Outskirts Overland Podcast

What You Really Need for Overlanding Isn't What You Think

• Charlie Racinowski

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Charlie shares the events where you can meet him this year including the More Expo in April and Overland of America in September, both with Midwest Adventure Outfitters.

• Top three vehicle mods for car camping: storage space, charging capabilities, and organization systems
• Must-have mods for overlanding: high-ply all-terrain tires, window tint, and reliable navigation
• Essential modifications for off-roading: quality tires, frame sliders, and strategic skid plates
• Charlie's favorite camping gear includes his 23Zero Kabari rooftop tent, refrigerator, 270-degree awning, and GCI Rocker camp chair
• Pull Start Fire earns high praise for eliminating traditional fire-starting hassles
• Practical considerations like headlamps and trash management solutions are often overlooked but essential
• Charlie recommends Husky waterproof storage boxes for their versatility, including using them for washing clothes while camping

Send your topic suggestions to Charlie for future episodes through social media at Outskirts Overland on all platforms.


Speaker 1:

Welcome to the World of Warcraft, episode 1 the Warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft, warcraft. Hey guys, happy friday. It's charlie, with outskirts, overland. Um, I'm just hopping on. It's another day, right? Uh, I wanted to. I'm gonna go over some places. I'm gonna be here coming up this, uh, summer some events. I'll be at some places. You can come see me. Like it's been covered on other podcasts, but for some reason I am terrible about letting you guys know where I'm gonna be.

Speaker 1:

Um, so I'll be at the more expo the 25th and 26th of apr. I will be in the booth with Midwest adventure outfitters. Um, with Benji, we will also be doing a Q and a one evening afterwards, so you guys can come see me there, talk to me there. I'll bring some stuff. Um, he'll also be handing out some stuff, you know stickers, patches, whatever he's got. I'll have some as well. Um, and we can chit chat and go over a few things. I will have my truck there somewhere. Um, it's a fortune to get a space big enough to put it inside, so it'll be outside somewhere. Um, most likely my girlfriend will be there. There maybe not, but you guys will be able to find it. I'll do a video here shortly, um, of my truck, with some decent quality hopefully, and uh, so you guys can watch that on youtube not planning to be a youtuber, but or put a lot of content out on youtube, except for this stream of the podcast. I'll also be at overland of america, put a lot of content out on YouTube, except for this stream of the podcast. I'll also be at Overland of America, I don't remember when. That is middle of September.

Speaker 1:

I'll be there as well. I may or may not be with Benji there too, but I mean I'll be around and I'll be at Benji and Friends at Midwest Adventure Outfitters. So I mean I'll probably be around him at some point anyways, just hanging out. So, uh, this will be my first time going there. I've heard a lot of good things about it, so I'm pretty, I'm pretty excited to go to it. Um, I'll probably have some stickers at that too. Maybe by then I'll have some something else, you know, maybe to do a raffle, a piece of gear, some attire. If there's anything specifically you guys want, let me know, because I don't. I just don't do that stuff much I don't do, like patches and stickers and apparel and all these things. But, like I said, I'm really going to try and turn a little more available to you guys out of the podcast. So, if you're in the Midwest and you see me or you're in the Midwest, excuse me if you're in the Midwest area and you're going to any of these events, you'll be able to come see me and I'll probably. I probably need to get a shirt of my own or something so you guys can know that it's me Nonetheless. So I'm getting on today.

Speaker 1:

Today I want to talk about that also. A hot topic, um, and I would like some, I would like some feedback from you guys. A hot topic and that I keep seeing is like is two things what are the, what are the top 10? You know top five, top ten. You know top five, top 10 things you'd take camping uh, you know whether it's that's all you could take or just what are your top 10, as well as what are the top three or five mods you do to your vehicle to start overlanding? I'm going to start with the vehicle, just cause I I'm a car guy. Um, i'm'm a vehicle guy. I like modding cars and trucks and jeeps, and so I'm gonna start there and when I I'm gonna start there and I'm gonna preface this by saying I'm gonna give a couple different lists of my opinion, because overlanding so so like just camping, you know, out of your vehicle it's a camping is going to be a little different than overlanding, is going to be a little different than off-roading. So I'm going to split them up that way. So if you're somebody that does a combination, you know you can kind of pick your flavor there. So when it comes to, I'm going to start with just camping.

Speaker 1:

When it comes to camping, the top three things I think you need in your vehicle is probably you need a vehicle with some amount of storage for what you're sleeping in. So if you're just camping, you don't need a truck, you don't need an SUV, but you do need some room. So you don't want to have something that's, you know, got a third row seat, you're taking everybody and there's no room to put a tent, a cook stove, like just your camping gear. So I'd say number one thing you need to go camping out of your vehicle is space. Um, the second thing you need is excuse me, is you're going to want to have some type of way to charge stuff. So just camping, again, just camping.

Speaker 1:

But you go camping for three, four, five days and you're going out of your car. You want to make sure you have a car that's recent enough to charge things on USB and have those cables with you. It's 2025, you know, obviously it's a little different, 1970, but you're going to want to have something to where you can charge your stuff to. You know cause everybody's going to want to do that, especially if you're going camping with family, kids. You know, I'm assuming camp ground, but even nonetheless, not camp ground something, something where you can charge your stuff, not necessarily an inverter, but, like I'm in my subaru right now. I got like five usb ports and a 12 volt port, which could be another bunch of ports, but you want to make sure you have a way to charge your stuff as well as the means to do it the cords, um, and you're gonna, that's the second thing, I'd say. So a car with some space.

Speaker 1:

You know, these are top three things you need, in my opinion, for car camping. Obviously, guys, you need a tent, you need a stove, you need a sleeping bag. Like I'm not going over the camp gear. I'll go over that. When it comes to gear, top 10 things I'd take It'd be the same stuff, um, but for the car. You want a car that's recent enough to do USB charging, c or like USB-A or USB-C. You're going to want to make sure you got cords for all the stuff you're going to use. You're going to want to make sure you got a car with some space and then, lastly, you're going to want to have some type of way to like haul your stuff. The last thing you want is a car with some space and then all your stuff thrown in there loose. I personally have started with um. When I started, um, well, not when I started, let's say when I let's say like 2018, let's go. Let's just go back like seven years in 2018.

Speaker 1:

I went and got these Husky boxes that are like waterproof and you can stack them, and I think they're just phenomenal. I got red ones. You can get black or gray. I think you can get black, for sure you can get gray, I think, and I have red, but they're Husky, waterproof boxes. They have clear tops, they have all kinds of different sizes and you stack on top of each other clear tops, they have all kinds of different sizes and you stack on top of each other. I think those are even so, in my truck, as built out as it is now, I still have those. They're fantastic.

Speaker 1:

I like them because you can put your stuff in them, you can see what's in them, you can take the boxes outside. They're waterproof and I often use them for a step too. So my stuff's in there, it's waterproof. I can pull it out of the vehicle. So it's not in the vehicle, it's accessible. They have clear tops so you can see what's in them. And if you need to get to anything high for for some reason, um, you can use them as a step. I use them as a step all the time when I'm putting up my awning. I have, like, all my diesel heater stuff in a small one and I use that step like all the time. I also use those, um, that same small one I use for my diesel heater stuff.

Speaker 1:

This is going to be just a side side tip. The one I use for my diesel heater stuff I also use to wash clothes. So I I don't know that I've ever covered this before on here, but I, uh, I'll take camp sud soap and water and put it in one of them and then all my clothes and then I'll close it all up and I'll shake it around and that's how I wash my clothes. I wash my clothes in that same thing and then let it dry out. You know, et cetera in all as well.

Speaker 1:

So I really like those Husky cases with the clear tops. They're waterproof. Go to Home Depot dot com. If you have the app, whatever put in, like Husky waterproof case or tote or storage, they'll come up. You'll know what it'll show them. They have six clamps, two on each side and one on the end. The real small ones, I think, have one on each side and one on each end, but they're great. I've had those. Like I said, what did I say? 2018, 2017? I don't even know Lots of. I mean anything that lasts more than five years, in my opinion, is a pretty good piece of equipment. They haven't cracked, they haven't, and I mean I just I'm real hard on stuff, more so than most, so I really like those. So those are my top three things some way to store stuff, room to store stuff and a way to charge your stuff.

Speaker 1:

As far as go Now overlanding and we're talking just overlanding, like you just want to travel long distances in your vehicle to, you know, maybe remote places, okay. So the top three things I think you need on your vehicle for that is man. I go kind of back and forth on this one, guys, and be real, completely honest with you, but if you're going overlanding, I think the top three things you need for your car probably better tires. First thing I'm a huge fan of 10 ply tires. There is a lot of people that think that's overkill. I don't think they need to necessarily for overlanding. They don't need to be bigger tires necessarily, but 10 ply tires I'd get the highest ply tire you can get. So if you're overlanding in an SUV and you can't get a 10 ply tire, I would get you know C rating is the highest you get six by eight by whatever. I'd get the highest ply tire. I would get you know. If c rating is the highest you get six by eight by whatever. I get the highest ply tire you can get with an all terrain not all weather, all terrain tread, because overlanding you're going to at least be doing a lot of gravel and that stuff can be hard on tires. There also can be, you know, on gravel roads. Sometimes you might find debris like nails, screws, stuff like that. So I think tires is probably the first thing. I go with Better tires, you want to know.

Speaker 1:

The second thing, I think, for overlanding and traveling long distances, that you need for your vehicle Window tint. I think window tint is a must If you're driving any type of distance. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Nothing has made my trips worse driving a long way overlanding than just the damn sun killing me man. And I say window tint because sunglasses do work, obviously, guys. Yeah, obviously they do, but it's still going to be. The vehicle just gets so hot. So I'd say tires and then I'd say window tent myself, and this is my opinion. And then the third thing I would say that you need is some type of way to navigate. So if you've got an older vehicle, I'd get something like an iPad to navigate map. I'd have something to map, you know, but where you're going.

Speaker 1:

Those would be my top three things for just overlanding, and you'll be able to do a lot in pretty much any vehicle. Get in places with your tires. I mean seriously, let's be real here. Now off-roading totally different thing, and this can overlap, you know, along with overlanding, but off-roading. I think the three top things you need again tires 10 ply for sure for positive. You need 10 ply. My opinion you need 10 ply tires. You need a vehicle that is four-wheel drive, not just all-wheel drive. Again, if you're just off-roading, something with a transfer case is going to be preferred. So I'm not saying that's a thing, like that's already should be there, but just vehicle choice is it just goes without saying.

Speaker 1:

The first thing I'd say you need tires. The second thing I would get if I was off-roading a vehicle is frame sliders. I think frame sliders will keep you. I think frame sliders keep a lot of new and inexperienced off-roaders from tearing up their cars. And the third thing I do is skids. And skids is kind of convoluted because there's a lot of skids and they're expensive, but particularly the front skid under the oil pan and a skid under your gas tank. So I do tires, sliders and skids under the oil pan and the gas tank. Those are my top three things I would do for off-roading with a vehicle. Obviously, as you off-road more you're going to lift it, you're going to do other stuff, but those protective pieces are still going to also be there. So as you get more experience, you try harder things. They're still going to be there. I think those are the three top things you should get for off-roading.

Speaker 1:

Now, my 10 favorite things that I take so I do a mixture of. I mean, overlanding is camping, but I don't just camp at a campground, so I do some overlanding and off-roading. My top 10 favorite things. Now, I'm not saying these are the things you need, my top 10 favorite things. I'm not saying these are the things you need, these are the things you may want. These are just my top 10 favorites. Just my top 10 favorite things.

Speaker 1:

So my absolute favorite thing on my truck, I would say it's probably my tent. I have a 23.0 Kabari light tent. It's a very light tent. It's very quick to set tent. It's a very light tent. It's very quick to set up. It's got a comfortable mattress.

Speaker 1:

You know, I think my tent's probably my favorite thing and there's a lot of things about my truck that I like, but I'd say, first thing I like about my truck, my favorite thing is probably my tent. It's a wedge-style tent. I would not have said my tent was my favorite thing in a lot of instances previously. It's a wedge style tent. I would not have said my tent was my favorite thing in a lot of instances previously, but I'd say probably at this point my favorite thing is my tent. I'd say my second favorite thing on my truck is my fridge, which will go right with power. I have power and fridge, secondary power and fridge. I like having a fridge. It's bougie, but I think a fridge is my second favorite thing Just because even just putting water in there like it just tastes like I don't know. I think it tastes better, like I think the fridge is awesome. So I really really, really, really really enjoy the fridge. I mean that could be three things really. I like the fridge a lot. Not my favorite thing, though. The tent still is my favorite thing.

Speaker 1:

Third favorite thing I have a 270 awning. I love having the 270 awning. Lots of coverage Can keep me out of the rain, can keep me out of the sun. I think the 270 awning is awesome. Now again, these are expensive things. They're my favorite probably in part due to the fact that they're so cool. I really like them. So third favorite thing awning. I've had a moonshade before. Some of my friends just have the regular pullout. It doesn't really matter. I mean an awning is a nice thing to have, very nice thing to have. Can be a pain sometimes but it's a nice thing to have.

Speaker 1:

Fourth favorite thing camp chairs. I like the GCI Rockers. Those are my favorite camp chairs. I have one. I also have a 23-0. I don't know what you call it. It's like a bungee. It's kind of like a bungee deal like seat, and it's not my favorite. It's a nice one. It's nice in the winter Cause it's kind of thicker. But GCI rockers are my favorite camp chairs. So fourth thing would be GCI rocker. I think that's a I don't know, I'm a chair guy Like not, I'm not a chair guy, but like I want a nice camp chair when I'm at camp, camp chair is a must.

Speaker 1:

My fourth favorite thing that I take camping and this is really high for a piece of random gear pull start fire. It's a fire starter. I okay. So I used to not do fires because there's such a pain in the butt. Now that I got the pull start fire, that thing is sick. So you wrap it around one log, you make your fire and then you pull the cord and everybody says like I've had it around people now and they're like it smells like fireworks. But, man, you don't have to screw with fire, you don't have to do kindling, you don't have to do nothing. Pull start fire, I would say, is my fifth favorite thing. I take them all the time. I love those things. There's something that I almost always, if I've got two left, I buy a new package of six, like. There's something that, like my experience, camping is worse without those Pulsar fire. A hundred frigging 50,000, billion, um, I'd say.

Speaker 1:

My sixth, sixth favorite piece of gear is a piece of gear that I hope to never use, but that's my pistol. I take my pistol with me when I go camping, I sleep with my pistol. It's always accessible. I always have extra mags, something I hope to never have to use, you know, for any reason, animal, human, whatever but a pistol. I was hesitant to put this on the list, but I'm not comfortable camping alone, or even in a very small group, without it. So pistols got to be on there. I have to. It's got to be.

Speaker 1:

My sixth favorite thing is I have an iCamper Disco Scottle and I freaking love it, guys. I haven't talked about it at all because I haven't had it that long, but, guys, it's freaking sick. It's a stove, it's a Scottle, but it's a Scottle that you can adjust it. You can use it as a Scottle. You can use it as a stove. You can take the stove off and use it. You can take the cast iron Scottle and hang it. It goes up real high so you can hang it over fire. I really, really like my eye camper disco stove. I would say that's way up there. Um, but I wasn't gonna put it over pistol. I had some thought going into that. So that's six.

Speaker 1:

Seventh favorite thing is probably, I'd probably say my Gerber multi-tool. I have a Gerber multi-tool that like slings out, it's not like a fold out one. I'd say my Gerber multi-tool is probably seven. I like having a multi-tool. I also care. I'll also say Swiss army knife. I have a big woodsman Swiss army knife. It's called the woodsman or the huntsman or something like that woodsman swiss army knife. It's called the woodsman or the huntsman or something like that. I like having that as well. That's a great, fantastic, amazing piece of gear. So that'd be seven.

Speaker 1:

Eight I would say for me is I carry a tool roll and it's got like every tool under the sun. I say you know metric standard sockets, quarter inch, three inch, half inch sockets. I also carry impact sockets. I'm a loop tools in tools. Number eight I'd say tools. I have used them a lot. Um, I carry electric impact like a bit like not like a screwdriver impact, like a impact impact, like 2000 foot pound impact, so that impact sockets, wrenches, tool roll, tool roll is amazing.

Speaker 1:

Then I'd say number nine favorite thing is probably going to be a thermosel. What a thermosel is? You can get all kinds of different ones, but essentially what it is is it's a uh, it's a yeah, it keeps bugs away. So a thermosel, you can refill them and stuff. You just set it on table, set it on the ground, and it keeps the bugs away. They actually work. I had to put it on the list because it's something that I pay attention to bringing. And then was that eight or nine? That was eight, nine, whatever, anyways.

Speaker 1:

Next I say headlamp. Headlamp is something that I'm finding more and more. People don't, some people don't even know about headlamps. I freaking gotta have a headlamp. I have to have a headlamp. Headlamps, necessity, necessity. And I'll go ahead and say this is nine, this headlamp, something I just have to have. And you know, is it my? It's hard to say these are my favorite things, but these are my musts. You know, amongst all the other necessities that you need, headlamp is one that I'm trying I'm starting to find out. People don't people don't like have um, some people don't use them, some people have never used them. I've given probably four away, even just being like, try this out. Like you got it. You don't have a headlamp.

Speaker 1:

So headlamp, and then my last thing would be a uh trash receptacle. I have like a trasharoo type trash thing on my truck. But I did without a trash thing for a while. It's kind of just a huge pain in the ass. So I like having something to put the trash in Um, and then it can just, it can just live there until I get home and put it in my house. So I think trash would be the last thing. Something to put trash in I don't. I also like having it on the outside of the vehicle versus in on anything, just in the case something happens. I'd rather have nasty juices on my back bumper, steel bumper, than anywhere else it could go. So I'd say the Trash Roo is probably my 10th. I had so psyched guys.

Speaker 1:

Trash Roos suck okay, like the brand Trash Roo sucks. They last six months, eight months, whatever. I have mine on the back of my tailgate, like all the time, and I've had so many different ones, because they just fall apart, they fade, they fall apart, they have plastic clips, they break. I recently, just like recently, recently, like yesterday just ordered a new one because tailgate ones are becoming more popular and I have a truck, like I don't have a spare tire carrier on it, so the spare tire ones I make them work on the back of my truck. But I just got a NBX garb tailgate version. Um, my friend Benji got an NBX garb that goes on his spare tire. Um, so we're both trying out that same one. I'll let you guys know I am extremely optimistic about it.

Speaker 1:

But nonetheless, a trash roo, even or the cheapest one you can get, is still something to have, you know, because you want a place to put your trash. So I'd say that, and trash bags are my 10th favorite thing to bring, must-have thing to have. So that's what I'm talking about this Friday, maybe, get you guys thinking to do. Maybe there's some things you didn't think about, maybe there's some things that didn't think about, maybe there's some things that are completely new to you. Um, you know, get your, get your mind working as you go into the weekend about these things.

Speaker 1:

Um, comment, like, like, comment. Whatever you do, message me. I'm outskirts overland on everything you can put in outskirts overland. You'll find me everywhere. And even I'm Charlie. Rasanowski is my last name. Charlie spelled normal, rasanowski is really long, but it's R-A-C Rasanowski. You'll find me there too. Charlie Raz, charlie Rasanowski. Let me know what you guys think. What are your? What what are you? What's your guys' lists?

Speaker 1:

Um, it's a pretty, it's a topic that, like, I feel like is redundant a lot and people, people have been asking quite a bit lately and I think it's interesting to see the difference. I just did the top 10 things. If I could only take 10 things that I would take camping on the podcast with Benji which I believe will be out next week. Top 10 things if I could only take 10. But like this, I just wanted to do the 10 things, that my favorite 10 things, my must have 10 things, not necessarily, you know. Obviously the normal exists shelter, sleep, et cetera and I could have had a tent and not liked it as much and wouldn't even mention it. But my tent is so nice, I man 23, zero makes a super good tent and I've had it for a while. Like, this isn't a new tent and it just is a killer man. So, anyways, guys, hope you guys have a killer Friday, crush it.

Speaker 1:

I won't post it all on the weekend, so I'll be back on Monday with some new stuff. Some topics will be tight. If you guys give me topics, that'd be sick I'll cover your topics. If you're like I mean people listen to this, you could be the guy that I talk about only your topic for a whole day. Um, send it to me, I'm down, whatever. Um, let me know so I'll catch you guys later. Have a good Friday, have a good weekend and I'll see you Monday Later.