Ahh the simple fun of a Tuff Truck race. Take a near stock, street driven Dodge Dakota and attack a motocross track with enough speed to get the truck off of the ground over and over. Needless to say, Tuff Truck races can be hard on the truck and that fact is clearly displayed by the fact that the tailgate of this Dakota falls off fairly early in the run.
Judging by the look of this Dodge Dakota, I would guess that this wasn’t its first attempt at a Tuff Truck course as it was far from show quality before it left the starting line. That could have been why the tailgate was beginning to fall off after the first jump but for a rear wheel drive pickup – this Dakota gets around the track pretty well. I mean, as well as can be expected for a truck that has parts falling off during the run but that kind of thing is to be expected with Tuff Truck. More importantly…this Dakota looks like it handled the track well enough to race again! Enjoy!
"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.
