Obsession Racing 2011 Press Release #7

(Menifee, California – Obsession Racing PR – By Jill Swanson) – On July 1st-3rd, Obsession Racing was at the San Diego State Fair with both trucks for WGAS Motorsports. All three days we had two exhibition runs that consisted of two minutes a piece. This fair is always a lot of fun because of how many people we know that attended the show. It is nice because after the event they open up the pit area to the fans which lets us mingle with them. It is always great to hear the compliments and comments from the wide array of fans on how they performed and how they appreciate our business. As always Eric’s capabilities and performance level always makes him a fan favorite as the Youngest Monster Truck Driver in the World.

For the Fourth of July we were in Pomona, California for the KABOOM Monster Trucks and Fireworks Show promoted by WGAS Motorsports. At this event we only had Eric’s Obsessed monster truck booked with him driving. Eric took the truck to the semi finals in racing. The truck that took him out was Iron Outlaw, who ended up winning the final round. For freestyle Eric was scheduled to be the third truck out. Eric’s typical fashion his first two hits were to back side the freestyle landing ramp and then he turned around and jumped off the ramp side! Eric was the first truck to do this and it was spectacular! He did an awesome job and finished up his freestyle with a no handed donut (which made him a little dizzy). The firework show was great and we really appreciate all of the help from Jeff Jones and his family.

Eric Swanson airs out Obsessed at the Kaboom event in Pomona.

On the 15th of July, Rick and Eric went to Turlock, California for John Shipman Motorsports for the opening night of the Turlock Fair. They were two of four trucks that put on an exhibition run after all of the tuff trucks were done racing. They didn’t have a lot to work with as far as obstacles, but Eric and Rick made sure they hit everything that they possibly could! Eric managed to even put the truck on the side two wheels for a short time and Rick caught some of the biggest air of the night! We would also like to thank Paul Churchill for helping to get all of the eight tires loaded and Laurie for the goodies.

Obsession flies through the air in Turlock, California.

For more information on the Obsession and Obsessed monster trucks, visit the team online at www.ObsessionRacing.com.

Obsession Racing 2011 Press Release #4

(Menifee, California – Obsession Racing PR) – The month of March was a busy one for Obsession Racing. It was consumed by maintaining the monster trucks and preparing them to look showroom quality for our Las Vegas display and other upcoming events. Both trucks had body work done and were re-wrapped to make them look brand new again. The hard work and maintenance paid off as they put us on display right at the entrance to the World Finals Pit Party, for all eyes to see. Eric had a big turn out of people interested in seeing the World’s Youngest Monster Truck Driver and they were excited to get his autograph. It was amazing that such a vast majority of people had already heard and seen Eric through, internet, YouTube, etc. We were very proud of the group of fans that he has already acquired!  As always, it was great to see our fans, friends and family. It was also nice to be able to spend a little more time with them during the full day of the autograph session.

"World's Youngest Monster Truck Driver" Eric Swanson signing autographs at the Monster Jam World Finals.

Our next event after Vegas was held in Irwindale, California on April 2nd. Eric was excited and honored that he would be able to drive in this event. This was Eric’s first event of this year. He did an awesome job as he was put up against Jimmy Creten in Bounty Hunter in his first round of racing. Rick didn’t get a chance to be up against his son, but he did do a good job in racing also. Since they didn’t get a chance to race each other, the competition was in freestyle. Eric managed to bump out Dad by a couple points. Eric had a good time in freestyle. He didn’t want to quit! He did some great donuts and caught some huge air! It was a good night for all! We also want to give a special thanks to Michael Gritzkie, Tom Read, and Jeff Jones for helping crew for Obsession Racing. David Smith and Daron Basl from Flame Motorsports were also a big help and they towed our trailer to and from the show for us. Daron Basl stayed with us in between shows and as a big help to us and was always willing to lend a hand when we needed it!

Obsession and Obsessed race at Monster Jam in Fresno.

After Irwindale, we headed to Fresno for Monster Jam April 15th-17th. Due to prior commitments, Jeff Jones was unable to drive Obsession so Rick had Jimmy Lehnertz to drive Obsession in his place for the weekend. Jimmy said he would drive and was looking forward to getting behind the wheel again in a monster truck. This was a very busy weekend, having three shows overall. Jimmy looked great driving Obsession! I guess it’s just like riding a bike. He looked and said he felt very comfortable behind the wheel and it showed! He even managed to take out Rick in racing. Unfortunately we had some rear steering issues with Obsession, but Jimmy was still able to put on an awesome show for the crowd. In Obsessed we had to change a transmission on Friday night but that didn’t stop Rick from putting on a strong show for the rest of the weekend. We would like to thank Jimmy and his father Tom for all of their hard work and also Mike and Rob for crewing and helping out the Obsession Racing Team.

For more information on the Obession Racing team and the Obsessed and Obsession monster trucks, visit the team’s website online at www.ObsessionRacing.com.

Obsession Racing 2011 Press Release #3

(Menifee, California) The last three weekends Obsession Racing attended three events for Monster Jam, two in California and one in Oregon. The first weekend was held in Portland, Oregon on February 12th-13th at the Rose Garden Arena which featured three events in two days. Both afternoon shows on Saturday and Sunday had huge pit parties. The Saturday afternoon and Saturday night show Jeff Jones took Obsession all the way to the semi finals. Where Jeff shined in racing, Rick’s limelight was in freestyle. They put on a great show for the Obsession Racing team! On Sunday afternoon Jeff’s shock broke on Obsession during his first round of racing, which put him out for the rest of the afternoon. Rick in Obsessed did an awesome job of racing but unfortunately the call was made to a company truck. Rick put another great show on for Obsession Racing by hitting the big jump first of his peers and blistered some radical donut too! We would like to give a special thanks to Justin and Tom for keeping Obsession racing on their game!

Our next event was held at the Los Angeles Dodgers Stadium for the first time in history. This was an event of a lifetime and the fans proved it! The weather wasn’t on our side for this weekend, but that didn’t stop, fans, family and friends! It was continual rain Friday and Saturday. The track was a major mud pit, but the show must go on! This was the worst muddy experience we have ever dealt with! The trucks did their best under the conditions though. Racing was cut short for both trucks and freestyle was interesting and took everything the drivers could do, just to get over the jumps and to see out of their windshield! (Monster trucks don’t come with windshield wipers!) We want to thank Eric and Jim for dealing with muddy trucks and helping out! Next year when the weather holds out, Dodgers Stadium will be a premiere location.

Rick Swanson freestyles in the mud in Los Angeles.

Our latest event was held in Oakland California for yet another Monster Jam show. The forecast for this show was snow. Fortunely Mother Nature was on our side this time. After 10 hours (at least) of cleaning the mud off of the tires, truck and throughout the trailer we didn’t want to see another drop anything!! The show was a one day event with another large pit party to start with and an evening show to follow. Saturday night in racing Jeff in Obsession fell a victim to Adam Anderson in the Grave Digger Ledgend. Obsessed blew an input shaft off of the starting line. Rick, Tom and Steven worked frantically to get the transmission changed in time for his freestyle. They were able to finish the job just in time to watch Jeff in Obsession go out for his freestyle show. Jeff was fearless in knowing that he now had hardened spindles and decided to see how high he could fly over the large bus stack. This was the biggest air that Jeff has experienced! He didn’t get enough out of his system the first jump so he did it again, and the picture will speak for itself! Rick in Obsessed was forth out and held the hot seat for two trucks following and gave the crowd a show they will remember!

HUGE air for Jeff Jones in Obsession in Oakland!

We hope to see all of our fans at our next display in Vegas for Monster Jam! Come by and meet Eric and get an autograph of the Worlds Youngest Professional Monster Truck Driver!  For more information on the Obsession Racing team and Obsessed and Obsession monster trucks, visit us online at www.ObsessionRacing.com.

Monster Photos: Monster Jam – Anaheim, CA #2 2011

Event: Monster Jam
Venue: Angel Stadium of Anaheim
Location: Anaheim, California
Date: January 29th, 2011
Photographer: Susan Clemens Woolley, www.123EventPhotography.com

Lineup: Backwards Bob (Rick Swanson), Captain USA (Jeff Bainter), El Matador (Daron Basl), Grave Digger (Pablo Huffaker), Grave Digger The Legend (Tony Farrell), Jurassic Attack (Scott Anderson), King Krunch (David Smith), Maniac (Don Frankish), Monster Mutt Rottweiler (Charles Benns), Obsession (Jeff Jones), Shocker (Pat Gerber), The Patriot (Dan Rodoni), Time Flys (Kelvin Ramer), TMNT (Ryan Huffaker), Tropical Thunder (Andrew Peckhum) [Read more…]

Obsession Racing 2011 Press Release #2

(Menifee, California – By Jill Swanson) On January 22nd, Obsession Racing was in San Diego, California at Qualcomm Stadium for another Monster Jam event. Rick drove Eric’s truck Obsessed and Jeff Jones drove Obsession. The show started off with a huge three and a half hour pit party. We enjoyed soaking up the California sunshine while meeting and greeting old and new fans, family and friends. Saturday night in racing Jeff Jones in Obsession got his first Monster Jam racing round win over Monster Mutt. This was an added bonus for Jeff as several of his AmeriGas employees got to witness his skills in racing!  Rick was knocked out of racing by Chris in Brutus of Team Scream racing (but we still welcomed him back to our shop, aka The Obsession Compound).

For freestyle Jeff did an awesome job of catching some big air and spun some fast donuts. Rick was placed towards the upper half in the freestyle line up and he did an excellent job in Obsessed. During his donut finale as he threw the steering wheel out of the window (his trademark) he even managed to run it over and turn it into a taco! The fan’s loved his show as they bombarded him when he came up into the crowd.

Jeff Jones puts Obsession through its paces in San Diego.

The following week was busy here at the Obsession Compound. Team Scream came back to fix their trucks and then head to their show in Arizona. Obsession Racing had to switch bodies on both trucks. Obsessed received the Backwards Bob body and Obsession became Obsessed. We needed to protect the Obsession body because we used it for a Nationwide Prime Time Television show. We didn’t want to chance damaging the Obsession body because we were shooting for the show on Monday and Tuesday. We will release the pictures from the show as soon as the show airs.

Rick Swanson catches some air in Obsessed at Qualcomm Stadium.

On Saturday, January 29th we had another Monster Jam Event that was held in Anaheim, California. During the pit party the Backwards Bob body drew a lot of attention. It was amazing also to see how many people knew that Rick also was the owner of Obsession. Because we had to put the Obsessed body on Obsession, this would be the first time anyone other than Rick or Eric would drive with the Obsessed body. Eric didn’t mind Jeff running his Obsessed body because he has always looked up to Jeff ever since he’s known him.

After the successful pit party it was time for racing. Rick and Jeff had some quick times but it was a field of very competitive trucks. For freestyle Jeff brought the crowd to their feet piloting Obsessed and Rick really enjoyed driving backwards (Bob)!  The fans always get a big kick out of seeing the Backwards Bob truck run. People always ask how you can jump the truck so high backwards? Everyone enjoyed the show including the drivers.

The Backwards Bob body running on Obsession in Anaheim.

Now that the Wendy’s commercial is out, we have a link on Youtube that shows you some behind the scenes from the commercial. It was a really cool experience being able to drive the monster truck through Universal Studios. No one was sleeping on the trams that day!

For more information on Obsessing Racing and the Obsessed and Obsession race trucks, visit www.ObsessionRacing.com.

Monster Photos – Monster Jam – San Diego, CA 2011

Event: Monster Jam
Venue: Qualcomm Stadium
Location: San Diego, California
Date: January 22nd, 2011
Photographer: Susan Clemens Woolley, www.123EventPhotography.com

Lineup: Avenger (Jim Koehler), Batman (Norm Miller), Blue Thunder (Todd Leduc), Brutus (Chris Bergeron), El Toro Loco (Marc MacDonald), Grave Digger (Chad Tingler), Lucas Oil Crusader (Linsey Weenk), Maximum Destruction (Kreg Christensen), Monster Mutt (Joe Miller), Obsessed (Rick Swanson), Obsession (Jeff Jones), Shocker (Pat Gerber), Spike (Rich Hilgendorf), Superman (Chad Fortune), Terminator (Gary Schott), The Felon (Mark Schroeder), Time Flys (Kelvin Ramer), Wrecking Crew (Steve Koehler) [Read more…]

Obsession Racing 2011 Press Release #1

(Menifee, CA – By Jill Swanson) The Obsession Racing team started off 2011 with a full schedule for both monster trucks. Our first event of the year was in Houston, Texas at Reliant Stadium for Monster Jam. On Friday night they did a display with the Obsessed Monster Truck for the Fiesta Market. Fiesta Market is one of the biggest sponsors for all of the Houston events. After the display on Friday night the event started off with an extremely large fan based pit party. In racing, Jeff Jones in Obsession lost a rear drive line. This unfortunately took him out for the night. Normally this would not have been an issue, but since it is a new design we couldn’t completely fix it safely in the time frame that we had. Rick in Obsessed worked his way up to the second round of racing and was placed up against the Advanced Auto Parts sponsored Grinder truck. It was such a close race that Rick thought he had won, but the call was made for Advanced Auto Parts Grinder. Rick is looking forward to seeing this race as it is going to be televised on the Speed Channel in the near future. Having one truck down, Rick felt compelled to be on top of his game in freestyle. He caught major air over every jump and blistered some wicked donuts! Rick commented about the Houston track saying that “this must be what it is like at the World Finals for freestyle in Las Vegas, because they had some huge, steep jumps!”

Rick Swanson airs out Obsessed in front of a packed house of Monster Jam fans.

After Houston the Obsession Crew headed home with the Team Scream Crew with all four of their trucks so we could all get ready for our next event in Anaheim, California. It was fun with our “Monster Truck Families”. I made sure everyone was fed well and felt comfortable at our home/shop/RV camp. Anyone who stays here will for sure find treats and never starve! Friday afternoon they all left for Anaheim to set up for their pit party on Saturday afternoon. The pit party was a big success and it is always great to see our fans and also making new ones.

Jeff Jones in Obsession takes on the massive Monster Jam bus stack.

Saturday night Jeff in Obsession was put up against Jim in Avenger. Avenger took the win, but we didn’t hold it against him! They are always welcome to come back to stay at our home! Rick in Obsessed made it to the second round of racing. He wanted to try the other lane because he had lane choice because of his fast time, but unfortunately he felt the other lane was better. He did end up losing to El Toro Loco, but at least he lost to the eventual winner of racing. For freestyle Jeff came out strong determined to hit all of the jumps. About ¾ of the way through his run he came up short on the double and broke a spindle losing the right front tire, but it was held on by the wheel tether. Rick had a fast and furious freestyle and hit all of the obstacles and was the first truck to jump off of the 14 foot ramp and not break. He did his full 90 second run but as he went to whip his famous donuts the power shut off which ended his freestyle a little shorter than what he would have liked. Rick made the comment that it was really great to hear all of the fans and other drivers say that he did a really great freestyle and they thought that he deserved a much a higher score. We want to thank our sponsors, Tom Read, Michael Gritzke, our son Eric and everyone else behind the scenes that helped and also Hector for some great pictures.

We are all back at home with all 6 trucks getting ready for San Diego this weekend. We are so blessed to be in sunny California with some beautiful weather and we are ready to put on yet another awesome show for all to see!

For more information on the Obsession Racing team and the Obsession and Obsessed monster trucks, visit us online at www.ObsessionRacing.com.

Obsession Racing Press Release 13

(Menifee, CA – By Jill Swanson) On Friday, November 5th Jeff and Rick arrived in Phoenix, Arizona in time to tire up for the evening show for WGAS Motorsports event at the Arizona State Fair. Friday was the first of three nights for this weekend’s shows. Rick piloted Eric’s truck Obsessed and Jeff drove Obsession. All three events were freestyle shows. This weekend would see Rick in Obsessed win on one of the nights and Jeff Jones pulled off his first wheelie that brought the crowd to their feet!

Eric was supposed to drive his truck on Saturday and Sunday, but he had the opportunity to race his dirt bike at the Lake Elsinore Grand Prix. This is a special event that happens only once a year and this was a great opportunity for Eric to get back into racing his dirt bike again. He did an awesome job and Dad was proud since this is a legendary race that is thirty miles long with all different terrains and yes, he is hooked and started racing motocross again! He’s said “Mama I wanna go fast!!” (and that he does!)

On Monday, Rick and Jeff did a display with both trucks for the AmeriGas plant in Glendale Arizona. Jeff went home on Tuesday morning while Rick stayed and worked on the trucks and also had some work done on the Semi. On Wednesday Rick headed ALONE to New Mexico for the Monster Jam event on Saturday and Sunday. Mr. Jeff Jones got to fly into New Mexico Friday afternoon, but Rick was pampered by some of our good friends with a nice home cooked meal since he was ALL by himself for a week.

Saturday’s show they both made it to the Semi Finals and had a strong freestyle. For the Sunday show Rick made it all the way to the Finals in a very close race against Aaron Basl in the Turtle truck. Rick was happy to have Jeff help him drive on the way home. I think Jeff made up for being gone, because I think he drove MOST of the way home!! We couldn’t do our job as well as we do without the support of our sponsors and great friends who are there for us whenever we need them!

For the month of December we will be spending our time preparing the trucks and Semi for what looks to be a jam pack first quarter for Monster Jam!  For more information on the Obsession Racing team, check us out online at www.ObsessionRacing.com. We hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Video Highlights – Phoenix, AZ – 11/06/10

Event:  Monster Truck Freestyle Spectacular
Venue:  Arizona State Fairgrounds
Location:  Phoenix, Arizona
Date:  November 6th, 2010
Videographer:  Lynette Bonar

Lineup:  El Perro Loco (Rod Wood), Obsessed (Rick Swanson), Obsession (Jeff Jones), Play’n 4 Keeps (Tony Canedo) [Read more…]

Jim & Chris Allen’s Phoenix, AZ WGAS Event Coverage

TMB Contributors Jim and Chris Allen were back on the road at the beginning of the month as WGAS Motorsports returned to the Arizona State Fairgrounds in Phoenix. See below for Chris’ great event recap and click the link at the bottom to see all of Jim’s awesome photos.

“With the new Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam season right around the corner, the months of October and November are prime time for smaller scale promoters to close out their season of the year prior. And that is what WGAS Motorsports did on the weekend of the 5th, 6th and 7th of November by bringing some monster trucks to the Arizona State Fairgrounds for the first time in several years. The four monsters doing battle are Rod Wood driving the Mexican themed El Perro Loco body on McGruff, Tony “Flying Spaniard” Canedo in Play’ N For Keeps and the two Obsession trucks with Rick Swanson driving Obsessed and Jeff Jones piloting Obsession.

In the first of three nights of freestyle competition, all the drivers gave it everything they had. Every driver had something special about their runs. El Perro Loco and Play’ N for Keeps all had the wheelies and the Obsession trucks had all the air and donuts the Phoenix crowd could ask for with Rick and Obsessed winning. On the second night, Dixon, California’s own Tony Canedo took the win after a wheelie that saw him barely save the truck from flipping. On the final night, almost every competitor had a problem. Jeff and Obsession blew a rear steering hose, Tony and Play’ N for Keeps lost rear wheel drive and Rick Swanson crushed his own steering wheel after throwing it out the window during his final donut! Fittingly, the only driver performing in front of his home state crowd was the only driver to head home with his truck in one piece. Rod Wood became the third different winner in as many nights after a wheelie that saw him bring even the rear wheels up by hitting the dirt so hard with the wheelie bar.

In other action, San Diego’s own Bob Johnson and his Hog Wild ride truck made hundreds of dreams come true by giving rides both before and after every show. Finally, family vacations were flushed down the drain with Motor home Demo Derbies that the fans LOVED! Thanks to John Borba and WGAS Motorsports for a great show, and thanks to you, the monster blog fans, for reading, enjoy the photos, and cheer on.”

Thanks again to Jim and Chris for their great work and to the WGAS staff for their hospitality. Click the link below to see all of Jim’s photos.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW JIM ALLEN’S PHOENIX, AZ MONSTER TRUCK SHOW PHOTOS

Monster Truck Show – Phoenix, AZ – 11/06-07/10

Event:  Monster Truck Show
Venue:  Arizona State Fairgrounds
Location:  Phoenix, Arizona
Date:  November 6th-7th, 2010
Photographer:  Jim Allen

Lineup:  El Perro Loco (Rod Wood), Obsessed (Rick Swanson), Obsession (Jeff Jones), Play’n 4 Keeps (Tony Canedo) [Read more…]

Arizona State Fair Monster Truck Freestyle Recap & Teasers

WGAS Motorsports returned to the Arizona State Fair, bringing Monster Truck Freestyle back to the venue after a couple years away. TMB’s Lauren & Lynette Bonar traveled down for the Saturday night event which featured Obsessed, Obsession, El Perro Loco and Play’n 4 Keeps in a freestyle battle. All the trucks did a great job as Jeff Jones in Obsession had a great slap wheelie and donut and Rick Swanson in Obsessed had a strong run.

Rod Wood in El Perro Loco grabbed some nice air and a tailgate dragging slap wheelie, but it was Tony Canedo in Play’n 4 Keeps taking the win after making a great save to keep the truck from rolling over.

A big thanks to all the teams for a great show and to John Borba and WGAS Motorsports for their hospitality. Watch for more photos and video highlights coming soon, right here on TMB.

Obsession Racing Press Release 13

September ended with another display for AmeriGas at their Santa Maria Office. This office is located on a main boulevard in Santa Maria. Even having only the Obsessed Monster Truck on display it drew a great crowd of people throughout the entire day. We enjoy doing displays for AmeriGas and we are looking forward to more displays in the future, as we know and have seen that it is a big benefit to the company.

The first weekend of October Rick and Jeff did an event in Red Bluff California for West Coast Monster Truck Nationals. This show was a three day event. The weekend started Wednesday with both trucks on display for the M & M Café. On Thursday both trucks were in a parade that went down Main Street for a kick off party and autograph signing. Friday night was the first event that had a strong field of competitors. The truck line up was Obsession, Obsessed, Max D, El Toro Loco, Grave Digger, TMT, King Krunch and El Matador. Rick was determined to have one of the fastest times. After he watched the first few trucks he thought there would be a good chance that he would have one of the top times. Unfortunately the speed wasn’t the problem, the corner was! He rolled Eric’s truck to its lid. This had Rick (and Jeff when he could) in the pits working franticly to have the truck ready so that it could have a safety inspection and return to the field for freestyle. Jeff in Obsession had Max D first round. It was an extremely close race and the call was made to Max D. The Obsession Team got the Obsessed truck cleared for safety and returned for freestyle. Both trucks did an awesome performance in freestyle and stayed with their tires toward the ground for the night.

Saturday night Rick in Obsessed made it to the semi finals in racing. For freestyle Jeff was the first truck out in Obsession and really got the crowd going. A few trucks later Rick came out in full force in Obsessed (Eric’s truck), did a couple of jumps and then flipped it once again!! (Here goes another safety inspection!) Two times in one weekend! Rick made the call to Eric and gave him the news. Eric’s biggest disappointment was that HE wanted to be the first one to roll his truck!! Sunday afternoon came, and we are proud to say that Rick or Jeff didn’t roll the truck! Rick ended up taking the win against Max D in the finals. This made up a little bit for the roll over’s! Jeff went out in freestyle and caught some huge air in Obsession and cut some awesome donuts! I’m sure thankful he managed to keep the truck from rolling! (But there were some close calls) Rick also did a cool and graceful freestyle with what was left on the body of Obsessed! We would like to thank Ron Fischer and Steve Cain for all of their hard work and help all weekend long! Let’s hope we don’t repeat this weekend for a long time.

For more information on the Obsession Racing team, don’t forget to stop by their website at www.ObsessionRacing.com.

Third Annual Texas Monster Shootout This Weekend

(The Woodlands, TX) That time of year is here again, the annual Texas Monster Shootout is just around the corner. October 30th is the date and we want to make this year the best so far. Our goal is to raise more money than we have in years past. We at Flame Motorsports challenge the fans to help us achieve that goal. Any one can contact us and donate to the cause. I have included a short explanation of the charity. If you feel compelled to help please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Just after Christmas in 1984, precious two-year-old Ann Denman lost her battle against cancer. Maggie LaBove and Nancy Dillard, friends of Ann’s parents, Trey and Sally Denman, pondered for several years what could be done in Ann’s memory that would make a difference. In 1989, they gathered a group of close friends together and decided that a luncheon to raise funds for pediatric cancer research would be a fitting memorial.

Over three million dollars later, Mothers Against Cancer continues to be a leader in funding childhood cancer research at Texas Children’s Hospital Cancer Center. This group is a registered non-profit organization, composed of dedicated volunteer women whose primary goal is to raise funds for the research necessary to lead to a cure for all forms of childhood cancer … all because of the love for little Ann.

So if you are looking for something to do the night before Halloween and your kids are bugging you because they want to see Monster Trucks. Come down to Houston Motorsports Park and see some of the top independent Monster Trucks in the business. Our line-up includes Fiesta King Krunch, El Matador, Bad News Travels Fast, Instigator, Reptoid, Obsession and team truck Obsessed, and coming all the way from Reno, Nevada is the Airborne Ranger. We will also have some of the best Freestyle Motorcross rider in the country. So if your within hearing distance of this write-up bring the family out. You will have a great night of exciting motorsports action and you will be helping out a great charity.

For more information on this weekend’s Texas Monster Shootout, check them out online at www.TexasMonsterShootout.com.

Jim & Chris Allen’s Maverik Clash of the Titans Coverage

TMB’s great friends Jim and Chris Allen attended the huge Maverik Clash of the Titans event a few weeks ago and we are proud to present their great coverage. You’ve seen all the action in video on the first episode of MT Unlimited, now experience all the fun in Jim’s great photography and Chris’ great recaps:

“For many years, there was just one type of monster truck race: the drag race. While that type of race course did test out just how fast the trucks could really go, fans yearned for something different. Then the Allstate Arena in suburban Chicago created monster truck races with turns. Fan response was tremendous and monster trucks started coming by the dozens for new and better challenges. One of these challenging races is at Rocky Mountain Raceways in West Valley City, Utah. The racers are Jim Creten and Bounty Hunter, Nick Owens in Iron Outlaw, David Smith driving King Krunch, El Matador driven by Daron Basl, Dan Runte driving Retro Bigfoot #16, Amber Walker behind the wheel of Ms. Bigfoot #11, Jon Zimmer and Amsoil Shock Therapy, Chris “Panda” Ryan driving Excaliber, Jeff Jones in Obsession, Rick Swanson with Obsessed, Roger Stidel in Captain USA and hometown hitter Ron Doncombe in Maverik Monster Trakker.

It was Bounty Hunter who would go on to master the grueling figure eight course quickest as quickest qualifier and easily advanced in the first round over Captain USA, Maverik defeated Excalibur despite good efforts from “Panda”, Amber Walker got the biggest win in her career as Jon Zimmer received two seconds worth of penalties, Obsessed out ran Iron Outlaw, Retro Foot beat El Matador and King Krunch sent Obsession to the trailer. The next round saw the upset of the night as Maverik defeated Bounty Hunter, though Jim Creten would still advance as the fastest qualifier. Obsessed ruined the Cinderella story for Amber Walker and Retro Foot dethroned King Krunch. In the semis, Bounty Hunter avenged his loss in the previous round by defeating Maverik and Retro Foot put Obsessed down. In the two lap final, Bounty Hunter was fast and had the lead at the end of the first lap, but then Dan Runte kept gaining more and more ground and took the lead and the win in the final two turns.

The show ended with some preview freestyles to advertise the show for Sunday evening. Jon Zimmer was the third driver out and got and an almost perfect score of 9 out of a potential 10. Truck after truck tried and failed to match Shock Therapy, but then there was one: Bounty Hunter. Jim Creten gave vertical wheelies, dizzying cyclone donuts and the biggest air over the ramp that preceded one of the pairs of crush cars. With a perfect score of 10, Bounty Hunter took the Night One Freestyle Championship.

It was an awesome show, the fans went away happy and the show for the next day was already in the works by the time the post show autograph session had begun.

“It’s a war out there.” So said legendary announcer Army Armstrong at one point in the end of the steel body age for monster trucks and his words have remained very true over the years. But what makes a monster truck war out of a race? A challenging race course? High caliber competition? A highly desired rematch from an earlier race? In the case of the final day of the Maverik Clash of the Titans XIV, all of the above were true as Dan Runte in Retro Bigfoot #16 and Jim Creten driving Bounty Hunter both looked to sweep the weekend in their respective categories. But this was no two truck show, especially considering the race track is a figure 8 course!

The hometown hero Maverik Monster Trakker and driver Ron Domcombe would not be able to see the track all day as he was unable to get parts to repair the front drive train that was broken the previous evening. Dan Runte set a brand new track record of 27.78 and would get a bye run in the first round. In Round 1, Nick Owens and Iron Outlaw shut down Roger Stidell in Captain USA, Jeff Jones driving Obsession defeated Daron Basl with El Matador, Jon Zimmer with Shock Therapy beat his team mate Chris “Panda” Ryan in Excalibur and Amber Walker and Ms. Bigfoot #11 could not grab a first round win as she lost to Jim Creten. David Smith and King Krunch raced solo as Rick Swanson’s Obsessed had transmission trouble. Rick would drive Obsession for the remainder of the night. Advancing to the semi-final round were Retro Bigfoot, Obsession and Bounty Hunter. Despite not finishing his run, King Krunch would advance as the fast loser. Bigfoot and Bounty Hunter punched their tickets to the 2-lap finals as he defeated Obsession. Retro Bigfoot also advanced as he defeated King Krunch in the semifinal round for the second night in a row. Try as he might, Jim Creten could not catch Dan as Bigfoot swept the weekend in racing.

Unlike the previous night, the drivers had three minutes of Freestyle time and every obstacle on the track was available. Sadly, Ms. Bigfoot broke something in the back axle and King Krunch had brakes that were done, eliminating them from Freestyle. Good early efforts were made by Captain USA, El Matador, Excalibur and Obsession. Then things started to heat up when Iron Outlaw and Shock Therapy hit the track doing better and better tricks at higher and higher speeds and getting better and better scores. But then, there were two. Bounty Hunter and Bigfoot all gave the runs of their weekends and the fans loved it. Bounty Hunter was given the win in Freestyle with and almost perfect score of 9.75 out of 10.0 sweeping the weekend freestyle competitions.

Throughout the weekend, Ron Barrows out of Idaho Falls gave monster truck rides to fans in his ride truck “Thumper”. I took a ride and felt it was the best ride I’ve ever had in a monster ride truck. Up next for me will be the last shows of the year for WGAS Motorsports which will be at the Arizona State Fairgrounds on November 5th-7th. Until then, thank you for reading, enjoy the photos and cheer on.”

Thanks again to Jim and Chris for their great work and to the RMR staff for their hospitality. Click the link below to see all of Jim’s photos!!

CLICK HERE TO VIEW JIM ALLEN’S CLASH OF THE TITANS PHOTO GALLERY