Winter 2018

This past January was slightly bittersweet for many of us in the in the outdoor industry. Marred by the State’s stance on the shrinking of Bear’s Ears National Monument, and the broader approach toward public land, Outdoor Retailer announced last February that it would be ending its contract with Utah’s Salt Palace Convention Center and moving the twice-yearly outdoor recreation tradeshow out of the state.

In June of 1999, just days after my 19th birthday, I was stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, and was about to meet the future Mrs. Clark. However, this is not that kind of a love story, but it is a love story all the same.  My would-be wife, Heather, was driving a 1999 2WD regular cab Toyota Tacoma. I drove a 1978 Jeep CJ5 with a 304 V8 and 3- speed transmission... not exactly a road trip vehicle. On our second date, Heather took me 3-hours away to Dallas. That trip would be the first of many trips we would take in that little Tacoma. By the time Heather became Mrs. Clark in October of 2000, the little truck had over 80,000 miles. This little truck had taken us so many places, and I became attached.

Whether you’re new to Toyota off road vehicles or an experienced explorer, there’s no doubt that you do at least some of your own maintenance. While most maintenance intervals include basic fluid changes, lubrication, and inspections, certain milestones require a bit of extra effort.

There's nothing better than your boss telling you that you've got too much time saved up, and you need to take a vacation. That's exactly what happened with me. Without a second thought, my wife, Heather, and I packed up that night and set out at exactly midnight on what ended up being a 38-day expedition through the most rural and unforgiving parts of the USA. This sounds easy enough, but we were loaded down with supplies not only for ourselves, but our two girls Emma and Lacy, and 3 Greyhound dogs wit appetites worthy of feeding a military platoon.