Date:         Sat, 24 May 1997 16:46:21 -0600
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Jay Fitzgerald <jayfitz@micron.net>
Subject:      Syncro - a love story

*Just delete this if you hate sappy accolades to machinery*
	I just returned from a week in southern Utah and want to report on my
baby's performance. UNBELIEVABLE! The highlight was escaping Moab, a
pleasant but POPULAR biking/recreational hub. Down in Canyonlands area,
I bolted through a snow-melt swollen stream 2.5+ ft. deep (I waded it
twice and de-rocked my line) to find a Ford F-250 around the bend
stalled due to water in his ?motor. I asked the young bucks, cause I'm
37 now, if they needed any help but they just tried to look bored and
said "Naw". 
	Feeling completely Herculean, I climbed up Cottonwood Canyon to
Cathedral Butte. The topo map showed my elevation to be 7000 ft and 1st
gear was needed in the rougher switchbacks but the road is pretty
washboard free this early in the season. I decided to scout an area that
is described as a spectacular overlook but accessable by "a VERY rough
FWD or HCV(high clearance vehicle) road." After scouting it on my mt.
bike, one campsite proved to be truly one of the most stellar viewpoints
I've found in nearly 20 yrs. of living in the Rocky Mts. I simply had to
camp there. A little disclaimer here. I DETEST illegal, destructive,
redneck four-weellin' and think violators licenses' should be suspended.
This overlook road is legal but is indeed extremely rough. The main
characteristic is sandstone 'shelving' left after
much of the loose sand eroded away.
	To make a long story short, the compound low, or true 1st gear, enabled
me to ease up and over the nastiness of these exposed 'shelves' with out
scraping or bashing once. I enjoyed a completely mind-blowing sunset at
this overlook with all my photo gear(even the kitchen sink) right there.
Now I want a portable winch and air compressor to see how deep I can
REALLY go! 
Jay  (who's still amazed that a metal box w/ a motor and a bed in it
seems like a spiritual thing) 
'87 Syncro westy now named "Ahnie"