A monster truck is a specialized off-road vehicle with a heavy duty suspension, four-wheel steering, large-displacement V8 engines and oversized tires constructed for competition and entertainment uses. Originally created by modifying stock pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles (SUVs), they have evolved into purpose-built vehicles with tube-frame chassis and fiberglass bodies rather than metal. A competition monster truck is typically 12 feet (3.7m) tall, and equipped with 66-inch (1.7m) off-road tires.
Monster trucks developed in the late 1970s and came into the public eye in the early 1980s as side acts at popular motocross, tractor pulling, and mud bogging events, where they were used in car-crushing demonstrations. Today they are usually the main attraction with motocross, mud bogging, ATV racing, or demolition derbies as supporting events.
Events
A typical track for arena monster truck shows from 2000-2014. The cars have ramps on one side for racing and are left bare on the other side for freestyle. The jumps around the perimeter are for ATV races.
Monster truck shows typically have two main segments; a race and a freestyle stunt driving competition, with an intermission at the midway point of the event.
Races are conducted as a single-elimination tournament on short, symmetrical tracks, which may include obstacles such as junk cars or dirt mounds. The length and complexity of the track can vary with the size of the venue, with courses in indoor arenas typically being shorter with fewer obstacles. This has drawn comparisons to professional drag racing, and depending on the promoter or size of the event, may even make use of a christmas tree starting procedure.
In freestyle events, each driver puts on a performance consisting of stunts such as obstacle jumps, backflips, wheelies, and doughnuts. A panel of judges assign points to each performance and the driver with the most points is declared the winner, though the exact scoring format can change from promoter to promoter.
Historically, additional vehicles for the drivers to crush, such as motor homes and school buses, were placed on the track specifically for the freestyle event, however incidents of debris flying into the stands and causing serious injuries have influenced most event promoters to turn away from such obstacles. Most freestyle courses now consist mostly of large mounds and ramps erected to allow the trucks to perform large jumps and wheelies upon landing. Freestyle performances have a set time limit and only one truck is allowed on the track at a time as a safety measure. Freestyle events are typically the final competition of a show, as damage to the trucks would make them unable to race.
In the late 1970s, heavily modified pickup trucks were becoming popular and the sports of mud bogging and truck pulling were gaining in popularity. Several truck owners had created lifted trucks to compete in such events, and soon competition to hold the title of "biggest truck" developed. The trucks which garnered the most national attention were Bob Chandler's Bigfoot, Everett Jasmer's USA-1, Fred Shafer and Jack Willman Sr.'s Bear Foot, and Jeff Dane's King Kong. At the time, the largest tires the trucks were running were 48 inches (1.2m) in diameter.
In April 1981, Bob Chandler drove over junked cars in Bigfoot in what is often believed to be the first monster truck to crush cars. Chandler drove Bigfoot over a pair of cars in a field as a test of the truck's ability, and filmed it to use as a promotional tool in his four-wheel drive performance shop. An event promoter saw the video of the car crush and asked Chandler to do it in front of a crowd. Initially hesitant because of the "destructive" image that could be associated with Bigfoot, Chandler eventually agreed. After some smaller shows, Chandler performed the feat in the Pontiac Silverdome in 1982. At this show, Chandler also debuted a new version of Bigfoot with 66-inch (170cm) tires. At a prior event in the early 1980s, when Bigfoot was still running 48-inch (120cm) tires, Bob George, one of the owners of a motorsport promotion company named Truck-a-rama – later known as the United States Hot Rod Association (USHRA) – is said to have coined the phrase "monster truck" when referring to Bigfoot. The term "monster truck" became the generic name for all trucks with oversized tires.
King Kong and Bear Foot each followed Bigfoot to 66-inch-diameter (1.7m) tires, and soon other monster trucks, such as King Krunch, Maddog, and Virginia Giant were being constructed. These early trucks were built on stock chassis which were heavily reinforced, used leaf spring suspension, a stock body, and heavy axles from military-specification vehicles to support the tires.
For most of the early 1980s, monster trucks performed primarily exhibitions as a side show to truck pulling or mud bogging events. In August 1983, Bigfoot and USA-1 competed in the first side-by-side monster truck race, which was filmed for the television show That's Incredible. By 1985 major promoters, such as the USHRA and TNT Motorsports, were racing monster trucks regularly. In 1988, TNT Motorsports created a series to establish the first national championship of monster truck racing; USA-1 and rookie driver Rod Litzau edged out Bigfoot, driven by Rich Hoosier, for the title.
In 1988, to standardize rules for truck construction and safety, Bob Chandler, Braden, and George Carpenter formed the Monster Truck Racing Association (MTRA). The MTRA created standard safety rules to govern monster trucks. The organization still plays a major role in the sport's development in the US and EU.
With racing taking precedence, several teams began to think in new ways as to how the trucks could be built. Towards the end of 1988, Gary Cook and David Morris debuted Equalizer, a truck with a combination of coil springs and shock absorbers as the main source of suspension rather than the standard of leaf springs and shock absorbers. In 1989, Jack Willman Sr., now with his own truck, Taurus, debuted a new truck which used a solid axle suspension system made of parallel four-link suspensions and coilovers that together weighed in at close to 9,000 pounds (4,100kg). However, the biggest innovation came from Chandler, also in 1989, when the CAD-designed Bigfoot #8 debuted featuring a full tubular chassis and a long-travel suspension system made of triangulated four-link suspensions, bump stops, limit straps, cantilevers, and shock absorbers charged with nitrogen gas. The truck revolutionized how monster trucks were built, and within a few years most top-level teams built similar vehicles.
In 1991, TNT was purchased by the USHRA and their points series were merged. The Special Events championship began to grow in popularity with teams as it had open qualifying spots which the invite-only USHRA championship did not have. The Special Events series lost its Pendaliner sponsorship in 1997. The short-lived ProMT series started in 2000.
Even though racing was dominant as a competition, USHRA events began having freestyle exhibitions as early as 1993. These exhibitions were developed as drivers, notably Dennis Anderson of the extremely popular Grave Digger, began asking for time to come out and perform if they lost in early rounds of racing. Promoters began to notice the popularity of freestyle among fans, and in 2000 the USHRA began holding freestyle as a judged competition at events, and now awards a freestyle championship.
Promoters
The USHRA's Monster Jam series, now owned by Feld Entertainment, is currently the largest, touring through the United States, Canada and select regions of Europe. Other promoters of monster truck events include the Toughest Monster Truck Tour, the Monster X Tour, and Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live.
Truck construction
This image of Grave Digger, minus much of its body work, reveals how far removed monster truck designs are from the traditional trucks they somewhat resemble.
The first monster trucks built were pickup trucks and SUVs that were modified with larger suspension and larger tires. Today, trucks now have custom built tubular chassis, with four-link suspension to provide up to four feet (1.2m) of clearance, and they also now have fiberglass bodies that attach to the chassis separately and are designed to be easily removed and easily replaced when damaged. The use of fiberglass panel bodies has allowed monster truck owners to develop a wide variety of thematic concept trucks that scarcely resemble the modified stock trucks that became early monster trucks.
Engines are now typically mounted behind the driver on most trucks and are typically supercharged, run on a methanol-based fuel, and have displacement of up to 575 cubic inches (9.42L). Axles are mostly taken from either heavy-duty military trucks or road vehicles such as school buses, and are modified to have a planetary gear reduction at the hub to help turn the tires. All trucks have hydraulic steering in both the front and the rear (four wheel steering), with the front wheels controlled by the steering wheel and the rear wheels by a toggle switch.
The tires are typically "terra" tires used on farm equipment, and are of size 66-inch (170cm) in diameter, 43-inch (110cm) in width, and fit on 25-inch (64cm) diameter rims.
Most trucks use a modified or custom-designed automatic transmission, such as a Turbo 400, Powerglide, Ford C6 transmission, or a TorqueFlite 727. A limited number of trucks utilize a Lenco transmission, which traces its roots to drag racing. Most of the automatic transmissions are heavily modified with transbrakes, manual valve bodies, and heavy duty gear sets. Trucks running a Lenco use a centrifugal clutch as opposed to a torque converter, which are used in automatic transmissions. Lenco transmissions are usually found in two-speed or three speed configurations, and are commonly shifted using compressed carbon dioxide.
The trucks have many safety features, several of which are required just to run in the indoor arenas that the trucks frequent. Trucks are equipped with three shut-off switches: a remote ignition interrupt (RII), which allows event stewards to stop a truck remotely, a switch within the driver's reach in the cab, and another at the rear of the truck so that all electrical power may be shut off in the event of a rollover.
Many trucks are constructed with the driver sitting in the center of the cab for visibility. Most cabs are shielded with Lexan or comparable polycarbonate, which not only protects the driver from track debris, but also allows for increased visibility. Drivers are required to wear firesuits, safety harnesses, helmets, and head and neck restraints. Most moving parts on the truck are also shielded, and high pressure components have restraining straps, both in case of an explosion.
Below is a list of accidents resulting in fatalities.
On January 16, 2009, at a Monster Jam event in Tacoma, Washington 6-year-old Sebastian Hizey was fatally injured when he was struck by flying debris from the truck Natural High. Hizey succumbed to his injuries the next morning.[1]
On January 25, 2009, the monster truck Samson was involved in an accident in Madison, Wisconsin that caused the death of announcer George Eisenhart, Jr. after he accidentally stepped in front of Samson while it was moving.[2]
On October 6, 2013, the monster truck Big Show plowed into a crowd of spectators in Chihuahua City, Mexico, killing 8 people and injuring 79 others in the Chihuahua monster truck accident. This is the deadliest monster truck incident in the history of the sport.
On September 29, 2014, a monster truck named Eurol's King On Wheels plowed into a crowd of spectators in Haaksbergen, Netherlands, killing three people.
Guinness World Records
The world's biggest monster truck is Bigfoot 5, built in 1986, with tires that measure 10 feet (3.0m).[3]
The world's longest monster truck is the Sin City Hustler, which measures 32 feet (9.8m) long and was created by Brad and Jen Campbell in 2014.[4]
The fastest speed record for a monster truck was achieved on August 6, 2022, by Joe Sylvester in Bad Habit at a speed of 101.84 miles per hour (163.90km/h).
The longest ramp jump done by a monster truck was achieved in 2013 by Joey Sylvester in Bad Habit at a distance of 237.7 feet (72.5m).[citation needed]
The first monster truck backflip in a scored competition was achieved in 2010 by Cam McQueen in Nitro Circus.[citation needed]
The first monster truck front flip in a scored competition was achieved in 2017 by Lee O'Donnell in VP Racing Fuels' Mad Scientist at Monster Jam World Finals 18.[5]
In June 2020, with touring suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Monster Jam staged an event for pay-per-view called Monster Jam Breaking World Records in Bradenton, Florida. As part of the event, many new Guinness-recognized world records were set. These include the highest ramp jump by a monster truck by Krysten Anderson in Grave Digger at a height of 10.3 metres (34ft),[6] the most monster trucks jumped by a monster truck, by Adam Anderson in Megalodon, jumping over 8 trucks,[7] the most donuts (spins) in a monster truck in one minute by Bari Musawwir in Zombie, spinning 44 times, the most consecutive donuts (spins), also by Musawwir, with 58,[8] the longest stoppie (nose wheelie) by Tom Meents in Max-D, at 63.77 metres (209.2ft),[9] the farthest bicycle (side wheelie) by Ryan Anderson in Son Uva Digger, at 271.83 metres (891.8ft),[10] and the longest monster truck wheelie was by Adam Anderson in Grave Digger, at 190.46 m (624 ft 10.44 in). [11]
See also
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Bigfoot is a monster truck. The original Bigfoot began as a 1974 Ford F-250 pickup that was modified by its owner Bob Chandler beginning in 1975. By 1979, the modifications were so extensive, the truck came to be regarded as the first monster truck. Other trucks with the name "Bigfoot" have been introduced in the years since, and it remains a well-known monster truck moniker in the United States.
The United States Hot Rod Association (USHRA) was an organization that sanctioned various motorsports. These included the Monster Jam monster truck series as well as motocross, quad racing and others. Having passed through multiple owners, the rights to the group are now owned by Feld Entertainment, which continues to operate the Monster Jam series.
Grave Digger is a monster truck racing team in the Feld Entertainment Monster Jam series founded by original driver Dennis Anderson. Considered one of the most famous and recognized monster trucks of all time, Grave Digger serves as the flagship team of the Monster Jam series, with seven active Grave Digger trucks being driven by different drivers to allow a truck to appear at every Monster Jam event.
2Xtreme Racing is a monster truck owns a National Touring show called the 2 X Monster Truck Live Tour, executing and performing at over 45 shows per year. Trucks include Bounty Hunter, Scarlet Bandit and five finger death punch inspired Knuckle Head, Hot Tamale, and newcomer Brutal, all of which compete at the various events on the annual schedule. The team is owned by Jimmy Creten, the two time Monster Jam World Champion and includes Creten, his wife Dawn Creten, who is the longest running female driver in the monster truck industry, Michael Brister, and Rob Poutre and more. Each truck features a different theme, with the headliners featuring an old west theme with a character based on the truck's name. All three vehicles have competed in the Monster Jam World Finals, and Bounty Hunter was the 2005 World Finals Freestyle Champion and the 2019 World Finals Racing Champion. Jimmy Creten and Trent Montgomery currently drive the two Bounty Hunter trucks, Dawn Creten drives the Scarlet Bandit truck, and Todd Morey drives Iron Outlaw.
Monster Jam is a live motorsport event tour operated by Feld Entertainment. The series began in 1992, and is sanctioned under the umbrella of the United States Hot Rod Association. Events are primarily held in North America, with some additional events in other countries. Although individual event formats can vary greatly based on the "intermission" entertainment, the main attraction is always the racing, two-wheel skills competition, and freestyle competitions by monster trucks.
Maximum Destruction, also known as Max-D, was a monster truck team owned by Feld Entertainment and operated by Tom Meents that ran as part of the Monster Jam circuit from 2000 through 2024.
Blue Thunder is a monster truck that races in the USHRA Monster Jam series. It was originally sponsored by the truck division of Ford Motor Company and Live Nation. The truck has several similarities with the monster truck Bigfoot. Some fans saw Blue Thunder as a replacement for Bigfoot in the Monster Jam series. The truck has been moderately successful and won several major events during its existence. However, it has not yet won a championship. Blue Thunder was used by Ford Motor Company for promotional purposes along with competition. The truck is currently driven by Todd LeDuc. The truck did not compete in 2012 when Todd LeDuc moved to Metal Mulisha after driving Blue Thunder in 2011, but as of 2022, he began driving Blue Thunder again due to the Monster Energy truck not operating anymore. With Ford dropping its sponsorship in 2012, the truck was redesigned and brought back in 2013 with veteran driver Dan Evans; former owner/driver of the Destroyer monster truck.
John Michael Seasock is a retired professional monster truck driver. He competed on the USHRA circuit with his truck, Batman, where it was the 2007 and 2008 Monster Jam World Racing Champion. He last drove Grinder sponsored by Advance Auto Parts.
Thomas William Meents is an American former professional monster truck driver. He drove Max-D in Monster Jam. He has won 14 Monster Jam World Finals championships during his career. Tom is often referred to as the professor, and the GOAT of monster trucks.
Dennis Montague Anderson is an American former professional monster truck driver. He is the creator, team owner, and former driver of "Grave Digger" on the USHRA Monster Jam circuit. Anderson is from Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, where he currently resides.
Predator Racing, Inc. is a monster truck team consisting of the trucks Predator, Prowler, Pouncer and Lone Eagle all of which currently compete primarily on the USHRA Monster Jam circuit. The team is owned by Allen Pezo, and includes Pezo, Larry Jaruzel, Lenny Kuilder and Dale Mitchell as drivers. The trucks are famous for their "cat" designs, with the trucks modeled after a panther, tiger, and leopard, respectively. The team also occasionally runs a conventional Dodge Ram by the name of Lone Eagle.
Raminator, Rammunition and Hotsy are monster trucks that race on the Monster Jam, Monster Nationals and ProMT tours. They are currently driven by Mark Hall and Kurt Kraehmer. The team is sponsored by Ram Trucks. Until recently, the team was, along with Team Bigfoot, one of the most high-profile teams to not run in Monster Jam, although since 2017, they have competed in several Monster Jam tours.
Gary Porter is an American former monster-truck driver that races on the United States Hot Rod Association circuit. He is a former member of the Grave Digger team but returned to his Carolina Crusher truck in 2015. In July 2017, Gary Porter retired from monster truck driving after spending 32 years in the sport. In 2013 he was inducted in the international monster truck hall of fame. He was inducted again in 2021 in the Monster Jam Hall Of Fame.
Black Stallion is a monster truck that races on the USHRA circuit and for other promoters. Black Stallion started out as a stock 1982 Ford F350 back in 1982, owned and modified by Michael Vaters. The first modification was a homemade 12" lift kit, since such kits were unavailable at the time. Mike then later added two sunroofs, an Alpine stereo system, a Ford 460 Engine, Rockwell 5 ton toploaders, Clark 20 ton planetaries, 66" terra tires, a 9" television and later on, a 1988 Ford F series front end. Between 1990 and 1991, Mike realized the future of monster trucks, which was racing. To be competitive, Mike replaced the leaf springs with airbags, the old heavy split ring rims with lightweight one piece rims, fiberglass body pieces, cutting the tires, gutting the interior out, 4 linking the truck and putting in a bigger engine. The modifications proved to be beneficial to Mike, with close races with First Blood, and competing in some Pendaliner Special Events racing events. After a violent rollover in Bloomsburg Pennsylvania in 1991, Mike decided to put King shocks on the truck, which he later added coil springs in 1992. Along with the coil springs, Mike also removed the airbags. Mike is credited as the first owner to use bypass shocks. Also for 1992, Mike changed the front clip to a 1992 Ford F-series front end. Mike rarely ran this truck after he built the popular Boogey Van in 1993, driven by his then wife, Pam Vaters. Due to this, the truck was nicknamed Rodney, after the comedian, Rodney Dangerfield. Mike then built a truck for the 1996 season for research and development, named Black Stallion 2000, since his crew members joked about Mike not building a new truck for himself until the new millennium. This chassis is still running strong to this day. For his 20th anniversary, Mike decided to repaint Black stallion, with the front of the truck yellow, going into black with a horse face painted on. The truck currently has the same paint scheme. The drivers for 2016 are Michael Vaters & Matt Cody. Vaters will compete in the Fox Sports 1 Championship Series. Cody will travel to Birmingham, Toronto, Newark, Charleston, Columbia, Worcester, Wheeling & Baton Rouge.
Mud bogging is a form of off-road motorsport popular in the United States and Canada in which the goal is to drive a vehicle through a pit of mud or a track of a set length. Winners are determined by the distance traveled through the pit. However, if several vehicles are able to travel the entire length, the time taken to traverse the pit will determine the winner. Typically, vehicles competing in mud bogs are four-wheel drive. The motor sport is overseen by sanctioning bodies like the American Mud Racers Association, and the National Mud Racing Organization (NMRO), that oversee each class, develop and maintain the relationship with track owners to provide a racer and fan-friendly facility, ensure the sponsors get a good return, and help govern the sport.
TNT Motorsports was a popular promoter of monster truck races, tractor pulls, and occasionally mud racing in the 1980s. TNT was an acronym for “Trucks n Tractors” founded by the late Billy Joe Miles of Owensboro, Kentucky. Events were shown on Powertrax on ESPN, Trucks and Tractor Power on TNN, and the syndicated Tuff Trax. In 1988, TNT produced 77 shows that it estimated drew 1 million fans. In 1989, the company had $12 million in revenue.
A wheelie, or wheelstand, is a vehicle maneuver in vehicle acrobatics in which the front wheel or wheels come off the ground due to sufficient torque being applied to the rear wheel or wheels, or rider motion relative to the vehicle. Wheelies are usually associated with bicycles and motorcycles, but can be done with other vehicles such as cars, especially in drag racing and tractor pulling.
A mini monster truck is a four-wheeled vehicle built on a tubular chassis. It has four wheel steering and four wheel drive. A mini monster truck is styled after and resembling an actual monster truck and built on a smaller scale than a standard monster truck. Mini monster trucks are typically custom-built vehicles, and are most frequently used in youth sports entertainment with child drivers. Mini monster trucks typically have the same features as standard monster trucks, usually to half-size or one-third scale. The mini monster truck is not a modified truck, but it is designed and built from the ground up just like a full-sized monster truck. Special features are built in to allow for an adult to move it around when the child drivers are not available.
The International Monster Truck Hall of Fame, based in Auburn, Indiana, is a shrine to the best drivers in history of monster truck competition. The hall is part of the Kruse Automotive and Carriage Museum.
Ryan Anderson is an American professional monster truck driver. He currently drives Son-Uva Digger on the Monster Jam circuit. A second-generation monster truck driver, Ryan is the son of Grave Digger creator Dennis Anderson and the younger brother of fellow driver Adam, and the older brother of Krysten and Weston Anderson. He is a four-time Monster Jam World Champion. Ryan currently resides in his hometown of Poplar Branch, North Carolina.
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