Back in the 1970′s the popularity of truck pulling increased. Lifted trucks were becoming popular with wheels as large as 48 inches in diameter. Famous trucks such as Bigfoot & King Kong have been around since the 70′s and are still competing today. After a few short years the tire sizes were increased and the cars then ran on sets of 66inch wheels. In 1988 the Monster Truck Racing Association was formed. This organisation standardised the rules for racing, construction and safety. Racing began gaining more and more popularity, with freestyle driving being a secondary sport. In 2000 monster truck freestyle became a judged competition.

Monster Jam, is currently the largest and most popular promoter. Tours not only cover North America but also Europe and Canada. Truck designs are mostly based on scaled up 4 x 4 dune buggies. On the outside with the stylised fibre glass bodies they look very much like trucks, but under the shell they have custom tubular chassis’, with special suspension which can provide up to 4 feet of clearance. Over the years many safety features have been introduced, with most components being shielded to protect both the driver and spectators in case of a truck roll, or in the rare case of a truck explosion. All monster truck drivers are required to wear fire suits, helmets and head and neck restraints.

Tags: Helmets, Monster Trucks, Wheels

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