Day 1 Event 3: the mud Pit
Mud is mud, right? False. We take great pride in Top Truck mud because it has to be better than any other mud. By better we mean not only challenging, but also memorable. This year we concocted gnarly goo that was created using specially chosen loose dirt, which was then saturated with thousands of gallons of water. Then we let it marinate. The result was a drier than normal 135-foot pit that contained glue-like, deep mud, which, as it turns out, adhered to competitors rigs like cement (that’s the memorable part). We knew many of these experienced competitors would be driving rigs with lots of power on tap along with aggressive meats and we wanted to see them let it all hang out. We pushed the starting line back to offer them a run at the pit and each rig was ranked by their elapsed time. Rigs that ceased forward movement and did not complete the course (only three this year) were ranked by their overall distance traveled. As we expected, it turned out to be a drag race with some incredibly close times. the rig just ran out of horsepower in the thick goo. Back in camp they found out that the day’s activities had caused the steering box to fail.

The Play-By-Play
Austin: Second competitor. Ran with the throttle-activated Cold Fusion nitrous on the entire run. Managed to stay in the ruts created by the frst competitor, Kraatz.

Burton: Shifted the TH400 transmission all the way to Third gear before hitting the mud, but there wasn’t enough engine rpm to get the boost up in the Magnuson supercharger so he dropped back into Second gear.

Campbell: Punched the throttle on the GM 6.0L V-8 and caught big air off the starting hill. Veered slightly out of the ruts at the beginning of the course but quickly recovered and drove to the fastest time of the event.

Duffy: The passenger-side ruts were slightly deeper than the driver-side ruts so the Jeep was tilted to the passenger-side, which had the effect of trying to pull the Jeep out of the ruts slightly about mid-course.

ellis: Next to last competitor. Chose to put the paddle tires in the recently unused left side of the pit. The T-case was in high range and the nitrous was activated during the run. The four-cylinder engine popped and quit 60 feet into the mud. The engine was perfectly tuned for a 75 hp shot of nitrous, but at the last minute Ellis changed it to a 200 hp shot, which damaged the engine’s piston rings and bearings, though it continued to run during the remaining events.

Fox: Good head of speed off the starting hill, but the rig just ran out of horsepower in the thick goo. Back in camp they found out that the day’s activities had caused the steering box to fail.

George: Left the starting line airborne with the automatic transmission in Second gear and the transfer case in low range. Halfway through the course the big ag tires jumped out of the ruts made by other competitors using the rig to pull to the passenger-side. This forced George to blast new ruts until the rig dropped back into the old ruts just before the fnish line.

Gray: Fourth competitor. Was a tad crooked on takeoff so he backed off the 454ci V-8 on top of the tarting hill to straighten and then he stood on the throttle. Near the fnish line the ruts made by Karwath grabbed his 54-inch Mickey Thompson Baja Claw TTC tires and pulled the rig to the right.

Green: Was one of the last rigs to run and the ruts in the track had morphed to the line that Thorson created. Green just dropped his rig into the ruts and laid down a decent run with no drama. harrell: Unwound the propane-fred 377ci V-8 and caught big air off the starting hill. His run followed George’s run, but the changes to the ruts by George’s ag tires didn’t seem to affect Harrell’s run.

Karwath: Third competitor. Came to the event after a quick fx of beadlock ring damage sustained in the Frame Twister. Ran with the T-case in low range and backed off the 504ci V-8 near the fnish line because the buggy was pulling to the right and he said it felt like he lost steering a little bit (it turned out to be mud on the belts). After competition he noticed the alternator had a developed a growl, so it was changed out.

Kraatz: First competitor. The spotter shifted the C6 transmission during the run. Veered slightly to the driver-side, apparently to avoid the wettest part of the pit.

Montpas: Last competitor. Pointed his big Willys to the right side of the track, unleashed the 406ci small-block and generated a respectable run with no drama.

Naeger: Big air off the starting hill and landed in the mud airborne. Entered the mud with the TH400 transmission in Second gear, the Doubler transfer case in 2:1 mode, and the NOS nitrous system activated.

Sanders: Good head of speed off the starting hill. The driver thought that Second gear had failed in the transmission so he kept it in First gear for the entire run, which meant it didn’t have the momentum to climb out of the pit and over the fnish line.

Thorson: Nailed the throttle on the LS9 376ci V-8 and caught huge air off the starting hill. Initially landed slightly left of the previous ruts but then bounced and ended up with his driver-side tires in the passenger-side tire ruts of the previous competitors. Ended up running the course with his passenger-side tires in virgin mud.

Waddell: The big 54-inch Mickey Thompson Baja Claw TTC tires were airborne off the starting hill and then they dropped right into the ruts made by previous competitors and never deviated from the track. Before the run he switched the good driverside bumpstop to the passenger-side due to “crucial tolerances” on that side of the truck.

Wager: Unspooled the Cadillac 540ci V-8 and few into the mud. Managed to stay in the ruts made by the previous competitors. The vehicle was low on fuel and began sputtering at the fnish line.

Finish Line Quotes
-“That was actually really, really, fun.”
– Clayton Kraatz

-“I thought it was going to be a little soupier, but it’s perfect for the way I’m set up. That was an awesome pit for the way I’m set.”
– Jason Gray

-“We needed it. We struggled. We’re going to go to school on winching and get a little quicker.”
– Jeremy Naeger

-“I actually like the fact that its mud and not just foating water.”
– Geby Wager

-“This went good for this machine. Especially for 44s instead of these great big 54s.”
– Jerry Duffy

-“I knew I blew it when I got out of the rut. I just felt the whole thing just slow down. I was trying to get back in, but it just wasn’t working with me.”
– Ron George

-“Maybe I redeemed myself after the Frame Twister.”
– Toby Harrell

Results
(elapsed time or distance traveled if DNF)
1. Campbell ..........................................8.190 sec.
2. Harrell ..............................................8.305 sec.
3. Waddell ............................................9.426 sec.
4. Naeger .............................................9.590 sec.
5. Thorson ............................................9.992 sec.
6. Austin ............................................10.060 sec.
7. Green .............................................10.230 sec.
8. Kraatz ............................................10.803 sec.
9. Karwath ..........................................11.020 sec.
10. Burton ............................................11.122 sec.
11. George............................................11.124 sec.
12. Duffy .............................................11.180 sec.
13. Gray ..............................................11.544 sec.
14. Montpas .........................................11.870 sec.
15. Wager .............................................14.990 sec.
16. Sanders ........................................DNF (125 ft.)
17. Fox ..............................................DNF (104 ft.)
18. Ellis ...............................................DNF (60 ft.)