All around the world, love is in the air on Valentine’s Day Weekend. In Cleveland, love isn’t the only thing in the air! Dirt, dust, and the scent of 12,000-pound trucks tingle the nostrils, traditionally over the weekend closest to February 14. This year’s edition will run from Friday, February 14 – 16 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. {DETAILS AND TICKETS}
Camden Murphy, driver of the newest member of the Monster Jam Fleet, Classroom Crusher, phoned in to dish on all the event details!
“Monster Jam is a larger-than-life motorsport out here. It’s unexpected, unscripted, and an absolutely unforgettable experience for the entire family,” Murphy said. “Even on Valentine’s Day, we got 12,000-pound Monster Jam trucks; 1500 horsepower. We’re jumping these things 30, 40 feet in the air, doing wild and crazy things!”
First:
“We start the event with Monster Jam racing, or racing head to head against another competitor.”
Second:
“We move into what’s called the skills competition. It is kind of like doing the best trick, where you’re trying to put the truck on the front two tires, the rear two tires doing a bicycle, things that a 12,000-pound truck should not be doing! But the cool part about that is these Monster Jam fans get to judge on that at judgeszone.com, and they are the ones deciding our fate and what our score is. ”
Third:
“Then, we move into what’s called the donut competition. We’ll do some monster jam donuts spinning these trucks in circles, and it is always a fan favorite. It’s another one that the fans get to judge. “
Last, but not least:
“And then, we do absolutely everyone’s favorite: Monster Jam freestyle! We jump in these trucks, big air, all sorts of wild and crazy tricks. You might see a backflip or two. You never know. But Monster Jam is always unexpected and such a great time for the entire family!”
The initiated Monster Jam fan might be unaware that the events in Cleveland (and the rest of the tour) are not merely exhibitions. The drivers are in full-blown competition with one another, trying to emerge victorious at each show and accumulate as many points from fans and victories in races as possible, not dissimilar to competitions in more popular mainstream sports.
“It’s a pure competition! As I said, unscripted! It is entirely up to us and the fans. But yeah, we’re acquiring points that will ultimately have a championship, and at the end of that, whoever is the champion at the end of the season gets the automatic bid to our Monster Jam World Finals this year in Salt Lake City,” he explained. “So yeah, man, it is a pure competition. Absolutely wild! We are going out there and trying to get as wild as we can and get as many points as we can!”
CleveRock connects with Monster Jam drivers annually before the trucks come to Cleveland. Every year, drivers are asked about their favorite part of the competition, and every year, the driver says the freestyle is their favorite (until today). Ring the bell, folks; Camden Murphy has a different view.
“It’s probably going to be a little different. I love racing Monster Jam racing,” he said with enthusiasm. “I started racing when I was really, really young. I’ve been racing for over 16 years of my life, so I just absolutely love the pure competition, and it is truly up to you to be the winner in racing. So you don’t have to rely on the fans or anything. It is all on you. So I love racing, don’t get me wrong, I love freestyle. It is an absolute blast. So we get to go out there and thrash and crash on these 12,000-pound trucks, but man, I love racing.“
Murphy is the first competitor to drive the most recent addition to the Monster Jam fleet, Classroom Crusher! He’s thrilled to be behind the wheel of the new fan favorite!
“Yes! I drive Classroom Crusher, which is brand new this year in Monster Jam. It is a giant school bus jumping high through the sky, and it’s a school bus that is just too cool for school. It’s awesome. It’s got some really awesome flames on it. There are a couple of characters in the windows, but instead of a stop sign, we’ve got a Go Sign,” Murphy described. “It is absolutely awesome. The fans love it.”
Did anybody else miss the Monster Jam driver table at their high school and college career fairs? Yeah? Me, too! I also missed Monster Jam University (an actual school) at the college fairs. For the younger generation that wants to do something more exciting than car sales, engineering, or (God forbid) journalist, Murphy was asked how one can weasel their way behind the wheel of a 12,000-pound machine.
“Everybody honestly comes from a different walk of life,” he said. “Cleveland’s own Bari Musawwir raced competitively with remote-controlled cars, got noticed, and got the opportunity to go to Monster Jam University. Myself; I raced in NASCAR and have been racing for the majority of my life, and got an opportunity to go to Monster Jam University and audition. And really, it’s just getting the chance to go to MJU, train and audition with multi-time champions, and hopefully get the opportunity to get in your own Monster Jam truck at a Monster Jam event. But it’s definitely a long training process, not just on track but off track as well. But it’s such an absolute blast; such a dream come true. But man, I really am living a dream. I’m so incredibly fortunate to do what I do, but man, I always go out there and tell the kids, ‘Do not give up! Never give up on a dream! If you have something that you believe in and want to do, as long as you never give up, you’ll absolutely achieve your dreams.'”
A fun addition to Monster Jam is the optional add-on of a Pit Party Pass ($21; INCLUDING fees) that allows fans to spend 90 minutes before doors open to the public, exploring the Monster Jam track, getting up close to the trucks, and meeting the drivers (who happily oblige autograph requests.) **Available only prior to the 1:00 PM events on Saturday and Sunday**
“It’s incredibly humbling. I mean, I grew up as a fan of Monster Jam, obviously still a fan at heart for sure. But when I was a little kid and you’re meeting some heroes of yours, and it is just absolutely a dream come true when you get to see these larger-than-life monster jam trucks right in front of your eyes and see how big they truly are. But seeing your heroes and meeting your heroes and getting an autograph, a high five, and it’s so cool, and you don’t realize how far just a single High five can go and how much of an impact that can make,” Murphy said. “That’s one of the best parts about Monster Jam. We’re about creating memories that last a lifetime. And I definitely have some memories that have lasted my lifetime. So just trying to do that and move forward.
Monster Jam has a more friendly admission price point than most other family entertainment options. All-in ticket pricing starts at only $47. (Roughly 1% of the cost of a ticket to see Taylor Swift.) Murphy and the other drivers are mindful of making these events more accessible to fans.
“It’s incredibly important to be able to reach everybody. Monster Jam is a family-friendly event. Like I said, it is for everyone. It doesn’t matter how young or how old you are; I can promise you you will have a great time at Monster Jam if you’ve never been. You will have a blast, and it won’t be your last time,” he said. “It’s great seeing families at the Pit Parties and talking to them and how many times someone’s a first timer or man, they have such a great time, the first one, they’re coming back, or the people that have been coming for 20, 30 years. So it’s super important to be able to reach everybody and give everybody the chance to experience what Monster Jam is all about. And it’s, like I said, unexpected, unscripted, and an absolutely unforgettable experience. You’ll not use the entire seat because you’re going to be sitting on the edge the entire time.”
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