Overland Expo East 2021

[JeepingMike]

Had a great weekend at Overland Expo East. Participated in a bunch of classes, all well done and well balanced to review for the experienced and teaching for new stuff. It did seem like a leaning towards bigger, more, fancier stuff. I'm keeping it simple and basic. Picked up a few things, some necessary, some upgrading/improving (I'll post about them later).

 

[Old Tanker]

Had a great weekend at Overland Expo East. Participated in a bunch of classes, all well done and well balanced to review for the experienced and teaching for new stuff. It did seem like a leaning towards bigger, more, fancier stuff. I'm keeping it simple and basic. Picked up a few things, some necessary, some upgrading/improving (I'll post about them later).

My wife and I also had a great time. The 7P classes were the highlight, and we'll come back for their recovery series next time around. Many of the displays were pushing higher end gear, campers, and trailers. In camp, most of the questions we got were at the basic end - what's a good tool bag? Where do I get those boxes (Frontrunner wolfpacks)? Do you like the Gazelle?

Positives, oddly enough, include impressive work by the port-a-john crew. We hated the bright stadium lights shining through our camp all night. I wish we had group campsites where we could have met regional OB members.

 

[BuckinghamBuilt]

I ended up making it a day trip on Friday but I enjoyed it and plan on staying a few nights next year.

A few observances/opinions:

• Weather- can't control the weather but it was in the low 70's with a bit of humidity. I'd like to see them push the event back a week or two for cooler weather
• Pet friendly- The wife and I loved the fact we could bring our dogs with us and there were quite a few other pets at the event
• Food- Not many food vendors so next time I'll pack more than just some snacks (of course I did bring some beer and Trully's :)

For those that stayed, a few questions:

• Trailers- I saw a few campers onsite and I thought there was a limit on size. Did this rule change or was the Expo being lax?
• Campsites- Can't really tell based on pics so how spaced out are the campsites and are they all out in the field with no tree cover?

 

[JeepingMike]

For those that stayed, a few questions:

• Trailers- I saw a few campers onsite and I thought there was a limit on size. Did this rule change or was the Expo being lax?
• Campsites- Can't really tell based on pics so how spaced out are the campsites and are they all out in the field with no tree cover?

As far as I could tell, there was either no limit or enforcement of size. Similarly, the space allotted seemed to be fairly related to your needs. The guy parking us when we arrived asked how much space we needed for the tent, and seemed to be picky about how close each rig was parked, but in reality we got more that we needed, just as it seemed others did. And no shade.

 

[Kent R]

My wife and I also had a great time. The 7P classes were the highlight, and we'll come back for their recovery series next time around. Many of the displays were pushing higher end gear, campers, and trailers. In camp, most of the questions we got were at the basic end - what's a good tool bag? Where do I get those boxes (Frontrunner wolfpacks)? Do you like the Gazelle?

Positives, oddly enough, include impressive work by the port-a-john crew. We hated the bright stadium lights shining through our camp all night. I wish we had group campsites where we could have met regional OB members.

7P is a class act

 

[mamalone200]

For those that stayed, a few questions:

• Trailers- I saw a few campers onsite and I thought there was a limit on size. Did this rule change or was the Expo being lax?
• Campsites- Can't really tell based on pics so how spaced out are the campsites and are they all out in the field with no tree cover?

I was camping in the Overland Experience area, and they really seemed to try to cram us in, I had enough room but just barely. I had maybe 8-10 feet on each side of my vehicle. Of course, I got friendly with my neighbors so it really wasn't a problem. I wish that they would let you reserve specific campsites so that you can camp next to your friends without having to arrive together.

As for trailers, I know there were rules but I think they kind of ignore those during check in as long as it's nothing ridiculous. I didn't see any 5th wheel campers or anything.

Overall though, Expo was a great time. I really enjoyed the 7P training, and surprisingly feel like I got a good value for my money.

 

[John Bishop]

We were the last arriving they let in Friday eve for camping. What should have been a 3 hr drive turned into a 10 hr adventure when the Jeep had to be towed to a dealership in Harrisonburg for a clutch slave cylinder failure. Because we arrived late, there was no one really to direct us where to go. It kind of worked out as we ended up by the pond on the end of a row. Yes, the floodlights were a bit annoying….
Overall we had a really good time. Left the expo Sun afternoon and headed into the woods for a night of quiet and dark camping.

 

[mamalone200]

clutch slave cylinder failure

I swear that slave cylinders wait until you are hours from home to go out. It happened on my buddy's JK twice, both times we were out on trips and hundreds of miles from home.

 

[John Bishop]

I swear that slave cylinders wait until you are hours from home to go out. It happened on my buddy's JK twice, both times we were out on trips and hundreds of miles from home.

I’m just very happy that it gave up the ghost at an interstate rest stop and not out in the middle of nowhere AND that the dealership was able to work on it that afternoon.

 

[Moebius01]

Had a great weekend at Overland Expo East. Participated in a bunch of classes, all well done and well balanced to review for the experienced and teaching for new stuff. It did seem like a leaning towards bigger, more, fancier stuff. I'm keeping it simple and basic. Picked up a few things, some necessary, some upgrading/improving (I'll post about them later).View attachment 212326

Ok, that's pretty funny for the "small world aspect". We were literally right across from you in the red Wk2. In fact, I had taken this picture as I was amused at being a lone Wk2 literally surrounded by flavors of Wrangler, and the one Taco next to me.

 

[JeepingMike]

Ok, that's pretty funny for the "small world aspect". We were literally right across from you in the red Wk2. In fact, I had taken this picture as I was amused at being a lone Wk2 literally surrounded by flavors of Wrangler, and the one Taco next to me.

Wow. Hi neighbor!