Low speed, high speed, deep water, thick mud and jumps are all easy work for this Silverado.
This week’s “Muddy Trails Monday” video comes to us from the Buddy713 YouTube channel and it features a late model Chevrolet Silverado mud truck showing how to conquer the slop. This footage was captured earlier this year at the Backyard Family Entertainment (BFE) Mud Bog in Michigan with rough conditions. Regardless of where it crosses the mud or the speed at which is hits that mud, this gigantic Chevy never struggles in its progress to the dry banks, even when passing other vehicles that are stuck in the bog.
Modern Mud Truck
A great many of the trucks you see at your local mud bog or off-road vehicle park are generally older, as playing in the mud can take its toll on the body of the vehicle. Even in the event of purpose-built mud trucks with custom bodies, we generally see older style bodies, but that is what makes this Chevrolet Silverado so unique.
This truck likely has almost no components that actually came on any late model Chevrolet Silverado built by the factory, but it has the body of a 2014-2018 regular cab, short bed production truck. Sure, the wheel openings are flared out a whole lot more than a production truck and the hood had a much more dramatic shape than any production truck, but there is no question that this mud monster looks like a late model Silverado.
More importantly, this Chevy mud truck has an elaborate chassis and suspension build that allows it to hover high above the mud while the beefy tires dig through the mud and water. Also, doing the digging it a 632-cubic inch big block Chevy engine, providing more than enough power to storm across anything.
Conquering the Mud
The video above is five and a half minutes of solid mudding action, with only short breaks as the Silverado waits for a clear lane through the bog. Time after time, the big Chevy roars around the bog without any hesitation. Whether the truck is hitting the thicker mud or the deeper water, whether the truck is rocketing across the slop at speed or creeping along, the Silverado never falters in crossing the mud bog.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
