TRAVEL TOY

Snow, sand, and mud—Joel Lawrence’s 4Runner does it all with an M101 trailer in tow

- Jered Korfhage

When Joel Lawrence grips the wheel in his ’15 Toyota 4Runner, he feels like he’s back in high school with his ’88 Ford Bronco. He’s momentarily transported back to Imeson Park, in Jacksonville, Florida, where buggies, trucks, and SUVs would gather to test their might at the sand climbs and bottomless swamps. Joel remembers, “Big trucks would tear it up through a pond and I tried to follow with my Bronco (with 33-inch mud-terrain tires). Next thing I knew, I was diving down like a submarine and the hood was under water.” Joel and the Bronco (except for its alternator) emerged from the slog unscathed and from there he knew that his off-road adventures were only just beginning.