Our drive to Kingman AZ, on the way down to Parker, was uneventful, as it was all night driving.  We stayed at a Quality Inn where there is a special going on, if you stay two nights, you get a night free.  With all the traveling we do, that is the kind of deal we are looking for!!  I walked out of the room the next morning to some very beautiful scenery.  While Lynn was getting ready for the day, Pete our dachshund, or "wiener dog” if you prefer, and I took a hike up a small mountain and took some pictures.
 

Driving west on I-40, the surrounding area is all Desert, but very beautiful with lots of wide open spaces.  After having the morning coffee, I had to make a stop at a rest area.  Once again, there is some awesome scenery, so I must take a few pictures.  Pete is always happy to stop; he just loves to sniff around.
 

On the way to Parker, you must go through Havasu City.  Havasu City is the home of London Bridge.  I was hoping to stop here, after asking directions I learned that it was spring break and very crowded.  We could see part of the bridge as we were on our way out of town, but not nearly enough to satisfy my curiosity.

Arriving in Parker, we were hungry and stopped at the Blue Water Resort and Casino for their very reasonable buffet.  This is a very nice place, not only to eat, but a very nice Hotel, also very reasonable.  Some pictures below of the area.
 

We are early, but I gave John Borba, owner of WGAS Motorsports, a call anyway.  I was very much looking forward to meeting John, as he is one of the Monster Blog's sponsors.  Following John’s very precise directions, we found the event location easily.

The first thing we saw was the hauler for the Maniac and Jurassic Attack monster trucks.  I parked near the hauler and the first person I met was Nathan Weenk, driver of Jurassic Attack and a very friendly and informative young man.  Nathan introduced us to Don Frankish, driver of Maniac and owner of both trucks. 

From talking to Don, we learned that Nathan was the third Weenk brother to drive Jurassic Attack, and there is an article about Nathan and other “YOUNG GUNS” in the 2006 USHRA Official Souvenir Yearbook.  I was also very happy to hear that Don Frankish was an avid reader of the Monster Blog web site.  The reason I knew this was when I handed Don Ross’s business card and introduced myself as Ross’s father, Don stated “I think you do more work on that site than Ross does!!”  I loved hearing that and it really made me laugh, as it gave me something to give Ross a hard time about later!!
 

Don and Nathan pointed out the location of John Borba, so Lynn and I headed that direction.  On our way across the field of sand we stopped at a couple campers and introduced ourselves.  A couple of the Quad drivers had camped out for the weekend events, and were very friendly folks to talk with.  We finally located John Borba and were only able to talk for a few minutes as he was very busy.

John explained the show and the order in which the different competitions would take place.  John introduced us to his wife Arlene and his brother Don.  John also had a Monster Truck ride truck on hand, called the Enforcer.

John showed off some of the event equipment, including a new ramp trailer for the Freestyle Motocross events.  This works much better than building a FMX hill out of dirt.  Just pull in the trailer, it acts as the FMX dirt hill, measure off and place the ramp, and you're ready for the weekend!  John had another trailer with equipment and other needs, this trailer served as the event coordinating headquarters.  We would later find out how well everything was planned.  It was like a military maneuver, once one step was finished, he went to step two.  No wasting time, just well organized entertainment for the fans.  At this time I would like to thank John and his staff for the welcome we received and the time he took to explain everything.
 

Lynn took some video of all the equipment it takes to put on an outdoor show and I went looking for the Monster Ride Truck.  The Enforcer was driven by Jake Blackwell out of Fontana, CA.  Jake only charged $5.00 a ride, which I thought, was extremely reasonable.  With the event being held outside, Jake was able to give the fans more than their money’s worth.  He drove the monster around, went over a small hill, then at the end of the ride, actually took two wheels slowly over the crushed cars.  This really gave the fans a taste of what it might be like to be behind the wheel of a monster truck!
 

I was able to visit with Don Borba; I thought he was at the event to help his brother out.  While he was there to help, it turns out that Don is also the president of a company called 24/7.  24/7 is a fairly new engine treatment and might be a product that I may look into myself.  24/7 is one of John’s sponsors and with his brother as a sponsor, Don was also on hand to take on the announcers duties. How is that for sponsor cooperation?
 

It was almost time for the show to start and Lynn and I were trying to figure out where we wanted to be for pictures and video when I ran into Rick Ellsworth.  Rick was from Parker AZ and had come with a trailer and three quads.  Rick explained that his boys were really into it and doing quiet well.  I was happy to meet Rick as it was very nice to see some local participants at the event.
 

John had all the vehicles drive up to the front of the fairground arena; he had them in order of appearance.  I was able to get a couple of shots with Don Frankish and Nathan Weenk and another with John Borba.
 

It was finally time to get on with the show!!  Everyone from the Monster Blog hopes all who look at this enjoy the video and photos.  This first batch are from the first round of Monster Truck Freestyle, earlier in the evening.

Play The Video!!

Maniac Freestyle One

512 kbps

4.4 MB

Play The Video!!

Jurassic Attack Freestyle One

512 kbps

5.4 MB

We don't often spend a lot of time highlighting the other entertainment at Monster Truck shows, but this show definitely had its share!!  Tough Trucks, Buggies, ATV's, & Freestyle Motocross, all to go along with the awesome Monster Truck action from Maniac & Jurassic Attack.

After some of the other competitions had completed, it was time for the Monster Trucks to fire up and show off again, but due to the extreme dark and dusty conditions, I wasn't able to get any useful photos, so just enjoy the video of this portion of the show!!

Play The Videos!!

	Jurassic Attack Freestyle Two	512 kbps	4.1 MB
	Maniac Freestyle Two	512 kbps	3.0 MB

Well, that wraps up our coverage from Parker, AZ, hope you all enjoyed it!!  You can find out more about upcoming events for WGAS Motorsports, not only on the Monster Blog, but also on their website, www.wgasmotorsports.com!!  Once again, we would like to thank John Borba for allowing us to cover the event and we're looking forward to seeing another WGAS event in Phoenix on the 21st and 22nd of April!!  Also, thanks to Don Frankish & Nathan Weenk, it was great meeting them, and we look forward to seeing them in Phoenix as well!!  Until next time, thanks for reading, and be sure to stop by the Fan Forum to let us know what you thought!!

- Lauren & Lynette Bonar

BACK TO COVERAGES PAGE!!