1997: A glimpse into the future
Shod with 44s and rolling on 2 1/2-ton Gama Goats with four-wheel independent suspension, Geby Wager's CJ-7, which won in 1997, was unlike anything we'd ever seen before at Top Truck.
A Jeep on 44s? With a 502 V-8, four-wheel independent suspension, rear steering, and 2 1/2-ton axles? Sounds like a typical TTC entrant nowadays, but back in '97, we'd never seen anything like Geby Wager's Canadian creation when it appeared at Hollister Hills. Geby's CJ only won one event at Top Truck (Acceleration) but with top-four finishes in all 10 events, his consistency propelled him to a 1st place overall standing and a runaway "People's Choice" winner.
Also in '97, we managed to roll a stock H1 on the Obstacle Course (guess we made it tough enough); another winchless vehicle (this time, a K-Blazer) won the Tank Trap in 6 minutes, 48 seconds, a record time that stands to this day; and for the first time, a Four Wheeler TV crew videotaped the event for posterity.
Winner: Geby Wager, Kelowna, B.C., Canada
Vehicle: '86 Jeep CJ-7
Engine: 502 Cadillac V-8, Holley 800
Transmission: Ford T-19
Transfer case: NP205
Axles/diffs: Gama Goat 2 1/2-tons/open
Suspension: Four-wheel independent
Tires: 44x19.5/15 Super Swamper Boggers
1998: Ushering in a new era
Heath Biggs' Scorpion was the first tube-chassis creation ever to enter Top Truck, and at TTC '98, he ran away from the field.
If 1997 gave us a peek into the future, Top Truck VI gave us the Real Deal: The Scorpion. The brainchild of Soni Honegger and driven by Heath Biggs, the Scorpion MK1 was the prototype for today's 4x4 rock racers: A ground-up fabrication utilizing a full tube chassis and pivoting multlink/airbag suspension. The Scorpion was among the Top 10 TTC vote-getters of all time, and it didn't disappoint, laying the field to waste; Heath took 1st-place honors in the Obstacle Course, Tank Trap, and Engineering, and had three 2nd-place finishes as well. His margin of victory was the biggest in TTC history at that time.
Also in '98, one of TTC's more memorable moments occurred in the Tank Trap, when a legendary Midwest Chevy known as "Quagmyr" ran into trouble in the canyon past Mudhole No. 2. Winching through the sluice, the truck began to smoke-and smoke, and smoke some more-to the point where a vehicle fire was feared. It all turned out to be a result of the effects of off-camber driving on an EFI motor, but to this day, the spot on the course where the Chevy engulfed the forest with a canopy of smoke is still referred to as Quag Canyon.
Winner: Heath Biggs, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Vehicle: Scorpion MK1
Engine: 350 TBI Chevy V-8
Transmission: TH700R4
Transfer case: Atlas II 3.8
Axles/diffs: Dana 44, Dana 60/ARB, Detroit Locker
Suspension: Pivoting AES multilink, 12-inch Firestone airbags
Tires: 35x15.50-15 Super Swamper Boggers
1999: The weird and the wonderful
One of the most unusual rigs to qualify for Top Truck was Chris Reiberger's Dodge Raider-bodied Hummer H1, which placed 6th at TTC '99.
For 1999, readers chose some of the most unusual vehicles ever to compete: a Dodge Raider on a Hummer H1 chassis; a TJ sporting a Viper V-10; a GMC Safari "Flexivan" mounted on a '77 Jimmy frame; and a Chevy K-10 that ran a de-tuned 557 marine block (still the biggest motor ever to run in Top Truck). When it was all over, a fairly conventional Chevy-powered Willys ran away from the field. Grady McLeod's flatfender won the Frame Twister, Mini Rubicon, Obstacle Course, and Engineering, as well as our Driving Elegant award.
Also in '99, the Tire Pit was run for the last time. Filled with water each year for TTC, then drained afterward, the usually dry pit had turned into a rattlesnake habitat over time, so the park rangers had the tires hauled away and the area cleared. No one seemed to mind.
Winner: Grady McLeod, Sacramento, California
Vehicle: '48 Willys CJ-2A
Engine: Chevy 350 V-8
Transmission: TH350
Transfer case: Toyota/Marlin 4.7
Axles/diffs: Dana 44, Toyota V-6/ARB Air Lockers
Suspension: Springs over axle (f), four-link (r)
Tires: 38.5x14.5-15 Super Swamper SXs
2000: Birth of a legend
He didn't win our Driving Elegant award, but Sam Patton's Tread-Unlightly style of 'wheeling served him well as he eked out a narrow win at TTC 2000.
To aficionados of our Top Truck video series, the name Sam Patton evokes visions of a mythic figure flying through the skies-or more accurately, flying his 425hp CJ-7 through the Frame Twister, over the Mini Rubicon, and inching his way across the finish line in the Tank Trap. In the closest Top Truck competition to date, Patton winched, nursed, and crawled his Jeep in three-wheel drive through the Trap, completing a full run with less than 30 seconds to spare and sealing a narrow victory over Steve Rumore's Avalanche "Sniper" rock buggy. Sam took top honors in the Frame Twister, Mud Bog, and Engineering.
Also in 2000, we invited representatives of the California Highway Patrol to inspect competitors' rigs for street-legality for the first time. With bead locks everywhere, nobody escaped without at least one make-believe citation.
Winner: Sam Patton, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Vehicle: '84 Jeep CJ-7
Engine: 350 TPI Chevy V-8
Transmission: TH700R4
Transfer case: Atlas II 4.3
Axles/diffs: Dana 60s/Detroit Lockers
Suspension: Springs over axles
Tires: 39-15.5/15 Super Swamper Boggers