Monster Trucks Behind the Scenes

Friday 10th July 98

John had to be up very early on the Friday morning, to do a radio interview over the phone for a local radio station, promoting the Bloomsburg show.

With that out of the way, John & I then traveled to Bloomsburg, taking with us enough stuff to last us until the sunday night, when we would be returning home.

John's crew guys came each day, as it wasn't very far for them to travel.

On the way John, who is also a volunteer Firefighter, pointed out a couple of burnt down houses which he had tackled earlier on in the year.
At his home he has some fire masks that have started to melt under the intense heat, while tackling fires. He has saved many lives & even had to pull one of his fellow firefighters out of a burning building when he became trapped. John also goes to the local schools & gives talks about fire safety.

We arrived about 10:30am & I was supprised to see what seemed like a deserted fairgrounds, the afternoon before, full with pick-up truck, & spectators.
Andy Hoffman in Nitemare, Mike Vaters in Black Stallion & Guy Wood in Bulldozer had also arrived. Kirk Dabney in Overkill & Paublo Huffaker in Grave Digger arrived shortly afterwards.

Guy Wood putting his tires on

For the drivers who had only just arrived, it gave spectators a chance to watch the drivers & their crew working on their trucks. For people like Mike Vaters of Black Stallion & Dan Runte of BIGFOOT, it was a chance to relax, while fans looked at their trucks.

Time to relax

For John it was time to give his truck a quick hose down.

With the racing not until 5pm, it gave John time to ensure his truck was all set to go. It also gave him time to have a walk around the fairgrounds.
For me I was lucky enough to meet up with friends Dave, Bev & Dan Huntoon, reporting for Truckworld Online. They had managed to secure a golf cart for the weekend. I managed to hitch a lift & squeezed on the back of that. This allowed me to see the thousand of pickup trucks on display, without wearing my legs out in the process.

Before the first days racing, all of the drivers had an autograph session, signing pictures & t-shirts for the spectators.

With the autograph session over it was time to move the trucks into the infield before the racing.

Before racing John puts Nitrogen into the shocks, & has another quick check over the truck, to make sure everything is safe.

"Whether I win or lose, it's the taking part that counts. Just to see the smiles on the fans faces is enough to make me feel like a winner"

John Seasock, Dan Runte & Dan Patrick waiting for the show to start.

Samson, BIGFOOT, Bulldozer, Grave Digger, Sudden Impact,

Black Stallion, Nitemare & Overkill lined up ready to race.

With the National Anthem & introductions out of the way it was time for the drivers to move their trucks to the other side of the infield.

To see full racing coverage of Bloomsburg go to my Bloomsburg coverage page.

Click on the image to see it in full size

Between races the teams work on their trucks, or watch the racing themselves.

John hiding behind his tire, with Andy Slifko & crew member Rob Reese.

To the right, Andy Hoffman with his father, who was crewing for him.

For other drivers like Dan Patrick of Samson, why stand & watch the racing, when you can sit down !

Dan Patrick taking it easy with an offical

John was knocked out in the first round of both the roundy round & straight line competition & the Friday's racing saw him break a couple of bump stops as well.

For other drivers like Paublo Huffaker who broke his drive shaft & also had to change his transmission, he & wife Tina worked well into the night getting it fixed.

With the show over & the crowds of people gone, the fairgrounds started to look empty again. With a few pickup trucks left, covered over to protect their gleaming bodies, the only people left where those competitors stopping in the fairgrounds & the security guards patrolling.
For the Monster Truck drivers it was time to fix minor problems on their trucks & get freshened up, ready to go out & get some food.
After racing John always likes to phone his wife Hollie, as soon as he possibly can, to let her know he's all right.

"I don't know what I'd do without the support that Hollie gives me. My family are the most important thing in my life & I always miss them when I'm on the road"

For both the Friday & Saturday night most of the drivers all ate at a local hotel, where the Special Events officials where stopping.
For me it was a chance to hang out with the other drivers. On the Friday night I had dinner with Dan Patrick, Dan Runte, John Seasock, some of the Special Event officials & some of the crew guys. After the meal it was time to unwind at a local bar for a few drinks.