'Big Kenny's Crank It Up Garage' features La Luz-based rock crawler builder

These days, Big Kenny is all about the surprises.

With years on the road as part of country duo Big & Rich, he’s used to plans changing.

For the last three years, Big Kenny, born William Kenneth Alphin, has traveled across the United States with his TV series, “Big Kenny’s Crank It Up Garage.”

The series sets out to feature the most outrageous, incredible and mind-blowing custom creations in America. It has featured custom cars, motorcycles, boats, planes and other interesting modes of transportation.

Fueled by an authentic fascination with custom creations, Big Kenny alongside wingman and producer Charlie Pennachio scope out and travel to meet the builders of various one-of-a-kind special projects.

“If it rides, glides, floats or flies it’s ‘Big Kenny’s Crank It Up Garage,’” he says. “After our trip to New Mexico, I’ll have to add crawl to the list.”

The reality TV series made a stop in La Luz to record an episode featuring Skip Scott and Chiquita Racing. The episode will air at 8:30 p.m. Thursday, July 13, on Circle Network. It is available in Gray Television markets, on the Circle Now App on mobile and TV devices, as well as on DISH, Sling TV, Frndly TV, and FuboTV. Circle also offers free ad-supported streaming distribution via Tubi, Samsung TV Plus, Peacock, The Roku Channel, Redbox, XUMO, and VIZIO SmartCast.

Scott is a New Mexico-based builder who developed a one-of-a-kind rock crawling vehicle in La Luz.

“(My time in New Mexico) was a blast,” Big Kenny says. “Not only is the terrain different out there. I love being able to travel the country. Getting to La Luz, I was able to look out, see the big blue sky and take in the view for miles.”

Pennachio brings the ideas and introduces Big Kenny to these unique people.

The show offers a range of entertainment where Big Kenny meets with inspirational people in unique places to highlight their personal stories of how these incredible custom builds came to life.

“Skip Scott is a super fun guy,” he says. “We were filming for one day and he had all of his crew and a bunch of big time fans.”

Big Kenny says Scott is a national winner in rock crawling.

Rock crawling is an extreme form of off-road driving using specialized vehicles to overcome obstacles. In rock crawling, drivers typically drive highly modified four-wheel-drive vehicles such as trucks, Jeeps and “buggies” over very harsh terrain. Driving locations include boulders, mountain foothills, rock piles and mountain trails.

“When I first heard of the sport, I thought it was insane,” Big Kenny says. “Then I took the opportunity to meet this world-class rock crawler. Skip took us out on some great terrain near the foothills of the Sacramento Mountains.”

In the episode, Big Kenny talks to Scott and gets the story of the the creation, how he developed it and his favorite memories with it.

They then take it for a spin around the New Mexico desert and drive around the Sacramento Mountains.

“What’s interesting is how Skip named his company,” Big Kenny says.

“My racing team is Chiquita Racing, and that was the dog’s name. Chiquita,” Scott says.

Scott says he always wanted to rock crawl and took the steps to create the vehicle to do it.

On the day of filming, Big Kenny says there were about a dozen rock crawlers — which was different for filming an episode.

“We usually don’t have an audience,” Big Kenny says. “What Skip, his team and fans brought for us was a complete experience. I got to drive one of the rock crawlers and there’s a look on my face after driving it that could easily be read as, ‘I survived.’ That’s the beauty of this show. I get to have fun while spotlighting someone who is doing extraordinary things.”