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Written Content
Jimmy had never been off-roading before in his life, let alone in the Rivian R1T he had owned for only a few weeks at the time. Fresh off a night of camping, he loaded up the truck with family and friends, then started toward a trail called Yankee Hill for what was supposed to be a manageable introduction to off-roading. What followed turned out to be more demanding than Jimmy expected, and revealed some important things to do differently next time.
- Jimmy's Rivian referral code: JAMES1409338
The Setup
Before heading out, Jimmy dropped the truck into off-road mode, set the ride to soft, and started the trail at a ride height of 13.1 inches with 213 miles of range on the battery. The one variable working against him was tires. His R1T was riding on the 21 inch road wheels, chosen a year earlier when he first configured the truck, not the all-terrain option better suited to loose or rocky terrain. Before dropping onto the trail, the group aired down using two different types of deflators, one that screws on and automatically stops at a preset PSI, and a faster version that removes the valve stem entirely to let air out quicker. The trail itself carries an official rating of 3 out of 10, which ended up surprising Jimmy with its difficulty.
What the Tech Is Actually Doing
The R1T's four independent motors, paired with over 800 horsepower, are built to send power and torque to each wheel individually based on the traction available at that exact moment. In practice, that means the truck's computer is constantly reading friction at each corner and adjusting output on the fly, which is what lets an electric truck this heavy handle rocky, uneven terrain without any single wheel losing grip and stalling the whole climb. Jimmy leaned on that system heavily as the trail shifted from a simple dirt road into muddier, steeper, and increasingly narrow sections, and the truck kept finding traction even when the situation looked sketchy from inside the cabin.
Where the Truck Impressed, and Where Jimmy Didn't
The battery told its own story of how hard the truck was working. Range dropped from 213 miles to 201 within the first stretch of climbing, well beyond what casual driving would use, before eventually bottoming out around 168 miles at the lowest point of the trip. On the way back down, regenerative braking clawed a meaningful amount of that back, pushing the range back up to around 205 miles by the time the group returned to pavement. The paint protection film had its own moment to shine, literally. After the truck brushed against tree branches on a narrow section of trail, the resulting pinstriping was clearly visible at the lunch stop. By the time the truck was washed later that day, the scratches had faded to nearly nothing, healed by a few hours of sun exposure just as the film is designed to do.
The Two Regrets
Despite how capable the truck proved to be, Jimmy was candid that his own inexperience, not the technology, was the real limiting factor of the day. Looking back, he identified two specific things he would change. The first was preparation: rather than assuming the truck's tech would compensate for having never off-roaded before, he wished he had watched a few beginner focused videos and started on an easier trail before attempting something rated a 3 out of 10. The second was a decision made a year earlier, when he originally ordered the truck with efficiency focused road wheels because its main job at the time was hauling PEVs for the YouTube channel, not climbing trails. With off-roading now clearly part of the picture, Jimmy said he would gladly trade the roughly 40 miles of range that more capable all-terrain wheels would cost for the extra traction and confidence they would bring.
The Freshly Charged Verdict
Even with a stressful, sweaty first attempt (thank god for cooling seats), Jimmy came away energized rather than discouraged. He pointed out that most Rivian owners will probably never take their trucks on a real trail, but that was never the plan for his. A dirty, pinstriped truck at the end of the day was, in his view, exactly what it was built for. Between the tech that got them through terrain well above what Jimmy expected for a beginner trail, and a self healing paint job that erased the evidence by dinner time, the day added up to a rough first attempt on paper and a genuinely good time in practice.
- Jimmy's Rivian referral code: JAMES1409338
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