Skyjacker Celebrates Its 50th Anniversary at Easter Jeep Safari
The year is 1974. Blazing Saddles tops the box office and The Loco-Motion plays on the radio. Meanwhile in Louisiana, Lonnie McCurry started Skyjacker Suspension to cater to mud boggers and provide lifted suspensions to fit larger tires. Fifty years later, Skyjacker has proven more enduring than Grand Funk Railroad and Mel Brooks. The company now caters not only to mud boggers but to rock crawlers, overlanders, and anyone looking for well-engineered suspension components for their vehicle at a reasonable price. And, unlike so many other manufacturers that have been gobbled up by venture capital firms, Skyjacker is still owned by the McCurry family.
The group met at the Spanish Trail Arena in Moab before heading out to Kane Creek. Despite the large size, the group actually left early. We cannot say that we are accustomed to that, with most trail rides involving shooting the breeze for an hour while airing down tires at the trailhead.Pat Soffe’s “Evil Willys” might be familiar to Tread readers, as it was featured in the magazine last year. The ’56 Willys pickup was built on a TJ Wrangler frame and features Skyjacker 2.5-inch, dual-rate coil springs and ADX remote reservoir shocks. Power comes from a 5.3L V-8 backed by a TH400 and Offroad Design 203/205 Doubler.Dave Chappelle and Clifton Slay were tail gunners for the run in Dave’s F-350, dubbed “Mom’s Spaghetti”. We did not see much of them with a group this size, but Dave’s Ford did not have any issues conquering the obstacles on Kane Creek. This truck uses trailing arms with Raptor shocks and, like most of Dave’s builds, uses air bags instead of coil springs.
This gives them the opportunity to not only look at the bottom line, but to invest in endeavors that are a priority to the company, including matters of faith, family, and friends. The most recent example of this was when Skyjacker hosted a run on Kane Creek Trail during the 2024 Easter Jeep Safari event. Skyjacker and the McCurrys have been coming to Moab for over 25 years now, and Kane Creek is one of their favorite trails. It is easy to see why, as the route begins along the Colorado River, passing other popular trailheads for Moab Rim, Pritchett Canyon, and Cliffhanger. The scenery is unrivaled on Kane Springs Road and going down Hurrah Pass, and that is all before even shifting into low range!
The trip was led by Trent McGee in his International Scout, fitted with a Cummins R2.8 diesel engine, Tremec transmission, and Offroad Design Magnum transfer case. McGee and Verne Simons chopped the top on the Scout to give it a low slung, hot rod appearance.The run was full of cool retro rigs like Dustin Isenhour’s Grand Wagoneer. While it looks original, the Wagoneer is fitted with a 6.0L LS engine, a Warn winch, and Firestone Destination M/T tires. Firestone has taken aim at the off-road market and we are starting to see more and more of their tires on the trail.Internationals are hot, and no one knows them better than Jeff Ismail of IH Parts America. His truck, affectionately known as “Hideous,” runs an International 392 backed by an NV4500 and Atlas transfer case. We were excited to not only see so many vintage vehicles on this run, but also the abundant number of manual transmissions.Off-road racing champion Casey Currie has been friends with the McCurrys for years, and we were excited to see him on Kane Creek. Currie is one of the few racers we know who also enjoys recreational trail rides like this one.
Once on Kane Creek Trail proper, the group crisscrossed the creek several times. During heavy rains the trail can be impassible, but fortunately during our visit, the water was only hub deep. After passing Hatch Wash, the group climbed out of the bottom of Muleshoe Canyon, with the trail clinging to the side of the canyon wall. Hamburger Hill is the most challenging section of Kane Creek Trail, but a winch anchor at the top of the hill ensured that everyone made it out unscathed.
“Fifty years later, Skyjacker has proven more enduring than Grand Funk Railroad and Mel Brooks.”
Trent McGee kept things moving at all times by spotting people through the difficult locations on the trail. McGee has years of experience leading trail runs and knew that it would be very easy for this to turn into a long day if people took their time or experienced any mechanical issues.Chris Durham’s Jeep pickup has a truck bed and a Gladiator front end (the old full size Jeep, not the modern JT), but it is based on a JK Wrangler chassis and uses the JK cab and dash. Under the hood is an LS engine though and the axles are Ultimate Dana 60s to withstand the substantial horsepower and 40-inch Milestar Patagonia tires.The newest build at the event was “Heminational” built by Christian Hazel and Johnny Woods at Woods Off Road. Some folks on the run were nervous to be behind Christian on the trail for fear that he would be plagued with new car blues, but the International pickup performed flawlessly throughout the week.Ray Currie from Currie Enterprises was piloting the family’s JT that has a Bruiser Conversions V-8 swap making over 600 horsepower to spin the 42-inch Nitto Trail Grapplers. Of course, keeping the whole thing together is a set of Currie Extreme Dana 60 axles front and rear.
A huge group of people and vehicles showed up for the initiation-only run, with nearly 50 vehicles to match Skyjacker’s 50 years in business. A huge group is not always a good thing when you are headed into one of Moab’s narrow canyons, but trip leader Trent McGee kept the group moving and had everyone back to town by sunset in order to enjoy a barbecue dinner at the Spitfire Smokehouse in downtown Moab. We do not know what movies or music will be popular in another 50 years, but we would be willing to bet that Skyjacker suspension, Easter Jeep Safari, and going wheeling with your friends are timeless classics that will be just as popular as they are now.
“Hamburger Hill is the most challenging section of Kane Creek Trail, but a winch anchor at the top of the hill ensured that everyone made it out unscathed.”
The crux of Kane Creek Trail is Hamburger Hill, which has gotten significantly more challenging over the past decade. The bypass involves hugging the side of a steep, loose canyon wall on a narrow shelf, which is arguably more terrifying than the hill itself.The crew from Skyjacker did not just host this run, they ran the entire trail as well in their fleet of well-equipped Jeep Wranglers. Skyjacker understands that testing their products in harsh conditions is the best way to verify that they will stand up to the rigors of rock crawling.Chris Durham’s Jeep is based on a JK platform, which provides plenty of options for aftermarket suspension and removes the need for custom fabrication. Durham runs Skyjacker’s LeDuc Series suspension with coilovers and long arm conversion. This saves time during the build process and allows Durham to easily source replacement parts when necessary.In an effort to keep the group moving, Trent McGree winched himself up Hamburger Hill. There is a winch point installed above the main ledge and McGee had his winch controller at the ready. He was not the only one who took the hook in order to make it over this obstacle.Casey Currie was the only one brave enough to run Kane Creek without a winch on the front of his Jeep, and it was looking like that decision might come back to haunt him on Hamburger Hill. Fortunately, Casey is a seasoned driver and was able to hunt for traction and make it through the trail without assistance.Tim and Theresa Morris from Warning Lightz brought out their his-and-hers Gladiators for the Skyjacker run. Neither had an issue on the trail, with Theresa doing an excellent job watching the lines that Tim took and making adjustments depending on how well they worked for him.Brian Sumner was nice enough to pilot the author’s F-150 through the trail so he could shoot photos and video. The truck has a 460 engine backed by a ZF5, Offroad Design Doubler, and Super Duty axles filled with 5.13 gears and Detroit Lockers. Rolling stock consists of 42-inch Nitto Trail Grapplers on 20-inch TrailReady beadlock wheels.
Editor’s Note: A version of this article appeared in TREADJuly/August 2024
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