Krmel (pronounced Kremmel) met the original owner of King Krunch as a young teenager. He began helping him out at shows near home and traveling to his shop during the summer. Here Krmel learned the ins and outs of monster truck mechanics and the monster truck business.

A few years later, Krmel met Jim Koehler, the owner and driver of Avenger. Neighbors in Michigan, Krmel accompanied Koehler on the road as a crew chief, and got his first shot behind the wheel of a monster truck subbing for Koehler in Avenger in late 2001.

Krmel moved into a full time driving position in the winter of 2003, driving Pure Adrenaline for Randy Brown Motorsports. Krmel drove Demolition Man in the winter of 2004 and was selected to represent NBA Future Hall of Famer Karl Malone in his Power Forward monster truck for the 2005 season.

And while Krmel plans on staying with monster trucks as long as he can, he has some ambitious plans for when he's done. He is taking education classes to become a schoolteacher. Being a driver on the Monster Jam tour provides plenty of opportunity to meet kids and families, and Krmel considers this perhaps the biggest perk of his job.

"Whenever I get in the truck, I gauge my performance by looking up in the stands," he said. "I always give them the best I can."