This is the first installment in what I hope to make an ongoing series of spotlighting Badass Bronco Babes from around the country. If you would like to nominate yourself or a particular Badass you look up to, please drop me a line! I’m launching the column with a spotlight on Nicole Beale, my main Wing Woman and partner in crime in our local So Cal Broncos group 🙂 –Steffie
Tell us a little bit of your involvement with the Early Bronco
NICOLE: Bronco's every day! As well as being active in wheeling and camping with the So Cal Bronco group, I love driving my Bronco ( her name is Hazel for her rusty green coloring) as a street queen weekly. Hazel takes me hiking every Sunday off some dirt road, takes the dogs out on adventures, gets groceries, and is a fun cruiser all over the San Bernardino mountains. Beyond driving I try to help the hubby with general maintenance so I can always learn more about it.”
What made you decide on the Early Bronco?
NICOLE: My dad was always a Ford guy and in 1977 he bought a Bronco. He worked the night shift so during the day he would sneak me out of school without telling mom and then we would go off- roading and had all kinds of adventures. I was daddy's girl and was always out with him working on the trucks or wheeling on the weekends. I never forgot it. Those memories influenced me so much I always knew a Bronco was my dream car. I graduated, got a job, saved some money and in 2013 the search was on!
What are some trails that you have done that developed your driving skills?
NICOLE: Every single one. Even a simple fire road teaches you how your truck moves, how it slides,or even how it reacts when you hit the skids. Every kind of terrain or surface has a different aspect you have to think about and adjust your driving style. It is different for snow, sand and rock, so I love to learn them all! The scariest so far though - Odessa in Calico!
What advice can you give women who want to get involved in offroading and Broncos?
NICOLE: Have you ever done something you were scared or nervous to do, but you did it ? Did you feel that sense of accomplishment of conquering your own self, and that empowerment that you felt after? It's an amazing feeling! The adrenaline, the excitement! Just do it, fight the scared and be a badass—a Bronco will never do ya wrong.
Hazel’s Specifications:
| Year/Make/Model: | 1973 Ford Bronco |
| Engine: | 1991 5.0 HO |
| Transmission: | C4 Automatic |
| Transfer Case: | Twin-Stick Dana 20 |
| Front Axle: | Dana 44, 4.56 R&P, ARB Locker |
| Rear Axle: | Ford 9″, 4.56 R&P, ARB Locker |
| Tires: | 35″ Nitto Terra Grapplers |
| Wheels: | KMC Renezeder Beadlocks |
| Suspension: | 1980’s era James Duff lift |
| Brakes: | H ydroboost |
| Cab: | Hard top, Soft top, Tube doors for summer, Yellow solid doors for Winter |
| Creature Comforts: | Simpson heated seats and harnesses |