Start small. Start now!

“Your Dreams Matter. Start Small – Start Now!” — Keep Your Daydream (KYD)

That quote from Keep Your Daydream has stuck with me, and it perfectly captures the heart of my off-road journey. This isn’t just a story about Jeeps or trails. It’s about how getting started…right where you are, with what you have…can lead to incredible growth.

Where It Started: My First Jeep

In 2016, I bought my first Jeep: a 2005 TJ. Aside from upsized tires, it was completely stock. I lived in North Carolina then, and my first playground was the sugar sand of Carolina Beach. Not exactly Moab or the Rubicon, but it was something. But don’t mistake the sugar sand of the Carolina Coast for that hard packed Daytona Beach sand.  That little TJ never got stuck. And that’s saying something, considering how many other rigs I saw buried out there…especially the guys whose trucks looked like they came straight out of a Florida Georgia Line starter kit.

Was I scared the first few times? You bet. But I went. I learned. I picked lines. And each trip built confidence.

Next came a place called Midway in Bolivia, NC…now closed, sadly. This was a step up in difficulty. Deep ruts, slick mud, and a day full of recoveries amongst our group. Then came Green Swamp. Again, nothing extreme by internet standards, but it kept pushing me and my TJ just enough to grow.

Moving Up to a Wrangler JKU

By 2017, I upgraded to a Wrangler JKU. I still hit the beach…which by then felt like second nature…but I also started venturing farther. In February 2018, my wife and I took that bone-stock JKU to the first No Boundaries Jeep Crew event in Cosby, TN.

We were stock. Totally stock.

The event kicked off with a muddy hill climb that terrified me. But we made it. From there, the group continued on to explore the trails around Outdoors in the Smokies. I remember someone commenting on our stock rig early in the day. I didn’t say much…until later, when they got stuck on a hill I had no problem with.

Karma.

The day was filled with challenge, learning, and mud. I really got a feel for how 2H, 4H, 4L, and manually selecting gears on my auto trans changed how the Jeep responded. Another guy made a crack about my “street tires.”

You do you, bro.

That day taught me what really mattered wasn’t the tires…it was my mindset and willingness to learn what I (and my Jeep) could do in difficult terrain. I didn’t wait to have the perfect build. I went with what I had.

I posted photos and videos from that trip…and, of course, the internet did its thing.

“I’ve gone up driveways harder than that.”

Cool story, bro.

Some folks might be running Chocolate Thunder in their sleep. But there was a day when even they were new. I don’t care how built your rig is now…everyone has a Day One.

Real Upgrades, Real Trails

About a month later, I did my first real upgrades: 4-inch lift, long arms, and 35s. Then I really got out there.

I explored along the TN/NC border and took a route into Cataloochee. I encountered around ten downed trees on that trail. With no winch at the time, I learned how to use a recovery strap and leverage to move some truly massive obstacles. Others may have laughed at how long it took 

Not long after, I tackled Uwharrie for the first time (that’s “U-R-E” to most, though I know someone who calls it “You-harry”). Bigger challenges. Higher risk of damage. Then, just a few months later, came a huge leap: my first trip to Moab.

Before I went, I added a stubby steel bumper and a winch. No lockers. Still on 3.73 gears. And I went. We met up with some No Boundaries friends and had a blast.

Yes, I made rookie mistakes. But I also gained priceless seat time.

As Hollie Fowler says: “Seat Time Over Everything.”

Moab and the Value of Seat Time

In Moab, we hired Dan Mick’s Jeep Tours. Our guide coached us via radio while my wife and I took turns driving Hell’s Revenge. The next day, Richard Mick led us through Poison Spider. If you don’t know who Richard is, just search for the old Kia commercial where he drives a stock Kia through Hell’s Revenge. Yep. That guy.

He told us something I’ll never forget:

“Momentum is your friend. Speed is your enemy. The difference between the two is the void your credit card will fill.”

That quote has become the essence of how I wheel.

You Don’t Need the Biggest Build

35s used to be a big deal. Now they’re practically stock. If you’re not running 40s or Dana 60s, some people treat you like you don’t belong. I don’t buy into that. I think the best upgrade on your rig is the one behind the wheel.

The Rubicon Trail existed long before beadlocks and portal axles. The guys who ran it back then used finesse, brains, and basic gear.

I’ve heard interviews with one of the inventors of the original beadlocks, and even he says:

“There is no trail in North America that requires beadlocks.”

He also said something else that hit home:

“Back in the day, you had to learn how to off-road. Now, people just overbuild their rigs.”

I’ve heard similar takes from the original owner of Poison Spyder.

You don’t need the perfect rig.
You don’t need $20k in upgrades.
You need time, effort, and curiosity.

Just start.

I saw a post recently about a couple who made it through Black Bear Pass. They didn’t know what they were getting into, and they were proud of finishing it. Naturally, the comments section was full of guys puffing their chests about how Black Bear “ain’t nothing.”

Black Bear Pass is absolutely known as a beginner trail…with expert consequences. One wrong move and you’re done. So for someone new to complete it, it is a big deal.  Especially when they are non-offroaders taking what they thought was just an ordinary country road.

I’m not afraid of heights. I’m afraid of falling from them. So yeah, when I did Black Bear, or Engineer Pass, it was a big personal win.

If you want to start off-roading: just go.

Even before my Jeep, I had a Trailblazer with 4×4 and rear lockers. I took it places it probably didn’t belong. But I didn’t let that stop me. I wouldn’t have done that in my old Volvo 760 Turbo…but that Trailblazer? It got me started.

Ignore the noise.
Don’t wait for the build.
Don’t wait for approval.
Just go.

Even guys like Brad from Trail Recon recently “downgraded” to a Willys JL to get back to basics…to rediscover the joy of driving over buying.

Yeah, I know…this might sound a little like an old man yelling at clouds. “Get off my trail!”

But what really bugs me is seeing newcomers get discouraged by the peanut gallery. The so-called experts who want to feel big by making others feel small.

Forget that noise.

I’ve done more with my modest build than many guys with fully loaded rigs will ever experience. I’m living proof.

I didn’t even mention Windrock, Sedona, Sand Hollow, Padre Island National Seashore, Sierra Blanca, Croatan National Forest…all places I would have never experienced except for that mindset….

Start small. Start now.

That trail…literal or metaphorical…is waiting.
And it doesn’t care what tires you’re running.
Just that you showed up.

Related reading: Five Reasons You Should Wait to Modify Your Stock 4×4 and Renting a Jeep in Moab: 9 Things to Know Before You Go.