Page 50 - Panama City Living Magazine

ADRENALINE
Joshua Jacobs, 18, from Panama City, takes his four-wheeler through mud and water obstacles in the main arena.
Bode moved to the Panhandle from Oklahoma in 2012. He drove a stock jeep on trails in the area until he met the Godfather when he was out riding one day. He was getting tired of just riding trails and wanted a bigger challenge, like the ones Tim and a few others were tackling with their rock crawlers and heavy-duty buggies. So he started adding parts as he could until he had a capable vehicle. The idea to open The Swamp followed.
Bode and his father had the vision of making The Swamp a family -oriented place where you can feel safe bringing your kids. The park has its share of the big rock crawlers, but you also see kids on four-wheelers and families riding in jeeps on the trails and in the mud and water obstacles. “It really doesn’t matter out here what you have,” Bode says. “We’re all family and it’s not a money thing.” He adds that he likes this sport because everybody is equal. “We are all just horsepower and adrenaline junkies,” he adds. Between 50 and 300 people come to The Swamp on their normal open days every first and third Saturday of the month, but several thousand will show up for their big birthday bash the first Saturday in March each year.
Bode says The Swamp has a motto. “We spend money we don’t have, to buy parts we don’t need, to drive over things we shouldn’t.” He describes the off-road community as a brotherhood of people always willing to help each other. On Saturdays Bode spends most of his time helping people fix their rigs when they break. When he’s not doing that, you can find him in the concession stand cooking up hot dogs they call “Swamp Dogs” and hamburgers for those who didn’t bring their own lunch.
50 • March—April 2020 • www.PanamaCityLiving.com
The Godfather shares that willingness to help as well. Like many of the serious drivers, he routinely overpacks and brings tools and parts, just in case others on the trail need help. It’s not unusual to see repairs going on next to a trail or in the middle of an obstacle. Tim says they fix things on the fly because “we want to keep the fun rolling.” When a buggy flips over or ends up on its side—and that does happen—other drivers come to help and get the vehicle back on the trail.
The most colorful character you’ll find at The Swamp is definitely “Pops,” Charles Bode Sr., 72. Easily to spot in a crowd, Charles's trademark outfit is a pair of overalls with his dog, Furby, tucked in front of his chest. He carries the small long-haired Chihuahua everywhere he goes. When someone gets stuck or stranded, Pops and Furby come to the rescue in a purple Grand Cherokee with a broken windshield and a metal cage over the entire body.
Late in the afternoon Pops likes to sit by the pit and watch how drivers handle the obstacles.