Weekend Race Recap

FRIDAY -
The first show of the weekend and talk about hitting the floor running! The monsters came out with a vengeance right into the wheelie contest. Newcomer, BJ Anderson and his Shattered monster truck set the early standard with a score of 20. It was close to a win for him, but the possible celebration was cut short by the last truck to come out. World Finals veteran, David Smith and King Krunch took the win with a score of 24.

Monster Jam racing was the next element for the competitors and the crowd was ready to start the flag waving. A rather short track was set up inside the arena, so it was going to be a "holeshot" type of track. The driver that was able to cut a good light would more than likely be the winner. Whether it is a large stadium event or an arena show it doesn't matter, the cream still rises to the top. Tonight was no different. Running their way through the bracket all the way to the finals was Rick Swanson and Obsession and David Smith and King Krunch. As stated before, it was the holeshot that proved to be the difference in this one as David and King Krunch was the winner.

It was as if the audience came for one thing and it was painfully obvious that they were here for freestyle. The drivers did NOT disappoint. Strong runs were put in by the entire field, but it was the young gun and a future if not present star in Darren Basl and El Matador coming away with the winning score of 23, a 1 point advantage over teammate David Smith. In taking the win in freestyle, El Matador and Basl prevented Smith from completing a clean sweep of the evening's contests.

2 More shows tomorrow, and look out Salt Lake!

SATURDAY 2PM -
The 11:00am pit party and you might think everyone might have better things to do on a Saturday morning, but not here in Salt Lake. It was literally elbow to elbow Monster Jam fans all around the arena floor. What could've turned into a long day of hard work for the entire USHRA crew actually ended up to be a 2 show party with our fans!

Heading right into the wheelie contest, it might have been a surprise to the winning driver, but not to the fans. Matt Powers and Arachnophobia took the win with a score of 21. It was a rather shy Matt that had that surprised "deer in the headlights" expression that easily portrayed the "was it really me" attitude during the interview.

In the Monster Jam racing portion of this afternoon, you could definitely see the commitment and "take no prisoners" glare in the eyes of the eventual winner. Sure enough, the driver behind the wheel of the big Ford super-duty parked his competitors round after round all the way to finals and into the winner's bracket. Rick Swanson and his Obsession Ford were able to cut a great light and after 4 different camera angles and replays earned the win, all in front of his own wife, son and a whole slew of in-laws!

Finally, what everyone came for. What everyone tunes into SPEED just to watch, and the reason the hair on the back of every drivers neck stands on end, the Jiffy-Lube Monster Jam Freestyle. The surprise run of the day would have to go to BJ Johnson and his Shattered Chevrolet. He held the hot seat nearly all the way through the entire field of monsters. That was until El Matador and Darren Basl scored a 24 to take the lead if only for a few minutes. Having the tough task of coming out last and nearly all the obstacles were flattened by the previous 7 monsters, David Smith and King Krunch still somehow pulled out an awesome speed and momentum run and scored a winning 25. A gracious Smith admitted to a few officials that he thought that Darren Basl had a better run, but as long the win stayed within the two of them he was ok with the outcome. With true sportsmanship like that, it's no wonder that David Smith has an ever increasing fan base.

Happy fans, dedicated drivers, and a hard working group of USHRA people briefly celebrated a great event and went on to get ready for the evening event. We'll see everyone in a few hours at our Saturday night event!

SATURDAY 7PM -
There's a popular song that is played many times during any sporting event on Saturday nights. Well, tonight was no different. Elton John and his Saturday Nights All Right for Fighting would have been a perfect anthem for tonight's event.

Starting right off with the wheelie contest, this was not to be a night of a big name taking the win. Instead, for the second time today it was a very, VERY surprised Matt Power and Arachnophobia taking another win. Matt could just be starting to make a name for himself as another one of the young guns of the USHRA series.

There is usually a lot of teasing and having fun within the pit area among the officials and drivers all weekend long. But sometimes even when it is meant all in fun and driver doesn't forget. That might just be the case with Rick Swanson and his Obsession Ford. A few, including myself were teasing Rick about "stepping it up AGAIN" in racing especially in front a ton of his family members that don't get to usually see him compete. Well, he sure shut up us all! For the second time today he blitzed his way through the entire racing bracket and into the finals facing the always tough David Smith and King Krunch. Well, for the second time, we had to go to 4 replays to finally make the call and again cutting a great light and having the shock set up that kept his 10,000 pound monster flying low instead of sending it high into the air, Rick Swanson was declared the winner.

I can honestly say that in the 10 plus years that I have been announcing for the USHRA, I have never seen a more enthusiastic crowd ready for the Jiffy-Lube Freestyle. Every driver was committed to make it the wildest 60 seconds that they could produce for the fans. And Salt Lake City was ready for it. As each competitor came out for their 60 second runs, the crush cars and obstacles become harder and harder for the monsters produce any kind of score. That was until King Krunch hit the floor. Somehow David Smith was able to do a few things differently than the previous 7 monsters. In the end and with a score of 25, it was King Krunch with a very well earned win.

20 fans won tickets for next year's Monster Jam event here in Salt Lake but when they go on sale tonight at midnight, I am sure that there will be more already getting ready for next year. Hey Salt Lake! Plan on the WORLD FINALS IN Vegas in March, see ya there!