Your Van Wants to Go Off-Road

It can be intimidating - to anyone. I’m supposed to air down my tires? To what? I’m supposed to drive over that? Exactly how? I’m supposed to not get stuck? But what if I do? 

I was honored to be asked to add the education leg to the 1st ever Fernweh Camp Her-Way all female adventure weekend. Camping right next to the Harpeth River at a private offroad park, Bells Reserve, TN, in the lush greenery, it soon became apparent why it was so green: It rained all weekend!

I’m supposed to get through this mud? What if I spin out? How do I get traction? I’m supposed to be able to go up and down this trail? What if I am too tall?

In true Event 101 fashion, the best-laid plan…gets thrown out as soon as the event starts! There was still morning yoga, a heartfelt inspirational speaker, fly casting, tea making, great food and amazing live music around the campfire, all in true TN fashion. But, with an evil laugh, because of the rain I got more time than was on the original docket to teach about taking your Storyteller Van offroad. I was happy, and the ladies were too.

The morning of the first day I busted through 3 important topics super fast, as we raced the rain that was quickly coming in. How to use GMRS Radios, how to use Google Maps and OnX Offroad in satellite view and offline mode, and the concept of 4WD vs AWD and what is the definition of true 4WD. [Do you know? A 4WD vehicle is actually 3WD until both sets of lockers are engaged.]

We broke for lunch and took the opportunity for everyone to experience airing down their tires. At that point, the base layer of information had been laid and it was time to jump into the Storyteller vans and hit the dirt! We took off to the obstacle course where there was a seemingly simple set of obstacles…until it got rainy and muddy! With a perfectly timed break in the rain the first couple vans made it through, then we decided to “Tread Lightly!” and bring everyone together to converse about how this obstacle should be handled instead of continuing to tear up the space. It’s all about traction! [What are multiple traction options that you can use ~ in the wild and in your vehicle? Yes, even the kitchen mat!]

The rest of the day we went on a beautiful drive around the property focusing on hand & feet placement, gear selection and 4WD. Of course, the reason we bought our vans to overland and go offroad is to enjoy the beauty of the space, and we sure did that! The river was flowing with the added rain as we saw turtles jumping off logs into the water. We got to ford a water crossing and drove by a waterfall that I bet is much more impressive during the winter months.

We landed back at a house where the rain hammered down outside, but inside we dove more into the entire drivetrain and ‘followed the power’ from starting the vehicle - all the way out to the tires. Ask anyone there and I bet they can recite the whole system! My theory is: you don’t have to know how to fix and work on everything in your vehicle, but at minimum you need to understand the component parts to feel confident communicating the challenges that you’re having to someone who can help you. 

Saturday we dug into recovery. Although no one in the class had a winch on their van, a couple acknowledged they wanted one, and all said they wanted to learn about them. So we did math. You know - physics, geometry, weird multiplication…all the things that we didn’t pay attention to in high school! We dug into the basics of how winching works and launched our minds to different levels considering how to execute with the tools in the recovery box. A lot of higher level thinking, so when faced with a challenge, the details can fall into the theory gained. 

Next up was tires ~ I always save the best for last! Not only are tires sexy, but these big black things that go round-and-round are the only things touching the ground therefore, super important. We drive to protect our tires, but we also have to consider that there will be a day when we have to change one. After breaking down tire elements and how to be an intelligent consumer, we took on the scary task of changing a tire. Especially as women, this can be intimidating, but by the time we were done EACH lady had taken a 37” tire off and put it back onto my Jeep!! The anticipation was high, and the high-fives were aggressive, the giggles were exactly the way it should be at the end of a moment when our confidence outweighs the voice in our heads telling us otherwise. We always overcome! 

Watch for Fernweh to offer another all ladies weekend opportunity in the future. If you attend any of the Overland Expos, please look up my schedule of classes and attend one (or all!) of them! Let’s uplevel you for your next dirt adventure!

Charlene Bower is a nationally recognized off-road educator and founder of Bower Motorsports Media and Ladies Offroad Network. With over 30 years in the offroad industry, she has built a career around empowering others through hands-on education, media, and community connection. Charlene is an I4WDTA Certified Trainer and Tread Lightly! BOD and Master Tread Trainer, who is qualified to teach advanced vehicle recovery, driving techniques, and responsible land use. She leads in-person and online training programs across the country designed to make technical off-road skills approachable for all experience levels. Her educational approach blends real-world experience with humor and a passion for helping others grow in confidence and capability. www.CharleneBower.com