SSW Team Cleghorn Trail Day!

This past month we had the pleasure of organizing a trail day with some of our friends and sponsored drivers. It was fantastic to meet and get to know everyone from behind the wheel and out on the trail, as opposed to behind a keyboard and in the parking lot in front of our shop (our normal setting). Marcus of SkuraWeekly had flown in the night before, and was with us to capture the day's activities. 

We met at the crack of dawn at an Arco a couple miles out from the start of the trailhead. As we rolled in and parked, the sun was just starting to come over the horizon. Slowly trucks started emerging from the freeway offramp and pulling into the gas station. In the time it took for the sky to turn from a dark blue to a bright golden yellow, we had 15 trucks crammed into this relatively small Arco station, some driving as far as 500 miles! It wasn't long until the previously quiet and dark Arco station was filled with the buzz of conversation and morning sun. Before we could get too comfortable, the gas station attendant was yelling at us to stop crowding all the pumps, and given the size of our entourage, that was definitely our bad. Everyone exchanged brief introductions, we synced radio frequencies, and hopped on the freeway! One of my favorite parts of off-roading is always the convoy to the trailhead; today was no exception. It was definitely a sight to behold, as more than a dozen heavily outfitted trucks charged onto the freeway. Marcus hung out the back of my tailgate in somewhat of an anxiety inducing position, as we tried to get as much footage as we could during the short 3 mile drive to the trailhead. 

@mamas.gx470 @54syota @black_tacoma at the front of the pack

Today's trail was Cleghorn Ridge, one of the more popular off-road destinations due to it's vicinity to San Bernardino and the Greater LA area. The majority of the group had already been at least once or twice. As we pulled into the staging area, the conversations that were cut short at the gas station picked up where they left off, accompanied by a symphony of 15 trucks airing down concurrently. After a few minutes the sound of hissing slowly subsided, and we were ready to hit the trail.  

@norcalrunner17 airs down

Part of what makes Cleghorn such a great trail for first timers, is it's unique feature of being able to "pick your own adventure" in a sense. The main trail itself is essentially a double track fireroad, and you could pretty much do the entire thing in 2WD. However, for more experienced wheelers or people looking for something a bit more advanced, there are offshoots every other mile or so, that feature higher difficulty obstacles, but return you to the main trail shortly after, allowing you to pick and choose how difficult you want your day to be. Because we met as early as we did, we managed to beat the rush and didn't run into too much traffic out on the trail.  

@54syota flexes up the transmission tower obstacle

We soon arrived at the first obstacle of the day, the very well known transmission tower offshoot. This obstacle features deep alternating ruts set upon a relatively steep incline. Although one of the more manageable challenges along the trail, the first obstacle of the day always presents its own type of intimidation mixed with excitement. Charles (@trdschweee) led the way with a heavy foot, picking up the front wheel and dragging his rear bumper up the incline in a dramatic fashion. With one truck over, soon there was a line queued up, each waiting to take a stab at the offshoot. As guys make it up over the top, they hop out of their trucks and help guide the next truck over. Soon everyone was clear, and with high fives exchanged, we all got back on the trail.

@_jesserizo picks a line

As we drove into mid-day, things remained pleasantly uneventful. Everyone continued to power through obstacles drama free, there were no mechanical failures, and the summits cleared rocks and ruts without any complaints. Even the weather was fantastic. As far as off-roading goes, the day was pretty much perfect. 

Suspension components peak through the raptors of @w4rpig_huntech

As we approached one of the last obstacles of the day, we noticed ahead of us a jeep halfway up the hill. At first we assumed he was just taking his time, however we soon realized he had snapped a tie rod, and his front wheels were pigeon toed inwards. In total, he was probably stuck for 30-40 minutes, of which everyone happily took to chat, share knowledge, and just enjoy the day. With the jeep safely recovered, we continued onwards and upwards, past what was probably the biggest offshoot of the day. It was downhill from that point, and by mid-afternoon, we were back on paved roads. 

@black_tacoma and @54syota air back up before heading out

Motorsports as a whole tends to be a very competitive space. Power numbers, lap times, awards and accolades are usually the measures of success. At least that's the background that many of us come from. Off-roading however feels different in the sense that it feels way more community driven. People are eager to help and guide, and the whole group gets excited for each person that makes it to the top of the hill. That's one of the reasons we enjoy what we do at summit, and especially so when we get to go out and drive with the people who make what we do possible. As always, we are grateful for the support, and hope to continue doing trail days like this!