TheSamba.com :: View topic - 2009 SST - Team Bad Dog Chronicles

Thu Feb 12, 2009 10:23 pm

What is on your must do life list? You still have time to see some of Northern California’s most amazing backroads…..and do so in a 40+ year old VW Bus. I know it sounds insane, ridiculous, and not for the faint of heart. Yet every year for the past nine years a group of stout hearted VW enthusiasts take their durable classic Buses on a unique adventure along little known undeveloped roads finding their way to Mt. Shasta City.
Once off the well traveled thoroughfares, the road to Shasta often greets you in unforgettable ways. You’re bouncing along an old logging trail only to find yourself facing a long, steep, and rutted uphill climb or a wide and deep river crossing. You charge ahead, your heart races and, click, your brain records the moment for a lifetime.
What makes these encounters absolutely memorable? Danger for one thing, thrills for another, and of course the challenge. Who can forget motoring down a trail only to find a Bobcat upon a downed tree or a steep 1000ft drop off just around the next snow covered turn. The weather is always unpredictable, and the even the best detailed topographic maps won’t tell you if the road ahead will lead you to a locked gate or is just plain impassable.
In the 2009 running of the Shasta Snow Trip our three man team of Greg Urrutia, Jason Lang, and Tom Simon representing the National Auto Sport Association (NASA), gave it their all. As fate would have it, route choice and wrong turns had us lost for most of the first day. We were self crowned “Lasta Shasta” in our second attempt at this fascinating adventure.
More about this one of a kind event can be found at www.shastasnowtrip.com
In the following stories I will share with you the experiences of myself and my fellow travelers who seek out adventure on this unique annual expedition closely following the path of pioneers from yesteryear. With so many situations, occurrences, and happenings I have to brake down this experience into chapters.
To get started here is my first submission. I hope you enjoy.

Thu Feb 12, 2009 10:26 pm

Chapter 2
"Lasta Shasta" (part 1)

After a long and drawn out ride with many “fuel” stops, we finally arrived at the Rampaging Spot, a staggering and exhausting 6 hour journey that should have taken us 3. It was more like a marathon ongoing repair from the moment we left Sacramento. We were warmly greeted by the many teams that had arrived hours earlier. We exchanged pleasantries and found an area to call home for the evening. We pitched our tent, set up camp and then mingled with the other participants around the blazing campfire.
Gene Cornelieus handed out route maps and informed us of the 4am drivers meeting. After a few cocktails we turned in early to get some rest for the big day ahead. I was up at 3am anxious to get the day going. I made my way out into the quiet brisk morning to take in the star lit sky and the nocturnal beauty surrounding us.
The awakening teams quickly broke camp and readied themselves for the journey at hand. SST founder, Brian Piercy presided over the drivers meeting. There he was once again, larger than life atop his VW Bus with more vigor than a political candidate addressing his colleagues.
Being that our team was the first to complete the 2008 running of the SST, the trail masters of this event allowed us to start the trek in the first position. We felt this to be a huge gift considering the dry and dusty conditions. Following teams would be battling not only the rugged trails but the huge cloud of dust kicked up by the inaugurate vehicles. It wasn’t long before we started experiencing fuel problems all over again. It was not more than 20 minutes down the road when we found ourselves off to the side of the road with the seemingly endless line of Buses blowing past us. The choking dust was very humbling.
A quick pitstop and we were off again. Trying to make up some ground I threw the Bus into turns as my teammates held on tight for the white knuckle ride. At one point I had the Bus bicycling on 2 wheels on an off camber turn. After that hair raising moment, my compadres insisted that I slow it down a bit. I backed off to more of an X-games pace and proceeded with a bit more courtesy.
The chatter on the CB was constant. Off in the distance we could see both headlights and tail lights as the teams ahead of us winded their way along the trail at different elevations. Soon there was an announcement made of a team that was disabled due to a failed transaxle. Tough break we thought. Many teams turned back to help out, while others pressed on. A few moments later a call was made for a set of snap ring pliers. We cringed when we heard that plea. Tom commented, “Your day is not going too well if it starts off with a need for snap ring pliers this early in the morning”. Moments later we came upon a pod of 12 Buses that had stopped to join in on the fun of replacing a reduction box transaxle in the primative conditions of dirt, pre dawn darkness, and sub freezing temperatures. I can’t imagine taking on a task of that magnitude in those conditions. I salute the hearty souls that jumped right in to lend a hand.
This is the point where we buddied up with our friend from last year, Joel aka “Joe Cool”.
Once again with Joe Cool as our wingman, we felt our 2 team pod to be a real power house.
We found our way cruising along on the tundra of Northern California with the speed and handling of Sherman Tanks. We cinched our seat belts and safety harnesses a bit tighter as we bounced along in the dark on dry and dusty roads with off road lights projecting ahead.
The continued chatter over the CB informed us of some teams back tracking due to some missed turns. We chuckled and reassured ourselves “That won’t happen to us”. Famous last words.
Our route directions were precisely written with definitions such as “through the squigglies”, “wiggle and veer”, “situated on the cusp”, and my personal favorite “the Ranting Man’s property”. We pressed on.
As night turned to day we were sure we were making time on the front runner’s. We continued to reassure ourselves that we were on the right path by some tell tale signs. We kept our eyes peeled and noted things like a VW hubcap that was thrown from a preceding vehicle, a piece of firewood that must have fallen off a roof rack, and the comforting signs of tire tracks sliding through a turn. Yes we marched ahead but I did feel a bit of “de je vu”. We seemed to be out of CB range with the rest of the teams and I had that “chasing a ghost” feeling in my gut.
We continued on at a pretty good clip and soon found ourselves traversing the side of a steep mountain with a huge cliff on one side. The trail, one lane wide was absent of guard rails. We were concerned about meeting up with another vehicle coming from the opposite direction. The steep grade had us winding back and forth across the face of the mountain with hairpin turns at each end as we dropped about 2000 feet in little more than a mile.
Once we got into the valley the road widened and soon became paved. The curves ended and led us onto a very long straight away. Off in the distance we could see cross traffic at a busy intersection. As we closed in we came upon a sign and quickly found ourselves back at the starting point give or take a few miles. We sat at the stop sign indicating we were at HWY 20.…all over again.

....to be continued

Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:34 am

Chapter 2
"Lasta Shasta" (part 2)

We had dedicated ourselves to this road for over an hour. A quick review of the Gazetteer ultimately indicated the best route to take now is to do an about face and charge back down the same road. The road was full of excitement, one of the most demanding trials we have ever found ourselves on. No big deal….we liked the road so much, why not do it twice? We apologized to Joe Cool for taking him in the wrong direction. He was all good with it. We flipped a U turn and began the long climb back up the winding cliff side. It really was an epic ascent.
Once we crested the top, we again tried to make up some time as we slide through turn after turn using the full width of the one lane road. The only scary moment that we experienced came on a long straight run between turns. Coming through the turn still well ahead of us was a pair of dual sport Buell Motorcycles. They came sliding through the turn at a high rate of speed. Much like us, they were using every inch of the turn. We were glad that we did not find them in the middle of the many hundreds of turns we had already been through. You never know when you might come head to head with another vehicle coming from the opposite direction on a blind turn. We continued on with a bit more caution around the blind turns.
We continued to be plagued with fuel starvation. We made a number of stops to change and modify filters. This condition slowed us down but we were headstrong and dedicated to completing the mission. As we continued to make up lost time we eventually started to pick up CB chatter again. We were getting closer to the pack that had stopped to replace the failed transaxle. As the signal grew stronger we learned that the 12 Bus pod had effected repairs and were back on the move. We checked the time and were amazed to find they changed out that transaxle in little more than 2 hours. Quite amazing when you consider that is a very impressive timeframe even in the best equipped full blown shop. Hat’s off to all involved with that task. Team work indeed. A fine example of what is possible even in the most primative conditions. For the many miles we were off in the wrong direction, by the time we retraced out steps, they had the trans swap completed and were still ahead of us!
We made contact with the pack and identified some landmarks. They appeared to be about 3 minutes ahead of us at this point. We hoped to catch up and hang with this accomplished group. Not long after the next transmittal we were once again stalled alongside the road. We had just passed a School zone and had pulled off into clearing. Someone mentioned it looked like recess as the school yard was full of activity. I spoke out about this looking a little sketchy….a couple of “Vans” parked just outside of school grounds with a handful of unshaven guys mulling around with the side cargo doors open? I said, “Maybe we should move, limp down the road a bit”. We were only going to be there for a few moments, so I stuck my head back into the engine compartment and continued to effect repairs. Wasn’t long before I heard a strange voice inquiring what we were doing on school property. Sure enough, the staff scrambled the school security to investigate what we were up to. The “official” looking gentleman (he had an I.D. card handing from his pocket) pulled up on us in a school district truck. He was doing his job and was very authoritative, yet cool about asking us to move along. Good to know they are sensitive to protecting their children in these parts. I’m sure a good description of us had been forwarded to the local policing agencies. We quickly moved along wanting to distance ourselves from this county.
Jason dove back into the Gazetteer and the route directions and picked a path for us to follow. Although we were once again out of CB range with the others, we felt that we were really making good time. We imagined to be either 2 to 4 hours ahead or behind the rest of the pods.
Alone on most of the roads, no traffic following or coming from the other direction kept us thinking about the unmarked roads we were on. Joe Cool stayed with us, trusting us to be on the right course. The roads changed from gravel, to dirt, to mud and snow, and many rock laden dry creek crossings. We were getting every bit of the excitement and scenery we had expected. The warm day had us shedding some of the layers of protective clothing we had on. It was indeed, Spring-like weather.
Fuel stops continued along the way. We were at a stop along a deserted road when we were once again rolled up upon by a posse in a Rhino type utility vehicle. The 4 occupants look to be survivalists/hunters dressed in military and camo gear. The driver was the spokesperson for the group and made it very clear we were on “His” property. I imagined this was the “Ranting Man” that we were forewarned about in the route instructions. The route directions also state “Remember to duck, and if you do get stopped, and don’t get shot, make sure to get the Ranting Man on video”. The instructions go on to say “-Note: I hate to be a wimp, but I think we shouldn’t do this choice….it might make someone madder than they can tolerate, and it might cause real problems, despite how much fun it would be. We don’t want any heart attacks or mass shootings on our conscience, do we?”
The property owner was very knowledgeable and saw us working of the fuel system and even offered up a fuel filter if we needed one. He told us that he was not happy about the fact that the state has an easement allowing passage through his property. He also mentioned that he has had problems with passers starting fires along the road in the summer months. Fires?, and here we are with gas cans in our hands.
He did not mince words and encouraged us to move along. I thanked him for his hospitality and for allowing us to pass through. They kept an eye on us as we moved along. This was another time we wanted to distance ourselves from this area.
The next leg of the trip took us through an ongoing collection of private properties. Some were bordered by unlocked closed gates and others had nothing more than expanded cattle crossings. At one point the road we traveled on appeared to become a long drive way with corrals full of livestock on each side. We seemed to be driving right into a farm with multiple buildings surrounding us. The road led us right up to a ranch house complete with various farming vehicles and equipment parked out in front.

----to be continued

Fri Feb 13, 2009 5:22 pm

Chapter 2
"Lasta Shasta" (part 3)

The road appeared to have ended but we noticed a gate that lead into a pasture. The pasture was full of sheep....hundreds of sheep. Upon further investigation it was apparent that once you crossed through this pasture the road continues on the other side. It seemed like a really weird setup but we opened the gate and the sheep started to part going to one side or the other. It was like the parting of the Red Sea, only with sheep. We closed the gate behind us and motored on where the road picked up. Off to the side of the road up ahead was a downed sheep with 2 sheep dogs at it’s side. I imagined the sheep was ill and not dead or else the dog's would not be standing guard over it. As we neared one of the dogs charged at us a and chased us off until we were well down the road. I was amazed at the dedication and instinct of the animals. They were really well trained at protecting their flock.
A bit further down the road we came across some bulls in the road. At first it appeared they were contained within a corral, but as we got closer it was obvious they were on the outside of the steel fence. These were the real deal. Big, with horns, and each weighing in at a minimum of a 800 lbs. Tom wanted to slow to take pictures. I was a bit uneasy about this. I mentioned to be ready to hit the gas it he starts snorting or kicking dirt. The bull didn’t seem to mind us at all, in fact he wasn’t much impressed with our presence. We snapped a couple of pics and moved on.
It was now getting later in the day. We continued on this road as the sun began it’s descent. We climbed in elevation and soon were traveling over snow covered roads. Actually the roads were more ice than snow. We followed the road for miles on an uphill climb. The snow got deeper and the process of moving forward began to get tougher. Tire slip was noticed as we continued. There were a couple of times that we slid into the loose shoulders that bordered the road. Keeping up our momentum was vital to continued progress.
We reached the summit of this mountain right about dusk. The temperature was dropping rapidly and we were soon adding layers of clothing to ward off the cold. After a few miles across the summit we found a road that led to a lookout tower. The station was closed for the season. The tire tracks that we had followed had ended at this point. We pushed on along the summit road over undisturbed snow. No vehicles had passed this way since the last snowfall. The only tracks left in the snow were the ones we made.
We were now on a descent. The road started to drop away and we eventually came upon a sign noting we were on the right track to Hwy 36, 18 miles ahead. About a mile past that was another sign, this one read “Road Closed, Locked Gate 1 Mile Ahead”. Really? Are you kidding me?
It was now starting to get dark. Dark fast….really fast! And the temp continued to drop. We needed to do something fast. Since the snow drifts seemed much higher up to and beyond this point, we decided to hike down the trail to see if there really was a locked gate and just how significant this gate was. Sure enough there is was, and a damn sturdy gate at that. Now What?
We dove back into the Gazetteer looking for another way out…any way out. Guess what, no good alternatives other then back tracking the same 70 miles we came in on. Another about face and we were once again retracing our steps. Now fuel was beginning to be a major concern. As darkness enveloped us, the perspective of the road changed dramatically. We turned on all of our off road lights and made our way off the summit and descended back down into the valley.
We passed by the bulls and came across the sheep dogs again. The downed sheep was still laying on it’s side and the sheep dog’s were still holding vigil. Here it was more than 4 hours later, in the dark, and the dog’s were still at their post. Truly devoted animals.
Back through the pasture and gate, making quick time across Ranting Man’s property, and even past the school. Here we made another route change and headed towards Red Bluff. We needed gas and we needed to re-evaluate our plans. It was close to 9pm before we pulled into the first open gas station we found.
Exhausted and hungry we decided to find a place to take a break and get a bite to eat. I think this is the point that Joe Cool had enough of being lost by following us all day, Joe Cool opted to continue on and find his own way to Shasta. Can’t blame em! We had been driving in circles all day….well more like figure 8’s.
Every time we stopped there was always someone asking us where we were headed. It was no different at the Sonic Burger we pulled into. Guess we had the explorer look about us. After the meal we had lacking rave reviews, we once again set sail for Mt Shasta City.
A couple of passes over the rumble strips and we knew we needed a driver change, I replaced Tom at the wheel and he quickly fell asleep. It was 11:15pm when we finally pulled into the Alpine Lodge, our home for the next 2 nights in Mt. Shasta City. We had been on the road for more than 18 hours and were beat up from the feet up! We understand most of the teams made it in to Shasta before sundown. We were lost and we were last.
Yup! We were “Lasta Shasta”

Fri Feb 13, 2009 8:23 pm

Nice story. I know I'd love to do the Shasta Snow Trip, except I can't because it won't include bays. :x

Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:37 pm

Hell of a good thread!

...and for the visual learners: http://www.shastasnowtrip.com/shastasnowtrip/shasta2008/AlmostUnabridgedSST2008Album/index.html

There are 500 pics to peruse off the link provided by the author.
Thanks for posting the narrative BDR!

"A journey is like marriage. The certain way to be wrong is to think you control it."
John Steinbeck

Mon Feb 16, 2009 7:18 pm

busfreak_71 wrote: Nice story. I know I'd love to do the Shasta Snow Trip, except I can't because it won't include bays. :x

X2

Tue Feb 17, 2009 1:20 am

richie71' wrote: busfreak_71 wrote: Nice story. I know I'd love to do the Shasta Snow Trip, except I can't because it won't include bays. :x

X2

That's easily solved... buy split window buses...

Tue Feb 17, 2009 2:14 am

lol :lol:

Tue Feb 17, 2009 11:05 am

richie71' wrote: busfreak_71 wrote: Nice story. I know I'd love to do the Shasta Snow Trip, except I can't because it won't include bays. :x

X2

Start your own trip then. You could call it the Wendy Whiner-A-Thon.

Tue Feb 17, 2009 6:11 pm

busfreak_71 wrote: Nice story. I know I'd love to do the Shasta Snow Trip, except I can't because it won't include bays. :x

I thought that was what the Arctic Circle trip was for.

:P

Tue Feb 17, 2009 6:19 pm

](*,) That's not the point.

Tue Feb 17, 2009 7:28 pm

busfreak_71 wrote: ](*,) That's not the point.

Seriously though, that's where the Arctic Circle thing came from:

Quote: Thought I would drag this outta the Shasta thread and give it a kick start.

Do you want to complain about not being allowed to go to OCTO too?

Wed Feb 18, 2009 3:05 pm

just saying that it would be a sweeet little adventure