All Things Jeep Blog & Musings

The Secret of how All Things Jeep’s Go Topless Day began

Posted by Jean Wnuk on Mon, Aug 01, 2016 @ 12:14 PM

A customer recently asked us how All Things Jeep’s Go Topless Day got started. That’s a dirty little secret I never really wanted to give away but feeling nostalgic as 2017 marks the 10th anniversary of this event, I thought I’d share the story. It’s a perfect example of small business bootstrap marketing! If any of you are small business owners, you will nod your head in appreciation.

Back in the early part of 2008, All Things Jeep was still a fledgling company. We were about to turn 5 years old. We had gained enough traction to just recently move into a real warehouse, in a larger office park, and outside vendors were showing up at our door regularly. The guy who wanted to sell us retirement services for our employees, the company who wanted to sell us an alarm system for the warehouse, and the local newspaper that wanted us to advertise were just a few of the people ringing our door bell.

Turns out the woman wanting to sell ad space in the local paper also did some writing for it. And she happen to be working on the Springtime section of the paper, “Happenings around Boston this Spring” which was going to be published the following week. It was April 2008. Did All Things Jeep have a springtime “Happening” for the paper? It did not. A small e-commerce company selling hats and t-shirts to Jeep enthusiasts doesn’t have “happenings”. But if it meant getting a write-up in the local paper for 1000s to see, well then, heck, we were going to have a happening!

The 2nd week of April 2008 we came up with the idea that Jeep owners in New England have the spring ritual of taking the top off their Jeeps and let’s celebrate it as the national holiday it should be! Let’s pick a day and call for a celebration and let’s see if we can get free publicity for the company. Thus, Go Topless Day was born. Once the “Happening” was submitted to the paper, we had no choice but to make it happen, just in case the paper published the event! We called a local farm stand with a big parking lot and asked if we could hold an event there. We got our designer to create a logo for Go Topless Day, and we started talking it up to the local Jeep community.
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The paper never published our event (I suppose the name had something to do with it), but by then, we had the t-shirts (above) and were marching forward with the event. And to incent people to show up, we said that we were going to cut the top off a Cherokee so it could go topless too!

Thus the opportunity for free publicity became local Go Topless Day. But you know Jeep enthusiasts! But they time the day arrived, it had become the First Annual International Go Topless Day for Jeeps! Our local event occurred in Lancaster, MA and about 80 Jeeps and owners showed up. Through word of mouth, we had Jeep clubs all over the world also participate. We had a photo contest and gave away cool prizes. We had some kick-ass entries! Here’s a 2008 Go Topless Day write-up a blogger did.

Here's one of our all time favorite entries into our Go Topless Day Photo Contest.

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The event that was invented to get our name in a local paper has become a phenomena in the Jeep community and next spring, we celebrate the 10th Annual International Go Topless Day! We are thinking about ideas on how to celebrate a Ten Years of Topless Day! If you have suggestions, post them in the comments section. And remember, when opportunity knocks, go topless!

Tags: AllThingsJeep.com, go topless day 2009, "go topless day", gotoplessday

All Things Jeep Flagship East Coast Go Topless Day Event

Posted by Lindsey Borreson on Fri, Apr 17, 2015 @ 01:31 PM

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Hundreds of Jeep owners and off-road enthusiasts will join All Things Jeep and the Ocean State Jeepsters for the eighth annual Go Topless Day, a celebration of spring and the sense of fun that comes with owning a Jeep. The East Coast Flagship event will be held at the Quaboag Riders Motorcycle Club in Monson, Mass. on May 16th, 2015 starting at 9am and will draw participants from all over the northeast US.

The event will feature more than 600 Jeeps on show, guided trail rides of different ratings, kid’s activities, a vendor midway, raffles, an RTI ramp to test a Jeep’s flex, and food for purchase. In honor of sharing the date with Armed Forces Day, All Things Jeep will be handing out military swag bags at their tent for those with a military ID and will have a pre-made cards for attendees to sign for deployed troops. There will also be men’s, women’s and youth event tees for purchase. Attendees are encouraged to bring their families and friendly, leashed dogs to enjoy the day.

AllThingsJeep.com, an online Jeep gift store, started small and grew fast - a trait that it shares with Go Topless Day. The company’s founders conceived the first Go Topless Day in 2008 after a particularly brutal New England Winter. As many Jeep owners will attest, removing the top from the Jeep Wrangler, or “going topless” is one of the most enjoyable aspects of ownership, especially so after months of cold weather.  AllThingsJeep.com started a kick-off celebration of the topless Jeep season for the local community that has since grown to include thousands of participants around the world.

For more information on the Flagship East Coast event, visit http://www.allthingsjeep.com/go-topless-day-2015-east-coast-event.html 

More details can be found online at http://www.allthingsjeep.com/go-topless-day.html. Go Topless Day events are held worldwide, so local events can be found for those not in the New England area as well.

 

 

Tags: jeep, topless, massachusetts, "go topless day"

Thousands Go Topless in Worldwide Event

Posted by Lindsey Borreson on Thu, Apr 16, 2015 @ 05:46 PM

 

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AllThingsJeep.com announces their eighth annual Go Topless Day, a celebration of spring and the open air experience for Jeep owners and off road enthusiasts across the globe. Jeep clubs, dealerships and groups in more than 30 states and three countries will meet on May 16th, 2015 for over 70 locally organized events with more added each day. Each Go Topless Day event has selected a charitable organization to benefit, many with a military theme to honor sharing the event date with Armed Forces Day.

 

AllThingsJeep.com, an online Jeep gift store, started small and grew fast - a trait that it shares with Go Topless Day. The company’s founders conceived the first Go Topless Day in 2008 after a particularly brutal New England Winter. As many Jeep owners will attest, removing the top from the Jeep Wrangler, or “going topless” is one of the most enjoyable aspects of ownership, especially so after months of cold weather.  AllThingsJeep.com started a kick-off celebration of the topless Jeep season for the local community that has since grown to include thousands of participants around the world.

This year Go Topless Day shares the date with Armed Forces Day. Community is one of the most powerful aspects of both Jeeps and Armed Forces support. With that in mind, AllThingsJeep.com is encouraging all clubs and organizations that host a Go Topless Day event to reach out to the local or national military support charity of their choice, through donations and inclusion in this special event. Thus far, more than 26 charitable organizations will be receiving donations from Go Topless Day events. AllThingsJeep.com will join by hosting a card-writing table to thank troops at their East Coast Event.

Go Topless Day is a worldwide phenomenon that is reflective of the Jeep community. The grassroots event is unique among the enormous expos and often ostentatious auto industry events in that it started local and has remained local even throughout its growth. Whether it’s a small group of Jeep loving friends planning a scenic ride to a local watering hole, like the Red Line Jeeps in Maine, or a multi-club event drawing thousands of participants to an area, like Crystal Beach, Texas, all are supported by AllThingsJeep.com. Most events are open to the public to grow and strengthen the local off road community and unite Jeep owners. Activities range from coastline cruises to trail clean-ups, beach parties to backyard picnics, all in the name of fun and charity.  

More information about Go Topless Day can be found online at http://www.allthingsjeep.com/go-topless-day.html

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Tags: jeep, topless, "go topless day"

A Run In with an All Things Jeep Founder

Posted by Lindsey Borreson on Thu, Nov 20, 2014 @ 05:19 PM

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You may not know this, but our east coast office is still located in the small Massachusetts town where All Things Jeep was founded. One of the wonderful things about a little New England town, in addition to post-card worthy rural scenery and the sense of community, is that you run into people you know when you least expect it. Just this morning, I ran into Jean Wnuk, co-founder of ATJ, getting gas and coffee at the local refueling spot. I was lucky enough to work with Jean and her husband, Norman, as an intern when ATJ was still run out of a historic mill building.

After our brief hello, I started thinking about the time I spent with Norman and Jean and the fledgling online Jeep gift store that I watched them pour their hearts into. Many of you knew Jean and Norm, either through the Jeep community or from being customers of All Things Jeep. You knew their love for these crazy vehicles, their passion for their customers, and their dedication to making ATJ a success. Many of you also knew the sorrow that we felt when Norman passed away unexpectedly in November of 2009.

Seeing Jean this morning brought me back to the roots of our company and made me think once again how lucky we are to have been founded by partners in love and life with such a strong vision for their business - to be the #1 source for unique Jeep gift items.

Next time you start your Jeep, think of Norman, a man who lived and breathed the Jeep life. It's a Jeep thing...yeah, he understood.

Lindsey @ ATJ

About All Things Jeep

Tags: All Things Jeep, AllThingsJeep.com, "go topless day"

Want to Go Topless? First You Need a Top to Take Off!

Posted by Lindsey Borreson on Wed, May 07, 2014 @ 02:10 PM

So you want to go topless…

One of our favorite features on the Wrangler is the ability to take the top off.  The sun on your face, the wind in your hair, and nothing above you but open sky; ­there’s nothing better. We love taking the top off so much, we even started an annual celebration over 7 years ago – Go Topless Day! What’s that, you say?  You only have a hardtop?  Your freedom panels aren’t giving you the open air ride you desire?  We understand, and believe us when we say, topless Jeeps have more fun! Here we'll explore the different options available for your first summer or soft top.

 

Soft Top Style - the Best of Both Worlds

A complete soft top kit is the best choice for Jeepers who want the topless ride and 100% waterproof protection.  Complete soft tops come in two styles – full frame and frameless.  Both full frame and frameless complete soft tops will include everything you need to switch to a soft top setup, including the door surrounds, tailgate bar, windshield channel, soft top, windows, and any other hardware necessary for installation. Read on to find out the difference between the two styles of complete soft top.

 

JK Supertop NXFull frame soft tops are most similar to the factory soft tops and feature metal bows to support the top’s fabric, removable side and rear windows, and a sunroof on certain models.  The advantage to a framed top is that the bows stay attached to the roll bars at all times.  This means that you can easily undo the top from the windshield and flip it all the way back for the topless experience.  The bows lay flat along the sides of the cargo area while the fabric of the top folds behind the rear seat.  If the clouds roll in, it’s just as simple to pull the top back up and reattach it.  Even with windows, it takes less than 5 minutes to fold down or put up a fully framed soft top once you've gotten the routine down. The versatility and weather protection offered by a complete framed soft top is unbeatable.  

 

trektopnx4The other option for a complete soft top kit is a frameless soft top. As the name implies, these tops do not use a metal bow system to support the fabric, but rather your Wrangler’s roll bars. This means that the top will follow the contours of your roll bars in the cargo area. For 4 door Wranglers, this does lead to a slight decrease in overhead cargo space when the rear windows are installed.  This decrease in overhead cargo space is not as noticable on the 2 door models.  On frameless tops that feature removable side and rear windows (hint, some models only have a removable rear window), the style is extremely similar to that classic bikini top look.  At the same time, complete frameless soft top kits will include door surrounds, which allow you to seal the top to the Jeep and keep water from coming into the passenger area.  When the windows are installed, a frameless soft top will be 100% waterproof. The disadvantage to a frameless top is that it does not have the capability to fold all the way back as a full framed soft top does. Some models have a sunroof feature so that the top can flip or roll back over the front driver and passenger seats. For many owners, having the sunroof back and the rear windows removed creates enough of an open air ride, while other owners find this set up doesn’t feel truly topless as the rear seats are covered. A frameless soft top does have to be completely uninstalled from the Jeep in order to go fully topless, and there is no built in storage mechanism as with the framed soft tops.

 

 

Summer Tops

TJbikini2Bikini top, safari top, brief top, Bimini top, combo top, island top – whatever you call it, the summer top is a staple of Wrangler culture.  Summer tops are the closest you can come to riding topless while still having a bit of weather protection overhead. All summer tops require a windshield channel in order to attach to the windshield area of the Jeep and use straps to attach to your roll bars. They come in a variety of styles, including brief, which covers only the two front seats, or extended, which covers front and rear seats. Summer tops are available in mesh and solid fabrics of varying colors.  While a summer top will keep precipitation from coming straight down into the Jeep, they do not seal to the Jeep the way that a full soft top does, and as such, are not waterproof.  Certain models have the plastic belt rail built into the sides of the top so that they can seal with factory door surrounds, but this varies widely by manufacturer and year. 
The best friend of a Jeep owner that loves that bikini style look, but doesn’t want wet seats is a Cab Cover. These covers can be thrown on over the summer top when a storm rolls in to keep your interior dry. Be forewarned though, if the clouds let loose while you’re on the move, there’s not much you can do.

 

spiderwebShade Tops

The Spiderweb Shadetop is a mesh top which attaches to your Wrangler’s roll bars using Spiderballs – bungee and ball cords that slip through the grommet holes on the top for easy installation.  This is a truly ingenious product that can be configured in a variety of ways.  The Shadetop is unique among summer tops in that it can be used tandem with other bikini tops, soft tops, and hard tops.  Another bonus, no windshield channel required!  Once the Shadetop is installed, you won’t have to remove it to use your other tops.  While the mesh material won’t provide much in the way of water protection, it will cut down on wind noise and buffeting while driving, as well as keep you from roasting at red lights on those hot and sunny days.  The brief-style JKini is a great option for those looking for a bit of protection while their freedom panels are out of the hardtop – birds overhead, anyone?  Shadetops come in multiple lengths, colors, and pieces to outfit your Wrangler with complete sun protection. 

 

Soft Top Accessories

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Along with a new soft top comes a whole realm of care and storage accessories. We highly recommend the Bestop Soft Top Cleaner & Protectant Package along with the Bestop Soft Top Zipper Cleaner & Lubricant.  These products are specially formulated to keep your top looking great and functioning smoothly for years to come.

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 Storage boots allow the folded back fabric of your top to be stored compactly in the cargo area of your Jeep. They also protect the top from precipitation, bird droppings, and anything else that may come your way with your top folded back.

 

 

windowrollThere’s a few varieties of window storage for those removable soft top windows.  For those that like to leave their windows at home, a protective storage bag is a practical solution.  Prefer to take your windows with you?  Check out the Cloverpatch Window Roll.  This window storage solution uses layers of felt fabric to keep the windows from rubbing against one another.  The felt liner, with windows inside, rolls up and slips into the outer storage sleeve, which uses straps to attach to your roll bars in the cargo area.

 

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For those who choose the summer top route, a Car Cover or Cab Cover can save you from wet seats while your Wrangler is parked. The covers come in water resistant and waterproof options, depending on how you intend to use the cover.  Remember, never seal a Jeep with an already wet interior with a waterproof cover!

 

 

 

 

Which Top Do I Choose?

At the end of the day, there is no right or wrong top set up for your Wrangler.  The choice will come down to your level of comfort, how much weather protection you desire, and which features you value most.  As always, please call us at 877-249-0065 or email sales@allthingsjeep.com and we will be happy to answer any top questions you may have!

 

Is it really okay for my Wrangler's interior to get wet? Click here to read our post on Going Topless 101!  

 

 

 

  

Tags: SpiderWeb Shadetop, stock Jeeps, summer top, wrangler owner, All Things Jeep, wrangler, frameless soft top, new soft top, topless Jeeps, Spiderweb tops, Go Topless, Topless Jeep, "go topless day", cloverpatch windowroll, hard top, bikini top

Go Topless Day countdown, weather, mousepad

Posted by Angelo Lanham on Wed, May 16, 2012 @ 07:46 PM

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Weather looks promising enough. Let's hope it keeps through our topless weekend.

Here we are, a scant four days away from our holiday that they wouldn’t understand.  Yes, Jeepers, three sunrises, four sunsets, away. Here in California, as always, the weather is sunny and cheery and in fact we’re all practicing for Go Topless Day by knocking our tops off and Jeeping about. In fact, across most of the country, we have nice, sunny pleasant weather. If we can keep this up for another few days, Go Topless Day will go off without a hitch.

The weather map confirms this story – very few patches of precipitation, and only in pockets of the East Coast. Should clear up – just don’t go sending it this way!

The bad news is that, while we’ve been shipping Go Topless Day shirts by the bucket, the days between now and Go Topless Day are growing a bit thin to rely on postal service delivery by May 19. Hope you’ve already got your Go Topless gear!

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This Go Topless Day Mousepad can be yours ... free

If not, don’t despair, all orders totaling $75 or more earn you free standard shipping, along with a free Go Topless Day keepsake in the form of a pretty groovy little mousepad. Thus, every time you go to your computer to connect with Jeepsters and log onto AllThingsJeep.com, you’ll be reminded of your 2012 Go Topless Day. Cool even if it comes after Go Topless Day – it’s not like you’ll use your mousepad on Go Topless Day itself, anyway!

Tags: free shipping, "go topless day"

Go Topless in Foxboro, MA

Posted by Angelo Lanham on Thu, May 03, 2012 @ 06:55 PM
GTD12 MA EVENT POSTER 

Local Jeep owners and off-road enthusiasts will join All Things Jeep and Ocean State Jeepsters for the Foxboro, MA, celebration of the fifth annual Go Topless Day.  It will be held at WC Motorsports, just across the street from Gillette Stadium. The event, hosted by Michael and Stephen Nashawaty of Taunton, MA, will be sure to send hundreds of Jeeps crawling up Route 1!

The event will feature a Rock Garden, RTI Ramp, a “Jeep Playground,” activities for the kids, food vendors, Jeep vendors and Raffles.

More details may be found at http://www.allthingsjeep.com/ go-topless-day.html. If you're not lucky enough to live in Massachusetts, be sure to check the site – chances are, your local Jeep club is coming around and hosting an event of its own.

For more info, contact us at gtd@allthingsjeep.com.

Go Topless Day is a worldwide phenomenon during which off-roaders shed their Jeeps' tops in celebration of the sport of off-roading.  The first Go Topless Day was held in the spring of 2008, a small gathering of enthusiasts in Lancaster, MA. The idea came to Jean and Norman Wnuk, founders of AllThingsJeep.com, as they thawed out during the close of a brutal New England Winter. They realized that Jeep and Off-Road communities needed a special day to rejoice the beginning of the Topless Season.

Since then, participation has grown to over 150 clubs, as Go Topless Day annually unites topless Jeepers everywhere to celebrate of the off-road lifestyle and form parades, organize cleanup events, picnics and, our favorite, pose for pictures.

Tags: AllThingsJeep.com, "go topless day"

Earth Day Celebration, AllThingsJeep.com and BlueRibbon Coalition united!

Posted by Angelo Lanham on Wed, Apr 18, 2012 @ 10:06 PM

Earth Day _ All Things Jeep and BlueRibbon Coalition

We at All Things Jeep are turning Earth Day into a Jeep thing — from now through Sunday, we will donate 5% of proceeds to the BlueRibbon Coalition, an organization dedicated to preserving open space for the Off-Road community.

Since the late ‘80s, the BlueRibbon Coalition has been working to educate the public about the off-road sport while bringing attention to issues involving land use to a national level. The coalition protects the notion that public lands and the natural resources contained therein should be accessible to the public.

As fellow Jeepers, we feel that our regulars would agree with a sentiment that keeps your Jeep on the trail. So, all you have to do help the BlueRibbon Coalition protect your trail is buy lots of cool Jeep stuff. Not such a bad way to celebrate Earth Day!

Still need another excuse to load up on Jeep stuff? Just check in to AllThingsJeep.com this weekend and you’ll get a free Go Topless Day sweatshirt with the purchase of any sweatshirt plus Free Shipping on orders over $75 — and it’s this weekend only.

Earth Day — it’s a Jeep thing. For more information on the BlueRibbon Coalition, visit  http://www.sharetrails.org 

Check out our Earth Day sale: www.allthingsjeep.com/earth-day-sale.html 

 

 

Tags: jeep, Go Topless Day Sweatshirt, earth day, BlueRibbon Coalition, public land access, "go topless day", open space

All Things' Jeep Go Topless Day 2012!

Posted by Sierra (the dog) on Fri, Mar 16, 2012 @ 02:16 PM

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All Things Jeep announces the 5th Annual Worldwide GO TOPLESS DAY on May 19th, 2012 and Thousands of Jeep Owners Worldwide Expected to be Topless

San Jose, CA – March 16, 2012 –On May 19th, 2012, AllThingsJeep.com is sponsoring their 5th Annual Worldwide Go Topless Day and invites Jeep owners everywhere to participate. Go Topless Day is about celebrating the spirit of fun, freedom, and adventure that people love about Jeep and off-roading. What started as an idea for a local event in 2008 quickly grew to a worldwide phenomenon through the help of the Internet. Over 100 Jeep Clubs and several thousand more individuals on five continents participated in the event last year and this year’s Go Topless Day is expected to double that amount. For more details, visit http://www.allthingsjeep.com/go-topless-day.html.

Go Topless Day is when Jeep owners everywhere take the tops off their Jeep, and join in parades, picnics, park clean-ups and community service with fellow Jeep lovers. Last year’s Go Topless Day was the largest coordinated event among Jeep owners to ever exist. A complete photo album can be found at http://www.allthingsjeep.com/go-topless-day.html. Sign up to participate either individually or as part of a group and AllThingsJeep.com will send you materials to launch your event.

About All Things Jeep All Things Jeep runs www.allthingsjeep.com and is one of the largest providers of gifts, apparel and memorabilia to the Jeep® and off-road market. All Things Jeep delights Jeep® owners with items that enhance their adventurous lifestyles. Visit www.allthingsjeep.com for the perfect gift for Jeep® lovers including Jeep memorabilia, clothing, decals, tire covers, watches, jewelry, seat covers and more.

Tags: Go Topless Day Photos, go topless day tees, "go topless day" "Jeep meet and gre, AllThingsJeep.com, "go topless day", "go topless day" "jeep photos", "drop your top" "jeep t-shirts"

Go Topless Day Videos

Posted by Jean Wnuk on Mon, May 11, 2009 @ 01:50 PM

By now all my readers know about Go Topless Day, but here's a chance to see what our flagship event, in Lancaster, MA was all about. It was about Jeeps! It was about Jeep Clubs! It was about MUD! It was about good times shared with fellow Jeepers. Thanks everyone! Here's a video of our local Go Topless Day event.

Tags: "go topless day", jeep videos