Featured Associate Member 2nd Quarter 2008

FunTreks Office	FunTreks Warehouse	FunTreks Research

It’s hard to believe that FunTreks is about to celebrate, in April, its 10th anniversary. It seems like only yesterday when I wrote my first Colorado book. At the time, I was working as a printing manager for a large company in Colorado Springs. I still remember running home on my lunch hour to pack books, sometimes 20 cases a day. Six months later, I was having so much fun with the book, I decided to quit my job of 18 years. Many people thought I was crazy. In one respect I was…crazy about 4-wheeling.

I worked out of my garage for a couple of years; then when I ran out of space, I hired a fulfillment company. That was okay for a few years, but 3 years ago I decided to lease a small office/warehouse and bring the fulfillment back in-house. Since then the business has grown steadily. I recently hired a top-notch marketing guy to take the business to the next level. He’s made substantial changes, including hiring three new full-time staff people. We now have the horsepower to market properly and publish more books.

I’m 62 now and my back is telling me I can’t do this forever. One of our new people is an enthusiastic young man who will help me scout trails and write books. He’s an experienced four-wheeler and a prolific graphic designer. I’m excited about all the changes we have in the works.

Even with the two of us working on books, we won’t be able to get done as much as we’d like. Consequently, we are developing a program that will involve hiring local scouts. As soon as we get the details worked out in the next few months, we’ll be posting information on our Web site.

People have been asking me for the last several years, when the Moab book will be updated. I’m happy to say it’s finally done. Last summer I re-drove all the trails and just took delivery of the printed book in February. A quick glance at the cover might have you thinking the book hasn’t changed much, however, it is completely new, inside and out. The entire book is in color with 335 sharp color photos and detailed shaded relief maps. I also added 10 new trails, including 2 new Safari Trails. The GPS is dead on.

Finally, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who have helped me over the years. I started wheeling 14 years ago and it’s mind boggling how many friends I’ve made. Unfortunately, now that 4-wheeling is my job, I seldom have time to go out just for fun. This situation should improve now that I have some help. Until then, keep the rubber side down.