Off-Roadeo Location Decision Help

[PayHeedKU]

Recently ordered a 2025 Badlands so I’m spending my time waiting researching Off-Roadeo locations to decide where we should go. I’m near Kansas City but distance doesn’t really factor in, I’m willing to travel. I have zero real off-road experience - just some easy unpaved roads in Colorado - but want to gradually do more and more of it as I build up my experience.

Obviously I haven’t actually attended any of these but here are my thoughts / impressions from what I’ve seen and read out there on the facilities and the structure of the day - for those that have attended let me know where I’m right and where I’m wrong. Some general questions I have about each location - what’s the food like and how big is the merch selection? I know stupid to base any decision on these but if two places are close they might factor in.

New Hampshire - A lot of our time off road will be spent out in Colorado and at least to start more on the forest / rocky trails than the aggressive mountain pass trails and it seems like the terrain out in NH would be similar to that - am I wrong? I like that there is a demo / instruction session before you get out on the trails. We’ve never been up to New England so that’s a positive as well.

Tennessee - Similar terrain to NH but a little less rocky, maybe more water? Day seems set up similar to NH. It seems like the facilities there are pretty new so that would be a positive. Negative would be that we’ve been out to TN and the Smoky Mountains multiple times.

Texas - Purpose built location so my guess is they give you a wide variety of terrains and the facilities are nice. Is this the only location that has any sand? The part that doesn’t appeal to me about TX is the high speed driving portion - just not something I’m interested in so feels like that will be a waste of part of the day for me.

Moab - This probably the only one that we would drive our Bronco out to vs. flying in. We’ve always wanted to visit Canyonlands and Arches NP so we’d do that while we are out there and hopefully feel confident enough to go on some of the easy, beginner trails out there. I like that you are out on an actual tail so you would get some real trail experience with the guides there to assist. I don’t like that there doesn’t really seem to be a demo / instruction session at the facility. Doesn’t seem like you are at the base camp much since you eat lunch on the trail. The structure of the day in this location seems pretty unique compared to the others.

Nevada - Good demo / instruction session. Seems like a lot of loose rock / rocky terrain so maybe something kind of, maybe similar to some of the easier Colorado mountain passes? Structure seems very similar to NH, TX and TN - just on different terrain. Never been to Vegas so we’d probably spend a couple of days there while we are out there. Seems like a pretty easy location to fly into.

Let me know where my impression of each location is Wong, or any other insight anyone has for any of them. Thanks in advance for any input. I’m just trying to kill some time while I wait for the Bronco - realize I have plenty of time to make this decision.

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[Beach_Bum]

Can't speak to Moab's schedule. But I've attended Texas and Tennessee and the schedule is the same with a morning instruction that they refer to as the "sluice box" before heading out to the trails. The food was excellent and catered at both locations. Merchandise selection was smaller at TN than TX, but neither have a "large" merchandise assortment.

I was pleasantly surprised by the terrain in TX. I had reluctantly chose that site for my first BOR. Family lives in Houston and I have visited the hill country of Fredericksburg in the past. That area has very gradual undulating hills and I presumed the same terrain would be at the TX BOR. I was surprised at the steep terrain. The area NW of Austin is nothing like Fredericksburg. Overall great site and experience at TX BOR.

I also just attended TN BOR last month. Same schedule of instruction as TX BOR with a "high speed" loop around a field. The field is a bit more technical than the TX speed track. You just can't let it rip. The trails were still new and they are constantly improving the safety of them. We had encountered some very tight sections and had noticed some trees that had been newly fallen to eliminate some of the danger. I suspect those that attended the dealer preview sessions tackled some of the tightest trails and the staff recognized some of the hazards and cleared them. Keep in mind that there is still plenty of challenge and enough to get you in trouble.

Facility was new and location beautiful. Plenty of merchandise to put a dent in your budget. The only caveat that I would give for attendees in the fall is bring a blanket for your Bronco. The parking area is under the canopy of oaks and the acorns falling will dent the hood. Acorn season should be coming to an end so you shouldn't have to worry about such concern for the spring/summer.

 

[RC Bronco]

From the Kansas City area as well!

I opted for Moab because I had real interest in rock crawling and I really wanted to get out to that area. I turned it into a vacation with my parents over two weeks. We visited Arches and Canyonlands, did some off-roading of our own, and honestly, the icing on the cake was the Off-Roadeo.

At Moab Off-Roadeo, the instructors are given the ability to go to different areas, so not every group does the same exact thing - my group did a waterfall obstacle at the very end (this really opened my eyes to the world of rock crawling), instead of stopping at some of the scenic sites that would have normally been done.

in my opinion, if you’re comfortable at Moab, you’re gonna be comfortable everywhere else, assuming you don’t have a fear of heights and shelf roads (of which there are A LOT in Colorado). I don’t think any of these locations will prepare you for those fears, though

We did have a short “demo” session at base camp in Moab, but honestly, I just wanted to get out on the trail, that’s what appealed to me the most. I learn by doing rather than by hearing, so the prior instruction just wasnt as important to me (you’ll pick up everything you need to know real quickly, and if you feel otherwise, the instructor is a quick radio call away).

No matter where you pick you’re going to have a good time, I’d pick the location you most want to vacation at, so you can knock two things out in one trip

 

[Sandbergo]

I went to the Nevada Off Roadeo, I picked it because I figured it was the more difficult terrain to do and would be a good thing for when I make my way out to Colorado to see family. As for why not Moab, it was somewhat out of convenience because I was attending SEMA at the same time, but one of the guides had offered the opinion of that if you were to do the others that Moab used a lot of the public trails and you would be able to do most of it without the off roadeo. If I was to go again to another location I would go with either Texas or Tennessee for the different terrain. I don’t plan on being up in the northeast so I wasn’t interested in NH, no offense to anyone up there I’m sure it’s a challenge and beautiful landscape. Nevada was a great time and I felt that I got to experience a good amount of challenges there. I was in the first group and we got to end our day with what they called the “Whole Enchilada” which was fun. Honestly I don’t think you will have a bad time wherever you decide to go, just listen to the guide and enjoy the time out there.

 

[LauraZielinski]

Congrats on your order!

I've been to all locations multiple times (I work alongside Off-Roadeo), and your assessments are pretty close, with the NH one being the most different from what I've experienced there vs. what I've done in Colorado -- Buena Vista area. NH is rocky in some areas, including a large and smooth granite slab to climb, but the trails are heavily forested, and every time I've gone, they are more muddy thanks to wet/damp conditions vs the drier CO rocks.

So far, there are not many rocks at TN to date, though several of the locations have cut new trails over the years, and I'd expect more to be laid out at TN. There is an extended rock garden to crawl there, currently, however.

Texas' high speed (15-20mph) is only about 15 minutes of the day. Tennessee is the other location with a ride and handling course, with a similar time commitment.

One important thing to mention for some people and their guests is bathroom situations: You will return to Basecamp at NH, TN, TX, and NV every so often, allowing for use of the restrooms. Moab is "tree-cilities" except for at the start and end of the day. NV's bathroom is a nice trailer restroom.

For meals, all are had at Basecamps, minus Moab's lunch, like you noted, which is sandwiches. The rest are hot meals with salads, protein, desserts, etc. and lemonade/tea/water. There's coffee at dinner and sometimes lunch.

Nevada and Tennessee are definitely the easiest to fly into.

 

[PayHeedKU]

Appreciate the insight - so would you say NV is the most similar to CO?

 

[PayHeedKU]

From the Kansas City area as well!

I opted for Moab because I had real interest in rock crawling and I really wanted to get out to that area. I turned it into a vacation with my parents over two weeks. We visited Arches and Canyonlands, did some off-roading of our own, and honestly, the icing on the cake was the Off-Roadeo.

At Moab Off-Roadeo, the instructors are given the ability to go to different areas, so not every group does the same exact thing - my group did a waterfall obstacle at the very end (this really opened my eyes to the world of rock crawling), instead of stopping at some of the scenic sites that would have normally been done.

in my opinion, if you’re comfortable at Moab, you’re gonna be comfortable everywhere else, assuming you don’t have a fear of heights and shelf roads (of which there are A LOT in Colorado). I don’t think any of these locations will prepare you for those fears, though

We did have a short “demo” session at base camp in Moab, but honestly, I just wanted to get out on the trail, that’s what appealed to me the most. I learn by doing rather than by hearing, so the prior instruction just wasnt as important to me (you’ll pick up everything you need to know real quickly, and if you feel otherwise, the instructor is a quick radio call away).

No matter where you pick you’re going to have a good time, I’d pick the location you most want to vacation at, so you can knock two things out in one trip

Thanks for the information.

I figured once I get closer to actually having my Bronco I would introduce myself in the Midwest forum and maybe ask about some local Bronco clubs - I think there is one at Olathe Ford - and get some thoughts on local 4x4 shops.

 

[LauraZielinski]

Appreciate the insight - so would you say NV is the most similar to CO?

From what I've done in Colorado, yep!

 

[RC Bronco]

Thanks for the information.

I figured once I get closer to actually having my Bronco I would introduce myself in the Midwest forum and maybe ask about some local Bronco clubs - I think there is one at Olathe Ford - and get some thoughts on local 4x4 shops.

Heck yeah!

if you’re interested in forested, muddy, rocky trails, then Ozark National Forest in Arkansas is a short drive away. I go there frequently

 

[BCKMRKR]

I've only been to LV - my thoughts.

LV should be the easiest to to fly into - it's a major hub for Southwest.

LV would definitely have the most non-offroad activities, especially if you stay on The Strip. Football, hockey, concerts, F1, shopping are all within walking distance. If you go, stay on The Strip. Most people love it for about 3 days then can't wait to leave. Don't go in the summer. You will need a rental car (normally not recommended for LV) and you will want something with a little ground clearance for the ~2 mile dirt road.

The Roadeo is about a 45-minute drive, and it's like you are on a completely different planet. They lease land from the Boy Scouts, so you aren't on shared trails like apparently Moab is.

Pre-TN, our guide (who had worked all 4 locations) described it as the most technical. Almost no water on the trails, and they also discourage driving in it to reduce erosion. No sand, just lots of rocks/trees and plenty of gray dust - don't wear white shoes. Everything ends up gray.

The merchandise store is something like 20'x20', certainly not like the store at The Masters. Only advice would be to buy shirts/hats before lunch as they ran out of certain sizes.

 

[CalvinT]

Appreciate the insight - so would you say NV is the most similar to CO?

I live in Arizona. Two previous jobs required both desert and mountain roads. Some were pretty rough and steep. One had a 40% grade and was rocky. I picked Nevada because I felt it would be closest to what I expect to find in most of the western states.

 

[C6ZZGT]

Recently ordered a 2025 Badlands so I’m spending my time waiting researching Off-Roadeo locations to decide where we should go. I’m near Kansas City but distance doesn’t really factor in, I’m willing to travel. I have zero real off-road experience - just some easy unpaved roads in Colorado - but want to gradually do more and more of it as I build up my experience.

Obviously I haven’t actually attended any of these but here are my thoughts / impressions from what I’ve seen and read out there on the facilities and the structure of the day - for those that have attended let me know where I’m right and where I’m wrong. Some general questions I have about each location - what’s the food like and how big is the merch selection? I know stupid to base any decision on these but if two places are close they might factor in.

New Hampshire - A lot of our time off road will be spent out in Colorado and at least to start more on the forest / rocky trails than the aggressive mountain pass trails and it seems like the terrain out in NH would be similar to that - am I wrong? I like that there is a demo / instruction session before you get out on the trails. We’ve never been up to New England so that’s a positive as well.

Tennessee - Similar terrain to NH but a little less rocky, maybe more water? Day seems set up similar to NH. It seems like the facilities there are pretty new so that would be a positive. Negative would be that we’ve been out to TN and the Smoky Mountains multiple times.

Texas - Purpose built location so my guess is they give you a wide variety of terrains and the facilities are nice. Is this the only location that has any sand? The part that doesn’t appeal to me about TX is the high speed driving portion - just not something I’m interested in so feels like that will be a waste of part of the day for me.

Moab - This probably the only one that we would drive our Bronco out to vs. flying in. We’ve always wanted to visit Canyonlands and Arches NP so we’d do that while we are out there and hopefully feel confident enough to go on some of the easy, beginner trails out there. I like that you are out on an actual tail so you would get some real trail experience with the guides there to assist. I don’t like that there doesn’t really seem to be a demo / instruction session at the facility. Doesn’t seem like you are at the base camp much since you eat lunch on the trail. The structure of the day in this location seems pretty unique compared to the others.

Nevada - Good demo / instruction session. Seems like a lot of loose rock / rocky terrain so maybe something kind of, maybe similar to some of the easier Colorado mountain passes? Structure seems very similar to NH, TX and TN - just on different terrain. Never been to Vegas so we’d probably spend a couple of days there while we are out there. Seems like a pretty easy location to fly into.

Let me know where my impression of each location is Wong, or any other insight anyone has for any of them. Thanks in advance for any input. I’m just trying to kill some time while I wait for the Bronco - realize I have plenty of time to make this decision.

I would think which ever one has terrain most like yours would be the one to start with. If you are just starting out 4x4ing then terrain like what you will have closest to you should be the most beneficial.

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