CLUTCHES & SHIFT LEVERS

A look at the 2022 Centerforce Adventure Run

The 2022 Centerforce Adventure Run combined (mostly) manual transmission-equipped 4x4s with overlanding to create a multi-day tour through the Arizona backcountry, punctuated by clutches and shift levers.

In the January 2022 issue of Four Wheeler we covered the inaugural 2021 Centerforce Adventure Run and it was an absolute blast. So, when this year's Adventure Run was announced we quickly set up our schedule to fit around the trip. The result was amazing, starting within one of America's natural wonders and ending at the home of Centerforce Clutch in Prescott, Arizona, with a ton of beautiful and remote dirt miles in between.

Many folks falsely believe that automatic transmissions have some advantage off-road, and that's just not true. Sure, a slushbox may make things easier for some, some of the time, but the amount of control that you get from a manual transmission is something that many of us still hold onto with a firm grip. If you're more comfortable with an automatic, have at it, but know that among other things, manual transmissions often offer deeper gearing allowing for more control on technical offroad obstacles.

We had a blast at this year's Adventure Run, rowing gears, wheeling, and swiveling our necks to take in the killer scenery. So, let's shift gears and look at each day of the three-day run.

But First

Unlike last year when this event started a mile or so from this author's house, the 2022 Centerforce Adventure Run was set to start on the shores of the Colorado River. We'd just finished painting the hood on our '74 CJ-5 and had to get things loaded up so we could head north. Participants weren't required to camp the night before the event, but we wanted to camp there, literally on the shores of the famed Colorado River.

Day 1