County Sheriff's Department said Tuesday that autopsies confirmed they died of accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. The vehicle was stuck so deep in a mud pit that its tail pipe was submerged; it is possible the gas flooded the cabin because of the clogged exhaust.

In one episode, he describes four-wheeling as a stress-reliever: "This is my medication right here," he says before getting stuck in a mud pit and blowing up his engine. And there was no place he enjoyed being more than behind the wheel in the woods, said Gandee's cousin Ashley Gandee Lewis.

Just two days before he died, Gandee had gone mudding with people he met Saturday at the grand opening of her general store in Proctorville, Ohio.

"He said, 'Let's go!' And they went," Lewis said. "Mudding'sfor funeral costs.

Jim Humphrey, a salesman at Morgantown Power Sports, said mudding is just a part of the Mountain State's history. People who live near lakes and oceans buy speedboats and personal watercraft. People who live near mountains and mud buy four-wheelers, he said.

"People around here just like to get muddy and have fun," said Humphrey, whose dealership sells 40 to 50 all-terrain vehicles a month at an average price of about $6,500.

West Virginia has an abundance of designated riding trails, including the 600-mile Hatfield-McCoy Trails network, which lets tourists and local alike traverse seven West Virginia counties. Local officials say riders have come from as far as Alaska and Canada.

But Humphrey, who used to ride two or three times a week, said locals often prefer to forge