7-21-07 wheeling

missouriman · #1 07-22-2007, 10:22 PM

did a trail clean up of a local shooting area.

went and did the trail jake up by johnson's sideing and nemo road.

at the end of the trail we were sitting there talking.
I smelled smoke and we all started to get in the trucks and get turned around.
that is when the smoke came rolling though the trees. The ash was all falling on us. the smoke got so thick we had our head lights on to keep track of each other.
We got out and headed for johnson's sideing to find out where and how big the fire was. we met several fire trucks and buses that were the hot shots.

planes and helicopters came in also. As of tonight it is only 20 percent contained.

It was pretty scary leading the group out as the smoke got thicker and ash fall increased. I was afraid at each corner that there would be flames. Once on the main road we could move alot faster then the forest service roads.

The Rapid City Journal

2ndGenToyotaFan · #2 07-23-2007, 12:21 AM

Scary man, we just had a 2500 acre fire about 10 miles north of us..... It's about out thankfully. All last week we were smoked in.

mudrunner88 · #3 07-23-2007, 12:58 AM

That sucks! Glad your all OK and you got out safely!

missouriman · #4 07-23-2007, 08:55 AM

The Rapid City Journal

missouriman · #5 07-24-2008, 02:11 PM

just looking through things..

I smelled smoke for real.. I told the group to get turned around and to not fawk around about it. I was standing in the back of my truck and yelling.
we had to get out and get out now. every one jumped at the task. there were several trucks parked about a mile away. I yelled we will try to save thier trucks, but they only had one chance to start it.

I have to add that we were doing 45 to 60 mph on the uninproved forest service roads..... halling balls to what we thought the trucks would take with out breaking... and pushing the breaking part alot..
I was trail leader and told them to go as fast as you can but don't fawk up or break. if so call out on the cb, and I would return.

I bet at a few points my truck was 1 to 2 feet off the ground.
like I say I was leading a group of about 10 trucks. hauling asss. I think that is the most scared that I have ever been in the forest.
I felt that every corner there was going to be a wall of flames that the topless jeeps would not deal well with.

really I was figureing that I could make it in a forest fire maybe 1/4 mile.. before the truck started to burn 1/2 mile at the most before stuff got to hot to continue, gas tank, running on rims, tires on fire.

I don't know how the lesser trucks kept up with me. but they did.. thank god. I felt that I was responsible for 20 some people. but at the end when the smoke was really thick and the ash was falling like snow..
I was really not sure that I would be ABLE to go back. HORRIBLE FEELING.

I remember (drifting) slidding side ways on the roads even with front and rear lockers... those guys gals in the lesser trucks did a total awsome job of keeping up.

as trail leader I have delt with many things. pisssed off people, broken junk, but that is the only time that I have ever been scared. with NO CONTROL.

when the thick smoke came, was not as bad as when the ash started to snow down. we were all ready on the move, but when I had to turn on the head lights and wipers to see where I was going that SUCKED...

I don't really remember a time when I was that scared for the group that I was with,,, one on one,, bad things.. yeh been that scared but this was a whole group.

but I will also say I have never had a group work together better then that before. everyone knew that we were in trouble.. no man or woman started doing the screaming out of control thing.. every one worked to one goal...... us getting our assses out of there.
I have never seen any time that 20 people work together so instantly to do the same thing get the same goal. It was awsome.
turn around,, 1 min... get going 2 min from start of this. I pulled off of the trail to make sure that everyone made it... there was a question on the cb about what way to turn. I was only about 5 seconds away. traveling at about 30 mph.. hit a tree and they were behind me again.

little tree, one of those 3 inchers that grow along the trail.. I do not condon that.. but with what was going on ,,,, yep I ran through a group of 2 or 3 inch trees.

stump runner · #6 08-14-2008, 09:40 AM

scarry! don't envy you even alittle. haulling azz on a dead end closed road is exciting, hauling azz to stay alive is another story. soooo glad nobody got hurt. as for that little tree.. cocidering the circumstances, i don't think anybody would hold it against you. driving through fire itself... yikes! besides the heat, not able to see, trees burn then fall, not alot of O2 for you or the engine either. i wouldn't want to go through more than i knew i could coast through motor off.
again, glad all are ok.