Heather Seifert – Ladies Offroad Challenge Featured Entry

Heather Seifert
Burnsville, MN

"Heather is a single mom who purchased her 2013 Wrangler Rubicon almost 3 years ago, which has forever changed her life. She has been able to find a new hobby that she can involve her son in and feels like they have both thrived in the past year. Her and her son have installed multiple upgrades to ‘Sasha’ and have attended a list of fun events and wheeling locations. Her toughest challenge was the Navy, but through it all she learned that you are only as strong as your mind lets you be, most challenges you succeed or fail based on your own attitude. She is currently the Commanding Officer for a local Navy based youth program - Sea Cadets."

View Entry Image

Tell us about yourself:

First and foremost, I am a single mom.  I purchased my 2013 Wrangler Rubicon almost 3 years ago and it has forever changed my life. I like listening to music and going to concerts and movies.  I love riding with my top down and stereo blasting!  I am extremely social and love to take advantage of every opportunity to hang out with existing friends or meet new ones.  Since I have started, I have joined Ladies Rock Off-Road Club I found the lost love of my life is offroading who knew!  I have been able to find a new hobby that is also something I can involve my son in.  I feel like we have both thrived in the past year and I have the offroading community for that.  I am beyond excited to be heading to Jeep Beach Week in FL in T-Minus 12 days!!  I look forward to the first time I can go to Moab.  Last but not least, I love to bake and make the most amazing chocolate cookies.  I am also the Commanding Officer for a local Navy based youth program - Sea Cadets.

How long have you been offroading? 

Almost exactly 1 year.

How did you get into offroading?

I was having a mid life crisis a couple summers ago and decided to buy the vehicle I always wanted.  Sasha was stock until last summer when on a whim my friend invited me to an Ladies Rock Off-Road Club meet-n-greet and as they say, the rest is history.

Tell us about your vehicle:

Sasha is a 2013 Wrangler Rubicon.

Upgrades: Rough Country Lift, 35' tires, EAG front bumper, Smittybilt XRC Gen 2 rear bumper with tire carrier, "The Sergeant" grill, Poison Spyder front and rear diff covers, Poison Spyder Brawler Rockers , Poison Spyder Inner Fenders.  There might be more I missed.

What has been your favorite offroad experience?

Winter Wheeling in Dresser, WI.  All the videos I had seen showed Winter Wheeling as this endless day of sliding and getting winched out.  I didn't want to spend my day like that, but Ladies Rock Off-Road Club did a girls run that day and Angela rode with me while I led. It ended up being the exact opposite of sliding around all day, I didn't get stuck once and smiled all day long!!!

What was your most exciting offroad achievement?

On my first run my Jeep was still stock. I had a couple incidents: 1 - involving me getting stuck, 2 - I hit a stump and thought I had just taken out my front diff.

One of the guys that was helping lead was getting me up this really steep hill, and my Jeep started wheel hopping.  I knew what that feeling was and didn't get freaked out, but it still took a few tries to make it up.

Fast forward to later on in the year after I lifted and got larger tires for Sasha.  We went back to the same trail and I got up that hill with little to no effort.  Now when I look at the hill it seems small, but at the time it was my Everest.  Being able to go back and concur that trail was my best moment so far.

What excites you about offroading?

What I have found I love the most is the people!  I have only known most of these people for less than a year, but yet I feel like I have known them forever!!!  I completely trust them on the trails and therefore I can relax and just enjoy the ride.

What do you think is the most challenging aspect of offroading?

Staying out of your head!!!  I don't have a lot of money and my Jeep is my daily driver.  I am always hyper sensitive to the fact that if I break something, I have to get it home and find a way to fix it.  I found out early on that if I am stressed and full of anxiety I am going to make a mistake because I'm not concentrating on the right things.  I always keep in the back of my head that I need to be careful, and I have worked really hard at not trying to let it consume me.

Which aspect of offroading do you think is the most fun?

Again, the community.  I am such a social person that even the meet-n-greets are so much fun! 

This coming week, I am going to Jeep Beach Week.  I can't wait to just hang out and talk to people, hear their stories and definitely meet people I have been talking to on Facebook for almost a year.

What does prepping for an adventure look like in your world?

Since I don't trailer my vehicle to events, I go through a pre-wheeling checklist Zeus Offroad made for the ladies of Ladies Rock Off-Road Club.  I admit, I am not the best at doing all of them but I do as much as I can.  I also have a wheeling bag I throw in and last but not least, I find out where the caravan is going to be.

What is on your offroading bucket list?

Of course Moab, Southern Missouri Off Road Ranch, Colorado too many peaks to list, Rausch Creek Off-Road Park in PA, and the Rubicon Trail.

Tell us about who you go offroading with:

The amazing women of Ladies Rock Off-Road Club.  I am 100% serious when I say, that without that group I would not be wheeling today.  I didn't have a lot of positive male role models growing up.  My most recent relationship was with an extreme narcissist, so I don't have men that I can go to.  When I first started asking question, I was talked to like I was an idiot and I shut down.

Once I found this group it was like the long lost family I never knew I had.  The support and non-judgment is amazing!  From the group: Kris Bowe, Angela Hinkley, Kelly Johnson, Lori Dunford, Jessica Denn, Minh Doan, Brian Anderson, Tim Schultze, Mike Bowe, Ian Campbell.. the list goes on

What is a piece of advice you have been given that you instill in your offroading adventures?

Your Jeep, Your Build and Be Awesome!!

Do you have anything else you would like to add?

I would like to thank Ladies Offroad Network for working to "train" more women on wheeling.  The need for a place that newbies like myself can go and feel comfortable and not judged is real.  Not everyone has a supportive and/or knowledgeable husband or boyfriend they can go to.  So thank you for that.

Click here to see all the 2018 Ladies Offroad Challenge Entries.