Who needs earplugs?

I took James to Monster Jam tonight...and he is STILL talking about it with Mark despite our many requests for them to go to sleep. But it was awesome. And if I were 5 years old I wouldn't be able to sleep either. We stopped at the pharmacy on our way and purchased earplugs. But within about 5 minutes both James and I took them out so we could thoroughly enjoy the experience!
This video was taken at the beginning...when we were still getting accustomed to the noise. James didn't have his ears covered much longer after this race. He was mesmerized by the sights and sounds. I don't think you can fully appreciate the noise unless you were there. Our shirts and jeans were vibrating. (Come to think of it, my ears are still ringing a bit...)



Here's a close-up of El Toro Loco.

The show started out with some wheelies. Here's The Avenger.

Then they had races. There were six monster trucks at this show. You saw Pure Adrenaline and The Grave Digger in the video above. Apparently there is a "world championship" taking place in two weeks in Vegas. Several of these trucks will be participating.

After halftime it really started getting loud. These guys were doing some crazy doughnuts. You could smell the rubber melting and the smoke got pretty thick at times. Fortunately there was good ventilation! But it gave a unique kick to the hot dogs. Here was Pure Adrenaline.

Then they ended with some freestyle. They could do whatever they wanted to impress the audience. One truck flipped and another caught fire which livened things up (unintentionally, of course--it certainly engages the crowd but the drivers would rather avoid that kind of entertainment). James thought it was all cool.

And as the crowd dispersed, James and I lingered just long enough for the camera guy to catch James. It took a minute, but as soon as I got James to realize he was on the JumboTron for all the world to see he smiled cheek to cheek and scrunched his shoulders in embarrassment. What a great way to end the evening. We had a blast! And I think it was an experience a little 5 year old mind won't soon forget.