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Girls and boys and their big toys, playing in the dirt

Mud and dirt were flying on Billy Barker Day weekend as the trucks took to the dirt.


Under a hot sun that threatened to turn the mud to caked sand, the mud boggers got their clean trucks dirty on Saturday and continued playing in the mud through to Sunday.

The bogs were a little dry on Saturday due to a new system the organizers were implementing, but, the organizers perfected the system for Sunday, resulting in much muddier, dirtier races.

Despite the glitch on Saturday, the organizers were happy with the event.

"It was one of the best races we’ve had in a long time and we're very proud of the guys who worked so hard to get the races up and running," Gavin McDonald, the president of the North West Mud Racing Association,

said.

The drags included everything from Suzuki Samurais you can see everyday on the street, to alcohol-burning, paddle-wheeled, supercharged, big-block running, fire breathing monsters that travelled the length of the drag in under three seconds, with wheels in the air as often as the mud.

It was a test of endurance for those who showed up without earplugs, as the higher classes, running with open headers, sang an intense tune.

The tube frame trucks, and car-ish vehicles, were a hit with the young ones in the crowd, who got to see them up close, as well as get free posters signed by the drivers, at the intermission.

Drivers and trucks came from all over the province to compete. A couple local trucks and drivers did quite well in their classes.

Locals Clint Crossman and Carmen Standbridge got third in the Fountain Tire Racing truck in the Street Class. Jody Mighton, another Quesnel local,took second in Class C in Mudder Hucker.

The fastest pass, however, went to Steve Streel in Overdraft, a Class F truck. He made it down the strip in 2.272 seconds in a cloud of mud and noise.