In the motorsports world, there are few trucks more recognizable than the Ford F Series beast known as Bigfoot. While Bob Chandler’s original Bigfoot #1 has launched a million dollar sport in which many of the monster trucks don’t actually look like any production truck sold in America, Bob’s early monster trucks were based directly on normal production Ford pickups. For Throwback Thursday, we look at Bob Chandler’s Bigfoot #1 as he drove up over a car for the very first time.
While this video was posted online in 2009, the Bigfoot #1 Ford truck crushed its first junk car way back in 1981. When this video was recorded, there was no such thing as a monster truck or monster truck rallies and – honestly – the idea of driving a truck over a car to crush it for an applauding crowd likely hadn’t even cross anyone’s mind.
This simple one minute video showing a massively modified 1979 Ford F Series pickup driving over some old cars was meant to be a basic stunt for Chandler’s monster truck but once a motorsports promoter saw this video, the monster truck world was launched.
In short, Throwback Thursday here on Ford-Trucks.com brings you a look at the video that literally invented the sport of monster trucks as we know it today and thanks to Bob Chandler – this first monster truck car crushing was performed by a Ford truck.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
