Monster trucks

A monster truck is a pickup truck modified with a larger suspension and larger tires. Today pickup trucks are still used, however SUV bodies as well as themed trucks are driven and most of the bodies are now made of fiberglass rather than metal. Themed trucks vary from car bodies, SUV bodies, and even animal themed bodies. A competition monster truck should meet guidelines by being 12 feet tall, 12 feet wide, and as of 2015, should be equipped with specifically made 462lb BKT 66-inch off-road tires. Monster trucks used to be side acts at popular motocross events and mud bogs but today they are usually the main attraction with motocross and mud bogging being the complementary shows.

A monster truck show usually involves the trucks racing each other in a 2v2 competition and then letting it all hang out in a 'freestyle comp where the trucks do numerous stunts such as backflips and wheelies in numerous competitions. These events usually consist of racing, freestyle, donut competitions and wheelie competitions. These trucks can run up and over most man-made barriers, so they are equipped with remote shut-off switches, called the Remote Ignition Interrupter (RII), to help prevent an accident if the driver loses control at any time. The RII works with the truck's computer to allow track officials to shut the truck's engine off in the event the brakes fail or the truck becomes uncontrollable. During freestyle events, only one truck is allowed on the course at a time to ensure safety for both the drivers and fans. Most racing competitions feature two drivers racing each other on symmetrical tracks, with the losing driver being eliminated in a single loss elimination fashion.

In recent years, the freestyle event is the last event of competition. Drivers are free to select their own course around the track and its obstacles. Drivers will often perform doughnuts, wheel stands, large aerial jumps and even backflips during this segment. Historically, additional items for the drivers to crush such as motor homes and school buses were frequently placed on the track specifically for the freestyle event. However, incidences of debris flying into the stands and causing serious injuries have influenced most event promoters to turn away from such frail obstacles. Most freestyle courses now consist of overly large jumps and ramps formed to allow the trucks to get excessive air and explosive wheelies upon landing.

In the late 1970s, heavily 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. The trucks which garnered the most national attention were Bob Chandler's Bigfoot, Everett Jasmer's USA-1, Fred Shafer and Jack Willman Sr.'s Bear Foot, and Jeff Dane's King Kong. At the time, the largest tires the trucks were running were 48 inches (1.2 m) in diameter.

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