Rock crawling has been huge for the RC world in the past few years. A few guys have seen a different rock crawler lurking around the rocks, Scale Crawlers.

I’m sure some will contest that Scalers were the original crawlers, but today’s scalers are more detailed, cooler looking, and work better then their distant cousins. A modern scale crawler generally consists of modern axles on a ladder chassis frame and a full fender truck body, or some custom created tube work and truck cab for that “truggy” look we all love.

The North Bay RC Crawlers, and Jake’s Performance Hobbies hosted a scale crawling event they dubbed the 101 Rubicon. A trail run type of course was setup using gate markers in some very tough spots. Too tough for some trucks.  In total the course was 18 gates long and roughly 50-60 yards across some very rugged terrain in down town Santa Rosa CA.

More then 25 trucks showed up to compete and have a great day on the rocks watching great drivers, great performing trucks, and some ultra sweet detail work. Working winches were the norm. Coolers, Jerry Cans, and rescue gear could be found on most of the rigs. Most of the drivers found themselves using their rescue gear and winches to get through the course.

The competition was great, but not the point. This was more of a good reason to meet up with fellow Scalers and check out rigs for new ideas on upcoming projects we all have. Custom hand bent bumpers, tube cages, and rock slider details were amazing. Custom narrowed bodies, and ultra sweet paint jobs all being pounded into the rocks with no regard for vehicle safety. Just a great sight to see.

Several Pictures have been posted on the Jake’s Performance Website :

http://www.jphracing.com/Nov__29th_Scaler_GTG___Comp.cfm 

A thread was also done on www.rccrawler.com:

http://www.rccrawler.com/forum/showthread.php?t=211730