikely as it might be, is Ohio.

Let's set the scene: It was a Saturday in New Mexico in August, smack in the middle of a heat wave that featured daily temperatures around 100 degrees. Let's go wheeling out in the desert! On the face of it, going wheeling at 5,600 feet of elevation under a bright sun in the northern mountains of New Mexico doesn't sound like a good idea. But if you are like us, and within miles of a famous wheeling spot, you wouldn't sit around on your duff either. You'd get some Jeeps together, lock it in 4-Low, and go.

There's nothing like spending the day hanging out with friends, listening to music, and checking out cool Jeeps, but all at a Jeep show? No way. That's what we thought before we stumbled upon Jeff Daniels' Annual Jeep Show a few years back. We couldn't wait to check out what was planned for the September 2009 show. Once a year at the shop in Harleysville, Pennsylvania, Jeff and Dan open their doors to anyone who wants to join the fun. Not only are there Jeeps to drool over, there's also a DJ, a live band, kid activities, delicious food, and off-road demonstrations by Rausch Creek. This year Jeff Daniels handed out trophies in 22 categories. If that wasn't enough to make for a fantastic day, the festivities ended with fireworks.

We had such a great time at the 2008 show that we couldn't stay away from the 2009 Annual All Breeds Jeep Show in York, Pennsylvania. The 2008 show was the PA Jeeps Club's largest show ever, so we hit the road with high hopes for an even bigger and better show. We were not disappointed; there were an amazing 625 Jeeps and over 5,300 spectators at this two-day event. And, there were 73 vendors all waiting to show the latest and greatest gadgets, gismos, and things you can't live without. Whether you wanted to munch on some goodies from the many food vendors or shop for a cool Jeep T-shirt, the day had something to offer everyone.

If you have read Jp magazine for any length of time, areas such as Moab and the Rubicon are likely to be familiar names to you. There are, however, excellent wheeling locations to be found all over the country. No, really! Take for example Clayton, Oklahoma. We recently headed to Clayton to spend the weekend with the friendly folks from the Jeeps of East Texas.

It's hard to believe I'm in my fifth year here in magazine-land. It is also hard to believe that it took me this long to agree to go to Four Wheeler magazine's Top Truck Challenge in Hollister, California. Every year Cappa tells me I should crash it with him, and every year it's always something-I'm out of the country, I have four Jeeps and none of them are capable of making the trip, or whatever. Well this year, the stars aligned and I went. I gotta say that I'm a dumbass for not going sooner.

You might think that your Jeep works pretty good in the sand. "I just air down the tires and keep the transfer case in High range" is what you are likely saying to yourself. And, to be honest, this scenario is a lot of fun in the dunes. However, it is the equivalent of taking a stock Wrangler into the rocks: there is the potential for a whole lot more. The good folks at the National Sand Drag Association (NSDA) have been having fun in the sand since the early 1960s. The full series of events throughout Southern California and Nevada are extremely well-organized and also well attended. There are classes for everything from kids' quads to full-blown alcohol Funny Cars at these family-friendly events, but we were more interested in the Jeeps that dominated the Sportsman and Pro Mod classes.

The Chile Challenge doesn't take place in some South American country, it's held every year in the rockcrawling mecca of Las Cruces, New Mexico. The event name comes from the famous chili peppers that are grown and roasted in southern New Mexico. The trails continue the theme, with names like Habanero Falls and Rocotillo Rapids. The hotter the chile the harder the trail. The Chile Challenge is not a Jeep-specific function per se, but like most major 4WD events it is dominated by Jeeps with sticky tires, locking differentials, and flexible suspensions. The event is hosted by the Las Cruces 4WD Club and doubles as the Winter Quarterly Meeting for the Southwest 4WD Association.

Of course, we like going to Moab, Utah, during Easter Jeep Safari for the awesome wheeling and to see all the cool Jeeps. The other side of the Easter Jeep Safari is the vendor show held at the Spanish Trail Arena at the end of the week. Since this show is huge, there are often products so new that the paint is still drying and they haven't been seen by anyone but the people who made them.

When we got the invite for Jeeptoberfest in Strum, Wisconsin, we were on the fence.

We've been to a lot of off-road parks across this great country. It is, after all, what we do for a living. Over all those wheeling miles, we just seem to have the most fun out in the Badlands in Attica, Indiana.