Walker had to mentally shift gears, then get to work building a competitive rock crawler.Walker had to mentally shift gears, then get to work building a competitive rock crawler.

Instead of the usual Jeep that almost everyone else builds, a Chevrolet Blazer was chosen as the 4x4 of choice. Many people don't remember that Chevy was the first to come out with a downsized SUV, the S10 Blazer, in 1983. Jeep claims they were first with the XJ Cherokee, but that vehicle appeared in 1984. Anyway, Chevy has lots of experience in building small 4x4's and the GM drivetrain, including the 4.3 Vortec V6 and 4L60E automatic tranny, is hard to beat. The 101" wheelbase of the two-door Blazer is also ideal for varied extreme conditions.

So, a Blazer was purchased and Walker, Randy (Walker's foreman) and the rest of the shop went to work converting the rig into an extreme vehicle. Racing technology was used and a few nods were given to "old tech," such as a solid Dana 44 front and a trimmed Dana 60 solid rearend. Detroit Lockers were installed front and rear along with really, really LOW gearing in the 5.80:1 range. The reason for the low gears was a prototype 1.5:1 transfer case that is already history, after Walker found out it was still too high for the trail.