by Matt Konkle
Managing Editor
We departed West Chester, Pennsylvania on a cloud-filled Wednesday March morning, full of ideas and plans for the 58th Easter Jeep Safari in far off Moab, Utah.
Like 2,200 miles and 35-plus hours far off.
Along with us for the ride this year is our custom-built two-door JTe truck, as well as a pumpkin-hued JT Gladiator — both sporting plenty of products perfectly designed for your daily drive, or off-road adventures.
And our plans for EJS week include gathering as much photography as possible of these products to show just how well they perform in different trail conditions, as well as around town and wherever else the road will lead during the week.
Additionally, we’re going to roll the JTe out into the desert west of Moab Tuesday to visit our friends at Jeep and see all their new 2024 concept vehicles, while also hauling it out to a Tread Lightly! cleanup event later during EJS week.
So, the road from West Chester to Moab can take many different directions. Kind of like EJS week itself. Ours, this time, will hopefully lead down much of I-70, catching it just shy of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and driving it all the way into Utah, where we’ll look to exit at US-191 north of Moab.
For day one, we head into West Virginia for a quick pass by Wheeling, and then to Ohio for a drive around Columbus and Dayton.
Video Manager and YouTube personality Rob Jarrell handles most of the daytime driving with our truck and 36-foot trailer, while Studio Photography Manager Doug Lockard fills in when needed.
Lockard is actually behind the wheel when we pass from Ohio into eastern Indiana when the buttery smooth highway suddenly changes into a bumpy, jolting ride that gives any Moab trail a run for its money.
Anyone who has traversed this patch of I-70 knows just what we are saying. It is a bone-twisting, teeth-clattering stretch of pavement where pretty much anything that isn’t bolted down will make its way all around the vehicle’s interior.
Yet Doug, in his first time at the wheel when hauling a trailer, handled the terrain pretty much as good as could be expected.
Still, we spent much of the next hour cleaning up road snack debris from all over the cabin.
Shortly after, we decided to take a break from the road clatter and found ourselves at a Little Caesars for some pizza, Crazy Bread and Crazy Puffs.
Not that it is a top-quality dinner item, but it gets the job done when you are on the road. And it beats the rote vehicle snack bag items of trail mix, Twizzlers, granola bars, M&Ms and the like.
As our first night progressed, we rolled through Indianapolis and Terre Haute before heading southwest past St. Louis and then through Columbia, Missouri, towards Kansas City.
Our travel goal is to hit Denver by late Thursday afternoon, take a break, spend the night, and then head out Friday morning through the I-70 pass to Grand Junction, Colorado, into Utah and, finally, Moab.
As Thursday morning dawns, we are right on schedule. A bit of a traffic jam in Kansas City is avoided with a quick stop at McDonalds for coffee and some eats, but we are on the road again shortly.
So, we are carrying two Jeeps with us this year for EJS. Most of you already know our JTE two-door truck. It’s been a pretty popular thing over the past few years. We are also bringing a JT Gladiator complete with QRC bumpers to show off, as well as new Carnivore auxiliary lighting that will easily mount to your vehicle — just like it did with our Gladiator.
What you don’t know is we’ve tweaked the JTe a bit and added white retro CJ wheels, complete with gold-painted hubs. The wheels do come in black or white with either black or chrome center caps. But, if you have some imagination, you can customize those hubs to whatever color you want. Just like we did.
We’ve also added new Stealth auxiliary lighting on our JTe, as well as Carnivore front and rear bumpers and Brute Strength side steps.
Our Gladiator even has gunmetal Recon wheels wrapped with Nitto Recon Grappler tires, ensuring it can work its way through whatever conditions we encounter during EJS week.
With all products secured and everything working as it should, we arrive in Denver just after rush hour Thursday night. About 30 hours since we left West Chester. We pulled our truck and trailer into a nice, wide-open spot just near the hotel on the western side of Denver and couldn't wait for a room key, hot shower and just something not involved with a truck.
Those of you who've done long-haul trips know of what we speak.
Anyway, EJS week itself is a blur of activity. From trail rides with friends and automotive industry groups to gazing at amazing scenery inside Arches and Canyonlands National Parks to visiting with friends who we haven’t seen for a while.
Our plan, once we reach Moab is to present as much as we can about the whole EJS experience.
So, hang out with us for the next seven-plus days as we present Moab as best we can. And who knows, hopefully it inspires you to take a trip out west to visit ‘Mother Nature’s Off-Road Playground.
As for us, well, we have some driving to do.
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