Pearl: The Oddball 2 Door XJ

After 250 miles of mostly dirt and slickrock the new ax15 is doing great. I didn’t know how loud my old transmission was until I drove with the new one. Shifts great, and the new shifter is pretty nice too. Dixie 4wd took great care of me. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to anyone needing work done.

Unfortunately this week has been pretty tough. On Sunday I ran Poison Spider with a friend I made who works at the hotel I’m staying at. He rolled his sxs on a big optional ledge and his arm got caught under the cage. It ripped the skin and muscle off down to the bone. We rushed him off the trail to a waiting ambulance at the parking area. They medivac’d him to Salt Lake for reconstructive surgery. The first operation was yesterday, next one is tomorrow. Seeing the accident and his shredded arm was a sobering moment. My first aid kit didn’t have anything that was able to help. I’m definitely ordering a better one after what happened.

If there’s any upside to this accident it’s probably the people we met on the trail that helped out with getting him off the trail and with the recovery of the sxs. OHV users are some of the nicest people around.
 
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After 250 miles of mostly dirt and slickrock the new ax15 is doing great. I didn’t know how Louis my old transmission was until I drove with the new one. Shifts great, and the new shifter is pretty nice too. Dixie 4wd took great care of me. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to anyone needing work done.

Unfortunately this week has been pretty tough. On Sunday I ran Poison Spider with a friend I made who works at the hotel I’m staying at. He rolled his sxs on a big optional ledge and his arm got caught under the cage. It ripped the skin and muscle off down to the bone. We rushed him off the trail to a waiting ambulance at the parking area. They medivac’d him to Salt Lake for reconstructive surgery. The first operation was yesterday, next one is tomorrow. Seeing the accident and his shredded arm was a sobering moment. My first aid kit didn’t have anything that was able to help. I’m definitely ordering a better one after what happened.

If there’s any upside to this accident it’s probably the people we met on the trail that helped out with getting him off the trail and with the recovery of the sxs. OHV users are some of the nicest people around.
Hate this happened and prayers for a speedy recovery. Thank god he wasn’t alone on the trails and you were able to get help quickly. Every time something like this happens it refreshes in my mind about trail safety and to keep all my parts inside the vehicle.
 
It’s a scary thing to think about, let alone witness. Thankfully he landed on sand. If it were rock he wouldn’t have his forearm.

Just got an update. They still haven’t operated due to the swelling and infection. He may lose his thumb because of the muscle decay. Doctors are hoping to operate on Friday.

I’m not sure it’s appropriate but I have helmet cam footage of the entire accident from one of the people in our group and can post it if enough people want to see. Definite graphic warning though.
 
It’s a scary thing to think about, let alone witness. Thankfully he landed on sand. If it were rock he wouldn’t have his forearm.

Just got an update. They still haven’t operated due to the swelling and infection. He may lose his thumb because of the muscle decay. Doctors are hoping to operate on Friday.

I’m not sure it’s appropriate but I have helmet cam footage of the entire accident from one of the people in our group and can post it if enough people want to see. Definite graphic warning though.
Personally, i think you should let the friend make that decision.
 
Sending prayer they'll be able to operate ASAP and he won't lose his thumb.

Although I want to see the footage and understand exactly what happened, I've got to agree with @GotWood that it should be up to your friend if he wants his accident publicly shared.
 
Personally, i think you should let the friend make that decision.

After thinking about it more, I agree. He’s in great spirits about the whole accident, but I’m not going to even ask him or post the video. It’s inappropriate. My initial thought was it would serve as a lesson for all of us but I think that can be much better explained in words than over a video. Until this happened I immaturely thought that things like this wouldn’t happen as long as people acted responsibly. I was wrong. I figured the video may act as a shock to others as well who had the same thoughts to encourage them to be better prepared.

None of us had anything super useful to patch him up to get him off the trail. We had to use shop towels and electrical tape because none of us had a kit with more than basic bandages and antiseptic. A good first aid kit is a must. The one thing I did notice was the immediate response everyone had. After they drug him out from under the sxs they had a tourniquet on his arm in less than 30 seconds. Quick thinking really helps in situations like this.

Dude just had his thumb amputated today and he is still smiling and laughing. Helluva strong spirit to still be upbeat in a situation like that. He’s coming back to moab tomorrow for a couple days before surgery happens next week. A couple of us are going to work on his jku this weekend so he has something easy to drive while he’s healing. Brakes need work and it has some wiring problems.
 
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With all that said, does anybody have a recommendation on a good first aid kit to buy? Would like to get something soon as a good base to add to.
 
With all that said, does anybody have a recommendation on a good first aid kit to buy? Would like to get something soon as a good base to add to.

You are better off building your own. Get a good bag to put it in and then buy stuff for in it. Unless you spend big money on a pro bag all the consumer ones are not much more than band-aids and aspirin.

I have one I have assembled and carry in my truck to the range and put in my jeep when wheeling.

It has basic stuff in it like band aids and benadryl. You can get a tourniquet from many places but be very careful with them. They can do more damage than good. Get some feminine hygiene pads they are great trauma dressings. Also get some clotting powder to stop bad bleeding. I also have a glucose meter, glucose tubes for diabetics, blood pressure cuff and stethoscope, and a ambu bag in mine. Things like ace bandages and tape are also good along with a couple of sizes of sam splints.
 
I don’t have any stories left, but I have plenty of pictures to dump from some after-work ‘splorins. Just got back from getting firewood, headed to the mountains tomorrow after work to get the first camping in of the whole trip.

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I have a funny habit of somehow finding mud wherever I go. Went up La Sal Pass in search of snow to blow off some steam from a frustrating day at work. I found some, but I also found lots of mud. I had to grab 2nd and let er eat in a couple places to get through some deep rutted drifts, which ended up digging me down to the mud underneath. Needless to say the people in town look at me weird with the only muddy Jeep in the area :flipoff2:

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Y’all harder-core wheelers should like this better than the camping stuff. Went and met up with some social media friends yesterday and ran a trail called Gremlin. Pearl doesn’t look the same as she did at the trailhead but she made it out with little mechanical damage besides a chewed up driveshaft seal. Some electrical tape got me home. Rockers definitely did their job and the winch worked great. I had to use it about 6 times :lol: Did I mention the trail is less than a mile long?! Supposedly nobody has ever gotten an open diff xj through here before :rockon:

Both unibody rails are dented now, so it will be time for full stiffeners and some long arms when I get home. Both bumper end caps are now broken and the bumper hits the hatch after landing it hard on a rock, my passenger tail light is cracked, most of the wheels are chewed up, and the tires don’t have much red letter left. Still had a blast.

My friend up in PA is pulling the spare Aussie locker out of a d30 he’s storing for me so it can get shipped here. I’m headed to Idaho Friday for my next project. That will take me to about June 22nd. That following weekend I’m hoping to head to Tahoe to run the Rubicon. Hopefully things will fall into place so I can make it happen.

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Y’all harder-core wheelers should like this better than the camping stuff. Went and met up with some social media friends yesterday and ran a trail called Gremlin. Pearl doesn’t look the same as she did at the trailhead but she made it out with little mechanical damage besides a chewed up driveshaft seal. Some electrical tape got me home. Rockers definitely did their job and the winch worked great. I had to use it about 6 times :lol: Did I mention the trail is less than a mile long?! Supposedly nobody has ever gotten an open diff xj through here before :rockon:

Both unibody rails are dented now, so it will be time for full stiffeners and some long arms when I get home. Both bumper end caps are now broken and the bumper hits the hatch after landing it hard on a rock, my passenger tail light is cracked, most of the wheels are chewed up, and the tires don’t have much red letter left. Still had a blast.

My friend up in PA is pulling the spare Aussie locker out of a d30 he’s storing for me so it can get shipped here. I’m headed to Idaho Friday for my next project. That will take me to about June 22nd. That following weekend I’m hoping to head to Tahoe to run the Rubicon. Hopefully things will fall into place so I can make it happen.

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Thats awesome! What do you do for work that takes you to these great locations?
 
Thats awesome! What do you do for work that takes you to these great locations?

I’m a self employed contractor that merchandises True Value hardware stores. I go in and set up the stores with product and displays. I got my foot in the door with a large franchisee chain that has over 150 locations in 9 western states and they’ve been keeping me fairly busy this year.
 
I’m a self employed contractor that merchandises True Value hardware stores. I go in and set up the stores with product and displays. I got my foot in the door with a large franchisee chain that has over 150 locations in 9 western states and they’ve been keeping me fairly busy this year.
That is a god durn lie , your job is Living the DREAM!
 
I’m a self employed contractor that merchandises True Value hardware stores. I go in and set up the stores with product and displays. I got my foot in the door with a large franchisee chain that has over 150 locations in 9 western states and they’ve been keeping me fairly busy this year.
Need a helper?
 
I’m a self employed contractor that merchandises True Value hardware stores. I go in and set up the stores with product and displays. I got my foot in the door with a large franchisee chain that has over 150 locations in 9 western states and they’ve been keeping me fairly busy this year.

I wish there was a True Value store near me. Growing up as a youngster I remember going to a True Value a few tones over with my Dad On a Saturday afternoon. That store was awesome!
 
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