It was a six-hour drive from Arizona and a seventeen-minute search for the Holcomb Valley Ranch. The destination: Toyo Tires Trailpass 2023 in the mountains of Big Bear, California. As I drove southwest from my home in Prescott, Arizona, I passed the Grand Canyon State’s small, sparsely populated rural towns—places that most people have never visited or even heard of. Through Wilhoit, Peeples Valley, Skull Valley, Yarnell, and onward I drove. When I arrived in Parker, I bought a few groceries and carefully observed the cost of fuel increasing. $4.55 in Parker, twenty-five cents more than in Prescott—same state, same continent, same planet. I also reminded myself, chapfallen, that it would get even worse once I crossed that imaginary line. I cleaned the windscreen, topped off fuel, and shot over the river into California.
Excited, I hit a new road, or so I thought—the single-lane desert track stretching to Big Bear’s backside. On this arid highway, it was hard to imagine that my destination would be a place of freezing temperatures and snowfall. I spent quite a bit of time here in 2001 at the Twentynine Palms Marine Corps Base for desert warfare training. Much to my surprise, my father arrived in his Ford Bronco. He had driven in from Laird, Colorado—how did he get so far in such a short time? The old man and I had taken this road together on September 10, 2001. We all know what I awoke to the next day from a dead drunken sleep in my childhood bed in Southern California.
Finally, after going up the wrong mountain trail for a few miles, I arrived at the Ranch, home of Trailpass. I saw a familiar face, Jared Thieme, whom I had met at the Overland Expo. Jared was manning the entrance of the event and guiding those who had registered in advance into the venue. Just inside the gates, I saw a longtime friend from my teenage years, John Pangilinan. After a quick catchup, I followed John to where we would camp for the next two nights.
Unlike many other events, Toyo hosts Trailpass free of charge to anyone interested in attending seminars, seeing hundreds of custom off-road and overland rigs, and witnessing the creativity of those active in the space. The event is meant to be approachable for newbies and the most experienced adventurers. The last few years had a few obstacles, and dates changed due to pandemics and wildfires near Big Bear. However, this year went off without a hitch.
At the campsite, my Gazelle T4 tent went up in no time, and I laid out my Jorongo blankets for floor insulation, unpacked my sleep system, and began putting essential gear into the tent. Toyo already had the night’s festivities up and running. The grill was prepared to cook street-style hot dogs with all the fixings. The atmosphere was buzzing with excitement as crew and attendees greeted one another, mingled, and chatted. Though I only knew a few people arriving at Trailpass, I immediately felt like part of the crew.
As darkness fell, I retreated to my campsite to shake off the road, give myself a baby wipe shower, and settle in to relax. Soon, I saw the glow and heard the engines of a few vehicles arriving behind me. I was overtaken to my right by a Toyota Tacoma, a Lexus GX460, and a Jeep JL Wrangler. This crew set up shop next door, and we made introductions, quickly becoming friends. We pulled up chairs and libations and set the evening ablaze with laughter and stories, talking about trips, trails, and modifications. At midnight, we all decided to turn in and struggle to sleep through the cold mountain night.
Six o’clock came soon enough, and John was already out and about and brewing coffee. I could not wait to get that java flowing through my veins. As I peered off to the West, the full moon still hovered, looking like a shiny quarter tossed into the sky where it chose to remain, observing us all. At 9:00 a.m., the gates opened, and people and rigs began entering the event. The Saturday schedule was back-to-back with instructional demos and plenty of exhibitors for every interest. You could feel the family-friendly atmosphere, with wide-eyed children moving about excitedly, pulling their parents this way and between the booths and trucks.
Bill and Wendy from Trails 411 held a seminar introducing trail-spotting techniques. Wendy had excellent information for those new to the off-road world and highlighted some advanced methods. Linhbergh and Karissa of Gondirtin hosted a camp cooking demonstration. Linhbergh prepared what he called “Korean Army Stew.” Those in the crowd asked questions and admired the simplicity of the recipe, and they quickly formed a line to savor a hot bowl. At noon, I dropped in for the “Solar 101 for Vehicles” discussion hosted by XPLOR and Sunflare Solar. They addressed many topics surrounding the best way to design a solar system that works for any individual’s needs.
Later that day, Todd Bergenson, Senior Manager of Product Planning and Technical Services for Toyo, kicked off a review of all the off-road tires in the Toyo arsenal. Karl Osaki, also from Toyo, drove a nail and a screw into an AT/III tire they had on display to gasps from the crowd. Todd talked about specific tread patterns and grooves, sidewall reinforcing, snow rating, and puncture resistance, and spoke in detail about the new Open Country R/T, a hybrid all-terrain tire. He also explained the features and benefits of different tire models, what to look for when choosing a tire, and fitments and inflation pressures based on terrain surfaces.
I next attended a recovery clinic discussing using a Hi-Lift jack and winching safely in the wild. These operations can lead to tragedy if not done properly, so the proper technique is paramount. Todd Rogers of Four Points Adventure hosted the seminar. Todd has a lifetime of experience exploring American deserts and coastal regions, as well as being a member of the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Department search and rescue team.
Mike Casares of the Southern California Mountain Foundation offered a class on trail etiquette. Most of us, passionate about being in nature, at some point have encountered closed trails due to misuse and damage by those who forget or refuse to tread lightly. Mike demonstrated how damage to soils and vegetation leads to trails being shut down and how nature can take years to remedy the destruction.
MAK and Owen of Bound for Nowhere talked about their adventures and showed off their new Toyota Tundra build, which I had admired earlier. MAK and Owen are filmmakers capturing their life on the road, which they’ve been doing for years. The big moment came when they showed their newest film, which was beautifully shot. As their screening ended, you could feel the inspiration for new journeys among everyone in the crowd.
Finally, as the afternoon wound down, the moment that everyone was waiting for arrived—the raffle. Throughout the day, raffle tickets were dispersed among the event-goers. Tickets were given out for attending seminars, asking important questions, supporting the brands in attendance, or simply being awesome. There was a generous prize pool, with over $20,000 in prizes donated from Pelican Cases and Coolers, Camp Chef cooking gear, Stance Socks, Kuhl Clothing, Toyo, NOMAD Wheels, and FMS remote-controlled trucks. The crowd roared and laughed; they sighed; they yelled “Next!” when the lucky number was called, and crickets sang out. A small girl won the FMS R/C truck—a replica of a Toyota FJ40—and the box was bigger than her. The raffle’s MC, John Pangilinan, announced to the crowd, “She could actually ride in that thing!”
Later that evening, Toyo team member Chase Gardner kicked off his photography workshop with loaner cameras provided by Sony. Chase discussed lighting, the most important ingredient of photography, and outlined proper methods of shooting vehicles. He is a professional photographer and content creator, and his work has been featured in Tread Magazine. Kids of all ages roasted s’mores and watched The Super Mario Bros. Movie on the inflatable big screen. I retired to my tent and was in for another chilly night’s sleep.
The next morning, I went to the main event area for Toyo’s final shindig. I love coffee, and I love donuts, and both would be ripe for the taking. The cold was like no other—the previous night’s temperatures were close to 20˚F—and it didn’t feel much improved as the sun rose. Luckily, a bonfire was going, and hungry people began to amass, seeking breakfast. When it arrived, I didn’t think I had seen that many donuts outside a donut shop. With coffee in hand, a camera in the other, and a donut in my mouth, I filmed the feast. Everyone that I spoke with was genuinely happy about the event. As kids tend to do, they didn’t seem to notice the freezing temperatures and played and giggled and chased each other, filled with the power of sugar.
That was a wrap—my job was done. This event is a must for those in California or willing to drive to attend. The Toyo Tires Trailpass event was created to connect with outdoor and overland enthusiasts authentically, and I feel they have accomplished their goals. It is Toyo’s way of giving back to the community, providing education, information, inspiration, and lasting memories.
Read more: Field Tested :: Toyo Open Country AT/III
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