I always have fun going to Glamis and other sand spots, but the last couple of years the sand is sort of like “Been There Done That” for me and my family. Don’t get me wrong, the sand is still my home away from home. But lately I have been checking out different web sites and forums to see what events and/or riding areas other riders are passionate about. I came across such an event on the RV.NET Toy Hauler Forum: the 2nd Annual So. Cal. Rally. The Rally was held Veterans weekend, November 11-13, 2005. I knew this rally was going to be good — when you get over 15,000 views on one subject with almost 700 replies from people talking about how excited they were, you’re guaranteed to have some fun.
I was right. WOW, what a great time we had at the 2nd Annual So Cal Rally!!! We went to Dove Springs OHV Park in California which is just north of Mohave. I would like to start by thanking Eric and Wendy Durkee from Lancaster for hosting and organizing the event this year. I know they had help from others, so I take off my helmet to everyone that participated with this rally.
Eric went out on Wednesday to set up camp for everyone; the spot he selected was a little over a mile off of highway 14. Most of the 40+ families showed up on Thursday and Friday in high spirits. The entry road into Dove Springs was a little rough with couple of dips, but as long as you went slowly it was no big deal. The campsite was wide open and spacious, hard pack which was pretty flat with room for everybody and not real hard to get the rigs level. The riding was good for all levels of riders, with room on the trails for quads, buggies, and some technical single track for the two wheelers.
At that time my new toyhauler had not been built yet so we called Jason Poole with Rage’n Inc. and asked him if he could loan us a Toyhauler to check out. Much to my delight he got me a brand new 2400 SS (side sleeper) tag Toyhauler to use for the weekend. I checked out Rage’n trailers two years ago and they were nice then and now they are even better. The trailer we had was equipped with five beds, double electric queen beds in the back, a gaucho couch, dinette that converted, and the bed up front next to the bathroom. This trailer had 150 gallons of fresh water so we were able to take showers every day — a big plus. The Rage’n was very good looking with the smooth fiberglass sides and cool graphics. It pulled very nicely behind my truck even during some of the high winds we hit on the way in.
On Saturday morning Jason (a.k.a. forum name “jjtor” ) gave instruction to everyone for the poker run that he and some friends had set up on Friday night. The poker run was a big hit and it covered around 30 miles with terrain that buggies, quads and motorcycles could all participate in. With only a couple of mishaps, a flat tire on a buggy and one person running out of gas, the 37 poker hands all made it back. There were seven stops to pick up cards for the poker run and it turned into an all day event with everyone finishing at different times. Then Jason and his wife Jocelyn hosted the awards ceremonies which was a party in and of itself with a high card full house taking home the money.
On Saturday night Eric and Wendy hosted a raffle for things that were donated to the Rally from different sponsors including Poles and Holders, Nozzle Condoms, and of course ToyHauler Magazine with many others providing real cool stuff. If that wasn’t enough for one day the best part was yet to happen, POT LUCK DINNER. I have been to a lot of pot lucks but this one was special. All the food had its chefs special little touch and everything I sampled was awesome. Thanks to all the cooks, and to all the campers who supplied those special drinks.
After riding all day Sunday, we packed up the Rage’n Toyhauler for the ride home. On the way home Vickie and I talked about how much fun it is to go to these types of events. You get to meet a whole bunch of new people; including putting faces to names of people you have been talking to on line. It is also exciting to see how other people enjoy their trailers and seeing the modifications they have done to their toyhaulers and tow vehicles.
There are already plans being made for the 3rd Annual So. Cal. Rally, decisions are being made on if the next one will be in Dove Springs again or at a new location. I will keep in touch with the people I met and make sure someone post all the information on the ToyHauler Magazine forum. If you have some kind of event going on, I would like to hear about it. So post it on the forum or e-mail me directly. I love to meet new people and try out new riding spots, streets, dirt, mud, sand, or whatever you have to offer. Remember be safe and have fun.
-THM
