(By Lauren Z. Bonar) With my wife Lynette having a conference in Carlsbad, CA for her work scheduled in early June, we were on the road again and would be spending some time in California. With me simply being the “chaffeur”, I was left with little to do during the days while my wife was attending the conference. Only being a short drive from the home of our good friend Rick Swanson, I took the opportunity to visit Obsession Racing and revive the dusty LZ’s Pit Report feature here on the site. Rick has just returned from a six week tour of the Northwest and was tired, but still took time out of his schedule to show us around.
While covering shows for The Monster Blog, I have run into Rick Swanson a total of five times. The first time I met Rick was at a Monster Jam event in Tucson back in 2006. We have spent time together doing Monster Trucks Showdown events in Mexicali and Tijuana in Mexico last year and were also on hand for another Monster Jam event in Tucson where Rick was called on during a crunch to drive Bulldozer for Alex Blackwell.
For the trivia buffs out there, here is how that situation arose. Rod Schmidt had been scheduled to drive Grave Digger in Prescott Valley, AZ that same weekend, however due to some heavy snow storms in the Midwest, he was snowed in at his home in Charles City, IA. Alex Blackwell was the scheduled driver for Bulldozer in Tucson, but was sent to Prescott Valley to drive Digger. Live Nation officials called Rick to drive Bulldozer and Rick did a fine job. The biggest challenge of the weekend came in adjusting the driver’s seat to Rick’s frame. This wasn’t Rick’s first cameo for Live Nation however; he also drove Monster Mutt for Mike Wine in March of 2008 in Fresno, CA. Rick was actually doing double duty that night, jumping back and forth from Obsession to Monster Mutt.
But back to the present: driving in the gate to the Swanson’s property, I was greeted by Rick and his trophy kart driving son Eric (some of you may remember Eric winning the two trophy kart races at the Phoenix Monster Jam in January from our coverage). They welcomed me into their beautiful home to show me around. The first thing that caught my eye about the house and property was, it looked as if Mr. Clean had waved his wand over the property, to include the shop, as everything was spotless.
Young Eric’s room was full of trophies he had won racing dirt bikes, and of course, monster truck collectibles of his father’s Obsession machine. Rick’s office was much the same, filled with trophies, plaques and awards. We visited here for a while and I took Rick on a complete tour of TheMonsterBlog.com. There are many people that read the front page of The Monster Blog and do not have any idea how many links there really are.
The three of us made our way out to the shop where we were fortunate enough to get a sneek peak at the new monster truck Rick is building. As I mentioned previously, the shop was spotless, but there was a certain glow missing to this point. Then Jill Swanson walked into the shop, saying hello and offering soft drinks. The glow from Mr. Clean’s wand just appeared!
Rick explained that he has everything to finish this new ride, minus a few parts here and there. He still needed a blower injector and a transfer case, but was in no rush to finish. This monster is being built for Eric and he still has a couple years before he can jump behind the wheel of the “New Monster”. Should it get finished a little early, Rick mentioned that Jill might break it in for Eric. Below is a picture of Rick’s impressive parts bin.
Looking around the shop, one finds various mementos with stories behind each. One item that caught me eye was a huge banner that covered two walls in the garage. This banner hung high above the Mexicali baseball stadium during the Monster Trucks Showdown event last year. I remember Rick asking Eduardo Salman with Pro 3 Entertainment if he could have that banner. Eduardo told Rick with a smile that, if he could get it down, he could have it. The banner was very high up, hung with some heavy duty cable and it would prove extremely difficult to get it down.
There was a group of us sitting around after an enjoyable post-race BBQ courtesy of Kelvin Ramer and Natural High. The group included Rick and his pit crew member Jeff Jones, Frank Schettini with the Pro Comp Tires truck, Kelvin and his crew man Justin Cluster, Sam Sturges with Unnamed & Untamed, Ronnie Sturges of Nasty Boy and myself. The gang was laidback and maybe a little bored after eating Kelvin’s good food. After the Mexicali Police stopped by to make some of the guys stop shooting bottle rockets at each other, ending their fun, the group was looking for something to entertain themselves. Ronnie Sturges started walking towards the back of the stadium with the intent of getting the banner down for Rick. I pitched in and after about twenty minutes, Rick and Jeff showed up to assist. A few minutes later, there were Frank, Kelvin, and Justin. Between the group’s efforts, we managed to retrieve the banner and Rick walked away with a great souvenir.
The shop’s walls were covered with items of interest as well. A framed magazine was Rick’s first project truck. The Bronco used to belong to his grandparents and Rick bought it from them. Rick wanted to put a lift kit in it, but had to talk his father into that. With that short wheel base, dad was a little cautious of the idea. With some other modifications, poof, there was his work on the cover of a magazine.
Another huge banner graced a wall, this one emblazened with the AmeriGas red and blue. AmeriGas is a great supporter of the monster truck industry, not only sponsoring Obsession but also Frank Schettini and the Pro Comp Tires monster, not to mention being one of TheMonsterBlog.com’s biggest supporters.
How does AmeriGas feel about their sponsorships in the monster truck industry and how they promote their business? Jeff Jones, an executive with AmeriGas wrote me a note expressing his feelings about working with Rick and Obsession:
“AmeriGas sees many benefits as to why we sponsor Rick Swanson and the Obsession Racing Team. First we focus on Rick and the face/image that he puts on his racing team. We have always been proud with the business image that Rick displays and the manner in which he conducts himself on and off there race track. We also are very pleased with the family image that he lives. Rick has a good rapport with all that he has worked with and all offer positive feedback about Rick. Secondly we are proud to sponsor this race team because of the mass exposure that it provides for us. The Obsession Monster Truck is so highly visible by all that attend the race events and we are proud to have the AmeriGas named displayed there also. The Obsession truck is a type of outlet that our customers and employees can identify with and appeals to them. These are just a couple of examples and benefits as to why AmeriGas is a proud sponsor of Rick Swanson and the Obsession Racing Team.”
As monster truck fans we need to support the folks that support the sport we love. If you use propane, check out AmeriGas at www.Amerigas.com.
I found another item I recognized a story behind–a welded planetary. For those of you who checked out our Phoenix Monster Jam coverage, you’ll remember Obsession losing the left front tire in freestyle. Meet one of the culprits.
During our visit, Eric Swanson decided to put on a show for us with his trophy kart. In the backyard, Rick has constructed a freestyle course for Eric and his trophy kart. Check out a few shots of Eric’s freestyle course and his high flying Obsession trophy kart. You could definitely say that Eric is getting ready for his day behind the wheel of a monster truck.
Rick and Obsession have appeared on television not only on Monster Jam and Speed Channel, but also in numerous commercials and on other programs. A few examples include appearing on the Ellen DeGeneres show and Behind the Scenes Monsters show, in commercials for products Smirnoff Ice, Kingsford Charcoal, and in two Super Bowl commercials that included a full throttle and ESPN commercial in 2006. Most recently Rick participated in the filming of a Maytag commercial. Nearly ten years ago, Rick participated in a NAPA commercial where they made a replica remote control truck of Obsession. Rick’s first on air driving experience came at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1998. Rick’s biggest television success came in 2006 when he won the Monsters of Destruction Championship, aired on The Outdoor Channel.
I really enjoyed my visit with the Swanson’s. I could go on and on about the accomplishments of Rick, his family and Obsession, but this just an LZ’ Pit Report article, not an autobiography, lol. TheMonsterBlog.com would like to thank the Swanson’s for inviting me into their home and allowing me to share some of their personal, behind the scens history in monster trucks. Until next time…
