Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Background Information
Owner(s)	FELD Motorsports (truck) Mirage Comics (name, 2003-2009) Viacom (name, 2010-2012)
Driver(s)	George Balhan (2003, European Tour 2006) Paul Cohen (2004) Alex Blackwell (2005-2006, European Tour 2007) Brandon Harrington (2005-2006) Deric Evans (Miami 2006, 2007) Whit Tarlton (2007) Aaron Basl (2008-2011) Ryan Huffaker (2008-2011) Joey Parnell (2011-2012) Fill-in drivers Neil Elliott (Redmond 2004, Salinas 2006) Bryan Winston (European Tour 2004) Charlie Pauken (Antwerp 2004 Show 1 Freestyle) Kasey Christensen (Red Bluff 2004) Randy Brown (WF VI-VIII, IX encore) Frank Krmel (Summer 2007) Nathan Weenk (Halifax 2007) Pablo Huffaker (WF X-XII) John Seasock (European Tour 2010) Charles Benns (Manchester 2010)
Debut	August 16th, 2003
Retirement	August 19th, 2012
Truck Overview
Body Style(s)	Custom turtle concept
Chassis	Racesource PEI
Engine	540ci merlin
Transmission	Coan 2-speed
Tires	66" Goodyear 66" Firestone 66" Marcher
Miscellaneous
Theme Song(s)	TMNT Remix (TMNT Cartoon Intro/ "It's Ninja Time!" by TMNT 2003 OST)

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (also referred to as TMNT for short, The Turtle by commentators and TMN Turtle on television broadcasts) was a custom-bodied monster truck owned by FELD Motorsports. While the truck was based around the cartoon superhero team of the same name, the design was based specifically on second-in-command member Raphael, though the youngest member Michelangelo did appear as a design for a brief period.

Meanwhile, the truck was also a staple and a fan favorite in Monster Jam, having competed in seven Monster Jam World Finals events, primarily by Grave Digger drivers Randy Brown and Pablo Huffaker on their own Grave Digger chassis.

History

2003

TMNT was originally planned to debut at World Finals IV. However, complications with constructing the body would delay the truck's debut until exactly seven months and three days after the World Finals.

The truck makes its official debut on August 16th in Hamburg, New York. The truck runs on the former Mr. Destruction chassis, thus retaining the unique double roll cage design and rookie driver George Balhan is placed behind the wheel.

In October, the truck makes its televised debut at the 2004 season opener in Montreal where George earns the number one qualifier and advances all the way the final round of racing only to lose to Scott Hartsock and Gunslinger.

2004

George moves to Blue Thunder and Paul Cohen takes over the driving duties for the season.

In March, Paul and the Turtle are invited to compete in World Finals V where they earn the fourth spot in qualifying but lose in the first round and finish near the bottom in freestyle.

Following the World Finals, Brandon Harrington takes over the driving duties for events in the off-season while Bryan Winston and Charlie Pauken both drive the Turtle in the European Tour. In Antwerp, the truck runs with yellow wheels, originally intended for the upcoming Superman truck while its original wheels are used on Nokia N-GAGE.

Late in the year, Neil Elliott drove the truck on Max-D 2 on two occasions.

2005

For the 2005 season, rookie driver Alex Blackwell joins the team as a second Turtle truck is added. Alex runs the original red bandana truck (Raphael) while Brandon's truck is given an orange bandana (Michelangelo) to differentiate them. Alex tours with Randy Brown under Randy Brown Motorsports for the main stadium shows while Brandon tours with Gary Porter for the arena events.

2006

Alex and Brandon both continue to run the two trucks through the season, touring with Randy and Gary respectively. The truck is invited to compete at World Finals VII with Randy behind the wheel. In freestyle, the truck takes a hard landing after a large jump which causes it to bounce high into the air and pop both rear tires upon landing.

In May, Neil Elliott drives the truck in Salinas, California.

Later that year, George Balhan makes a brief return to the drive the Turtle in that year's European Tour.

2007

Brandon retires from driving and Alex moves to Bulldozer, leaving new drivers Deric Evans and Whit Tarlton to drive the red and orange bodies respectively. Deric runs the stadium shows, touring with Dan Evans and Destroyer and Whit runs the arena shows.

Randy Brown is once again chosen as the driver for World Finals VIII, where the truck suffers a violent rollover in racing and is unable to compete in freestyle.

In the off-season, Deric retires from driving and Whit moves to Monster Mutt, leaving both trucks without full-time drivers, leading to Frank Krmel driving the Turtle, while Alex briefly returns to drive it for that year's European Tour. Nathan Weenk would drive the truck in Halifax as Frank was in Gothenburg on the same dates.

At the end of the year, the truck's original chassis is discontinued.

2008

The orange Turtle truck is retired, leaving the original red Turtle truck as the sole one for the team. Racesource takes over the truck, running it on the former Blacksmith chassis with Aaron Basl and Ryan Huffaker drafted in to share driving duties, touring with team owner Pablo Huffaker and Grave Digger.

Despite not being invited to compete in World Finals IX, the truck makes an appearance during a half-time encore between the first and second rounds of racing with Randy Brown driving. It would appear once again in the encore at the end of the show.

2009

Aaron and Ryan continue to drive the Turtle through the season.

In March, the truck is invited to compete at World Finals X. This time, Pablo Huffaker steps in as the driver, driving it on his Grave Digger 16 chassis.

2010

The Turtle still continues to be campaigned by Racesource with Aaron and Ryan as Pablo once again drives it at World Finals XI.

For that year's European Tour, John Seasock runs the body on the Batman chassis, and Charles Benns drives the truck in Manchester.

2011

The truck makes its final competitive World Finals appearance at World Finals XII with Pablo behind the wheel for a third time.

At the end of the year, both Aaron and Ryan left the truck, leaving Joey Parnell to drive the truck in Hampton, Virginia that November.

2012

Joey and the Turtle are invited to compete in the inaugural Young Guns Shootout at World Finals XIII.

The truck would make its last appearances competing as Exhibitions at Dragways alongside Grave Digger. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle is then retired after a nine-year run, one of the longest tenures for a sponsorship truck and Joey moves to Superman the following year.

Events competed

2003
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
August 16th	Hamburg, NY	George Balhan
October 30th	Montreal, QB

2004
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
January 10th	Anaheim, CA	Paul Cohen
January 16-18th	Tacoma, WA
January 24th	Anaheim, CA
January 30-31st	Salt Lake City, UT
February 6-8th	Edmonton, AB		Won Freestyle, show 3
February 13-15th	Portland, OR		Won Racing, show 2
February 20-22nd	Spokane, WA		Won Freestyle, shows 1, 3 and 4
March 5-7th	Calgary, AB		Won Freestyle, show 1
March 12-13th	Nampa, ID
March 20th	Las Vegas, NV (World Finals V)
May 29th	Syracuse, NY	Brandon Harrington
June 18-19th	Quincy, IL
July 12-14th	West Lebanon, NY
August 20-21st	Sunrise, FL
September 10-12th	Antwerp, Belgium	Charlie Pauken	Show 1 freestyle, only
		Bryan Winston
October 1st	Red Bluff, CA	Kasey Christensen
October 22-24th	Stockholm, Sweden	Bryan Winston
October 29-30th	Helsinki, Finland
November 5-7th	Nashville, TN	Brandon Harrington
unknown	Redmond, OR	Neil Elliott

2005
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
January 7-8th	Birmingham, AL	Alex Blackwell
	Little Rock, AR	Brandon Harrington
January 14-16th	Wichita, KS		Won: Wheelies, show 1 Racing, shows 1 and 3 Donuts, show 1 Freestyle, show 3
January 15th	Pontiac, MI	Alex Blackwell
January 21-22nd	Greensboro, NC	Brandon Harrington
January 21-23rd	Kansas City, MO	Alex Blackwell
January 29th	Indianapolis, IN
January 29-30th	Raleigh, NC	Brandon Harrington
February 4-5th	Charleston, WV
February 5th	Miami, FL	Alex Blackwell
February 11-12th	Roanoke, VA	Brandon Harrington
February 18-19th	Charlotte, NC		Won Racing, show 2
	Cleveland, OH	Alex Blackwell
February 25-26th	Dayton, OH	Brandon Harrington
	Oklahoma City, OK	Alex Blackwell
March 4-5th	Lafayette, LA	Brandon Harrington
	Providence, RI	Alex Blackwell	Won Wheelies, show 3
March 11-12th	Pensacola, FL	Brandon Harrington
March 18-19th	Cincinnati, OH
March 18-20th	Bridgeport, CT	Alex Blackwell
April 15-17th	Fresno, CA	Brandon Harrington
May 13-15th	Naples, FL		Won Racing, show 1
May 20-22nd	Ocala, FL	Alex Blackwell	Won Racing, show 2
June 2-4th	Bangor, ME		Won Racing, shows 2 and 3
June 17-18th	Halifax, NS		Won Racing, show 2
June 18-19th	Mechanicsburg, PA	Brandon Harrington	Won: Racing, show 3 Freestyle, show 3
August 19-20th	Sunrise, FL

2006
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
January 6-7th	Birmingham, AL	Alex Blackwell
	Charlotte, NC	Brandon Harrington
January 14-15th	Denver, CO	Alex Blackwell
	Greensboro, NC	Brandon Harrington
January 20-21st	Memphis, TN	Alex Blackwell
January 20-22nd	Kansas City, MO	Brandon Harrington
January 27-29th	Greenville, SC
January 28th	Indianapolis, IN	Alex Blackwell
February 3-4th	Charleston, WV	Brandon Harrington
February 4th	Miami, FL	Deric Evans
February 10-12th	Roanoke, VA	Brandon Harrington
February 17-18th	Cleveland, OH		Won Freestyle, Show 1
	Hampton, VA	Alex Blackwell
February 24-26th	Baltimore, MD	Brandon Harrington
February 25th	St. Louis, MO	Alex Blackwell
March 3-4th	Lafayette, LA	Brandon Harrington
March 3-5th	Providence, RI	Alex Blackwell
March 10-11th	Pensacola, FL	Brandon Harrington	Won Donuts, Show 2
March 10-12th	Grand Rapids, MI	Alex Blackwell
March 17-19th	Bridgeport, CT	Brandon Harrington
	Richmond, VA	Alex Blackwell
March 24-25th	Cincinnati, OH	Brandon Harrington
March 25th	Las Vegas, NV (World Finals VII)	Randy Brown
April 28-30th	Naples, FL	Alex Blackwell	Won Racing, Show 2
May 5-7th	Ocala, FL	Brandon Harrington
May 21st	Salinas, CA	Neil Elliott
June 1-3rd	Bangor, ME	Alex Blackwell
June 9-10th	Halifax, NS		Won Racing, Show 3
July 14-15th	Fayetteville, NC	Brandon Harrington
September 30-October 1st	Arnhem, Netherlands	George Balhan
October 13-15th	Helsinki, Finland

2007
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
January 5-6th	Montgomery, AL	Whit Tarlton
January 5-7th	Rochester, NY	Deric Evans
January 12-13th	Greensboro, NC	Whit Tarlton
	Washington, D.C.	Deric Evans
January 19-21st	Kansas City, MO	Whit Tarlton	Won: Wheelies, show 2 Freestyle, show 1
January 20-21st	Toronto, ON	Deric Evans	Won Freestyle, show 1
January 26-27th	Greenville, SC	Whit Tarlton
January 27th	Orlando, FL	Deric Evans
February 2-3rd	Charleston, WV	Whit Tarlton
	Fargo, ND	Deric Evans
February 9-10th	Roanoke, VA		Won Racing, show 1
February 10-11th	Hartford, CT	Whit Tarlton
February 16-17th	Charlotte, NC		Won: Racing, show 1 Freestyle, both shows
February 17th	Miami, FL	Deric Evans
February 23-25th	Baltimore, MD		Won Racing, show 4
March 2-3rd	Providence, RI	Whit Tarlton
	Tupelo, MS	Deric Evans	Won Donuts, show 1
March 9-10th	Pensacola, FL	Whit Tarlton
	Saginaw, MI	Deric Evans	Won: Wheelies, show 3 Racing, show 1
March 23-24th	Lafayette, LA	Whit Tarlton
March 24th	Las Vegas, NV (World Finals VIII)	Randy Brown
April 27-29th	Naples, FL	Frank Krmel
May 4-6th	Ocala, FL
May 31-Jun. 2nd	Bangor, ME		Won Freestyle, show 2
June 15-16th	Bradford, VT
June 16-17th	Williams Grove, PA	Whit Tarlton
July 13-14th	Plattsburgh, NY	Frank Krmel	Won Racing, all 3 shows
June 8-9th	Halifax, NS	Nathan Weenk	Won Racing, show 1
September 29-30th	Arnhem, Holland	Alex Blackwell
October 27th	Cardiff, Wales

2008
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
January 4-5th	Des Moines, IA	Aaron Basl	Won: Racing, show 3 Freestyle, show 2
January 11-12th	Memphis, TN
January 19th	Houston, TX	Ryan Huffaker
January 26th	Indianapolis, IN	Aaron Basl
February 2nd	Houston, TX	Ryan Huffaker
February 9-10th	Denver, CO	Aaron Basl
February 15-17th	Worcester, MA
February 22-24th	Baltimore, MD		Won Racing, shows 1, 2 and 3
March 1st	El Paso, TX
March 7-9th	Reno, NV
March 14-15th	Fresno, CA
March 29th	Las Vages, NV (World Finals IX)	Randy Brown	encore only
April 18-20th	Fresno, CA	Aaron Basl	Won Freestyle, show 1
April 25-27th	Santa Rosa, CA
May 2-3rd	Roseburg, OR		Won Freestyle, show 2
May 18th	Salinas, CA
May 31st	Syracuse, NY
June 6-7th	Saluda, VA
June 12-14th	Quincy, IL
August 1-2th	Calvert City, KY		Won Racing, show 2
September 5-6th	Corpus Christi, TX		Won Donuts, show 2
October 24-25th	Louisville, KY		Won Racing, show 2
November 7-8th	Albuquerque, NM

2009
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
January 2-3rd	Des Moines, IA	Aaron Basl
January 10th	Anaheim, CA
January 17th	San Diego, CA
January 24th	Phoenix, AZ
January 31st	Houston, TX	Ryan Huffaker
February 6-8th	Kansas City, MO	Aaron Basl
February 13-14th	Cleveland, OH
February 20-21st	Oklahoma City, OK		Won Racing, show 3
Feb. 27-Mar. 1st	Chattanooga, TN
March 6-7th	Biloxi, MS		Won Racing, show 3
March 20-21st	Wichita Falls, TX
March 28th	Las Vegas, NV (World Finals X)	Pablo Huffaker
April 17-19th	Fresno, CA	Aaron Basl
May 1-2nd	Roseburg, OR		Won Racing, show 1
May 17th	Salinas, CA
May 30th	Syracuse, NY
Jul. 31-Aug. 1st	Corpus Christi, TX
August 21-22nd	Sandy, UT
November 13-14th	Albuquerque, NM

2010
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
January 2-3rd	Montgomery, AL	Aaron Basl
January 9th	Houston, TX	Ryan Huffaker
January 16-17th	San Antonio, TX
January 23rd	San Diego, CA	Aaron Basl
January 30th	Anaheim, CA
February 6th	Houston, TX	Ryan Huffaker
February 13-14th	Denver, CO	Aaron Basl
February 19-21st	Pittsburgh, PA
February 27th	Arlington, TX	Ryan Huffaker
March 5-7th	Tucson, AZ	Aaron Basl	Won: Racing, show 1 Freestyle, show 1
March 12-13th	Nampa, ID		Won Racing, shows 1 and 3
March 19-20th	Wichita, KS		Won: Racing, show 1 Donuts, show 2
March 27th	Las Vegas, NV (World Finals XI)	Pablo Huffaker
April 16-18th	Fresno, CA	Aaron Basl
May 16th	Salinas, CA
May 22-23rd	Copenhagen, Denmark	John Seasock
May 29th	Gothenburg, Sweden
June 10-13th	Quincy, IL	Aaron Basl	Won Racing, show 1
June 18-19th	Paducah, KY
July 23-24th	Mobile, AL	Ryan Huffaker	Won Donuts, show 1
July 30-31st	Corpus Christi, TX	Aaron Basl	Won Donuts, show 2
September 18-19th	Manchester, England	Charles Benns
September 25-26th	Arnhem, Holland	John Seasock	Won Racing, show 2
October 9th	Cardiff, Wales
October 22-23rd	Louisville, KY	Aaron Basl
November 13-14th	Albuquerque, MN		Won: Racing, show 2 Freestyle, show 2

2011
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
Janaury 7-8th	Birmingham, AL	Aaron Basl
January 15-16th	San Antonio, TX	Ryan Huffaker
January 22nd	Houston, TX
January 29th	Anaheim, CA
February 4-5th	Tulsa, OK	Aaron Basl
February 11-13th	Kansas City, MO		Won: Racing, show 2 Donuts, shows 3 and 4 Freestyle, show 2
February 18-20th	Pittsburgh, PA
February 25-26th	Macon, GA		Won: Wheelies, show 2 Racing, show 2
March 4-5th	Tupelo, MS		Won Racing, both shows
March 11-12th	Pensacola, FL
March 18-20th	Laredo, TX
March 26th	Las Vegas, NV (World Finals XII)	Pablo Huffaker
April 8-10th	Naples, FL	Aaron Basl
April 15-17th	Ocala, FL
April 29-30th	Moline, IL		Won Racing, show 1
June 9-11th	Quincy, IL
June 24-25th	Parkersburg, WV
July 8-9th	Erie, PA
July 22-23rd	Mobile, AL
July 29-30th	Corpus Christi, TX
August 5-6th	Cedar Park, TX		Won Racing, show 3
August 19-20th	Sunrise, FL
November 12-13th	Albuquerque, NM
	Hampton, VA	Joey Parnell

2012
Date	Event	Driver	Notes
January 6-7th	Trenton, NJ	Joey Parnell	Won Racing, show 1
January 14th	Detroit, MI
January 21st	Minneapolis, MN
January 27-29th	Uniondale, NY		Won Racing, show 2
February 3-4th	East Rutherford, NJ
February 11-12th	Hartford, CT
February 16-17th	Macon, GA		Won Wheelies, show 3
February 24-26th	Baltimore, MD		Won Racing, shows 2, 3 and 4
March 2-4th	Bridgeport, CT		Won Racing, shows 1 and 2
March 9-11th	Wilkes-Barre, PA
March 16-17th	Huntsville, AL		Won Wheelies, show 3
March 23rd	Las Vegas, NV (World Finals XIII)		Young Guns Shootout only

World Finals appearances

Year	Driver	Results
2004	Paul Cohen	Qualifying: 4th (17.24)	Racing: defeated in round 1 by Blue Thunder	Freestyle: 13th (11)
2006	Randy Brown	Qualifying: 10th (17.50)	Racing: defeated in round 1 by Taz	Freestyle: 9th (22)
2007		Qualifying: 14th (17.00)	Racing: defeated Destroyer in round 11	Freestyle: 24th (DNC)1
2008		Encore only
2009	Pablo Huffaker	Qualifying: 4th (16.56)	Racing: defeated in round 2 by Brutus	Freestyle: 18th (17)
2010		Qualifying: 11th (16.66)	Racing: defeated in round 2 by Blue Thunder	Freestyle: 7th (26)
2011		Qualifying: 4th (16.23)	Racing: defeated in round 3 by Mohawk Warrior	Freestyle: 13th (20)
2012	Joey Parnell	Young Guns Shootout: defeated in round 1 by Stone Crusher

Notes

¹Destroyer earned a five-second penalty despite crossing the line first, however Turtle crashed and couldn’t return. It would also miss freestyle due to severe damage.

Trivia

• Aside from its debut show and European appearances, TMNT ran exclusively as a secondary truck for several Grave Digger drivers. Gary Porter's touring partner would run the truck on a Clear Channel-owned Patrick chassis, while Randy Brown and Pablo Huffaker ran the body on their respective second trucks.
• According to Alex Blackwell's interview with noted TMNT fan site Cowabunga Corner, bodies based on Leonardo and Donatello were intended to be run by him in the 2005 season, with fans speculating years later that he was intended to start running the bodies after the show in Indianapolis. For unknown reasons, these bodies were never made.
• TMNT's teeth were the same used for El Toro Loco and Bulldozer's bodies, with the only difference being the number of teeth on the truck; TMNT had 7 teeth on each side, with two being halfway cut off, while El Toro Loco and Bulldozer have 15 full teeth on each side, progressively getting smaller and smaller.
• The design of the Hot Wheels diecasts were almost completely different from the actual truck. The diecast itself looked much closer to the actual cartoon characters and had no realistic windshield. It also featured the TMNT logo on the sides and hood, a different shell pattern, and a darker green color.
• Much like the original version of Monster Mutt, TMNT was notorious for having a limited field of vision due to its unique windshield design.
• TMNT holds the distinction of being a last-minute replacement for World Finals events not once, but twice.
• The truck's theme song was an edited version of the intro for the 2003 4Kids animated series.
• TMNT was one of 6 trucks to not have the name on it. The others were An Escalade, Doom's Day, the '59 Cadillac version of High Anxiety, Batman & Zombie Hunter.

Gallery

Concept art 1.

Concept art 2.

TMNT on display for the first time, circa 2003.

TMNT, circa 2003.

TMNT's unseen portion of its Monster Jam World Finals V freestyle performance.

An earlier version of TMNT on a Meents chassis.

TMNT with Superman's tires in Belgium 2004.

Ditto, racing against Nokia N-GAGE in its only appearance.

Raphael TMNT, circa 2006.

Michelangelo TMNT, circa 2006.

TMNT, circa 2006.

Orange TMNT on a PEI chassis.

Circa 2006.

TMNT on the Grave Digger 19 chassis at Monster Jam World Finals IX.

On Grave Digger 16, circa World Finals 10, in 2009.

Circa 2010.

Part of TMNT'S body that came off during its World Finals 11 freestyle performance.

With purple wheels in 2010.

On Iron Man in 2010.

TMNT, circa 2011.

Circa 2011.

TMNT with a FoxBox logo on the shell. This photo was taken in 2011, 6 years after the block was renamed to 4Kids TV (which had also ended in 2008). It is likely old body pieces were accidentally used due to low stock.

TMNT, circa 2012.

Leonardo render.

Donatello render.

Logo used until 2012; only appeared on the chassis, was mostly used for promotional material and toys.

Second logo; used for 2012 after 4Kids dropped the TMNT license.

Merchandise gallery

Tyco R/C.

Original diecast release.

Hot Wheels 1:64 scale (Red).

Hot Wheels 1:64 scale (Orange).

2013 Hot Wheels 1:64 scale (Michaelangelo).

Hot Wheels 1:64 scale (Leonardo) w/ concept art.

2003 Hot Wheels 1:64 scale (Purple) w/ concept art.

2005 Hot Wheels 1:64 scale (Donatello).

Hot Wheels Speed Demons (Red).

Plush truck.