Olson's Mud Run

At the end of Jacobus Rd on Hwy 51 there is an auto shop that at least once a year has a sign for the "Olson's Mud Run". It is usually perched on a three wheeled black part monster , part classic truck vehicle. I've lived in Edgerton for almost three years and have never made it to one of Tom Olson's events.

On October 15th, I made it a point to attend. The event is held at Tom Olson's farm on 1269 Willow Rd in Albion Township and started at noon. When I arrived, I was directed to park in the cornfield along with at least 75 other vehicles. Admission was $5 each for spectators and $10 for participants. If you aren't one of the first trucks to pull up to the front and put the tailgate down for a seat, don't forget to bring a lawn chair. There are no bleachers or seats. This a kid friendly even that includes two sandboxes filled with kernels of corn instead of sand.

Food and beverage is supplied by the Edgerton Lion's Club hamburgers, brats, chips, and candy. Prices were modest at $2.00 a beer and no food above $3.00. Beer was served by the girls of Edgerton's Red Baron and Two Brothers. There was an ongoing contest between the two bars for the most sold beers. A meat raffle was also part of the fun. All day long they were picking tickets. I didn't purchase any tickets, but there was a good amount of meat given away including a Packer party pack.

The track is set up with two main lanes and a pull me out lane in the middle. To keep the lanes wet, there are two giant water trucks - one of which is the three wheeled monster I've seen before. Good to see it has a useful quality.

There are 5 different classes (or so I think! It was hard to keep track) that made the afternoon last till about 6:00. Most of the classes consisted of side by side in each lane switching lanes each time. The final classes made the vicious figure 8 which brought out either the bravery or stupidity of many of the drivers - depending on how you look at it. The three ft ditch between the circles of the figure eight proved too tempting and at least six drivers attempted to outsmart it. Instead of being a hero, the big tractor had to come to the rescue.

NOTE TO DRIVERS: Olson's supplies the tractor, you supply the strap and have something on your truck to hook it to. It was hilarious to see the trucks that had to strap it to the bumper. Kudos to the driver of the early '90s Jeep Cherokee Sport that assumed he'd be able to pull out the massive trucks. The entire audience loved his persistence to hook up to largest trucks and it even pulled out one truck at the end at the audience's cheering.

After 6 hours of fun, stuck trucks, and broken belts, engines, it came to a close with an applause judging for the best of the best. Trophies were handed out for each class.

All in all it was a great afternoon for only $5!! I can't wait for the next one.

Olson's Mud Run does not have a website and does little advertising outside the Edgerton area.