Monster truck enthusiasts watch Bigfoot crush cars during Export Tire event

This weekend, about 1,000 people saw Bigfoot in Murrysville Saturday — no, not that Bigfoot.

Export Tire hosted the monster truck Bigfoot during a day full of festivities. Families and truck enthusiasts gathered to watch the car-crushing truck fulfill its purpose.

The monster truck crushed junk cars in a field next to Export Tire. After the wrecking, children gathered around Bigfoot for pictures.

Billy Hanlon, 6, said his favorite part of the event was watching Bigfoot “break the cars.” Hanlon, from Ohio Township, even had the chance to spray paint his name on one of the cars that Bigfoot crushed.

When Bigfoot demolished the cars, it made a loud “boom!” sound, according to Laurel Schmader, 4, from Murrysville’s White Valley neighborhood.

Bigfoot’s lineage dates back to the 1970s. The original Bigfoot, a souped-up Ford F-250 pickup truck, is considered the first monster truck. Since then, there have been 21 Bigfoot trucks.

While the car crushing began at 2:30 p.m., other activities like games and food trucks started at 11 a.m. Dozens of cars lined Old William Penn Highway for the customer appreciation event.

Tara Welsh, from Irwin, attended with her kids, family and friends. Welsh said her boys loved watching Bigfoot, receiving balloon animals and getting their faces painted.

She noted that community events like this are important for youngsters after the pandemic.

“(This event) allows families to get out together and allows kids to see normalcy,” Welsh said.

This is the second time Export Tire has hosted Bigfoot. The first was during the shop’s grand opening in 2016.

Terry Myers, co-owner of Export Tire, said the free event served as a way to say “thank you” to customers.

“We just want to say thank you to the customers for sticking in there with us,” Myers said. “It’s all about the customers.”