Menu
Driven to the extreme...
Cross a mud-filled bog? Not a problem.
Tackle a steep mountain trail? Piece of cake.
Climb a hill of rock? Been there. Done that.
For the past 10 years, members of the Wild West Off Roaders in Mountain Home have faced the roughest, toughest terrain the great outdoors can dish out. For these off-road enthusiasts, the bigger these challenges get, the more they like them. It comes standard issue in their high-octane, adrenaline-pumping sport.
Sometimes, they succeed. Other times, they fail. And when they don't succeed, they'll simply keep coming back and try again -- and again, if necessary -- until they persevere.
The word "quit" doesn't seem to be in their dictionary.
Comprised of people of different backgrounds and levels of experience, the club's 20 current members consider themselves a family of extreme adventurers, according to club president Chris Bowman. Different from other all-terrain clubs in the local area, the club prefers to use trucks and jeeps.
"We do everything from running normal trail runs that you can do with a stock four-wheel drive vehicle to extreme rock crawling -- everything from mild to wild," Bowman said.
Vehicles in the club's inventory range from those with nothing more than sturdy tires and all-wheel drive to monster rigs with beefed up chassis and axles. Getting a vehicle to this "extreme" category is a matter of time, skill and money, according to Bowman.
"A typical person normally joins the club with a stock rig, and then it's like a bug bites them," said club vice president Karen Gump. "They go out on a couple of runs with the club, and all of the sudden they say, 'my rig's not capable of doing what I want. I want to do what (everyone else) can do.' "
Most people have no idea where this off-road bug can lead them. In Gump's case, her Chevy Blazer went from a standard, street variety "to the point where it's not street worthy anymore," she said.
"You start progressing your rig into being bigger and better" because there's always a new obstacle, a new challenge standing in the way, Bowman added.
And when someone can't make it over an obstacle because their tires weren't big enough, they will come back later with a new set. On their next attempt over that same challenge, they might snap the axle because the tires were too big. But true to fashion, they'll be back again with the same truck with bigger tires, a beefier set of axles and a bigger motor.
"There is no end to this; there is no perfect vehicle," Bowman said. "There is no recipe for making it right."
But ultimately, the club's goal is to go out and simply have fun with those who share this same passion, Gump said.
Those who join the club quickly learn the consequences and sacrifices that come with it. Bowman, for example, has rolled his truck four times in the past year. To him, they're nothing more than occupational hazards in his quest to overcome the challenges thrown his way.
"You got to be able to have the capability of building on (your rig) and not being afraid of rolling it or smashing it," Gump said.
"The damage is going to happen. If you're not breaking stuff, you're not trying hard enough," Bowman added.
Despite the sport's extreme nature, it's not just a guy's sport. People like Gump and her 17-year-old daughter are just as likely to get behind the wheel of what some might consider to be the mechanical version of Frankenstein's monster.
"I got hooked on the mud racing aspect of the sport when I got tired of watching my husband race," Gump said. "I told him I was tired of sitting on the sidelines. So we found a rig and I started rolling through the mud."
For Gump and others like her, it was an instant, pure adrenalin rush.
"You get to that starting line, and your heart is just pumping, and your foot's on the gas or your foot's on the brake trying to get that perfect acceleration to get through the mud and beat the other person. It's a thrill."
She also holds the distinction of being the only club member to roll their vehicle during a mud run -- something that still has her a bit baffled.
But to a point, it's these unexpected problems that compels the club's members to keep pushing forward.
"There's no telling when a rig will simply decide that an obstacle is just too much to handle," Gump said.
Following last week's snowfall, for example, the group got together to tame the sand wash off the Old Grand View Highway. During the outing, a club member snapped an axle as they drove over a stretch of terrain that would regularly not pose much of an issue.
It's something that driver will likely go back and fix before trying again, she said.
"All of us have a nemesis trail -- one trail that our vehicle has never been able to do," Bowman said. "Eventually, you build your vehicle up to where you can make that trail."
For Bowman, his nemesis was known as Two-Headed Dragon -- a stretch of nasty terrain in the Owyhee Mountains that confounded him for years.
"Every time I went out there, I was denied until the one time that I finally made it," Bowman said.
For Bowman, it was then time to move on to the next challenge.
But what compels someone to tackle something as daunting as crawling up a rock face in a truck?
"It's being willing to try the unknown" and making the seemingly impossible happen, Bowman said. "It becomes a matter of someone saying, 'I don't think we can get a vehicle up that, but let's try.' "
Idaho has remained one of the nation's best-kept secrets in terms of extreme off-road racing, according to Bowman. However, that secret is starting to leak as people discover its vast amounts of state-owned land featuring terrain best suited for this sport.
However, Bowman quickly stressed his club's ongoing effort to maintain a balance between having fun and preserving Idaho's natural beauty.
"A lot of people view us in a bad light because they view us as the guys that go out and tear stuff up," Bowman said. However, those culprits are non-members that don't share the club's conservation policy. It's these individuals that tarnish the reputation of official clubs like the Wild West Off Roaders.
"We promote using the established trails with what we're allowed to do on them," Bowman added.
In addition, club members meet throughout the year to conduct clean up efforts to remove trash left behind by careless individuals trekking across Idaho's most scenic venues. In recent years, Bowman estimates that the club has removed more than 75,000 pounds of trash from state and public lands left behind by others.
"We like to promote proper use of state land," he said. "They're there for us to use, and we want to keep it that way. We don't like seeing things torn up."
Unlike other sports or hobbies, the Wild West Off Roaders promotes family unity during each race or meeting. When they hit the road, their outings often start with a barbecue that brings everyone together. In addition to these races, the club will plan overnight family camping trips where everything has to fit on or inside the rigs.
Gump also emphasized the club's no-alcohol policy during the races as a way to promote the pro-family spirit.
The club meets the second Tuesday of the month at Carlos' restaurant on Sunset Strip. For details, go online to www.wildwest4wd.com or call 284-5447.