JUST BEING HERE IS IMPORTANT.  THAT'S WHAT THEY SAY!

WE COULDN'T AGREE MORE!

Story By Jerry Schwartz

Photos Courtesy of Kim and Glen Noe 

Opinions are like belly buttons.  Everybody has one. And the sweet aroma of success that has embodied this grand event we call "Gravelrama" has prompted many to say much on what makes this exercise in 4X4, off-road competition such an important piece of the four wheel drive competitive landscape. If they say "Gravelrama" prospers because of a bunch of amateurs who put together this event in a most professional manner, they would be right. If they say "Gravelrama" prospers because we offer the most challenging competitive arena in the sport, deliberately designed to embrace this event and the four venues, they would be right. If they say "Gravelrama" prospers because this event is not simply a "race", they would be right. If they say "Gravelrama" prospers because we throw caution to the wind in spending to produce this event, they would be right. If they say "Gravelrama" prospers because of our personnel who are talented, ' resourceful and hardworking, they would be right. Finally (not really) if they say "Gravelrama" prospers because just being here is important, they would be right.

And, friends, on and on it goes. As we celebrate our 37th, we are reminded of the word "longevity", which is normally associated with life, the duration of same, and is based on "good genes" if life is long. So, to suggest Gravelrama" has benefited from a good set of genes would lead us to say to you, right on!! This event, that has stretched from 1971 into the 21 Century just because of good genes, in this case the foundation of remarkable human beings who have devoted themselves, some from the very beginning, to shaping and forming this event into what it is this day, one of America's most significant four wheel drive competitive events, there would be much truth in that. I.O.K., who created and owns "Gravelrama" boasts a membership of over 180 families, ranking it as the largest club in the East Coast Four Wheel Drive Association and one of the largest in the country.

Although the event has taken on the posture that could be described as professional, those who have been in charge these many years are anything but. Are they dedicated? Are they capable? Do they knock themselves out? Yes, all of the above and then some. But professional? Hardly.

Beginning in 1971, "Gravelrama" has evolved into the event that hundreds will not miss. It's really as simple as that. And those who have been in charge have acquired their event smarts by attending the I.O.K. College of Successful Events, the vehicle of watching and serving, far beyond what could rationally be expected from a volunteer organization. Nobody gets paid for anything, at least not in negotiable dollars. But they all earn the magnificent values of satisfaction of a job well done; something, incidentally, dollars will never be able to buy.

And, so it is, with those genes we mentioned above, inherent in this organization from the very beginning, that has parlayed a dingy, miserable, depleted gravel pit into a well-groomed competitive and camping facility with bunches of bells and whistles. It's been at time back-breaking work by the dedicated, both man and machine, but the grounds have been purposefully molded to complement the event from the beginning when the club purchased the grounds in the late 70's.

By then "Gravelrama" was already a happening. Actually, it started (the movement) in 1970 when the club sent Fritz Runck, Wayne Hague and Terry Heath to an EC4WDA meeting. We joined and a race date was chosen, the last full weekend of August prior to Labor Day weekend. A committee, fed info gathered by Sugar and Ken Fields in a nine-hour meeting with George Dudiak, then President of the East Coast Four Wheel Drive Association, set up the basic structure we know today. The name was chosen from a suggestion by Butch Freppon, as well as the circle design we use from time to time, that being a circle with hills and an arrow. It was designed by Tim McCann. A name, a logo, and a mission. "Gravelrama" was born.

The first year there were 57 competitors and the die was cast. Help was everywhere. AMC (American Motors - JEEP -Corporation) gave us funds for timing lights; Ford came up with the bucks for a PA system, a set of speakers, some of which we still use this day, put into place by Chuck Stone.

In 1972, we raffled on our first Jeep. Cost? Less than $3,000. Barb Hamilton (now a resident of Florida) chaired her first Saturday night bash, the model for the Red Dog Saloon and live music of today.

The site unproved every year with each cent we could scrape together, plus an array of members who worked very hard. Lots of muscle. LOTS OF DONATED EQUIPMENT!!

The property was purchased in September, 1977, an enormous mortgage, but we paid it off in four years!! We continued to borrow and improve.

Also in 1977, Bob Chandler of St. Louis, the father-to-be of the monster truck phenomenon, showed up with some racers. He brought a jacked-up F-150, that was to become his first, full-fledged monster, called BIGFOOT.

In 1978, country star Marty Robbins headlined the event, brought in by sponsor Uniroyal.

In 1979, we purchased our first "Chrondek" timing system and we finally had a "Christmas tree"! We also purchased the steel for what is now our main administrative building.

Many side attractions began to appear in the event as the years progressed, including volleyball, horseshoes, stompers, truck show, special awards, junior racers, new outbuildings, sanitary dump station, living memorial, state of the art timing system that we employ today, and more.

"Gravelrama" is 37 this year, and has developed an aura that is virtually unknown throughout the four wheel drive world of competition. We do not take one thing for granted in the realm of "Gravelrama". We strive to improve the event and valuable infrastructure we have developed. In today's dollars, the investment is awesome and the entire picture, the event as well as the place, continues to need tweaking and improvement.

The element that has made "Gravelrama" what it is today is YOU - the competitor, the camper, the spectator. Without all of the above, we would still have a miserable, dingy, gravel pit.

With you, "Gravelrama" has prospered and the event is an important element of the four wheel drive world in America today.