Extreme off-roading in Moab

9/19/2018 – Moab

Today we rented a Polaris Razer 1000 and hit the trails outside Moab. These machines are engineering marvels. The suspension alone is incredible……both front and rear have 21 inches of travel. It was amazing how much of the shock was absorbed before it got to your body. The front and rear wheels are actually out in front of the bumpers so that when you are descending down a VERY steep rock, the wheels actually hit the ground first. We had to learn that….the first few decents, we thought for sure we were going to smash up the front of the vehicle. Imagine the vehicle sit driving on flat ground and you are looking at the front tires from the side. The part of the tire at about 4 o’clock is what hits the ground first on a steep decent.

There is no way I could adequately describe the thrill of climbing up, over and down big rocks and rough terrain in this kind of vehicle. It was one big adrenaline rush for both of us. We covered a lot of ground on 3 different off-road trails, including all of the area called Fins N Things. It was pretty darn hairy until we got more used to what these vehicles can do……we put faith in the belief that the companies renting the machines would not send you out on trails that these machines could not easily handle (if you stay on the trail). We did see a couple jeeps on the course moving very slowly but frankly, I can’t imagine trying to run this with a jeep or any other standard commercial 4 wheel drive vehicle.

We only booked the Razer for a 1/2 day but it was so m much fun we decided to keep it for the day. We stopped back in town around 12 to checkin and grab some lunch before heading back out. Nancy really did well considering her fear of heights. There were lots of times when the trail was narrow and it was a long way down from the side of the road or, in some cases, the top of a huge rock. We took lots of pics but they can’t begin to capture the severe up and down slopes we encountered. There were long stretches of rocks, areas of deep sand, and lots of curves in the trail. There were times when the slope was so severe we wondered if we were going to fall backwards or forwards and end up upside down on the roof. This is what I would call extreme 4 wheeling. As the day went on and we got a little more experience, we got more comfortable with what the machines can handle…..and, as a result, it became a lot more enjoyable. This was by far the most thrilling outdoor activity we have done so far on our trip.

Now for the unpleasant part……toward the end of the day, we took a wrong turn that quickly led to a dead end. So we attempted to backout and got ourselves stuck on top of a sand pile. Had we backed up a little more right of left, we would have been fine but it’s hard to see what’s behind you. So we spent about a 1/2 hour trying to dig ourselves out before a couple other vehicles came by and pulled us out. But by then, I was pretty worn out so instead of going for one more run, we headed home. We didn’t know it at the time, but the place we got stuck was only about a 1/2 mile from the end of the trail.

By the time we got back, our bodies were covered with sand grit. When we go again, we will definitely get air tight googles. Sunglasses were ok but it was a windy day so it it was a hard to keep the sand out of our eyes on the real sandy parts of the trail.

I can sure see why this is Mecca for avid off road enthusiasts. There are hundreds of miles of trails, the sandstone rock is like sandpaper (virtually no slippage), and the scenery is spectacular. This kind of fun could really be addicting. Unfortunately, we waited until our last full day here to do the off-roading……had we gone sooner, we would definitely have gone again before leaving. It was a blast. It’s easily as thrilling as whitewater kayaking or rafting. Both of us agree we’d really like to come back and do it again. And it’s just another example of the diversity and quality of outdoor recreational activities in Utah.

I’m in the process of doing a movie from the clips we got while 4-wheelin and will post a “special edition” blog post when it is completed. In the meantime, here are a few pics and two short video clips.