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I've been compiling a list of jeep adventures. These are just some that I've documented. There's  few more to add to the list, but this is good for starters. If you know of others, let me know.

1. Bantam BRC in 1940: The earliest documented trip occurred September 29th, 1940. That was the day the very first jeep—the original Bantam BRC constructed in only 49 days—was driven 270 miles from Butler, Pennsylvania, to the testing ground in Holabird, Maryland. It was an amazing accomplishment given the newly designed vehicle had been barely assembled, let alone tested.
2. Wolf Blint in 1945: Near the end of World War II, Wolff Blint escaped fighting on the eastern front by driving across Europe to Paris. He documented his story in his memoir, By Jeep To Freedom. The book is out of print and difficult to find.
3. Soldier and Bride Return from Europe circa 1945: An unconfirmed event, the story unfolds with a U.S. soldier marrying a woman in Europe following WWII. Somehow, he is able to secure a jeep. Together, the pair drive to a port in France or Germany, have the jeep shipped to America, and then drive the remainder of the route to the man's hometown in Illinois.
4. Ben Carlin in 1948-1958: In 1948, Australian Ben Carlin began a trek around the world by heading east over the Atlantic Ocean in a modified 1943 Ford GPA (a jeep made to float over water) named 'Half-Safe'. Over the succeeding ten years, Ben and Half-Safe traveled 50,000 miles over a period of ten years. His exploits filled three books, each book covering his voyage in different ways. Half-Safe can be seen in action in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-Gqi-RlbO0
5. Helen & Frank Schreider in 1954-1955. Helen & Frank Schreider first jeep ended in a failed attempt to cross Panama in a Willys wagon when their jeep was beat to death as they drove across a long train trestle. For their 1954-55 attempt, they purchased and customized a Ford GPA, naming it La Tortuga. Starting in Alaska, the pair traveled all the way to South America. Subsequently, they wrote a book called 20,000 Miles South: A Pan American Adventure in a Seagoing Jeep From the Arctic (A nearly identical version is published under the name La Tortuga). They also filmed some of their trip and toured the United States giving lectures about their experiences.
6. Three Boy Scouts Travel 44,000 Miles in 1955: Dubbed Operation Pineapple, three Sao Paulo Boy Scouts—Hugo Vidal, Charles Downey, and Jan Stekly—drove from South America to Alaska and back as part of their effort to attend the 8th World Scout Jamboree in Canada. The CJ-3B Page has an excellent overview of their trip.
7. Dorothy Rogers & Louise Ostberg in 1955-1956: Dorothy and Louise were two college professors from New York who met while traveling in Europe. They successfully circumvented Africa in a jeep wagon. Dorothy later wrote a book about their adventure called Jeopardy and a Jeep.
8. Joe Ceurvorst in 1956: Joe wrote a book called Africa in a Jeep about driving around the northern part of the African continent.
9. Roy Follows and Noel Dudgeon in 1958: Joe and Roy were two Colonial Police officers fighting Chinese Communists near the end of the Malayan Emergency. Ready to head home, the pair bought a Willys MB in February of 1958, then begin a long journey home full of obstacles, broken parts, encounters with unfriendlies and more. Their tale from Singapore to the United Kingdom unfolds in their book about the trip: The First Overland: Four Wheels and Frontier.
10. Jack & Doreen Shakespeare in 1958: Jack and Doreen drove their early wagon from Australia to England. Lucky for us, they filmed their trip. You can relive their adventures on youtube.
11. Helen and Frank Schreider in 1960: Ready to his the road again, Helen and Frank rebuild a second Ford GPA that they use to float the Ganges River in India. Their five month 1960 India adventure from the mouth of the Ganges to its source filled forty-two pages of the October, 1960, issue of National Geographic.
12. Helen and Frank Schreider in 1960-1961: On the heels of their India trip, the Schrieders, again with National Geographic support, tackled the breadth of Indonesia, a 17,000 island archipelago, going to places and completing a trip that few, if anyone, has replicated. Their 4,000 mile trip lasted a year. Their ability to shuttle between islands and over land took them to places no vehicles had gone. Helen and Frank wrote two subsequent articles for National Geographic (May 1961 & August 1962) and a second book, the Drums of Tonkin: An Adventure In Indonesia. They went on to work regularly for National Geographic, though their jeeping days ended.
13. Harold Stephens in the mid-1960s: Harold drove around the world in a CJ-5 and Toyota Landcruiser. He wrote about his experience in Who Needs a Road? Harold went on to become a travel author.
14. Dorothy Rogers & Louise Ostberg in the mid-1960s: In the late 1950s, Willys Motors introduced two Forward Control jeep trucks called the FC-150 & FC-170s. Dorthy and Louise thought the latter would make a great vehicle to tour the world. So, they bought one and set off on their second major jeep trip. Dorothy later wrote about their experiences in Highways Across the Horizon.

Photo courtesy of the Cranberry Eagle: https://www.cranberryeagle.com/2023/06/07/the-chase-for-the-inaugural-concord-cup-begins-at-bantam/

UPDATE II: On June 11th, eight different teams launched the race for the inaugural Concord Cup. One of the cool features employed is the map, which allows folks to follow racers: https://www.followmychallenge.com/live/epicwillysadventure/ . It also includes a REPLAY feature which allows viewers to revisit the race for all the days.

I was finally able to find some pics of the finish on Facebook, which shows two jeeps crossing the finishing line, one after the other:

The winner was "Rusty Trombone" with Adam and Steve. Close behind, coming in second(?) looks to be "Roos Racer" with Scott and Joe.

You can see more photos here: https://www.facebook.com/EpicWillysAdventure/photos

It sounds like the event went well and those participants who did report on FB seemed to be having fun. When I saw reports on Facebook, I republished them on eWillys FB when I could. However, as a casual viewer, my tiny critique was the difficulty of figuring out what was happening, who was ahead and, even, who won (eventually I tracked down the info on FB). Timd32 had a similar sentiment when he wrote on OWF: "From what I can piece together on FB, Instagram and the sort they are doing awesome".

Having done many travelogues over an eight year period, trust me that I GET the challenge! It is hard and time consuming to be a participant, then have post-drive fraternization, and also update readers with progress updates (my late nights-into-early-mornings in motel rooms with crappy wifi along the Alaska Highway attest to that fact), along with context for those readers who might, for example, not be aware of the event until day 3. In fact, when on the road with Ann, we tried to stop by 5pm so I could write updates (that would take hours), which is why we did little to nothing in the evenings (thankfully, Ann was usually worn out by then).

The only answer I can think of is a dedicated reporter along the way with a dedicated location for updates accessible to all, probably to a website (a surprising number of people still don't use FB). Myself, I don't use Instagram or TikTok.

Again, that's just a little critique. I'm glad to hear participants had fun and that the race was deemed a success. Based on the Bantam Festival's post, they'd like to see the event held again.

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UPDATE Posted Nov 9, 2022: Check on out this recent video that shares more information about this year's Concord Cup.

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Initially published June 22, 2022:

The 2023 Epic Willys Adventure 4 was announced at this year's Bantam Festival. This time, there will be new twists to the event, including turning it into more of a competition or rally. Text from the video post:

"@mrmaxbilt and @jonahmhodgkins laying out the details for EWA 4! Pseudo live. June of 2023 we will depart from @bantamjeepfest on a 2000 mile adventure up through New England in 40s-60s period correct Willys Jeeps! New twist this trip, it’s a race! A challenge. A rally. Each day, each rig, it’s driver and co-pilot will be timed from stop to stop, with an array of challenges to complete. All while keeping their Willys running and rolling. Best time overall at the end wins the coveted Concord Cup!

Applications to compete will open this fall and all the rules, regulations, and stipulations will be announced later this summer. Follow Epic Willys Adventure here on IG, on FB, and at epicwillysadventure.com for updates!"

Here's the video: https://www.facebook.com/EpicWillysAdventure/videos/710182950204126/?_rdr

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EpicWillysAdventure/
Website: https://www.epicwillysadventure.com

Claiming that Sunday was "Tow Hell" day might be a slight exaggeration, but I wouldn't call it a winning day either. Let's recap the last couple days as I've been so busy I haven't had time to photograph some of it.

I finally got the jeep running well on Friday after determining there was an air leak in a short piece of hose (let air in, but did not let gas out). I then timed it by ear and feel, rather than diagnostics, and that seemed to do the trick. On Saturday, I built a tow setup that utilized existing holes in the front bumper. I wanted some thing strong, but didn't want to drill into the bumper.

Once the tow setup was ready, I turned to the exhaust. I'd already had Ann go to a muffler shop to replicate the 1.5", 7' section of tailpipe I needed (thankfully I had an original end section leftover from one of the DJs to use as a template). I combined the tail pipe with a Walker muffler I bought off Amazon and some Oreilly's clamps and assembled the exhaust with relative ease.

I thought we were ready to head for Pasco on Sunday morning.

We spent the first part of Sunday morning cleaning up the garage. It was a bit of a mess! Once that was done, we hooked up Patterson and began slowly towing him. We didn't make it through the first intersection of my parent's quiet neighborhood before I realized that the jeep wasn't tracking around the corner. When I turned slowly right, it began to turn slowly left, forcing me to hit the brakes.

What the hell? I've towed a number of vehicles and never, ever run into this type of trouble.

We carefully tried a couple more corners and each was the same. The jeep began to turn the opposite way. I'd have to hop out and correct Patterson's direction. After a trip around the block, we arrived at my parent's house once more.

I pulled out my googler, but couldn't find anyone having a similar problem. I concluded the drag link/ross box was somehow interfering with the jeep from tracking properly. I did read were "Dr. Verne" (aka Verne Simmons) would remove his drag link to tow it, but my custom radiator made that strategy near impossible without disassembly of multiple items. I was just about ready to remove the drag link when I decided, on a lark, to unscrew the control screw(could be the wrong name for this) on the Ross box. My assumption was that this would loosen the Ross mechanism, freeing the drag link to spin the steering wheel more easily.

Sure enough, that strategy worked!

With that problem solved, at noon we started for Pasco. We drove for about ten minutes. We were on a two lane highway (Highway 18 for you NW folks) when a truck pulling a boat and trailer suddenly honked at us. Not knowing why, we pulled over immediately. He pulled in front of us. He got out and told me that one of our hubcaps had flown off and his truck had driven over it, making a nasty sound. Fortunately, everything checked out on his rig. Our jeep was fine, but we are now short a W hubcap.

Satisfied there was nothing wrong, we drove another ten minutes, hopping on Interstate 90 heading east. We got to the far end of North Bend when I thought it would be good to check out Patterson one more time. I wanted to make sure the hubs weren't hot. It turns out all the hubs were fine, but Patterson's right front drum was hot. The front right brake wasn't releasing properly. HMMMM

I got out some tools and loosened adjusted the brakes, loosening them  in the hopes that would relieve the pressure.

Just as I finished, a car pulled up behind us and a man name James Sprague inquired into the jeep, telling me that when he was younger he had a CJ-2A project that he never quite finished. Now, he said, it was time to get another jeep.

I told him that before he bought a jeep, he'd better sign mine. He got a big grin, took the pen, and signed it. This signing-the-jeep thing is gonna be a big hit!

We got back on the highway and drove until the next exit a few miles later. There, I pulled over to hand test the drum again. Damn, still hot!

I loosened one more time, then we went up the pass, pulling over at Snoqualmie Summit. There, I checked the drum again, but it was still too warm. I decided to pull the tire and see if I could pop the drum off (I didn't really think I would be able to do that, but it was worth a shot. No dice.

Ann was hungry, so she found some lunch at the summit, while I kicked back on the grass with Zollie (our dog). That's when a second guy sat down near me and began asking questions about the jeep. Ollie, having no loyalty whatsover, snuggled right up to the stranger.

As we chatted, I came to the conclusion that we should head back to Renton and drop off the jeep, then head to Pasco. Then, I'd return Monday night/Tues AM to redo the brakes. I broke the news to Ann and she was game.

We got Patterson back "home" and headed back to Pasco (we have an event on Monday we need to  attend). So, that's it for now. I'm sure there will be more updates to come this week.

My wife's been busy, too. Here's our cake-pan-turned-air-cleaner-turned artwork:

March was a complete blur. Last I remember there was still snow on the ground here in Pasco. Now, the snow is long gone, the trees are budding, and the temperatures have warmed. I'm amazed I got any eWillys updates completed last month.

Speaking of updates, here are a few ....

The Funeral:

I wanted to say a final thanks to everyone who sent us well-wishes on dad's passing. Anyone who has followed his story on here probably understands that, ever since his close call with death in 2011, all the years and time together since then have been a bonus. So, we were fortunate to have the extra time with him.

Thanks to perfect weather, my oldest son Karson and I drove Patterson to the funeral. The fact it was all back roads made it possible. I hadn't driven the jeep that far since the Alaska Highway, so I didn't really know what to expect. Still, we all agreed it was proper to have a jeep there, so we ignored the chance for a breakdown and drove anyway (but carried tow equipment just in case). The engine water temp gauge acted hot right away, so that made me a bit nervous on the drive, but there were no overheating signs, fortunately.

Just to make things interesting, the brakes were pulling to one side, so that made stopping all that more 'fun'. And, the steering box was a little looser than I'd like, as I'd back off the ross box screw for towing it (but had forgotten about that), so we wandered a little. Still, the drive and purpose were worth any of those inconveniences.

I gave a short eulogy at the funeral (a little longer than the piece I published here) and managed not to crack with emotion as I read it. That was a win. Then, Karson and I managed to make it all the way back home without breaking down. Another win.

All-in-all it was a relatively happy event. We all understood where Dad was at in life, so there were more smiles than tears.

The Memorial:

I know some of you will be joining us at Dad's Memorial. It is tentatively set for May 11th (a Saturday). The location has not been determined just yet.

Travels:

The only travel plan we have marked in our calendars is a visit to Utah in early May. My daughter Kasia is graduating from college with a Chemical Engineering degree. She already has a great job in California lined up working for a long-established industrial insurance company (so we'll be in the bay area at least a couple times over the next two years).

After that, we do not have any large trip planned (other than the White Rim trip below), though we are considering a September trip to Iowa to attend Dan's FC Jamboree in Iowa. We haven't traveled east that late in the year, so we thought it might be a nice change.

Canyonlands White Rim Trail:

My son Karson has invited me to join him on an exploration of the White Rim Trail in Canyonlands National Park in early May, so after Kasia's graduation, we'll head down there.

He's biked the length of the trail, but he thought I'd like to jeep it. So he offered, as an early birthday present, to rent a jeep in Moab and have us drive the trail's 100 miles together. It was a very thoughtful present and I jumped at the chance.

Image of the White Rim Trail from Wikipedia.

I guess that's all for now. I hope everyone is close to putting winter behind them and looking forward to some Spring weather!

<-- Day 17 - Mon. May 20th: Gettysburg and A Little Slice of Heaven  | Trip Overview | Day 19 - Wed. May 22nd: Old Cars and Chocolate Shots -->

TWO UPDATES From the original post:

1. We will spend Wednesday in Hershey, PA. We have plans for Thursday in Lancaster and Friday morning in Kempton, PA. From there we will be driving to Long Island on Friday and meeting up with my son (unless they ship him out to Oklahoma). We'll be staying in the Sea Cliff area through Tuesday morning and then driving up to Connecticut. I hope to have a map update in the next couple of days.
2. On Wednesday morning I finished version one of the Amber Panels of Konigsberg book (YEAH!). I still need to build one graphic and dump the text into the formatted book template, but then I'll be sending it to the publisher for printing. I plan to do a limited run of fifty books as a "Bantam Festival Special". LIke the last book, I'm sure there are a few errors that people will find. Once I fix the text, I'll open the book up for general sales (sometime in mid-July?).

On Tuesday we spent the day with Tom, then Merlin, then headed to Hershey, Pennsylvania.

After we left Gettysburg on Tuesday, we drove a few miles east to Tom's house to check out his Truck and Wagon. Tom's 1948 truck is his daily driver. He's added some disc brakes and a Ford 302, so it's got some power and stopping speed. He also rebuilt the entire rear bed and it looks great!

The wagon is a cheap beast he bought that his son now plays with. It's got lots of rust issues, but runs good.

Tom offered to buy us lunch at Scozzaros Old Mill Inn, so he and I took off in his truck, while Ann followed. We soon found ourselves traveling along the Lincoln Highway, which turned 100 years old this year.

At the restaurant, Ann and I enjoyed both our time with Tom and the food. I had a delicious steak sandwich and Ann had great tasting polish sausage sandwich. We both rolled away from the restaurant full from the portion sizes and didn't have to eat again until very late. Thanks for lunch and the present Tom!

* * *

From Tom's house, we drove down to Westminster, MD, where we met up with Merlin of Hanson Mechanical. Merlin and I have been exchanging emails for several years now and it was great to finally shake his hand and see his operation.

Merlin and I discussed some of the challenges of jeep restorations. One lesson he's learned the hard way was not to give any flat bids, because he told me you never know what problems lurk behind the differential covers, under the transmission towers, or beneath the dash. People seem happy with his work, because he's got as much business as he can handle (good for you Merlin!).

After we talked a while, we all climbed into Merlin's 1941 Slat Grille MB for a nice long ride through the hills of Maryland. It was Ann's first ride in a military jeep; naturally, she had a great time. The perfect weather added to wonderful experience. Thanks Merlin!

Editor's 2020 note: We got to spend a week with Merlin several years later during our 2017 trip to Alaska

Following our visit with Merlin, we began our trek north to Hershey. We arrived at the famed chocolate down late, but managed to find some sushi just at Wasabi Bistro just before it closed.

Tomorrow we play tourists in Hershey.

<-- Day 17 - Mon. May 20th: Gettysburg and A Little Slice of Heaven  | Trip Overview | Day 19 - Wed. May 22nd: Old Cars and Chocolate Shots -->

<-- Day 5: July 25, From Earthly Mountains to the Plains of Vulcan | Day 7: July 27, The Lonely Road Home -->

Today the four of us travelled from High River on Alberta's eastern slope to Grande Cache at the top of Jasper National Park. (See yesterday's post here)

Our goal for the day was to traverse the length of Banff and Jasper National Parks. Because we felt the drive would be a long one, we began the day at the crack of 8am. I know that doesn't seem early, but it sure felt early. The late nights are catching up to us.

Our first objective was to locate a mini SD card for our Go Pro. With few options open at 8am, we were forced to head north to the Walmart at Otokos. There, as I dashed inside to get a card, Fernando and Vidal drove to the gas station to get gas. Minutes later we pulled up behind them. Before I had a chance to place the gas nozzle into the filler hole, two kids and their father came over to tell me how cool the jeep was. I asked if they wanted to sign it and their faces lit up!

Once they signed, I began pumping gas. Meanwhile, Fernando and Hugo, who were in front of me, finished pumping their gas and waited for me to finish. About then, I began hearing a honking sound. Then another. Then another. I looked up from the pump and some woman was trying to get Fernando to drive away from the pump by honking her horn even though there were two other lanes open! No, she wanted the pump in front of me. Fernando tried to ignore her, but she was insistent, so he pulled out. Can you guess what she did?

Not only did she pull into the pump facing me, but she also pulled too close to the front of our Grand Cherokee. This meant I couldn't get out. Worse, she didn't care. She was oblivious to the world.

So, Ann jumped out, circled around the back of Patterson, and grabbed the steering wheel so I could slowly back away from her car. That woman never looked up to see what I was doing (again, lost in her world and unapologetic). She was, dare I say it ... a rude Canadian! (I know, I can hear the gasps from around the world). But, yes, the four of us witnessed that rare breed of Maple Leaf. I can now die knowing I've see it all!

Leaving Otokos behind, we only got lost once (my bad) on our way to Highway 1, which took us into Banff National Park. Now, for those that don't know, visiting the parks is free this year. It seems I'm not the only person to know this because their were cars and people all over! It was so crowded, that we had to skip places like the town of Banff, as my maneuverability towing Patterson is very limited.

After we split off from Highway 1 at Lake Louise and headed north toward Jasper, traffic lessened some, so that was good. But, there were few options for us to pull over. The trek through the parks just isn't well built for rigs towing vehicles or RVs. Eventually, I was able to pull off on the side of the road at one overlook, but cars were passing by at 55 MPH.

There were certainly some beautiful views, but in the end there was too much traffic and too few turnouts.

After we exited Jasper NP, we took the spur road to Grand Cache. That road was much more peaceful. And, it even had some nice pullouts.

When we reached Grand Cache, we quickly found our hotel. Almost as quickly, a gentleman wandered up to tell me he'd never seen a two-wheel-drive Wlllys before. I was surprised he recognized that, but he explained that he'd been a mechanic for 35 years, so he knew a thing or two about vehicles. I asked him to sign Patterson:

A little later in the evening our stretch of cloudless, sunny days came to an end as a small storm blew  over the town of Grand Cache:

On Thursday we have a short drive to Dawson Creek.

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OTHER UPDATES:

1. Russ and Cowboy saved the day by picking up Scott's parts from Ron Fitzpatrick (Team G503) in North Dakota and delivering them to him in Canada.

Engine parts delivered to the machine shop in Canada:

Below is a Facebook video created by Scott Schiller that about Scott's parts. Not all of you will likely be able to view it, but I only have a FB version of the video to share:

2. Marcelo and Dario made it to Edmonton last night. They are staying at the airport Renaissance Hotel through Friday until Andreas arrives by plane at 9:30pm.

3. Merlin and Joe drove from Plentywood, Montana, to Glacier National Park yesterday. Apparently one of the places they'd planned to stay on Wednesday in Plentywood scared them, as it felt like a big emtpy lot where people go to be eaten by clowns. However, a second campsite was a nice public campground. I'm sure their stay in Glacier NP was nice last night!

4. Bill and Jim continue to pass through the flat lands of central Canada. They're glamping tonight with the big busses and campers. He thinks Kevin might cut down one of the trees to make a fire!

5. I believe Scott and Bob were installing the engine last night. No updates at the time as they are too busy. We'll know more today.

6. Marty said goodbye to his wife and kids and he and Don headed up to Rob Stafford's last night. They will leave this morning.

Marty even made up this map so his kids could follow their journey:

Hopefully, we'll here good news from Scott tomorrow!

<-- Day 5: July 25, From Earthly Mountains to the Plains of Vulcan | Day 7: July 27, The Lonely Road Home -->

UPDATE: Jim Carter Dedication

This past Friday long-time family friend Jim Carter passed away from a brain aneurysm. It happened very quickly. Those that knew Jim from the PNW4WDA know he was a life long jeeper willing to help anyone. He was one of the first racers to install a welder in his motorhome, making him very popular with folks that broke down.

Jim grew up with my father and uncles in Salt Lake City. Jim's first "wreck" in a jeep came at the hands of my father around 1950 in the Olympus Cove area of Salt Lake (before the homes and the highway for those that know the area) when Dad tipped his CJ-2A on its side and Jim (who was in the back) fell from driver's side to the passenger side (That's a story Dad still likes to tell).

Jim lived just down the block from my grandparents on Walker Lane in Salt Lake. He helped build my grandparents house there, then later went to work for my grandfather at the University of Utah's Kennocott smelter (it was a mini-smelter on campus). As Jim said to me one day, "One thing I learned from your grandfather is that there's a right way to do things, a wrong way, and the Eilers way". So, when grandfather built the house, he Jim, Dad and my uncles bolt the roof trusses together. My grandfather was not about to have his roof collapse!

Jim's wife Patti went to school with my mother in Seattle. She and mom were both part of a group of girlfriends that still gets together, though they are short a couple friends these days. Patti's still alive, but struggling with alzheimers.

At some point in the early 1960s Mom, Dad, Patti and Jim all found themselves living in Seattle. I think it was Dad and Jim who figured out they were both dating two women who knew each other.

My parents small home wedding including both Jim and Patti. A year later I popped into the world and it was Patti and Jim who gave me my name. Four years later, it was Jim and Patti who invited mom and dad to the charter meeting of the Wandering Willys in 1969. It's entirely possible that without Jim and Patti, eWillys might never have been created. So, RIP Jim! Without a doubt you made a big impact on my life!!

As many of you probably remember, a couple months ago I posted my story about Jim's plaque, how it came about and how I acquired it. I'd like to run it again in his memory. I never got the chance to call Jim and share the news about his plaque.

Originally posted October 20, 2017

Scott Gilbert from Cincinnati called me last week. We talked about a few Alaska or Rust loose ends, then he asked if I'd seen a 100mph club plaque on eBay.

"No, I haven't seen that," I responded.
Scott explained, "It's a cool plaque with a Willys speedometer on it. I thought it was an unusual piece, so I've been watching it ever since the seller listed it at $100. It's now down to $20, plus $10 shipping."
"Well, that's definitely a better price," I told him.
"The strange thing is, I've tried to find out more about the plaque, but can't find anything. So, I figured I'd try you," he said. Then he asked, "Have you ever heard of the Wandering Willys Jeep Club or the 100mph club?"
"Well, as a matter of fact I have ...," I paused for a moment, then added, "My parents co-founded the club in 1969. So, I know that club pretty well. In fact, it's still around."
At this point I stopped. If Scott was listening carefully, he probably heard the creaking sounds of the gears in my brain slowly grinding, triggered by our conversation. Wandering Willys + 100mph Club. That sounded familiar. Then, I realized he was still talking.
"... and the Wandering Willys name is on the plaque and there's a person's name on it, too ..."
I stopped him, "Wait, I know the name! It says Jim Carter!"
He was genuinely shocked. "You are right, but how did you know?"
"Because I remember it. I was there the day Jim went 100mph in his jeep!"

Here's the story ....

The Wandering Willys Jeep Club was founded in 1969 in Seattle’s Eastside area. Jim & Patti Carter were charter members as were my parents, Karl & Marge Eilers (there were seven other charter members).

Karl had grown up with Jim in Salt Lake City and Marge had grown up with Patti in Seattle, so the couples were good friends by the time the jeep club was founded.

In May of 1982, I was 16 years old. The Wandering Willys Jeep Club was on a jeep trip with about eight members traveling to an area above Cle Elum, a small town in the Cascade Mountains along I-90 east of Seattle. We expected to reach some snow that day and sure enough we did.

Jim was driving his modified fiberglass flattie named Otis (my all-time favorite jeep). He was crawling over some frozen snow on the trail when it gave way and he sunk enough to where he was high centered. Attempting to escape, he tried spinning his wheels, but he was too stuck. At that point he realized there was no friction on the tires, so he slowly pressed the gas pedal. He made it up to 100 mph on his speedometer, before backing off the gas. But, he backed off too quickly, breaking his front driveline. It was a silly thing to do and he, not usually prone to doing things like that, found himself getting teased by everyone. The plaque memorialized the event and was probably presented to him at a later club meeting.

So, that might have been the end of it. I told Scott he was welcome to bid on it, as I didn't want to pay $30 for it. However, subsequently the eBay auction ended with no bids. So, following the auction, I wrote to the seller, telling him where and how he probably acquired the plaque, the story behind it, and the fact that I didn't think it was worth anything, but for me it had sentimental value. I wished him luck with the sale.

The seller responded, telling me he loved the story and wanting to give the object to me for free. I told him his offer was gracious, but I would only accept if I paid for shipping. He agreed, so I bought the plaque for a penny and paid shipping. It arrived a couple days ago.

So, for me it is a neat story and plaque, now with an even better history.

And, for a little Otis retrospective ... Otis circa 1969 as a truer CJ-3A:

Otis circa early 1970s:

Otis shortly after the new Parkette fiberglass body was sanded and installed, along with a new suspension.

A side shot of Otis stuck in the mud. That's Jim to the right and that might be Patti in front of him (I can't tell). The "supervisor" to the left in the white t-shirt is my dad. This is a late 70's early 80s photo.

UPDATE: See the second round of pics here

A reader named Paul contacted me today.  He mentioned he was working on a stainless jeep.  Would I like to see some pictures?

By now you know my response ... of course I would!  Well,  was I in for a treat.  Paul has got that unique combination of patience, welding talents, and ingenuity (check out his shifter knobs made from $5 stainless cups from a chinese restaurant).  He also seems to be a victim of the dreaded Willys sickness, which seems to coincide and peak with the dark Alaskan Winters.  So, for the last 23 years, Paul has been treating his Willys sickness by following the beat of his own drum as he rebuilds his (and his father's) 1952 M-38.  Here's his story and pics (Thanks for sharing Paul!):

My father bought an all original 1952 Willys M 38 in 1964 from a local guy here in Anchorage who purchased three Jeeps as military surplus.  The M 38 my father bought came with a full aluminum top and doors (commonly but incorrectly called an Arctic Top), a 20,000 btu Southwind heater with all the heating ducts, a built in gas fired engine and battery heater, and a 24 volt waterproof electrical system all coated with numerous layers of olive drab paint.  This was my dads everyday driver for eight years until it was finally replaced by a new pickup truck in 1972 and the Willys passed into my ownership for the sum of ONE dollar.  I got screwed on this deal, here it is 37 years later and I'm still dumping money into this never ending project.  Boy, if you want to really mess with a kid give him a Jeep and he'll be twisted for the rest of his life!

I drove the Jeep off and on (it broke alot and money was tight) until fall of 1985 when just about everything broke, quit working or caught fire but it did get me home one last time.  It was decision time, should I scrap it or perform a rebuild to end all rebuilds?   January 1st, 1986 was the day I decided to rebuild the Willys and make some much needed modifications so I could keep up with traffic and even have brakes that worked.  Geeze, this thing was so slow (5.38 axle gears and an anemic flathead engine) bus loads of Nuns were giving me the finger.  Everywhere I went it looked like I was leading a parade and I couldn't take back roads because there aren't any.  We're lucky to have the limited road system right now and there are no extra roads planned in the future.

I'd been drooling over Acme Truck Parts advertisements showing Stainless Steel Jeep bodies (I still have the magazine) so I ordered the complete body (tub, windshield, front fenders, grille, tailgate and floorboards) for the gigantic sum of $5,000 dollars paid upfront.  Lots of delays, problems and denials later the body finally arrived along with a new steel frame for $500 bucks plus shipping.  To condense this story down I spent the first five years rebuilding the body so the parts would fit before I modified the windshield to a vertical mount to match the original aluminum top.

The more I inspected the top the more hidden damage I found so I cut the top apart and duplicated each 50 thousandth thick aluminum piece in 50 thousandth thick stainless steel keeping the outside appearance original but modifying the interior so I'd fit in it better.  Since I'd duplicated the top it made sense for me to duplicate the doors, window sliders, hinges and door handles from stainless also.  I'd purchased stainless seats but I made my own fuel tanks and I put one under the passenger side instead of the original storage compartment.  That's why the Willys has a recessed fuel filler on each side.  I know, the original M38 had huge fuel caps but the only stainless caps I could find were normal sized ones so the filler neck is much smaller in diameter and the recessed fillers were built accordingly.

When I sit in the Jeep the top of the dash is below my knees so I moved the instrument panel above the windshield and fabricated an overhead center console filled with a CD player and lots of switches.  Between the seats is a pair of stainless cup holders (1/4" thick so I don't worry about them getting damaged), the ignition switch and a bunch of shift levers.  The normal three speed, Warn overdrive, four wheel drive and high/low range ... I call it a four on the floor!  The engine was replaced with a Buick 225 odd fire V 6, 11 inch drum brakes with hanging clutch and brake pedals, a hydraulic clutch slave and master cylinder and of course a five position stainless steel tilt steering column complete with a leather wrapped stainless steering wheel custom made by Ididit in Michigan.  The steering column alone has a heck of a story about it but that will wait for another time.  I'm just trying to give you a brief overview covering the last 23 years.

I'm not done, I'm getting closer but there's still lots of items left on my to do and to buy list but at least I'm closer to being done than I was 23 years ago!  Normally I don't like to say anything bad about my mom but I have to admit it appears she raised an idiot.

[Editor's Note:  Paul comments on the roof corners. The next four pics show the creation of a corner]   It took me four tries to make the first successful rear corner on the Willys top, the initial three attempts just irritated the metal and burned my fingers.  By the time I finally stumbled on the magic formula for making compound corners in stainless each successful corner took twenty hours to build.  The left rear corner (drivers side) is corner number four and the right rear corner (pass. side) is corner number five.  Naturally I had stupid people visit to see the progress on the Jeep, look at the corners and ask "What else have you done?"   I'm pretty sure it's ok to kill the really stupid folks among us, don't dumb people cause global warming or something?

[Editor's Note:  Below is the stainless cup transformed into a shifter knob]

The Goddess (that's my girlfriend, her name is Deborah but many years ago she told me to call her the Goddess so I do and she's still here) wanted to go out for oriental food since she didn't feel like cooking so we went to an All You Can Eat and Keep Down Chinese buffet.  Naturally she wanted tea but I had a Coke which I just about blew out my nose when I saw the waitress setting down double wall stainless steel tea cups on the table.  Not only were these tea cups the perfect size for gearshift knobs, the bottom of the cup had an embossed ring slightly larger than a nickel.  With a stainless nut welded to a stainless fender washer and this assembly welded to the teacup, the welds ground down and buffed, the new shift knob installed on the lever I finished this installation by attaching a Buffalo nickel in the embossed ring.  I really did buy these teacups from the buffet folks, it's kind of difficult to steal four cups from a table with only two people sitting there but I only had to give them five bucks each!  What a deal !  The big knob on the transmission lever was some kind of float for a pump operating in caustic chemicals which another friend found and gave to me.

[Paul didn't explain these, but this shows the transformation from stainless pieces into a door handle]

[Editor's Note:  You can see the old aluminum doors (right) and new stainless doors (left)]