Bangshift Mini-Feature: BigfootBy Brian Lohnes Posted 11/20/09
Every BangShifter out there has one vehicle that strikes at the heart of his gearhead self. For us, that vehicle is Bigfoot 1. Unbeknown to us, Bigfoot 1 and a 35th anniversary Bigfoot truck were on display at the SEMA show, and we spent oodles of time with them. Throw rocks at us if you want, but we'd say that no list of influential vehicles in the history of American motorsports can leave Bigfoot 1 out of one of the top three spots. It is the only vehicle to literally invent a genre of motorsports.
Click here to fast-forward to our Bigfoot photo gallery from SEMA.
Created in the mid 1970s by the hands of Bob Chandler, the owner of Midwest Four Wheel Drive, Bigfoot started out as a testbed for new products at his shop. As the truck grew, the powerplants were improved, rear steering was added, and the archetype monster truck was taking shape. The addition of massive Rockwell top loader axles and 48-inch tall tires from agricultural fertilizer spreaders pushed the truck to sizes and heights that no one had ever seen. Soon the truck was showing up at truck pulls and making parade laps, crab walking around arenas with its rear steering at odds with the front. People loved it, but Chandler was just getting warmed up.
Prior to fitting the 48-inch Firestones, Chandler had taken some video tape of himself crushing cars in a farmers' field. It was a fun stunt, got some laughs, and made for a good home video. It wouldn't be long before that stunt in a rural field would launch an empire and rocket a new breed of race machinery onto the stage of American motorsports.
The seminal moment came in 1982. By then the truck was so popular a clone was built that sported the standard rubber for monster trucks, even today, the 66-inch tire. Now looking all the world like a "real" monster truck, Chandler was booked into a truck and tractor pull at the Pontiac Superdome in Pontiac, Michigan. In front of a crowd that looked more like a 70,000 person riot waiting to happen, Chandler rolled Bigfoot out onto the pulling course where two full sized junk cars sat awaiting their fate. The huge truck, powered by an exotic 640ci Alan Root Hemi Ford motor topped with Predator carbs, slowly climbed the backs of the cars as flashbulbs went off in a retina melting blaze and the crowd watched slack-jawed.
At that second, Bob Chandler's life changed. Both he and the truck became international celebrities. Every type of licensed merchandise hit the shelves (we still have a Bigfoot radio), a Saturday morning cartoon came along, then there were movie appearances, television commercials, and video tapes. It was and is a massive business.
Chandler worked the hell out of Bigfoot 1. He mudbogged it, beat the snot out of it at Gravelrama on the Big Eliminator hill, used it at truck pulls, and generally worked it to within an inch of its life. All on gas shocks and leaf springs!
This is a very truncated look at the history of Big Foot's early years, but the video below will show you some more neat stuff. Don't forget to hit the BangShift.com gallery of photos showing both Bigfoot 1 and a special 35th Anniversary Bigfoot truck that the shop built and debuted at SEMA. Make sure to read the captions for more monster truck knowledge. You can also hit Bigfoot's homepage by clicking here.
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Written by Brian Lohnes
Nov 22 2009
Jon, that's battle of the monster trucks II...I have it and all the others still.
That was Bob Chandler and Steve Evans riding around in the Aerostar inside the Superdome down in Louisiana!
Brian
Written by FIREBALLMONZA
Nov 21 2009
anyone else have the bigfoot videos i can't remember the names ill have to see if i can dig them up. they were both behind the scene type building the trucks and such. They had a 4x4 aerostar messing around in the dirt and in the water.......I grew up watching those videos over and over again
Written by mustang13 Nov 21 2009
Boy, I forgot about the SST toys. I was already in my teens when they came out, still lusted after one. I did build many a Bigfoot from Lego's growing up however.
Two of my favorite magazine memories growing up are of Bigfoot climbing the hill at the Gravelrama and racing the paddle boat down the St. Louy.
That reminds me of something that a friend that owns a Hobbie story told me, it costs a lot to relive your childhood.
Dam Ebay! :'(
Written by andy30thz Nov 21 2009
Talking about being a Bigfoot kid in the 80's.....
This commercial had me lusting so bad after this toy that when I finally go one for Christmas I was disappointed!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KurmekvkRkc&feature=related
This too....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cd_zPq7jlYA&NR=1
Written by Speedzzter.blogspot
Nov 20 2009
The C50 "Jolly Green Giant" thing is starting to come into focus. ;D
Amazingly, I walked past those "Bigfeet" probably twenty times in the LVCC parking lot and never noticed that one of them was a new anniversary build.
[quote author=mustang13 link=topic=17327.msg329629#msg329629 date=1258750945]
How much better did Bigfoot make the movie "Take this job in shove it".
[/quote]
"Take this Job and Shove It" . . . now that's a couple of hours of my misspent youth I wish I had back . . . . ([url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/take_this_job_and_shove_it/]http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/take_this_job_and_shove_it/[/url])
Oh and Bigfoot (R) #7 was in "Road House" ([url=http://www.bigfoot4x4.com/firsts.html]http://www.bigfoot4x4.com/firsts.html[/url]) . . . another movie that tortures brain cells to death: "be nice until it's time to not be nice," . . . "pain don't hurt." Now that's some real Shakespearian dialogue. [url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1017666-road_house/]http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1017666-road_house/[/url]
Written by Brian Lohnes
Nov 20 2009
That's still the world record jump I believe. 225ft!
Written by mustang13 Nov 20 2009
How much better did Bigfoot make the movie "Take this job in shove it".
My son and I meet Dan Runte at a show in Unidilla NY in 04, awesome guy, took time to talk and sign some shirts even though he was busier then hell.
He said he wore one of the first HANS neck braces for the big airplane jump.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp3VVywmA4U&feature=related
Written by Brian Lohnes
Nov 20 2009
[quote author=66PAPR W8 link=topic=17327.msg329568#msg329568 date=1258745005]
You are correct, according to the Bigfoot4x4.com it is #5 that has the tundra tires on it. When they first put them on, it didn't have the body spacer on it. The tire stood taller than the roof, or at least really close. But when it turned it beat up the body.
While on the site, I noticed that Fasttrax has 2 blown 460s.
[/quote]
Good research!
Those little tank vehicles hauled ass back then!
Brian
Thats right....I've had no luck finding them Ill even have to try to find a VCR ::) ;D