[Calypso]

Well, after wrenching on the Rubi until 3:00am Friday, decided what the heck- let's go give this rig a workout- Mount Blanca!

My Sis rode shotgun (her first time wheeling on anything technical), and we had an absolute terrific time.

Never been on Blanca, so I was more than a bit tentative. Well, this trail is everything it's famous for, and then some. This is probably the most technical trail in Colorado, aside from the extreme trails such as Penrose, Indy, and original Carnage. 33" tires, at least one locker (preferably two lockers), a winch, and rocker protection are highly recommended.

Turned out we were solo the entire day, aside from a CJ we met at the river crossing as it was coming down. Made things even more unsettling!

Jaws-1 wasn't too bad- the correct line will get you over (even with the shovel underneath)

Jaws-2 has been completely reworked after the deadly roll last year- it's still a bit of a challenge, but nowhere near as dangerous as it used to be.

Jaws-2.5 was a humdinger- I had no intention of straddling the crevice, so tried several lines trying to get over. Darn shovel underneath was my downfall. :x I finally was jambed on it to the point that I had to winch off.

Jaws-3 is spectacular- once you get past Jaws-2 the trail just keeps coming at you as it gets steeper, looser, rockier, and lots of mini obstacles. Jaws-3 is the final revenge on this trail, and it sure is intimidating when you arrive. I darned near had it licked on the first try, but I was so surprised at how quickly I climbed up the first part that I stopped to reorient for the second half- should've never stopped! I'm a finesse driver, so we worked, wiggled, crawled, and finally worked our way up. Took about 30 minutes to get over that bugger.

Finally, the lake came into view, and we rejoiced at our achievement- the scenery is breathtaking. Took 3.5 hours to ascend the 5.5 mile trail, and about 3.0 hours to come back down.

We did run into Hax5 and Bad Canyon at Jaws-1 as we were coming down- they were going to camp and run the trail Sunday. Plus stay a couple extra days. BTW- Bad Canyon is making and selling NICE steering box skids- he mounted one up on my Rubi in 3 minutes right there on the trail.

Enjoy the pictures:
:usa:

Jaws-1

Jaws-2

Jaws-2

Jaws-2.5 - I was so close to getting over this. Finally had to winch.

Waterfall below Como Lake.

Beautiful scenery at Como Lake.

Jaws-3 - coming down.

Jaws-3 - coming down.

Jaws-2 - coming down.

Jaws-1 - coming down. OME suspension sure was the ticket!

 

[JustinHEMI]

Real nice pics! thanks for sharing!

Justin

 

[Ned]

Okay, now I'm feeling cooped up.

Nice trail and nice scenery.

 

[RubiconPete]

Nice pics..did you air down any?
Pete M

 

[mac]

Great pics..... that looks like a must visit!

:wink:

 

[Calypso]

No, I didn't air down- mostly because I haven't yet taken 'measurements' to see how much ground clearance I lose at given pressures. Blanca requires as much clearance as you can manage. No doubt airing down would have helped in some cases- but the shovel would have been a larger factor then. :x

I was very tempted to air down at Jaws-3- this is where it really would have helped.

I wanted to also report a bit on the OME + Rancho 9000x combo. This is a wonderful combination- I run the Ranchos at 1-2 on the street and highway when empty. Bump it up to maybe 4 when loaded. On the trail, I set 'em to 1 on all four when going up. When coming down, I set the front shocks to 5 and leave the rear at 1. This makes an incredible difference in ride comfort and minimises the 'crash' effect coming down.

With the OME + 1.25 JKS BL & 1" JKS BMM & 285/75R16- the capabilities of the stock Rubi are MUCHO better. :lol: I don't think I dragged anything other than the skid the entire trail, whereas my stock Rubi was dragging all over Chinamen. I was most impressed and glad I stuck with the smaller lift.

 

[Ken White]

Awsome pics and thanks for the views!!! I also like the report on the RS9000X's. I will have to give your settings a try.

Ken