Heartland Run - Kansas

[Paul]

Tuttle Creek ORV Park just north of Manhatten, Kansas is a great off-roading area with trails for all driver skill and vehicle modification levels.

Explorer/Navajo/Mountaineer owners who want to get together for some impromptu wheeling just need to respond to this post and we'll hammer out the details.

This will not be a major event (like the Truck Haven Run), but I'm sure we'll have a great time Dead Link Removed.

Tentative dates include 22 January, 5 February, or 12 February. Whichever date is best for the majority of interested wheelers will get the nod.

So who's interested ?? Dogman? RJXplorer? VCMudder?

Paul

 

[Todd]

Paul,
I received your e-mail but accidentally erased it after I downloaded your pictures(BTW, they were great). I appreciate the offer and would really love to go. However, I was planning on tearing the rear-end down and drilling the cross-shaft retaining bolt out that weekend. We screwed it up when we tried to put the locker in. So, now, I have ten times the amount of work to do.
Again, I would love to go, and I don't mind the driving. If you guys are going to go again, in maybe a month or two(preferably two because I have winter fire school coming up and I have to teach several verhicle extrication classes for my department), I would love to attend.
Hope the run goes well and keep in touch.
Take care and happy exploring!


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Todd Metzger
tmetz@umr.edu
'Off-Road and More!'
93 "Ford X 4" XLT

 

[RJXplorer]

Paul-
hey sounds like a sweet idea to me...only thing is....i need to get a noise checked out, but hopefully it is nothing, (see Nasty noise!!! in Under The Hood) but next weekend the 22nd sounds good to me, i have a weeding to go to the 5th, but the 12th would also work. email me and let me know what the deal is.

THX

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RJXplorer
'94 XLT - 30" BFG AT's

[This message has been edited by RJXplorer (edited 01-17-2000).]

[This message has been edited by RJXplorer (edited 01-17-2000).]

 

[DOGMAN]

Paul,

Jan. 22 or Feb. 12 look good to me.

Actually, Paul and I made a run at Tuttle Creek ORV park on Sun. Jan. 16. It really is a nice place. The trails are many and varied, from easy to moderate to quite challenging -- in other words, there's something for every skill and modification level. It is also a beautiful place, with great views of Tuttle Creek resevoir and surrounding countryside. If you think Kansas is flat, this place will dispel that stereotype. Another plus is that it is located just north of Manhattan, Kansas, the home of Kansas State University, so meals and lodging are not far away.

This area is fairly popular with many different wheelers, but not so much as to be a bother. Sometimes you'll see a few other groups, other times you'll be the only ones there. I don't know of the exact size of the area, but I've been there twice and still not seen it all.

So let's hear from anyone out there that is interested, whether you have a stock rig, a heavily modified one, or anything in between. This place is fun!

DOGMAN

 

[Paul]

Looks like either the 22nd of January or 12 February.

Ryan - Recommend having your front hubs checked before this weekend - - if they are good, we'll go this Saturday, if not, we'll push it back to the 12th of February.

Anyone else interested ??

Paul

 

[Paul]

Tuttle Creek will be postponed until February.

It'll be either the 12th or 19th (both are Saturdays). The 19th is the President's Holiday weekend, so if that date is more acceptable to potential wheelers, we'll go out then...

Paul

 

[Todd]

Paul,
Well, I finally got my lift finished this past weekend with JKS disconnects, spacers up front, and another add-a-leaf to the rear. Also, I just finished installing dual batteries this afternoon. Not too bad of a mod.
Anyway, if the trip occurs on the 19th, I can probably make it. I could only stay for Saturday(come up on Friday and leave Sunday). However, I would love to go on a run now. I hope to even have my skidplates done by then.
Well, keep me informed if you could please.
Take care and happy exploring!


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Todd Metzger
tmetz@umr.edu
'Off-Road and More!'
93 "Ford X 4" XLT

 

[GJarrett]

Hey guys,

I just got through slamming your state on another thread (sorry 'bout that) because I couldn't imagine getting a fourwheeling trip in the heartland. Been there, and really flat where I went..... all I remember is lotsa snow, subzero temps, and a few pheasant that tasted very good. And flat, flat, flat.

If this if for real, I'd be real interested in something like a President's Day run with you guys. If you really have a good place to go wheelin', then Ray L's suggestion on another thread to have a huge Explorer meet this year where everyone could meet in the middle could be a go!

Gerald

 

[Paul]

Well, it'll be the week end of the 19th for sure! I've just sent a few photos to Rick to post to help give potential participants an idea of some of the trails.

In addition,you can check out the area at Dead Link Removed

If there is sufficient interest, we can always expand this to a two day Run. The college town of Manhatten is just a few miles south, with great amenities - hotels, restaurants, etc. Additionally, Tuttle Creek has hundreds of campsites just a mile or so from the ORV park, (but the weather may be a factor).


Paul

 

[Paul]

That last hyper-link was a dud.
Try Dead Link Removed

Paul

 

[Ray Lobato]

Paul, Dogman,
I would like to see pictures of this place, and your Explorers doing the trails. My appologies for my ignorance on your State. I lived in Nebraska many moons ago and don't remember much as a child passing through Kansas on my way to New Mexico except the 18 mile limit. I am indeed interested in knowing if it will accomodate a thousand or so trucks. If you will read my post on the General Exploration forum "Truck Haven: What happened? " for a more detailed explanation. Dead Link Removed

------------------
Happy Wheelin'
Ray L.
97 XLT 4X4 4.0L SOHC

 

[Paul]

Ray -

Tuttle Creek ORV Park is about 300 acres - - good sized, but it'd probably be bumper to bumper with a 1000 rigs.

You could easily put a couple of hundred rigs out there, but its not nearly as large as Moab or Truck Haven. One of the benefits of Tuttle Creek is that its an ORV "Park", and the short trails offer a great variety of necessary modifications and skill, allowing a several different ability "groups" to head out and do their thing, instead of all traveling in one formation.

Manhatten has all the basic amenities, and there are hundreds of campsites within a few miles of the park. The hyperlink in the above post gives a decent overview of the area.

I've attempted to send some wheeling photos to Rick to post on this thread, but I can't get the electrons to match up (yet).

Paul

 

[DOGMAN]

Gerald,

Just got done with a reply to the thread you and Ray posted on in "General Explorations" under Truckhaven: What Happened?

It's OK, us Kansans are used to the flat as a pool table analogy. There is a lot of flat land in Kansas, it's just not around this place. The area is part of the Flint Hills, which you drive through on I-70 and I-35. Actually, the pheasant hunting is very good in this area, I know that for a fact.

Honestly, the area is nothing but hills, some are very steep with plenty of rocks and ledges thrown in. It is used by a number of small groups around the area. The Land Rover guys Paul and I ran into last Sunday are getting together a "mini Camel Trophy" national event there in May, so other people think it is a worthy place also.

The nice thing about this place is that it can accommidate stock rigs and inexperienced wheelers as well as challenge modified rigs with experienced drivers. We'd love to show the place to you and anyone else that is interested -- we think you'll like it.

As far as weather goes, of course anything can happen. The two weekends we have gone in Dec. and Jan. have been very nice, sunny and temps in the 40's and 50's.

I also saw the topic of where to go among the Texas contingent on this same board. I really love the mountains and look forward to exploring the trails out west, but it is nice to go someplace different and not so far away. Come try Kansas, if you like, we'll show you a good time.

DOGMAN


Paul,

I think Feb. 19 sounds good to me. Maybe you can post some of the pictures we took so people can see the place.

 

[rpenner54]

Hmm Everytime I drive through Kansas I never see anything but the fields. Dead Link Removed I have relatives that live in Witchita, and Hillsboro. So the next time I am out that way I will let you guys know and mabey we could get together to do some wheeling. Since I refuse to ride in the family station wagon, I always bring my own Explorer. Dead Link Removed BTW our family station wagon is a '97 Ford Explorer V8 AWD, so its not all that bad. Dead Link Removed Just cramped with 5 people.



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Ryan Penner
1992 Explorer Sport

 

[DOGMAN]

Paul,

Good job on the area info and map. The 19th is the date.

Ray,

No appologies needed. I look forward to meeting you someday, hopefully sooner than later. Keep up the positive vibe, it could just be contagious.


In general, I usually believe the more the merrier. It's nice to think of getting everyone in the country that uses this site togethter for a run, but realisticly, I don't think you would get 1000+ rigs to come. But, I've been wrong before. You might get a hundred or two, at best, but not everyone that uses this site is as crazy as we are. Or are they?

Let's walk before we run and get this Feb. 19 event going first and then decide if a national run is feasible. I do like the positive waves though.

If anyone from Colorado is interested, it would just be a straight shot down I-70. From Denver it would probably be about a 7 hour drive. If coming from the south, take I-35 to Wichita, then I-135 north to Salina, then I-70 east to Manhattan, exit 313. So from almost any direction, you can take the interstate to within about 20 miles of the ORV park.

Feb. 19 is a month away, so there's enough time for everyone interested to adjust their schedule for wheelin at Tuttle Creek.

DOGMAN

jcmarquette@earthlink.net

 

[Paul B.]

Paul, Kansas sounds interesting. I want to just clarify one thing about the Truckhaven area. The only reason we stayed in a group (the first day only) was because we had so many truck's and few people who knew the area well. Truckhaven is so large that you can brake up the groups into as many as you want. There is no limit (1-100). On Sunday we decided to go into 2 groups, one for the stock & mildly modified group and the other for the heavily & locker up trucks. Truckhaven is best done in smaller groups anyway (5-15) truck's per run. I am glad that with the number of truck's and the different capibilities of each truck & driver that we had, we had no serious problems or accidents. Truckhaven can be a very dangerest area if you do not know what you are doing. Anyway enough said. I hope you guy's have a great time on your Kansas run, and am looking forward to meeting you people some day soon.

Paul B.

 

[Rick]

Paul I will try and get your photos up later this evening. Things are calming down for me for awhile. As soon as I got back from T-haven I had to plan and conduct a yearly meeting for a large group which I am associated with. The meeting was today and now that that's over I can get the Truckhaven article out and work on other projects such as planning the Moab trip.



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Rick Horwitz
Editor
explorer@4x4central.com

www.4x4central.com

 

[GJarrett]

Paul, Dogman, I have one intsy-bitsy request for a possible teensy litle slight shift of your plans.

The advantage for us that would have to drive a lot farther than you guys to make it there is the fact that you are scheduling it during a three day holiday weekend. If you do the big run on Saturday, I may miss Saturday morning. What if you did a pre-run or something half of Saturday (or whatever you want) but do the all day run on Sunday? Then maybe some Texans could show up and join you for the whole thing and have Monday afternoon to drive back home. If you did everything Saturday, we'd miss half of it and have nothing to do but go home early and waste a day.

Just a thought; it's your run.

Hey, any other of you Texans reading this thread yet? What do you think?

 

[Explorerdude]

Check this link out... Those of you (Like me) who have never been there, may find this helpful.
Dead Link Removed

Joe
94 Explorer XLT
4" Superlift Suspension Lift
33X10.50 BFG All Terrain KO's

 

[Paul]

Paul -
Thanks for the info on how Truck Haven was executed. With more people turning out for the runs, its seems like the natural progression to break into ability groups to keep the number of rigs per trail (or area) manageable. I'm sure that will be the way to go at Moab in May...

Gerald -
Great idea to hold the run on Sunday, too. When first posted, I didn't think we'd get too many out-of-staters; and I understand the driving distance is a factor. I've already discussed with DOGMAN the possibility of a two day run (Sat-Sun), and if you and some of the guys from the Lone Star State plan to come up, we can definitely expand the run to accommodate you.

Having the run Saturday and Sunday will allow additional time for all participants to make the journey.

Paul