- New Rock Star Chassis Build Underway!!
- Thompson Speedway Monster Thrash Fest This Saturday!!
6/29/10
- Extreme Monster Trucks Australia Unveils The
Freak Show!!
- Sneak Peek at New Ballistic Paint Scheme!!
6/28/10
- Monster Spectacular Tour Update - Ottawa!!
6/23/10
- TMB TV Episode 3.6 - Springdale, AR
Monster X Tour!!
6/20/10
- Pontiac Silverdome "Domination in the Dome"
Photos!!
- Pouncer Freestyle Exhibition Video Coverage!!
- Introducing the Raging Inferno Jet Fire Truck!!
6/18/10
- Monster Spectacular Tour Update - British
Columbia!!
6/16/10
- TMB TV Episode 3.5 - Miami, OK O'Reilly
Outlaw Nationals!!
6/14/10
- Eldora Speedway Prelude to the Dream Photo
Gallery!!
- Springdale, AR Monster X Tour Recap
& Teaser Photos!!
6/04/10
- Hall Brothers Monster Truck Bodies For
Sale!!
6/02/10
- TMB TV Episode 3.3 - Springfield, MO 4 Wheel
Jamboree Nationals!!
New Rock Star Chassis Build Underway!!:The Straight Up Racing team has begun work on an all-new
chassis for Bill Payne's Rock Star!! The new truck is being built
completely in house with custom made parts and will sport a brand new
Chevrolet Colorado body style. The team has made an incredible amount of
progress on the new ride in just five short days of work and Bill Payne
has been kind enough to share some pictures of the progress made thus far.
Check out the photos and be sure to stay tuned to
www.StraightUpRacing.com for more updates!! (06/30/10)
Thompson Speedway Monster Thrash Fest This
Saturday!!: (Hagerstown, MD) This Saturday night, July 3rd at 7PM,
Monster Energy Drink, Lowe's Home Improvement Center and Price Chopper
Grocery Stores present the Monster Thrash Fest at Thompson Speedway!!
The monsters and more are coming to Thompson, Connecticut featuring an
unbelievable eight truck lineup including Monster Jam competitors King
Krunch, Black Stallion, El Matador, Crushstation, Iron Warrior, Killer
Bee, Storm Damage and the Illuminator.
Thompson’s Monster Thrash Fest is bringing
together some of the nation’s most famous monster trucks in an all-out
battle for supremacy. The monsters will compete in elimination round
racing, wheelie and the crowd favorite annihilation freestyle to determine
the champion of the night.
The extremely popular FMX riders will also be on hand
to perform thrilling motorcycle acrobatics in mid air while jumping 60
foot gaps steel ramp to ramp. Fans will be amazed to witness first hand
such spectacular moves as the Heart Attack, Kiss of Death and…..yes even a
back flip! These riders have performed all over North America before
packed houses and awestruck fans.
If this doesn’t cure your need for speed, power and
destruction for the first time ever at Thompson Int’l Speedway the Jet
4-Wheelers will perform. Kamikaze and Psycho the jet powered 4-wheelers
will demonstrate their raw power as they perform simultaneously. The jets
thrust engines shoot out 25 foot flames as they exhibit speed runs, burner
pops and back up to a junk car and incinerate it to the ground. The
evening of thrills and destruction will wind up with a salute to the USA
with a Fireworks Extravaganza.
Gates open at 5:00PM and fans will have the opportunity
to get up close and personal with the drivers and their trucks during the
Monster Thrash Pit Party starting at 5:15PM and lasting until 6:30PM. You
can have your picture taken with the drivers and their trucks and get
autographs.
Tickets will be available at the gate, $20 for adults,
$10 for kids age 6-14, while kids 5 and under are FREE. More information
is available at
www.ThompsonSpeedway.com!!
(06/30/10)
Extreme Monster Trucks Australia Unveils
The Freak Show!!:Extreme Monster Trucks Australia has unveiled their brand new
monster truck, the Freak Show!! This is Australia's first truck
purpose built to perform backflips, rollover and other gimmick acts. The
truck has been built by Kreg Christensen and the EMTA crew and will make
its debut at the upcoming Cairns Speedway event this weekend in
Queensland.
The truck features a body mounted in reverse in a
similar style to that of the U.S. truck Backwards Bob and is outfitted
with t-shirt launches, 12 multiple pyro cues, a colored smoke canister and
flame effects. It also features a domed roof roll cage to help the truck
roll back onto its wheels, along with lockers in the front and rear for
intense cyclones. The truck's concept and to be completed paint scheme is
targeted towards the ages 5 to 10 market in Australia and plans are to
also have a minature version of the truck that leads it out and performs
rollovers as well.
The photos above show the completed truck and its
new body as it heads out for its debut in Cairns. The paint scheme is not
yet finished, as there are plans to add much more color to the design. A
photo from testing of the new truck is also included as former Monster
Patrol driver in the U.S. David Brown put it through its paces and gave
the new ride a big thumbs up.
Kreg Christensen will be attempting to complete
Australia's first ever backflip at the Townsville Showgrounds on July 10th
and again the following weekend at the Rockhampton Showgrounds. Clive
Featherby will climb behind the wheel for his first attempt at the Lismore
Showgrounds on July 24th and then he heads to the U.S. to debut his new
machine from Patrick Enterprises in stateside competition.
A big thanks to everyone with Extreme Monster Trucks
Australia for the updates and photos, be sure to check them out at
www.MonsterTrucksAustralia.com for all the latest news and
Monsters Tour of Destruction event information!! (06/29/10)
Sneak Peak at New Ballistic Paint Scheme!!:Mac & Liz Plecker's Extreme Team is proud to announce the
return of the Ballistic monster truck this summer!! An all new
design for the truck has been completed and a brand new body wrapped by
Vinyl Images in St. Louis, Missouri. Mac and Liz were kind enough to share
a quick photo of the new body with us when they picked it up, be watching
for debut of the new scheme in the coming weeks!! For more
information on the Ballistic race truck and Extreme Team ride truck, visit
their website at
www.ExtremeTeam4x4.com!! (06/29/10)
Monster Spectacular Tour Update - Ottawa!!: (By Doug De Nance) So it had all
come down to this. Six long hard fought months with the best monster
trucks in the world… all across
Canada
from Saint John, New Brunswick to Victoria, B.C.… all competing to be the
best of the best… all wanting to be the most spectacular of Monster
Spectacular. The points had earned five trucks the chance to be the top
truck in Monster Truck Wheelie, Racing and Freestyle – maybe even the top
truck overall. Now it was the moment of truth. One night. The Night of
Champions.
The drivers were all jumpy throughout the morning and
afternoon of the Saturday night show. They acted like there was no
pressure – joking around and apparently having fun. But careful
observation revealed an inordinate amount of attention by the drivers
double checking every little thing on the trucks. When they thought no one
was looking, the eyebrows would lower and the eyes would go blank as they
visualized their greatest performances. To paraphrase the great American
football coach Vince Lombardi “… at this level winning is 90% mental”.
Fans began to flood into Scotiabank Place the moment
the doors opened. They wanted to be close to the best of the best. The
drivers did their best to hide their nerves and the fans helped put them
at ease taking pictures and giving autographs on the exclusive Monster
Spectacular souvenirs.
Jim Koehler lived up to his nickname of Mr. Excitement,
revving the fans up in a pre-show interview to cheer for Avenger. Steve
Koehler took a page out of his older brother’s book and shouted out his
desire for the fans to get behind Brutus. Joe Sylvester flexed his massive
arms for the cameras and took a more low key approach to seek support for
his 2010 Cadillac truck Bad Habit. Bob Robbins was as friendly as ever,
but noted that he’d waited 12 years to win a title for Aftershock and was
short of patience to wait any longer. The one man who had trouble
expressing himself on the mic due to his struggles with English and French
(after all, it was his first time in Canada) was the Russian hired gun
driver for Krazy Train, Sergei Kurishnikoff, known as the Siberian
Express. The muscular man from Moscow had no language barrier when it came
to his skill behind the wheel and he let his driving do the talking. He
had won monster truck racing the night before in Kingston and had earned
his way straight into the finals.
Three monster truck disciplines were on the agenda, each with the Monster
Spectacular Championship going to the winner. Would there be an overall
champion if one driver could be a multiple winner?
When the Wheelie Contest was announced, it looked like
Avenger would be that truck. Mr. Excitement had the most experience at the
top levels of competition, being a former Monster Truck Freestyle Champion
of the World. Koehler had pulled the coveted last spot in the order draw
and was strapped in his truck form the moment show introductions were
over, just waiting to milk it for all it was worth.
Kurishnikoff didn’t have the same break he had in
racing, drawing first. But he stood Krazy Train perfectly vertical in a
classic 12 o’clock wheelie to start the competition. Bob Robbins did the
same thing with Aftershock to essentially tie up the first two places.
Then Bad Habit hit the cars. Sylvester took the new school wheelie
approach and launched Bad Habit into a massive sky wheelie with all four
tires off the ground. Steve Koehler knew he had to make the big dog sit up
and beg and tried to do the same thing with Brutus. But the cars slipped
slightly on his approach and he twisted off to the side, barely missing
the dasher boards as he smashed down to the ground.
Avenger eased out of the pits and drove slowly past the
fans, as Koehler waved from his center seat. He deliberately turned the
’57 Chevy in a 3 point turn to line up the cars. He paused for a moment,
allowing the big block engine to quiet to an idle, and then blasted
Avenger to the car stack. A huge straight ahead sky wheelie was the
result. But the question formed on everyone’s lips – was it bigger than
Bad Habit’s wheelie?
The drivers tried to swagger with confidence as they
made their way to the arena floor for the cheer off. When the sound meter
was calibrated, there was no doubt this was the loudest crowd of the
season. Who would they give that same level of cheering for to award a
champion? Well it wasn’t Krazy Train, or Aftershock or Brutus. But it was
impossible to decide between Bad Habit and Avenger. It had to go to a
second cheer off. The noise was deafening for both but the sound meter
told the tale. By a couple of decibels, Avenger had won the Monster
Spectacular Monster Truck Wheelie Championship for 2010.
While Jim Koehler basked in the glory of his Wheelie
win, Avenger is not known as a truck that dominates racing. As a matter of
fact, Team Scream is known more for freestyle than straight ahead drag
racing. That meant that the big man from Moscow just might have to learn
to speak something other than Russian if he had to conduct a championship
interview. Kurishnikoff was the one to beat, yet would have to go into the
finals cold with no preliminary race to warm him up.
If it seemed that Brutus was just warming up, Steve
Koehler proved he was hot from the get go. Yet after easily besting
Aftershock, the younger Koehler brother seemed almost surprised to be
facing Bad Habit in the semi-finals, as Sylvester had defeated the older
Koehler and Avenger. Once the flag dropped the big dog took a bite out of
Bad Habit and Steve Koehler had Brutus in his first championship final.
During the half time VIP party in the pits, Steve
Koehler was mobbed by fans, thinking the same thing that the Brutus driver
was thinking – is this the moment when he steps out from his brother’s
shadow and wins his own championship? After the remote ignition
interrupter was tested on the two trucks, the silence was deafening. The
younger driver in Brutus looked across at the Russian in Krazy Train, but
Kurishnikoff stared straight ahead, seemingly willing his truck to be
first across the finish line. But once the flag dropped there was no
doubt, this was Steve Koehler’s moment; Brutus had won the Monster
Spectacular Racing title.
Steve Koehler could barely contain himself during the
Championship interview, shouting his excitement to the fans. Mr.
Excitement came to the track to congratulate his younger brother and team
mate and then left the winners circle to let his former crew chief have
his moment of glory. Steve celebrated the best way he could, tossing
collector edition souvenirs to the fans.
Now it was time to toss caution to the wind, because Monster Truck
Freestyle would decide if there would be an overall Monster Spectacular
Champion. The points were just that close, that it would take a double
down win for one driver to be the overall winner. But as Jim Koehler
pointed out, the real winners were the fans, there to see such tight
competition.
Running in the intro order mean that Krazy Train and
Aftershock were the first two trucks out. Both drivers did an admirable
job of hitting all the obstacles and working the unique variable clock of
Monster Spectacular freestyle competition by showing their ability to get
creative with extra time.
Then Bad Habit hit the floor. Roaring out of the pits,
the big man from Ohio rammed the Cadillac into the van stack and launched
his 10,000 pound truck into the biggest air of the night. Sylvester had to
jam his brakes on hard to drop the front end in time to land the truck and
not crash into the other parked in the pits. Bad Habit pulled every trick
in the book including a cyclone donut. When Sylvester realized the
variable clock was working in his favor he knew he’d have to wow the
judges and the fans. He did just that with not one, but two huge reverser
wheelies, his last one sending him air born backwards over the van stack.
Steve Koehler knew he’d have to drive on the ragged
edge to beat Sylvester and he took Brutus there in a hurry. But this time
it was the dog that got bitten as he went up into a bicycle on the two
wheels on the driver side and then rolled the truck. Avenger appeared to
come to the rescue and was chained to Brutus to turn the turn upright, but
Koehler waved them off and left Brutus upside down as a potential obstacle
for Avenger’s freestyle.
The former World Champion knew his freestyle must be of
that caliber to been Bad Habit and Koehler pulled out every trick he
could. Hugh sky wheelies, slap wheelies up on two wheels, it was a run of
epic proportions. He was so aware of his surroundings that Koehler saw the
time end as he as in the middle of a massive donut. So he took the
steering wheel and tossed it out on the track floor as he continued to
spin.
The judges debated and argued as the fans ran to the
track floor for the post show VIP pit party. Would they be congratulating
an overall champion or would they be celebrating a different winner?
Finally the word came down. Bad Habit had won the Monster Spectacular
Monster Truck Freestyle Championship for 2010.
Congratulations to all the drivers and truck teams who
made the 2010 Tour the best with the tightest competition ever in over 20
years of Monster Spectacular. As Jim Koehler said – it’s the fans that are
the real winners with Monster Spectacular. One more finale show to go in
2010 in Montreal this fall and then look out – here comes the 2011 Monster
Spectacular Championship Tour!! Check out
www.MonsterSpectacular.com
for more information!! (06/28/10)
TMB TV Episode 3.6 - Springdale, AR Monster
X Tour!!:TheMonsterBlog.com's four straight weeks of TMB TV comes to a
close tonight as we present great action from the Springdale, Arkansas
Monster X Tour!!
A great lineup does battle in wheelie, long jump, racing and freestyle
including Avenger, Summit Bigfoot, Brutus, Wrecking Crew and Spike. You'll
also see some wild stunts by the "Demolition Devil" Scott Turkiewicz.
Don't miss all the fun as TMB TV Host Ross Z. Bonar and Videographers
Colby Marshall and Kaedon Berry take you through the ins and outs of the
two day event. Click the link below to watch our sixth all-new episode of
TMB TV Season 3!! (06/23/10)
Pontiac Silverdome "Domination In The Dome"
Photo Galleries!!:TheMonsterBlog.com was out in full
force a couple months back for Domination In The Dome, easily one of the
biggest news stories of the year as monster trucks returned to the Pontiac
Silverdome. You've seen TMB TV from the big event, now enjoy the amazing
event in over 400 photos courtesy of TMB photographers Ross Z. Bonar and
Paul M. Harry. A thanks once again to Brian Sharenow and the FMG Events
group for their hospitality and for a great event - stay tuned for an
official announcement as it appears the monsters will be returning to the
Silverdome once again this year in October!!
For now though, click the links below to see all the action from the April
event in pictures!! (06/14/10)
Pouncer Freestyle Exhibition Video
Coverage!!:As summer approaches, one of the busiest venues for monster
trucks is the local fairgrounds and our own Chris Parrish was on hand for
a great exhibition by the Predator Racing team in Carrollton, Kentucky.
Back on June 6th, the Predator team brought out the Pouncer race truck for
a freestyle exhibition along with their Predator ride truck. Chris covered
all the action with some great behind the scenes footage, check out his
video coverage below!!
(06/16/10)
Introducing the Raging Inferno Jet Fire
Truck!!: (Victorville, CA) Monster truck fans,
an exciting new feature you'll be seeing at shows all across the country
has just been completed, the all new Raging Inferno Jet Fire Truck!!
The Raging Inferno is a street legal jet-powered fire truck that is
especially unique in that it is setup to give rides to fans during
pre-show, perform a rock concert-style fire show and then light up the
J-34 jet engine that will melt a stack of cars to the ground with over
7,000 pounds of thrust. This wild exhibition act is also a great marketing
tool as it will bring attention to events with display promotions and to
radio and television promotions. The Raging Inferno is slated to debut at
Thunder Raceway in Show Low, Arizona July 9th and 10th as a feature
attraction at the Outlaw Monster Truck Spectacular. The all-new Jet Fire
Truck is now booking for the rest of 2010, email
carcrushin@aol.com for more info and available dates!!
(06/20/10)
Monster Spectacular Tour Update - British
Columbia!!: (By Doug De Nance) It was the
best of times and the worst of times. There were many moments of gladness
and some
moments
of sadness. The yin and the yang of motorsports entertainment were both in
play during the far west stop on the 2010 Monster Spectacular tour.
Despite the incredible excitement of Bill Payne and
Rockstar living up to his reputation as the Washington Wildman and the
exuberance of the California Kid in his ’34 Ford Sedan hot rod monster
truck, there was an undercurrent of sadness in the pits. It emanated from
the Sudden Impact team. While it was thrilling to see Chris Ryan having
the opportunity to drive Ground Pounder to allow Bobo Winslow some time
off the road, his team mate was the source of both the pall and the
festivities.
Earlier in the week, the Cajun Kid had quietly
announced his retirement. Sean Duhon, the fantastic driver of Cult was
hanging up his helmet. The Ragin’ Cajun would be ragin’ no more after
these final two shows. After 7 years of 50 weeks a year on the road, Duhon
was taking an extended leave of an undetermined length – perhaps
permanently. While the all the friends in the pits were choked up, it
certainly didn’t show in the shows, as every driver seemed to be raising
their game to make the Cajun Kid’s swan song sweet for Duhon and extra
sweet for the fans.
Abbotsford was first on the tour stop and another first
for Bill Payne, rocking Rockstar to a huge Reverser wheelie win in the
Monster Spectacular Wheelie Contest. The two pass format for the weekend
worked well for Payne as he could rev the decibels up to rock concert
volume in what is perhaps the loudest truck on the circuit. The sight of
Rockstar flying backwards over the cars sent the fans into a fanatical
frenzy that was fueled to fever pitch when each of the drivers took
collector edition Monster Spectacular cowboy hats into the crowd after the
cheer off.
Payne looked like he was on a Rockstar roll to spoil
the party for Duhon with the fastest time in time trials. With a 2:00 flat
time over a five car stack, Rockstar had the pick of the brackets.
Strangely, Payne chose to race against Ground Pounder who had the third
best time – leaving an easy bracket win for Cult against California Kid.
Payne had to work hard against the “round mound of renown” as the 260
pound Chris Ryan, better known as “Panda”, is a great young driver. Ryan
has raced everything from BMX to quads to RC cars and knows his way around
a monster truck drag race. But Payne was very fast on the green light and
had the advantage of a front engine mount truck to get a bit better
trajectory over the cars.
One had to speculate that Payne’s point was to set up a
racing final that the fans would love. How could they not love seeing
Rockstar versus Cult as the racing final for the first place tour stop
points? While Payne is fast on the draw, he doesn’t have the experience of
Duhon. The Ragin’ Cajun parlayed that savvy into a clear cut Cult victory
in Monster Spectacular Monster Truck Racing.
When the van stack was set and the crowd whipped into a
whirlwind of cheers for Monster Truck Freestyle, Payne again surprised
everyone with his next move. He jumped ahead of Cult to run third in
freestyle. While one could hypothesize that Payne might have been inspired
by the incredible runs of California Kid and Ground Pounder, it was hard
to believe that Rockstar would give up his last position and the best
chance at the points on the line.
Payne took Rockstar to new heights – literally –
catching massive air off of the cars and even bigger air off the van. He
suffered the kiss of the remote ignition interrupter radio off of a van
stack slap wheelie that saw him heading to the arena wall at full speed.
But then it became clear as to the motivation of Payne’s madness. At the
end of his run, Payne jammed the brakes on, dropping the nose of Rockstar
almost under the bumper of Cult. He was “bowing” to Duhon as a show of
respect after setting the bar at the top of the game for the Cajun Kid to
do what he does best – drive monster trucks.
Cult roared onto the track and proceeded to shred the
last semblance of cars and vans as Duhon literally tore the track to
pieces. Hitting the cars in a cross thread, he took the 10,000 pound truck
up into a bicycle on the passenger side two wheels and then drove out of
what would be roll over for a lesser driver. That was the moment that
epitomized what a fantastic driver Duhon is. Anyone can roll a truck - it
takes a great driver to run it to the ragged edge and then pull it back
rubber side down. The crowd knew it too and screamed their approval when
Duhon wrapped up his run.
The drivers had to tire down and load up immediately
after the show as they had a long ferry ride to the island for the
Victoria Sunday matinee show. Bill Payne arrived in the beautiful city and
almost immediately managed to find the most unique pub in Canada – Big Bad
John’s, complete with various forms of autographed female undergarments
donated by patrons over the years. Payne truly appears to live the
Rockstar lifestyle (although he rarely drinks alcohol and was serenely
sipping on orange juice during his visit to the legendary establishment).
Rockstar again took the Wheelie Contest win with a
Reverser Wheelie. But this time the Washington Wildman got a little too
wild. Up onto two wheels and up onto his roof went Payne and Rockstar had
rolled over for the 59th time. The crowd ate it up and Payne exited the
truck by tossing the steering wheel out onto the track. He explained what
many had wondered about over the weekend, that his black eye was caused by
him smacking the bridge of his nose through the gap in his helmet onto his
steering wheel during his 58th roll over the week before – and he didn’t
want to have two black eyes.
Racing took a much different twist in Victoria, as the
final was at least 50 per cent unexpected. Due to a broken pin, Garrett
Ladelle was unable to run his time trial, so the California Kid dropped to
the bottom of the brackets. But the hot rod monster pounded Ground Pounder
in the brackets and moved into the final. As happened in the previous
show’s racing final, Cult played a power chord on Rockstar and a potential
Cinderella story was now waiting to be written.
During the VIP Half Time Pit Party, the California Kid
was surrounded by beach babes. Ladelle glowed with the female fans
attention and at the thought of winning racing. But while Duhon was choked
up at driving in his final show, he certainly wasn’t choked on the
starting line, handily beating the rookie for another racing win for Cult.
What looked to be a perfect afternoon almost ended up
in tragedy as Freestyle Motocross star Bruce Cook crashed on a his third
backflip of the day. What was even more terrifying was that he was leading
a two man FMX train with his mentor Kris Garwasiuk riding behind him.
Thankfully, the original FMX champion is an incredibly skilled rider and
Garwasiuk managed to avoid Cook on his landing. And even more thankfully,
Cook suffered only bumps and bruises and was none the worse for wear.
Not surprisingly Duhon was the final truck out for
freestyle, thanks again to Bill Payne’s show of respect and giving up his
final freestyle position. While Duhon’s run to the red light was nothing
short of stellar, it was what went on after the red light that was truly
delightful. Duhon knew that the competition was over, but he gave the fans
their own exclusive freestyle show, giving the cheering fans twice as much
freestyling out of Cult as was required. As Duhon emerged through Cult’s
sky roof, the fans leapt to their feet, knowing they would tell their
grandchildren that there were there that day – the day that Sean Duhon
drove Cult for the final time.
While it may be over for Duhon, the Monster Spectacular
tour is not over yet. There is one more stop in the nation’s capital. What
could be a more fitting place to crown the 2010 Monster Spectacular
champion?
(06/18/10)
TMB TV Episode 3.5 - Miami, OK O'Reilly
Outlaw Nationals!!:TheMonsterBlog.com's incredible four straight weeks of TMB TV
continues as we premiere our fifth episode of the year featuring the
Miami, Oklahoma O'Reilly Outlaw Nationals!!
See great racing, wheelie and freestyle action from top names including
Equalizer, Barbarian, Hot Tamale, Cult Energy Activator and more! We
also feature an awesome modified tractor pulling exhibition, heads up tuff
truck racing and a trip to see some famous old monster trucks at their
final resting place. Host Ross Z. Bonar guides you through all the fun
with incredible videography from Colby Marshall and Kaedon Berry. All the
action is just a click away, hit the link below to enjoy all the fun!! (06/16/10)
Eldora Speedway Prelude to the Dream Photo
Gallery!!:The 6th Annual Gillette Fusion ProGlide
Prelude to the Dream was held last Wednesday at the legendary Eldora
Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, and featured a very special appearance by
Bobby Holman's Team Beast. TMB Superphotographer Paul Harry was on hand
for all the action as Team Beast presented a specially painted #17 Tide
monster truck for NASCAR legend Darrell Waltrip to drive around the track.
The exhibition was covered live on HBO Pay-Per-View as fans all across the
country tuned in to watch some of the best in all of motorsports compete
and raise money for several childrens' hospitals.
This
special moment served to generate some great exposure for monster trucks
and Team Beast did an outstanding job representing our industry in front
of all of NASCAR's top personalities. Team Beast wishes to send a big
thanks to all the folks who helped make the exhibition possible,
including: Bok Signs out of Centerville, Ohio, the offical vinyl
wrap sponsor of Team Beast who created the #17 Tide wrap; Performance
Paint out of Dayton, Ohio, long time sponsor of Team Beast; Fowler Engines
out of Columbus, Ohio; Stewart Haas Racing's Jarod Frood; Eldora
Speedway's great staff; and of course track owner Tony Stewart!
The special appearance also served to promote the
upcoming "Monster Trucks at Eldora" event being held in conjunction with
Outlaw Monster Trucks on Saturday, August 7th. Team Beast sends a big
thanks to Outlaw's Steve Quercio for helping organize the Prelude
appearance and for inviting the team to participate in the August event.
That event will feature Lucas Oil Stabilizer, Amsoil Shock Therapy,
Predator, Excaliber, Prowler and Ironman. For more information on that
event, be sure to check out
www.EldoraSpeedway.com.
Without further delay, click the link below to see Paul
Harry's awesome photo gallery from the Prelude to the Dream including
photos of the monster truck apperanace, photos of all the big stars on
hand and even some of the great late model action!! Thanks to Paul
and Michael for heading out to the event and doing a great job
representing TMB in front of some of motorsports' biggest stars!!
(06/14/10)
Firebird Raceway NAPA Monster Truck
Nationals Coverage!!:TMB
coverage has been a staple at Firebird International Raceway over the last
5 years and this year is no different as we present to you coverage from
this past April's NAPA Monster Truck Nationals!! Our awesome
contributors Jim and Chris Allen were on hand to provide the great
write-ups and amazing photos from each show. In addition, our own Lauren &
Lynette Bonar attended the Saturday event to bring you more great video
coverage from one of the southwest's biggest events. So read on below to
enjoy Christopher Allen's great recap from the events:
"There once was a time in the monster truck racing sport when if you
broke, you did not bother to try and fix it in time for the next round.
Once that happened, you could just load your truck on the trailer and go
on home. The fans would have known you with the dreaded words “out for the
night”. Then came freestyle and this was less often the case. But, as we
will see, the words “out for the night” are not in the dictionary of “Team
Scream”, especially when they are competing at Firebird International
Raceway in Chandler, Arizona for the annual NAPA Auto Parts Monster Truck
Nationals.
The participants, along with Avenger and Brutus driven
by Jim Koehler and Chris Bergeron, were Dan Runte and Bigfoot #16, Jimmy
Creten and Bounty Hunter, Firebird regulars Travis Sturges filling in for
Uncle Sam Sturges in Unnamed and Untamed, brother Ronnie driving Nasty
Boy, and returning to Firebird were Mike Hawkins in Equalizer after a
couple years away, along with teammate Isaiah Morales in Hot Tamale.
Following some 300 mph jet car action, exciting
introductions and an Independence Day rivaling fireworks show, was the
long jump competition. Hot Tamale was the opener and made a nice jump,
slightly tagging the freestyle van stack just off the landing. Nasty Boy,
more known for wheelies, didn’t quite make the distance. Then came Brutus.
He just didn’t make it in the actual jump, but then tried to make up for
it by attacking the tire pyramid, but when he did, disaster struck. To
find out how, check out the video coverage and photos! Following Brutus’
clearing of the track, Unnamed & Untamed, Equalizer, Avenger and Bigfoot
each tried and failed to beat Hot Tamale, but then came Bounty Hunter. He
easily made the distance, then ran into the van stack but saved it to take
the win.
Freestyle is often the “Main Event” of monster truck shows, and tonight
was no different. Each driver put his truck’s major horsepower to the
ground to out-perform the next guy. Mr. Runte is always a potential winner
at Firebird and got a near-perfect score of 29. Then the shocker of the
night came with the return of Brutus, having been fixed just in the nick
of time. Showing no mercy, the other half of the loudest interviewees in
the sport hit literally every obstacle the track threw at him. With a
perfect score of 30, all Mr. Creten could do was tie. And that is exactly
what he did.
The announcer then got word that since there cannot be
co-winners in the race to get a highest total score for the weekend to
become the year’s undisputed champion, it was decided that the showdown
Firebird fans long deserved would occur the next day. With one wild, rabid
dog in one corner and a hard to beat old west tracker in the other, Sunday
might very well see the greatest throw-down in Firebird history.
The NAPA Monster Truck Nationals employs an interesting
championship crowning system each year. The distance in the long jump is
calculated with the scores in freestyle and whoever has the highest
distance-score combination wins, and that driver has been Jimmy Creten and
Bounty Hunter several times as of recent memory. But there was another
driver, Chris Bergeron and Brutus, who also scored a perfect 30 on
Saturday night, making this war arguably Jimmy’s greatest Firebird
challenge yet.
Unique to Firebird Raceway is the challenge of having
to watch out for swarms of bees around the facility. A slight bee attack
delayed the show about half an hour, making the monster truck drivers’ job
even harder, but they did not disappoint. Bounty Hunter made the first
jump in the jump off contest look easy. Truck after truck came after him
only to fall short. Then came a fired up Jim Kohler with Avenger that had
two things on his mind: slowing down Brutus and beating Bounty Hunter.
After he made the jump that looked almost identical to Jim Creten’s, the
fans knew this was going to be close heading into the finale, the winner
take all freestyle.
The first freestyle is always a challenge but the
Bounty Hunter driver showed he did not fear anyone who followed, if his
freestyle, which was worth a 28 point score, said anything. The remaining
headliners, Avenger and Bigfoot must have been paying attention, because
they showed no mercy, either. But when it was all said and done, Jimmy and
Bounty Hunter, with three wins and one tie, overall never finishing out of
the top two all weekend, was declared the undisputed monster truck
champion of the 2010 NAPA Monster Truck Nationals.
Hopefully, Firebird Raceway fans went away with
some new memories and even some new fans of the monster truck racing sport
were made. The bee attack notwithstanding, another great show at the
historic race track is in the books." - Coverage By Chris Allen
Thanks again to Christopher for the great write-up of this year's event.
Now click the links below to see Jim Allen's incredible photos from the
event and also Lynette Bonar's great video coverage!! Thanks to all
our TMB'ers for the great job out in Firebird this year!!
(06/13/10)
Green Mamba Jet Car Meltdown Footage!!:TMB spent this past weekend hanging out
at the big All Star Motorsports Productions Mud Mania & Night of Fire
Thrill Show at Golden Isles Speedway in Brunswick, Georgia. Featured at
the event was the legendary Doug Rose and his Green Mamba jet car as he
burnt a Chevy Suburban to the ground in an incredible display of raw
fire-breathing power. TMB was able to capture this awesome exhibition and
we present here footage of a true legend of motorsports thrilling a great
crowd in Georgia. Special thanks to Bryan Wagner and the All Star crew for
a great time this weekend!! (06/13/10)
TMB TV Episode 3.4 - Monsters on the Beach!!:The second episode in our four straight weeks of TMB TV is
now online as we present our first ever Monsters on the Beach coverage!!
No doubt one of the most unique settings for monster truck racing in all
the world, the action on beautiful Virginia Beach does not disappoint.
Catch all the fun in the sand from 4 action-packed shows featuring big
names like Stone Crusher, Gun Slinger, Crushstation and more battling it
out in both side-by-side straight line drag racing and the fan favorite
freestyle competition! Monsters on the Beach was one easily one of the
most fun shows TMB has ever been part of! A huge thanks goes out to
George Carpenter, Mike West, Beach Street USA, and all the teams for
making this such a one of a kind experience. All the action is just a
click away, we hope you enjoy and we'll see you again next week for
another all new episode of TMB TV!! (06/10/10)
Team Beast to Display at Prelude to the
Dream!!:Team
Beast will be making a very special appearance at the Gillette Fusion
ProGlide Prelude to the Dream this Wednesday, June 9th at the historic
Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. The Lucas Oil Stabilizer truck & driver
Bobby Holman will be on hand along with a mystery truck with a very
special driver to help celebrate the evening’s festivities.
Wednesday night's 6th Annual Prelude to the Dream is a charitable event
that donates to four of the nation's top children's hospitals. The race is
filled with top names from various motorsports including Eldora Speedway
owner Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson from NASCAR, Tony
Kanaan from Indycar, Ron Capps and Cruz Pegregon from the NHRA and
motorcycle legends Travis Pastrana and Ricky Carmichael, along with many
other stars.
The Prelude to the Dream is available for fans to view
live from home through HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 7:00PM Eastern
Wednesday night. Ordering information can be found at
www.PreludetotheDream.org, while more event info can be found
at
www.EldoraSpeedway.com.
Wednesday's special appearance by Team Beast will be to
help promote "Monster Trucks at Eldora", a special event being held
Saturday, August 7th in conjunction with Outlaw Monster Trucks. Both Team Beast trucks are scheduled to compete,
along with Amsoil Shock Therapy, Excaliber, Predator and Prowler. For more
information on the Lucas Oil Stabilizer and Team Beast, fans are
encouraged to check out their website at
www.TeamBeast-Werx.com. (06/07/10)
1st Annual Jesse "Twig" Barden Memorial
Benefit To Be Held June 26th: (Mazeppa, MN) The first annual Jesse "Twig" Barden Memorial
Benefit is being held Saturday, June 26th in Mazeppa, Minnesota at Leo's
Sports Bar. The event will include a Motorcycle & Classic Car Fun Run,
Silent Auction, Dinner, Music, Door Prizes a display by the Xtreme Eagle
monster truck and much more.
Jesse
Robert “Twig” Barden, age 23, of Mazeppa, MN / Elizabeth City, NC, died in
a jet ski accident on June 29, 2009 in North Carolina. Jesse enjoyed many
things with family and friends, but ultimately he lived his dream by
working in the world of Professional Monster Truck Racing. Starting from
Track Crew at age 16 and working his way up to crew chief duties for
Monster Jam's Air Force Afterburner and driver Damon Bradshaw, Taz with
Adam Anderson and Dennis Anderson's Grave Digger in Europe, Jesse traveled
the United States amd 18 European countries. Jesse earned several Monster
Jam Awards, most recently, MVP & Crew Chief of the Year.
In
honor of his life, in remembrance of his achievements, and with the hope
to carrying on his vision, we invite you to be a part of our efforts in
raising money for the “Jesse Barden Mechanic Scholarship Fund", and the
Make a Wish Foundation. Registration is $20 per person. This includes
ride, which covers 120-150 miles ending back at Leo’s, memorial wrist
band, dinner, door prizes, music, silent auction, Xtreme Eagle monster
truck display & more!
For schedule updates and further information, please
visit
www.OurJesseBarden.Com. This is a "Rain or Shine" event. Those
participating in fun run: Registration begins at 11:00 at Leo’s- return to
Leo’s by 5:30. Silent Auction runs from 11am to 6pm. Food served from
5:30-7:00pm and music following.
If you wish to make a donation, please contact Joanne
Barden at 507-250-2471, or through email at
Joanne@ourjessebarden.com. Contact can also be made to Jesse’s
sister, Charise Mehrkens at 507-250-1071, or by email at
CnMehrkens@gmail.com. We are also accepting donations for the
silent auction. More information can be found on
www.OurJesseBarden.com. (06/07/10)
Springdale, Akansas Monster X Tour Recap &
Teasers!!:TMB
was on hand to capture all the action from Danny Torgeson’s Monster X
Tour’s first stop in Springdale, Arkansas in 2010. The weather was hot and
the action was hotter as the legendary Bigfoot piloted by Dan Runte took
on all of Team Scream including Avenger, Brutus, Spike, and Wrecking Crew
in nightly wheelie, long jump, racing, and freestyle contests.
Night one started off strong as Chris Bergeron sent the
snout of Brutus skyward, snagging the wheelie contest win. In the long
jump competition, however, Mr. Excitement Jim Koehler lined up to the
metal ramps and lofted Avenger up to grab the win. The racing set up was a
tricky, Chicago style format over car-van-car stacks and the finals would
come down to Bigfoot and Avenger. Showing his true knack for racing, Runte
ousted the hard-charging Koehler for the Friday racing win. Freestyle
would round out the night in Springdale as Koehler in Avenger would edge
out both Runte in Bigfoot and teammate Chris Bergeron in Brutus.
The
final show of the weekend was filled with more of the same great action.
The wheelie contest would be taken by Runte in Bigfoot as he danced the
rear tires of the truck all the way up and over the double van stack. The
long jump competition would go to Steve Koehler in Wrecking Crew, as he
just edged out Avenger and Bigfoot. Racing would get interesting as the
finals, just as on Friday night, were set between Avenger and Bigfoot.
Koehler snagged an impressive lead off the line and continued to hold on
until the final turn when Avenger’s rear steer froze, ultimately
preventing him from turning and allowing Runte and Bigfoot to power to the
win. The final freestyle of the weekend was full of big air shots and
donuts from Brutus and Bigfoot, but it wouldn’t be enough to top Jim
Koehler’s momentum and wild cyclones in Avenger.
TMB
was in full force in Springdale, so be on the lookout for a full photo
gallery from Ross Z. Bonar as well as another edition of TMB-TV with
footage from Colby Marshall and Kaedon Berry in the coming weeks. Thanks
goes out to Danny Torgerson and the Monster X Tour crew for their
hospitality, keep checking back for more coverage!! (06/06/10)
Hall Brothers Monster Truck Bodies For
Sale!!: (Champaign, IL) Hall Brothers Racing has the new 2010/11 RAM
HD body for sale. Both stock hood and extended hood versions are
available. Headlight, taillight and grille decals are also available. In
addition, several previous model used body parts are available, including
cabs, hoods, bedsides, tailgates and bumpers. Please contact Hall Brothers
for a complete listing and pricing either by phone at (217) 643-6375 or
through email at
hallbrothersracing@earthlink.net.
(06/04/10)
TMB TV Episode 3.3 - Springfield, MO
Monster Truck Thunder Drags!!:TMB
TV is back as we begin an incredible 4 straight weeks of new episodes!!
What better way to start it off than with the 2010 edition of the
Springfield, Missouri 4 Wheel Jamboree. Watch some of the top trucks in
the industry including Bigfoot, Raminator, and Avenger battle it out on
the concrete in intense, side by side racing and freestyle competitions as
they all vie for the early points lead in the 2010 Monster Truck Thunder
Drags series. See new bodies from Team Bigfoot including the amazing
"Retro-Foot" and Ms. Bigfoot and great new schemes for Raminator and
Rammunition. Thanks to everyone with the Family Events crew for their
hospitality, as well as thanks to TMB’s Rajeana Bonar for the great
footage!! All the action of TMB TV Season 3, Episode 3 is only a
click away!! (06/02/10)
