NO BOUNDARIES
Two weeks after Ashlee Perry and her husband experienced their first Jeep, they had to buy their own.
The tale goes that Perry's husband rode home from work with a friend and co-worker who had a Jeep. The two rode down the open road with the top and doors off, said Perry, who is the leader of the Slippery Rock Crawlers, a 550-member Jeep club.
The vehicle was similar to a motorcycle, but it could be taken everywhere, she said.
After purchasing their first Jeep in 2001, the couple went on to buy two more. Perry currently has a burgundy red 2012 Jeep Wrangler.
“We absolutely fell in love. You can go anywhere and do anything,” she said. “Everything is limitless.”
Jeep enthusiasts from across the country will descend on Butler this weekend and celebrate the vehicle's history during the Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival.
Rich Grossman, general manager for Diehl Automotive, said the dealership carries several hundred Jeeps.
“Jeeps are one of our best-sellers,” Grossman said.
Since the festival began, Grossman has been involved. At this year's Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival, Grossman will have 30 to 40 Jeeps that people can drive on the trails and that will be displayed in their tent, he said.
At the Bantam Garage on Saturday and Sunday, Grossman's team will even fix broken Jeeps brought in by hundreds of people from across the country.
People don't just buy a Jeep, he said, they buy the adventure it takes them on.One of Perry's adventures was to Redrock Falls in Slippery Rock, where she and 30 other Jeep owners drove through the different trails in the woods.“It's the curiosity of, 'I think I can do this,' and you find out you can,” she said.Her Jeep's accessories include a CB radio — which she uses to communicate with other Jeeps during rides — as well as rock lights, wheel lights, an extender and big tires.This is the first year Perry is working at the festival. She said she has attended every year since the first one nine years ago.Perry said the festival offers the chance to meet new people interested in Jeeps.“It's fun to teach people about a vehicle that has so much limitless possibilities,” she said.Fellow Slippery Rock Crawler Amanda Brunner of Harrisville called the Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival the “Jeep Disney World.”Brunner said she developed a love for Jeeps after she learned they can do more than just be on the road. She bought her first Jeep as a teenager and fell in love with them after riding in her great-uncle's Golden Eagle when she was 6 years old.
“That was around the time I was struggling with hearing loss,” Brunner said.Brunner, who is hard of hearing, enjoys the hobby because she can meet new people and have fun when she offroads and goes to other events. She said the hobby is also relaxing.Recently, Brunner bought a 2013 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 10th Anniversary JK, which has axle lockers and sway bars, and she plans on adding a lift kit and bigger tires.Although she has been on plenty of adventures, she said her favorite activity is taking her Jeep to Bantam.“I love how they explain the history about Jeeps,” she said.Brunner said that the Jeep is also popular because it was one of the first military vehicles.“It does everything most vehicles could not do,” she said.
