20th Annual Dixie Run Report

September 29 - October 1, 2006
Nantahala National Forest,
Upper Tellico OHV Area
Murphy, North Carolina

  20 Years !!!     Yikes!
                  It's hard to believe it's been that many, but it's true.

For Dixie Run #20, we planned a great event and that's exactly what we got! More friends, more events, more kids games, more trail riding, and of course more Jeeps, Toyotas, Fords, Chevys, Land Rovers, Scouts, etc, etc.!

We invite you to look through the following pictures and stories to get a taste for the event. If you were there this year, we hope you'll come back. If you weren't there, come on down next year!

Report by Stefan Roth

The Georgia Bounty Runners kept Registration going smoothly!

Lining up for a Friday morning trail ride.

On trail 9, shortly before Hard Rock.

Trail 12

VP Gary Parsons presenting an appreciation award to Greg Griffith, coordinator of Dixie Run.

The judges for the Thursday Night Cook-Off display the trophies to be handed out.

BF Goodrich Outstanding Trails Award

At Dixie Run, BF Goodrich Tires made a presentation to Southern Four Wheel Drive Association for our efforts in trail conservation. BFG's donation totaled $4,000!

In April, BF Goodrich Tires, in conjunction with Tread Lightly and United Four Wheel Drive Associations (UFWDA), announced the launch of its Outstanding Trails program. The Outstanding Trails program highlights some of the best off-road trails in the country and is dedicated to the responsible use and preservation of these off-road trails and will aid in the effort to keep these trails sustainable.

One of five nationwide trails selected is Upper Tellico OHV Area, Trail #4, located in the Nantahala National Forest in North Carolina where Tennessee, South Carolina and Georgia meet.

Click here to read the full press release.

Low-Range Magazine

Expect Low-Range magazine to carry a full story of Dixie Run in an upcoming print issue. They had a stack of complimentary issues at the registration desk and the magazine looks really good. The magazine specializes in east coast events and trail riding - in other words, stuff that is closer to home for us than any of the other magazine. To subscribe, go to: www.low-range.com

Rock Crawl Challenge

The 7th Annual Rock Crawl Challenge was again run by the Extreme Ridge Runners in Crawford's Campground. The rocks were as big and unforgiving as always. The winners in the three classes were:

Our New Truck

Southern Four Wheel Drive Association recently acquired a new truck to be used for trail maintenance purposes. It's a deuce-and-a-half, formerly an Army truck.

It's on display here in our headquarters campground, being used by Gunnar Byrd to haul firewood for the campers.

Kids Games

We always say that we run a family-oriented event and we mean it! Off Camber 4WD organized so many different kids games, it makes one want to be a child again. Among many other activities, we had a rock crawl competition with remote control trucks and a kid sized Grave Digger.

Take a look at a few of the activities on Saturday in the campground:

Eating, Eating and More Eating

Yeah, we like eating - so much so that we now serve several meals in our campground.

Both Friday and Saturday, breakfast was served by Steve "I'm retired" Crawford and a local womens group. Great breakfast, served hot as long as you ate it quickly on the very cold mornings!

Saturday dinner was served by Rock Solid Jeep Club. They'd never taken on a commitment to serve nearly a thousand people, but they pulled it off. Dinenr was good ole Southern “Meat ‘n Three” including bread, dessert and beverage. The menu was ham, roast beef, cole slaw, whole kernel corn, italian green beans, potatoes, pinto beans, rolls, grandma’s cookie, lemonade, and tea.

We also had a Pot Luck dinner on Thursday night where people shared their food.

The Cook-Off was also on Thursday night. We started this event last year on the spur of the moment and got several interesting entries. So we decided to do it again this year with a bit more notice. The entry classes were:

• Best Presentation – Only need to have 1 serving with enough for 3 judges to taste.
• Best Item – Need to have enough for 3 judges to taste.
• Best Meal – One full meal with enough for the Judges to taste
• People Choice - Contestants are encouraged to prepare enough food to allow for sampling by spectators. The votes by the spectators will determine the winner of the "People's Choice Award."

Sponsors and Supporters

It shouldn't be necessary to say this, but we'll repeat it anyway. Our Dixie Run would not be possible without the generous support of many vendors, clubs, and individuals. The vendors attended Dixie Run to display their products and get input from enthusiasts just like you on their products. Many of them generously donated products to our door prize give-aways and we thank them for it.

Please patronize these vendors and manufacturers when considering products for your 4x4 vehicle.

Silent Auction

by Nancy Berry, www.tellico4x4.com

The Tellico4x4.com 4th Annual Silent Auction at this year’s 20th Annual SFWDA Dixie Run again raised much-needed money for trail conservation efforts. Over the past four years the Silent Auction has raised thousands of dollars. All of the proceeds have been donated directly to the Southern Four Wheel Drive Association to help fund trail maintenance, conservation, promotion and education.

The Silent Auction has been a success because everyone wins. SFWDA members get great deals on items, distributors and manufacturers promote their products to hundreds of people, and SFWDA gets all of the proceeds.

Tellico4x4.com would like to thank the many manufacturers and distributors that donated to this year’s auction, and asks that SFWDA members keep these guys in mind when looking for parts and accessories in the future.

Getting ready for Saturday night's festivities.