Today, it's the exciting battle of the Monster Trucks!
Trucks, trucks, trucks, hundering from the beaches of Malibu into the Superdome Stadiums of North America.
From the biggest, most famous trucks and awesome specialty vehicles ever built,
join film and television star Claude Eakins, your host Jan Gabriel,
and exciting television personality Judy Landers as they take you on a powerpack trip around the nation and into the wilds of Canada.
Battle of the Monster Trucks is a fascinating look at the newest craze crushing its way across America.
Hi everybody and welcome to the Battle of the Monster Trucks.
Today, you're going to see the biggest, meanest monster trucks and specialty vehicles ever created.
I'm Jan Gabriel and joining me is our special guest today, the star of stage, screen and television, Mr. Claude Eakins.
Thank you Jan. These big monster trucks you see here are just a sample of some of the most exciting rigs ever built for professional exhibition and competition.
And today, you'll see all the big names.
You'll see Bigfoot, the world's most famous truck.
There's USA One and even a brand new Monster Corps vet car and a whole lot more.
Truck and tractor pulling in major stadiums like the Pontiac Silverdome, the Houston Astrodome, Seattle Kingdom and others have given the monster trucks a real showcase.
Well Claude, that's true and literally millions of people are turning out at these giant arenas to see these awesome and powerful monster trucks.
But the real story began much earlier.
When World War II loomed on the horizon, the Willie's Oberlin Motor Company started building a four wheel military vehicle commonly known as the Jeep.
It was followed by four wheel drive troop carriers, ambulances and amphibious trucks.
And it's from these early four wheel drive vehicles that these very showbiz like four wheel drive monster trucks have developed.
Today on Battle of the Monster Trucks, we're going to take you to all parts of the country to show you the most unusual in four wheel vehicles and more.
You'll see dragster tractors, funny cars and we've even found the biggest, most humongous truck in the world.
And joining us will be a host of experts and we're very delighted and fortunate to have with us that good looking Judy Landers.
Now there is an exciting lady.
So let's get ready to feel the horsepower as we travel first to the big Pontiac Silverdome where Gary Lee and Larry Newber are going to introduce us to Bigfoot and USA one.
Gentlemen, thank you, Jen, Gabriel and Claude Aikens.
Well, Larry, what's the old saying about men and boys and the price of their toys?
Did you ever get in trouble as a youngster for playing in the mud?
Yeah, I think I have.
But the guys here tonight and a few ladies are not here just for fun, but they're actually here for profit.
We're going to see rigs that may be worth up to maybe a couple of hundred thousand dollars, certainly one hundred thousand dollars, Gary.
We're in the Pontiac Silverdome just north of Detroit on any given Sunday during the fall.
Sixty thousand folks are here to cheer for the Detroit Lions football team.
We also have the basketball floor here with Kelly Trapeuka, Isaiah Thomas and the Detroit Pistons.
But today the concrete floor is filled with mud.
That's right, Gary, later on we're going to see some mud bogging, but first Everett Jasmine is very popular monster truck USA one.
We're going to see some heavy duty car crushing crossovers.
And he's joining the most famous monster truck in the world, Bob Chandler's Bigfoot.
This is what the crowd has come to see.
First, they line up on opposite sides of the parked cars and attempt a crossover facing each other.
Well, there's near 60,000 people here to watch this.
And I'll tell you, it's not nearly as easy as it looks.
As you can see, the drivers have to be very careful in just exactly where they present.
Oh, way up in the air.
We'll stand for sure.
Everett Jasmine.
Jasmine, by the way, is from Spring Lake Park, Minnesota.
He's a real engineer when it comes to building these monster trucks.
Well, the king of the monster truck, Bob Chandler hails in the St. Louis area and has literally written the book on monster trucks.
In fact, he built Bigfoot as an advertisement for his four wheel drive business back in the Midwest.
Just look at these two.
What's the horsepower involved there?
Bigfoot One is actually the first of the monster trucks.
It's a 74 modified Ford pickup.
It is using the 460 cubic engine.
That windshield just went, Gary.
Or I guess there was a rear window.
And both of these trucks are over 11 feet in height.
And Bigfoot One is utilizing 14 shock absorbers to help cushion the ride over these cars.
We talk about four by four by four.
Well, that simply means that it's four wheel drive with four wheel steering.
You know, Gary, just the tires alone, the heavy duty excavation type tires are 66 inches tall, 11 feet.
You know, I think that's even higher than Isaiah can jump.
There goes some more glass.
And I had the chance once to ride with Bob Chandler.
And it's quite a thrill to be strapped inside this monster vehicle.
As I mentioned earlier, it's a lot more dangerous than what it appears.
It's very slippery up there on top of the painted ruffs of these cars.
There's the pride and joy of Chevrolet, the pearl painted USA number one.
And Bigfoot really is an exciting truck.
I talked with Bob Chandler earlier.
There it is, the biggest, the baddest, the most famous four by four monster pickup truck, a movie star, a television personality.
This is Bigfoot One.
Here is the creator and the builder, Bob Chandler.
Indeed, the license plate reads Bigfoot One.
This is the original.
This is 1974 Ford.
What was the motivation?
Why did you build it?
Eleven years ago, I just, I had no intention of doing this, but it just got a little bigger, a little more ridiculous every year.
We kept breaking parts, so we put something heavier in it.
We wanted to run stronger, so we put a bigger motor in it.
Just kept it getting more ridiculous every year is all I can say.
I'd love to watch you parallel park it and crab it because it steers from both ends.
Let's talk about the drive train and the steering capabilities.
Okay, it's got two five-ton military axles.
Two fronts, by the way.
The front steers like a regular truck with a steering wheel.
The rear is hydraulic, and what it does is it gives it a lot more mobility.
When you're this big, it's awkward in places where the rear steering helps out.
Good luck.
Thank you very much.
Ebert, earlier we saw you car crushing.
Now we're going to see some mud bogging.
Do you have a preference?
I guess the car crushing primarily because it's cleaner,
and there's a lot less work getting it ready for the next weekend, of course.
What about mud bogging now?
It's really obviously an important part of every competition.
Is there a secret or is it just a matter of luck?
There's a lot of factors.
I don't know if it's luck or if there's a secret to it, but there's a lot of factors.
The biggest factor is how the given pit is built.
One weekend you'll have a pit that's real loose and maybe shallower than another weekend.
Sometimes they're deeper.
Sometimes the mud is heavier, thicker.
You never know until you've seen a few vehicles go through it,
and then you have to try and plan your strategy from there.
So there's no luck about it, I don't believe.
As Bigfoot and USA1 get ready for their mud bog runs,
we'd like to show you some of the mud racing that went on here at the Pontiac Silver Dome earlier today.
Yeah, this strange-looking vehicle looked like it came out of World War II
or maybe the nearest junkyard or some poor combination of both of them.
They called it sodbusting, as you can see. It was a real oddity.
Now, Larry, the object of this competition is to go the greatest distance,
but I'm not sure how they measured it.
I don't think I'm going to walk out there in the mud with a tape measure.
Yeah, it's a little messy down there, and sodbuster didn't quite make the distance, I don't think.
Another one of the trucks out earlier today was this red hot number named Strictly Wicked.
Obviously, it has to be driven by a woman, and by the way, she just loved putting the pedal to the metal.
She just kept grinding away and firing away and kept digging deeper and deeper and even still more deeper.
I think she's out there digging for oil.
Now, my question is, does she have a crew member that cleans up this rig?
Well, I don't know, Gary. They say a woman's work is never done. Well, anyway.
Now, this guy, I think, out-engineered himself. He built a mud runner that was basically all framework.
I'm guessing his theory probably was the lighter the better.
Well, I think it's time to go back to the trolling board, because not only did the run not go so well,
but he's going to be picking mud out of his teeth the next few days.
Now, there's always got to be some guy out there who outguns the field,
and this driver had the quickest trigger of them all this day.
Now, there was no stopping this H. Camaro, and he took the mud bath with a winning run.
Well, Larry, that was earlier today. Now, with the mud pit deeper and muddier,
here come the two stars of the show, USA One and Bigfoot, to take their punishment in the thick, oozy, slimy, what would you call it, Larry?
Gary, I think I'd call it yuck. Do these guys really want to be called stars who are going through all of this?
I really wonder what makes the fans love to watch these monster trucks in the mud take such abuse.
Well, I don't think anybody's quite figured it out yet. It must be vicarious in some way or another,
but I think the real answer is they don't have to clean these trucks up afterwards, Gary.
Well, Jasmine tilts and weaves its way through the mud, flinging it all over the Pontiac Silverdome.
Eventually, USA One bogs down on about four feet of mud.
You just can't believe all the time and effort and man hours went into making this truck shiny before all this began.
Well, Jasmine is pulled out after blocking down by a cable attached to a tractor at the starting line.
Now, a lot of work that goes into getting these trucks in here,
and sometimes a lot of work goes into getting them out of this mess, Gary.
Time now for a hose of pressurized water and a shaming.
Here's the king of the monster trucks once again, and we asked Bob Chandler,
hey, Bob, what do you think about just before your next mud run?
You take a nice, clean, shiny truck and you hit that mud,
and all you can do is put your foot to the floor and hope you're going straight to the pit.
You know you've got 30 or 40 hours of cleaning once you get out of the mud,
and you give it all you got.
Bob Chandler is about to give it all he has.
He's been flagged away. He puts 460 cubic inches to work.
It's a simple matter of locking the rear end in place and putting the pedal to the metal.
Gary, an activity that once was nothing more than backyard grins has become a profession for all these people.
Oh, look at the fire.
It's not only fire, but on the flip side of the coin, rust, believe it or not,
is one of the biggest problems in maintaining these vehicles because they're in wet mud so often.
That's true. Bob Chandler says the major problem is replacing all the body panels during the season.
Well, as you can see, the crowd loves Bob Chandler, and Bob Chandler loves the crowd.
Perhaps the only clean vehicle here in the Pontiac Silver Dome now is this 37 Ford pickup.
Larry Newber, a most unusual motorsports display with car crushing, the mud bog, and I think I'd like to try that sometime.
Yeah, Gary, you maybe would like to try what we saw here today,
but now comes the really hard part, cleaning up all these vehicles after all this activity.
Incidentally, most of these will be driven home, and then the real hard work cleaning up will be done.
That's what the crew is for.
In a few minutes, you're going to see the largest truck ever built in the world.
But first, here's our co-host, Claude Aikens, with Rich Johnson, vice president of Four-Wheeler Magazine.
Rich, we've just seen Bigfoot and USA One, two of the most popular monster trucks, in hard and heavy action.
They have certainly come a long way from the four-wheel drive military vehicles that fought in World War II.
Claude, the monster trucks are really just the latest in history.
The monster trucks are really just the latest in a series of crowd-pleasing exhibitions
that date all the way back to 19th century rural America.
The farmers back then did all their heavy-duty work using teams of horses,
and on Sundays, they'd all get together at some local clearing and see which team of animals could pull the most weight.
Well, then I guess I can safely assume that the natural progression was to tractors next.
That's right.
By the time the tractors came along, the local pulling events had evolved into serious competitions at the county fair level.
At first, just about everybody entered.
But then, the more popular pulling became, and the more money that was offered.
Now, naturally, they began to modify and soup up the tractors to gain more horsepower.
And as you know, today there are tractors with multiple engines and some that are just uncommonly unique.
And that's these powerful pulling tractors we see today that lead us up to the four-wheel drive trucks that have become so popular.
Four-wheel drive pulling trucks are really the first cousins of the dragster tractors.
They have tremendous power, and the fact that the trucks were four-wheel drive made them really appealing to competitors and spectators alike.
The trucks try to get all the horsepower down to the ground, to all four wheels, utilizing power-to-weight ratios.
And if you can hit the right combination on any given night, you can be the winner at a four-wheel drive truck pull.
Rich, we want to thank you and Four-Wheeler magazine for all your help in helping us to pull this one-hour special together.
It's been our pleasure, Claude.
And now, here's Jan Gabriel.
Part of the fun in helping put this battle of the monster trucks together was looking for the world's largest truck.
Laura McIntyre has found it for us.
Well, Jan, the biggest truck in the whole world is listed right here in the Guinness Book of World Records.
And it's parked just a few feet from where I'm standing, here in Sparwood, British Columbia.
This is the Terex Titan Hauler, and it's the king of all the working monster trucks.
Where Bigfoot is great at crushing cars, this bruiser can move mountains.
As you can see, everything about it is gigantic.
The Terex is as big as a house, just over 66 feet long and over 25 feet wide.
From the top of the cab guard to the ground, it measures 22 feet.
The tires alone stand 12 feet high and only last about six months.
The Terex Titan never stops.
It's in operation 24 hours a day, and to fuel up takes 960 gallons of diesel fuel.
This incredible truck was built 11 years ago and designed to be the ultimate earth mover for the strip mining industry.
Terex is the mainstay in a massive fleet of 68 monster trucks, all weighing between 100 and 350 tons.
These huge rigs haul and maul mountains of rock to get to the coal bed at the Westar Open Pit Mine.
The 16-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine delivers horsepower, which is transformed into electricity
and sent to several electric motors that drive both front and rear wheels independently at a speed of up to 23 miles per hour.
Now, you might think it takes either Superman or the Incredible Hulk to drive this baby.
Not so. The Terex operates as easily as any street or highway truck.
It has a regular steering wheel that controls both front and rear wheels at the same time.
To turn it around takes the space the size of an eight-lane highway.
Now, how much earth, or in this case rocks and boulders, can the Terex Titan move at one time?
Fully loaded, over 410 tons.
Now, of course, you're never going to see a truck this size barreling down any highway, but if you do, watch out.
It's the ultimate car crusher.
As an elder statesman, should any of the Terex Titan's major parts fail, say a drive shaft or any other serious internal damage ever occur,
the Titan would be retired forever.
The cost of a new engine would be well over $800,000, making it too costly to replace.
When ready to unload, the dump bed is extended full up. The height of the Terex increases to 56 feet, and that's higher than a five-story building.
Neither frequent snowstorms nor cold weather have ever stopped the Titan from continuing its daily chores in these rough, rocky mountains.
It stands alone in size and strength.
From Sparwood, British Columbia, I'm Flora McIntyre, back to Jan Gabriel and Claude Aikens on Malibu Beach.
Well, Claude, you're going to have to admit that that Terex Titan is quite a big truck.
How would you like to see that baby crush some cars?
You know, I think that truck could crush a whole city.
There just might be a movie story in that.
Here's a truck that belongs in the movies. This is Taurus. Taurus is driven by Jack Willman, and last weekend he took this big bruiser down to Dallas, Texas, and actually drove up and over two buses. Watch this.
Bear with me, this is going to be a big deal. He looks to be taking quite a bit over. I think he's going to try it again.
Here's a truck that belongs in the movies.
I'm Jan Gabriel, along with stage, screen, and television star Claude Aikens. You just closed in a play recently.
That's right, I did Travel in the Dark at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles.
We're going to meet another superstar, Judy Landers, the lovely Judy Landers, coming up in just a few minutes. But right now, we're going to show you some exciting wheelie trucks.
And for our show today, we sent a camera crew back to Chicago, the city of the big shoulders, where we found three of the most colorful wheelie trucks in the country.
The first was a sleek flip-top truck driven by Butch Schultz from Antwerp, Ohio. The truck is named Magnum Jr.
This is a real fancy piece of equipment. The engine is huge. It has a 600 cubic inch supercharged engine that puts out 3000 horsepower, and that's a lot.
And incidentally, these trucks are steered by independent braking on the back wheels, so you can bet the driver is going to be real busy.
Wheelie trucks are powered only by the rear wheels, and just like other pulling vehicles, the object is to put on all the weighted sled as far as you can.
Watch carefully at home as the weight of this entire truck will be carried on the back wheels. Watch it now. There you go.
Butch Schultz and Magnum Jr. trying to drag the weighted pulling sled all the way down to the end of the 175-foot pulling track.
Well, he came up a little short of the 175-foot mark as he drifted off to the left side of the course.
Here was the next truck to roll out. This is probably the most popular wheelie truck in the nation.
Well, that's right, Jen. This is Allen Gaines Orange Blossom Special. It's a 1937 Chevrolet, and it's a masterpiece.
Allen is from Georgetown, Kentucky, and the Orange Blossom Special is powered by a supercharged, 454 cubic inch, Alcala-Burney Chevrolet engine.
He's got the front end up and a real power play, and he's got the line. I bet he's going to get some good distance out of this.
That's for sure. He's really on it as we watch him bring it down, and it looks almost as though he's trying to park it in the first balcony.
As you can tell, these fans really turn on to the excitement of these wheelie trucks.
Now, watch this truck open it up. You know, most trick trucks can raise the body up from the front, but this truck, Syco, does it from the back.
This is another one of the most sought after of all the wheelie trucks. It's driven by George Stennett from Grand Blank, Michigan. It's a 1965-40 Kano line.
They don't even make those anymore. And even when they were turning them out, I don't think any of them ever had a 464 cubic inch experimental engine in them like this one does.
I doubt it. That's a pretty hefty engine. Well, if the strobe light inside the cab doesn't bother his vision, you might wonder how Syco sees where he's going once the cab is up in the air.
Well, there's a small window on the floorboard that lets him see the track in front of him.
Syco is up, up, and away as George Stennett now gets a good start, but he's leveled off a little too soon and drifts it off to the right side of the track. Now you never know.
He sure likes to keep trying. I never thought he was going to give up.
Well, I hope you enjoyed the wheelie trucks. But right now, we're going to go to Detroit, Michigan's Joe Lewis Arena.
Waiting for us in Detroit is Jack O'Root and the exciting Judy Landers. They're going to show us funny cars.
Funny cars? I wonder where that term came from.
Well, gentlemen, the term funny car was coined right here in the Detroit area when the funny cars first began to race.
My co-host will tell us more about that in a moment. Let's meet her right now.
She's the star of VJ and the Bear, Madam's Place, and now the million dollar body challenge, the lovely Judy Landers.
Thank you, Jack. Funny cars got started back in the early 1960s right here in the Motor City of Detroit. But now, drag racing funny cars has taken on a whole new turn.
It's certainly a lot different from the last time I saw funny cars run in Pomona, California.
Indeed they are. And today, we're going to see six of the top nationally ranked funny car pullers competing for distance.
They'll be carrying a 50,000 pound sled across a 175 foot track.
By now, most of you realize that this truck and tractor pulling and this funny car competition have swept the country in terms of a national phenomenon.
One of the men that was instrumental in making it what it is today is the president of the United States Hot Rod Association, Mr. Bob George.
Bob, what is it that is drawing these people into these indoor arenas? Hundreds of thousands of people week in and week out.
Well, we anticipate over five million people this year. And I think to answer your question is a little bit tough, except we've taken drag racing,
as you mentioned earlier, and we put it inside arenas and stadiums.
You know the object in drag racing is how quick can you run a quarter mile dash? An acceleration test for 1,320 feet.
Well, hot rod truck full of funny car pulling is just like that. It's not how quick you can run the length of the track, however,
it's can you run the length of the track because the 50,000 pound weight transfer machine is the handicap.
It's the equalizer and that's what makes the competition hard, tough and fierce all over the nation wherever we go.
Well, Bob, thanks so much for stopping by. We know you've got a busy schedule tonight and we're getting ready now.
It looks like they're going to fire these motors up, these monster machines. So let's go up to Judy Landers.
While we're waiting for Jack, let me tell you that funny cars got started in the early 1960s when a group of young men from the Motor City area
formed an organization called the Ram Chargers. They were quick to develop new ideas,
thus beginning the evolution of the funny cars and leading up to the radical funny cars of today.
You're back, Jack. That's right, Judy. Today, the cars that we'll be seeing pulling,
they'll be pulling a 50,000 pound sled that transfers the weight from the back to the front,
thus making it heavier and heavier as they go down the track. And it looks like we've got our first puller on the line right now.
The first car is the Avenger. The owner and driver is Gary Collins from El Dorado Springs, Missouri.
Gary's first event pulling funny cars was January 1st, 1985, so I guess you could say he's a real rookie.
The chain is all hooked up now. You can see he starts to put it into gear,
and I think we're about ready for our first run with these funny car pullers. They're just incredible.
He's in the throttle. Look at the wheels. They just pick right up off the ground. That's got to be about three feet up off the ground already.
Look at how he's got the car pointed in the wrong direction. Look at those big tires. Just tearing up the dirt there.
Well, that was a beautiful run there by the Avenger, Collins, but we'll have to wait for the time here.
Well, Judy, here's the pull on that first one, 165 and three and one quarter inches.
That's a pretty good benchmark on a 175 foot track. Everybody have to shoot at that one.
It's going to be a hard score to beat.
And look, we've got the next one out. That would be Dan Patrick in the Red Baron.
That mark of 165 plus is really going to be tough for Patrick to break here today, but he's on the pull.
And see how he comes up through the throttle. Not too much nose lift in there, but he's zigzagging back and forth across the track.
We're going to dig up the dirt.
Look at those ruts moving for me.
The ruts could be a problem for other drivers, but he's made his pull.
Can you believe this with all that zigzag and back and forth across the track?
He's the new leader, 168 and a half feet. That's incredible.
Here's Tennessee Thunder. It's owned and driven by Mike Hollingsworth.
He's 29 years old and he's from Springfield, Tennessee.
Tennessee Thunder is a 1980 Simmons Arrow fiberglass body.
Looks like they're hooking right up.
We know we're talking about the front tires being 14 inches, but look at how high those back tires stand.
No, no. This was the second funny car ever built for pulling.
I've seen it for the first time in Nashville.
Well, he's in the throttle right now.
Check this, but he's not raising that nose up off too far, but he's generating a lot of power.
I want to see a wheelie.
There you go.
Boy, that's a good run.
That's an incredible run. That could be the best run thus far.
Tennessee Thunder, 172 feet, 9 inches. That is the best look today.
And it's only a 175 foot track. He almost had a full run.
Okay, you saw him earlier today. This is Dan Patrick, who was driving the Red Baron.
Well, now he's in the Warlord.
The Warlord is a 1983 Trans Am Pontiac Firebird.
The Warlord looks lean and mean to me.
It does look mean.
$20,000 he's putting into this car.
There's a lot on the line tonight. He's got the nose of it right up in the air.
He's just been taking it as he comes down the pipe.
Look at that good run. That's a real good run for the Warlord.
173 feet, 2 3 quarters inches. Judy, he's our new leader.
Well, Judy, you got your wish. Here it comes, the Green Monster.
Tim Arfons is driving the Green Monster. He's from Akin, Ohio.
And his father is the famous Art Arfons of the legendary Green Monster fame.
Light it up! Light it up!
Look at the fire just come out of this. You want to roast some marshmallows?
It looks like the Fourth of July.
The Green Monster Tim Arfons ready to make his pull.
The pull that he has to beat is over 173 feet, so it's going to be tough.
Here he goes. He's got it up in the air, but not by much.
Well, he's got to practically do a full pull in order to win.
Wouldn't it be great to see a full pull with this jet-powered machine?
We may just have it here. Look at it. He's still going.
Awfully close to a full pull. Judy, that was a good run.
Hear the noise from the jet. Sounds like we're landing here in Detroit.
174.5 feet. I just can't believe it. We haven't had a full pull yet.
Okay, here's the famous Chi-Town Hustler, driven by Mike Hoff.
He's 35 years old and he's from Westminster, Massachusetts.
Well, he could put the crowd on his feet right now if he can beat that 174.5.
That's the magic mark for the Chi-Town Hustler.
There it is. He's up. The Chi-Town Hustler is just getting it on down the road.
The roots don't look too bad right now. There he veers over a little bit.
He got out of the throttle for a second. That could spell trouble, but he's back into it.
Still not enough. I guess it's just a bad day for the Chi-Town Hustler.
But it's got to be a good day for Tim Arfons and his green monster.
I am really excited for Tim Arfons. He put on a great show.
He did a fantastic job and my congratulations go out to him.
Well, some final thoughts from our co-host, Judy Landers. Judy, just a great night.
It was terrific. I'm a believer now. This funny car pulling is really an exciting sport.
I'm glad you've been a part of it. Congratulations to Tim Arfons and your green monster.
It was great working with you, Jack.
Judy, the pleasure was all mine. You guys back in California, Claude and Jan,
I hope you've enjoyed the show and let's go back to you right now.
Truck, tractor and funny car pulling has really become a phenomenon in this country
and continues to grow with new and exciting vehicles being built all the time.
Well, that's right. This is a brand new truck behind us right here.
This is called the Michigan Ice Monster.
Now, I asked the owner, Brett Engelman, where the name came from.
Well, the answer was simple. He said, we live in Michigan and it gets mighty cold there in the wintertime.
Claude Egan's got a question for you. Okay.
Hi, let's say that you want one of these big monster trucks parked in your garage, but you can't afford one.
What do you do? You build a mini monster.
That's absolutely right. Watch this.
You just watched. Those mini monsters are going to really catch on big.
Right now, in contrast, we're going to show you the largest touring truck in the world, Bigfoot 4.
120,000 fans were at Anaheim Stadia.
Our cameras were there the first night to watch Bob Chandler's incredible Bigfoot 4,
except a human wave of appreciation from the stands.
This awesome monster truck then went to work crushing cars.
Bigfoot 4 is a 1985 Ford, which uses a 460 cubic inch blown and highly modified engine.
The truck stands over 12 and a half feet high on its huge 10 foot tall tires.
Its five ton military axles are what enabled this monster truck to use such big tires.
And interestingly enough, Bob, because of the size of the tires, this Bigfoot can actually float on water.
You know, a lot of people ask what Bigfoot is worth in dollars and cents.
And at this stage of his career, I don't think you can really put a price on Bigfoot.
He's been in several motion pictures, dozens of television shows, made hundreds of personal appearances, and who knows?
Maybe someday we'll see him in the Smithsonian Institute.
Bob Chandler, of course, literally invented monster trucks, and he really enjoys being with the thousands of fans who turn out at these events.
You can really tell it. And of course, he's worked with youngsters all over the country.
Well, as Bigfoot finished up and took a well deserved bow at Anaheim Stadium,
there were a variety of mud bog racers getting ready to strut their stuff through the thick, rich California mud.
Oh, you're going to love this, Claude. What?
One of the best mud racers in the country. Go for it in G mode.
Oh, it looks like he's racing.
Right back.
Tito, 42 times.
After the mud boggers had slipped and slid their way through the mud bog pit, Bigfoot Four came back out for an encore.
Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, he fit over the mud bog pit rather than in it, but still managed to make an exciting run.
As you watch Bigfoot, you'll notice that both the front and rear wheels are used for steering.
It's fascinating to watch.
Now, if you'd like one of these Bigfoots parked in your garage, I'm sure Bob Chandler would sell you all the parts you need.
And rumor has it that a new Bigfoot with an all-female crew will be unveiled soon, and I hear it's going to be called Ms. Bigfoot.
Now, you've just seen some great mud bog racing, but this bruiser is the king of the mud racing machines.
This is the One-Eyed Giant Cyclops, owned by Gary Gardner, with over $100,000 in this beauty.
Now, it seems a shame to run it through the mud, but that's what this baby does the best.
So we watch it in action, and when we return, you'll see monster truck drag racing on the tops of automobiles.
Do you have a feeling we're being followed?
Well, I thought something, perhaps.
Well, we've certainly showed you a lot of strange and spectacular vehicles today on Battle of the Monster Trucks.
So what could possibly be left? Drag racing.
Only in America would they think of something like this. Monster trucks drag racing over the tops of automobiles.
Let's go to Oklahoma City and Bruce Flanders.
All right. Keep your eye on this one.
Well, Jan and Claude, you're right. I'm in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
I'm sitting in a truck called Frankenstein's Monster, and it is a monster.
It's one of four that have made it to the finals in a crush-off.
You'll see what that's all about in a little while.
It's going to be run drag racing style as we go over the tops of some dozens of cars that are sitting here on the floor.
There's a lot to this whole weekend, a lot of money at stake, a lot of excitement, but more to it than that.
It's kind of like a doubleheader weekend, along with the crush-off that we'll be seeing in just a little while.
Next door to us, there's a dynamic car show full of all kinds of glitter and chrome and excitement.
We'll come back to the finals here, but first let's go take a look at the car show.
Burn out that corner, boy. Just to my car now she really feels. I'm looking real tough with chrome reverse wheels. Blue car waxed up, sure looks pretty. Don't want to get my chicken naked out to drag city.
Yeah, drag city, what does she do now? Drag city, what does she do now? Drag city, what does she do? Burn out that corner, boy.
The DJ is saying I'm a favorite station. Drag city races are the fastest in the city. Wheels are the wildest and the stockings are pretty. I'm getting the money, grab some money, split the drag city.
Drag city, what does she do now? Drag city, what does she do now? Drag city, what does she do? Burn out that corner, boy.
Just to my car. Just to my car. Just to my car.
Well, we hope you enjoyed that look at the car show. Now we're getting ready for the first round of semi-finals. And in the far lane you've got Frankenstein's Monster, a Ford pickup truck.
And in the close lanes it is Monster Mash, another Ford pickup truck. The winner of this one goes on up into the finals and the flag is green. They're going for it.
The one who gets up quickest is the one called Monster Mash, driven by Mike Welch out of Bellingham, Washington. He's the smoothest over the first pair of cars.
Now the end result, it's over when the rear wheels hit the ground. Front wheels down for Monster Mash and there it is. Mike Welch, who said he wanted to win this one for the Superchargers, takes the win and moves on into the finals.
And it looks as though Frankenstein's Monster with Ben Winst out of the wheel out of Movane, Kansas is history. Made it to the semi-finals but will not come back in the finals.
It's 21-year-old Mike Welch out of Bellingham, Washington in a truck that he's owned since he was 13 years of age taking the win.
Bringing to life the 1985 Corvette with a 454 cubic inch Chevrolet engine and a three-speed automatic, this is not what you'd call a monster truck. It must be in a category all by itself.
The circuit comes down, getting him lined up for the other semi-final round. Waiting in the other lane, Roland Thunder with Jim Oldacre. Been on the circuit for not quite a year. In fact, he's the youngest or the least experienced driver on this circuit.
Former motorcycle racer, spent a lot of time in the desert and on motocross circuits.
Alright, we're about ready with the other half of the semi-finals now. And in the lane furthest away from you, it's a brand new 1985 Corvette with a 454 cubic inch motor at the wheel. 25 years of age, Cliff Starboard from Movane, Kansas.
In the lane nearest to you, the only monster van called Roland Thunder. The owner and driver, Jim Oldacre out of Redondo Beach, California. Former motorcycle racer with a 1972 Dodge Tradesman van.
Probably the only monster van on the racing circuit. This one powered by a 1976-71 Detroit diesel motor. So both of them making lots of horse powers about ready to happen. Watch closely.
Nearest lane, Oldacre gets it up quicker, but the van is the biggest and heaviest vehicle on this circuit. Look at him mash those cars. He boogies down the lane. He's way ahead of the bat. The bat was supposed to be tough.
But it looks as though it's going to be the van. The heaviest one gets the rear wheels down first and is the winner. It's Jim Oldacre who comes back in the final and the vet owned by Cliff Starboard does not make it to the final.
Alright, they're loading them in right now for the final and it has come down to this. These two trucks will face each other in this crush-off. Drag racing style. The first one to the other end is the winner.
First we've got Monster Mash, the bright yellow one that is based out of Bellingham, Washington and driven by 21-year-old Mike Welch. He's about ready to go in the other lane. It's going to be Roland Thunder driven by Jim Oldacre, a 25-year-old out of Redondo Beach.
They're about set for the flag. Watch closely and see who gets up on top of their line of cars first and then gets to the other end. The determining factor at the far end is whose rear wheels clear the last car and hit the ground first.
It doesn't matter what your front wheels do, your rear wheels. If you get off to the side, you're disqualified. Look at that kid get it up on top. Mike Welch moving real hard with the Monster Mash. Roland Thunder can't keep up.
Monster Mash was devastating. Just devastating. And he is pumped up. We're going to get a chance to try and get down there and talk to Mike Welch, the winner here in Oklahoma City, as still Roland Thunder trying to get to the end of the lane. And those crushed cars are just used up. Roland Thunder ended up second place overall and there's a happy young Mike Welch.
Mike, what happened right at the end? I mean it was a beautiful run, but right at the end you broke. Well, we wanted to make sure we were going to win hands down and I looked over. I had him by a little. I just put my foot to the floor. Just went for it. What broke on the truck? If you had a chance to look.
Well, it's the steering hub knuckle there with this much weight bouncing down full throttle like I did. They're bound to break. We broke them in the past. You have put on one heck of a weekend of excitement. Have you enjoyed yourself? You spent money in thrash parts. Well, I loved it. I loved working with you guys and it was a lot of fun. We come out to do 110 percent like I've said in the past and I feel that we did that this afternoon. Congratulations. Thank you.
The Convention Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma did not start out as a junkyard. It certainly ended up that way today after the battle of the monster trucks. Our winner today was Mike Welch out of Bellingham, Washington. Our congratulations go out to him. It was an exciting run. He broke parts right at the end. We got parts. You want parts? We're going to be going for more monster truck action in just a little bit with Jan Gabriel and Claude Aikens. So let's go there.
I have to admit I like that kind of drag racing. Well, it's drag racing and demolition derby all in one. You know, that gives me a thought. I think the United States government ought to subsidize that sport. Think about it. You take all the junk cars off the American highways. You just may have something there.
And before we leave, I want to take this opportunity to thank the many people who made this program possible, and particularly the men who build, own, and drive these magnificent monster trucks that you've seen here today.
It has been a monumental project pulling this all together, and my hat is off to everyone as well.
And my personal thanks to Judy Landers and to our astute on the scene reporters and of course, Claude Aikens. Thank you very much, my friend.
It has been a monstrous pleasure. Thank you once again for joining us on Battle of the Monster Trucks. We'll see you next time.
Thank you.