This week’s Mudfest video features a newer Ford F-150 pickup with a collection of modifications getting good and muddy without leaving the road.
I don’t know where this video was captured, but rather than taking his F-150 out into the woods or into a field to get the truck muddy, he just found a local unpaved road that had been flooded a bit by the winter weather – a road with just enough mud to get this F-150 good and muddy from bumper to bumper.
This late model Ford F-150 FX4 pickup was built with features that would make it a great off-road pickup, but the owner has taken the FX4 package a step further, adding a lift kit, big off-road tires and a collection of lighting accessories to make the truck more capable of taking on the worst that mother nature can offer.
Of course, it should be noted that a stock F-150 could have easily blasted down this muddy road, but the truck looks great and the mudding action from multiple angles is well worth the few minutes of viewing time.
"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.
