Monster trucks find a big audience with little kids

LEVELLAND, Texas - The Mallet Event Center and Arena is typically a place where folks come to watch riders' skill with horses – barrel racing, team roping and cutting horse competitions.

On a recent Saturday, Tobias McCurry, 8, stood enraptured before a huge blue vehicle with nearly 6-foot-tall tires, shaped like a hungry shark.

"I like the design and the sound of them," Tobias said. "I like how they look and how big the tires are."

Tobias and his five brothers and sisters were attending the "pit party" in which they touched the fearsome machines and met the drivers before that day's Monster Truck Wars.

His dad, David McCurry, an engine builder in nearby Lubbock, went all out for the Valentine's Day show, securing VIP tickets, merchandise, the pit party and rides for his children in a monster bus.

"We already spent - it'll be close to $500-$600 by the time it's said and done," he said with a Texas-size smile, before excusing himself to join Tobias and his other kids to pose for a selfie in front of the "Shark Attack" monster truck, as big as a medium bulldozer.

Around the dirt-floor arena, the stands were packed with families in protective earmuffs, wearing T-shirts of classic monster trucks like "Grave Digger" and "Bigfoot." The scene validated what industry experts already know: Monster trucks, those ear-splitting, jumbo-tire behemoths that careen around tracks and fly through the air, are one of the fastest growing segments in family entertainment.

And unique in American motorsports, the shows are geared to small children.

"When I started doing monster trucks as a kid, it was sponsored by Budweiser and Red Man Chewing Tobacco," said Michael Harper, who owns Monster Truck Wars, which produced the Levelland show and puts on 130 events in 70 cities a year.

"Now we're sponsored by a toy company called Monster Machines. So it's a different demographic. If you look out there right now you see 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds, 5-year-olds, and … they're fascinated with a monster truck."

Jerry Furajter, the 26-year-old driver of "Shark Attack," said the gigantic tires draw the kids in.

"That's the first thing kids notice when they walk up to them. They all want to touch the tires," Furajter said. "Then after that you'll notice the giant engines in it, they got about 1500 horsepower. They make a lot of noise. There's no mufflers on these. When you start it up you know it's coming."

Joshua Conrad, executive director of the International Monster Truck Museum in Butler, Indiana, called it "the stroller test."

"If the bottom of your bleachers isn't completely packed with strollers," he said, "you're not doing it right."

Monster truck mania

Industry insiders estimate there are about two dozen players on the monster truck circuit these days — with names like Xtreme Monster Trucks, Monster Truck Throwdown, Full Throttle Monster Truck and Monster Truck Roundup. They range in size from independent promoters with a couple of vehicles, to the industry goliath, Monster Jam, with more than 50 trucks.

Monster Jam is owned by Feld Entertainment, the same company that owns Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey. Monster Jam says it sold 4.5 million tickets last year, produced shows in 30 countries, and has its own cable channel and video game.

Even toy maker Mattel has jumped into the action with Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live, a traveling show featuring glow-in-the-dark monster trucks smashing junker cars. The company sells Hot Wheels miniatures of those same trucks at Walmart.

Harper, 47, a bearded Georgia native, worked in the NASCAR world for 20 years and joined Monster Truck Jam as a driver in 2001 before striking out on his own. He now owns 12 trademarked trucks that perform in his Monster Truck Wars shows, and also hires independent owner/drivers.

Harper has three fully-supported teams that typically stage shows in three cities every weekend. They haul the colorful trucks, along with spare parts, from arena to arena in 18-wheelers. Merchandise sales of toy monster trucks, caps and T-shirts contribute about a third of the company's profits.

Harper likes to stay close to the action. On a given weekend, he'll repair a broken axle, sell hotdogs or pull on a fire suit and climb in the cockpit.

"Driving is probably the most fun thing I've ever done because you just do more with it," he says. "Jump higher, do donuts, wheelies. If you're on a racetrack you're highly regulated on what you can do. At the Daytona 500, all the guys are doing the exact same thing."

Growing faithful fans

Back in 1979, the first monster truck — christened "Bigfoot" — was a souped-up Ford F-250 pickup. Today's monster trucks no longer resemble a truck. Now, all major components are custom-made, from the nitrogen-charged shocks to the huge tires made of a rubber/plastic composite. The finished vehicles weigh 6 tons, burn methyl alcohol – like dragsters – and cost up to $300,000.

And with more monster truck shows popping up at venues across the country, the stunts also have gotten more extreme.

"Now every truck can do a backflip," said Conrad, with the monster truck museum. "They just keep pushing it further and further. Like, someone did a double backflip."

Monster truck rallies have been compared to professional wrestling — in other words, they're scripted. Harper does not disagree.

"This is an entertainment business," he says. "We're here to put on a show, not competition."

The fans, for their part, can't seem to get enough.

Back in Levelland, the drawling announcer yelled, "Fire 'em up!" and four cartoonish contraptions, Shark Attack, T-Rex (a snarling, scaly dinosaur), Loco-MOTIVE (a train-themed truck) and Outlaw (a pickup emblazoned with a masked bandit) tore around the dirt arena, flying over jumps. The supercharged, 8-cylinder engines were so loud they rattled ribcages.

"They go fast and crush cars and they do high jumps," said a breathless Jedediah Kidwell, 6, who attended the show with his family.

His mother, Kaitlin, said Jed has a collection of 200 model cars and monster trucks at their home in Lubbock, and he and his brother and sister love motorsports.

"He sleeps with a tire," she said. "He's had it since he was, like, 2. It's a go-cart tire and he has it in his bed."

Transcript

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

One of the fastest growing industries in family entertainment is monster truck rallies. These ear-splitting jumbo-tire behemoths careen around arenas and fly through the air. And the shows are geared to a unique audience in American motorsports - small children. John Burnett has our story.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: Levelland, Texas - is anybody ready for Monster Truck Wars?

JOHN BURNETT, BYLINE: Yes, they are. The Civic Arena in Levelland out on the flatlands of West Texas is packed with families wearing protective earmuffs on this Saturday in mid-February.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: Three, two, one, fire them up.

BURNETT: With that, four cartoonish contraptions - a shark, a dinosaur, a locomotive and a pickup - each about the size of a medium bulldozer, roar around the track to the crowd's delight. Back in 1979, the first monster truck, christened Bigfoot, was a souped-up Ford pickup. Today, they don't look anything like trucks. They weigh six tons, burn methyl alcohol, cost around $300,000, and all the major components are custom-made, from the super heavy-duty shocks to the tires that are 5 1/2 feet tall.

JERRY FURAJTER: The first thing that makes it a monster truck is the gigantic tires.

BURNETT: Jerry Furajter is the 26-year-old driver of Shark Attack, whose fiberglass body resembles a tooth-baring shark.

FURAJTER: That's the first thing kids notice when they walk up to them. They all want to touch the tires. Then after that, you'll notice the giant engines in it. They got about 1,500 horsepower. They make a lot of noise. There's no mufflers on these. I mean, when you start it up, you know it's coming.

BURNETT: Audiences are flocking to these ear-punishing spectacles of engineering and horsepower. Industry insiders estimate there are about two dozen players on the monster truck circuit these days, from independent driver promoters to the industry goliath Monster Jam. Monster Jam says it has over 50 trucks, sold 4 1/2 million tickets last year and produces shows around the world. Even Mattel has jumped into the action, with a traveling live show featuring glow-in-the-dark Hot Wheels monster trucks smashing old cars. The company then turns around and sells those miniature monster trucks at Walmart. Monster Truck Wars is a mid-level operator that puts on 130 shows in 70 cities a year.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: This is Devin Jones in T-Rex.

(SOUNDBITE OF ENGINE REVVING)

BURNETT: The toy trucks are a big profit center. Out in the lobby, families are snatching up $15 models of the green, grimacing T. Rex that's doing wheelies and doughnuts on the dirt arena.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: You like that one, or you want the green one?

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: The green one.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: The green one?

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Thank you so much.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Absolutely.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Y'all have fun.

BURNETT: The owner of Monster Truck Wars is Michael Harper, 47, from Decatur, Texas. He worked in the NASCAR world for 20 years, then joined Monster Jam as a driver and now owns 12 of the trucks that perform in his shows.

MICHAEL HARPER: So when I started doing Monster Trucks as a kid, it was sponsored by Budweiser and Red Man Chewing Tobacco. Now we're sponsored by a toy company called Monster Machines. So it's a different demographic. Like, if you look out there right now, you see 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds, 5-year-olds.

TOBIAS MCCURRY: I like the designery and, like, the sound of them. I like how they look and, like, how big the tires are.

BURNETT: That's 8-year-old Tobias McCurry. I asked his dad, David, an engine builder in Lubbock, how much he expected to drop on his family of eight today.

DAVID: Oh, probably between 3- to 500 dollars. Well, actually, no, we've already spent over two - wow. It'd probably be closer...

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Yeah.

DAVID: ...To 5- to 600 dollars, actually, by the time it's said and done.

BURNETT: How much will parents spend to make their children happy? Monster truck promoters think the sky's the limit.

JEDEDIAH KIDWELL: They go fast and crush cars. And they do high jumps.

BURNETT: Jedediah Kidwell, 6, has a collection of 200 monster trucks and model cars at their home in Lubbock, says his mother, Caitlin.

CAITLIN: He sleeps with a tire. He's had it since he was, like, 2. He - it's a go-kart tire, and he has it in his bed.

BURNETT: For NPR News, I'm John Burnett in Levelland, Texas.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)