Here I am enjoying the Crawler Truck in the spring of 1984 or 1985. We believe this is from a TLCA Mud-N-Yer-Eye Frolic, Hollister Hills State Park, California.
It may not be a picture of the Crawler truck, but it is a vintage picture of Marlin doing what he loves to do and that is helping others!
The Crawler Truck hard at work rescuing the then-very-popular FJ40 Land Cruiser. Picture is circa early 1990s and was probably the first time the Crawler truck got a new coat of paint (in between paint jobs didn't stop Marlin from wheeling). FJ40s were by far without a question the most popular Toyota 4WD truck on the trail before the Marlin Crawler came out in 1994. Marlin remembers being teased for using a weak framed "Jap Tin Can" Hilux/Minitruck pickup and would go multiple trail runs without seeing even a single other minitruck on the trail. Some may think its great (or crazy!) how many spare parts Marlin carries, but the truth is that back then there were no other minitrucks on the trail to get spare parts from! Marlin would always be nervous of breaking down and being the only minitruck around for miles so he carried every spare part he could think of. Marlin was just a born natural at helping out others and the rest is history.
This photo is very important for the history of Toyota trucks at The Hammer trails, Johnson Valley because it is the very first time any Toyota had ever gone up Jack Hammer. Marlin remembers Victor Valley 4 Wheelers' Chuck Shaner calling him a complete idiot for taking a Toyota up Jack Hammer (at that time Jeeps dominated 4WD trails). Marlin recalls this was the 1st weekend after the trail was created but he isn't exactly sure. His brother Paul took the photo and they remember being the only vehicle up there. The Crawler Truck will always have a special place in Johnson Valley as the first Toyota up Jack Hammer, which at the time was probably the hardest trail there! Picture circa fall 1994.
Here is the Crawler Truck making its way up Lion's Back, the now closed trail at Moab, Utah. The truck is actually in gear and idling forward in this picture at a Crawl Ratio of 1,047:1, completing the World's very first "Walking The Crawler" up Lion's Back, circa 1997. If you've never heard about or seen a picture of Lions Back, here is what it looks like from afar:
http://www.rigsofrods.com/images/imported/2011/03/lionsback202-2.jpg The property leading to Lion's Back was purchased in 2007 making this trail off limits to public use.
