Mud Bogging: The Growing Sport Of Rural America
If you grow up in rural America, often times you will have to devise means to entertain yourself in the event of boredom. Since you aren’t living in downtown Chicago or someplace like that, you don’t have all the options of events and things to do like city folks.
Many of these outlets stem from not being scared to get a little dirty if it means some good ole’ fun. I’m certain that’s how mud bogging got its start. And if you don’t know what mud bogging is, I will be proud to introduce you. There are some things you should know if you are trying to understand this sport.
The first being that yes, it is considered a sport to those who participate in it. Another thing being what all is involved in a typical mud bogging experience. I will briefly touch on set ups and how to optimize your mud pit and “mudder” (your vehicle you take to the mud bog). I should start by saying again that this is in fact a sport that is nationwide. While perhaps less noteworthy than football or something like that, mud bogging is growing in popularity all the time.
In the south, mud bogging goes on all year, since the warm weather is ideal for mud production. The more north you go, however, the more mud bogging becomes seasonal according to the fluctuation in weather patterns.
Mud bogging requires two things: powerful engines and a pit of mud. This mud usually forms a long trench for the off road trucks to try and pass through. The trenches range from anywhere from 1/8 of a mile to a mile, judging on where the bogging is actually taking place and how many people are coming out to watch it.
If you have ever lived in the country enough to know what mud bogging is, you certainly know that it’s as popular of a spectator sport as it is a competitive one. Winning a mud bog is usually as simple as getting through the trench. Very often, few engines can pull their respective vehicles through the trench to the other side. Well, without getting help that is. If you get stuck, that’s it. If everyone gets stuck, the driver who made it the farthest takes first place.
If more than one person makes it out of the other side without assistance, the driver who accomplished this with the best time takes top spot. You need to have a vehicle that can handle these elements if one hopes to compete, let alone win, at a typical mud bog. This means you should have a powerful engine that can keep on chugging, even when its being worked far past its routine capacity. Many participants will stress the importance of jacking up your mudder and throwing on some big tires. Making a semi-monster truck to get you easily across.
Basically, cars will rarely make it and so you need to stick with jeeps and trucks. Often times, the racers will only be competing for bragging rights until the next bog. Sometimes there is a hat passed around to collect a pot among the racers and spectators for the winner of the event. This keeps the sport selective to the areas. No sponsors, no contracts, just good ole’ boys and girls pushing engines to the limit.
Mud bogging may never be as big as football, but it has certainly cemented a place for itself among outdoor gamers. It could be the slinging mud or the roar of the engines, whatever it is, it’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
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