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2005 Bigfoot monster truck racing in Arizona
2005 Bigfoot monster truck racing in Arizona

A monster truck is an automobile, typically styled after pickup trucks, modified or purposely built with extremely large wheels and suspension. Bigfoot is regarded as the original Monster truck and remains one of the most popular trucks in the United States. The State of Arizona ( is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. A pickup truck is a light Motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area which is almost always separated from the cab to allow for chassis flex when carrying or pulling A wheel is a circular device that is capable of rotating on its axis facilitating movement or transportation whilst supporting a load ( Mass) or performing labour in machines Suspension is the term given to the system of springs, Shock absorbers and linkages that connects a Vehicle to its Wheels Suspension They are used for competition and popular Sports Entertainment and in some cases they are featured alongside Motocross races, mud bogging, tractor pulls and car-eating robots. Sports entertainment is a type of Spectacle which presents an ostensibly competitive event using a high level of theatrical flourish and extravagant presentation Motocross is a form of Motorcycle sport or All-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed Off road circuits Mud bogging, also known as mud racing, mud running and mud drags, is a form of Off-road Motorsport popular in Canada and Truck and tractor pulling, also known as power pulling, is a competition using Tractors and large Trucks to pull a heavy drag along a 'track' and is very Robosaurus is a transforming Robotic Dinosaur created by inventor Doug Malewicki in 1989 and is currently owned and operated by Monster Robots Inc

Typically, a monster truck show involves the truck crushing smaller vehicles beneath its huge tires. These trucks can run up and over most man-made barriers, so they are equipped with remote shut-off switches, called the Remote Ignition Interuptor (RII), to help prevent an accident if the driver loses control at any time. At some events, only one truck is on the course at a time, while most feature two drivers racing each other on symmetrical tracks, with the losing driver eliminated in single-elimination tournament fashion.

In recent years, many monster truck competitions have ended with a "freestyle" event. Freestyle, in Monster Truck competition is an event where the goal is to perform tricks and stunts with the truck in order to demonstrate driver skill and truck capability Somewhat akin to figure skating with giant trucks, drivers are free to select their own course around the track and its obstacles. Figure skating is an athletic Sport in which individuals pairs or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging Drivers will often try a 'Donut', also called a Cyclone, which involves spinning the truck in a high speed circle, and maybe even deliberately rolling the truck over. A doughnut or donut is a maneuver performed while driving a vehicle Additional items for the drivers to crush - usually including a motor home - are frequently placed on the track specifically for the freestyle event. In North American English the term recreational vehicle, and its acronym RV, are generally used to refer to an enclosed piece of equipment dually used as both

Contents

History

The U.S. Air Force's own Afterburner performing at Monster Jam in Las Vegas.
The U. S. Air Force's own Afterburner performing at Monster Jam in Las Vegas. Monster Jam is a live Motorsport event tour and Television show operated by Feld Entertainment. Las Vegas ( Spanish: "The Meadows" is the most populous City in the state of Nevada, the seat of Clark County, and an internationally

In the late 1970s, 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. A suspension lift is a modification often done by Jeep truck suv and offroad enthusiasts to raise the ride height of their vehicle The trucks which garnered the most national attention were Bob Chandler's Bigfoot the first Monster Truck, and Fred Shafer and Jack Willman Sr. Bigfoot is regarded as the original Monster truck and remains one of the most popular trucks in the United States. 's Bear Foot, and Jeff Dane's Awesome Kong, At the time, the largest tires the trucks were running were 48 inches (1. Bear Foot is a Monster truck currently owned by Paul Shafer It was originally built by Jack Wilman and Fred Shafer (no relation to Paul and along with Bigfoot 2 m) in diameter.

Sometime in the late 1970s, Bob Chandler drove over cars in a field making BIGFOOT 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, Chandler eventually caved in. After some smaller shows, Chandler performed the feat in the Pontiac Silverdome in 1982. The Pontiac Silverdome is a Domed Stadium in Pontiac, Michigan, a Satellite city of Detroit. At this show, Chandler also debuted a new version of Bigfoot with 66 inch (1. 7 m) diameter tires. At a prior event in the early 80's when BIGFOOT was still running 48″ terra tries, Bob George, one of the owners of a motorsport promotion company named Truck-a-rama, coined the phrase "Monster Truck" when referring to BIGFOOT. The term "monster truck" became the generic name for all trucks with oversized terra tires.

Both Awesome Kong and Bear Foot followed Bigfoot to 66 inch diameter tires, and soon other monster trucks, such as King Krunch, USA-1, and Virginia Giant were being constructed. King Krunch is a Monster truck currently competing on the USHRA Monster Jam circuit USA-1 is a Monster truck that was competing during the Eighties and Nineties, named after a Chevrolet ad campaign More so than other forms of Motorsports Monster truck competitions place a heavy emphasis on showmanship These early trucks were built off of stock chassis which were heavily reinforced, used leaf spring suspension, a stock body, and heavy military axles to support the tires. Originally called laminated or carriage spring, a leaf spring is a simple form of spring, commonly used for the suspension in As a result, the trucks were incredibly heavy (usually 13,000 to 20,000 lb. ) and most times had to crawl up onto the cars.

For most of the early 1980s, monster trucks performed primarily exhibitions as a side show to truck pulling or mud bogging events. In 1985, major promoters, such as the USHRA and TNT Motorsports, began racing monster trucks on a regular basis. The United States Hot Rod Association ( USHRA) is an organization owned by Feld Entertainment that markets various motorsports TNT Motorsports was a popular promoter of Monster truck races tractor pulls, and occasionally Mud racing in the 1980s Events were shown on The races, as they are today, were in the form of single elimination drag races, held over a course littered with obstacles. Drag racing is a competition in which objects compete to be the first to cross a set finish mark usually from a dead stop and in a straight line The change to racing eventually led truck owners to begin building lighter trucks, with more power. The establishment of TNT's first-ever monster truck points championship in 1988 expedited the process and found teams beginning to use straight-rail frames, fiberglass bodies, and lighter axle components to shave weight and gain speed. Fiberglass (also called fibreglass and glass fibre see Spelling differences) is material made from extremely fine Fibers of Glass.

In 1988, to standardize rules for truck construction and safety, Bob Chandler 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 USA and EU.

With racing taking precedence, several teams began to think in new ways as to how the trucks could be built. In 1988, Jack Willman Sr. , now with his own truck, Taurus, built a new truck which used a four-link suspension system and large coil springs, and that weighed in at close to 9,000 lb. A Coil spring, also known as a helical spring, is a mechanical device which is typically used to store energy and subsequently release it to absorb shock or to maintain The following year, another coil sprung truck, Equalizer debuted. Equalizer is a Monster truck that races on the USHRA circuit The truck is driven by Mike Hawkins. The ultimate coup de grâce, however, came from Chandler, also in 1988, whose Bigfoot VIII featured a full tubular chassis and a long-travel suspension using nitrogen shock absorbers to control the suspension. Nitrogen (ˈnaɪtɹəʤɪn is a Chemical element that has the symbol N and Atomic number 7 and Atomic weight 14 A shock absorber in common parlance (or damper in technical use is a mechanical device designed to smooth out or dampen shock impulse and dissipate 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 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 1996, but the series is still running. The short-lived ProMT series started in 2000.

Although 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. Dennis Anderson (born October 10, 1960) is a professional Monster truck driver See also Gravedigger (disambiguation. Grave Digger (often referred to as simply Digger) is the name of a team of Monster Promoters began to notice the popularity of freestyle among fans, and in 2000 USHRA began holding freestyle as a judged competition at events, and now even awards a freestyle championship.

A typical track for arena monster truck shows. 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.
A typical track for arena monster truck shows. An arena is an enclosed area often circular or oval-shaped designed to showcase Theater, musical performances or sporting events 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. An all-terrain vehicle (ATV is defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI as a vehicle that travels on low pressure tires with a seat that is straddled by

Today, USHRA's Monster Jam series is the largest series based on number of events, with trucks like Grave Digger, Maximum Destruction, and Bounty Hunter. Monster Jam is a live Motorsport event tour and Television show operated by Feld Entertainment. Maximum Destruction (often referred to as Max D) is a Monster truck currently racing in the USHRA Monster Jam series 2Xtreme Racing is a Monster truck team consisting of the trucks Bounty Hunter, Scarlet Bandit and Iron Outlaw, all of which compete primarily Bigfoot often runs with Checkered Flag Productions and other series such as the Monster Truck Challenge, Monster Nationals, AMP Live Events, Chris Arel Motorsports, Southern Monster Truck Showdown and Special Events all also hold major events. Monster Nationals is the name of the Monster truck series run by Image Promotions. Monster truck events remain extremely popular, especially in major markets throughout North America and Europe, including New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, United Kingdom, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Zurich, and Milano. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West Toronto (təˈrɒntoʊ colloquially pronounced or) is the largest city in Canada and is the provincial capital of Ontario The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located ('stɔkhɔlm is Sweden 's Capital and its largest City. It is the site of the national Swedish government, the parliament, and the Amsterdam (pronounced) is the capital and largest city of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland in the west ||-||-||-||} Antwerp ( Dutch:, French: Anvers) is a City and Municipality in Belgium and the capital of the Zürich (, Zürich German: Züri, Zurich, Zurigo; in English generally Zurich) is the largest city in Switzerland and capital of the Milan (Milano Milan (listen) is one of the largest cities in Italy, located in the plains of Lombardy. They are the second biggest form of touring family entertainment shows in these regions, behind Disney's touring On Ice shows. Disney On Ice is a touring ice show produced by Feld Entertainment under agreement with The Walt Disney Company.

Truck design

A modern monster truck is more of a scaled up, four wheel drive dune buggy. Four-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4x4 ("four by four" is a four-wheeled Vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four Wheels to A dune buggy is a recreational Vehicle with large Wheels and wide Tires designed for use on sand Dunes or Beaches The design As such, they generally aren't actual "trucks" and only maintain their name due to the common style of fiberglass bodies used on the vehicles. Trucks now have custom built tubular chassis, with four-link suspensions to provide up to four feet of travel. Mounted just behind the driver on most trucks are the engines, which are typically supercharged, run on methanol, and have displacement up to 575 cubic inches (9. A supercharger is an air compressor used for Forced induction of an Internal combustion engine. Methanol, also known as methyl alcohol, carbinol, wood alcohol, wood naphtha or wood spirits, is a Chemical compound Engine displacement is defined as the total Volume of air/fuel mixture an Engine can draw in during one complete engine cycle it is normally stated in Cubic 42 L). Axles are typically out of either heavy-duty military trucks or road vehicles like school buses, and are modified to have a planetary gear reduction at the hub to help turn the tires. A school bus is a Bus used to transport Children and Adolescents to and from School and school events Epicyclic gearing or planetary gearing is a Gear system that consists of one or more outer gears or planet gears revolving about a central or 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. Steering is the term applied to the collection of components linkages etc A steering wheel (also called a driving wheel or hand wheel) is a type of steering Control in Vehicles and vessels ( Ships and Boats A toggle switch is a class of Electrical switches that are actuated by a mechanical Lever, handle or rocking mechanism The tires are typically "Terra" tires used on fertilizer spreaders, and have measurements of 66″×43″×25″ (1. 7×1. 1×0. 6 m). Most trucks utilize a modified and/or custom designed automatic transmission, such as a Turbo 400, Powerglide, Ford C6 transmission, or a Powerflite 727. Turbo-Hydramatic is the registered tradename of a family of Automatic transmissions developed and produced by General Motors. The Powerglide is a two speed Automatic transmission designed by General Motors The Ford C6 transmission was a heavy-duty Automatic transmission built by the Ford Motor Company between 1966 and 1996 A limited number of trucks utilize a Lenco transmission, which traces its roots to drag racing. Drag racing is a competition in which objects compete to be the first to cross a set finish mark usually from a dead stop and in a straight line Most of the automatic transmissions are heavily modified with transbrakes, manual valve bodies, and heavy duty gear sets. In Drag racing, a transbrake is a setup installed in Automatic transmissions which places the transmission in first and reverse Gears at the same time effectively Trucks running a Lenco use a centrifugal clutch as opposed to a torque converter, which are used in automatic transmissions. A centrifugal clutch is a Clutch that uses Centrifugal force to connect two concentric shafts with the driving shaft nested inside the driven shaft A torque converter is a modified form of Fluid coupling that is used to transfer rotating power from a prime mover, such as an Internal combustion engine Lenco transmissions are usually found in two-speed or three speed configurations, and are commonly shifted using compressed CO2.

The trucks have many safety features, several required just to run in the small arenas that the trucks frequent. An arena is an enclosed area often circular or oval-shaped designed to showcase Theater, musical performances or sporting events The aforementioned RII is one of three kill switches on each truck, the other two being one 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. Nomex (styled NOMEX) is a registered Trademark for flame resistant meta- Aramid material developed in the early 1960s by DuPont and first marketed A safety harness is a form of protective equipment designed to protect a person animal or object from Injury or damage A helmet is a form of Protective gear worn on the head to protect it from injuries a variation of the hat Most moving parts on the truck are also shielded, and high pressure components have restraining straps, both in case of an explosion.

Popular culture

Monster trucks are also often portrayed as being a form of motorized professional wrestling. Professional wrestling, or pro wrestling, is a non-competitive professional Sport, where all matches are scripted by the promotion's booking staff Commonly cited evidence is the use of names for the trucks, rather than numbers and sponsors (some trucks are now named for their sponsor, and in 2008, the Major League of Monster Trucks will mandate truck numbers), and often accusations of rigged races, as some trucks (including Bigfoot and Grave Digger) are seen as winning more often in order to please the crowd. However, promoters have widely denied rigging races, and many shows often feature evidence to the contrary when the unpredictable happens. Perhaps more than the redneck stereotype, the pro-wrestling stereotype is hated among drivers and teams, who feel they are regarded with disrespect despite their work to compete at a high level. A stereotype (from Greek: stereo + týpos = "solid impression" is a generalized perception of first impressions behaviors presumed by a group Likewise, many fans would like to see the sport treated by the media as NASCAR is currently. The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing ( NASCAR) is the largest sanctioning body of Stock cars in the United States. However, as monster truck events do feature a considerably more show-like atmosphere than most other motorsports, competitions are often considered a form of "sports entertainment". Sports entertainment is a type of Spectacle which presents an ostensibly competitive event using a high level of theatrical flourish and extravagant presentation

The advertising of monster truck events has also become a part of popular culture. A familiar 1980s series of radio commercials for various monster truck races featured a screaming announcer (most famously, Larry "Supermouth" Huffman), blaring rock background music, and heavy use of reverb. The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989. Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. Rock and roll (also known as rock 'n' roll) is a form of Music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s with roots in mostly African Although background music was by the end of the 20th Century generally identified with Muzak or Elevator music, there are several stages in the development of this Reverberation is the persistence of Sound in a particular space after the original sound is removed These spots began with "Sunday!!! Sunday!!! Sunday!!!", and ended with an emphatic "BE THERE!!!!!!". Although commonly associated with monster trucks, the ads were conceived in the 1960s for funny car match races at drag strips. The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 Funny Car is a Drag racing car class In the USA other "professional" classes are Top Fuel, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle. For the Transformers character see Drag Strip. A dragstrip is a facility for conducting Automobile and Motorcycle acceleration events such Chicago-area drag racing promoter Jan Gabriel, who produced three television specials about monster trucks in 1985 and 1986, is generally credited as coining the Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! catchphrase. As some promoters of those events also became promoters for monster truck events, the ads were retooled to fit the monster trucks. The ads have been frequently parodied in other advertisements. A parody (ˈpɛɹədiː US, [ˈpaɹədiː] UK) in contemporary usage is a work created to mock comment on or poke fun at an original work its subject

Movies, TV, video games and music appearances

See also

External links

Monster Truck Madness (abbreviated as MTM or MTM1, codenamed Metal Crush, pre-release name Heavy Pro Arena Truck racing is a branch of Off-road racing. Pro Arena Truck racing consists of modified trucks (and sometimes stock trucks for fun going around a Motocross A slap wheelie is a specific form of freestyle trick performed by Monster trucks The truck is jumped over an obstacle the front wheels bounce off the ground when it lands (hence More so than other forms of Motorsports Monster truck competitions place a heavy emphasis on showmanship

Dictionary

monster truck

-noun

  1. A large truck designed specifically to perform in monster truck shows, typically based on a lifted pickup truck with oversized wheels and modified suspension.
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