Getting Down And Dirty At The New Bronco Off-Roadeo School In Tennessee

There’s nothing more exciting than taking your 4×4 vehicle off-roading and seeing what it can really do. Picture this – You’re hitting the trails and climbing over rocks, wading through mud, and navigating tight, wooded paths. Sounds like a ton of fun, right? But for people who have never gone off-roading before, it can be rather stressful taking their shiny new (and expensive) ride off the beaten path.

But not to worry, because Ford has you covered with the Bronco Off-Roadeo, a FREE full-day off-road adventure driving school for new Bronco and Bronco Sport owners where they get to see what their trucks can really do, under the instruction of professionals. The experiences are designed to build confidence and provide owners with the knowledge and skills to get out into the wild. Every Bronco Off-Roadeo experience is equipped with exciting and challenging trails, custom-designed Bronco basecamp facilities, and a team of expert trail guides.

While many sports car purchases come with a free high-performance driving school class, Ford is the first OEM to offer a similar offering for off-road vehicles, and it’s pretty genius. The only out-of-pocket costs to owners are travel and hotel accommodations if they aren’t local to one of the 5 Bronco Off-Roadeo locations: Moab, New Hampshire, Nevada, Texas, and Tennessee.

“With the opening of Bronco Off-Roadeo Tennessee, now 80% of Bronco and Bronco Sport owners will have access to an Off-Roadeo location that’s within 500 miles of their home,” said Bronco Off-Roadeo Manager Kelsey Gerken. “The Tennessee location also adds to the diversity of terrain with forested trails that complement the Las Vegas desert, Texas hill country, Moab red rocks and New Hampshire mountains.”

Ford recently opened their newest Bronco Off-Roadeo adventure driving school in Tennessee (less than an hour south of Knoxville), and we were invited to take part in a day of off-roading awesomeness. Having done the Ford Bronco Off-Roadeo Raptor Experience in Las Vegas last year, I was excited to see what Tennessee had to offer, as the terrain here was VERY different, as was the vehicle I would be driving.

My first impressions? Wow, this place is gorgeous! Situated near the Great Smoky Mountains and the Blue Ridge Parkway, this location sits on over 1,000 acres of hilly, forested terrain in Maryville, Tennessee that’s been family-owned for over 80 years. The views were spectacular (sweeping views of the mountains, and the leaves changing color), and thanks to all the recent rainfall, the trails were nice and muddy to play in.

Now while I’ve done my fair share of off-roading in a wide variety of vehicles, I still learned a lot during my day at the Bronco Off-Roadeo, our trail guides imparting us with a lot of their expert knowledge. Some takeaways for me included left foot braking, shuffle steering, spacial awareness, and how to utilize the front/rear locking differentials when needed.

Over the course of the day, we drove through a variety of terrain and obstacles, including mud, rocks, creeks, steep hills (20+ degree ascents), narrow tree paths, and much more. It was pretty impressive seeing just how capable the Bronco was, make short work of anything that came its way. I was behind the wheel of an Everglades, and that sucker was unstoppable!

The trail guides also spent quite a bit of time going over recovery techniques, talking about the different equipment you should be carrying with you (straps, treads, shovels, winches, etc), and everything else that could come in handy should you find yourself in a pickle. Really invaluable information given out here, useful whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned vet.

Another phrase that was repeated throughout the day was “Tread Lightly!” and as it implies, they want drivers to practice responsible off-roading to reduce harm to the environment and protect our natural and cultural resources, rather than gunning it through trails and rutting things up. It’s irresponsible actions like those that have caused a number of public trails to be shut down in recent years.

While I’ve done a lot of off-roading over the years, this was definitely at the top of the list for me, completely exceeding my expectations. This is a fantastic facility, the instructors were great, and I really learned a lot. Even the food was pretty amazing! Needless to say, if you’re a Bronco or Bronco Sport owner, you definitely need to sign up for this while you’re still eligible.

Not only that, but they’re offering half-day adventure to non-owners at any of the five Bronco Off-Roadeo locations, with a starting price of $795. Not only is this a great way to have some off-roading fun, but it’s also perfect for prospective Bronco owners to see what it’s capable of before committing to that big purchase.

Needless to say, I highly recommend checking out the Bronco Off-Roadeo school, whether you go to the new Teneessee location, or any of their other four locations. For owners, this is a great way to learn about everything that your new truck can do. And for others, it’s just a great way to learn more about off-roading and have a good, muddy time!