About Monster Trucks
A monster truck is a truck with enormous, tractor-sized tires, jacked-up suspension and a powerful engine. Monster trucks are used for entertainment at indoor and outdoor stadiums, where the trucks compete for the fastest run over a harrowing obstacle course or to smash cars. The roar of a monster truck event is deafening, due to the extremely large engines being revved up to race other trucks or to drive over and flatten rows of cars. These events attract 7 million spectators each year, according to MonsterJamOnline, and for various reasons can be dangerous and even deadly for drivers and spectators alike.
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History
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In 1974, truck enthusiast Bob Chandler put the first monster truck together. He had a Ford F250 pickup, with raised suspension and huge tires, which he named Big Foot. At an exhibition in 1982, Big Foot smashed two cars at an exhibition in Pontiac, Michigan. Bear Foot, owned by Fred Shafer, soon followed by challenging Big Foot at exhibitions and later won three world championships. The car-smashing exhibitions continued throughout the early 1980s at fairs and motorcar events, until the "Battle of the Monster Trucks," which involved races. This was later sanctioned by the U.S. Hot Rod Association, and monster truck racing and was off and running. Today, it remains a popular spectator event.
Features
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Monster trucks can reach speeds of 100 mph and are built for short bursts of speed. They can jump distances of around 120 feet and up to 20 feet in the air, despite the fact that they can weigh as much as 6 tons and are 10 to 12 feet tall. The truck bodies are continuous forms of plexiglass, with no doors. The drivers usually enter through a side window. The driver and the steering wheel are centered in the middle of the car seat.
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Monster Truck Shows
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According to Gravedigger.com, around 300 monster trucks are in use today competing in 50 or so cities around the country. The most well-known among them appear on the United States Hot Rod Association's (USHRA) Monster Jam Circuit, often using duplicate trucks at different sites. The shows may involve crushing long rows of cars and racing events with other monster trucks.
Famous Monster Trucks
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Big Foot may have been the first monster truck, but "Grave Digger" is the most popular. The owner, Dennis Anderson, made the original truck from old parts in 1981, and it is known today for being a great racing truck. Today's version of the Grave Digger has a 1500hp, 540 cubic inch Chevrolet "Big Block" engine, the same amount of power in a race car engine. Grave Digger makes many appearances promoting monster trucks and travels to around 70 cities each year.
Monster Jam
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Monster trucks are the headliners at USHRA-sanctioned Monster Jams, operated by Feld Entertainment. The shows are live productions and are televised. The shows feature the famous "Gravedigger," "Blue Thunder," "Bulldozer," "Maximum Destruction" and more. Monster Jams may have as many as 10 events in one weekend in different areas. The season ends with the Monster Jam World Series each March in Las Vegas.
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Resources
- Photo Credit Jot Powers
