June 1, 2006    The Official Newsletter of the New Mexico 4-Wheelers    www.nm4w.org

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Meeting was held at a house of Kevin & Charly Cox.  It was vacant, so rest assured that there were no damages done by club members to any of their furnishings.  Jeff Rector was filing in for our missing El Presidente, Mark Werkmeister.  Jeff called the meeting to order at 6:22 pm sharp (this happens when I have no second hand on my clock).

Guests:  Roger & Barbara Hall ’87 YJ & ’81 CJ7, Cory & Tiffany Ryan – ’97 TJ, Kenneth Gaw ’99 TJ, Kathy Wolf & Mike Robertson ’01 Land Rover Discovery, Tom & Carrie Phillips ‘ 04 Rubicon.

Members Present: Bontly, Coe, Cox, Duggar, Kausche, Peeples, Rector, Rodacy, Simenson, Sousa, Thompson, Whiston (Frank G), Wolf.

Secretary’s Report – Lauri Rector:  I don’t think that I had anything to say.  There’s nothing in my notes.

Treasurer’s Report – Paul Thompson:  $1,955.50 – he has people with outstanding fines – see him after the meeting.

Vice President’s Report – Jeff Rector:  Fines were levied against Wolfie for stepping on little Owen at Auge’s 4x4 101, Carlos Tanner – 2, Health Hislop – leaking fluids and leaving the Car Show early, Bob Norton for bringing that 1960’s psychedelic Hippie chair to the Car Show. 

Trip Chairman’s Report – Jason Lavy:  Not present, but that didn’t prevent us from talking about past and future events.  Future Events:  On May 19^th to the 26^th, Mike Coe will be at the Arch View Campground in Moab.  Come join him if you can.  Paul Thompson & Chuck Peeples are going to Caballo Lake this Tuesday.  On Saturday they will run that trail.  Camping will be at the riverside campground – south of the damn, in the normal spot with the good bathrooms with showers.  Frank G Whiston will do an exploratory run in the Zuni Mountains on the 16^{th -} 18^th of June.  He will base out of Blue Water State Park where there is camping.  (As of this writing, the Zuni Mountain trip has been cancelled due to the fire danger).  I talked about the Chic Challenge.  Read the trip report later in this issue.

Past Events:  I talked some about the Gordy’s Hill and Auge’s 4X4 101.  And then, for some reason, I also talked about the International Car Show (I can chew gum and walk, but, I have not yet mastered how to type and talk, so I have no notes on what I said).  Wolfie said that he was very impressed with Justin Simenson at the Auge’s 4X4 101 and how hard he pushed all of the new vehicles that Robert Auge offered up to us (he about scared me away from trying any of them – I haven’t seen that much air since the Balloon Fiesta!!).

Director of Environmental Affairs Report – Bob Norton:  Not Present.  Mark Wolf wanted to talk about the notice that Mark Werkmeister e-mailed to everyone about on the Nature Conservancy, who the Forestry department has chosen to help them “take care” of the Forests.  Write letters now, this is the worst thing that can happen. 

Program Chairman’s Report – Jerry Marx: Not Present.

Historian’s Report – Laurye Tanner:  Not Present.

Webmaster & Editor’s Report – Glenn Bontly:  Web site is still there and it works.  We also have a monthly newsletter, it’s called the Trail Tales.

Old Business:  Marcia Duggar is starting to get in registrations for the Summer Quarterly.  It’s in Ridgway and camping is available at Ridgway State Park – Loop G.  Full hook-ups are $20 per night, you need to make reservations early.  Tent camping is also available at a lower price.  There are hotels in Ridgway and Ouray.  Pre-runs are scheduled for the 15^th & 22^nd (or any other time that you can make it).  The committee is still in need of trail leaders and tail gunners, about 5 or 6 more.  The catered meal will be on Saturday Night.  Mike Coe is in charge of this and has nothing to say about this as no one is returning his calls or e-mails.  Mike’s wondering how we set the registration price without him knowing how much meals cost – is he on a budget? 

The Swap Meet is tomorrow.  We have been assigned to spaces HI24-HI29.  It starts at 8am.  There is room in our spaces if you have any “junk” (oops, I mean 4X4 parts) you’d like to sell.

New Business:  Unanimously, Cory & Tiffany Ryan and Tom & Carrie Phillips were voted in and are now proud members of NM4W.  What an honor for them!!!  (Oops again, the NM4W is honored to have all of you as members of our club - welcome).

THINGS FORGOTTEN – Anyone that forgot to mention something at the appropriate time during the meeting:  Chuck wants to talk about Memorial Weekend (this should have been discussed during the Trip Chairman’s report).  He wants to go ahead and plan on going to the Jemez, even if it seems that forest closure is a real possibility.  If the gate is locked, there will not be any camping.  Kristy Coe asked about what was being done on 4^th of July as she thought that was when the club was going to the Jemez.  Wolfie suggested that she lead something that weekend.

And, then, back to NEW BUSINESS:  Jeff Rector, our pretend president (which means he doesn’t have to write a “President’s Report), reminded everyone to be thinking about officers and who they would nominate, or if they would be willing to be nominated.  Did I really hear Jeff say that he doesn’t want to be Vice President for like the 40^th year in a row?  Voting will be in July and new Officers, Chairs, and Directors duties begin on August 1.  (Please strongly consider taking up some of your free time for 1 year for the benefit of the club.  It takes “active” member to make our club as vital as it is!!).

A big thanks to Kevin & Charly for hosting the meeting for us, and at a time when we didn’t have a host just less than 30 days before the meeting.  Kevin wants help cleaning up after the meeting, such as taking something home with you from the garage.  He will be giving away various “door prizes” out there.  Things that Charly doesn’t want moved to their new home (and after seeing it all, I can see why).

Meeting adjourned at 6:54 pm.

Hello everybody!

I trust that everyone had a fine four-wheeling Memorial Day weekend.  With summer upon us, it is time to go topless (that means put the soft tops away!) and think about volunteering yourself for one of the many officer positions that keep our club humming along.  The club provides all of us a lot in terms of activities, insights, and camaraderie.  Please give a few minutes thought to volunteering to be nominated for an officer position.  Serving your club and fellow members gives all of us a chance to give a little back to the club that means so much to many of us.  If you are wondering if you have the expertise necessary, do worry about it.  Past officers are always willing to lend a hand and thoughtful advice to the newer officers.

I talked to Mike Bilbo of the Socorro office BLM last week.  The Draft Revision of the Resource Management Plan is not out yet for public review, it is still being finished up by the contractor who is putting the draft document together.  Mike was guessing that it might be out toward the end of May (which is already here) but we will be notified when it comes out.  I will be heading down to Socorro on one of the first Mondays in June to review the trail map with Mike (at his invitation) to ensure that all our intended routes are still included on the map.

So rip off those tops (soft tops, Wolfie!), bask in the sunshine, pray for rain for our forests, and we will see you at the June meeting!

Mark

What brought Jordan Sousa, avid sailor and fisherman, from Tampa Bay to the desert?  “Five hurricane evacuations in one year”, he explains.  It wasn’t an easy decision for someone who “loves being in, on, or near water”.  However, when a job transfer became available six months ago, Jordan moved west to high, dry land.  Elizabeth (Betsy) Gunderson, his significant other and a Jeep driver in her own right, moved here one month ago.

Since two favorite pastimes are taking scenic drives and camping, Jordan was happy to find the NM4W website.  Jordan enjoyed the 2006 Chile Challenge, one of his first NM4W wheeling adventures.  While at Cruces, he squeezed in time for ghost-town hunting, another leisure pursuit.  So far, Jordan and Betsy love the New Mexico weather, scenery, and proximity to the mountains.

Bristol, Rhode Island is Jordan’s hometown and he grew up loving to fish and sail.  The Jeep thing started 20 years ago when Jordan was living in Maine and bought a CJ-7.  This was pre-GPS, so he set off with topo maps and the CJ to explore logging roads and fire trails in western Maine.  Jordan also bought a sailboat in Maine and used it often for four months of the year.  But eight months in dry dock was too much, so he and Betsy moved to Tampa Bay for year-round sailing opportunities.

Jordan has a varied work background.  His education is in social work and business.  After college, he worked in a group home (where he met Betsy), taught cross-country skiing, owned a motorcycle repair business in San Diego, managed a garment industry plant, ran a homeless shelter, and owned and operated a boat rental and charter fishing business in Tampa Bay.  “I loved it even though it was my hardest job ever,” recalls Jordan about the boat business. 

For the past eight years, Jordan has worked as a Service Technician for Glacier Water.  His territory now covers most of New Mexico and he gets to travel the state on company time.  Betsy is taking a break from her career in social services.  She was a VP with United Way of Tampa Bay, but isn’t sure where she’ll work in Albuquerque.

Betsy and Jordan were married for 20 years, then divorced, and are happy to be back together.  Along with cats, Chaser and Felix, they recently moved to a house in the South Valley.  The June 10 club meeting will be at their home (directions are on the Member’s Only Page on the web site).

Jordan bought his ’03 Wrangler new in Florida.  There’s a major makeover in progress: new lift kit and tires (probably 35’s) to go with the already-installed Tera low kit in the transfer case.  Jordan tries to do the work himself, so he knows what is getting done.  The Jeep doesn’t have to be a big dog.  For them, scenery is #1 and challenge is #2.  Jordan adds, “I’ll try anything that the Jeep is semi-able to do.”

His favorite trail?  “All of them!”  Jordan just enjoys getting out and “if I make it back in one piece, it’s a good trail.”  He and Betsy enjoyed the 2006 Easter Jeep Safari in Moab where they ran Top of the World, Copper Ridge, the Rose Garden, and others.  Jordan and Betsy have never been to Silverton, so they hope the four letter word starting with “w” doesn’t interfere with attending the Summer Quarterly there.

NM4W is a great club in Jordan’s opinion.  He appreciates the member dedication and variety of activities.  As Trailmaster of his Florida club, he knows the effort it takes to keep a club successful.  Jordan would consider holding a club office in order to help promote four-wheeling.  Welcome to New Mexico, Jordan and Betsy, where there’s lots of scenic four-wheeling on dusty, but dry, trails.

Rod and I loaded the Jeep onto the trailer and headed toward Amarillo for a Jeep Jamboree.  We were a little concerned about the weather because it looked like rain for the next couple of days.  It ended up that the weather did cause us some problems.

The first morning we headed in a big group to the ranch that hosted the event.  The local Jeep club pays the rancher so they can use the ranch.  I realized how lucky we are in NM because we have so much public land to go 4 wheeling.  All the land there is private.  We had an incredible cowboy breakfast before heading down into the canyon.

The trip into the canyon was a challenge in itself - it was a very steep road.  There were about 110 Jeeps there!  We were in the Orange group and there were about 18 in the group.  I signed up for one of the easiest groups and it was the most difficult 4 wheeling I have ever done.  I know it would not be much for some of you, but I was white knuckled for much of the trip.  You may have heard my screaming in Albuquerque. J  There were some very steep descents and ascents, and lots of obstacles where there were a couple of wheels way off the ground.  Thank goodness they had great spotters and they were the nicest folks.  I was very happy with how the little red Jeep did, although its driver needs more practice.

We had dinners over an open fire in the canyon both evenings.  The food was absolutely fantastic!

The second morning it rained a lot, which delayed our descent into the canyon.  The dirt was red clay and it was very slick.  I got turned sideways on the way down and had to be pulled back around.  It was my fault – I touched the brakes.  I then made Rod drive the rest of the way down.  It rained hard later that day, but it dried up way before dinner and there was no problem getting out.  We had a great time!

For those of you new to the club or those of you who are just cruising our web site; we have slide shows of our runs on the Internet.  The new web site address for the club pictures:  http://www1.snapfish.com/home/t_=8290670;jsessionid=60AB4534DEFB5030966F5D99AA9DBA2A.

It will change every time I add new sideshows.  There are now 3 new slideshows of the Chile Challenge, Gordy's Hill, and Caballo Lake run.  If you do not want to personally register with Snapfish, you can use nm4wphotos@earthlink.net as your login, and jeepers as your password.

For those who are taking pictures on our trips, please e-mail me at lauryert@yahoo.com, or give me a CD of the pictures you have taken.  Please let me know the name of the event and who took the pictures.  Remember to save your originals.

Glenn and I are trying to get pictures of our members to add to the web site roster on the Member’s Only Page.  Please e-mail Glenn or me your picture.  If you do not have a good picture; I will try to bring a camera at the next meeting and will be glad to take your picture there.

It’s been said that the current generation of the Jeep Wrangler (1997 – present) is the most capable trail vehicle available “right out of the box”.  But once you’ve mastered the easy trails with your stock Jeep, you will likely get an itch to tackle some more challenging stuff.  If you want to crawl over bigger rocks, you’re gonna need more clearance, which means you’ll need taller tires, which means you’ll need a lift!  I am often asked for advice about the “right” way to lift a Jeep.  If you flip through any of the popular 4x4 magazines, you will find a dozen (or more) advertisements for lift kits.  Some consist of a simple set of spring spacers, others complex systems with a seemingly overwhelming number of pieces and parts.  No wonder it’s so confusing!

I don’t claim to be an expert on lift kits, and I won’t be promoting any particular brand of lift in this discussion.  Instead, I will try to point our several things you need to consider when lifting your Jeep, based on what I’ve learned over the years, including my experience in building my own Jeep.  Obviously, I will be talking about a typical (non-Rubicon) TJ Wrangler, which is what I drive.

The biggest problem with lifting a vehicle is that changing one component will usually affect (adversely) one or more other components.  And the bigger the lift, the more pronounced these effects.  The “right way” to lift your Jeep involves a thorough evaluation of your entire vehicle.

The primary reason for lifting a vehicle is to increase the clearance between the axles and the body, in order to install taller tires.  A body lift is the easiest and least expensive way to achieve this.  But in addition to gaining clearance for larger tires, off-roaders often desire enhanced capability as well.  A suspension lift will not only provide increased clearance for larger tires, but also greater axle articulation and more ground clearance under the t-case skid plate.  In order to keep the center of gravity the lowest, and to mitigate the adverse affects of lifting your vehicle, you want the least amount of lift you can get away with, while still fitting the new tires under fully-articulated axles.

Body Lifts:  A 1-inch body lifts is cheap and easy to install.  With taller body lifts (2 – 3 inches), your gear shift levers will be too “short”, and you will have to modify you’re A/C lines if your vehicle is so equipped.  Body lifts do nothing to enhance the capability of your vehicle, but may be just what you need, in conjunction with a suspension lift, for that little extra clearance for the next larger size tires.

Suspension Lifts: Ranging from 3 inches to 8 inches, suspension lifts consist primarily of taller springs.  Depending on the kit, it may also include a variety of other components, such as shocks, track bar relocation brackets, drop pitman arms, sway bar quick disconnects, longer brake lines, adjustable control arms, and various other pieces and parts.

Shocks:  If you go with more than 2 inches of suspension lift and want to take full advantage of the increased travel it affords, you will need to install longer shocks.

Slip Yoke Eliminator (a.k.a., Short Shaft Kit):  One of the biggest problems caused by tall suspension lifts (4+ inches) is driveline vibrations on the highway.  This is the result of the extreme angle of your stubby little rear drive shaft.  To mitigate the effects of this condition, you can install a slip yoke eliminator at the rear output of your transfer case.  It will require a longer drive shaft, which will result in a decreased drive shaft angle.

Drive Shaft:  If you install a slip yoke eliminator, you will automatically have to purchase a new rear drift shaft.  Unlike the front shaft, the factory rear shaft does not have a slip joint.  And since you just removed the slip yoke in the t-case, you must get a rear shaft with a slip joint.  And while you’re at it, have a CV joint installed at the front end.  This will spread the angles across 3 joints, instead of just two.

Gears:  Installing taller tires will have the same affect as higher gearing.  This results in a slower turning engine and equates to a loss of power on the highway.  You may want to consider installing lower gears in your front and rear differentials at this time.

Adjustable Control Arms:  A suspension lift will change your pinion angles.  If you install either upper or lower adjustable control arms, you will be able to reestablish the proper pinion angle.  If you have both upper and lower adjustable arms, you will also be able to adjust the fore and aft positioning of the axles as well.

Short vs. Long Arms:  If you have tall springs (4+ inches), long shock, and lots of axle articulation, the “droop” side of the rear axle will rotate forward somewhat at full extension, effectively causing some (unwanted) rear-steer on your vehicle.  Long arms will eliminate this problem.

Track Bars (front and rear):  A suspension lift will change the angle of your front and rear track bars.  As a result, it will laterally shift your entire axles to one side of the vehicle.  To fix this, most lift kits come with track bar relocation brackets.  An alternative it to purchase a longer or an adjustable track bar.

Sway Bar Quick Disconnects:  Moving up to the front of the vehicle, in order to take full advantage of your taller springs and longer shocks, you will need to disconnect your front sway bar.  For safety, you should reconnect it prior to driving on the highway.  The most convenient way to do this is with a set of quick disconnects.

Brake Lines:  With all of your new found articulation, you will likely have to install longer front brake lines, or at least brake line relocation brackets.

Steering Linkage:  A stock vehicle has a nearly parallel drag link and front track bar.  A suspension lift will result in an increased angle between these two components.  And the larger the angle, the more pronounced the ‘bump steer” effect.  Bump steer is the movement of your steering when your springs flex up and down.  To solve this problem, you can either install a drop pitman arm or a high-steering conversion.  The high-steer kit is gonna be expensive, but the drop pitman arm is a weak link (I’ve personally twisted one into a pretzel shape)!

Axles:  Depending on how tall of a lift you install, as well as how low of gears you have, and whether or not you have lockers, you may want to replace or strengthen the axle shafts and/or axle housings.  The front Dana 30 will stand up to a lot of abuse, depending on your driving style.  The rear Dana 35C, however, is definitely a weak link.

Speedo Gear:  If you change your tire size and/or your differential gears, you speedometer will no longer be accurate.  With taller tires and lower gears, your actual speed will be higher that what your speedo indicates (i.e., can you spell speeding ticket?).  To correct this problem, simply replace the speedo gear in your t-case.

As you can see, lifting a vehicle the “right way” is not a simple task.  But if you spend the time and money to do it correctly, you will be much more satisfied with the results.

Wow!!!  Our club gets amazing turnouts for our day trips.  There were 13 vehicles at the 1^st meeting spot: Justin Simenson & Rebecca Tafoya, Jerry & Mary Moran, Mark Wolf, Don Walker (all the way from Farmington) & his niece Annie Medders, Ron Hyman & Deb Marchi, Paul & Mary Thompson, Jimmy & Debbie Farrell, Kathy Wolf & Mike Robertson, Chuck & Ethel May Peeples, Carrie Phillips & 2 sons, Robert & Holly Hohlfelder, and I had a co-pilot with me, Tina Medeiros, who is a co-worker.

We took off for the 2^nd meeting spot – a Shell station just east of Airport Rd.  There we picked up Betsy Gunderson, who was running late and missed us at the 1^st meeting spot, and 4 vehicles from the Santa Fe area  (I did not get there names, well, only Mark Anderson – but we had been e-mailing each other several weeks before the run).  Wolfie picked up Barbara & Rodger Hall, who were at the 599 and Airport Rd intersection, and took all of the other people that didn’t need gas straight to the air down spot, which worked out well, since they got to sit out in what was becoming a very hot sun for quite a while.

Finally, were on the trail.  It promised to be a good day.  I found the turn to the trail, following right along on my GPS tracks from the pre-run; all was good.  And then, trouble….  The Explorer wasn’t coming up a little hill that we had just come up.  Paul Thompson then walks up to my Jeep and asks if I’m going a different route than what we did for my pre-run (it served invaluable several times that day to have had Paul join me on the pre-run).  Thankfully, Chuck Peeples came to my rescue and pointed out to Mark Wolf and everyone that I had taken a “scenic turn off” from the trail to show everyone a beautiful view of Santa Fe.  Mark Wolf stayed with the Explorer and told me to go on.  We all finally get back onto the trail and then…. over the CB comes, “hold up for a little while”.  Besides the Explorer, we have another Jeep down (Barbara & Rodger Hall), no power steering.  So after about a ½ to an hour, we decide to call it lunch, since it was noon.  By the time we got done eating, Wolfie and the Explorer came up and we all took off (more of a majority vote rather than me not caring if Mark and them got to eat or not). 

We get to the dry river bed and go through the most challenging part of the trail (and the bumpiest) and then….I get on my CB and ask Paul if I missed a turn or something – I think that I would have remembered the last 30 or 40 feet in the pre-run.  Yep, if it was really rough driving through it, backing up is even more fun, especially since I still haven’t learned how to get on the better side of my reverse gear.  Luckily, it was only me that had to back up.  I get back on the trail and we all head up to the top of the Mesa.  We make one stop during the ascent – good trees for a 10-100.  At which point, I’m either being whined at or praised by the women drivers (who all were driving Rubicon’s or had lockers front and back and were all much better equipped than I was). 

We get headed back up the Mesa again and finally get to the where we would have eaten lunch.  I brought no trash bags, so there was no trash pick up.  I lead everyone down to the blow hole.  Now, if you read my story on La Ventana ride from about a year ago, you’d have known not to follow me on foot, yet a lot of people did.  How we did not loose anyone down the side of the mountain is beyond me.  And, I learned something about the blow hole.  On a very hot day, you can feel cool air coming out of it. 

So, we do some more talking.  And Wolfie let me know that he was going to go back down the hill and help the Explorer back out – the Explorer was having electrical problems with the transfer case and thus the 4-wheel drive.  What comes up next is a hill that I have never driven down myself.  I have become very comfortable with down hill in my Jeep, but for some reason I wasn’t on this afternoon.  It looked more eroded than what I remember and there was a very low drop-off that wasn’t there on the pre-run.  I pulled up too close and then chickened out, but I couldn’t back up very far.  Just as I was going to unbuckle and pull myself up to be able to see beyond my hood, Don Walker came up and asked if I wanted a spot.  Just as I suspected, I needed to go over to the right.  Just beyond that I needed to go over to my left (Jeff pointed this out to me on the pre-run).  And just like that I had conquered that darn hill.  My co-pilot closed her eyes and missed it all. 

The trail took us through another dry, but not rocky, creek bed before we meet up with FR 24 that takes us over to the La Bajada Hill trail.  We did get some rain while on this 11 mile leg (or is it 21 miles?), but not enough to keep the dust down (ohhhh – it so nice being the leader!!!).  We were all spread out – a lot.  So much so that we lost a member at the left turn onto the La Bajada Hill trail and almost made me seem like a liar when I said we were like the Marines and we leave no man (or woman) behind.  Betsy Gunderson got some directions from Chuck and Paul on the CB and turned herself around and found us.  Those that got there soon enough walked over and looked out over the valley and the abandoned vehicle at the bottom of the cliff.  After Betsy got joined up with us, we headed on down the hill. 

Since I was the leader, I got to the air down spot first (go figure!!!).  There are some nice trees there, but I didn’t think the 20 or so cattle looked like they wanted to share any of that shade with us.  So I stopped out in the open area.  After several hours (or it just seemed that long since we were having to stand out in the sun), those that wanted air, but didn’t have any of their own, finally got their tires filled up by the people that have their own air (and thank you so much for sharing!!!). 

Finally, about 5:30 before we all headed to I-25 to go home after a very long, hot, but extremely fun day.  Even the women that were whining before were telling me what a great trail this was.

 New Mexico
http://gacc.nifc.gov/swcc/information/firerestrictions/nm/restrictions_nm.htm

Utah
http://www.utahfireinfo.gov/restrictions/index.htm

Arizona
http://gacc.nifc.gov/swcc/information/firerestrictions/az/restrictions_az.htm

(As a follow-up to my “camping” article from last month, I thought I would share these 15 “fun things” to do Wal-Mart, sent in by Wolfie        -ed.)

1.  Get a handful of condoms and randomly put them in peoples’ carts when they aren’t looking.

2.  Set all of the alarm clocks in Housewares to go off at 5-minute intervals.

3.  Make a trail of tomato juice on the floor leading to the rest rooms.

4.  Walk up to an employee and tell her in an official tone, 'Code 3' in Housewares, and watched what happens.

5.  Go to the Service Desk and ask to put a bag of M&M's on lay away.

6.  Move a 'CAUTION - WET FLOOR SIGN’ to a carpeted area.

7.  Set up a tent in the camping department and tell other shoppers they can come in if they'll bring pillows from the bedding department.

8.  When a clerk asks if they can help you, start crying and ask, “Why can't you people just leave me alone?”

9.  Look right into a security camera, and using it as a mirror, start picking your nose.

10.  While handling guns in the hunting department, ask the clerk if he knows where the antidepressants are.

11.  Dart around the store suspiciously, while humming the "Mission Impossible" theme.

12.  In the auto department, practice your "Madonna impersonation" using different size funnels.

13.  Hide in a clothing rack and when people walk through, yell "PICK ME!" "PICK ME!"

14.  When an announcement comes over the loud speaker, assume the fetal position and scream "NO! NO!  It's those voices again!"

and finally,

15.  Go into a fitting room, shut the door, wait a while; then yell, very loudly, "There's no toilet paper in here!"

Aluminum Cans: Our club saves and recycles aluminum cans.  Money from the sale of cans goes into our club treasury.  Please bring your crushed aluminum cans to each meeting, and somebody will take them to the recycling center.

To Our Guests: If you attend a club meeting or event and provide us with your e-mail address, you will be added to our guest e-mail list, and will receive monthly notifications of when the Trail Tales newsletter is posted on our Club web site.  If you are interested in becoming a member of the New Mexico 4-Wheelers, please contact one of our officers for membership requirements, or visit our web site at www.nm4w.org/join-the-club.htm.

Trail Tales on the Web Site: In a continuing effort help save natural resources and to control costs, you are encouraged to read the Trail Tales newsletter on the Club Web Site in lieu of receiving a hard copy in the mail.  Around the first of each month, the current issue of Trail Tales is posted at www.nm4w.org/newsletters.htm and an e-mail notification is sent to all club members.  In addition, a minimum of 2 years of back issues of our newsletter is also available on the web site.  So if you want to help “save some trees”, please send an e-mail to trail-tales@nm4w.org stating that you do not need to receive the hard copy of the newsletter.  Thanks for your participation in this program.

Submission Due Date: The Trail Tales is published on the first of each month.  Submissions for each issue must be received by the Editor not later than the 25^th of the prior month.  Submissions can be sent to trail-tales@nm4w.org, or Trail Tales, 21 Rattlesnake Ridge, Tijeras, NM 87059.

Please see the Events Schedule Page

Trail Tales
21 Rattlesnake Ridge
Tijeras, NM 87059-7440

trail-tales@nm4w.org