6/14/09 What a ride Gothenburg was! After day after day of rain, we were all treated to a great day of sun and warm weather all day long. The track as pretty sloppy, but it was no fault of the awesome USHRA dirt crew, they put in many hours to get it to the point where we could even run on it. Also, I can’t say enough about the entire crew of monster jam mechanics who worked in the rain all week to get the trucks ready to perform. And perform they did. John Seasock in Batman picked up the racing win and Chuck Pauken, snagged a tight win from Damon Bradshaw in El Toro Loco. All of the details can be found over in the results section here on monsterjamonline.com. With Gothenburg coming to a close, that also puts an end to the first leg of the Monster Jam Europe tour. What a great time with great people. We really are lucky to get to do something we love to do, while making thousands of European Monster Jam fans happy. I can’t wait to get back going again this fall. Hmm, but wait, last time I checked it was mid June, and that means SUMMER. That means barbeques with friends, and family, maybe try working on my golf game, Tiger Baseball games, heading to the Hydroplane races (Madison, IN, and Detroit, MI) and pretty much anything else I can squeeze into the next two months! I’ll check in from time to time.…..So, talk to you all soon!!
I started this blog in Gothenburg before I began my trip back to the States, and it was an hour after got home where I learned of the loss of a good friend and legendary Hydroplane racer Terry Troxell. (To read more about Terry head over to www.abrahydroplanes.com.) I have only known Terry and his family for a few years, but it seems like twenty, that is just the kind of people they are.……..Jeff, Sue, my heart goes out to you, and the entire family, I know I will truly miss Terry, and value the time I was able to spend with him, some great times for sure……..I was lucky enough also to have a helmet painted by Terry, and I plan on bringing this helmet out of retirement as a tribute to him….We’ll miss you Terry.----Frank Krmel
6/12/09
Well, what a difference a few days makes. Last time I checked in, the weather was pretty nice here in Gothenburg, Sweden. Well, at about 9pm Thursday, the bottom fell out. It has been raining steadily since, and I’m typing this at 4:15pm Friday after noon here in Sweden. (9:15am Friday central time) The good news is, I have to head off to the drivers meeting here in a few minutes, at least it is indoors! Oh, and good news, Sweden beat Malta 4-0 in the game we all went to the other night. It was a great experience. No matter what sport they are playing on the field, you can still get a hot dog and a coke, I found that out first time. And after being over here for three weeks, it was one of the first things that made me think of home, and how great an afternoon or evening at Comerica Park would be to see my beloved Detroit Tigers play……….ahhh those days are near. But just as I start to get homesick, I get excited. Excited to get back in my truck and try to take a shot at a win or two here in our last event of the first leg of the Monster Jam Europe Tour. I got close last week, but it looks like it is going to be a mud/slop fest out there, so slow and steady is what will get it in racing. I’m excited for that, because in my go-kart days I loved running in the rain, and had some pretty good finishes. It all sort of ties together in the monster truck, nice clean corners, and gradual throttle. Choppy doesn’t get you anywhere in the rain.
Today as the guys were putting the finishing touches on Max D and the other trucks, I bumped into Gothenburg’s own Anders Flogard, the driver of Thor. Some of you might have seen him in SPEED’s coverage of this event a few years ago. He is a very strong runner, and is a guy that can take out anybody…………..Well, I’m off to the drivers meeting. I just got a bag of pistachio nuts to snack on in the meeting, now, my only question, is how can I eat them without Chuck Pauken seeing or hearing me, hmmmmmmmm (at the soccer game I cleaned out his pistachio supply and he doesn’t forget that stuff) Oh, by the way, tonight is Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Finals, which I won’t get to see due to it coming on TV her at about 2am. So everybody out there, please be a Red Wings fan for at least one game tonight!!!!! Take care everybody, and I’ll check in when I’m back in the USA early next week to fill you in all the crazy, soggy, and muddy action over her from Gothenburg! Go Wings!
6/10/09 Hey everyone, I’m back, this time from Gothenburg. This is my third year coming to Gothenburg, and it really is turning into the biggest event on the Monster Jam Europe Tour. The Ullevi Stadium is one of the largest in the world and I think is the largest in Scandinavia. Myself and some of Monster Jam Crew/Drivers are heading over to the stadium later on today to go see the Sweden Vs. Malta soccer game. This is sure to be a great experience. Anyone that knows me already knows that I love to go to live sporting events, and this one will be a first for me, as well as a lot of us over here. We won’t be able to get started on the trucks until Thursday, so we’re all going to enjoy one more day off until the work begins. Our journey to Gothenburg began Monday morning with a three hour bus ride from Cardiff to a smaller airport just outside of London, then it was a two hour flight here to Gothenburg. The show last weekend in Cardiff was spectacular. For the results, head on over to the results page to get all the details from Scottie D himself. The crazy thing about Gothenburg is that it is only dark out for about three to four hours. That plays some crazy tricks on your body for sure. Moving a group of thirty plus people around Europe with out any hiccups is truly amazing. Paul Thompson, Robert Black, and Kenna Conway have been doing a great job keeping us all entertained and making sure we all get where we are supposed to. Also, the Hard Rock Café in Cardiff was very accommodating to all of us during our stay, which was a great place to go and unwind after a day of work. The amount of work it takes to keep this tour moving is really crazy, from one end to the other. It’s been nice having a few days to kick back as we wait for the trucks here in Gothenburg. I think today a bunch of us may it the bowling alley down the road since it’s a rainy day here, we’ll see how it goes…………….I’ll check back wit you guys Friday to let you know how the trucks are coming along, and anything else that may pop up. So until then, Go Red Wings!
5/31/09
Well, to say that it has been raining a little here in Poland would be an understatement. As of saturday morning here, the track looked like an old school mud pit. But right around 11am the rain stopped, and Dan Allen, Rigg Hipps and the Monster Jam Dirt Crew went to work. After working almost up to show time, the track was ready. There were some spots of standing water in the corners, but the racing lanes were awesome. It also set the stage for some of the tightest racing I've ever seen at a Monster Jam event. Marc McDonald in the VERVA sponsored truck was on fire, qualifying in the to spot, and burning through the brackets and taking out George Balhan in Backwards Bob in the final round. Chuck and I had pretty good nights in Racin. I took out Dan Evans in Disney HD in the first round, and Chuck took out Mutt. Chuck and I eventually raced each other in Round 2 with Chuckie edging me out. Freestyle was stacked top to bottom with everyone putting in strong runs. Again, another classic Pauken freestyle just edged out Damon in El Toro. After a long night of pressure washing by the monster Jam crew, all the trucks are loaded and headed to Cardiff. Today, after sleeping in for th first time in a few days, its off to sight see. As I type this, Chuck Pauken is sitting across from me working on his second bowl of cocoa puffs, and getting closer to the bottom of the bowl and that means its time to get going. Read complete event result here View more photos from Chorzow Poland
5/28/09 Well, we all made it to Poland, and I'm still in the clothes I was in when I left the USA Wednesday. You're probably wondering why that is? Well, there is a 7 hour time difference. You add that together with an 9 hour flight over that makes for a really long day. It's really tempting to just go right to bed, but all that will do is throw your schedule off for at least 2-3 days. So most of us are going to soldier through, and try to adapt our bodies as quick as we can. I've already been to the grocery store here by the hotel, and now its off to Dinner. It's kinda hard to type much more with Chuck Pauken over my shoulder. So, I'll check back in with you guys tomorrow, when we head over to the Stadium and make the final preparations to the trucks...............see you all then! 5/27/09
Hey Monster Jam fans, this is Frank Krmel checking in to let you know I’ll be blogging from the first leg of the Monster Jam Europe Tour. Our first stop will be Chorzow Poland (a place we’ve never been to with Monster Jam). I can’t wait to get over there. With a line up including myself, Chuck Pauken, Damon Bradshaw, John Seasock, George Balhan, Dan Evans, Candice Jolly, Marc McDonald, Madusa, and Chuck Werner. There will be a lot to talk about for sure, not to mention the Monster Jam crew of mechanics that travel with us!
After the highs and lows of the Monster Jam NGK World Finals X, I can’t wait to get back in Donkey Kong and try to settle the score with some of the best drivers in the world!
Make sure to check back later this week for more installments as I do my best to describe life on the Monster Jam tour from the other side of the world!!!
Hey everyone, I’m back, this time from Gothenburg. This is my third year coming to Gothenburg, and it really is turning into the biggest event on the Monster Jam Europe Tour. The Ullevi Stadium is one of the largest in the world and I think is the largest in Scandinavia. Myself and some of Monster Jam Crew/Drivers are heading over to the stadium later on today to go see the Sweden Vs. Malta soccer game. This is sure to be a great experience. Anyone that knows me already knows that I love to go to live sporting events, and this one will be a first for me, as well as a lot of us over here. We won’t be able to get started on the trucks until Thursday, so we’re all going to enjoy one more day off until the work begins. Our journey to Gothenburg began Monday morning with a three hour bus ride from Cardiff to a smaller airport just outside of London, then it was a two hour flight here to Gothenburg. The show last weekend in Cardiff was spectacular. For the results, head on over to the results page to get all the details from Scottie D himself. The crazy thing about Gothenburg is that it is only dark out for about three to four hours. That plays some crazy tricks on your body for sure. Moving a group of thirty plus people around Europe with out any hiccups is truly amazing. Paul Thompson, Robert Black, and Kenna Conway have been doing a great job keeping us all entertained and making sure we all get where we are supposed to. Also, the Hard Rock Café in Cardiff was very accommodating to all of us during our stay, which was a great place to go and unwind after a day of work. The amount of work it takes to keep this tour moving is really crazy, from one end to the other. It’s been nice having a few days to kick back as we wait for the trucks here in Gothenburg. I think today a bunch of us may it the bowling alley down the road since it’s a rainy day here, we’ll see how it goes…………….I’ll check back wit you guys Friday to let you know how the trucks are coming along, and anything else that may pop up. So until then, Go Red Wings!
