Wouldn't it be nice to have a 4 Wheel Jamboree in your own backyard? Beyond that, imagine being able to run four different trucks in the events. Dan Perkins is lucky enough to do both of these things on his property just south of Howell, Michigan. He is definitely a Ford man. In fact, he is so into his Ford trucks he has almost an entirely Ford exclusive salvage yard to pick at any time something breaks or a new idea comes to mind.
Dan has always been known for his mud bogs, and the Underdawg Four Wheelers are known for their sand drags. This year they combined efforts to put on a day full of screaming motors and flying dirt that brought out the best of both worlds. The first half of the day was full-on sand drag racing on a brand-new track with vehicles pushing over 1,000 hp. Later in the afternoon the distant roar of a big-block marked the start of the mud portion of the event. From then on the mud flew until sunset and beyond.
As with any mud bog, people...
As with any mud bog, people pull some pretty crazy antics to keep things interesting. Although not intended, this red Chevy did a bonzai run to try to get through the deepest bog on his first run of the day. Instead of going through, the truck ended up doing a pirouette nosedive into a packed berm of slop-ending his mud bog experience with some serious steering breakage.
You don't see many of these...
You don't see many of these out in the mud. Jim Gulowski obviously wanted to be a little different and put the Explorer body on an '84 Bronco chassis with 12 inches of lift. The 302 has been modified a bit but the Dana 44 TTB and 9-inch still have the 3.55 gears to allow for more wheel speed to the 38-inch Swampers.
Nothing seemed to stop Mike...
Nothing seemed to stop Mike Mullin and his Mud Slinger. The 436 motor and custom-cut Ground Hawgs were flingin' mud from the toughest holes out there. Drivetrain duties are handled by 5.13 gears in a 14-bolt with a spool and a LSD'd Dana 60.
Anyone can relate to being...
Anyone can relate to being the small guy and having more fun because everything is just that much more of a challenge. Joe and Angie Maloney brought out this stock '81 Toyota pickup that Joe cut the fenders out of to fit bigger tires. The 33-inch Boggers provided all the traction they needed to have a blast.
The only Jeep in Dan's garage...
The only Jeep in Dan's garage is built more like a truck than a Jeep. A Chevy Suburban frame made a good platform for the 350, Turbo 400, NP205 combo. A custom four-link locates the rear Dana 60 with a Detroit and the front Dana 60 is open. They both have 6.17 gears to turn the 44-inch Boggers.
Underdawg Four Wheelers member...
Underdawg Four Wheelers member Tim McLaughlan has been sand dragging for 20 years now. His '78 Bronco with an '83 body sports all the good stuff starting with a 780hp 528ci motor. A low-ratio C6 puts power out to Dana 60s with 5.14 gears.
Mike Dwyer and his Blazer,...
Mike Dwyer and his Blazer, Losin' It, sped down the sand-drag track to quite a few wins with the 496, C6, a spooled Dana 60 with 5.13 gears, and a front 44 with 4.56s.
Host Dan Perkins blazed down...
Host Dan Perkins blazed down the track in his 604-powered Ranger with an aluminum frame trying to outrun Tracy Paluch's 1,249hp rail.