Art & Inspiration Anybody Drive on Dirt/Gravel Roadways?

My road, after grading and fresh dust control applied.
Believe me its not always like this.

 

Man! That’s a Highway! You out to see the roads to the ranch where I grew up! Not a bit better, now, than when I was a kid! Even worse, now.








Bones

 

Yes...

 

It's funny many of the Dirt/Gravel roads are significantly smoother than their paved counterparts in ideal stretchs of weather but yes they suffer many cons depending on area, maintenance, precipitation, usage and season...when their good the experience is priceless...

If they are wet I keep off them with the Hotrod but I really like me a dirt road...it's period correct...

Last year......I mean 2 years ago I went on a run with some Hoodlums and there was a long gravel/dirt lane to the place we had Breakfast and didn't one of those Dust control sprayers just lay that solution down getting all over the Hotrod...that sucked...I drove slowly to keep the tire spray to a minimum...it wasn't oil but a calcium solution I believe...

And to all you Bias Ply Owners while doing any yeehaw on loose gravel be extremely careful with speed on straightaways and especially curves as those little f'ing loose stones are like marbles...



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about a mile ana half of gravel to the paved county road, been here 44 years. so that 44 years of a muddy dirty car most of the year, and i am tired of it. We have nice crushed limestone here, makes a nice road for the most part, but in the dry months the dust will get in even a new car, and its kinda muddy when wet, and very bad for a month in spring when the thaw is happening. better than some roads out west where they call baseball sized rocks gravel ! For this reason, I really dont want a nice show car, just old jalopy is fine with me. plan to move someday and I will not be on gravel again, and perhaps even live like a big shot with a paved driveway! I do enjoy sunset cruises out on the gravel when its dry though

 

In 2015 I drove my avatar from St Joseph, MO to Carson City, NV following the Pony Express Trail. It was a combination of dirt two track, dirt or gravel for 80% of the way. Best trip I ever took in a hot rod. It's what the early cars were made to drive on.

 

YES!!!...Fine as Apple Pie @Cactus
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Did ya Head em' off at the Pass?...

That looks really remote in a Banger Coupe...must have been a hoot...One lane roads are a bit wild...errr...especially cresting a hill...
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Love gravel roads in my daily, but not much fun if I'm driving something nice. One of the reasons that I'm much more into "drivers" now than I used to be. Several years back I lived 2 miles off the paved road and had several very nice muscle-era cars that I refused to put mudflaps on(talk about ruining the looks). Driving 2 miles of gravel each way at 12 mph or so to avoid chips is not fun I can assure you.

 

My cruise yesterday, just a little to soggy with slop slinging around.
Oh driving on the road is okay, its what the road leaves on the truck...lol
Mind you I'm usually going 50 mph or more. Yesterday 30 to 40 mph..

 

Actually I did. ;<)

 

Yes, I have 1/2 mile long white rock driveway and about a mile long stretch of "river rock" road before getting onto a paved county road. And that's a story in it's self. Can someone say potholes and patches? Dusty no matter how slow you drive. Just another reason my toys don't have a show car paint job.

 

That's the main reason l don't spend a lot of time on paint jobs. I love to go dirt tracking on the loose gravel roads of iowa. Been doing it since I was 14. Only hit the neighbors mailbox.once. really pissed her off!

 

First trip to BTTF’s had to run 10 miles gravel road due to construction,,,and it was raining....lots of dirty hot rods getting sprayed off at Two Harbours MN
My vehicle does not get stone chips on sides,,i have fenders.

 

My 54 was built to be driven. Here is a shot from our trip over the "Oh My God Road" to Central City, Co on our way to the Hot Rod Hillclimb a couple of years ago.

 

Lived on a gravel road for 68 years and struggled with driving my cars down that 2 mile stretch. Also lots of my customers were reluctant to come to the shop. When we decided to build a new house and shop one of the requirements was a paved road in front of the house. It's been 7 years of pavement and it can't be beat.

 

Just add b & w and presto 1938...

 

Dang, you guys make my 400 ft of what a buddy calls the worst tank traps he has ever driven on seem pretty light weight.
Someone in a Dodge Ram 8 lug lost two hubcaps on it the other day on it. No idea of who's truck that was but probably the guy who rents the field.

I lived in a house out in the field SW of where I live now a number of years back where the driveway was a dirt path that got seriously muddy in wet weather that you had to drive a mile and a half on a dirt road to get to that driveway. I had to walk in, get another rig and tow my 48 out of the mud in that driveway more than once.

 

We lived on a gravel road for 16 years. We had about a mile of gravel, then a chipped and sealed road that was another 5 miles to the paved road. The gravel road had 2 pairs (of 15mph top speed) 90 degree corners with 4' deep ditches on both sides of the road and two fairly steep hills.. I think they maintained it 2x a year, once in the spring, and once in late fall. The hills were almost always washboards, as was the road off the corners in both directions. Fenders and slower driving were pretty much required. Other then the cars & trucks rolling past the house on the road, and a few moos from the cows on the farm a couple miles away, it was pretty quite.
Around 20 years ago, we moved into town. No gravel roads, but lots of noise (and we live in a quite neighborhood). It didn't take long to forget about the gravel, but it took a lot longer to adapt to the noise. Occasionally we drive past the old house to see what is happening in the old stomping grounds, its a fresh reminder of how much we disliked that gravel road. They have reworked one pair of the 90 degree corners into nice sweeping curves, but its still gravel. We have also grown accustom to the noise and convenience of living in town. If we ever move back into the country (not likely at this point in our lives) it would have to be on a paved road. Gene

 

I'm amazed when I visit big cities in southern climes and see nary a car with a cracked windshield.

 

I live on a dirt road that runs through a conservation area; it has some hills and sharp narrow curves. The town grades it a couple times a year. Most people are pretty good about driving slow along here, but there are the usual idiots who insist on driving as fast as they can or just raise hell. We usually have a couple cars end up in the ditch every year or get caught by the Wells PD.

 

Built a house on a dirt road, hated that road. Deep mud in the spring and fall, and dusty all summer. Fought with the town officials for years to have it paved, no luck. Moved from NH down to Lively, VA. All of the roads in my traveled area are like run ways, smooth and flat. Everything stays cleaner.

 

I have 335' of gravel driveway. I would like to have concrete but it would cost more than my house and shop combined. Since it is just us here it doesn't get dusty like traveled gravel roads.

I have yet to come up with a reason to use a gravel road with my hobby cars and I'm not looking for one.

 

Its a car and meant to be driven. We live a mile off the 4 lane on gravel. All my cars see dirt or they would never had been driven. My new GMC build is meant for backroads.

 

I was raised on the ranch over two miles from pavement. Never knew anything else for twenty years. Our roads were so bad my Dad buried his 3/4 ton Four wheel drive with 12:00X16.5 tires in a county road one year! I had trouble pulling him out with my jacked up big tired Ford four wheel drive! But we drive all over the ranch on our private roads with no problem!








Bones

 

I got a bug up my ass one day....drove the Shoebox to our cabin in Northern Michigan. Lots of secondary roads up there.

 

Yeah, Sometimes View attachment 5027033

 

Hello,

Our early hot rod days were strictly surface streets. The closest we got to a gravel road was during a Baja, Mexico trip in the 40 Ford Sedan Delivery and in the side roads up in old, mountainous, Big Bear housing communities in the 58 Impala. The idea of damaging the paint was the major concern. But, if one goes slowly, then not much gets thrown up to the painted areas behind each wheel and the lower door panels.

When there was a dirt road in those early surf road trips, the waves made it so good that one tended to forget the quality of the surface. Locally in the OC, we had to high-tail it down the road to hide the car or van, before anyone saw us in the South Orange County jungle in the then, U.S. Marine base. It was always a good thing to get on those roads in the dark. As it was slow going for no dust or darkened roads, leading to the hiding place in the jungles.

The dirt/gravel roads led to the grassy area that led into the taller brush and trees. We drove up over the grass, (roughed it up so the grass looked like nothing had run over it)and sprinkled some gravel spread out from the road. Now, this grass area looked as if no one went over it into the tree lined area.

Inside the tree lined area, there was a place carved out of the space for three vans. (Normally, there were only two.) We put the cut down trees back in their holes in the gravel/dirt pathway into this opening. Now, if any one (marine patrols or other surf wagons) came by on the main dirt/gravel road, they would not know where we were in the thick, tree lined, big jungle.

There were many incidents that the beaches were cleared of any surfers. we all ran in all directions, but, also including paddling out into the water. The "safe hideaway" in the jungle was never found. Many military Jeeps and 6 wheeled marine vehicles drove past on the pathway, but never found us. Whew!!!

We even created custom mudflaps to fit the curvature of the rear lip on the open fender wells. If it was designed well enough, most of the flying rocks and debris hit the flap and fell downward. But, those flaps looked just awful and after several trips, were thrown away. Style over function wins again…

As the wide tire trend started in the late 50s and early 60s, there was a definite need to put on short fenders in roadsters or a modified rear fender lip to keep the flying stuff off of the cars following the culprit.