Knowing that this issue is coming out in the middle of summer, what’s better to talk about than the River? During half the year (the cooler part of the year), most of us enjoy the southern California dunes, Glamis or Dumont.

While it’s raining and cold at home, the dunes are just perfect with sunny weather and great off-road adventures. But during the hot summer days (the other half of the year) a lot of us put our sand toys away and cool off in cold river water – unless you were able to street legal your sand car (I know quite a few) and cruise the streets where you live.

We met up with a friend and his family of duners who do just this. They don’t put their sand toys away. They just change the tires from paddles to dirt and spend their summer weekends in Havasu, hitting the nearby trails and cooling off in the water. I hooked up with Noel Perez and his family one weekend in Havasu to do a combination of land and water with his sand car and boat. Noel is a big Glamis fan and has a great motto for life: “Everyday I work to live, I live to play, I play to win & I win to live!” This was my first trip to the river this season so I was pretty excited to go – so excited I ended up taking an early weekend and headed out Thursday. It was my fault, though. I loaded up the boat and Rhino that Thursday morning, so it was just a matter of time before my mind was thinking only about the river.

Since I ended up out there early, I beat Noel by half a day. So, he put me in contact with a few of his buddies, Mike and Sam, who also take their sand cars with them to Havasu. Once arriving at Havasu – for those of you who have never been there, which seems to be very few – you would be surprised to see how many sand cars and Rhinos are driving around town. How cool is that? Putting the family in your sand car or Rhino and cruising down the streets to go to dinner. Keep in mind, not just any Rhino or sand car can do this; you have to go through some processes to get your toys street legal. But for those of you who don’t want to deal with the street legal factor, there are plenty of off-road trails in the area.

After I got all situated with Sam and Mike, I got the 10-cent tour and talk about a sweet set-up. They pretty much own their own cul-de-sac. There were three houses at the end of the street that were all theirs – and a lot of room to park anything and everything. Mike, Sam, and Noel all own Wicked Sand Toys. Sam was the first one to buy a Wicked Car a few years back. When talking to Sam about his car he seemed very happy with it and had no complaints. Sam’s car has an LS1 motor, along with Fox Shocks and PRP seats for his riding comfort.

Mike was the second one to take delivery on a Wicked car. Mike went with a turbo V6 to lighten up the car a bit and he added a few custom parts from Wicked, like the front skid plate, foot pegs to get in, and an adjustable slider for the passenger. Once Sam and Mike had their sand cars, it was only a matter of time before Noel got his turn. We all know the unwritten rule: the next person has to add even more to it. Well, Noel did just that and then some. Instead of asking Noel which options he got, it’s a lot easy and a shorter conversation to ask which ones he didn’t get. And when I asked him, I never did get a full answer on what he didn’t put on there.

What I found funny is that all their sand cars are from the same builder, slightly different but the same builder. That’s not the case with their boats. Sam owns a 25’ Shockwave, Mike owns a 26’ Laveycraft, and Noel owns a 27’ Advantage. Every boat has different features (like their sand cars), but I just thought that was pretty funny.

On with my weekend….

Noel was still a few hours out so Mike, Sam, and I hit the town for some drinks and food. We eventually met up with Noel to figure out what the game plan was for the next day because, let’s face it, taking a picture of a sand car in the dunes is pretty easy, but three sand cars and three boats was going to be a little trickier. Well, we came up with a game plan and then it was time to rest and do a little follow-through in the morning. I had a friend I was going to stay with but Mike insisted I say in their spare house. How could I say no to that? Usually people have a spare couch or a spare room, but a spare house? Ballers!

The morning went pretty smooth. It was just like a normal day. We went over to Noel’s house to wake him up after a long evening. Noel lives right down the street, but his house is the party house. Just like his sand car, you can ask about all the things he has to entertain at his home, but you may never get a full answer. I got the 10-cent tour of his place and then we jumped in the Wicked cars, cruised down to one of the sandy beaches at the river, and launched the boats.

For the shoot, we beached the boats right next to the cars. Now, let’s stop for a moment and think about this…. Drive around in your sand car on dirt trails, park right next to your boat/campsite after a nice ride, and head on out to the water to cool down. Is that perfect or what? I’m jealous.

After taking the pictures, it was pretty damn hot, so we headed out on the boats for a nice swim and lunch. During that time, I had the chance to get to know the rest of the family. We didn’t get off the water till after dark to retire back to the house for a nice dinner to finish off the day.

I want to give a huge thanks to everybody for their hospitality. Noel, Sam, Mike, and family it was a pleasure meeting you all.

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