Monster truck show geared to big crowd

Sam Sturges was a Chevrolet garage mechanic in Tucson, Ariz., for 18 years before he began racing monster trucks for a living.

"Nobody likes punching a time clock," he said.

Besides, there's more money in monster truck shows.

Monster truck racing at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau Friday and Saturday nights drew about 7,500 people from as far away as Paducah, Ky., DuQuoin, Ill., and Arkansas.

Promoter Ed Buckley said the demographics for the Winternationals include three categories: men 18 to 49, children 2 to 12, and block mothers (two moms with 10 children between them who end up taking their own and all the other children on the block).

Buckley takes the show, which includes monster trucks, four-wheelers and tractor pulls, everywhere from downtown New York City to Southern California to Florida.

"In the summer we compete with stock car races. During the winter fans need their 'rrrr-nnnn rrrr-nnnn' fix," he said. "The sound, the fumes, the dirt ... it takes them all away from worrying about how they're going to pay their rent or get the kids new shoes."

The sport is a fantasy, he said. "It's exciting. This is the big boys playing in the dirt with trucks. People smile watching us play."

Monster truck shows are not for everybody, Sturges said. "For people raising families, the traveling poses a problem."

His wife travels with him, and his son races Nasty Boy, a 1940 Ford Willies pickup. Sturges' preference is old body styles, and he builds the trucks from the ground up. "You save a lot of money that way, and you can design them the way you want," he said.

It's a real race even though the start to finish line is only 75 feet long. The 66-inch standard height tires on a monster truck work best in dry dirt and serve as landing gear when the vehicle falls from a height of 15 to 18 feet during the freestyle event.

Drivers must impress

Monster trucks race two at a time, lined up side by side in lanes, like a drag race. They're flagged to go, and the first one to make it across the finish line over two jumps, which can launch a truck 10 feet off the ground, wins. Following the race, the monster trucks compete in the freestyle event, where the winner is whoever the crowd favors. It's the driver's job to impress.

"We bounce off junk cars in the arena, doing wheelies in the air," Sturges said.

Sturges races his own truck and does his own maintenance with special attention paid to tightening the bolts and monitoring the tires. Tires are good for five to seven years or about 35 shows. Each tire is worth about $2,200.

He admits there are risks involved in racing. He once broke his back and stayed away for a year and a half.

Once in his 1,400-hp truck, dubbed "Unnamed and Untamed," Sturges geared up with a neck collar, helmet and three-layer, fire-retardant car suit.

"Without that you might as well stay home," he said.

cpagano@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 133