In a world of serious corporate nonsense and constant political wrangling, it was refreshing to enjoy a motorsport that's sole purpose was to put smiles on people’s faces over the weekend.Monster Jam once again rolled into Cardiff's Principality Stadium and there wasn't a single steward's enquiry or questionable rule change in sight.
For those unaware of what exactly Monster Jam is – and a lot of my European readers will be – it's a live stadium or arena 'event' that pits 10 giant monster trucks head-to-head in three different competitions. There's straight forward racing – to satisfy the motorsport purists; a two-wheel trick challenge; and a freestyle event, where drivers must impress the crowd of 40,000 people by performing a series of tricks and stunts in an allotted time.
For the latter two of those events, Monster Jam takes crowd participation up a level. The whole show is a mix of traditional competition and judged sport and for the judged part, the crowd scores participants out of 10 using a dedicated website, with the average amongst the crowd being the final score. Each competition scores points towards an event championship, with each event championship counting towards an overall season tally.
While Monster Jam does its bit to promote the drivers of each truck, the stars of the show are undoubtedly the trucks themselves. Each is a character in its own right, with legendary names like Grave Digger and El Toro Loco competing alongside fire-breathing dragons, giant sharks, and even Scooby Doo. It ensures that there’s something relatable to everyone and looking at the assortment of novelty hats throughout the crowd, it works. Each of the ten trucks in the show has its own dedicated following all over the world. When you compare this to Formula 1, where the drivers are drab and the cars pig ugly, it’s a welcome change. Sure, it’s a bit over-the-top, but there’s nothing wrong with a bit of pantomime. Plus, where else in the world could you see a 1,500bhp shark face off against a giant Dalmatian? After all, while this may be a form of motorsport, its very much entertainment first and foremost. The show’s promoters, Feld Entertainment, work on a number of other projects including Disney On Ice, so they know a thing or two about a flashy performance.
The show in Cardiff was my first ever Monster Jam event. I’d been keen to get to one for years, but our calendars never perfectly aligned until now. There’s very little in the way of motorsport events I’m yet to experience, and this one was certainly up there on my 'to-do list'. Without wanting to sound clichéd or overenthusiastic, it really did have it all. A personable feel, close competition, non-stop track action (literally – besides a short interval mid-way through the two-hour show, there was next-to-no pauses throughout), competitors people could relate to straight away without having to have followed for years, and vehicles that in this day of hybrid this, electric that, and CFD the other, were refreshingly unhinged and, frankly, bonkers.
In fact, if you’re one of those fools that thinks Formula E can’t be entertaining because it’s quiet, give this a try. A total 15,000 horsepower in a building with a roof has quite the effect – everything will seem quiet afterwards. And if you plan on speaking to me any time in the next week, please speak up. Or even better, prepare subtitles. So, there you have it. Monster Jam. An American import that’s loud, colourful, and in your face. It’s bloody perfect.
Monster Jam returns to Cardiff on May 18 2019.
For a full gallery of images from Monster Jam Cardiff 2018, click here
Image: Dominik Wilde
No comments:
Post a Comment