Having grown up in the ’80s, I’m only really sure of a few things: Hulkamania rules (uh, wait…), I’m supposed to just say no, and Bigfoot is king (the monster truck, although the sasquatch was also talked about a lot back in the day). Tonight, I saw Bigfoot, and I am a better person for it.
Monster X, which is having a second performance tomorrow afternoon at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre, was my first monster truck show, but from what I have gathered, it’s much like others: a lot of time spent waiting for quick three-second bursts of destruction. Is it worth it? You better believe it.
The premise is that the event actually has some point to it beyond crush crush crush, although we all just want to see the huge monster trucks squash the other cars out there. But the night is set up as a tournament of races, followed by a less structured freestyle crush crush crush part, which was awesome (apparently, there was also a wheelie contest, which I somehow missed; the trick with having to wear so much ear protection is having absolutely no idea what the announcer is saying at most points, and also not being able to communicate with your offspring).
As a lifelong BMX guy, I was thrilled at the addition of some two-wheelers: a couple dirt bike riders did some absolutely huge airs when it came time to give the monster truck drivers a break. And while we all love a backflip, these two had tons of style in their all-too-brief part of the show; sometimes a smooth tweak is more impactful than a flip, although obviously not as much of a crowd-pleaser. These two ruled, and were the highlight of the night for me (the crowd loved them, as well; the whole event went over quite well, with everyone leaving the arena in good spirits and talking about how much they liked the night).
Couple PSAs: bring ear protection. Seriously, especially for younger ears. This is even louder than I thought it would be. Also, due to the fumes, there has to be a lot of air circulation going on, so dress warmly. You want to be at peak comfort while enjoying this outlandish, totally over the top, and kinda glorious show.
The show is suitable for kids (again: bring ear protection, and don’t think I’m being overly cautious here) (yes, of course they sell official Monster X ear protection there, should you forget to bring yours), and although my four-year-old struggled a bit to stay enthralled for the whole thing (by nature these events have so much downtime, so that’s always a challenge), he was still amazed by the huge metal machines, the enormous tires, the pure spectacle of it all. It’s all a bit absurd in a way, but it was also a night to remember.
And, again: tonight, I saw Bigfoot. Eight-year-old me is content; my son fell asleep in my arms walking away from the show, so he was pretty content. And adult me? Totally content. Sometimes a night of monster trucks hits the spot more than you ever thought it would.