Outlaw Offroad
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“The Revenge of the Raptor”
Day One (Saturday July 23rd)
The day began with a 4:30 wake up call for the staff and drivers who were going to follow us from the Outlaw Offroad Headquarters in Santa Ana, CA to Barstow, CA for the morning drivers meeting. The Revenge of the Raptor run totaled 9 raptors. The drivers were from Tennessee, Arizona, Nevada, and California. *The driving skills ranged from “level 2 beginners” to experienced off road racers. Upon arrival, we set up for driver’s registration and morning drivers meeting. The entire group made quick work of the registration process and were soon off to challenge their skills on the skills training course. This course was a closed, marked course that I had designed a week before during the pre-run. The purpose behind the course is to get all the drivers comfortable with driving off road and their Ford SVT Raptors. There are a variety of planned courses to help improve and develop the skills that would be needed for the main run on the trail. Course 1 was a timed obstacle course that consisted of high speed turns, corner drifting, and a slalom section. This allowed the drivers to feel and test the characteristics of their Ford Raptors. The drivers had two practice laps to gain confidence and then two laps that were timed. Chad B. from Vegas took the fastest time on the obstacle course. Course two was a timed slalom course that was down and back with a 180 degree u-turn. Alex S. took this event with an impressive time. After we wrapped up the skills course, we headed out to run the trail to Vegas. All participants maintained a good distance between one another and with radios working perfectly, communication was spot on. The Lowrance GPS units that each driver used kept everyone on track. That way there were no missed turns and drivers steered away from “hazard” sections that were noted during the pre-run. The run made awesome time even beating the MXT "Godzilla" to the first check point.
At this check point, we restocked on Monsters and headed off to the military base to check out some of the troops training facilities. This is one of the major highlights of the run! The “mini cities” at the base are set up identical to what the troops will encounter overseas. Our whole group had a chance to take some photos and take in the scenery.
Back on the trail to Primm, the whole group would get a chance to take in some of the terrain they would encounter on day 2. *We did a total of about 145 miles off road for the day excluding the skills course. We drove for a total of 8 hours off road!
Once we were back on the pavement at Primm, we all convoyed to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV. Luckily, we made it with just enough time to rest up and enjoy a nice cold beverage. Dinner reservations were made for 8pm at PF Chang’s. All the drivers had dinner and engaged in conversation about the day’s events. After dinner, three awards were handed out to the drivers: Chad B. took the “Top Raptor” award for bringing home the best time at the skills course. Mark W. took the “Closest Call” award due to a poorly installed bed cover almost coming off. Rick R. won the “Most Challenged” award with his unique style of driving and showed the rest of us how to do multiple donuts on the skills course! Let’s not forget to mention our raffle awards given out at dinner. Our sponsors (Oakley, General Tires, Method Race Wheels, 5 Star Tuning, Volant Air Intakes & Peligroso Tequila) donated some incredible gifts for you or your Raptor.
Day Two (Sunday July 24th)
As previously stated, day two was going to be a far more advanced course home. This would consist of high speed driving with multiple obstacles in the course (which were all marked in the GPS units). We were two Raptors short on day two due to one driver having prior obligations and the other Raptor losing its power steering pump the day before. Around 1 pm we pulled out of the Hard Rock like a pack of hungry wolves and screamed down the strip to the dirt trail. We had a quick meeting about paying attention to the cautions marked on the GPS units and communication on the radios. Then we were off, blazing downhill on one of my favorite courses on the run. We ran late into the afternoon and into the night. This gave the drivers a good opportunity to turn on their HID lights and see what nighttime Raptor runs will be like. The remaining drivers navigated the trail flawlessly. We picked up the pace and enjoyed what the Ford SVT Raptor was designed for: Making grown men giggle like little kids. The types of terrain the California desert offers is very diverse. It offers wide open sand washes, dry lake beds, slow rock crawling, fast banking trail courses and endless trails that only most could dream of that are out of state. This is what makes the Outlaw Raptor Runs so unique. Raptor owners are able to drive hundreds and hundreds of miles off road and end up in a destination point like Las Vegas enjoying the comradery of fellow Raptor enthusiasts. It's just one of those memories that lasts a lifetime.
So, with the success of the second trip and not a bent frame in site, the Outlaw Raptor Run was a true show of how offroading should be done! We have taken our time and done all the logistics on making this a fun and safe adventure. There are 3 main reasons why the second Outlaw Raptor Run was such a success: 1) The use of GPS units so the drivers could navigate and see the upcoming cautions. 2) Radios for communication (although we had CB radios on the first run, the VHF radios worked flawlessly). 3) Driving ability and driving pace. When driver’s were asked on the registration form what their driving ability was, people were realistic and drove at their own pace. This is not a race, this is a point to point group adventure that is pre planned and put together for one reason: To bring Raptor owners together in an off road environment!
We are currently in the planning stages for the August Run and so far have decided on a night run. The course will be different from the last 2 run’s. The run will start in Barstow at 12:00am and we’ll drive the south side of the 15 fwy and head in to Laughlin form their we’ll go north in to Vegas. Trail running time in to Vegas will be about 8 hours. Just in time for some morning breakfast and then lounge by the pool and share stories of the nights run. The dinner and awards will still be on Saturday night. We’ll depart Las Vegas at 12:00 Pm and drive the North course home. Driving ability for this run is open to beginners and advance driving styles... Space will be limited so if you are interested in unleashing your raptor log on to Raptor Run Registration and fill out the application. I look forward to seeing you on the trail.
To view more pictures of this run click here.
2nd Monster Energy Outlaw Raptor Run Image Gallery
Day One (Saturday July 23rd)
The day began with a 4:30 wake up call for the staff and drivers who were going to follow us from the Outlaw Offroad Headquarters in Santa Ana, CA to Barstow, CA for the morning drivers meeting. The Revenge of the Raptor run totaled 9 raptors. The drivers were from Tennessee, Arizona, Nevada, and California. *The driving skills ranged from “level 2 beginners” to experienced off road racers. Upon arrival, we set up for driver’s registration and morning drivers meeting. The entire group made quick work of the registration process and were soon off to challenge their skills on the skills training course. This course was a closed, marked course that I had designed a week before during the pre-run. The purpose behind the course is to get all the drivers comfortable with driving off road and their Ford SVT Raptors. There are a variety of planned courses to help improve and develop the skills that would be needed for the main run on the trail. Course 1 was a timed obstacle course that consisted of high speed turns, corner drifting, and a slalom section. This allowed the drivers to feel and test the characteristics of their Ford Raptors. The drivers had two practice laps to gain confidence and then two laps that were timed. Chad B. from Vegas took the fastest time on the obstacle course. Course two was a timed slalom course that was down and back with a 180 degree u-turn. Alex S. took this event with an impressive time. After we wrapped up the skills course, we headed out to run the trail to Vegas. All participants maintained a good distance between one another and with radios working perfectly, communication was spot on. The Lowrance GPS units that each driver used kept everyone on track. That way there were no missed turns and drivers steered away from “hazard” sections that were noted during the pre-run. The run made awesome time even beating the MXT "Godzilla" to the first check point.
At this check point, we restocked on Monsters and headed off to the military base to check out some of the troops training facilities. This is one of the major highlights of the run! The “mini cities” at the base are set up identical to what the troops will encounter overseas. Our whole group had a chance to take some photos and take in the scenery.
Back on the trail to Primm, the whole group would get a chance to take in some of the terrain they would encounter on day 2. *We did a total of about 145 miles off road for the day excluding the skills course. We drove for a total of 8 hours off road!
Once we were back on the pavement at Primm, we all convoyed to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV. Luckily, we made it with just enough time to rest up and enjoy a nice cold beverage. Dinner reservations were made for 8pm at PF Chang’s. All the drivers had dinner and engaged in conversation about the day’s events. After dinner, three awards were handed out to the drivers: Chad B. took the “Top Raptor” award for bringing home the best time at the skills course. Mark W. took the “Closest Call” award due to a poorly installed bed cover almost coming off. Rick R. won the “Most Challenged” award with his unique style of driving and showed the rest of us how to do multiple donuts on the skills course! Let’s not forget to mention our raffle awards given out at dinner. Our sponsors (Oakley, General Tires, Method Race Wheels, 5 Star Tuning, Volant Air Intakes & Peligroso Tequila) donated some incredible gifts for you or your Raptor.
Day Two (Sunday July 24th)
As previously stated, day two was going to be a far more advanced course home. This would consist of high speed driving with multiple obstacles in the course (which were all marked in the GPS units). We were two Raptors short on day two due to one driver having prior obligations and the other Raptor losing its power steering pump the day before. Around 1 pm we pulled out of the Hard Rock like a pack of hungry wolves and screamed down the strip to the dirt trail. We had a quick meeting about paying attention to the cautions marked on the GPS units and communication on the radios. Then we were off, blazing downhill on one of my favorite courses on the run. We ran late into the afternoon and into the night. This gave the drivers a good opportunity to turn on their HID lights and see what nighttime Raptor runs will be like. The remaining drivers navigated the trail flawlessly. We picked up the pace and enjoyed what the Ford SVT Raptor was designed for: Making grown men giggle like little kids. The types of terrain the California desert offers is very diverse. It offers wide open sand washes, dry lake beds, slow rock crawling, fast banking trail courses and endless trails that only most could dream of that are out of state. This is what makes the Outlaw Raptor Runs so unique. Raptor owners are able to drive hundreds and hundreds of miles off road and end up in a destination point like Las Vegas enjoying the comradery of fellow Raptor enthusiasts. It's just one of those memories that lasts a lifetime.
So, with the success of the second trip and not a bent frame in site, the Outlaw Raptor Run was a true show of how offroading should be done! We have taken our time and done all the logistics on making this a fun and safe adventure. There are 3 main reasons why the second Outlaw Raptor Run was such a success: 1) The use of GPS units so the drivers could navigate and see the upcoming cautions. 2) Radios for communication (although we had CB radios on the first run, the VHF radios worked flawlessly). 3) Driving ability and driving pace. When driver’s were asked on the registration form what their driving ability was, people were realistic and drove at their own pace. This is not a race, this is a point to point group adventure that is pre planned and put together for one reason: To bring Raptor owners together in an off road environment!
We are currently in the planning stages for the August Run and so far have decided on a night run. The course will be different from the last 2 run’s. The run will start in Barstow at 12:00am and we’ll drive the south side of the 15 fwy and head in to Laughlin form their we’ll go north in to Vegas. Trail running time in to Vegas will be about 8 hours. Just in time for some morning breakfast and then lounge by the pool and share stories of the nights run. The dinner and awards will still be on Saturday night. We’ll depart Las Vegas at 12:00 Pm and drive the North course home. Driving ability for this run is open to beginners and advance driving styles... Space will be limited so if you are interested in unleashing your raptor log on to Raptor Run Registration and fill out the application. I look forward to seeing you on the trail.
To view more pictures of this run click here.
2nd Monster Energy Outlaw Raptor Run Image Gallery
