Monster Jam back in Seattle again

As a kid, I was all about monster trucks. I would watch the races on TV every chance I could get, and when they weren’t on, I would read up on them or stare at the posters on my wall and daydream about what it would be like to drive one. I was also lucky enough to go see them in a live show a couple times and I still remember to this day what an amazing time it was.

But, like a lot of things, monster trucks fell to the side as I grew older and busier. Then my son got interested in all things cars and I revisited my love of monster trucks with him.

So, I was super excited when the opportunity arose to take my own kids to see Monster Jam’s return to Seattle after a 20 year absence. I had really wanted to take them to see Monster Jam in neighboring towns, but we never were able to make it happen. After seeing the show live this weekend, all I can say is that we should have gone sooner.

Monster Jam back in Seattle, and also better than ever

Monster Jam returned to downtown Seattle and tore up Century Link Field on March 16th. Featuring 14 massive trucks weighing 12,000-pounds and racing at speeds up to 70 miles per hour, this event brings a new level of high-flying, four-wheel excitement.

This year’s larger-than-life truck lineup featured appearances by Monster Jam super-truck icons and World Finals Champions Grave Digger®, Max-D™ and El Toro Loco®; highlighted by FIVE Puget Sound area debut truck appearances including the first-ever diesel powered truck BroDozer {inspired by the popular Discovery Channel TV show “Diesel Brothers”} along with Wolf’s Head, Saigon Shaker, Xtermigator and Wild Flower plus the newly rebranded Monster Jam Fire & Ice trucks.

Back when I was younger, the trucks just pretty much raced in a straight line over actual cars and various dirt mounds. That is not the case anymore. The Monster Jam event started out with races, but the trucks now do more of an double loop with sharp corners and obstacles instead of just straight line acceleration. Gone are the cars and other vehicles as obstacles {removed this year for safety of drivers, crew, and spectators} and instead replaced with built up dirt mounds and buried cars that the trucks jump over.

After the head-to-head racing was finished, they moved on to a two wheel challenge. That’s where the drivers did some crazy maneuvers to get their trucks onto either the two front, two back, or the side wheels only. The amount of skill and control to pull these off was just amazing, I can’t even imagine what it would feel like inside of the monster trucks moving like that.

Then to finish off the night there was a freestyle competition where the drivers went all out doing any and every trick they could muster with their monster trucks. And they do go all out, many of them so hard that they end up damaging their trucks and needing to be towed out of the arena.

The one thing that didn’t change from when I was younger was how much fun watching Monster Jam live was. Not only was I having a blast, but the rest of our crew was as well. In fact, my little guy was positively vibrating with excitement all night. So much so that he fell asleep in the car before we got even a few miles away.

Featured Trucks/Drivers in Seattle:

Grave Digger® driven by Adam Anderson {son of the original Grave Digger driver, Dennis Anderson}; Max-D™ driven by Neil Elliott; El Toro Loco® Ice driven by Scott Buetow; Zombie™ Fire driven by Paul Strong; Great Clips Mohawk Warrior® driven by Bryce Kenny; BroDozer™ driven by Heavy D; Monster Mutt® Dalmatian driven by Candice Jolly; EarthShaker® driven by Steven Thompson; Wild Flower driven by Rosalee Ramer; Time Flys driven by Kelvin Ramer; Xtermigator driven by JR McNeal; Wolf’s Head driven by Aaron Basl; Obsessed driven by Eric Swanson; Saigon Shaker driven by Ryan Disharoon.

Not only were my girls super excited about the two female drivers, my son was thrilled that Adam Anderson was the son of the original Grave Digger driver, Dennis Anderson.

You can find out more about the drivers and trucks at MonsterJam.com

Pre-Show Pit Party and VIP Experiences

In addition to the world-class racing and freestyle competition of the live show, fans in select cities can come to the stadium early to enjoy the Monster Jam® Pit Party pre-show experience. The Pit Party gives fans a way to view their favorite trucks up-close and possibly meet the star drivers for autographs and photos. Souvenirs are available for purchase and building kits are sold so kids can make their own wooden trucks. Also available is the limited quantity Pit Party Early Access Pass that provides fans early entry into the Pit Party one hour before open to the general public.

We only made it for part of the pit party due to long lines and confusion over where will call was, but the 15 -20 minutes of the Pit Party were one of the main highlights of the event for the kiddos. Many of the drivers were gone from the party, but we did get to see the trucks up close and walk around the booths to see what activities were available. If I were doing it again, I would get there pretty soon after the Pit Party opens so the kids could get autographs, but the good thing was that they didn’t really know what they had missed this time around.

If your kid is a mega fan, you might want to look into the VIP Experiences as well. I stopped by the VIP booth and found out it was $50 for the kids to go and get the autographs and meet the drivers, which seemed really worth it for big fans. Next year, I could totally see springing for the VIP Experience now that the kids are invested in the franchise and excited about the drivers and trucks.

Monster Jam Tour

The tour is still on and it just might be coming to a town near you. Check out the tour schedule, or get tickets to the All-Star Challenge this October in Las Vegas. See the remaining schedule and find your nearest Monster Jam event.