Monster truck rallies are more popular than ever

NPR | By John Burnett

Published April 10, 2026 at 4:43 PM CDT

The spectacle of a mammoth, balloon-tired pickup truck hurtling through the air in front of thousands of screaming fans has turned into a multi-million-dollar business. Monster Trucks are bigger than ever, spawning several competing national touring companies and expanding overseas. What the hell's going on here? John Burnett will attend Monster Truck Wars--"America's Wildest Monster Truck Show"--in Henderson, Texas, on March 14, talk to some superfans and profile a driver.

John Burnett

John Burnett is a national correspondent based in Austin, Texas, who has been assigned a new beat for 2022—Polarized America—to explore all facets of our politically and culturally divided nation. Prior to this assignment, Burnett covered immigration, Southwest border affairs, Texas news and other national assignments. In 2018, 2019 and again in 2020, he won national Edward R. Murrow Awards from the Radio-Television News Directors Association for continuing coverage of the immigration beat. In 2020, Burnett along with other NPR journalists, were finalists for a duPont-Columbia Award for their coverage of the Trump Administration's Remain in Mexico program. In December 2018, Burnett was invited to participate in a workshop on Refugees, Immigration and Border Security in Western Europe, sponsored by the RIAS Berlin Commission.

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