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Route
of Nathan
Beck's 5000 Mile ATV Trip |
Reno, NV (4/5/2007) - Nathan
Beck of Reno, Nevada discovered the American West
alone with his quad and ATV Wagon trailer full
of gear. He lost his dog twice and checked into
a hospital due to hypothermia one night in Idaho.
He went through 10 new tires and about 416 gallons
of gas during his adventure, plus he maintained
a daily journal of the trip.
A humble Nathan explains his insanity, "I
want to know what's on the other side of the
mountain, I have the itch to travel. I want
to see what is out there. Life is too short."
One of the main reasons why people own ATVs
is to explore the back country and enjoy the
sense of freedom—Nathan Beck symbolizes
this fact and more.
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Nathan
Beck |
What Nathan did was truly remarkable - historic
- inspirational - unbelievable! In July of 2006,
Nathan left Reno and traveled north to Canada.
He reached the border in about 11 days, averaging
160 miles per day driving on trails and secondary
roads. But as he started to head back home, he
began to ponder the possibilities of going farther.
"I have always wanted to experience Sturgis
and since I was nearly half way there and street
legal, I just decided to take a detour,"
says Nathan. But he almost didn't make it, as
day 16 in Bozeman, Montana was most difficult
for him. "Losing my dog AND the mechanical
breakdown was terrible. I was so desperate I was
pushing my quad to the nearest gas station saying
to myself 'this is how it ends', I was thinking
'I'm getting a U-Haul and I am going home'”,
sighs Nathan.
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Nathan
Beck on day 34 in Sturgis |
But he had rewarding experiences as well during
his 34 day, 5000 mile ATV trip. He explains,
"Making it to Sturgis-that was very rewarding
for me. People could not believe that I came
from Reno on a quad to the rally. But even more
rewarding, the very last day of my trip I left
at 11AM and drove straight til 1:30 the next
morning- 361 miles in one day-my personal best.
I could barely get off the quad, I was so tired."
So far Nathan has put 16,724 miles on a 2004
Yamaha Grizzly in just 3 years of ownership
and has no plans of stopping. Nathan takes ‘exploring
the back country on an ATV’ to a whole
new level. He is scheduling an '07 summer trip--
maybe 10,000 miles in 60 days. He is currently
seeking sponsors to assist with the mega-ride.
You can contact Nathan Beck, learn more about
his trip, and read his 34 day journal at www.atvwagon.com.