Hey OB family, this is Brandon with my first post. My first vehicle ever was an 88 Jeep Cherokee and I've been a Jeep fanboy ever since. I have been wanting a Wangler Unlimited pretty much since the first one hit the pavement, and finally bought a 2010 JKU Sport a couple of months ago. Like a lot of new Jeep owners, I hit the internet and started watching all the Youtube channels I could. I already knew I wanted to take this thing off road as it's meant to be, but thought of myself as more of an explorer rather than a "rock crawler" and ultimately became obsessed with binge watching the "iamjake" channel. (shoutout to
@Jake Wettern | iamjake for all of the inspiration one could ask for)
Fast forward a few months, I'm not avidly watching all kinds of overlanding videos and following the channels, and decided I'm going to take the Trans-American Trail from the east coast to the west coast and am giving myself 6 weeks to do it so I can properly document, film, and write about the trip. I just received my Overland Bound emblem and am excited member #8207 officially today.
Will be a budget build mostly, and so far I've only upgraded the front bumper which will support the winch I'm buying this week. Repairs so far have included exhaust, front and rear brakes, CV joint, and front axle U Joints. So far I've added a heavy duty recovery-style front bumper and will be ordering a winch this week. Planned mods are roof rack, rear bumper and tire carrier, 2.5 inch lift, 35 inch tires, dual battery system, and armor.
Will be looking to start day 1 of the trip in May, and will spend some extra time in Colorado to hit trails that aren't part of the TAT. I'm happy to have the support of an awesome community, and while I'm a bit of an introvert, I expect to be involved in the forums here and overlanding events leading up to my journey.
