Monster Jam drivers talk prep and passion ahead of Abu Dhabi pit stop

After nearly a decade, the adrenalin-fuelled Monster Jam is making a pit stop in Abu Dhabi this weekend.

The motorsports event is famous for its exhilarating display of monster truck mayhem, where several 5,500kg vehicles engage in gravity-defying tests of speed and skill.

The gigantic trucks will jump, flip and race through obstacle courses at the Etihad Arena on Saturday and Sunday. Aside from the main contests, the two-day event will feature a “pit party”, where fans can get up close and personal with the powerful machines and their world-class drivers.

Monster Jam has a line-up of trucks, with some well-recognised by raging motorheads. The popular vehicles coming to the capital include the Grave Digger, introduced in 1981 and made out of scraps, the pickup-style Blue Thunder and the shark-shaped Megalodon.

“These huge vehicles make even the Gulf’s largest 4x4s look tiny in comparison. We’re talking three metres tall, five metres long, and more powerful than an F1 car,” says Nicolas Renna, managing director of Proactiv Entertainment, which produces the show.

Not only are the trucks jaw-dropping in size and power, they are also flamboyantly painted. Monster Jam is, after all, an electrifying visual spectacle at its core.

Driving passion

The hefty trucks are driven by highly trained male and female athletes who have mastered the physical strength, mental stamina and dexterity required to steer and control them.

Many drivers have been exposed to the sport since childhood, including Blue Thunder's Chelsea VanCleave and Matt Cody, who's taking the wheel of the Grave Digger this weekend.

“I think because I grew up watching motorsports events and enjoyed them so much, I was determined to make a career out of it,” says Cody, whose interest in monster trucks started when he wasn't even old enough to drive an ordinary car.

In eighth grade, he served as a crew member assisting Mike Vaters, who owns the famed Black Stallion monster truck. Cody first got in the driving seat in 2012 and has since won several Monster Jam titles.

Before the Abu Dhabi show, the American athlete had only competed in the US, Canada and Mexico. Competition aside, Cody is looking forward to his first Middle East trip. “I’m very excited to get there to experience the famous culture, the different traditional foods, and see all the iconic sights,” he says.

To prepare for his first international tour, Cody says he likes to watch clips of other drivers performing stunts.

“I’ll study these for quite some time and then re-enact them myself. Performing is all about preparation — as long as I’m prepared both mentally and physically, that’s all I can ask for when the time arrives to compete,” Cody explains.

Women at the wheel

Bonding with other drivers and learning from them is also key to Monster Jam rookie Chelsea VanCleave's pre-championship ritual.

“I try to stay relaxed for an event, usually by hanging out with the other drivers,” she says. “We mostly talk about what I would like to do in skills — it’s good to get their opinions.

“We all like to share tips and tricks to help each other out while competing. We walk the track together and check out the driving surface to get a real feel of it before we perform.”

VanCleave, whose motorsports journey also started when she was a little girl, is particularly drawn to the “thrill of driving so fast and completing skills at such a high speed”. She says she would watch Monster Jam events as a child and has since been hooked on the sport.

Although motorsports are still dominated largely by men, the Blue Thunder driver is confident that women “know how to compete just as good as the boys and aren’t afraid to get out there”.

VanCleave says she has not experienced any blatant sexism in the field, except for a few surprised reactions from bystanders to a woman driving such bulky vehicles.

“It is quite funny, actually,” VanCleave says. “People are more shocked when we get out of the trucks and they see we are female drivers. It’s great to be able to surprise people.”

There are quite a few female Monster Jam drivers, she says, but what's also remarkable is to see many female fans at events.

“It’s a great example that all sports are shifting, and now have more diverse fan and athlete participation.”

Monster Jam is taking place on Saturday and Sunday; from 1pm; tickets from Dh240; Etihad Arena, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi; abu-dhabi.platinumlist.net