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Super spotter, Steve Hastings, was smooth, smooth, smooth. A driver in his own right, he spent a lot of his career as Jason Bunch’s spotter. OG rockcrawler who got started in the 60’s behind the wheel of his dad’s CJ5, Steve has seen a lot of rock. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

5:44 – Two pillows behind and two pillows underneath and low, low, low gear

15:23 – I’m one of Craig’s disciples, one of those rigs he bought high and sold low   

29:12 – More like a lot of tequila and a lot of tacos 

35:40 – Jason’s wife called and said, “Jason was a basket case, don’t you ever leave him behind again!” 

42:36 – We’d look at an obstacle and find the hardest spot, then work backwards to get the right line

51:04 –we weren’t looking for fast, we didn’t care if we finished in nine minutes and 59 seconds, as long as we finished. Smooth, smooth, smooth was our battle cry 

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Part Two. Stories so big we need two episodes to tell them!  Jason Bunch of Tri-Couty Gear has a storied history and he shares it with us. Rockcrawler, racer, business man, enthusiast, Jason’s been part of the OG crowd. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

7:06 – For once, I’m the guy, not the guy on the outside of the fence, I’m the guy on the inside.

19:08 – Damn, why didn’t anybody tell me I was doing that?!              

24:14 – I owe a lot to learning about mechanical things and driving different vehicles. 

31:42 – I’m on Junkyard Wars, right? And they had us build a land speed vehicle/rockcrawler that could be a boat! 

48:01 – I’m screaming at them, “the k*ll switch, the k*ll switch!”.

54:34 –At one point in my life, I had race face where I was pissed off because I wasn’t winning, I was taking it too serious. 

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Stories so big we need two episodes to tell them!  Jason Bunch of Tri-Couty Gear has a storied history and he shares it with us. Rockcrawler, racer, business man, enthusiast, Jason’s been part of the OG crowd. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

4:47 – We’d take about everything trying to make them faster, we’d grind the rod on a lawn mower and hold it wide open to see if we could make it blow up

16:08 – A cop rolls up and goes, “this brings new meaning to shade tree mechanic!”              

21:04 – my Flat Fender had a healthy 350 in it and a 300 shot of nitrous oxide in it. It was fast. 

30:59 – One night we clocked ourselves going through Sledge Hammer, did the whole trail in 51 minutes and one beer stop included. 

36:25 – I watched Steve work with people and I thought, I need that guy for something, but I don’t know what.

46:34 –I used all of my knowledge of Jeeps and the things I’ve done to build that Jeep, no blueprint, just all in my mind.

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King Randy Slawson kicks off Season 6 of Conversations of Big Rich – that’s episode 261. Hear about the sheltered kid who turned his aggression to the rocks. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

5:49 – I was extremely sheltered, kept away from the world until I got married and moved to California

12:11 – my dad was busy and he wasn’t into mechanical anything, so I didn’t have somebody to mentor me and teach me how to do stuff             

19:34 – Seven of us went in five rigs and wheeled the Rubicon, if I wasn’t hooked before, I was definitely hooked after that. 

27:47– At the time, I was way into the Toyota scene, I’d had 20 different Toyotas, most of them basket cases.

37:59 –  I knew Marlin, but not well; I took him out to check out a weird noise, he was like, “Oh, Randy, I can’t believe the stress this transfer case is under. Oh, Randy…”

42:21 –I don’t want to call myself a know-it-all, but I just think that I can do it better.

46:34 – More power, more speed, that spoke to me. That was my style.

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Today’s guest is probably the greatest competitive rockcrawler in the history of the sport. Get to know Tracy Jordan and how he became the GOAT! Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

4:22 – everything was around hunting and fishing, it was one-on-one time with our dad

13:46 – I bought an FJ40 and wanted to do a lift, power steering, a few things…then got an invite out to a trail, and it was off and running from there.             

20:13 – That’s where ‘Air Jordan’ came about is that obstacle and there was a controversy 

28:39 – You never stop learning. I loved watching Joel, Don, the Curry’s – just their different techniques and learning from them

34:15– Durham had the same style as Shannon and Mike Palmer, just total, no fear on all the climbs 

50:29–I only have two timelines, and it’s my rockcrawling timeline and my kid’s timeline, that’s my only references in time.

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What do you get when you cross a tennis playing, stunt bike rider with a Rock Zombie? Answer: Phil Licciardi, shock-tuning master. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

3:33 – they had the Green Police, I got pulled over for pushing my bike to town, they tried to hold my dad off at gunpoint, and he wasn’t even mad yet!

9:41 – the film, The Firm was based on a guy who owned the company my dad worked for, the controlling aspects of this guy were crazy             

17:48 – I definitely got a PhD in partying! 

21:48 – “How did you learn to fab?” Just did it, I went and got a Home Depot weld pack 100 Fluxcore machine and just started doing crappy work.

32:44 – the thing about sport bike stunt riding is you either get good pretty quick or you die trying. 

49:23 –I left KOH saying, there is no way in hell I’m ever getting involved in that situation. Two months later, Doug called, “hey, so you want to build an Ultra4 car?”

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Co-founder and CEO of Warfighter Made, Rob Blanton is a retired Marine serving as a volunteer for his non-profit organization full-time. The mission of Warfighter Made provides recreation therapy to ill, injured and combat-wounded service members and veterans. Listen to how he and the others got there. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 

8:27 – Adversity builds mental toughness 

16:06 – I’m the proverbial if your friend jumps off a bridge, will you? Yeah, four of my friends jumped off a bridge, so I joined them.             

22:23 – The good news, I can make you a Marine, the bad news is you don’t qualify with these test scores – for anything! 

31:58 – the best memories were really the worst stories, just overcoming adversity 

36:12 – I was awarded the Silver Star for that action in Iraq, it’s our nation’s third highest award for valor 

42:52 –…that was the catalyst to start Warfighter Made 

47:19 – When I retired from the Marines in 2014, I immediately became a full-time volunteer for the organization. 

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It all began with a Craigslist ad for Josh Reynolds. Today, Josh has taken the reins of Fly-N-Hi Off-Road while continuing to nurture his passion and contributing to the off-road community. The shop, known for its expertise in Jeep modifications and custom builds, has become a hub for enthusiasts looking to push the limits of their vehicles. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

4:53 – I moved to Alaska as a mountain guide for a long time as a professional skiing and climbing guide on some of the biggest mountains in the world

8:14 – There was a Craigslist ad for the Baja 1000, it said, do you want to come experience the Baja 1000, and I’m thinking – Hell, yeah, who doesn’t?             

16:20 – I just brought that Mustang down last week, to rebuild the carburetor 

22:37 – I’ve had every Jeep in the world, CJs, YJs, TJs, an LJ and more

31:09 – We had eight batteries, and we’d come into the pit and change the battery, I’d carry it in my lap because the alternator didn’t work 

46:37 –so, literally, the whole thing started from Craigslist

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An off-road enthusiast turned competitor, Aaron Armstrong is the man responsible for the WE Rock event site in Bagdad, Arizona. A man with a vision. Join WE Rock March 1 and 2, 2025 at the best cul de sac in AZ.  Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

6:48 – I was always trying to find dirt in California to make jumps on 

11:13– my first car was a 1987 Toyota 4-runner, since then I’ve had five 4-runners             

19:53 – I went down the wrong path, got wrapped up into drugs and alcohol and quickly found myself homeless and out of a job hanging out with the wrong kids – something in my head said, “This is not your life.”

29:56 – One night we were talking, and I was like, “you know what? I Think we should move back home to Arizona.”

39:29 – We went to the Put Up or Shut Up in Congress in 2007, stood out in the rain all day and could not take my eyes off what those vehicles were doing! 

56:49 –I hit up the General Manager at the mine, and said, Have you ever seen a rockcrawl? No, what’s that, so I took him out and showed him my vision.

1:09:11 – One of the things that I believe in and that the mine believes in is continuous improvement. That’s what we’re doing to the event site.

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We last checked in with JT Taylor three years ago, so much has changed. If you saw the announcement of a new race at Area BFE on Big Saturday, you want to listen in for the deets. JT spills it all!. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

6:45 – 284 acres outside of Tulsa that goes up against the river and US Army Corp of Engineers land with 26 miles of trails 

12:12– they got hit by a trophy truck in a silt bed north of Loreto; broke the right rear of the car, but we changed it all out and still beat the competition by two hours             

18:29 – We built the Nissan as a practice car for the Coronet, I have to learn to drive fast in two-wheel drive on asphalt again.

28:32 – We go out to Rednecks to help Derek and the guys run the races, we got Rugged Radio to donate a bunch of headsets, it was a game changer

30:56– ***ALL THE DEETS HERE*** Rock race at Area BFE on Big Saturday during EJS 

55:19 –Entries open on March 1

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