TLCA : Toyota Trails, Nov/Dec 2007

TLCA : Toyota Trails, Nov/Dec 2007

Whether you happen to drive a Landcruiser or not, this travel article from the official magazine of the Toyota Land Cruiser Association will certainly give your motivation the kick in the pants it probably needs (I know this time of year mine certainly does).

4WD Photo of the hour

Here's a photo of my former rig (a '90 Isuzu Bighorn 2.8 TDi) after a day on trails in northern Japan, back in 2006.

Japan has some fantastic off-roading, from natural trails and logging roads to off-road parks and proving grounds, and there's no shortage of open space to wheel and explore. In the new year, I should finally get around to organizing my photos and putting together a "Wheeling Japan" feature article.

Australia's 4WDMonthly on YouTube.com

Last week, I had a brilliant idea: get together with a group of well-equipped, experienced four wheelers, grab my video camera, and head out to a local trail to start filming a new series of educational 4x4 videos, starting with "How to get Unstuck: Recovery Techniques".

Then, a couple days later, I came across exactly that on YouTube.

It turns out Australia's 4WDMonthly has already done this, uploading (at last count) more than 90 off-road 4x4 videos, some instructional, some informative, and some almost entertaining. The videos are a little dry and not particularly interesting, but they do cover some decent topics and showcase some very nice rigs, and are worth checking out.

I'm still going to proceed with my project, because, well, when it comes to off-road 4x4 content, more is always better.

Another 4WDTraveller video on Youtube.com

Here's part two in my (sadly continuing) video series "How to Get Stuck":

4WD Video from Venezuela

Now this looks like fun: modifying a stock Landcruiser 80-series and turning it into a 4WD rally monster that can tackle the roughest of Venezuelan trails. This is 4x4 action in the best sense, and the laughter that can be heard above the growl of the engine says it all.

Check it out.

4WDTraveller Video: How to Get Stuck

Just uploaded to YouTube.com, another 4WD action clip from Hokkaido, Japan. In this video, intrepid four wheeler, Prado pilot, and brother-in-law Kurto shows us exactly why it pays to look before you leap.

Weekend 4x4 Shenanigans

Over the weekend, I finally got out for a run with the Vancouver Island Cruisers in my old '60. We didn't get very far however, as the rain and snow had recently devastated most of the trails in the area, rendering them impassable to all but the most diff-locked of vehicles.

But what we did tackle was pretty rough, and a good test of my essentially stock 60-series Landcruiser. Overall, I was pleased with it's trail prowess, but with no locker or limited slip differential (which my previous 4x4 had) it was essentially 2WD and not overly impressive on the climbs.

Still, it was no slouch and the only time I got stuck was 100% driver error, sliding sideways into a deep trench and bending my front bumper mounts in the process.

I couldn't find my camera charger the night before and forgot to buy batteries of course, so I didn't get any good shots this time out. But fortunately one of the VI Cruisers posted a couple pics to the IH8MUD.com website.

Hilton's 4WDTraveller Videos

Now on Youtube (hastily assembled, too short, under-produced, but nonetheless there) is the first of what will be many 4X4 videos from Hilton's 4WD Traveller. This first video is a short clip from an off-road trip in Hokkaido, Japan. Not a lot of action, but something to get the ball rolling at least.



After this weekend, I should have a few more clips to share.

4x4 photos from Russia

Posting a couple pics from my trip to Russia's Sakhalin Island a couple summers ago. One of the highlights of that trip was the endless wheeling, as so many roads are unpaved, unmaintained, and uncharted. Another highlight was being led away to a guard tower by an angry young gun-carrying soldier, but that's another story.

Way, way back to BC Off Road

It's hard to imagine (for me at least) but it was almost 10 years ago that I started and launched BC Off Road, a pioneering off-road and 4WD website dedicated to "Discovering off road adventures in British Columbia and Beyond".







At it's peak, the site boasted 30,000 unique visitors a month, correspondents sending in off-road and 4x4 articles from countries around the world, a complete selection of windshield and bumper stickers, and multiple web design and content awards.

Anyway, thanks to the Internet Archive's 'Way Back Machine' I was able to search for and find several pages from the old BC Off Road. After I shut the site down, the vacuum was (somewhat) filled by BC4x4.com and the URL was taken over by someone else and never really used.

Anyway, if you remember BCOR, or want to look up some other long-defunct website, check out the Internet Archive. It's amazing what you can find.

What to Read

If ever there was a must read book for those who a) live in these times, b) use petroleum products, and c) find themselves often wondering just what the f*ck is going on in the world, this is it.



"It's the Crude, Dude" is a book that clearly explains some of the history behind the pursuit of oil in the Middle East by foreign powers, the suppression of democracy to ensure a steady flow, and the utter monopolistic practises of the major oil companies.

Don't cringe. If you pump fuel into a tank, you should know a little about where it comes from.

Although not directly related to 4WD travel and adventure, if you're going to drive a 4x4 to experience the world, it's probably a good idea to know as much about that world as you can.

If there's one criticism of this book, it's the blanket targeting of pickups and SUV's as such a big part of the problem while forgetting the role of mini-vans and sports cars and ignoring the many small-displacement SUVs out there.

But you can read that for yourself.

Recycle that oil

With the fluctuation in gas (and diesel) prices these days, it's often hard to understand why the price of a litre of engine oil hasn't changed much in 15 years, at least certainly not compared to gasoline prices.

Perhaps the recycle-ability of engine oil has something to do with it. Unlike gasoline and diesel which get combusted and consumed, engine oil can be reprocessed and reused. All the dirty matter can be filtered out, the lubricity restored, and the oil recycled.

And here's great site to help you do just that: UOMA.

I'm not sure if this site provides information to those in the United Stated, but for those of us tucked away in the Great White North, simply click on your Province and drill down to find a location that will accept used oil.

Most Canadian Tire stores also have used fluid dumps, but not all.

Renewable Fuels Standard

Taking one slow, lethargic, 10 years too late step towards cleaner burning fuels, renewable energy, and extremely high corn prices due to increased ethenol use, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has finally released new standards for renewable fuel content in the US.

EPA 2008 Renewable Fuels Standard: "http://www.epa.gov/otaq/renewablefuels"

The target is for 4% renewable content in all fuel, which will amount to some 4.7 billion (with a B) gallons (with a G) of renewable fuel added to the supply chain.

While this is nothing to worry rich oil sheiks in various Middle East oil producing countries (at least, those that haven't been bombed into the dark ages and taken over by an occupying foreign power) it may be a concern for those who like corn chips.

Because while bio-diesel comes mostly from non-food stocks, ethanol--which is blended with gasoline (let's call is bio-gas)--comes from corn, a food stock. Corn prices have already been growing through the barn roof, and this will no doubt add fertilizer to the...field.

Unlike bio-diesel, ethanol has almost no environmental benefit whatsoever (too much energy is used to grow it and it can reduce (yes, reduce) fuel efficiency by 20-40%), this good news from the EPA might not be so good.

Hopefully, more pumps in the US will include bio-diesel as an option.