Nation Of Go

The Nation of GO Tour has driven many hours to meet up with locals at most of our stops, but that wasn’t the case when we drove to Superlift ORV Park outside of Hot Springs, AR. The group we were meeting had driven in, too – five hours from Tulsa, OK – and when we were done they were driving back. They felt our pain.

Sam Patton from Sam’s Offroad Equipment made the trip with some friends to give us a taste of off-roading like we hadn’t yet seen. Our previous off-road excursions were with four-wheelers in the desert. The Superlift ORV Park could never be mistaken for desert.





Winding through the woods of rural Arkansas, the trails at Superlift Park serve up obstacles with the added challenges of water and mud. It’s wet and slippery, and the local rocks break into small shards with sharp, jagged edges. The trails we went up were no place for a stock rig.

The rigs that Sam and his friends brought were far from stock and even they found their limits at the park. Sam’s personal Jeep is an ’84 CJ-7 with an L-79 engine swap, a 700 R4 transmission and Dana 60 axles. When Sam got the CJ, it was a survivor. Its original brown and orange paint job still shows well, which is impressive considering how hard Sam goes at it.

Father and son Brian and Butch Drake go at it pretty hard, too, and Sam has helped them build their ’84 Cherokee over the years. With no doors, an exterior roll cage and upgraded axles, it’s a serious rig. One really nice touch is the short bed conversion. The Drakes cut off the back of the Cherokee and grafted the rear window and bed from a Comanche onto it. When you custom build your own truck, the sky’s the limit.





The Nation of GO Tour van waited at the trailhead while the small group of Jeeps tackled two of the tougher Superlift trails. With no roll cage, no differential lockers and “only” 32-inch tires, our trusty off-roader wasn’t equipped for the likes of Ingrid’s Revenge. In fact, none of the other rigs made it up either – at least not the hard way. At the top of Ingrid’s Revenge, there’s a steep rock face that might have been passable in drier conditions, but the day we visited the ground was wet and muddy. One after the other, the Jeeps clawed for traction, slid backward and tried again. In the end they all had to go around the obstacle on the alternate route. So much of off-roading is proving what you and your rig can do. But every once in a while, on trails like Ingrid’s Revenge, you get to find out what you can’t do.



If you’re looking for a serious off-road challenge and you’re anywhere near Hot Springs, make a point to stop by Superlift ORV Park. Even if you’re nowhere nearby, consider making the drive. Sam and his friends can attest – and the Nation of GO Tour can verify – it’s worth the trip. See all the Nation of GO images on Flickr.