While the vast majority of the Dodge and Ram pickups featured in our Muddy Monday segment are heavily modified, this week’s featured Ram 1500 shows what a near-stock Ram can do with just the help of some good tires. According to the details of the video, this early 3rd generation Dodge Ram 1500 regular cab/short bed pickup is bone stock shy of the wheels and the 35 inch Mud Grappler tires yet it has no problem digging its way through what looks to be a fairly serious mud pit.
While modifying your Ram is the safest way to make sure that it can conquer whatever muddy obstacle lies before it, this video shows that even a Ram with stock suspension and a stock ride height can trudge through the mud. If not for the all season tires that likely came on this Ram being so mild in terms of gripping ability, this Dodge 1500 pickup could have likely done just as well in pure stock form but to see this truck make its way through the pit with the only mods being a good set of tires speaks volumes of the standard capabilities of the Ram truck lineup.
"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.
