If you have never experienced Glamis on a Thanksgiving weekend then you need to add it to your bucket list. With that said, some people who frequent Glamis Dunes may tell you otherwise. The crowd is too big, too many people riding, the dunes get chewed up, its too dangerous, the cops are harassing people, etc. Those are the typical negative comments about Thanksgiving weekend. But there is a reason so many people head to Glamis on this big weekend. This is the one weekend a year where you will see Art Mann walking the sand drags filming for his funny TV show, Robby Gordon & BJ Baldwin ripping their Trophy Trucks with paddle tires all over the dunes putting on a show, the fastest & most highest of end sand cars shredding up Oldsmobile hill and arguably the sickest collection of sand toys in the world all in one place! Glamis Thanksgiving is the super bowl for duners who frequent Glamis, and much like last year and many years before UTVUnderground.com was on hand to witness the fun, excitement, mayhem and carnage!
This year was special for us in that we were able to partner up with Can-Am and put on a consumer party on Saturday afternoon. We gave out over 300 hot dogs and showcased race cars from factory Can-Am race teams including Murray Motorsports, Marc Burnett of MB Motorsports, and IMG Motorsports. Marc Burnett brought out his fleet of FreestyleMX.com rigs which took our party to another level, having a stereo system that when cranked could be heard down at Wash 10! Can-Am customers as well as regular dune enthusiasts were able to cruise in, eat some food, get some free swag and hang out with us and the crew. At 3pm we rounded up a posse of Can-Ams and rode hard to Oldsmobile hill and then onto the coveted afternoon Sand Drags! It was a great way to cap off a fun day and a great weekend.
In addition to our party, Can-Am also hosted Demo Rides as well as a repair garage for consumers who had minor mechanicals to their Can-Am Machines. It was cool to see Can-Am participate in Glamis and be a part of the biggest weekend of the season.
Anytime you get this many people and this much horsepower into one place there is going to be some carnage. Unfortunately every major holiday in Glamis has some unfortunate accidents and this weekend was no different. One sand rail fire early in the week took a life and then at Oldsmobile Hill on Saturday another big sand rail lost control and shot into the crowd causing numerous injuries and we heard even another death. These accidents remind us that while Glamis and off-roading is certainly a fun family oriented sport, it can still be extremely dangerous. We encourage everyone who reads this to not only say a prayer for those injured and gone, but also keep in mind that when you go riding you need to not only be aware of your surroundings, you must also take into account your own actions and how they may not only affect you and your loved ones but those others who are around trying to enjoy themselves and the sport they love.
2013 Glamis Thanksgiving for us was a total success and other than the few blown belts and a few minor roll overs (you know who you are lol) the UTVUnderground crew enjoyed the weekend injury and carnage free. The riding was epic as always, our kids thrived riding their bikes around the camp and our evening camp fires were festive and exciting. UTVs in the dunes never get old, they only get better especially as horsepower and suspension increases. Ripping the bowls and launching the lips makes riding the dunes some of the most fun you can have when riding off-road. We can’t wait to get back to the dunes, and you better believe we will be back in Glamis next Thanksgiving to partake in the chaos all over again!
Words by: Joey DiGiovanni // UTVUnderground.com
Photos by: Ernesto Araiza // UTVUnderground.com & Dylan Osmonson
