5:12 pm
Which commonly run trail do think has the highest level of difficulty and WHY?
Fordyce, Rubicon, or Strawberry?
For me, the difficulty level is broken up into several parts:
1) Possible or inevitable damage or destruction of vehicle
2) "Scare/pucker" factor
3) How much attention do I have to pay to the trail and for how long
4) How common rigs break on this trail
5) Choices of lines (or lack of) you can take at hard sections
6) How difficult recovery/assistance may be
5:25 pm
Club Member
July 10, 2003
Offline Of the ones listed, I'd say Fordyce is more challenging. There are less alternate/easy routes. The trail climbs most of the way. There is a good ammount of obstacles, squeezes, and off-camber sections. Unlike the Rubicon, there is no way around them, you have to run them.
I used to wheel a lot. . .
5:27 pm
May 4, 2004
Offline I voted for Fordyce. There's the winch hills, water crossings, and just general rock crawling along the whole trail.
5:27 pm
Club Member
July 10, 2003
Offline Who voted for Strawberry 🙄
I used to wheel a lot. . .
6:10 pm
Club President
April 2, 2003
Offline I voted for fordyce if you include by-passes. Without by-passes, it's the Rubicon.
7:43 pm
"BKGM Jeepers" wrote: I voted for fordyce if you incldue by-passes. Without by-passes, it's the Rubicon.
That's and interesting thought...being forced to run little sluice changes the difficulty a wee bit. 😀
9:05 pm
December 18, 2002
Offline I voted Fordyce for overall difficulty. The watch your line thing makes me lean more to the Rubicon though for the number of areas you can fall a looooong way, but overall difficulty is hands down Fordyce.
Although there's a guy I saw this morning who'd probably vote for the corner of Blue Ravine and Folsom Rd. That not paying attention to your line part got him nailed by a guy in a Ford who had the right of way! Sent the Ford pickup across the lane and almost into the Jamba Juice building! Oh yeah, he about ran over the guy pushing a lawn mower too, that dude made one heck of a jump to get out of the way 
Didn't miss a beat though, got out of the way, then within 2 seconds was emptying out the grass bag and mowing around the truck
Out in the garage collecting parts....
9:10 pm
May 4, 2004
Offline I saw the truck in the grass and the Jeep on a flatbed wrecker this morning. I was wondering what happened there.
9:18 pm
I voted for the Rubicon. Like a few of us, I just ran them back to back (2 weeks apart). I agree that Fordyce has some real tricky spots, river crossings, and is narrow. The Rubicon, however, if you choose to do everything but Little sluice is at least equal to me.
I really think of them equally, just different issues with each trail.
9:22 pm
If we use a points system for carnage, I bet Strawberry is the winner.
If we do it by how many people back out on a trip...Fordyce wins. Maybe it is more difficult if we get fewer people.
10:28 pm
Club Member
July 10, 2003
Offline I've run both trails a bunch of times. If you take out the Little Sluice (since none of us run it) then there isn't anything like Winch Hill #1 and Winch Hill #3 on the Rubicon. Old Sluice in the reverse/uphill direction comes close but Walker is really easy.
I used to wheel a lot. . .
10:45 pm
"JohnDF" wrote: Who voted for Strawberry 🙄
Wasn't me . . . .
I've been on Fordyce in the snow, won't go back until I get locked, I've only been on sections of the Rubicon.
To date, Strawberry has given me the biggest pucker factor; while Brad held my Jeep in the palm of his hand saying "look what I can do" as he rocked it back and forth!
4:42 am
July 15, 2005
Offline Fordyce is more technical to me. It changes every time. Pick the wrong line and you can end up in a bad way. The Rubicon to me never changes and beside the little sluice and running up Old sluice from the bottom, the trail is just bumpy rocks.
__________________
'If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."- Ronald Reagan
6:16 am
July 15, 2005
Offline Here is one way to look at the difficulty level. If you break down on the Rubicon, you can strap the broken vehicle over 95% of the trail with no problems to get them out. If you break down on Fordyce, you will have to winch the person over 80% of the trail to get them out. To many rocks, ledges, and steep climbs to use a strap. Believe me, I have had to do it before 🙁
__________________
'If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."- Ronald Reagan
1:51 pm
Club Member
July 10, 2003
Offline And...breakage has nothing to do with how difficult a trail is. Many of us have broken down on Iron Mountain and there isn't a single rock on that road 
I used to wheel a lot. . .
2:01 pm
July 15, 2005
Offline 3) How much attention do I have to pay to the trail and for how long
This depends on your experience level and knowledge of the trail.
__________________
'If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."- Ronald Reagan
2:03 pm
July 15, 2005
Offline 5) Choices of lines (or lack of) you can take at hard sections
You have more choices of lines on the Rubicon
You don't have many choices of lines on Fordyce. It is pretty much up the middle.
__________________
'If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."- Ronald Reagan
2:05 pm
July 15, 2005
Offline "JohnDF" wrote: And...breakage has nothing to do with how difficult a trail is. Many of us have broken down on Iron Mountain and there isn't a single rock on that road
Damage has a lot to do with experience, not paying attention , how your vehicle is set up, etc...
__________________
'If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."- Ronald Reagan
2:07 pm
July 15, 2005
Offline 2) "Scare/pucker" factor
This has nothing to do with a trail. Everyone has a different level of pucker factor. One obstacle might pucker one person and might seem easy to another person.
__________________
'If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."- Ronald Reagan
2:09 pm
July 15, 2005
Offline Can you tell that I am at work and have nothing better to do than make multiple posts 😀 😀 😀
__________________
'If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."- Ronald Reagan
2:35 pm
Club Member
July 10, 2003
Offline Get back to work...I like to think my taxes are being spent wisely
I used to wheel a lot. . .
2:48 pm
January 12, 2007
Offline I think Rob driving from Loon to Auburn with no swaybars had to be the biggest pucker factor for him and Sue. I thought for sure they were going to lose it a couple times. 😯
3:04 pm
May 4, 2004
Offline "RobD" wrote: Can you tell that I am at work and have nothing better to do than make multiple posts 😀 😀 😀
Going for 3K ❗
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