The trip was off to a great start as we left our shop in Corona at 4am. Eager to get on the road for our 16 hour drive up California to Oregon. We were loaded up with our M2 Freightliner with 3 Can-Am Maverick X3’s in tow. Little did we know the adventure we were about to have.
5 hours into the drive and the dreaded check engine light came onto the dash. After a few hour wait for a mechanic and some decoding we found out there was an issue with the DEF system, gotta love California emission regulations. After a reset by the mechanic we were back on the road to the nearest Cummins Service Shop in Stockton. They determined the part we needed with only one problem. It was a three day wait for the part.
That’s where things get really interesting, it was 4:55pm with every business closing at 5 and we needed a way to knock off over 500 miles. We started calling every rental location looking for anything to tow or load a couple UTVs onto. Finally Penske came through in the clutch with a 26 foot stake bed and a 16 foot box truck. After a quick unload of the M2 and even quicker loading of our new fleet of Penske vehicles we were back on the road to Oregon.
Last year we came up to Winchester Bay Dunes for Dunefest and everyone told us we had to comeback for UTV Takeover. A gathering of thousands of UTVer’s in the Pacific Northwest like no other. This was the first time for us to head to the Coos Bay dunes in Oregon and what a pleasant surprise it was. A massive expanse of dunes in the midst of towering trees and blue lakes.
This 18 mile stretch of dunes has something for everyone. With 100 plus foot dunes to twisting berm courses miles long to over-grown tunnels of trees and bushes where you’ll be constantly readjusting your mirrors from branches. There’s plenty of jumps to cure your appetite for air and once you’re thirsty there was plenty of lakes and ponds to skim across. Just when you think you’ve seen everything you pass through a row of bushes and wind up on the beach, a perfect place for lunch and enjoy the sea breeze. Over the course of three days we covered 175 miles and never touched the same trail twice.
On top of the epic terrain the event had a slew of other activities throughout the weekend. From barrel racing to a long distance wheelie contest to sand drag races to a full blown sand short course. The event concluded with an insane long distance jump off the peak of one of the dunes. Thousands of people lined the landing of the jump to watch UTV’s fly through the air. Drivers would take off from the sand drag strip, round a corner and go full speed off the top of the dune. 3 rounds of jumps and one man stand alone, Al Macbeth took the win after launching an impressive 188 feet over 50 feet further than the next competitor.
With the event winding down it was time to get our Penske caravan back on the road south to Stockton to pick up our fixed up M2. A quick switch over of all of our gear and we were on our way back to Corona. Officially pulling into the driveway at 10pm finishing up an epic UTV Takeover, which we can’t wait to go back to next year.
Words and Photos by: Casey Currie Racing
