Whether it’s the Indy 500 or Monster Jam, attending races is a lot of fun. However, there’s always an element of danger that’s inherent in motorsports, so occasionally things can and do go south—just ask the owner of this poor Kia Spectra.
The Malicious Monster Truck Tour stopped at the Kitsap Fairgrounds in Bremerton, Washington, last weekend, and its roster of big trucks, dirt bikes, and other off-road machinery gave the crowd just a little more than they expected. And unfortunately, not in a good way. But what do you expect from a show called “Malicious,” right?
At some point during the show, a monster truck dubbed Veteran was on the course doing its usual routine, which as you might expect, consisted of crushing cars, doing donuts, and speeding off of ramps to catch serious air. One of those was actually pretty darn impressive, but it didn’t come without a consequence. Upon landing, Veteran’s front left tire broke off the axle and continued its trajectory forward while the truck limped to a stop.
These two videos, one from gagasolineaddiction and the other from monstertruckswashington, capture the terrifying situation from two different angles.
As is typical with runaway tires, it didn’t stop rolling until something forced it to. In this case, the tire launched off a ramp and flew over the track’s fence, still carrying enough momentum to inflict serious damage to whatever got in front of it. Luckily, and I do mean luckily, it catapulted into a parking lot and ended up smashing the unoccupied Kia. It also hit a Subaru, though not as badly.
An unmounted monster truck tire weighs between 800 and 900 pounds, not including the wheel itself. Needless to say, had that tire impacted a grandstand full of spectators, we’d likely be looking at multiple casualties. It’s happened before.
It sucks for the owner of the Kia, but things could’ve been much worse. According to Fox 13, show organizers did not provide a statement, but I sure hope the track’s management makes the necessary changes to keep runaway tires or other debris contained to the racing surface in future events.
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As deputy editor, Jerry draws on a decade of industry experience and a lifelong passion for motorsports to guide The Drive’s short- and long-term coverage.
