Beginning Of The Adventure

“Hold onto your butts!” Everyone knows where that famous quote comes from, and it’s the movie that got me hooked on JEEPS!  My story may not be as exciting or intense as others, and that’s ok because we all have the same passion one way or another, for our wheels to hit that dirt!

Just to cover a bit of my background, I am the only girl out of four kids, also technically the middle child since I have twin younger brothers. We have always been a family that learned how to drive a 3 wheeler before a car, grew patience through fishing, responsibility through camping, and most importantly how to have a blast! Growing up in the city, I was very limited to people interested in the same outdoorsy things as myself, but I’ve been extremely fortunate to have such open friends, who I’ve had the pleasure of either teaching or learning new things with. It also helps having my dad close by when something breaks! For the holidays as kids, mom would always sit my brothers and I at the kitchen table with a pen and paper to come up with our Christmas list. Of course, number one was always the biggest “1.) JEEEEEEEP”. One Christmas, that wish actually came true when my dad, I mean Santa, got me this awesome yellow 2 door RC Jeep, and basically put it in my head that, I have to have a real one someday!

I’m currently 28 years young, and like most, spent most of my time partying it up, traveling to new places, and overall having a good time with little responsibilities. The opportunity came forth, and presented itself that I would finally be the owner of a 2005 2 door Jeep Wrangler TJ. Little did I know, it was going to be like taking care of an actual baby! Good ol Lucy was in the shop longer than I had her in my driveway, and because of that learning experience, I had to pick one fun life over the other. Can you tell I don’t regret it at all? Unfortunately, that era did come to an end after about 9 months in, when she was stolen while I was on vacation in San Diego. That does lead me to my 2007 4 door Jeep Wrangler X, Lucy Lou!

At this point, I never thought I would ever own a Jeep, let alone two so early in life. Lucy Lou was definitely a dream come true, one previous owner, 72k miles, and pages full of maintenance reports, I felt like I hit the jackpot! To be honest, she really was my unicorn, since I never had any issues for the 5 years I had her. This was finally the vehicle of my dreams, and might I add, I looked pretty dang cool pulling into the mall parking lot! These vehicles are more than just something to get me from point A to point B, they became a part of me, and how I want to live my life. They put me in the mindset of wanting to be better, and to never stop making and achieving my goals. Which, one of my goals was to finish paying off Lucy Lou (only had $2,500 left) and start saving up to pimp my ride!

We are pretty much caught up to the now.  January 10th, 2019 I was in a head on collision with a drunk driver which resulted in the death of ol Lucy Lou. I know, I’m super dramatic! But after waking up to the horrible events that had just occurred, all I cared about was the safety of my best friend, the other people in the other vehicle, and my Jeep! Thankfully, no one was seriously injured, and I am still going to Physical Therapy 1 to 2 times a week, but I’m a tough cookie, and push through the pain.

Here comes the fun part where I get to talk about my Mojito 2018 Jeep Wrangler JLU! From day 1, owning this puppy has been a blast, and brought me so many opportunities in the Jeep community. I decided to take the plunge, and share my journey with Instagram under the handle of Bowzer.JL (Yes, I’m switching the name up finally). I wanted to put myself out there so I can start becoming more involved within the Jeep community, and also start learning more about the vehicle I love so dearly. I feel like everything is happening so fast with meeting people from all backgrounds and walks of life, but with the same love for those 4 wheels.

Stepping out of my comfort zone, and showing up to my first Ladies Offroad Network meetup has to be one of the best decisions thus far. By the end of that night, I already had a date with Cheryl Hentz to take myself, and Bowzer out for our first time. If that wasn’t cool enough, the very next day, had the trail training class with the amazing Charlene Bower, so my status went from Noob to Noobish. I can’t wait for more adventures to come my way, and I hope many of you come along with me! Cheers.