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DRIVER INFORMATION
Driver name:	Charles Benns
Residence:	Albuquerque, New Mexico
Birthplace:	Chattanooga, Tennessee
Years competing:	Since 2005
DRIVER HISTORY
Charles Benns is known as one of Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam’s most unique personalities and most enthusiastic competitors. Benns owns nine trucks and goes four wheeling everywhere. He has years of experience as a kick boxer and now, trains extensively in Mixed Martial Arts — when he’s not behind the wheel of a monster truck. A very successful real estate agent in Albuquerque, Benns has also proved to be one of the most giving superstars in a sport that is full of competitors who give back to their fans and their communities. Benns met many people in the industry when he ran the Pro Arena Truck Series, where he began donating all of his winnings to the Children’s Hospital in Albuquerque. He has been honored multiple times for his charitable works with children’s hospitals, the Locks of Love organization, animal rescue leagues and others. Benns made his name in the sport driving his Pit Bull truck, which he named partly because he owns pit bulls and partly because he has been nicknamed “the Pit Bull” by others in the real estate business. Q&A with Charles Benns MonsterJam.com: How did you get started competing on the Monster Jam circuit? Charles Benns: I was just hanging out with a bunch of rednecks and they dared me to try it. So I started looking around for a truck. I looked at a few and I found Bill Weaver up in Syracuse, the guy with Rambo. I went up there and was pretty impressed with Mike Nitschke. We talked, and I actually got more than just the truck, I got his help anytime I would call him. So I brought the truck back to Albuquerque. Then I bought a huge, 8,500-square-foot building and now it has nothing but big toys in there. So, it’s been a pretty good time. MonsterJam.com: Along with your endeavors with children’s hospitals, you’ve also become known for working with the unique Locks of Love charity. How did that come about? Charles Benns: Well, I like long hair. I’ve always been a rock ‘n roll nut. I love heavy metal and getting on the floor in a mosh pit. But I once had a boss who was real difficult about long hair; so I started donating my hair to Locks of Love, right out of school, to get him off my back. Now, I know that sounds lame, but it turned out that my hair grows so fast. If I let it grow, I get about 18 inches of hair every 18 to 24 months; so, I cut it off. It takes 10 inches of hair to make a wig for a kid who needs one. So, I can donate every year or year and a half. To educate people about Locks of Love, I’ve used my trucks. We’ve been at the World Finals pit party and I have gotten several people to donate their hair. At the annual summer show that I put on in Albuquerque, the Summer Smash, we actually cut over 20 heads of hair. People just show up and say, “We love what you do, take my hair.” MonsterJam.com: What do you do with your free time? Charles Benns: I work out three hours a night, five nights a week, at Jackson’s MMA in Albuquerque. It’s the home of World Champion fighters like Diego Sanchez, George St. Pierre, Keith Jardine and Rashad Evans. I’m in there with light heavyweight fighters, five nights a week. I’ve kick boxed for more than 15 years and I recently started cage fighting. I love it. I lift every day; I run; and I love spending time with my boys, my two sons. MonsterJam.com: What is your greatest memory as a monster truck driver? Charles Benns: The kids! Meeting kids that I’ve gone to visit in hospitals or kids that I’ve used my truck to raise money to help. I give all the money that I make in Monster Jam in Albuquerque to that hospital. I’ve been doing that for more than five years. So, I’ll see kids that I met years ago and they’ll come up and show me their scars that have healed. Touching kids’ lives while pursuing a hobby is a dream of mine: it’s like killing two birds with one stone. It has made me a happy man. I am very satisfied. MonsterJam.com: Do you have any pre-show rituals that you run through? Charles Benns: I never have a plan; I’m not superstitious. I never make a plan because I’ve tried that and it never works. So, I just try to be on-time and I try to work hard. MonsterJam.com: What’s your favorite food? Charles Benns: Green chili cheeseburgers MonsterJam.com: What’s your favorite movie? Charles Benns: Apocalypse Now MonsterJam.com: What’s your favorite television show? Charles Benns: Cops MonsterJam.com: What’s your favorite color? Charles Benns: Black TRUCK INFO Truck Name: Monster Mutt® Rottweiler Body: Custom Concept Engine size: 540 CI Transmission: Coan 2-Speed Sponsors: Advance Auto Parts, Arsenault Associates, ARP Automotive Products, Auto Meter, Awesome Racewear, Cam 2 Racing Oil, Coan, Crower Racing Products, Derale Performance, Energy Suspension, Fel-Pro Performance Gaskets, FK Rod Ends, Hawk Performance, Jaz Products, K & N Filters, King Engine Bearings, Lincoln Welders, Liquid Advanced Technology, Magnaflow Performance, Mechanix Wear, MSD Ignition, NGK Spark Plugs, Optima Batteries, Piloti, TX7, Powermaster, Rockford Rosgate, Speed Pro, Universal Technical Institute, Walker Radiator Works, WISECO, World Products