Should I look for EB or RB vans with 4x4?

[Jeffrey]

Seth,

Yes, it's a compromise. I know I won't do what I've done before, but I'll have comfort I never had. I've been doing tough trails for a real long time and I feel fulfilled. The idea of still being quite remote AND real cozy is sounding good to me in my mid 50's.

Mike Wilson from Creston, CA was kind enough to visit me in SB with his 4x4 RB-50. The wives chatted about the interior and it's features while Mike and I went over everything. What a nice guy. I knew I was close, but after that I was sold. Sent in my deposit to SMB the same afternoon.

The best way to compare and EB vs RB on trails is to run both on the same trails, and that is exactly what was done at the SMB 4X4 Rally in Silverton last summer. In the past SMB seperated the RB and EB vans as they felt some trails were too severe for the EB but this was not done last year. There was not a whole lot of diference noted on the EB being hindered. Yes, I saw a few crushed backup lights and lots of scrapes, but no one got hung up. Driver skill and tire diameter was the biggest factor. i have an RB with 35" tires and was purposely looking for hard lines to drive and never hit once on some pretty ledgy stuff. I doubt an EB could have followed me w/o some damage or even getting hung up with the rear tires clawing air.

I full time in my RB and find it roomy enough for myself and my Golden. I doubt that I would feel comfortable in either an EB or RB if I was a family of four, whether full timing or just for a few weeks. But if your trips are usually just a weekend I don't think storage would be much of an issue. Other options come to mind: the roof mounted storage boxes allow a lot of extra stuff as long as the weight is kept low, and the SMB off-road trailer practically allows you to carry everything, and it is very off-road capable as long as you don't have to back up.

In 2005 I did a trail in Colorado that was a very serious 4X4 trail with one of those warning signs that say "for experienced drivers only in high clearance short wheel base vehicles only". I was told if I could get past a certain difficult section the rest would be no problem. So I walked in to this part and decided it was pretty sketchy, but doable, so I started up the trail. I got past the hard part and breathed a sigh of relief, but it was premature as the trail never let up all the way to the top of the pass. For those that may know CO trails well this one went from Marble to Crystal then looped back to Marble. The section about 1 to 4 miles above Crystal was the hardest. It was so narrow there was one point were I wanted to get out for a photo but there was a very long drop right at my door edge and a cliff face on the other... no safe way to even exit the vehicle! This trail was no place for an EB, and at the max limits of an RB. If I had known in advance I would not have driven it, but once started there was no way to retreat, as backing a van would be impossible, and no place to turn around. Besides, I was challenged, but often thought "This is my home, be carefull!