HURRICANE – Off-road enthusiasts from across the West are anxiously awaiting the start of the eighth annual Winter 4×4 Jamboree, which offers world-class white-knuckle rock crawling along with easier trails. All proceeds are donated to land use groups and others, event spokesperson Julie Lindquist said in a press release.
The Jamboree kicks off Wednesday and runs through Saturday, with most trails lining up at 8 a.m. at the Washington County Fairgrounds.
For the 2022 event, an extra day of trails has been added along with several new afternoon activities which are free and open to the general public.
Registration is required for trail rides, and the cost is $50 per trail. Online registration is already closed, but there are still openings on many trails. Participants can sign up in person, on a first come, first served basis.
“We have more than 900 vehicles registered already,” event director and Desert Roads and Trails President Jeff Bieber said in a statement. “This is going to be a great year – the best year yet.”
The Jamboree is an off-road guided trail event for full-sized four-wheel drive vehicles which is held every January. The event offers more than 40 trails of varying difficulty – from 10-rated buggy-only trails to a 2-rated ‘4×4 101’ course for beginners.
Many of the trails are in the Sand Mountain Recreation Area near Sand Hollow State Park; other trails explore more outlying parts of the county. The event is not set up for spectators, and the trails in use on Sand Mountain will be closed to nonparticipants until 4 p.m. each day.
Sand Mountain Recreation Area is designated as an “open travel OHV” area, and is one of a very few such areas in Utah and across the country. The designation means new trails can be created in the red rock and sand dunes,
“We encourage everyone to know the rules and respect the area they’re riding in,” Lindquist said.
This year, several new after-trail activities will be held at Stucki Farms Wednesday and Thursday from 3-8 p.m.
“We’re really excited about our new partnership with Stucki Farms,” Lindquist said. “It lets us offer a lot of fun things to do after the trail rides.”
At Stucki Farms, the public can enjoy three different Jeep Rodeo courses, a racetrack and rock crawling courses for RC vehicles, live music from 5-8 p.m., and several fire pits.
In addition, a ‘flex trailer’ will be provided free by Metal Cloak, a Jeep suspension and aftermarket parts company. A flex trailer is specifically designed and built to measure the suspension articulation of off-road vehicles.
A heated pool, hot tub and miniature golf are also available at Stucki Farms for a small fee and food trucks will also be on-site.
Friday and Saturday afternoons, a large off-road vendor show will be held at the Fairgrounds from 3-7 p.m. Friday and 3-6 p.m. Saturday.
Sponsors and vendors include some big names in the off-road industry and the public is invited to admire some outstanding Jeep builds. In addition, they can browse and purchase all kinds of off-road gear including tires, armor, suspension parts, axles, light bars, winches and other recovery gear, storage solutions, body armor, and more. The vendor show is free and open to the public, and food trucks will be onsite. A raffle at 6 p.m. Saturday will wrap up the Jamboree.
The Winter 4×4 Jamboree is sponsored by the 501(c)(3) Desert Roads and Trails Society, with help from the Utah Public Lands Alliance. The event is the group’s primary fundraiser; last year it generated $55,000 in donations, primarily to Utah Public Lands Alliance and Washington County Search and Rescue.
While most of the Jamboree’s activities are outdoors, current Covid-19 guidance from the Southwest Utah Health Department recommends wearing masks in crowded, indoor spaces where physical distancing is not possible.
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