24 Hours At The Hammers... a charity event	Short Cuts
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Author: Steve Friend (Member: West Coast 4 Wheel Drive Club) - 8/2000
Editor: Randy Burleson

Planning the Insanity - 7 Hard Core Trails in a Day?

Jim Cole, Dimensions Off Road. Steve Friend

Early in the year 2000, Chris Wood of ARB contacted Ray Pfeifer and I (West Coast 4 Wheel Drive Club) to see our reaction to an idea he had for generating cash for charities, while giving great drivers a new experience and challenge. Chris wanted us to organize an event where the contestants would try to finish 7 Hammer trails in 24 hours. For those of you that have not had the opportunity to try out these trails, this was really a challenge. It is not uncommon for just one trail to take 10 hours -- and the trails are less than a mile long. These are some of the most technical trails anywhere. One small mistake will lead to bent sheet metal, a broken u-joint, axles, drive lines... well, you get the picture.

Here is the way it went. Chris Wood and I have known each other for a long time and he needed some help in Southern California to organize the trail runs and volunteers for the actual run. The logistics for this event proved staggering at first, but we kept dogging it, and finally it came together at the last minute, as it usually does. Chris invited 12 contestants to find 12 sponsors to donate dollars for each trail completed within 24 hours. The potential was a total of $21,000 being raised for 3 charities or organizations.

The list of contestants included: Jason Bunch, Pat Gremillion, Steve Negrich, Ned Bacon, Mark Hinkley, Jim Cole, Jesse Rodocker, Greg Jevne, Don Robbins, Cole Quinnell, Chris Wood, and Al Vandervelde. The rigs included Samurais, Jeeps (TJs, Flat Fenders, YJs, XJs and CJs), Broncos, TLCs, Toyota Pickups, and finally D90 Landrovers. The sponsors were Tuffy, Rubicon Express, Dynatrac, Man-A-Fre, Hi-Lift, Tomkin, Jacobs Electronic, Bestop, JKS, Interco Tire Co., West Coast Differential, and Costa Del Mar Sunglasses.

Wow.

In a nutshell, Ray and I outlined the trails and decided on our strategies. We considered the order the trails should be run, the general flow of the event, the problems of finding trails in the dark, the specific locations of the trailhead and end, and volunteer staffing to help direct, communicate, and mark the course. Ray and I visited the Hammer trails and plotted them via GPS coordinates and topo maps. I found that plotting coordinates was more difficult than I thought so with the help of club member, Jeff McRae, we got the trails outlined on a 7-minute topo map. Ray and I marked the trails with grading stakes painted fluorescent red, and marked bushes with fluorescent red ribbon. This combination of markers would direct the contestants from trail to trail, with some added help of volunteers. We had a couple of West Coast members show up to help direct traffic, a bunch of Trail Masters that I absolutely could not have done without, and some Victor Valley folks that also were invaluable in directing traffic at the extreme most distant trails.

No event of this magnitude can be pulled off without help. The Recovery (Flag) group above made it happen. Steve Friend

We decided that we would try to get the trails further away from base camp done first, in the day light and run the closer trails last. This strategy turned out to be a very good idea. The trail order was Outer Limits, Hells Gate, Sun Bonnet, Sledge Hammer, Jack Hammer, Wrecking Ball, and finally Claw Hammer. You might recognize the last two trails as the same ones run during the 1999 Warn Rock Crawling Challenge.

We had a medical team set up by T&J's Off Road. Media coverage included Petersons 4-Wheel & Off-Road, Canadian Four-Wheel Drive, Land Rover Monthly, Toyota Trails, Big Rock Film & Video, K2 Automotive, and Off Road Exchange magazines.