Friday, January 1st, 2010
PLAYING DIRTY
PHOTOGRAPHS BY MALCOLM LIGHTNER
SPLISH, SPLASH The depth of the water at
the Swamp Buggy Races
varies between one and
six feet. The two deepest
spots are called “Sippy
holes,” so named because
of “Mississippi” Milton
Morris, a legendary driver
who rarely got past the
holes without stalling.
THE BOGGY MIRE that was Southwest Florida’s Collier County in the 1930s and 1940s gave rise to a new kind of vehicle: the swamp buggy. The bizarre-looking automobiles with large balloon tires and drivers’ seats raised high were the most effective way to traverse the waterlogged landscape on hunting trips.
In the weeks leading up to the hunting season, local innovators would gather at their various garages to swap engineering tips and home brews, and occasionally challenge each other to races.
The first races took place on a muddy potato patch around 1943, with only a dozen or so drivers competing against each other for bragging rights—but word spread quickly. Before long, 30 to 40 competitors showed up every year during the week before hunting season to compete for a grand prize: usually a turkey or shotgun donated by a local merchant.
Over the next few decades, the swamp buggy races gained worldwide attention. The value of the prizes increased, and so did the top speeds of the vehicles. Balloon tires were replaced with slimmed-down tractor tires, and the buggies evolved into something too loud to use for their original purpose.
The Florida Sports Park in Naples (50 minutes from Ft. Myers), which is home to the affectionately named “Mile O’ Mud” race course, now hosts three Swamp Buggy Races annually (this year’s take place Jan. 30-31, March 6-7 and Oct. 30-31). It’s the only spot in the world to catch the messy spectacle.
