Dennis Anderson Talks Grave Digger 35th Anniversary
Спорт
Dennis Anderson took some time out to talk about the history of the Grave Digger truck after receiving a full blown replica to help celebrate the 35th anniversary. The truck was equipped with the new JConcepts 1951 Ford Panel Truck "Grandma" body, courtesy of Fred Reep and JConcepts. Big thanks to Axial Racing, Ryan Anderson, Adam Anderson and Bari Musawwir
JConcepts made the trip up to Diggers Dungeon for the 12th annual No Limit RC Monster Truck World Finals. The event once again was held over Memorial Day weekend. With over 600 trucks entered it was long days and nights of racing. The Anderson family was out racing their JConcepts equipped Axial SMT10's all weekend long.
A brief history of the Grave Digger Monster Truck...
Grave Digger was originally conceived in 1982 by Dennis Anderson as a mud bogger. This first truck was a red 1952 Ford pickup truck. Later on a silver and blue 1951 Ford Panel Truck was his new mud truck that would become the first Grave Digger monster truck. The truck received its name when Anderson, amicably trash talking with his fellow racers, said the now famous line, "I'll take this old junk and dig you a grave with it", a reference to the age of his old pickup in comparison to their relatively modern trucks. Anderson gained a reputation for an all-or-nothing driving style and quickly became popular at local events. At one show, a scheduled monster truck failed to show up and Anderson, who already had large tractor tires on the truck, offered to crush cars in the absence of the full-size monster. The promoter accepted and Grave Digger was an instant success as a car crusher and led Anderson to leave mud bogging and pursue monster trucks instead.
In 1986 Grave Digger underwent a transformation to complete monster truck and first received its famous black graveyard paint scheme. In 1987 and 1988 Anderson drove the truck primarily at TNT Motorsports races and became a crowd favorite for driving hard despite lacking major funding that more well known teams, like Bigfoot, had. In 1987, Anderson beat Bigfoot in Saint Paul, Minnesota on a show taped for ESPN. It was the first major victory for Grave Digger.
Anderson moved to Grave Digger 2 in 1989, with a new 1950 Chevy panel van body. It was during this time that the reputation for wild passes was developed, and the popularity of the truck increased. TNT recognised his rising popularity and began promoting Grave Digger heavily, especially for races on the Tuff Trax syndicated television series. This was helped by Bigfoot not racing for points in the 1989 championship, leaving Grave Digger as the most popular truck on the tour.
When TNT became a part of the United States Hot Rod Association in 1991, Anderson began running on the USHRA tour and debuted his first four-link truck, Grave Digger 3. Throughout the 1990s, the popularity of the truck grew and forced Anderson to hire other drivers to run other Grave Digger trucks. Grave Diggers 4, 5 and 8 were built to suit this purpose, and were never driven in any major capacity by Anderson. Anderson drove Grave Digger 7, a direct successor to 3, for most of the decade. It was replaced by Grave Digger 12, well known as the "long wheelbase Digger", which was also the first Grave Digger with purple in the paintjob.
In late 1998, Anderson sold the Grave Digger team to USA Motor Sports (now Feld Entertainment Motor Sports). Anderson continues to drive and still is the most visible member of the team. However, the Grave Digger shop in Poplar Branch, North Carolina now also houses the other trucks which Feld Entertainment owns.
Пікірлер: 44
One of my favorite stops on the way down to Hatteras OBX NC. Well worth the stop. Great history.
One of my fondest memories was watching Gravedigger with Dennis at the wheel at the farewell performance at the Seattle kingdome before they tore it down. You had to be there! Long time fan much respect!
C'mon, Dennis, PLEASE restore "Grandma". Not cool to let a piece of history like that rust away like that.
@lariosmendoza
6 жыл бұрын
sgtpepper1138 hahah. That sucks but perhaps he has his reasons.
@adamtereska8734
6 жыл бұрын
I agree. Grandma needs restored.
@michaelsclark
5 жыл бұрын
My nephew and I had our pics taken with that truck
@farmbossmikey1350
2 жыл бұрын
its happen this summer
@charliered420
11 ай бұрын
@@lariosmendoza I believe it's because Fred, the artist behind the spooky mural and a good friend of Dennis's, had passed away. Fixing up Grandma would lose the original work.
thanks for sharing this video & Grave Digger is awesome & bad to the bone Monster Truck ever seen & i would like to meet Dennis Anderson Adam Anderson & Kirsten Anderson & Ryan And cause it would be awesome & happy 35'th years to Grave Digger
*Legend has it that Dennis still wants his Mayonnaise.*
Been a fan since 1992 when we first got sattelite tv up i norway. I liked grave digger because he always gave everything he had.and it was the coolest looking truck🙂
I like the rc grave digger truck
Dennis Anderson I can remember when I saw you run your first truck at Creed's raceway back in the early 1980s in competition with the wheel standing truck LATE NIGHTS
@isbryanflyingordying2202
3 жыл бұрын
The truck first ran in public in 1981
I need this!!
LOVE U DENNIS!
Nice
5:10 is that truck a axial smt10 with upgrades or custom?
@danielhaire659
5 жыл бұрын
quadsatv i would like to no as well
I want to get a grandma gravedigger that has the rust painted on it, including that dash of rust that’s on the back doors
I want to go that place It looks fun Also question for Denis Anderson : how did you get the name grave digger
@supersparrow9876
4 жыл бұрын
I don't remember all of the details but it went something like this.... Him and his friend were having a bet that his original truck couldn't make it through a mud hole and dennis said "I'll dig your grave"
@JuanchoYT69
Жыл бұрын
@@supersparrow9876 it's I think "I'll take this old junk and dig you a grave"
Anyone know how to get the decals??
Where I get that old rc from
From where I can buy one of those rc cars?
@Aiden-mj6dz
6 жыл бұрын
Kendama Crew try Traxxas.com
@JConceptsLive
6 жыл бұрын
Most in the video are custom made, check out Traxxas like Aiden said. Axial is making MT's, look at the SMT10. AMainHobbies.com is also a good place to look. When ready to upgrade, check out JConcepts.net
@agnessmid8108
3 жыл бұрын
In da store
@agnessmid8108
3 жыл бұрын
Lol
Ada di Indonesia gak kalo ada aku pergi 😎
I won tons rc monster events ran 1/5 scale brushless with flat grey caddy hurse body with flat black flames her name was breaking the bank because I broke it every time I ran it always wanted run rc monster jam world finals never had money for the trip
I have a traxxas grave digger
4:19 california crusher in toy
@prestoncole8188
6 жыл бұрын
Jorge Ian Barreto Vargas
@prestoncole8188
6 жыл бұрын
Monster jam in the other hand is a good thing I you have a 24 car Preston Cole call me
@alexiskinsey2120
6 жыл бұрын
I would like to Digger diner
@stevenpezzaniti5819
6 жыл бұрын
Jorge Ian Barreto Vargas hr8fjrienr8ddijdusnnsjsjwkdbdijkjjjjjd by ysbsossbs oh s as. Ijjjjsjss. Qm. S9b.
@monsterjambrony
3 жыл бұрын
Yeah, that’s the one I got when it came out, I never got the newer, more accurate one.
4th
Hi
Rc cars are cool, but it doesn’t have the feel of the real thing. I see a lot of rc enthusiasts that customize and fix RC’s that look like the real scale weather it’s a muscle car, jdm or the like. Why don’t you just work on the real thing. I used to be into RC’s now I’m more into the real cars. It’s more expensive, but it’s more fun to wrench on and you get to drive it, not control it with a controller. Doesn’t have the same feel. To each their own I guess.
The music blows
First comment