Different Name, Same Event
Once upon a time there were these things called magazines. Remember those? You’d get one or more in the mail every month, or swing by your local newsstand and grab the latest issue and quickly devour the latest and greatest information regarding the subject matter that the magazine focused on. If you are an off-roader, those magazine likely included titles like Petersen’s 4Wheel & Off-Road and Four Wheeler; if you’re old school they might have also included 4WD & Sport-Utility, Off-Road, and maybe 4×4 Power. That’s where it all started. At least, it all started with the guys who were running those brands at the time and who to this day are still involved with what is now Unreal Adventure.
The Genesis of an Icon
Back in 1999, Cole Quinnell was the Editor of Petersen’s 4-Wheel & Off-Road magazine, but he was actually a Hot Rodder at heart and had formerly served on the Hot Rod Magazine staff. During his tenure at Hot Rod the staff came up with this idea of a long-distance cruise with stops at drag strips along the way. Power Tour was born and it proved to be extremely successful. After launching a new off-road magazine titled, 4×4 Power, Cole took the helm of the company’s flagship off-road brand, Petersen’s 4-Wheel & Off-Road and applied the basic idea of Power Tour to the off-road world, and thus an event called Ultimate Adventure was born.
Soon after its inception Cole moved up in the ranks within Petersen Publishing and Rick Pewe took the reins of both the magazine and this new event. Rick ran this event from 2002 to 2015 and as a result he is responsible for many of the rules and traditions that made the event unique. Pulling off UA is something of a logistical nightmare, so Rick started inviting a few volunteer helpers to support the event. These guys were all highly experienced ‘wheelers that were familiar with the event and its format, and they were hand-picked by Rick to assist with whatever needed doing, from pulling winch cable to assisting with repairs when there were inevitable breakdowns. These guys were called Rick’s Old Cronies, and the name stuck.
Ultimate Adventure continued to thrive and grow under Rick’s stewardship, making it one of the most sought after and exclusive events in the off-road world. It even rivaled Top Truck Challenge, a competition held by then-competitor Four Wheeler Magazine. Each year there were hundreds of applications to join, and each year a lucky few were chosen to join this trip of a lifetime. Rick transformed Ultimate Adventure from just an extended trail ride event to a truly unique experience. When you throw a bunch of challenges and adversity at a group of people and they step up to meet those challenges, participants emerge with a sense of accomplishment and for many a fresh look on how they approach off-roading. They often started leaving trailers at home, traveling longer distances, and going on longer trips instead of just weekend excursions. It’s often said that imitation is the best form of flattery, and there are a number of events held today around the country that are run by event alumni and based on many of the same principles as Ultimate Adventure.
Inevitable Changes and Stormy Horizons
Through the years the ownership of the magazine and its staff changed many times, but in 2016 Christian Hazel took the helm of 4Wheel & Off-Road. An editor with over 20 years of experience at a variety of off-road titles, Christian was more than qualified to take over this flagship magazine and its much-beloved event. Christian was actually involved in the very first three Ultimate Adventures so as a result, Christian knew how unique the event was and sought to maintain its 17-year history irrespective of internal corporate pressures to change or potentially eliminate it. In 2017, Christian shoulder-tapped Cronie, Trent McGee, to do the route planning and guiding for the event. As one of only two guys that had been on every single Ultimate Adventure to that point, Trent understood better than most what was required for success and how the event needed to work. Trent jumped in with both feet and was so successful that he’s been doing the route planning and guiding ever since.
Meanwhile the winds of change within the company that owned the magazines continued to blow, resulting in first the elimination of the actual magazines and later the staff who operated and contributed to them, with Christian’s departure closing the door on the last off-road employee at the company. But at its heart, Ultimate Adventure was never about the corporation that owned the name of the event. It was about the people who put their hearts and sweat equity into building, maintaining, running, and supporting the event that any off-roader or outdoor adventurer aspires to be a part of. Moving forward, Trent and Christian intend to keep the spirit of the original event alive while doing a variety of things to make it a better, bigger, more enjoyable experience for the audience who loves to follow along, from greatly expanding the media coverage to adding some elements to keep the excitement for UA going throughout the year – and not just around the event.