| These days, you have to blaze your own trails | | | | can get mighty grimy mighty quick, so be sure |
| in order to avoid slogging through traffic. | | | | to slap on some truck mud flaps first. |
| But you can't just start motoring your pickup | | | | |
| through a stranger's backyard naked. You need | | | | For the urban off-roader, I have just 2 words |
| to have a plan of attack and a few | | | | for you: train tracks. Any set of railroad or |
| accessories along for the ride because things | | | | trolley tracks is ideal for getting across |
| can get mighty hairy. Here are my thoughts | | | | town in a hurry. A few warnings, though: |
| for all you intrepid traffic-phobes out | | | | public transportation is notorious for making |
| there. | | | | frequent stops, so be sure to leave plenty of |
| | | | room between yourself and that big steel |
| Traffic is a lot like jury duty. The only | | | | sausage in front of you. Also, this technique |
| people who have to suffer through it are the | | | | can get a tad bumpy, so I don't recommend |
| ones who don't have enough sense to dodge it. | | | | eating a Slim Jim while you do it, unless you |
| Now, we all know a million and one ways to | | | | have no gag reflex. What's more, tunnels can |
| thumb our nose at civic responsibilities, but | | | | get damn dark, so I'd suggest adding some |
| getting out of gridlock requires some | | | | Piaa lights onto your truck. That and a set |
| higher-order thinking. I mean, you can't just | | | | of sturdy shocks are about all you need to |
| show up at the freeway onramp nibbling on a | | | | start up your very own Blue Line. |
| raw hotdog without any pants on and expect | | | | |
| everyone to get out of your way like they do | | | | Well, those ideas should give you a good |
| down at the courthouse. Here are a handful of | | | | starting point for figuring out how the best, |
| ideas on how you can creatively make your way | | | | most reckless method for steering clear of |
| around town without ever having to idle away | | | | traffic. The only other nugget of wisdom I |
| on an overpass. | | | | can impart on all of you budding automotive |
| | | | anarchists is this: don't skimp on seat |
| As people move farther and farther away from | | | | covers. You'll be going where no pickup was |
| the cities, suburbs and exurbs looking for | | | | intended to go, so you'll be hitting plenty |
| affordable housing and safer streets, rural | | | | of uneven terrain. All that rocking while |
| roads are becoming more clogged than a | | | | you're rolling will ultimately lead to some |
| teenager's pores. Thankfully, there's no more | | | | nasty spills, and the only thing worse than a |
| fertile ground for plotting out a stop-and-go | | | | big smudge of barbeque sauce on your leather |
| free commute than The Sticks. Anytime the | | | | upholstery is sitting in traffic. Happy |
| thoroughfare gets swamped, just pull off the | | | | Trails. |
| shoulder, drop into 4-wheel drive, and gun | | | | |
| it. Don't let front yards scare you off, | | | | Choosing the right resource for car and truck |
| either-gravel can be re-raked, clothes lines | | | | accessories can be important and so that you |
| will be found eventually, and mailboxes are | | | | are not using your Blackberry whilst driving, |
| always on sale. The only downside to | | | | I would recommend the following: seat covers, |
| rough-riding through the mud is that your rig | | | | Piaa lights and truck mud flaps. - David S. |