Scoot, I understand your question completely. The reason we don't extend our skids even with the "crown" of the body is we're mainly trying to protect the rocker panel and pinch weld seam below the doors. This idea has been lost though many discussions on this and other boards. You can't put it out far enough to protect in all situations. Our skids are designed to accept the entire weight of the vehicle when sitting on a rock or log. To extend away from the frame more would put added leverage on a frame rail that has already been proven marginal for this kind of mod. It would also expose the pinch weld seam to rock damage. I don't mean to be critical, but the X shown in the photo is not on the correct line. It should be going over the top of the rock, which is where it would contact the slider until it hit the rear tire, then go up on the rock or slide off and around. If you'd like to call, I can explain more. Sorry for being long winded. -Steve.