One fine day, we decided to have fun with our Swamp Runner van.
In the Matchbox Wiki, it simply states that the Swamp Runner van is a 4×4 Chevy Van. It came from the Matchbox Monsters series and a bright green swamp monster came with the package. We have since lost the monster soon after opening the blister pack but the van lived on.
We brought the van on an outing at the Eco Green park for a photo shoot and we were lucky to come upon a small stream with rocks and running water. My son and I looked at each other and exchanged a mischievous smile.
The Swamp Runner van in itself a very nice casting. The body lends itself as your typical slab-sided van with a short snout. Very squarish, very American. It sat on a raised chassis to emphasize its 4×4 nature with off-road styled tires. Being a standard MBX, the tires were made of plastic, but they looked the part of a mud-running 4×4 wheel. The van came with a yellow colored interior and yellow tinted windows, complete with sunroof both fore and aft. The paint job is where the van hangs its hat though. The matte black makes this a mean-looking slab of a van and yet blends in nicely with the yellow windows. On its side is a painting of a net and some scratches on the door trying to make it look like a monster left slash marks on it. On its slab sides are the markings “Swamp Runner” and several pieces of text with one saying “No catch and release” and “Danger – Explosives on board”. These are simple but fun touches that give this van character. And this is also the reason why my son and I brought the Swamp Runner out to play.
I hope the following photos play with your imagination as we had fun doing this shoot.
Along for the ride on this shoot was a Hot Wheels McDonald’s Happy Meal toy. A blue 4×4 monster truck emblazoned with pimp-my-ride stickers. It is a so-so car, but the wheels do have a nice play to them making them nicely articulated to sort-of climb around rocks. If it did not look like a toy, it would actually be a decent collectible car. It still joined the photoshoot nonetheless and it survived!
Toy Box Garage 