Charlene talks about her wheeling adventures across Arizona with the AZ Undertakers.
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I get a lot of folks asking where I actually live. The funny part is, I had been on the road for so many years, that I really didn’t have a home for a while. That was until one day when my trailer fell apart...literally...just outside of Phoenix. I had recently met the LetzRoll Offroad group that happened to live out in East Mesa and they were welcoming to my needs and had a place to park the trailer and get it fixed. Well, after a very entertaining story of why it took 3 weeks, but really only 15 minutes to fix my trailer, I hooked up and headed out on another 6 week loop. Ask me about that story when you see me...it’s much more entertaining in person!
These loops were normal for me, but this one was different. I had caught the Arizona bug. I liked it! Of course it was during the spring when the weather isn’t 120 degrees out, but it was going to be where I landed. Sure enough, during that trip I made the decision and my final stop was back in East Mesa. Now it’s my home. Over the course of the last almost 4 years of living here, I have loved it and the wheeling!
Thanks to Matt and the Arizona Undertakers I have been able to explore some of the most hardcore wheeling in the US. After a year wheeling with the Undertakers (and Matt letting me drive his buggy on occasion), I took on a series of the hardest trails and was vouched into the Arizona Undertakers. So far I am only girl that has been accepted into this very hardcore group of wheelers, which I don’t take this title lightly by any means. I earned it and I work hard everytime we go out to prove my worth to keep it.
The trails here are like no other. The rocks differ from trail to trail, and sometimes from turn to turn. Some rocks have exceptional grip, and others are so smooth that you can hardly walk on them without slipping. Some of the trails are washes, and others climb cuts in the mountains. The trails are aggressive, and waterfalls are the obstacle of choice. If you aren’t ready to use your winch or you don’t have tires that can crawl on just their sidewalls then this isn’t for you.
I have felt more comfortable at the end of a WARN Winch line more in the last couple years than ever before. Who knew it could be so comforting. I’m not joking about the tires either, I think we crawl on the sidewall as much as on the bottoms. It is crazy what a little nudge of the steering wheel can do to the grip of a tire, or how having the Raceline Beadlock wheels give you the reassurance that they aren’t going to debead or roll over when you need them the most, hanging on the side of a wall.
I’m sure most of you have heard my Backdoor Challenge story, well none of that would have been possible if I didn’t get my feet wet on these Arizona rocks. I have to go back to thanking Matt for building a buggy that just works as everyone says and allowing me the opportunity to get behind the wheel and own some of these trails! I love it!
