Mudfest is old-farm-truck heaven, and what was perhaps the hard-working family truck for a couple of generations is now a barrel of fun for the youngest. We are sure some of the trucks that were run through their paces will never see the highway again.
The Buchanan Mudfest screams down-home fun, and is held just west of St. Louis in the hills and farmlands outside the small town of Robertsville, Missouri. The entire Buchanan clan transforms more than 100 acres of their farm into mud pits, a dragstrip, 4x4 trails, and slick obstacles to host one of the largest family-oriented events of its kind. They hold this celebration of good ol' mudding fun twice a year-once in the spring and again in mid-September. The Mudfest attracts enthusiasts from across the state, and this year more than 5,500 participants and spectators with vehicles of every make, model, and condition rolled through the front gate of the old family farm.
The Mudfest started five years ago after Jeff and Bryon Buchanan and their friends outgrew an annual mud-sling in a seasonal pond down by the barn. Every year as the pond started to dry up it became their 4x4 mud pit and a local attraction. The Buchanans own more than 1,000 acres of farmland, and soon after the last 300-vehicle pond party, a lease ended on 100 acres of their low-lying property. The next thing they knew the pond parties morphed into one of the state's largest mud events. Mike and Debbie Buchanan, with their son Jeff and other kinfolk, run the entire event with the help of 150 friends who volunteer a lot of time and hard work. Together they have created a blast of G-Rated gooey action and fun for the whole family.
Mud vehicles are tall, powerful, and loud, with the majority of them garage-built by local shadetree mechanics. At the Mudfest every make and model of truck and Jeep, and custom designed rigs, can be found slogging though the mud, along with a smattering of some oddball cars. Though the majority of the vehicles were purpose-built for the occasion, some of them were out for their last hurrah and quickly on their way to the scrapyard. Running deep mud is tough on vehicles, and for auto enthusiasts like us it's extremely intriguing to listen to the tell-tale death groans of an engine's knocking and rattling just before it belches and gives up life for good. If you love blasting through the mud or watching mud enthusiasts rev their junk until it blows, then this event is a must.
Attending a mud event is like being at a carnival, circus, and county fair at the same time. Watching drivers get their vehicles stuck and unstuck is all part of the game. A word to the wise: If your rig is halfway stuck in the mud, don't open the door to see where you are, unless of course you don't mind being waist-deep in mud and having your floorboards covered with earthworms. | 
We have to wonder how many kids borrowed the family truck to come and watch the Mudfest, yet actually ended up participating. This truck really doesn't look that out of place, but we noticed quite a few vehicles with drivers who might have had some explaining to do when they got home. |
You can't find a friendlier group of people around than the Midwest folks who attend the Buchanan Mudfest. The event is alcohol-free so the smiles are genuine and the action is stress-free. There's a little something for everyone that attends the event including a concession area with old-fashioned smoked BBQ. | 
This is the way for an old workhorse of a truck to spend its last few days: entertaining thousands and giving these young farm guys memories they'll never forget. Some of the trucks get rebuilt and live to see another Mudfest. Others are quietly hauled away to the auto recycler. |
If you have seen cars like this before and were wondering what they were for-now you know! If you attend a mud event, you'll see some very creative fab work and vehicle designs that go beyond explanation. We love the hard work, ingenuity, and the custom craftsmanship, especially when creations like this 4x4 car perform exceptionally well in deep mud. | 
We harbor a major affinity for trucks and Jeeps, and we just can't seem to get our fill of them when they're purpose-built classics like this Willys wagon. Rigs like this are standard fare for mud events, and make a good lesson in home-school fabrication. |
If you attend a mud event, safety should be your top concern. Make sure you have the proper recovery equipment and never use chain to extract a vehicle. The recovery points on a vehicle should be fixed so they aren't yanked off and hurt someone. It takes much more force to extract a vehicle from thick mud than it does a vehicle in normal recovery situations. | 
The Mudfest is held on just over 100 acres of Buchanan farmland, which gives the participants every type of mud condition to four-wheel in. We found some wheelers and their trucks in pits deep enough for mud to flow though door windows, while others had a blast cruising around the easy stuff chatting with their friends. |
The Buchanan Mudfest helps keep the fun traditions like riding in the back of a truck with good friends alive and well. This pastime has been outlawed in just about every state, which is obvious for safety reasons, but it's something that just has to be done every now and then. The spacious Buchanan farm gives these mud-revelers a chance to experience the good old days in a safe environment. | 
Now this is what we call recovery equipment, and we'll take one of these over a fancy new winch any day! The tractors are out in force the day of the event and are kept busier than a big-city tow company. |