TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Instead of hearing cheering fans at the Tucker Civic Center on Saturday, fans will hear loud monster trucks putting on a show.
Track machines hard at work in and around the Civic Center have the community pumped up about Saturday afternoon. Civic Center general manager Ron Rideout told ABC 27 that there's no show, like a monster truck show.
"It's always fun to have the monster trucks here in town, they put on a great show," Rideout said. "It's great to see the kids' faces when they see those engines rev up and they make those jumps so, it just makes everything come to life around here"
Nearly weighing 12,000 pounds, the monster trucks and their drivers are kicking off the 2022 season by making the Big Bend their first stop during the tour but also keeping this venue open for business.
"Well, we see this venue here as a diverse facility that can host a number of different events. Anything you can imagine we do it here at the Civic Center," Rideout said. "We think it's really important to the community that everyone has something to come to and be a part of and really enjoy it".
In addition to bringing joy to fans, the drivers are pretty excited too. They're thrilled to give Tallahassee fans a great day of entertainment and said the feeling never gets old.
"I can't wait to hit the big jumps in there, I'll tell you that," said Perry Como, driver of the Rat Nasty truck.
As for the people behind the scenes, North Carolina native Dell Pittman has been a track and safety coordinator for 12 years and told ABC 27 that cooperation with other crews helps events stay on schedule and that he enjoys being a part of the experience.
"From the time we get on scene and the trucks start bringing the dirt in, and once they start bringing the dirt in, we will be loading the dirt, smoothing it out," Dell Pittman said. "We get in between 8 to 15 hours depending on the venue."
As for the Seminoles basketball court that usually covers the floor of the Civic Center, Pittman said it will all be cleaned up by Monday.
"Saturday night after everybody is gone, we'll pile in, we'll put all this dirt sitting on the floor," Pittman explained. "Sunday morning trucks start coming in and by Monday morning the floor will be cleaned and washed, ready to go for the basketball court to be put down."
The Nitro Monster Truck Series has two shows in Tallahassee on Saturday, with one at 1:30 p.m. and another at 7:30 p.m.
