Member Number: 48 Vehicle: 2020 Subaru Outback Premium Location: Angel Fire, New Mexico Favorite trails treats: COFFEE, P.B. pretzel nuggets, lara bars, liquid IV, popcorn, gummies, and ice cream!! Favorite Gear: COFFEE, stainless 6C. perk pot, Coleman roadtrip party grill, double loveseat chair, Rumpl blanket, and my guitar! Quote: “With God, all things are possible.” –– Matthew 19:26 Social Media: Instagram: @roverestrepeat

Vehicle Name: Hazel Brief Vehicle Specs: Stock Outback

MEMBER BIO:

I am originally from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan––a place where life moves just a little bit slower and a place where everyone knows one another and a handshake and your word still go a long way. I grew up in an octagon house on the end of a long dirt road surrounded by nature. Fields of corn and pine tree forests, plenty of trails, rivers, and streams. It was a true paradise for any kid growing up. Some of my earlier memories of adventure fun were camping in the north woods of the U.P. with my family.

I remember very vividly the old green army tent that we slept in. It was the kind of canvas that if you touched any of it the rain and dew would slowly start to creep in––usually on your face––and eventually dripped. It was also a bit short for all of us with no fancy zippers so our feet were exposed to the outside. As a kid I feared the bears were going to come and sniff my kid-feet and drag me away for an early breakfast snack! Oh, the imagination of a child. Mornings were the greatest at camp. One, it meant that I survived the bears that night..haha! 

My mom would always have eggs crackling in the pan with the smell of bacon and fresh coffee. Always fresh coffee! I am a coffee addict now but that started at a young age and has never gone away. That is a good thing though because as long as there is coffee in the world, anything is possible! We would hike around, go fishing and swimming in the rivers and collect treasures. Most of which were returned back to the forest once dad found them. Dusk was always a magical time at camp. My dad would play the guitar (I hadn’t learned at this point) and we would sing late into the evening around the campfire. My family is very musical so every adventure seemed to turn into a concert out in nature. We were harmonizing with the sounds of the world.

I also remember when I sold my big paint horse (after being thrown off and stepped on) and bought my first dirt bike. I needed something that I could control and not have to feed or clean up after in the dead of winter. When I started racing my motorcycle, it also meant summer fun and camping. I raced motocross in the summertime and ice raced on the rivers in the winter.

My dad ended up building out an old Winnebago bread truck as our adventure rig. Wowza! That was a good time. He added two sets of bunks to the back with enough aisle space in between to load the bikes. Some of the fancy (DIY) upgrades went something like this: A bench in the back with a hinged seat to store all my riding gear, a makeshift awning out of PVC and bungees, and an old washing machine tub with legs as a fire pit. It was a gem! We called the fire pit “the smudge pot”. That thing was amazing! It was tall enough to warm your whole body, and not just burn your knees.

The old bread truck needed TLC and body repair since it lived its life in the U.P. It’s not unheard of to get all four seasons in one day there. Once it was Bondoed and sanded it was ready for some lipstick and rouge. The color that was picked was a true statement of its origin: Farmall Red! Yes, that’s what ya’ll heard. Farmall Red like the tractor. And its name was The Yooper-Bago. We had so much fun camping and exploring around Michigan and Wisconsin.

Those were some good early childhood memories! Life shifts as we grow up but I am happy to say that my adventurous spirit never went away. I have had some fun off-road vehicles over the years in Michigan––mostly Toyotas. It wasn’t until I moved to AZ that I realized I needed to find a better fit for my mountain adventures and solo fun. That’s when I met Hazel (my Subaru) and she changed my life! I started running marathons, then running trails, and finally, Ultra trail running (any run over 26.2 miles/42k, or a marathon) and mountain biking. The freedom of running and biking in nature and in the mountains is amazing! It makes me feel alive!

I am now on Hazel #2 and I am still in love. She gets me to the places I need to go and has plenty of storage and space for me to set up camp or as I call it, “Hazels Hideaway”. She is a true adventure partner. The best solo trip we’ve done so far was the Grand Canyon in August of 2020 and then her big move to New Mexico! Life is good. It’s the little things in life that matter to me. That and the beauty of simplicity. We only get this one life and I am thankful for each day. There are many changes happening in my life right now and I am grateful for all of it. What an adventure it will be!