Photos Courtesy of Bigfoot 4×4 Inc.
The Ford pickup that started the monster truck craze is no longer a Ford. For the , the legendary Bigfoot Monster Truck will wear a Chevrolet full-size truck body.
Why the stunning switch? Ford dropped its sponsorship of Bigfoot in 2007 (after 23 years), leaving Firestone Tires as Bigfoot’s primary partner and sponsor. Firestone is the official tire of this year’s Major League Baseball All-Star game fan festival in Anaheim, Calif., and Chevy is MLB’s official vehicle.
Combine the two in one place, and Bigfoot will wear a Silverado body when it arrives in California for the 81st All-Star game on July 13.
“Firestone has been a Bigfoot sponsor for over 15 years. We went down to Firestone [to talk about its sponsorship of the All-Star game],” said Bob Trent, vice president of Bigfoot Inc. “We did a couple of concept drawings, and Major League Baseball told them that if we did it with a Chevy body that they’d be more than happy to have it [at the game].”
Baseball fans will be able to see MLB Bigfoot at the All-Star FanFest starting Thursday.
Monster truck fan reaction has been mixed. On Bigfoot’s Facebook fan page and at monster truck forum Monster Mayhem, comments have ranged from “Bigfoot anything other than a Ford is just a sin” to “I liked Bigfoot before, but now BIGFOOT A CHEVY!!!!!!!? HELL YEAH!!!!!!!!!”
“I think you have a couple of die-hard Ford fans that don’t like it at all, which I can understand” Trent said. “But then I think we have a whole lot of people that understand why we’re doing this also. And we’re not switching over our entire fleet [of Bigfoot trucks]. Right now, it’s just a one-time deal.”
That one-time deal will be more than just a Chevy body. Bigfoot will be Chevy-powered, too.
“If you’re going to run a Chevy, run a Chevy motor,” Trent said. “We don’t believe in brand-mixing.”
More than 15 Bigfoot trucks have been built since 1975, when Bob Chandler modified his personal Ford F-250 4×4 work truck with re-arched leaf springs, 2-ton military axles and 48-inch terra tires. They've been featured in seven movies and made more than 25,000 appearances at shows and races in more than 20 countries. And now MLB Bigfoot will sport a Chevy bowtie.
[Monster H/T to Mike Stewart for the tip!]
