Behind the Ride:
Build for Off Road Adventure Ride Updates
Catch the Adventure Bug
with Desert Racer Steven Olsewski and PEAK
The dust has settled on the 2025 Build for Off Road Adventure Ride event, and as we gear up for the exciting, three-part TV premiere, we’ll continue to take you behind the ride with exclusive stories from the trail!
For Steven Olsewski, a desert racer and influencer representing PEAK and BlueDEF on the Adventure Ride, it was an eye-opening experience that proved just how vital it is to keep your cool in extreme conditions.
We caught up with Steven just a few days after the Adventure Ride to discuss its challenging obstacles, unique content opportunities, and how the ride inspired him to start his next project.
The Ultimate Proving Ground: Testing Products in the Real World
Steven came into the Adventure Ride with serious credentials: in addition to his experience in the off-road world as a journalist, editor, and social media influencer, he’s a desert racer who recently took home an epic victory in the Mint 400 under the BlueDEF banner.
As a sponsor of the Adventure Ride, PEAK tapped Steven to experience a different form of off-road driving—from the mountain trails of Big Bear to the intense heat of Johnson Valley and the rugged canyons around Kingman.
This environment perfectly demonstrated the value of the brand Steven was there to represent. PEAK Antifreeze + Coolant played a vital role in preventing vehicles from overheating and spoiling anyone’s fun on the trails.
“With the extreme temperatures we saw in Johnson Valley and Kingman, it’s important to make sure that all the vehicles have the proper coolant in them to be able to go out and enjoy the trails and stay cool,” says Steven.
Meanwhile, for the essential diesel trucks towing these purpose-built off-road rigs to the trails, BlueDEF diesel exhaust fluid was crucial. “It’s guaranteed pure and triple filtered, which is important because that system is so sensitive,” Steven explains. “BlueDEF got us to the trail, and PEAK kept us cool on the trail.”
The Content Gold Rush: ROI on the Trail
As an influencer who also works on the social media team for PEAK, Steven understands the massive benefits of participating in events like the Adventure Ride. He advises brands to get their representatives out from behind the desk to experience how their products work in the real world.
Steven says PEAK wants to tell stories about people having fun with cars – whether that means playing a role in the blockbuster F1: The Movie, racing in the desert with the Mint 400, or crawling over boulders with the Adventure Ride. “If it’s got an engine,” Steven says, “we want to be a part of it.”
From the influencer point of view, Steven explains that having a content-aware participant on the trail provides immediate and long-term value. In addition to posts recapping each day on the trail during the Adventure Ride, Steven and the team captured an immense library of content that will continue to be pushed out – including unique Route 66 photo ops in and around Kingman that will be leveraged for the centennial celebration of the Mother Road next year.
By having an influencer on the ride, PEAK not only tapped into Steven’s audience for exposure during the week of the event, but also secured a wealth of digital assets that will extend the life of their Adventure Ride sponsorship long into the future.
Catching the Bug: The True Off-Road Spirit
“I always tell people that once you go off-road, you catch the bug and you’re hooked,” says Steven. And while he’s had the off-roading bug for almost 15 years, the Adventure Ride seems to have sparked a new interest for Steven, who spent the week riding in a purpose-built Jeep TJ and learning the ropes of rock crawling.
“I’d never really ridden in anything like that, so I didn’t know what to expect. It was able to handle everything,” marvels Steven, describing how the rig tackled boulders and obstacles like a spider. “There wasn’t anything that it came up to that it couldn’t get over; it crawled right over everything!”
While Steven has raced in Johnson Valley numerous times, walking through the King of the Hammers trails like Sledgehammer and seeing the off-road obstacles up close gave him a new level of appreciation for just how extreme and difficult they are. He was also struck by the incredible locations these capable off-road rigs unlocked, like the historical Gold Mansion in Kingman, which is only accessible via off-road trails.
After experiencing the adventurous side of off-roading in a purpose-built vehicle that grants access to stunning vistas and historic landmarks, Steven says this trip has turned out to be “an expensive one—not because things broke, but because now I’ve gotta go build something to go out and do this!”
Luckily, the time Steven spent with his fellow off-roaders offered plenty of opportunities to gather ideas and inspiration that will help him build his own adventurous rock crawler. The bond that quickly developed among the group while depending on each other in these remote, extreme conditions also highlighted one of the biggest takeaways Steven is hoping to see when the Adventure Ride premieres on MotorTrendTV: the off-road spirit itself.
“Everyone bands together when someone breaks—everyone jumps in to help,” says Steven. “There’s no man left behind.”
That’s the core message that Steven hopes the Build for Off Road Adventure Ride will deliver when it premieres on MotorTrendTV this winter: a passion that is contagious, encouraging viewers to catch the bug, build their own rigs, and hit the trails to see what lies beyond the pavement.
What part of the Adventure Ride are you most excited to see on TV?
Do you have your own off-road project in the works? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
What part of the Adventure Ride are you most excited to see on TV?
Do you have your own off-road project in the works? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
More Adventures Await in 2026.
Reach out to us about 2026 Adventure Ride plans!
More Adventures Await in 2026.
Reach out to us about 2026 Adventure Ride plans!
Ready to Join the Adventure?
Watch the video below to learn more about putting your brand in the middle of the action!
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