Seeing this recent blog on the earthquake reminded me of another slew of disasters that have marked my time here as Web Producer, which were the wild fires that hit Southern California late October 2007.

This is a picture I snapped right outside the office building one morning before work while the fires were in full force. Although this picture does not depict the fierceness of the fire pictures in this forum thread, it was still very eerie and sad to drive from blue sky into a thick, orange, dense cloud of smoke that smothered out the sun. Co-workers told of fires they had seen on local street corners as they had driven to work, started by stray embers from the "big fires" nearby. One of the big ones around here was started by arson; during lunch one day I saw the spot where it was started. Although we don't have crazy weather here in Southern California, marked by hurricanes and tornadoes and freezing winters and hot summers, we have had a mild share of calamity recently. 

My 1999 Chevy S10 got a new set of front tires over the weekend...

...thanks to Rey from Liberty Motorsports and Nick, the awesome "delivery guy" who also mounted and balanced the tires. Although this certainly is not the craziest thing that's ever happened to a truck, it's definitely essential and crucial if you actually expect to drive it on a road. Additionally, the bad creak from the front is gone, which I am excited about since I didn't think it was related to the tire situation. It's nice to have this problem solved, and I definitely feel so much more comfortable cruisin' now.  

So what exactly do YOU (the reader and online user) want to see here in out blog section?

What blogs are the most interesting to you? The everyday life stuff? Truck stuff? funny stuff? not so funny stuff? Post your suggestions and comments and we'll try to touch on as many of the subjects as possible! Thanks, -Mike Alexander Editor, MT Mag

I was considering driving my truck to work today, and if not today, sometime this week, as I love rollin' my truck and get antsy when we haven't spent enough quality time together.

After arriving home from cruisin' last night, I took a quick peek under the front end, as the truck has developed an annoying, prevalent squeak from the front driver's side. My attention was diverted from investigating the squeak when I saw the depleted state of the inside of my tire.

My last tire change and alignment was in December 2006, right before Resolutions.

Now here's the thing - I had known my tires were wearing out in such an extreme fashion even before Havoc Havasu and Havoc Fresno, two trips that put hundreds of miles on the truck, but I didn't take the time to do anything about it, and there was too much wear to salvage the tires. But, I had somewhat forgotten about it after the trips. The outside of the tire looks virtually unworn (haha), so it was out of sight, out of mind. And on lowered and bagged trucks, you really have to make an effort to see the underside and inside of the tire, as you know.

Tucked safely away until she gets new front shoes, I'm very thankful to have discovered and remembered this "issue" in a garage and not in the fast lane on the freeway - especially something so preventable.

Truck owners - don't neglect those things about your truck that you KNOW you SHOULD fix. Don't wait until it's too late! 

That's a great question. Today, at 2:36PM, I will tell you what I'm doing. I'm struggling to stay awake. Yep, that's right.

I am battling a nasty case of the sleepies comparable to those of my high school days, when I pretty much fell asleep every day during fifth period physics, which was at this exact time during the day ironically. (Was it physics? Not chemistry, but another science class that was always hard to understand? I don't know what other class it would have been. Maybe I was asleep...) 

Anyway, in an attempt to bring to an end to my nasty afternoon case of the sleepies, I wandered to the kitchen to pour myself a cup of coffee. I often have coffee in the morning, but not on this morning. Could it be, that a coffee-less morning has affected my afternoon? We shall find out. So, you can see the cup of coffee in my UCI cup on my messy desk - the desk I did not clean up one bit before the picture. What can I say, I was too tired. Also, you're probably enjoying the Mini Truckin' Magazine explosion that has occurred on my desk.

OK, well, I think I'm ready to get back to whatever it is I do all day. But hopefully now I will be awake to do it.

Until next time,
-Monica   

What does it mean to you?   

Wednesday to me is about as bad a day as Sunday. Why? For all of us with a normal 5 day work week, minus overtime, it is so close to the weekend that we can taste it. Sunday is always a day when we know we have to go back to work the following day so we can not stay up to late wrenching or doing anything past midnight or else we face pressing the sleep button to many times and waking up 5 minutes before clock in time. Now Wednesday is something different. We know that Friday is almost here, whether its a show or just a knowing that you can stay out till the sun comes up. The weekend coming up will be one of late night tales of trucks, adventures, and just the normal everyday life of a Mini Trucker. Work hard and play harder. There will be lots of slurred talk about future events and the way they should unfold so that we as enthusiast can enjoy the upcoming shows the way that they are suppose to be enjoyed. So this weekend when you are suppose to be helping your buddy work on his ride, but instead you are sipping on the beverages in his fridge and eating his leftovers as he is under his truck, remember to cherish these times as you will have to go back to your day job on Monday and do it all over again. Make this weekend a good one as we will be right there with you......

Has your attention ever be grabbed by the seemingly normal vehicle on the road next to you?

Perhaps it's a sticker, like a truck club logo. Perhaps it's the glimpse of an intercooler. Perhaps it's a gauge cluster, or primer spot, or some other subtle characteristic that sparks your curiosity. I had such an experience on the way to work the other day. The Chevy Colorado in front of me sported this sticker on the back window (as I know it's hard to read in the picture): "Sponsored by: Under Construction. Sweat and Tears." Now, any vehicle that says "under construction" sparks my curiosity. This truck, however, didn't seem to have anything done. My excitement was fading until I passed it and caught glimpse of a 22" badge near the front wheel well, which at that moment was stuffed with stockies. So yes, I will be on the lookout for this Colorado. It may be nothing, or it may be on its way to something crazy.    

Simply put, I had a great time in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Being my second time at this show, I had high expectations, and I'm happy to say that I was not disappointed.

The trucks were clean and plentiful, the drag strip was very entertaining (as the Sheid Diesel Motorsports Dragster ran a low 7 second quarter mile at just shy of 200mph), the night dragging was awesome, and it was just great to see the scene. I was exhausted, as running around taking pictures and video for a day and a half, tucked in between traveling completely on my own, was quite a workout - a welcomed workout, as I spend plenty of time inside at a desk. I am happy to say that, while I did get sunburned, I did not get as burned as I normally do from being out all day. I am slowly learning the art of applying sunblock. I simply love truck shows, whether dropping by for a few minutes, or engulfed for a solid 15 hours.
The biggest glitch of the weekend was a delayed return flight out of Nashville, Tennessee. Luckily, I had a long layover, so I didn't miss my connection. While at the airport, I ran into Mike Alexander and Joel at the food court, which was nice because I was feeling amazingly alone until then. Their flight ended up being delayed as well. At my gate, I was happy to find 8-Lug Editor Bob Carpenter, who ended up catching the same connecting flight back to Los Angeles with me. During my trip home, I saw the most spectacular thunderstorm out my window. I'm one of those kids who loves to stare out the airplane window, thoroughly entertained by the weather, scenery, and adventure. This thunderstorm was fierce. Continual flashes of lightening amplified the dark backdrop of menacing clouds. It was quite a scene, especially when contrasted with perhaps one of the most beautiful sunsets I had even seen, which happened Friday night when I accidentally drove out of town instead of into town hunting for trucks. The pictures that I snapped while driving do not do it justice. 

Alright, first things first... we all know I like to hang out and have a good time! But come on now, enough is enough! We went out of our way to provide show goers with golf carts so they could cruise the show in comfort and this is how they repaid us?

There's a reason why shows have dwindled, and it's not all due to the gas prices! Time to turn to your buddies and say to one another, "Let's have fun, but NOT destroy anyone else’s property!" It's just not necessary guys!!! Bathrooms getting trashed, golf carts in the mud and run into walls??? What happened to the good old fashion fun of drinking a few cold ones with your boys and talking trucks all night? If you want to keep good shows around then please help us by behaving and not wrecking stuff when your out there... Thanks guys!

Ever wondered what made the camping and river shows of the west so popular? Well part of the fun had to do with the camping!!! Our HAVOC Kentucky show brought back the camping to Beech Bend and it was a hit!

The show had an amazing turnout for the times with higher gas prices and an all around soft economy. But as an ALL truck show we got 400+ trucks side by side which was really cool to see!!! We're currently working on plans for a bigger and better show next year with more camping, club games, cruises, etc... so please post your comments and suggestions and we'll see you next year!

I have to say this is one of the better trips that I have been to all year.

I flew out Thursday morning headed to Nashville, Tennessee to roll up to Havoc with my friend Andrew A.K.A. Catfish and some of the guys from Severed Ties. As soon as I landed, Andrew was there to swoop me up from the airport so we could meet up with everyone for dinner. Friday we got off to a late start probably from the late night or early morning depending on how you want to look at it, but we arrived checked into our hotels for a fun-filled weekend. I would really like to thank Andrew and his wife for letting me crash at their pad and making sure that I had a good time. Keith AKA Charmin for the laughs that he provide for us at dinner. Gooch for taking me to the airport on Monday and letting me crash at his pad Sunday night. It was great meeting everyone that I did and I hope to see you all at the RA show at the end of the month for more good times.

Minitrucks aren’t just for working on in your garage and driving on weekends.

Since gas prices have entered the WTF category people driving their gas chugging fullsize vehicles have been feeling the strangle hold on the pocketbooks. It has made people reassess (among other things) what and how they drive. The biggest thing that I have noticed is that people are starting to dust off that mini truck in their garage and started driving them on a daily basis. I have been seeing more and more custom minitrucks not just on the weekends anymore. It is a cool to see a minitruck just cruising down the road.

So it seemed when walking into work this morning that it was going to be just a normal day. It was like that all the way to about 11:42 this morning.

Mike and I were both at our desks pounding keys on our computers when all of a sudden we felt a quick movement of the building. We both looked at each other and shrugged it off as another minor quake. But something was different with this one, it didn’t stop. It seemed like it went on for at least a good minute. Now that could be due to the fact that we are 7 stories up and the building just continued to sway. Either way it was butt puckering. The fact that we are on the 7th floor isn’t too bad, it was just a weird feeling; the scary part is knowing that we have another five floors above us. The thought of the quake getting any bigger and causing the infrastructure of this building to collapse is…well…I don’t even know if I can put it into words. I will say that there were thoughts of possible escape routes that included the window. Now I have been through plenty of earthquakes over the years and I have always been ok with them. But I was always somewhere that I had access to a clear area standing on good ole’ mother earth. Today was very different the feeling of not having to many ways out can put a lot of thing in prospective in a person’s life.

First and foremost, D A M N!!!! I never want to be in a tall building 7 floors up for another earthquake ever again... that was some scary ish... Aight, with that off my chest I just wanted to let you guys know that my house made it out unscathed and the party went off without a hitch!

Fun was had by all, and with a new and improved Home Bar, pool table, beer pong room, and poker room there was no shortage of things to keep everyone busy. Ultimately Ben had a great time and everyone was really respectful of my house and used the provided trash cans for all 300+ beers drank!!! Looking forward to doing it again, and maybe next time I'll last past midnight LOL

In the automotive world, you have your Chevy guys, your GMC guys, your Ford guys, your Dodge guys, and so on.

Their loyalty to their preferred manufacturer runs deep; it seems there is little you can do to influence their views, despite what statistics and evidence you provide. Nomatter what, "Chevy for life!"; "Fords rule!"; "Great-grandpa Jack owned a Dodge and that's what I was raised on and that's what my kids will drive!"

To strike up a hearty conversation with a diesel guy, just ask his opinion on three key words: Cummins, Power Stroke, Duramax. To wage war with a diesel guy, disagree with his opinion on these three key words.    

Here's my question - where do mini truckers fit into this? Are mini truckers make-loyal? Are there hardcore Chevy, Ford, Dodge, Mitsu, Nissan mini truckers? I know in my family, the answer would be no. We have Ford, Chevy, Toyota, and Mazda mini trucks, and based on this pattern, the next to join the family would be Dodge, Nissan, and Mitsubishi mini trucks. We enjoy the variety; we purposely go for different makes in order to check out something "new."

How about you? Will you ONLY buy and build a Ford? Dodge? Chevy? Would you refuse to drive a Chevy? Or, is it more about variety and getting low and throwing sparks, nomatter what it is? Do you care what make it is?

Ahhhhhh... another late deadline night at the office... cold pizza, empty hallways... HAHAHA the things we do FOR YOU!

That's right... we do this all for you! every late night, every early morning flight, every Red Bull drank, every lost memory card, every drive across the state, all of it... why you might ask? BECAUSE WE LOVE IT!!!!

Yes, deadlines are our Nemisis... and here's why... not many editors would be straight up and tell it this boldly, but that's how I roll... WE DO THE BEST WE CAN WITH THE TIME WE HAVE! what's this mean? Sure, every single story we could spend months researching and shooting, but we can't! when it comes down to it, there really just isn't enough hours in the day to research, shoot, and write every single thing you see every month... which brings me to one burning question. Would you guys be interested in seeing the "HoW To" of actually making the magazine? just curious because not many people really get to see what goes into it... I know most of you are just interested in the trucks and such, but maybe seeing what it takes to put this thing together each and every month might give some more appreciation... Let me know what you think! OK, enough chattin' back to work!

Is the government going to do anything with the oil companies and their price gouging?

Driving into work this morning I was noticing that the price of gas has dropped almost a quarter since the price of crude oil dropped $10 almost two weeks ago. It sucks that we are just now seeing it, and what sucks even more is that we only see a few cents fall off the price. I am sorry but I have to say that we are straight out getting reamed by the oil companies. They’re going to sit there and tell me that the cost of production has gone up. That is BS!!! Ya, I can see the cost going up slightly with overhead but enough to warrant a 70% increase? I don’t think so. A word of advice to the oil companies; stop raising gas prices. You raise them too high the people you guys prey on wont be able to afford gas.

My buddy Ben Da Pirate (Yes, that's his nickname) decided to trust me with his Bachelor Party festivities. At first we had planned on going to vegas for the usual fun, but after checking with everyone and realizing that all of our wallets are showing cob webs we decided that's a no go. So rather for the last couple months we've been reading my pad for the festivities!

Well, the party is finally upon us. And this weekend will be one for the record books! He's flying down for the party and we have people coming from all over to hang out and enjoy eachother's company! So many different clubs including Severed Ties, No Regrets, Relaxed Atmosphere, Xtreme Lowz, Negative Camber, and more will have members in attendance! It's going to be a minitrucker reunion of sorts all coming together to celebrate Ben! Wish us luck, I just hope some people stick around to help us clean up HAHAHA

Can’t wait to get out from behind my computer and head out to the third installment of the Havoc Show Tour.

I am leaving on Thursday July 31 at 6:45 am and should arrive in Nashville around 3-4pm. If anyone from the greater Nashville area wants to hang out and have a few adult beverages Thursday evening hit me up. If you are planning on cruising out to Havoc and you want to roll out with us about noon we will be leaving from Catfish’s house to make the hour drive to Beech Bend in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

The response for this show has been amazing and it looks like there is going to be an awesome turnout. There will be plenty to do at the show like the dozens of vendors, awesome trucks, the car corral, and the beautiful women that will be in the bikini contest. Don’t forget that Saturday you will have the chance to find out what your ¼-mile times are by running the strip and on Sunday you can watch the Sport Truck Challenge where some of the baddest trucks shoot it out to be named Havoc Sport Truck of the year. If all that isn’t enough you can head over to the onsite amusement park. August 2-3 is going to be an exciting weekend cant wait to get there.

On Saturday July 12 I went to go and see Unwritten Law play at the Malibu Inn.

A couple weekends ago, I went out to my buddies’ house cause he needed to do some venting. After a few adult beverages and venting he mentioned that he was going to see Unwritten Law play at the Malibu Inn and said that there were still tickets available. After being cooped up at work for the last few weekends trying to get things organized to my liking, this sounded just like something I needed. So I hopped online and bought my ticket.

Having never been to this venue before we all wanted to get there early and scope the place out, get my drink on early so I could make sure I was able to drive by the time it was time to leave. The bands that were playing were awesome they all put on a great show, so by the time Unwritten Law took the stage everyone was hyped up and ready for the mosh pit that accompanies Unwritten Law’s performance. It was a good night, nobody got hurt, and we made it home in one piece, still breathing.

It's Havoc East time! Mark your calendars and make arrangements now, because it's only two weeks away! This is definitely one of those shows that I've been looking forward to all year, as I love adventure and I love looking at everyone's trucks!

Living in Southern California, I am used to how trucks and truck shows are done around here. It is an awesome privilege and opportunity to be able to attend this upcoming HAVOC show in Bowling Green, Kentucky, on August 2-3, 2008, allowing insight into a truck culture and geographical area that, while in some ways are similar to what I'm used to, are quite different in many ways.

I enjoy seeing how and where the trucks were built, picking up on trends, styles, and ways of thinking. I enjoy seeing what shops are represented. I enjoy watching how people interact and how they dress. I enjoy seeing the surrounding area, which seems so green and open compared to what I'm used to. I enjoy seeing "those" trucks that we've all read about in Mini Truckin', but that live thousands of miles away (from me), like: 4 More Days, Take Notes, and Remedy, just to name a few trucks that I got to see last year and am completely in love with. To see these trucks in real-life is exciting, because it makes me realize just how lucky I am to have the opportunity. And likewise, I'm sure that it's equally sweet when those from the Midwest/East get to see West Coast trucks. 

Havoc East is my window into the mini truck world that exists beyond the boundaries of Southern California  and Lake Havasu, Arizona, which is the furthest I've driven for a show. It is my chance to see how it's done elsewhere. It's my chance to see sanctioned dragging. It's my chance to see 10 second trucks zoom down the Beech Bend quarter mile Dragstrip.

It doesn't get old, and I try not to take it for granted. I am so excited and so thankful for this upcoming opportunity.

I hope to have the chance to check out your truck at Havoc East 2008.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SHOW INFORMATION

It's extremely sad to write this but I don't want what happened to me to ever happen to anyone!!! This weekend my dogs got into some snail poison. It turns out that it's made with molasses and highly attractive to dogs as they have an excellent sense of smell and can smell the sugar. My two pups ate the poison.

Blue was much smaller so he didn't make it :(

We rushed Jade to the hospital as she was shaking uncontrollably. She had a 107 temperature and wasn't looking like she was gonna make it. As of right now she's doing better and eating on her own. We might be able to take her home tomorrow... Your prayers mean the world to us!

Please keep any lawn care products, poisons, and anything harmful in locked child and dog safe cabinets so that you won't have to ever have the kind of weekend we just had...

THANKS everyone for your prayers and support!



BLUE WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN!!!!

Us, minitruckers are notorious for modifying anything we can get our hands on! So with a little extra free time, my house is no different. With the help of some close friends we’ve been slowly working on my pad to really make it feel like home.

Just to name a few of the things in store:

-Poker room complete with Airbrushed Art

-Pool table and Game Room

-Of course a killer garage with a twist: Featuring some amazing Graffiti art

-Custom beer pong room with a Japanese theme

-and a few other tricks

I’ll be keeping this blog updated along with the Mini Truckin’ Cribs forum, so post some pics of your own pimped out pad in the forum section and let me know what you think!

Thanks,

-Mike Alexander

Whether laid out flat on the ground throwing a shower or sparks or pinned flat out in the desert throwing a trail of dust, the Ford Ranger has been a staple mini truck since replacing the Ford Courier in 1982 as a 1983 model. News of the Ranger's imminent demise has undoubtedly saddened not only Ranger fans, but fans of compact pickup trucks in general.  

The Ford Ranger, although trailing the Toyota Tacoma as the Number 2 compact pickup, claims to be the most fuel-efficient pickup truck. With 21 city mpg and 26 highway mpg, the Ranger actually might find its life prolonged by the recent rise in gas prices. Ranger sales have been on a slight rise this year, which is a big deal when compared to the plunging F-series pickup sales. This increase in sales has come despite not even marketing the Ranger. 

Although production was scheduled to end in 2009 with the closing of Ford's Twin Cities Assembly Plant in St. Paul, Minnesota, Ford in now considering a plan in which "the Ranger would stay in production until 2011 when a new global version is ready. That truck would be produced overseas." One overseas manufacturing location for the new global Ranger (codenamed T6) would be South Africa, "which is exempt from U.S. import tariffs on small pickups."

Although the tooling has been paid off, the Ranger's lack of side-impact airbags, mandatory by the end of next year, poses a threat to the Ranger, as one wonders, "How much is Ford willing to spend to update a design that will, in any event, be replaced with an entirely new truck in three years?"

SOURCE - DETROIT NEWS

Here we go again....

This coming weekend is the second in the series of Havoc Shows. It will be held in Fresno and the staff at Mini Truckin’ cant wait to get are cameras there to capture the bad ass trucks, the hot ass girls and the killer good times that is waiting to be had by all. I will be leaving Friday morning so I am up there early afternoon so I can get the camera out early and shoot a few features. Therefore, if you think that your truck is worthy and you are attending Havoc hit me up with some pics of your ride... Send them to galen.armenta@sourceinterlink.com Hope to see you all there... Galen