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From the Hospice October 2012 Magazine
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September 23rd, 2012 Fall MudBog |
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May 27th, 2012 Memorial Day Weekend MudBog |
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Updated: 8:05 AM May 21, 2012
Sunday's Mud Bog to generate money for Center for Hospice
Care
This Sunday, hundreds of people will
gather at Sod Busters of South Bend for the annual Memorial Day
Weekend Mud Bog.
Since 2005, monster trucks have gotten dirty and generated more
than $40,000 for the Center for Hospice Care.
Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. and the event begins at 9 a.m.
with mini-mudders.
Admission is $10 and kids under the age of 12 are free.
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May 30th, 2011 Memorial Day Weekend MudBog |
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Posted: 9:11
AM May 27, 2011
Sod Busters to host annual mud bog this weekend 
South Bend, Ind.
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Thousands of people, both young and old, are expected to come
out to the western edge of St. Joseph County on Sunday for the
annual Sod Busters Memorial Day Mug
Bog.
There will be mud and monster trucks revving
their engines, all to raise money for hospice.
More than 160 trucks will be tearing through the mud
throughout the day at the family-friendly event just off of
Quince Road.
“It’s a wonderful afternoon to sit out on a lawn chair on the
bleachers we provide and watch the trucks do the best they can
to make it through the mud pit,” said organizer Jim Renner. “We
will have some that will go five feet and some that will go
through in about four seconds.”
During Labor Day weekend another mug bog will be held to
benefit Camp Millhouse.
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September 12th Fall Mudbog |
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Updated: 1:05
AM Sep 13, 2010
Mud Bog raises money for Camp Millhouse
South Bend, IN
For some in Michiana, Sunday
was a great day for, barbeque, exhaust and a lot of mud!
Posted: 4:28
PM Sep 12, 2010
Reporter: Sarah
Rodts
Email Address: sarah.rodts@wndu.com
For some in Michiana, Sunday
was a great day for, barbeque, exhaust and a lot of mud!
It's the annual
fall mud bog.
People got to
enjoy truck going through the bog while enjoying other food and
entertainment.
This is the
20th year that the mud bog has been put on by the Sod Busters.
And like every
year, this wasn’t just about fun in the mud.
"We're all
having a good time, very safe, they go and get dirty. Just have
a good time because it all goes to a good cause, Camp
Millhouse," said Jim Renner of Sod Busters.
“It's
absolutely huge for us since we're a not-for-profit that is not
funded, so we strictly survive on donations from the community,
so events like this and groups like the sod buster guys believe
that our kids deserve a summer experience...keeps us open,
literally keeps us open year around," said Lea Pitcher, the
Executive Director of Camp Millhouse.
Sod Busters are
hoping to donate nearly $4,000 to Camp Millhouse this year.
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Updated: 8:19 AM Sep 10, 2010
Sod Busters holding annual Mud Bog on Sunday
The Sod Busters are holding their annual fall Mud Bog on Sunday.
Posted: 7:45 AM Sep 10, 2010
Reporter: Joel Schipper
This weekend, people will be heading outside to
enjoy the sunny weather, and some will even be playing in the
mud. The Sod Busters are holding their annual fall Mud Bog.
Everything from trucks to jeeps and monster trucks will drive
through the obstacle course and the muddy mess.
Sunday’s event raises money for Camp Millhouse. Representatives
from the camp say this event is crucial to the camp's success.
"Organizations like these guys - that's who keeps us going.
That's who allows kids to come every year; allows us to stay
open. Without them, honest to God, there would not be a Camp
Millhouse if it weren't for groups like these guys - there just
wouldn't be" says Millhouse's Lea Pitcher.
Nearly 2,000 spectators are expected to come out to the event,
so be sure to head out early, because it will fill up fast.
Gates open at 7:00 a.m., and admission is $10. For kids under
12, admission is free.
Mud Bog raises money for Camp Millhouse
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May 30th 2010 Memorial day weekend
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Fox 28 Morning LIVE Interview - 5/24/10 |
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WNDU 16 Saturday Morning LIVE Interview - 5/24/10 |
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People gather to
watch another
type of racing
in South Bend
South Bend, IN
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It's racing day
in the Hoosier state, only here in
South Bend, it's not the same kind
of racing that's going on
Indianapolis.
While many in
Michiana were watching cars race
around the track at the Indianapolis
500, thousands of others were
watching cars and
trucks race around, in the mud.
At the Sod
Busters Annual Memorial Day Mud Bog,
drivers raced everything from go
karts, to Jeeps and trucks, to see
how far they could get, before
getting stopped by the mud.
“You know the
challenge of going through the mud,
seeing people get stuck, or seeing
something break down. You know, it's
the agony of defeat, the success and
joy of seeing someone making it all
the way through,” Jim Renner said
It's a day of
family-friendly fun, even those too
small to ride in the big cars, found
a way to get in on the mud bogging
action.
For others,
racing in the mud bog runs in the
family.
“My husband over
here broke his arm so I told him I’d
run the
truck for him,” Jodie Denhartog
said.
“I'm going to
race a
Ford Bronco, '79 Ford Bronco,”
Denhartog added.
I know when I get
in the truck I’m just going to hit
the pedal to the metal and go. You
know, go and hope I make it
through,” Denhartog said.
Everyone agrees
their favorite part, is watching the
mud fly. Most importantly, it's all
for a good cause.
“The Center for
Hospice and Palliative Care has been
caring for patients and families
with life-limiting illnesses for 30
years,” Debra Mayfield said.
“In 30 years
we've never had to turn anyone
because they couldn't pay for their
service. That’s how this community,
these people, help us do that. By
donating money like this all year
long,” Mayfield added
“We couldn't do
that without these kinds of people,”
Mayfield said.
“Last year, we
gave $7500, this year we're hoping
to surpass that due to the record
crowd,” Renner said.
The South Bend
Sod Busters hold events throughout
the year.
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Sod Busters holding annual "mud bog" on
Sunday
South Bend, IN
Drivers love getting down, dirty
For Sod
Busters, mud bog is tradition.
By ERIN BLASKO
Tribune Staff Writer
Tribune Photo/ERIN BLASKO
The Memorial Day Weekend Mud Bog in
New Carlisle helps to raise money
for hospice care in St. Joseph
County.
WARREN TOWNSHIP — Hundreds gathered
Sunday at the Sod Busters Off The Road
Club near New Carlisle for the club's
annual Memorial Day Weekend Mud Bog.
The event, which began at 10 a.m.,
featured nine classes, including one for
"Mini Mudders," or kids on unmodified
Power Wheels.
"I like the noise," Tanya Yuhas of
Constantine, said as she stood near the
end of the track dodging mud along with
her husband and teenage son. "I like the
muffler noise. It's like drag racing."
"It's pretty good," said William Yuhas, Tanya
Yuhas' husband. "Now I'm wantin' to do it. I got
a '77
Ford four-wheel drive."
For the uninitiated, mud bogging entails
powering modified
vehicles through a pit of deep mud,
hopefully to the other side and terra firma.
Stuck vehicles receive an assist in the form of
a tractor outfitted with a front-mounted winch.
According to Don Parsons of Kingsford Heights,
the sport is all about "power, tires and gears."
"It's got something to do with the driver, too,"
he said as he stood next to his 1994
Chevrolet S10 pickup, caked from bumper to
bumper with light-brown mud the consistency of
crude oil, "just cutting the tires and rocking
back and forth."
In that case, Parsons' son, Nick Seibert, was
the better driver Sunday. The 12-year-old
managed to steer through 143 feet of mud to
Parsons' 139 feet.
"Yeah, he beat me," Parsons conceded.
A portion of the proceeds from Sunday's event
went to The Center for Hospice and Palliative
Care of St. Joseph County. |
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September 28, 2008 Labor
Day Weekend
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Sod Busters holds annual mud
race for charity There's not a
prayer of making it through this fundraiser
clean, and that's exactly how they like it!
The South Bend Sod Busters held their annual mud
race Sunday -- for fun and for charity.
From street cars to custom made trucks, members
of the group competed to see who can make it
farther, faster.
"At first I'm a little bit nervous," admits
young driver Ben Kurtz. "But then I just hit the
gas and I go."
"Once you tighten your seatbelts down, you let
the clutch out and stand on the pedal,
adrenaline pretty much takes over," John Nowacki
explains.
Katie Pease decided this was the year to give
the race a try, so she brought her street car --
a Jeep -- out to the muddy course.
"I'm expecting, honestly, to probably get stuck,
but I'm going to try my hardest to make it
through," she told us.
It was a valiant effort, but Katie didn't quite
reach the finish. Her new goal was to make it to
the carwash -- and eventually the shower.
All the money raised during the event will go to
Camp Millhouse, a summer camp for children with
disabilities.
Each year, the mud race usually raises about
$10,000.
Click here for the article |
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Monster trucks to tear up sod,
benefit local charity
The mud will be flying this weekend for sod
busters of Michiana’s annual mud bog.
The event benefits Camp Millhouse, a summer
camp for children with developmental and
physical disabilities.
Each year hundreds of people turn out to watch large monster trucks tear through mud and pits.
Organizers say it is a fun event for the
entire family. all while raising money for a
charity right here in Michiana.
“Very loud, very noisy, really a good time.
We had some friends come out last year and they
said ‘ohh we’ll stay for a few minutes - they
were there for 4 hours. They loved it they
didn’t want to leave,” said Jim Renner, a mud
bog enthusiast.
The event is this Sunday, September 14th.
Click here for the article |
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Sodbusters Mud Bog
The Mud Bog event helps support the Center for
Hospice.
Different levels will compete all day Sunday,
ranging from little kids in battery-powered
trucks all the way to the big guys.
John Nowacki is the event director for
Sodbusters and says, "The first class run is
little kids who come with battery powered mini
mudders and power wheelers. It's amazing the
amount of people who come out, usually it's
about 30 parents dragging them out here and the
kids are in there and have their own mud pit."
Amy Judd with the Center for Hospice says, "It
helps our fund out, which then is money we use
to help our patients that aren't able to pay."
For more information on Sunday's event go to
www.sodbustersoffroad.com
Click here for the article |
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Sod-Busters hold weekend
off-road rally It's been a cold,
wet weekend—not so good for doing yard work, but
great for messing up your yard.
Sod-Busters held their spring On-Road, Off-Road
Rally this afternoon.
About 40 drivers made the trek from the South
Bend Motor Speedway to the club's property near
Darden.
The course was about 50 miles from start to
finish. It was made a little shorter than normal
to help offset rising gas prices.
“The thing is when your off-roading your locked
in four wheel drive, your spinning tires revving
the engine up having a good time so yeah, your
going to use a little bit more fuel,” said
Sod-Busters member Terry Kurtz. “We wanted to
keep this small and short enough where people
can come out and have fun and not worry about
the gas prices so much.”
Sod-Busters is getting geared up for the spring
Mud Bog, which is coming up on may 25th.
Click here for the article |
Get down and
dirty at tons-of-fun holiday Mud Bog
NATURE BOUND: WALKS, TALKS & PROJECTS
KAREN RALLO
Tribune Staff Writer
SOUTH BEND --
Engines will roar and mud will splatter during
the South Bend Sod Busters and Pomp's Tire's
annual Memorial Day Weekend Mud Bog on May 28.
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Official Mike Weaver talks with
competitor and truck owner Dawn Masuth in the
staging area before the competition in last
fall's Mud Bog.
Tribune File Photo |
"This is a family friendly event for any 4x4
vehicle," says Jim Renner, the club's public
relations manager. Any vehicle is welcome. Some
130 to 150 vehicles competed last year, from
families in their Ford Explorers to boggers with
customized trucks towed on trailers.
The club goes all out to make sure the whole
family has fun, with multiple contests for all
ages, complete with an announcer from the South
Bend Motor Speedway. Trophies are awarded to
winners in all divisions.
For those too young for a
driver's license, there's a minimudder,
featuring a 15-foot-long mud pit that's about an
inch deep -- ideal for kiddie vehicles. Hummer
rides around the property also are offered.
"People come to have a good time. They can come
out and camp on the grounds (although there's no
water or electric hookup). They even bring tents
and coolers," Renner says. But the real purpose
for getting down and dirty is to raise money for
Hospice of St. Joseph County.
"Last year, we raised over $5,700. It's a good
cause," Renner says.
One of the most popular events of the day
doesn't require a vehicle. It's Dash for Cash.
Children and adults get a chance to run through
a pit of mud for cash awards. At the end of the
event, the winner gets a cash prize, and
everyone gets sprayed off with a hose. (So,
dress appropriately.)
Gates open at 8 a.m. Cost is $10 for spectators
and $15 to compete. Children 12 and younger are
free.
Sod Busters' off-road property is on Sycamore
Road, just off Darden Road and near the Indiana
Toll Road underpass.
To learn more, call (574) 276-5727 or visit www.
sodbustersoffroad.com. |
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Off-road rally tests
driving, scavenger skills
NATURE
BOUND: WALKS, TALKS & PROJECTS
KAREN RALLO
Tribune Staff Writer
Feel the grit of dirt in
your teeth as the off-road trail thunders under your
vehicle during the Sod Busters Spring On/Off Road
Rally at 9:30 a.m. April 23 at Auto Zone, 2804
Lincoln Way E., Mishawaka.
The rally is a gentler version of a 4X4 experience.
"This event is for off-road, street-legal 4X4
vehicles like an Explorer, Durango. It's a
family-friendly event," South Bend Sod Busters Off
the Road Club member Jim Renner says.
This scavenger hunt on wheels
begins (rain or shine) with registration between 9
and 11 a.m. at the Auto Zone, where contestants are
given a question-and-answer sheet.
Along the route, the teams participate in a kind of
scavenger hunt.
"They'll be given clues with a question that will
need to be answered, like something they might see
that's unique in a particular yard," Renner says
about the teams' quest. "The one with the most
points will be the winner. ...
"At each check point, (contestants) will be offered
an off-road challenge. If they're not comfortable
with the challenge, because they think it may damage
they're vehicle, they can do something like bob for
apples."
Renner says that 90 percent of the event takes place
on the road but the off-road challenges can be a lot
of fun.
"An off-road event might have the driver
blindfolded, while the navigator gives directions as
they travel down an obstacle course," he says.
The club has been sponsoring the spring road rallies
for more than 10 years. A driver and a navigator are
required. Even families with young children in car
seats have participated, Renner says.
"This is a nice Saturday afternoon drive around St.
Joseph County and into Michigan, and it's a lot of
fun," he says. "It's not a speed race. It's for
points."
Registration cost is $15 per driver/navigator, $5
per additional passenger, and free for ages 12 and
younger, and takes place on the day of the event
only.
Contestants should bring a compass, a clipboard, a
calculator, binoculars and a pen.
To learn more, call (574) 276-5727, or visit
www.sodbustersoffroad.com. |
Scavenger hunt on wheels
Trucks and SUVs rally for a Sunday that's
full of fun
By JULIE FERRARO
Tribune Correspondent
When it comes to fun, there's nothing quite like a scavenger
hunt.
Put it on four wheels, and extend the route over nearly 100 miles
of country roads, and it can get really interesting.
That's just what happened one recent Sunday morning for the South
Bend Sod Busters' Spring On/Off Road Rally. Trucks and SUVs of all
sizes gathered in the parking lot of the Auto Zone on Lincoln Way
East in Mishawaka. The drivers and their navigators signed in, and
received a list of clues which would get them to the first
checkpoint.
One by one, at timed intervals, off they went, to wander the back
roads and test their vehicles on some unusual terrain. The scavenger
hunt took them through Osceola, Granger, Edwardsburg, Berrien
Springs and Buchanan, ending in New Carlisle.
Tim McClanahan of South Bend climbed into his "big, black GMC
extended cab" for the rally. His first time in the Sod Busters'
rally, he saw it as a learning experience.
His son, Tim McClanahan II, served as navigator. He mostly does
mud bogging with his '98 Chevy short bed, but was looking forward to
the challenge of the rally.
Riding along as "nagagator," as the elder McClanahan joked, was
Dennis Zell.
"I've done this before," Zell stated, smiling. "I'll get out and
hook up the strap so they can pull him out" when the checkpoint
tests get too difficult.
Definitely a friendly and lively group, the rally drivers and
those riding with them were eager about the event. Masonic lodge
brothers Tim Miller and Mike Lewis of Elkhart took Miller's '95 Jeep
Cherokee through its paces during the course of the day.
"This is my fourth time," said Lewis. "I'm the navigator and
kibbitzer." The idea of wandering down dirt roads or over piles of
tires appealed to him because "I work for the railroad, and I like
rough rides."
Miller and Lewis belong to Tread Lightly, another four-wheeler's
group. "I like to tread lightly through nature without tearing
things up," Miller explained. He came to the rally to get out with
his friends and enjoy the outdoors.
Promoted as a family event, the road rally brought out many
couples and kids. Betsy Williams handed the keys of her 2002 Ford
Explorer to her son, Jack Shepp, 18, of New Carlisle for the day.
"He's a good driver," Williams remarked. "He'd probably be more
nervous if I was driving."
While Jack's brother, Adam Shepp, 15, of South Bend, served as
navigator, Williams planned to ride in the back seat and read the
newspaper.
"It's gonna be fun," Jack noted.
Kathy Peterson of North Liberty was hoping, as navigator, not to
get her husband, Pete, lost in their "little, wimpy Durango." A
member of Sod Busters, Pete was trying the road rally for the first
time.
"It's a way to take out aggression," Pete grinned. "It's better
than kicking the cat."
Actually, the rules of the rally required drivers to be safe. The
drivers had to arrive at the final destination with their drivers
license still sealed inside an envelope. If, for any reason, they
had to open the envelope, they would be disqualified, according to
Mike Filipski, chair for the event.
"It's not a speed competition," added Jim Renner, who drove his
H1 Hummer in the rally. The successful completion of the challenges
at the checkpoints earned the teams points, which would determine
the winners.
The checkpoint at Edgar Wolfe's property at Beech and Cleveland
roads challenged the endurance of the competitors. They used Wolfe's
own "proving grounds" where he tries out the jeeps and trucks he
races off-road to perform three tests.
Hooking a large log onto the front of the vehicle with a strap,
the vehicles were driven backward around a curving, dirt track.
Then, they drove through a pit of tires. The bravest souls with the
most heavy duty trucks even got to climb over a sizable dirt hill.
"We wanted to have something difficult for the guys with the
bigger trucks," said Wolfe.
Drivers of smaller vehicles could opt not to do the tests better
suited for regular four-wheel drive vehicles. Either way, the task
of getting from checkpoint to checkpoint, then to the barbecue at
the end, was good, clean fun.
"The vehicles hardly get dirty," Filipski commented.
For some, that doesn't matter. "We build them so they'll take the
punishment," said Miller. "The idea is: build it, drive it, repair
it, drive it again." |
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