10 Years....wow

The jeep has 'grown up' a bit since that lil' '97 TJ that I first brought home back in 2004!
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4" lift and 33" tires - man I wheeled the HECK outa her ....nothing special, nothing extreme but, I had a GREAT time!
(found out in the process of all that 'fun' that JEEPS DON'T JUMP!)
Got my first upgrade - D44 front axle.
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bumped and dinged her up a bit - so, I started body sculpting. LOL
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I found out that while mud and water are FUN to play in....they can kill jeep components...an engine or two later...(yeah, rebuilt once, stroked it out the second time!)
Thought I needed a bit more clearance (like THAT was gonna solve my problems?) so I bumped up to 35"s....upgraded the axles
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And finally, with the thought of buying a new Jeep running through my head, I decided to bite the bullet and do some upgrades that would take her to a whole new level!
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Before I get all sentimental I just want to say, while I have some amazing memories, seen beautiful sights and overcome some obstacles (yeah, I have quite a few that I will get to try again)...it has been the PEOPLE that have made the past 10 years amazing.
THANK YOU to everyone I have met along the way.


Anyone ready? Let's GO WHEELIN'!!
:)

Inspirational... :)

Sweet! Nice job. Love seeing what people started with and how it turns out and I am sure there is more changes down the road. My truck will probably never be done. There is always something new to make it better, stronger, and more reliable.


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Curious as to why D44 front was your first upgrade? Did you already have a 44 rear? Did you explode the 30 learning that jeeps don't jump? Did you find something in pink you couldn't pass up?

Always interesting to hear what was everyone's upgrade priority was and why.

LOL
(Setting the stage)
Reliant stadium...20K spectators at the Monster Truck Jam back in 2007.

The course, around the stadium, two jumps. Timed race....the starting line too close to the first jump to get up to speed...I hit the face of the landing zone...HARD! Bent the inner and outers...two planes. Broke my neck in the qualifying run...went on to the first heat...made fastest TIME of the night but, unfortunately, red lighted.
While I was down for recovery (from neck fusion surgery) upgraded the front axle.....LOL

Strange...the thought of getting rid of the jeep never entered my mind!!! ROFLMBO
Proof positive-it's an addiction!

After learning to tow made good sence for me - I upgraded the tow rig.
4X4 OF COURSE, the 1500 wasn't NEAR enough umphhhh for me...so in 2009, I upgraded to a 3500 HD 4X4.
(REALLY wish I hada known Jim Hatfield back then....)
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Bought a programmer, DPF deleted and a few minor things like that....
Committed to wear every bit of tread off the tires before I upgraded...so, I FINALLY got new wheels & tires.
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Then, for my birthday, someone 'gave me a gift' of blacking out the lights - my advise to everyone reading this....DON'T BLACK OUT YOUR LIGHTS! It's virtually impossible to remove the tinting wihtout damaging the light! High Intentisy lights only brighten it up a bit...still too dark for my ol'eyes to see well without the fogs on at night!
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Iron hide (as named by my grandsons after one of the 'Transformers") is a work horse...and like everyone with a truck knows...I get to play 'mule' from time to time.
Trees Ranch run - 2009
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Wheelers 4 Wishes - 2010 (HAD to have this for the obstacle course, right?)
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Moving my daughter to Odessa (man that was a long weekend...two round trips) - 2011
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Every once in a while, I find time to just go PLAY
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And then, there are those 'trips of a lifetime' (2 week Colorado trip - 2013)
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Nice very nice!


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congrats on 10 years and doin better than ever