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It was August and the sound of raindrops on the road, roof, and mud tires were all that could be heard at the Expedition X Off Road (EXO) sponsored, Group Therapy Airborne in Ohio event. We were standing at the starting line of a 3.5-mile track at the Phoenix Off Road Park in Wintersville Ohio begging for more.
This particular track was designed, prepared, and tailored to test the limits of high-speed, off-road trucks. Trucks like the first and second generation Ford F-150 Raptor, 2017 Toyota Tacoma TRD PRO, and any other with upgraded suspension.
Dirt Therapy 101
Trucks lined up for the event included Ford Raptors, F150’s, and Toyota’s.
We were preparing to watch the next truck head out on the trail Gordon Brown, from EXO, asked us a question. Is the weather always like this in Ohio? During this time of year, yes, this is about it. As we continued our conversation about how west coast wheelers don’t care for mud and east coast guys can’t deal with the heat I was reminded of what made this event special.
"The jump always gives you that same gut feeling," James Dunn n a Silver Ford Raptor said. "Defying gravity in a 6,000-pound Raptor keeps you coming back for more."
Expedition X Off Road (EXO) is an organization formed by wheelers for wheelers. They started organizing runs in California and Nevada in 2014. They have now grown to host custom Baja tours, group therapy runs all along the west coast, and national group therapy events as far east as Ohio. For most event participants the idea of a west coast organization, with so much experience organizing and completing runs, and the fact that the event would take place in Ohio added an element of interest.
Many of the participants enjoyed having the chance to run their trucks on the track at night.
“We’ve never really had a goal for an area to cover or a territory to operate from,” EXO co-founder Matt Richards explained. “Our plan from the start was to try to pull off as many events as possible through the help of friends and all of the connections we’ve made along the way.”
“We wanted to do all this while enjoying the hobby that originally pulled us into it,” Richards continued. “We have hosted events in California, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Nevada, Mexico, Canada, and now Ohio. We’re always looking for new ways to connect with our followers and supporters, and what better way to do that than to come east for a change?”
Garrett Shaw, a Silver Raptor owner, loved the track. "The track was tight and twisty but still had some good areas to really what the Raptor could do," Shaw explained about the 3.5-mile course.
During a recent group therapy Barstow event, EXO linked up with Phoenix Off Road Park operator Joe Scugoza and a partnership was born. “We decided to give it a shot to see what the east coast is like,” Richards said. “In addition, we thought it would give us an idea of what additional events could potentially be if we decided to pursue more in the future.”
Participants at the event braved the elements and the track to push their vehicles and driving skills to the limit. Despite the challenging course and environmental conditions, breakage was minimal and was easily handled by participants along with the staff on site.
Dante Terenzi, in a truck that started life as a 2010 FX4, tells us about the moment before he hit the jump “as we rounded the corner, standing on the gas, my copilot says; Well, I guess we’re not slowing down for this one.”
Keith Podulan, of K.P. Motorsports, came out for the occasion and to enjoy some dirt therapy in his Raptor. “I’ve known Gordon Brown and Matt Richards for seven years,” Podulan explained. “Expedition X Off Road is a great group of guys and they always put on awesome events.”
Keith Podolan and daughter Casey were all smiles after landing the highest jump of the weekend.
“As far as breakage, we broke an exhaust hanger that the rubber was dry rotted on,” Podulan continued. “Our lack of breakage is in part to having the proper parts on the truck and extensive truck prep. It also doesn’t hurt to have a purpose-built track.”
Keith Podulan’s purpose-built Raptor is able to land a jump and keep on going.
We asked Keith what his favorite part of the event was and he said, “as always with EXO events it’s great meeting new people and making new friends. We would participate in any EXO event again in a heartbeat.”
First-time EXO event participant, and 2017 Toyota Tacoma TRD PRO owner, Jason Hipsher summed up his first time, by saying, “Hanging out with fellow attendees Matt and Nate Shirley was really fun, and I can’t wait for the next one.”
We gave each other some crap for SEC versus Big Ten football, but it was all fun and competitive all weekend. When asked about his favorite moment from the weekend Hipsher shared, “hitting that last jump for the first time really fast, not realizing it was so steep and experiencing the exhilaration that the truck could handle it was my favorite moment.”
Walter the dog taking a quick nap between runs on the track, and chasing drones.
Also, the last thing I would add is that everyone there was really great and accepting seeing it was almost all Ford Raptors. I never felt like we weren’t welcome having a different model truck. Can’t wait to do it again and hang out with everyone!”
Evenings where spent hanging out by the fire with friends and dogs.
The importance of friendship and of enjoying common interests was both shared and felt throughout the event. Whether participants were hitting the track for some serious wheeling, hanging out at the huge bonfire area, or sharing a meal. All participants had a great time at Airborne.
Items donated by EXO sponsors were raffled off by Gordon Brown on the last night of the event.
Matt Richards summed up their intent for this event with something we can all agree on. “With every run and group event we host, there’s always one positive outcome that remains consistent,” he said. “Meeting new faces, bringing friends together, and sharing an incredible experience with like-minded people is what it’s all about. We can all personally say we’ve met some of our best friends, which have become lifelong friends, along the way.”
With the exception of a few flying fender flares and an almost lost tailgate, there was very little damage on any of the trucks participating in the event.
EXO has big plans for the future of their events. “As for ambitions, we’d love to say this is a business that can scale and grow into something worthwhile, allowing us to quit our day jobs, but we know that’s far from realistic unless we dramatically change the user experience and increase cost,” Richards said. “That’s not what we’re about, so, for now, we’re happy hosting runs that are low-cost or free in the USA, as well as our all-inclusive Baja runs in Mexico. We just enjoy helping bring folks together to experience the same magic we did, which has led us to where we are today.”
When asked about possible future runs on the east coast Matt responded, “Though we’re not actively searching for new East Coast locations at the moment. Finding future locations for runs out East will largely rely on word of mouth, and of course the help and expertise of our local supporters.”
We enjoyed our time with EXO at Phoenix off Road Park and cannot wait for the next adventure. Would you head out to an event like this? Tell us in the comments below!
