In case you haven’t noticed, Brian’s LR4 can be seen in a few of our other posts, and when we realized that we hadn’t done a Land Rover feature we decided it was time for a little Land Rover love.
Brian initially reached out to me during the beginning of his vehicle search. He was especially interested in my experience with the 200 Series Land Cruiser. I must have been a terrible salesman because he ended up buying an LR4, but in all honesty it seems to be the perfect truck for him. Soon after Brian took the plunge on the LR4, we were talking trucks over beers with Brian – which led to trip ideas, which in turn led to Brian joining us for the Northeast Overland Rally. Brian has since hit the trails with us on multiple occasions and he’s always on our short list of guys to call when we’re looking for an adventure.
Sitting On Flag Pole Knob in George Washington National Forest
Brian has always been an adventurer and thrill seeker. He grew up hitting the trails on a Kawasaki KD175 and eventually moved into a 76′ International Harvester Scout (only people that hate themselves true adventurers own these). As Brian puts it “Several years later I was ready to buy another rig and I had 3 needs to balance with a bonus want: 1) daily driver; 2) family friendly; 3) capable off road, and (want) long enough for me to sleep in comfortably because I hate dealing with tents.”
His search included Jeep, Mercedes, and Toyota, but he ended up finding his perfect LR4 with the coveted Heavy Duty Package in a dealership in Colorado. After checking with “SWMBO” (She Who Must Be Obeyed) he pulled the trigger and hasn’t looked back since.
Brian with his LR4 looking like a boss
Northeast Overland Rally:
Our Crew in Vermont: Terrill, Matt, Alex, Tony, Brian
Brian was gung-ho to hit the trails with us during the Northeast Overland Rally; he went everywhere we went without issue. Throughout the entire trip you could always hear someone saying “there’s no way the LR4 is going to make it up here on street tires.” Well you know what? He made it through trail obstacles every time except for one section where his tires we’re so full of mud we didn’t have a choice but to break out the winch. Brian and the LR4 held their own and we all left thoroughly impressed with it’s capabilities.
Climbing up some slick rock and mud
Dirty but unscathed
There were also two major things we learned in Vermont about Brian; he makes a mean camp cornbread, and when a tree is down we don’t need a winch, he’ll just lift it up and clear the trail. Needless to say, Brian holds the title of the strongest guy we know.
Red Cloud Off Road Park:
When we got the opportunity to hit Red Cloud last week we had to give Brian a call. He had just recently completed a Bill Burke training and had a fresh set of A/T tires to break in on some serious terrain. He also recently became a father and needed some R&R. Throughout the day he hung in there with all the “built” trucks and only got stuck in the same places we did. I hate to admit it but when you combine the capabilities of the LR4 with a competent driver, you can pretty much take that truck anywhere. Brian proved that even the newer Rovers like to get muddy and to everyone’s surprise it didn’t break down;). We kid…
Current Modifications:
So you might notice that the modification list is pretty light, and that’s because Brian has only put on some new rubber and swapped out the Land Rover floor mats for some Weathertech units. Other than that he has done absolutely nothing. We still try to get him to put on a set of 18″ wheels with some mud terrain tires but he hasn’t yet caved. Let’s be serious though, who can blame the guy, he get’s everywhere he wants (with a little winch help from time to time) and he manages to do it with minimal effort and without expensive mods. So the next time you see a Lr4 out on the trails with some 19″ wheels on street tires (which will probably be never) think twice, because you might just be impressed with what you see.
Tires/Wheels:
Goodyear Wrangler A/T 255/55-19
Interior Modifications:
Weather Tech Floor Mats
Another great write up. Really enjoying these!
I’d also like to add that Brian is a great guy to have around when it comes time to operate the hi-lift! Great photos and cool write-up. Love to see how different vehicles fit different folks needs.