Monster Jam® veteran Dan Evans has enjoyed life on the road with his Monster Jam truck and family life combined, becoming very popular at Monster Jam events across North America and building a large fan base internationally.
In addition to competing in several Monster Jam World Finals events, he has become a staple at major stadium and arena shows all over the world. Evans hung up his fire suit recently to continue to pursue his Monster Jam passion by traveling all over the world as a back-up driver as well as a lead Monster Jam technician.
MonsterJam.com asked Dan a few questions about the Monster Jam life! Read what he had to say below.
How did you get started competing on the Monster Jam circuit?
I’ve been racing all of my life. I started racing motocross. From there, I went into quarter-mile drag racing, top alcohol drag racing, and sand drags. We also owned a limo business and had the world’s only monster limousine. After torturing that poor thing [limousine] for a couple of years, and accepting that it wasn’t designed to race, we decided to run the Destroyer Monster Jam truck. The first race I ever did with Destroyer was in Canada, which was a gas-aspirated truck. A year later, the blown alcohol, nitrogen shock, four-link truck, was born.
What it is like having your wife as your crew chief and having your family on the road with you most of the time?
You have to understand that on the road you are around each other all the time. So you have to have a good working relationship. You just can’t be spending all of your time arguing because you’re together 24/7 for as much as four months at a time without a break and without going home.
We are a very tight family and this is a family-oriented sport. Our son is involved in the sport, too. He also races. It is very difficult for a family to travel the way we do. We were fortunate that our son was old enough when we got into this sport that he could either go with us or stay home and take care of the house. This lifestyle isn’t for all families. It can be difficult and time-consuming. A lot of energy is involved, which essentially is for the finished product that people see on TV or at the shows.
Anyone who follows Monster Jam knows that once you get in the Monster Jam truck and strap in, you can’t get out. The driver is in there pretty much for the duration of the show, other than intermission when you maybe get a 10-minute or 15-minute break. Lorrie is my eyes on the floor. She is the one making sure that the Monster Jam truck is working properly when I’m out performing. When I come back to the pits, if something is wrong, it is up to her to fix it. I cannot get out of the Monster Jam truck unless it’s damaged too much to go back out. Lorrie is a great crew chief. Everything that has to do with the Monster Jam truck, she’s involved with it.
What do you enjoy doing while on the road with Monster Jam?
Honestly, I enjoy all the different people that we get to meet. Lorrie, our son, Deric, and I make sure that the fans can get close to us whether it’s inside or outside of the stadiums. Currently, we’ve been doing this for so long that people recognize us on the streets, and in stores. Taking the little extra time out of our day to visit with them is a rush. One of these days, I’m going to take a pin cushion and I’m going to get a world map and put a pin in every city, state, and country that we’ve performed in. I’m going to be surprised by all the places that we’ve been. Every place is different—different cultures, different people, different nationalities, it’s great.
What is your greatest memory as a Monster Jam truck driver?
That’s a tough question. Probably, it would be my first time ever going to the Monster Jam World FinalsSM that was live on pay-per-view television. That was an absolute rush. I sit back now and look at the new people and how badly they want to get to Las Vegas and I think to myself, “Wow, I’ve been there seven times and now it’s their turn.” But when you think about the first time competing in Vegas and the enthusiasm of that crowd, the type of track you’re dealing with, and ultimately the pressure of competing against the best in the world, it’s an exciting feeling.
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