Ken Block's tricked and treaded Ford F-150 Raptor

Ken Block has already shown us the snow-traversing ability of tank-style tracks with his old Subaru WRX rally car, but the now Ford-aligned internet sensation has combined the military-bred treads with the coolest and most off-road ready pickup in Ford’s US lineup, the F-150 Raptor.

Called the RaptorTRAX, the new ute is set to star in an upcoming snow-based Ken Block video and is being billed as “the ultimate backcountry snowboard expedition vehicle” and “the world's fastest snowcat for backcountry snowboarding.”

Aside from the Mattracks treads replacing the Raptor’s all-terrain tyres, the RaptorTRAX has scored a bevy of expedition gear from aftermarket firm Special Vehicle Concepts, including snowboard racks, a roof basket, a rear-mounted winch, exterior audio system, Rigid Industries LED lighting, plus a driver-appropriate pseudo camouflage paintjob. The Raptor’s 6.2-litre V8 has also been supercharged, and a full roll cage and Recaro seating add performance cred to the build.

The move from Block’s regular Ford Fiesta gymkhana machine to an apple-pie pickup is likely to broaden his appeal right across heartland USA, and almost guaranteed to tickle our snow-driving fantasies too.

"This project is something I've had in my head for a while now," Block says. "I absolutely love my daily driver Ford Raptor, especially since I live out here in the mountains of Park City [Utah], so to build out this mountain assault vehicle with a Raptor as the base platform made total sense to me. It's an absolute beast of a machine and I'm stoked with how it's turned out. Next up is for me to take it deep into the backcountry ASAP to help me and some friends slay some powder on our snowboards.”

You’ll have to hold your horsepower to see it in action though, as the Ken Block RaptorTRAX video isn’t set to appear for around 12 months, during the next Northern Hemisphere winter. In the meantime, the tricked truck will make its (static) public debut at the Winter X Games in Aspen, Colorado later this week.