Hello all! I would like to thank you all for a fun time at MaBell this Sunday. Was a good second time out with the 40. Everyone met at the Mobile station around 9:30am, give or take a few minutes. I pulled around the corner and WOW!-- there is a good group of guys and gals! Yippy! Here's a list, forgive me if i get your name wrong... they don't stick sometimes! Allan, 87 Turbo 4runner...Look at my new bling bling bilstein shocks! Dave K, 94 extra Cab Mini...I don't need no stinkin lift! Dave M, 85 4Runner...Go anywhere on 31s solid axle stocker! Mark W, 87 4 Runner...New front locker-take my front end apart in the woods! Tim, Tan 40...I like being under water. Scott, Red 40...May I borrow your jumper cables again? Chris and Megan, Big 40...Got coil? Stew and Cristina, Green 40...Anybody got a hub socket? Cristina and I arrived at about 9:30ish. I noticed getting a clicking noise getting off the highway whenever I turned right...hmmm wonder what that could be. In the parking lot, I start doing circles..and YUP there is a definitely a noise turning right. OK well, lets get gas and get to the trail head and will check it out there. The trail head is about ten minutes through winding back roads. I keep swerving and listening to the noise to try and figure out what it is, steering feels fine and no funny vibrations. The first group of trucks makes it to the trail head, Mark W, Dave M, Dave K, and myself. We get a call from the second group that Chris's coil is bad and does anybody have one? Mark W has one so he runs back. In the meantime, I am checking out my front end. Everything seams tight--tie rods, steering arms, bearing caps....oh but wait is that wheel bearing play I feel in the drivers side? I jack up the drivers side-- klunk klunk klunk...ok well, if its not the wheel bearing don't know what it is. I needed a set of Allen wrenches and a Hub socket, both things I own but left at home (note to self make sure you take these out of your other tool box and bring to trail next time). In the meantime, Chris's coil had been replaced with one Mark W had. Everyone had made it to the trail head and David K had done the first rock ledge with out even a bit of wheel spin! Chris had a disk brake hub socket which I was able to use to tighten my wheel bearings and Dave K had an Allen set for the hub. A big thanks to both of them. As I finished up, everyone had aired down and it was time to hit the trail. I finished airing down as the last truck was going around the first obstacle. We made it through the first section and down to the first water hole with no real problems. At the water hole I was last with Tim in front of me and Scott in front of him. Scott made it through no problem (locker, Super Swampers, 350/SM465) and made it look easy. So Tim went right on through...until the middle were he got hung up and dunked the driver-side of his 40 in the water. This called for the strap to come out! And me to go around to the left of the water hole! This is also the start of Scott having to use jumper cables. At this point there is 3 or 4 ways to make it up the next section of trail, Easy, Medium, and Hard. Mark W and Chris had decided to go Hard and the rest of us went Medium and Easy. Everyone made it except Mark W who decided he really wanted to test his new front locker out and blew both his birfields. Since there was no way we were going to loose Mark W because it is a turn around trail we all opted to move on with him, Chris, Megan, and Tim staying behind to help out and make sure stuff turned out fine. At the next rock ledge, Scott who was now in front of me started having problems with his battery/starter and required a jump start a bunch of times. This was the start of some fun restarts between the two of us and him ending up with my jumper cables in his truck to make it easier in case he needed to restart again, which he did. The rest of the trip was uneventful we had a good BSing time at the lunch/turn around spot (PB and Fluff anyone?). On the way out Allan made it up Augie's hill no problem (anybody else?). We passed Chris and Tim coming in as we were heading out, with Mark W riding now due to two busted birfields, and some axle shaft damage? At the trail head Allan, walked right up the First rock ledge and Scott went about 3/4s of the way up and then came back down--he didn't feel like rolling it. At this point Scott loaded up his 40 and we all headed back to the Mobile station to air up, get gas, food, put our exhaust systems back together, and head home. All said and done, it was an excellent time had by all. Hope we can all go out again soon and wheel. Bueller? Anyone? -Stew- Got wheelin?

more to come . . .