All Things Jeep Blog & Musings

 NOTE: Blog written as a result of fellow employee doing some pretty decent damage to his skull on a weekend trip 2 weeks back. Lots of blood involved, but he's okay now.

---------------------------------------------------

Okay kids, let's talk about Trail Safety for a bit, specifically First Aid. When you go off roading, you're trying to reach the most inaccessible, extreme places around. You're dealing with wilderness, heavy machinery, and factors unknown. The deeper you go into your adventures, the farther away you are from help. All this adds up to bad news if a serious injury occurs! Luckily, the old adage, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," rings very true here.

First things first, you'll want to have a First Aid kit. Now, most First Aid kits include some gauze, a variety of Band-Aids, and some name brand painkillers. While this is good to have in your Jeep for day to day adventures, you'll want to create a more extensive kit for your off pavement trips. Keep in mind that you'll probably be trying to keep a wound under control until you can find proper medical attention, which could be hours away. The few 2"x2" gauze squares that come standard in most kits are great for a small scrape or cut, but if you've got a wound that won't stop bleeding you're going to go through those little guys quick! Clean towels kept separate from the rest of your gear are a great help (no, your oil rag will NOT suffice!). A large roll of gauze, scissors, and medical tape will make you a very happy camper. Also bring along some old t-shirts that have been washed. These can be ripped into long strips and tied on to hold gauze in awkward places.

More often than not, the scrapes, cuts, and gashes acquired on the trail will have some of said trail ground into them. So, unless you want to lose that limb, cleaning out wounds is of vital importance. Bring along a water bottle to be used strictly for flushing wounds. The large medical Q-tips and a bottle of iodine should definitely be in your First Aid kit. An ice compress in your cooler (again, keep it in a separate plastic bag so it's not filthy) will provide some relief for most injuries. Other miscellaneous items include ibuprofen or pain killer of your choice, tweezers, calamine lotion, antibacterial ointment, and latex gloves (powder-free).

Please keep in mind that I am by no means a medical professional. This is just an idea of some of the things you'll need based off of first hand experience. You know your region and what types of dangers are most prevalent there. For example, if you live in a snake area, bring a snakebite kit! Common sense and caution are the best prevention, but injuries are sometimes unavoidable. Not being prepared, however, is a mistake that you can (and should) avoid!     

Bust out the tents! Load up on bug-spray! Fill the cooler with ice and tasty libations! Pack it all into the Jeep and head out for fun! What could be better than a weekend full of camping & wheelin'?

Mike White, aka MrFreakinWhite, who works here at All Things Jeep, also happens to be president of JonFund, a Connecticut based 4x4 club. This weekend they teamed up with Vermont Expedition Society (VTXS) to hold their annual camping & offroading event, Field Trip. Also in attendance were a few members from Western Mass 4x4 and Northeast Toyota Crawlers (NTC).

 

 

Collectively, a whopping 35 trucks showed up for trails ranging from the brain-rattling, bone-shaking, hardcore runs to a stocker night run. I'm proud to add that my bone stock TJ on 31" TrXus Mud Terrains made it through said stocker run with zero tugs and only moderate scraping. A 2" lift and I think I'll be able to do it without the ugly sounds from beneath.

 

Speaking as the smallest Jeep (by far) at the event, you don't have to have a super-modified rig to have fun with the big boys (and girls!). Joining an off roading club is a great way to have fun with people who share your interests, off roading and otherwise. It also gives the perfect opportunity to learn how to wheel safely and pick the brains of those more experienced than you. After all, who doesn't like talking about their own Jeep?

We work hard on our rigs, and seeing those modifications get tested and pulling through in extreme situations is satisfying in a way that only 4x4 owners can truly understand. The only thing more satisfying? Perhaps a half-mile long line of 4x4 grills climbing their way behind you. What can I say? Wheeling camaraderie gives me the warm fuzzies.

Remember those worksheets in grade school where you looked at a list of names or phrases and said which one did not belong, which one is not part of the group? Okay, here's one.

Off-Roading, Camping, Rock Crawling, Hula-Hooping, Mud-Bogging.

Which one does not belong? Did you say Hula Hooping. That's what I thought until I met one of our customers on our All Things Jeep Twitter page ( http://twitter.com/AllThingsJeep ).

Meet Jackie, from Hoop Du' Jour, http://www.hoopdujourstore.com/

 

 

We've seen her around the web and asked her to send us a note about her business. The note is below. One thing I didn't realize until I read this is that Jackie is only 15 years old! Already has her own business and already knows she's driving a Jeep in just a few short months. Frankly, I'm impressed. 

"I found out about hoop dancing through my mom and started hooping when I was 13. My mom goes to this big event every year called Burning Man where basically all the free spirited people who like to have fun, set up camp in the desert once a year for a week and have themed camps and parties. Burning man has tons of people doing what we call, hoop dancing or hooping. So once I picked up my hoop I fell in love with it, since it's so much fun and is an amazing source of fitness for your body.

Once I started hooping and getting my hoops through other people I started having my own cool ideas for hoop colors and designs. So I had an amazing idea that I should start my own business making hula hoops and teaching as a Certified Hoop Dance Instructor. I went to a 3 day intensive teacher training with the amazing company HoopGirl, and became a certified hoopdance teacher.

Now I am currently a few weeks away from turning 15 years old, and I am an owner of my hoop business, Hoop Du' Jour and I am a certified hoop dance teacher. I absolutely love hooping and all the oppurtunities it gives me, with doing what I love and being able to work at such a young age.

As for Jeeps, my first Jeep obsession started young, when I saw Lorelei Gilmore's 1999 Jeep Wrangler in my favorite show 'Gilmore Girls'. Then, my dad's girlfriend had a 2005 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited and we went driving everywhere together with the top down and the doors off and I fell in love! I'm so incredibly excited to start driving in about 6 months and get my very own Jeep Wrangler next year! Hooping and Jeeps are my two great loves, and Allthingsjeep.com of course! Maybe in the future I could start a Jeep HoopGroup and we could go off-roading and hooping on our adventures!

Thanks so much for wanting to learn more about me! I absolutely LOVE you guys and your business! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!!!!"

After reading Jackie's note I'm also thinking of ordering a few "hoops". Seems like a great activity to do when I need a break from my desk while at the office. So long as a video doesn't make it up onto Youtube, I'll be all set.

Thanks for sharing with us Jackie. You are inspiring!