Scaled Up: Moab Edition!

The first of it’s kind; A never-before-seen excursion for RC Enthusiasts, Scaled Up: Moab Edition, and it was a raving success! I was among 16 enthusiasts who came together from all over the county to join Troy & Casey Loftus from ScalerFab on an all-inclusive getaway exploring Moab’s most iconic trails from behind the wheel of a real offroad Jeep!

The event kicked off with a welcome reception for all of the guests, which included sandwiches and snacks, beverages, and of course…swag bags! We were surprised with some fabulous items from the amazing sponsors including our Scaled Up event T-shirts expertly printed by Fuelish Outfitters, Black Forest Gear Hoodies, TeraFlex Suspensions hats, Bartact keychains, Team KNK hardware packs, Pro-Line Racing Scale Accessories, Cbercfab link tabs, #FYTWwear multitools, and of course, a full set of ScalerFab Trail Armor! We got to know each other and enjoyed a pretty laid back evening before returning to our rooms to prepare our RCs for the days ahead.

After breakfast bright and early the next morning, the Scaled Up Events partners at Twisted Jeeps gave us the rundown on the Jeeps. We all picked our trusty steed for the day and caravanned over to the first trail, the scenic Fins ‘N Things. After riding on the south loop, we then went straight over to Hell’s Revenge and started our tour on the slick rock. Note- the rock was actually very grippy, unlike the name would imply. We all even got a chance to put it in neutral and let loose on the rollercoaster, though come to think of it, some might have opted for a more reserved decent.

Our lunch break for the day included catered and personalized bag lunches along with a combination of RCing at The Overlook and riding down and up Hell’s Gate, a staple obstacle on the trail not normally accessible to those in rental Jeeps. In Guide KL’s capable hands, everyone who wanted to got a chance to ride-along for the adrenaline-pumping steep descents and inclines.

After lunch, we were lead to a preset RC course, sponsored by RC4WD, which provided a challenging fun run for us and our RC rigs. Once we had had our fill, we proceeded to another obstacle not for the faint of heart, The Car Wash. TheCar Wash, for those who are not aware, is a deep gaping hole at the top of one of the overlooks. By the time you reach the apex of the preceding hill and level out, you’re practically already going into the carwash, so really we all just had to commit. With the help of our awesome guides at Twisted Jeeps, everyone got through safely and had a blast (there were only a few passengers who did anything but look!).

Finally, we headed towards Dragon’s Tail where we were greeted by a rather discomforting sight- a wrecked truck that had rolled down the very same obstacle we were approaching just a day earlier. Needless to say, we were extra careful down that incline!

Once at the bottom, we enjoyed an ice cream on the trails, thanks to the Black Forest Gear fridge/freezer Troy & Casey had in the jeep! It kept the treats nice and frozen despite the trek through the desert. Ice cream dessert in the desert = yum!

To end our trek through Hell’s Revenge, we crossed through a beautiful pathway they called “Hell’s Kitchen” and got back out on to the slick rock where we climbed to a popular resting place to look at dinosaur tracks. After taking in the moment and envisioning what the horizon would have looked like back in prehistoric times, dinosaurs roaming in the distance, we all piled back in the jeeps for the final trip back to town.

Once we got our “ground legs” back, we all met up for a nice BBQ dinner, sponsored by the great people at TeraFlex Suspensions. After dinner, everyone was pretty much wiped, so it was back to the suites for hot tubbing and to charge batteries and prepare for another day of adventure!

Saturday morning, we enjoyed breakfast at the hotel and hopped right back into the jeeps to head to the Poison Spider Trail. It being the 2nd day, all us drivers were even more empowered behind the wheel as we climbed our way up the switch backs, over the stairs, and to the waterfall (a cascading rock obstacle). At the wedgie, a v-notch section of the trail, Troy released the drone and got some good overhead views of all the drivers making their way up. (well, until he went crashing into a tree…all was ok- he had extra props).

From there, we continued down the Poison Spider fork to our end point for the day, the arch. Here, we all enjoyed top-of-the-world views of Moab and surrounding Canyon lands while eating our delicious catered bag lunches.

After lunch, the TeraFlex Suspensions-sponsored RC course cones were set and we got to explore through the sandy brush forest to a hidden cave, or continue up the rock face to the top overlook/arch. Out of 16 people, only one was brave enough to climb down and across the arch, risking a 7-800 foot cliff on the side (Way to go Kimi!).

Once everyone had had their fun with the RC rigs, it was time to start the trip back out, which meant going down many of the obstacles we had climbed previously. Let me tell you! Going down is totally different than going up! Yes, you can actually see what’s in front of you (vs sky when climbing up), but then you also have to watch while you slip and slide your way down, holding on for dear life. Luckily, we had the expert guides from Twisted Jeeps to lead us down the right path!

When we got back in town, we had a few minutes to freshen up before the big Celebration Dinner at Moab Brewery, a local favorite with a full menu of delicious options! About 20 New York Strip Steaks and Prime Ribs later, we went back to the shop for dessert and door prizes! When I say door prizes, you don’t realize just how much product everyone of us 16 attendees stood to win! We each won a prize bag full of goodies from Bartact, Pro-Line Racing, Jax RC Recycle and Repair, Teraflex and some ToyZuki’s Fabrication gift certs mixed in. Once everyone received a prize bag, Troy & Casey put all the names back in for the big ticket prizes, a fully upgrade RTR Axial Racing SCX10 II CRC Jeep with Flysky radio, Scale Milestar Tires Patagonia Tires by RC4WD, a full set of #ScalerFab Trail armor, and 2 RC4WD Gelandes to name a few! They also had some trail gear from Teraflex and a Black Forest Gear Fridge/Freezer! The biggest prize of all was a full set of (5) Milestar Tires, up to 37″. What is awesome moreover about this prize, is the winner was Sean Larmond, the first person to jump on board with the event as an attendee AND a sponsor (Jax RC Recycle and Repair, LLC)! Sean was also gifted the event banner- he supported ScalerFab with this venture instantly, so they presented him with the banner as a thank you for believing in this crazy adventure!

Overall, I couldn’t be more overwhelmed with the pure magnitude of awesomeness that was the event. If ScalerFab had a goal to show RC enthusiasts the excitement and exhilaration of getting behind the wheel and off-roading in one of the most iconic locations in the world without having to worry about the details, then it was mission accomplished! They absolutely knocked it out of the park! They took care of absolutely EVERYTHING and their dedication to the success of the truly one-of-a-kind experience showed in every second of the day. I will be stalking their website for any slight hint of a future Scaled Up Event.

No one will ever be able to host an event as epic as that one time 16 folks traveled from all over the country to experience an event like no other, one that combined our love for RC with the thrill of real offroading in Moab!

Scaled Up – Moab Edition #missionaccomplished

Stay tuned for the full-length documentary film on WORC – World Of Radio Control on Amazon Prime TV- Now!

Thanks, again to all of the insanely generous Sponsors:
RC4WD
Teraflex
Bartact
Milestar Tires
Black Forest Gear by Webasto
Pro-Line Racing
Axial Racing
Team KNK Hardware
Jax RC Recycle and Repair
CBE RC Fab
FYT Wear

…and of course, to ScalerFab and Twisted Jeeps for this EPIC adventure!

Words By Matt Brauer
Photos By Jason Memmer