Why Rock Bouncers Aren’t For Everyone

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Here’s a question for you. Do you know just what a Rock Bouncer is? It appears like a term that’s throw around in a rock concert or something right? Well, apparently there are a set, or type of vehicle which have been given that name, and for good cause. We’re likely to explainwhy and what, and just how the name applies to this vehicle of sorts.

So, the term Rock Bouncer is nothing more than two words that basically explain an

Pic provided by RCVPerformance.com

Pic provided by RCVPerformance.com

action that takes place while a really capable vehicle is moving about the place in any given direction. Still sounds a little about the scientific side of things? OK, here it is. In a much more aggressive manner, though a Rock Bouncer is a Rock Crawler that has been custom made to do what a Rock Crawler does. Now does it make sense? I thought so. OK, now that we got the, “How” out of the way, now we can target the, “What” part of the story.

Let’s examine what goes into developing a Rock Bouncer. For those of you who really don’t know much about this, “Sport” you should really pay attention to this part. A Bouncer is really a custom made 4 Wheel Drive monster that will virtually do just about anything the motorist wills it to do. It could climb near vertical walls, pull itself over boulders the size of Fiats, and even survive massive rollovers, just to keep clawing it’s way to the top of the hill. Your typical Bouncer consists of hardened steel bars which have been mandril bent to very specific, and exact angles for the sole purpose of providingrigidity and strength, internal parts protection, looks, and above all driver safety. If you will, is not the same, each Rock Bouncer, or Buggy. Each driver has a buggy that fits him, or her. Some drivers want a longer buggy that lowers the center of gravity a touch, and others like a shorter wheel base that allows for awesome maneuverability in tight places. Regardless of how you slice it, a driver’s buggy is their own pride, and joy. The only real thing that may separate a driver off their buggy is either a really destructive crash, or enough money to create a better one.

As we discussed by the video posted above, many of the Rock Bouncers are typically powered by GM crate motors, and then those are mated to custom transmissions, and transfer cases. These three merchandise is what have the buggy move from point A, to point B. Power for such unyielding brutes seem to float anywhere between 500 to 750Hp, and the torque numbers are just as ridiculous. All of that power is sent to the ground via a die hard, bulletproof 4 Wheel Drive system. In these cases, technology doesn’t mean much here. A majority of these drivers build their buggies out of old military truck parts, etc. In order to secure the strength it must survive 20 or so runs on the rocks, i mean you could discover a Dana 60 gearbox off of a 1970’s Ford pick-up, then that same piece of equipment will be over built. The last two main components of a successful Rock Bouncer are, suspension, and tires. Most of these guys run a single spring coil over with a piggy back reservoir set up, and also this allows their rig to soak up any hit the hillside can dish out. Lastly, the tries. As a way to have a moderately successful buggy, tire option is imperative. Tire size varies, and in cases like this, “Mine’s is larger than yours” doesn’t always make it work.

Here’s where we explain the, “Why” factor. In this world wide sport of sorts, you possess two main sets of drivers who participate. You have the Rock Crawlers, and the Rock Bouncers. The Crawlers sort of represent the, “Slow & Steady Wins The Race” mantra, and the Bouncers, are the complete opposite the exact same spectrum. Bouncers have been chalked up to back woods rednecks that have some how managed to figure out the mechanics of life work, and then got lucky enough to make something that everybody else rockbouncebw1can enjoy while guzzling down a beer. It’s so much more than folks. In watching them in interviews, and seeing how they drive, their skill sets are equally matched, otherwise higher than the crawlers, despite the fact that i don’t personally know any of the drivers. In retrospect, he, or she does what a Crawler does , but in much more intense rate of speed, although if you think about this for a minute, a Bouncer may seem much more brash, and brutal in the methods. Naturally there’s more tire smoke, and flying dirt, and the occasional love seat sized boulder that may roll down a hill, but that’s what makes it interesting. Watching these mechanical animals fling themselves on the mercy of an un-moving area of Mother Earth is one thing to behold every single time that it happens. In some cases the buggy wins, as well as in others, Nature slaps the flavors out of your mouth, and enables you to live to inform the tale. I personally believe there’s a lot more give, and take in Bouncing, than there may be in Crawling. The driver has to be thinking 10 times as fast as a Crawler, just on the premise that anything can, or will happen within a split second, as much as the pedal is mashed down to the floor of the buggy in the Bouncer’s event. I think both disciplines take more than just heart, and guts. Because the tires aren’t doing the job that the engine is asking them to do, there’s a love for everything that’s awesome about a short headered motor that’s spitting out flames of discontent. The adrenaline rush you will get when you see dirt flying from the air as the driver, literally uses his ass to feel his way to the top of the mountain side. Not only that, the camaraderie that is had when a fellow driver rolls over, along with the spectators spring into action along side the case staff, being sure that the driver will drive again before the sun goes down. That is why a Rock Bouncer is indeed Bad Ass. All of this means that I think, I feel, that a Rock Bouncer has just that much more fun when compared to a Crawler would.

I hope that this explains things, and enlightens you all to examine a sport that has been otherwise shunned off of television. Rock Crawlers are rigs that are designed to drive in a sanctioned event where things are heavily monitored. The crowds are too far away, the power of the buggy is only able to be felt by the driver, and a crane is in command of righting rollovers. Gimme a back woods, Good ‘Ol Boys, Beer Drinking, Muddy, Dirt Flinging, Rock Bouncer event any day of every week. I’m down.