Dennis Anderson facts for kids
Anderson in 2016
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Dennis Montague Anderson |
| Born | October 24, 1960 Norfolk, Virginia, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) | Carisa Meyers (m. 2005) |
| Sport | |
| Country | United States |
| Sport | Monster Jam |
| Team | Grave Digger |
| Retired | 2017 |
| Achievements and titles | |
| World finals |
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Dennis Montague Anderson, born on October 24, 1960, is a famous American former professional monster truck driver. He is best known as the person who created, owned, and drove the legendary "Grave Digger" monster truck. He was a big star on the USHRA Monster Jam circuit. Dennis lives in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina.
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The Story of Grave Digger
Dennis Anderson began his career in 1982. He started out as a mud bogger. This means he drove trucks through deep mud. His first truck was a 1952 Ford pickup. It was painted in red primer.
How Grave Digger Got Its Name
One day, Dennis was working on a farm. His boss's son made fun of Dennis's truck. He called it "junk." He said it couldn't get through the mud like his own truck. Dennis felt offended. He told the boss's son, "I'll take this junk and dig you a Grave!"
Other workers heard this. They were impressed. They wrote "Grave Digger" on Dennis's time card. When Dennis got home, he spray-painted "Grave Digger" on his truck's door. That weekend, Dennis raced the boss's son at the mud hole. Dennis won!
From Mud Bogger to Monster Truck
Later, Dennis rebuilt his truck. He used a 1951 Ford panel truck. It was painted silver and blue. He put much larger wheels on it. At one local show, a monster truck didn't show up. Dennis's truck already had huge tractor tires. So, he offered to crush cars instead.
The crowd loved it! This success made Dennis want to become a monster truck driver.
In 1986, Grave Digger got its famous look. It was painted black with a graveyard scene. In 1987 and 1988, Dennis drove Grave Digger at TNT Motor sports races. In 1988, he even beat the famous Bigfoot truck. This race was in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It was shown on ESPN.
Grave Digger's Evolution
In 1989, Dennis started driving Grave Digger 2. This truck used a 1950 Chevrolet panel van body. TNT began to promote Grave Digger a lot. It was featured on TV shows like Tuff Trax and ESPN's Powertrax. Dennis's brother, Leslie, drove the original Grave Digger 1.
In 1991, TNT joined the USHRA. Dennis then started racing on the USHRA tour. He introduced Grave Digger 3. This was his first truck with a special four-link suspension.
New Trucks and Challenges
In 1992, Dennis got injured. He decided to build an even better truck. This led to Grave Digger 7. It had a new tube frame. He drove this truck from 1992 to 1996. He was a regular on the "Monster Wars" TV series. In 1997, he built Grave Digger 12.
In 1998, Dennis sold the Grave Digger team to SRO/Pace. This company owned the USHRA. In 1999, Dennis won his first championship in the USHRA series. He also won the first-ever Monster Jam World Finals freestyle championship in 2000.
Dennis won racing championships at the World Finals in 2004, 2006, and 2010. He also tried the "LeDuc Leap" at the 2014 World Finals.
Dennis was also a co-host on the History Channel show Around the World in 80 Ways.
Retirement from Racing
Dennis Anderson's last event as a competitor was on January 14, 2017. It took place in Tampa, Florida. He got injured during the event. This meant he had to miss the rest of the season.
On September 18, 2017, Dennis announced his retirement. He said he would no longer compete. However, he stated he would stay "behind the scenes." He would work in the pits with his team.
Injuries and Comebacks
Dennis Anderson had several injuries during his career. In late 1991, he broke his kneecap. This happened when he hit a wall in Chicago. He had to sit out the 1992 winter season. He recovered and returned to racing.
Later in 1992, he broke several ribs. This was from a hard hit against a wall in Louisville, Kentucky. This injury caused problems for years. In 1999, a "nose-dive" crash in New Orleans made the injury worse. He missed several shows.
In 2017, Dennis was in the hospital. This was after an accident where he tried a backflip. Because of this injury, he could not compete in World Finals 18. He retired later that year.
Dennis Anderson's Hallmarks
Dennis Anderson was known for his exciting driving style. He often crashed or damaged his truck early in races. Because of this, he earned the nickname "One Run Anderson."
In his early mud bogging days, he drove with full throttle. He would fling mud everywhere. He would either make a huge mess or break his truck.
Dennis has a custom-built monster mud truck called King Sling. It's a 1941 Willys truck. It has special tractor tires. This truck has twice the horsepower of Grave Digger. It is also half the weight. King Sling is a favorite at mud bogs.
Dennis has many famous sayings. One is, "I'll take this ol' junk and dig you a grave." His most iconic phrases are, "Yea we turned 'er over, and I got a tore up truck," and "I'd like to thank y'all for every nut and bolt on my truck and every shingle on my roof."
Awards and Achievements
Dennis Anderson has won many awards for his monster truck career:
- Motor Madness World Finals Points Champion - 1999
- USHRA World Finals Freestyle Champion – 2000
- USHRA World Finals Racing Champion – 2004, 2006, 2010
- Inducted into the International Monster Truck Hall of Fame - 2012
- Inducted into the Monster Jam Hall Of Fame - 2020
