10 Facts About the Monster Truck Tour

Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam is one of the most popular touring attractions in the United States. Each year, more than 4 million fans participate in over 325 events and support tracks such as Grave Digger, Monster Mutt Rottweiler, El Toro Loco, and Jurassic Attack.

Already leading perennial fans are Dennis Anderson and his monster truck, Grave Digger, who are leading the charge in 2011. The legendary driver put this year on the right track by winning a double down trophy at the Monster Jam event in Houston, Texas. Drivers Tom Means [Maximum Destruction], Adam Anderson [Grave Digger Legend], and Lindsay Wink [Lukas Oil Crusader] are also celebrating the New Year.

Now that we have caught up to 2011, let's take a look at 10 interesting facts about Monster Jam, the most popular monster truck tour in the country.

• To prepare a venue for a monster jam event, a team of 8 people takes 3 days 24 hours a day. The average track built in the arena uses about 700 cubic yards of dirt and the stadium uses 3,500 cubic yards. It is normal for a truck to require more than 200 dump trucks.
• All monster jam events are expected to have at least two forms of competition. Race and freestyle. In race competition, two tracks run side by side. The winner is the track that passes the finish line first and has the least penalty. In freestyle, drivers have limited time to surprise spectators [also judges] with monster truck skills.
• Grave digging is the most popular monster truck ever. The original was created in 1981 by superstar Dennis Anderson. Today there are 6 Grave Digger tracks. That's impressive, considering that each build costs over $ 250,000 and requires spare parts worth $ 100,000.
• Like other sports, Monster Jam has its own vocabulary. For example, the phrase “pull pin”. When the truck rolls over, someone needs to “pull” the rear bumper. Doing so will turn off the vehicle. Then “get on the waves”. This means landing hard and bouncing a considerable distance on one tire.
• NFL's Atlanta Falcons introduced a wrench into the 2011 Monster Jam Calendar. Thanks to Falcon who hosted the home playoff game on January 15, the monster jam event scheduled for that day had to bump on February 12. If you have a ticket, you can either exchange the ticket for a related event or request a refund.
• What is the accuracy and size of the average monster jam truck? Most trucks are about 12 feet high, 12 feet wide, and weigh at least 10,000 pounds. The tire height is 66 inches. Monster truck engines can be generated anywhere from 1,500 to 2,000 horsepower. With this power, giant vehicles can reach speeds of 100 mph.
• Do you know that monster truck drivers are generally sitting in the middle of the vehicle? Do this for weight distribution issues and visibility. All drivers sit in a custom seat molded for the frame. Their heads and necks are secured to a restraining device and wear a five-point seat belt. As with all racing circuits, safety is a top priority for monster jams.
• Monster Jam has several themed vehicles dedicated to comic / cartoon characters. Iron Man, Superman and Batman all have their own monster trucks. The latter is much of the 1960s Batman because of the high tail fins that sandwich the truck bed. There is also a monster truck dedicated to Tas [Tasmanian Devil], a famous Looney Tunes character.
• Thunder National is another monster truck circuit sponsored by Monster Jam. These events are family oriented and are usually held in a small arena and do not race on dirt tracks. In 2011, Thunder Nationals can be caught in places such as Wichita, Wheeling, Grand Rapids, Rockford and more. please do not worry. Big trucks such as GraveDigger and El Toro Loco will also appear at these events.
• Where did Monster Jam get all the crashed cars? Destroyed vehicles are shipped from the local junkyard. However, monster trucks not only crush cars, but also destroy buns, buses, campers, ambulances and airplanes. Monster Jam passes on average about 3,000 cars annually. By the way, after the show, all cars will be returned to the junkyard.