Nascar Hall of Famers Praise Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam

By Monster Jam Media
Jul 3, 2012

For millions of fans as well as for everyone involved in Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam^® it is no secret how special this sport and its events are, how amazing the on-track action and fan-driver interaction is. Those two factors, the spectacular thrills seen at the events and the one-of-a-kind bond between the sports drivers and fans, have fueled the continuing growth of the sport for decades now, yet much of this has been under the radar of the “main stream” in the media and in other motorsports. So it has been interesting and really gratifying to see more and more media attention being devoted to Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam, and for me personally it has made a big impact when I have spent time talking recently with NASCAR Hall of Fame drivers who had lots of praise for where the sport is today, and more importantly, where it’s going.

At the risk of sounding like just a name-dropper here, let me start with Darrell Waltrip. Waltrip remains one of NASCAR’s winningest drivers and as most of you know he is now arguably that sport’s most popular on-air personality through his duties with the television networks Fox and Speed. I mean who else could pull off making “Boogity, Boogity, Boogity” a part of Americana. Just last Friday at Kentucky Speedway as Waltrip was finishing up one segment of his weekend of Speed on-air duties at that incredible facility’s NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide, and Camping World Truck series weekend I bumped into the legend outside of the broadcast booth. I’ve been acquainted with DW for years, having started both my broadcasting and motorsports careers years ago in Waltrip’s hometown of Owensboro, KY, so when he walked out to the back of the main tower at the mile and half oval, I went over to just say “Hi”. After exchanging pleasantries one of NASCAR’s all-time winningest drivers began talking to me about how impressed he was at the growth and development of Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam. Waltrip was especially complementary of the programs that are aired on Speed covering some of the sport’s biggest races and freestyles, and he marveled at all of the sold-out major stadiums that witness these competitions throughout the year. He also acknowledged how the drivers in Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam get it so right by devoting so much time and effort to pleasing their fans.

That reminded me of a similar conversation I had in late May, this time at another of America’s greatest major oval track facilities, Iowa Speedway. This encounter came with one of the members of the newest NASCAR Hall of Fame class, Rusty Wallace, who was a part of the design team that built the 7/8ths mile oval in Newton, IA. As soon as I bumped into Rusty the day before the first NASCAR Nationwide race of the Iowa Speedway season his first words to me were, “I’ve been watching you all the time”, referring to his catching the broadcasts of Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam on Speed. We spent several minutes discussing not NASCAR, but monsters. Wallace offered lots of praise for where the sport is currently at and marveled at some of the amazing moves our drivers are able to pull off as well as the technological advances of the Monster Jam Trucks in recent years. It was really interesting to hear Wallace discuss several of the top teams in the sport, and then we spent a few minutes discussing the future of Travis Pastrana, so I could fill Rusty in on the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam portion of the extreme sports legend’s career since Wallace, now a motorsports analyst for ABC and ESPN, comments on Pastrana at times as Travis continues to transition into NASCAR racing.

Again, while fans and those who are a part of the sport have been aware for years of just how amazing Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam is, it is great to know that some of the biggest names in the history of NASCAR are taking big time notice of what’s happening in this world as well. Remember, when these trucks were first created some three decades ago they were a novelty act, brought into crush a car as a filler act during truck and tractor pulls. When you look at it that way it is really amazing to see how in a relatively short period of time the development of competitive racing and the unique freestyle competitions have grabbed the attention of many in what up to now have been considered more main stream forms of motorsports. Considering the amazing number of tickets sold at live events all over the globe this really should come as no surprise, still it is really an acknowledgement of how far the sport has come so fast and how the amazing growth continues.

Then look at the media coverage. It took a while for most of the media to figure it out, but when Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam comes to town it is a big deal! The media tends to reflect its viewership, listenership, or readership. As more and more fans keep venues sold out for these events our friends in the media begin to get curious as to what is bringing in such massive crowds year after year, and they start covering some of the unique stories that make this so unique, so special. That took a while, but these days we continue to see more and more incredible coverage in many areas across the newspapers, hear drivers interviewed on popular radio programs, and see positive stories done on a variety of television programs.

I remember being absolutely stunned last year in Jacksonville when I looked into the pit area the day before that annual mega-event and saw four satellite trucks, all doing live shots on the local television 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts in advance of the “Jacksonville Jam” that has in recent years drawn the largest live crowds for Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam anywhere in the world. Another Wow moment for me, as someone who has been in various forms of the media all of my adult life, came just a few weeks ago in the shadows of New York City, on the day of the sport’s debut in Met Life Stadium. Thanks to the great work of the Feld Entertainment Public Relations and Marketing teams the “Fox and Friends” program on the national Fox News Channel was broadcasting all over the world from right in front of Grave Digger^® on the morning of the event there. Live national broadcast coverage on the number one rated cable/satellite news channel! To steal a line from the early days of the “women’s movement”, we’ve come a long way baby.

The bottom line is that these amazing events have been thrilling loyal fans for years and the incredible performances on the track, the one-of-a-kind interaction between the superstars and their fans, along with the continuing support of this huge fan base has proven that Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam provides thrills like no other form of sports or entertainment, and has been doing just that for years. No further validation of the sport’s success is needed once you look into those sold out grandstands and see the smiles on so many young faces. Still, it is especially fulfilling to see all of the attention the sport is getting in places where just a few years ago that coverage would have been unthinkable. That’s just another huge piece of evidence that the growth of our favorite sport is stronger than ever and continues into the future, paving the way for even more phenomenal action available to more fans in more ways and in more places every year.