My overlanding journey started pretty much in Texas. Even though I had a 4x4 when I was living in Utah, I never actually found anyone who could share this with me on the trail, so I was very conservative with where I could go. My rig was an old LC100, which happened to be a lemon, so it was mostly parked at the local Toyota dealership — a big mistake of a newbie. It's only later I found a good Toyota shop on State Street, Salt Lake City Utah, by the way, who really needs my recommendation check them out, they are awesome guys - State Automotive.
When we moved to Texas, I knew I wanted to get a new overlanding rig and had a lot of thinking to do about what to buy — well, most of you already know, since my IG is ongx460 😄 So yeah, I got a 2015 Lexus GX 460 Base. I always wanted a Land Cruiser Prado, but since the USA never sold them, the obvious alternative was the GX. I also wanted something newer after my mechanical lemon experience with the LC100. Here is my GX:
When my rig was chosen, I needed to add some armor, and that's where I met Jake Abbott from Overland Expedition Outfitters in Denton, TX. I knew that off-road shops usually have a strong connection with the community, so Jake recommended Calvary Overland, and that definitely changed everything. My first Calvary coffee and rigs meetup was rainy, but who cares when you have tons of off-road rigs, people who love overlanding, and raffles — oh, and I almost forgot: coffee too! 😄
This was my first time taking my camera off the far shelf after a long break — I even thought about selling it — but this simple move of just joining the community brought my photo muse back to life. I took maybe around 100 shots max back then, and mostly rigs, rigs, and more rigs — haha! Yes, I find cars beautiful and highly photogenic. Now I take more than 2k shots during these events. I have also become a Calvary media volunteer. I shoot multiple Calvary events now and plan on keeping doing it. There is just nothing better than doing what you love.
So what does Calvary actually do? More than just a coffee meetup, honestly. The Rigs & Coffee events are the most visible thing — big parking lot, tons of rigs, raffles, workshops, and yeah, coffee 😄 — but they also run guided expeditions (think Ouachita National Forest, Utah, and beyond), casual Kickback events that are literally just good people and good conversations with no agenda, and even supporter campouts for those who want to go deeper into the community. They've got a YouTube channel worth bingeing too, with full expedition recaps that'll have you planning your next trail before the video even ends.
If you're in DFW and even slightly curious about overlanding — whether you're running a lifted rig or still daily-driving a stock SUV wondering if this lifestyle is for you — just show up to a Rigs & Coffee. That's it. That's how it starts. It definitely was for me. Check out everything they've got going at calvaryoverland.com. If you see me at an event, please ask me to take a photo for you!
