Flatlanders Jeep Club
Hard Luck Trophy

Below is a summary of the meetings I've been to:

• 14 Sep 97: Brian "Red Rocker" Baker broke a front driveshaft U-joint climbing a steep hill. He fixed it where he sat (half way up the hill) and then took the easy route out of the ORV area.

• 12 Oct 97: It poured rain from 10pm Saturday til 4pm Sunday, so the ORV area was soup. Surprisingly, there was no breakage and very few stucks. Jim Arp took the trophy for some minor slippage.

• 9 Nov 97: I didn't make it to this meeting, but Nick Falcetto reports that everyone seemed to want the Hard Luck Trophy that day. The first contestant's parking break wouldn't even let him leave the parking lot at Briggs. Jim Arp nearly flipped over backwards & ended up twisting his rear driveshaft and bending a rim. Leon Smith's CJ sent the fan into the radiator. Jim Arp and Leon Smith tied as trophy recipients.

• 14 Dec 97: It had snowed quite a bit the week before, and then temps were in the 40's all weekend, which meant most of the surface was mud and wet snow. Nick Falcetto lost traction on a steep hill and had to be winched to the top by John Miller.

• 11 Jan 98: After a couple weeks of very light snow and 20 degree temperatures, the ORV area was one great big ice slick. For the second straight month, nobody broke anything, and the Hard Luck Trophy was awarded to someone who succumbed to the strap. On the first big hill, both Ben "Obi-Wan" Hollingsworth and Ernie Scheir made it up all but the last 10 feet and had to be yanked the rest of the way.

• 8 Feb 98: For the first time since September, we finally had a gorgeous, sunny day for our club outing. We had such a big turnout that we split the group in two for the trail riding. Nick Falcetto had to be yanked up the newly-named Falcetto Lane, but Brian "Red Rocker" Baker stole the trophy by snapping his drag link (again).

• 22 Mar 98: The 8 Mar meeting got snowed out, so the official club meeting was rescheduled for the 22nd. Nick Falcetto reported lots of mud and an entertaining afternoon. Newcomer Dave Givens took home the trophy for a non-working front differential and the harvesting of a dead tree out of season.

• 2 May 98: The May club meeting was moved to coincide with the 1st annual Flatlanders 4x4 Fest (and to avoid Mothers' Day). Jim Arp broke an axle stub shaft at the event (on Arp Hill, appropriately), but thanks to some charismatic campaigning on Jim's part, the trophy went to club president Doug Knox for his little mishap while preparing for the 4x4 Fest the week before.

• 21 June 98: The June club meeting was moved to coincide with Father's Day. Leon Smith had trouble with his distributor cap, which earned him the trophy for the month.

• 12 Jul 98: The July trail ride saw very high water levels at the reservoir and nearby creeks, but otherwise reasonably dry ground and good traction. Bob Belbeck needed a slight application of the strap to get over one ledge, but Stacy Edwards took home the trophy thanks to a faulty fuel filter and problems with his clip-less leaf springs.

• 29 Aug 98: Most people try to avoid the Hard Luck Trophy, but not Bill Bears. Apparently, he figured if he brought two Jeeps to the August meeting at Waterville, his chances would be better. It seems his Scrambler's carb had trouble, and the CJ-7's was dead. Both vehicles had to be towed in on Saturday.

• 1998: Leon Smith became the permanent owner of the 1998 Hard Luck Trophy.

• 10 Jan 99: In an unusual stroke of luck, nobody did anything to deserve the Hard Luck Trophy this month.

• 14 Feb 99: Aaron Kilgariff managed to take home the trophy on the maiden voyage of his CJ-5 thanks to several driveshaft problems. He managed to destroy the rear pinion yoke U-bolts on the ledges behind Knox Landing, and then bent his front driveshaft slightly. He managed to make it out of the park in front wheel drive.

• 1 May 99: Ben "Obi-Wan" Hollingsworth took his new SOA lift on its maiden voyage and found that tack welding spring perches to the axle wasn't sufficient to withstand the stress of climbing ledges. His on-board welder saved the day, and he was able to drive home under his own power.

• 20 Jun 99: Numerous minor problems plagued the annual Father's Day outing. Several sustained minor body damage. Jim Davis bent a spring on a hidden stump. Tom Corbett blew a bead and bent a rim. On his first outing as a club member, Michael Baugh ("The Grim Jeeper") took home the trophy by blowing a bead and slashing a tire open while climbing Driveshaft. We secured his CJ-5 with tow straps and swapped tires half way up the hill, allowing him to drive out on all fours.

• 8 Aug 99: Bob Butcher got the trophy for a little ecology experiment. That is, "Let Bill pull me and I will save on gas and not release harmful emissions into the air."

• 12 Sep 99: Tom Corbett loaded up his Willys to head to the meeting. When it started raining, he changed his mind and swapped his good tires onto the CJ-7 instead. One wheel wasn't seated quite right when he tightened the lug nuts, so four of the lug studs worked their way back into the hub while the fourth one sheared off.

• 10 Oct 99: Ken Waters had some problems with the electrical system on his CJ-8 that appeared to be caused by a faulty electronic control module. He managed to get things sorted out in time for the next month's meeting.