Although I have never met Art in person, I have spoken with him a few times on various forums and such.  Art is another one of those guys that makes being part of the Suzuki community what it is!  I hope you enjoy this month's Hot Seat!

1. Tell us your full name?
Art Lilley (that’s all you get!)

2. Where and when were you born?
Uniontown, PA 1972

3. Do you have any brother’s or sister’s?
Three brothers, one sister

4. Where do you live now?
Fayetteville, NC

5. Where do you work?
US Army

6. What do you do there?
I am a Green Beret

7. Do you have a nick name that you like to go by?
Big Country

8. How did you get this Nickname?
The guys at work gave it to me due to my size and strength. I weigh in at 300 lbs when I have all my combat gear on. I’m only 5' 10" so that is a lot of weight to haul around.

9. How many years have you been off roading ?
About 6 now, I think.

10. Who, or what first got you interested in the sport?
I was looking for a, GASP, Jeep to buy and found this cool little thing called a Samurai. I was hooked as soon as I drove it! I found iZook shortly thereafter and the rest is history.

11. Are you involved in any off-road club’s, and if so, what is the name of your club?
I don’t really belong to a club. I am very involved with Zuwharrie.com though. I’m a Moderator on the BBS and an event staff member. I’ve been a Zuwharrie staffer for 3 years now and have loved every minute of it. We have over 2200 members and are growing every day.

12. What is the year, make, and model of your current trail rig?
I have a 1987 Suzuki Samurai, AKA ‘The Popsicle”

13. How long have you had it?
I bought it in the Spring of 2002 as a donor rig and finished it in the Summer of 2003. Wait, did I say finished? Are they EVER finished?

14. Why did you choose this rig to off-road?
I had a 88 Samurai that was SPOA, geared and sitting on 33's. It was a HUGE rust bucket and I bought my current rig to do a tub swap onto my old Sammi. Once I started thinking about it I changed my mind and decided to build the donor instead. My old rig donated a few parts but it ended up in the crusher eventually. RIP.

15. Is this your first off-road 4x4?
Nah, I have had quite a few. But the only capable trail rig I have owned is a Samurai.

16. What's best modification you've done to it so far?
Wow, that is a tough one! I guess since I would have to choose one it would be the RRO Coil kit. It is an amazing suspension for sure!

17. What's the worst modification you've done so far?
Ugh, Sidekick Powersteering! It lasted one wheeling trip and I tore it out and installed a Hydro Assist setup. MUCH better.

18. What’s the scariest moment you’ve ever had off-roading?
Probably Moab in June of 04. I has on an obstacle called the Escalator, it’s part of a trail called Hells Revenge. I was pretty much flipped over backwards into a wall with no chance of driving out of it. Luckily I had some great friends there with me to get my winch into action and save me the 100 foot tumble to the bottom of the Obstacle.

19. What was the funniest?
Well.......... I guess it was in Moab during the same trip. My good buddy Greg Beasley told me which line to take and I thought I knew better. Rule number one, the spotter can see way more than you can. Needless to say I ended up with a huge dent in the front of my Zuk and it came from the only Tree in Moab. I managed to hit the ONLY tree in Moab!

20. What have you learned from the sport that you can apply to your everyday life?
Wow, tough one. I don’t know if this fits but I will say this: Zukin’ is about people, not vehicles.

21. If you could sit down and talk to anyone, past or present, who would it be and why?
My Fathers father. I never got a chance to know my Grandfather and I wish I could have. From what I understand he was a great man.

22. Books on tape, or sit down and read?
Sit down and read.

23. DVD at home or Theater?
Either one. I travel a lot and when I am away from home I watch a LOT of DVD’s on my Laptop.

24. What is on your MP3 player or in your CD player right now?
MP3 player: Stellar Kart, Kutless, Pillar, The Afters, other Christian Rock, ton’s of techno, and even more Regaton and Hispanic rock. I spend a lot of time in South America and enjoy the Latino Jams.
CD Player........... this is sad but I bet it has something like Hillary Duff or Lindsey Lohan in it. I have an 8yr old Daughter who constantly bombards me with Radio Disney music. It’s all part of being a dad.

25. Radio, CD’s or “Trail Music” when your wheeling?
No music. I just enjoy talking with my co-pilot “Rock Dog.” That’s my 6yr old son Cole.

26. When you're not off-roading, or working, how do you like to spend your time?
I am a Youth Pastor and spend a most of my free time working with teenagers. I really enjoy it and plan on being a full time Youth Pastor when I retire from the Army in a few years.

27. If I gave you a free ticket to visit anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Easy...... Argentina. I’ve been there 10 times and would go back in a heartbeat. GREAT place!

28. Have you ever been outside of the United States?
Uhh....I’ve been in over 50 different countries. I guess that counts.

29. What did you want to be as a kid?
Army guy

30. If you could learn to speak any language, what would it be?
I guess I would learn Japanese if I had the time. I speak Spanish fluently, used to speak Italian but it has been 10 years since I have been in Italy and I understand Portuguese pretty well.

31. What is your best time of the day, morning, noon, or night?
Morning

32. What’s your most embarrassing moment (so far)?
Sorry, not gonna share it with the entire internet!

33. Have you ever met anyone famous, and if so, who?
Ronald Reagen (Great American) Colin Powell, Hulk Hogan, and my favorite....... Jack Lambert. GO STEELERS!!

34. If you could give any piece of advice to a future off-roader, what would it be?
This isn’t an original quote but I really like it. Credit goes to Derek Schwab: “If you don’t have time to do it right the first time, when will you ever have time to fix it?” That pretty much sums it up.