Interview with Michael Murty: Behind the Wheel of Big Pete and Grim Reaper

Big Pete and Grim Reaper driver Michael Murty talks rough landings, limited visibility and the incredible buzz of performing for the MonsterSlam crowd

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Big Pete and Grim Reaper have been crushing cars and thrilling MonsterSlam crowds for years. Now, we’re climbing into the cab with Michael Murty, the man behind the wheel of two of the UK’s most famous monster trucks. What does it take to control these towering machines, tackle brutal landings and keep them running show after show? Let’s find out.

Michael Murty and Big Pete

When you climb into Big Pete, what’s the first thing you notice?

The height of where you are sat, despite how it looks, is the first thing you notice. Big Pete’s cab is small, but you are really high up; from the seat you can see the roofs of the other Monster Trucks.

Big Pete is one of the biggest monster trucks in the UK. What does it actually take to control something that massive? Is it strength, skill, experience, or a bit of all three? 

A bit of all three. Your body needs to be strong enough to take the repeated impacts; we are essentially putting ourselves in a car crash for your enjoyment. There is skill in making sure we crush cars safely and consistently, and experience comes with that, but you also need excellent spatial awareness. Our visibility is not as good as you think, and with our full safety gear on, we cannot turn our heads.

How different is it driving Grim Reaper compared to Big Pete?

They are both completely different. When you hit cars in Grim Reaper, it's like a car crash, but in Big Pete, it's like being inside a wardrobe that's been pushed down some stairs. It’s much rougher and more unpleasant on Big Pete due to the additional weight and the lack of suspension. Grim Reaper has 18 inches of coil shocks, whereas Big Pete has 8 inches of leaf suspension. 

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Grim Reaper launches into the air!

Fans see the jumps and the car crushes, but how hard is it physically to drive a monster truck?

It’s a lot better now with improved safety gear; in the past, we would have horrendous whiplash after every performance. Parts of your body move and hit things, leaving bruises in odd places. Nowadays it's a lot better for our bodies. But at the end of the day, we feel like we’ve hit the gym hard; our bodies ache. Sometimes it can feel like you've been punched in the back or the stomach, and on a bad landing, you can wind yourself. As a result, we can be a bit stiff when walking, and we have been refused entry into pubs and bars despite being sober due to our strained walk.

What’s the toughest part of keeping trucks like Big Pete and Grim Reaper running?

The repairs can be challenging, especially if we don’t have a spare with us. There can be some long nights, or, if we are doing one show on a Saturday and another on the Sunday, two trucks stripped down, loaded onto little wheels, then driven to the next show and rebuilt, ready for the next morning. That can be tough and wears on morale. We don’t do that anymore; we are too old and cranky.

Which truck has the bigger personality – Big Pete or Grim Reaper?

Big Pete is the boss, undoubtedly. Grim Reaper is a good No. 2: it can call the shots if needed, but it follows rank and does what Pete tells it.

You’ve been doing this a long time. What still gives you that buzz every time you drive?

The trucks are super fun to drive, but it’s the crowd that gives us the ultimate buzz. When you've got a crowd like the Monsterslam crowd, and they’re cheering and hollering, getting behind the trucks and the show, that’s the buzz right there. We really miss it in the off-season.

What’s the biggest challenge you’ve ever faced with the trucks?

The biggest challenge we faced happened quite recently. We did a show that, due to the schedule running over, was going dark, reducing visibility. It was heavy rain, and we don’t have wipers, so visibility was reduced even further. The ground was just beginning to turn to mud, so we struggled with grip. When it's wet and raining, the trucks can easily slide off and potentially get stuck, as wet cars are very slippery; they can also move, which sends us up in inconsistent directions. Still, the show went off without a hitch, with the crowd unaware of the difficulties, thanks to our amazing crew adapting to the situation.

You often talk about your team and companions. How important are they to making these shows happen? Could Big Pete and Grim Reaper exist without the crew behind them?

No! We can run with a minimum of 4 crew members on show days; more often it's 5, but there is a small army of people behind the scenes that help Big Pete and Grim Reaper. We couldn’t do it without them.

When fans come to Monsterslam and see Big Pete and Grim Reaper in action, what do you hope they take away from it?

We hope everyone comes, has fun, and enjoys the show. We hope they enjoy themselves so much that they follow us on our socials: Big Pete Monster Trucks on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube. The parents enjoy our podcast, Big Pete Podcast, enough to listen on all audio platforms, and, more importantly, they want to come and see us again next year.