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Captain's Curse was a 1941 Willys monster truck owned by FELD Motorsports. Originally debuting at Monster Jam World Finals VIII in 2007, the truck was originally driven by Pablo Huffaker, who drove the truck to win the World Freestyle Championship. Since 2008, however, the truck has primarily been driven by Alex Blackwell, who drove the truck up until its retirement in 2016. Captain's Curse would also become a major staple and a fan favorite in Monster Jam, having appeared in every Monster Jam World Finals since its debut up until 2015, and even being featured in multiple merchandise and video games.

History[]

Captain’s Curse made its official debut at Monster Jam World Finals VIII on March 24, 2007, under Pablo Huffaker. During said event, Huffaker and the truck would go on to win the World Freestyle Championship with a score of 34. After the World Finals, Captain’s Curse would compete select at events, touring with Pablo's Grave Digger. Aaron Basl and Ryan Huffaker would drive Captain's Curse for these shows.

Captain’s Curse entered its first full year of competition with Monster Jam in 2008. For that season, the truck received a new chassis, as the previous Racesource chassis would be used for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The truck also received a new driver, Alex Blackwell, touring alongside Rod Schmidt’s Grave Digger. The truck would notably win freestyle at the first Minneapolis show in 2008, getting a perfect 30. Blackwell and the truck would be invited to compete in Monster Jam World Finals IX, with Pablo Huffaker, the reigning champion, not returning to defend his title. During said event, they would qualify for the runner-up position, be eliminated in the semi-final round of racing by John Seasock in Batman, and finish sixth in freestyle. Alex said he had no complaints with how the night went for him.

Alex would primarily compete in arenas in 2009, but would run a few stadium shows, notably winning freestyle in Oakland with a perfect 30. Captain’s Curse would again be invited to compete at the 10th annual World Finals in 2009. During that event, Blackwell and the truck would make it all the way to the Championship Round of racing, facing off against Tom Meents in Maximum Destruction. During said race, the truck would lose its brakes while racing down the line, and approaching the turn, the truck would violently fly into safety barriers, losing the race, and would be unable to compete in freestyle. No spectators, including Alex himself, were not injured from the wreck. It would later be revealed that Alex deliberately rolled the truck approaching the turn rather than zooming straight into it, to avoid any fans getting hurt.

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Captain's Curse's second World Finals racing crash in a row; circa 2010

After two years of touring alongside Grave Digger, Captain’s Curse received a new touring partner for the 2010 season, being John Seasock’s Batman. The two would go on to win that year’s Team of the Year award, and Blackwell and the truck would go on to win the freestyle competition held at Monster Jam’s inaugural show at the recently opened Cowboy’s Stadium (now AT&T Stadium) in Arlington, TX. The truck would compete at World Finals XI, and although not winning and finishing high, he would notably suffer a wild crash in racing for the second year in a row, hitting the yellow box-van ramp, and flipping mid-air.

Blackwell continued to drive Captain’s Curse until 2012, when he moved to the recently revived Wolverine. This resulted in Captain’s Curse being shelved for the time being, although the truck did compete in Monster Jam World Finals XIII, with Huffaker returning to drive the truck. He would tie Todd LeDuc for the fastest qualifier, but would finish second because Todd did it first. During said event, both Blackwell and Huffaker would ironically face off against each other in round 2 in racing, with Blackwell getting the victory. Captain’s Curse would go on to finish twenty-first in freestyle.

In late 2012, it was announced that Captain’s Curse would return to full-time competition for the 2013 Monster Jam season, with Blackwell returning to the driver’s seat. For that occasion, the truck received a brand-new inverted paint scheme, which first competed at Monster Jam’s final show of the 2012 season in Minneapolis. From that point onward, Blackwell continued to drive Captain’s Curse until he moved to the recently introduced Megalodon for the 2017 Monster Jam season. The truck would retire following this, however it would still appear in Monster Jam Steel Titans and Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 in 2019 and 2021 respectively.

Events Competed[]

2007[]

  • World Finals 8, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 24
  • Fresno, CA, Apr 13-15
  • Santa Rosa, CA, Apr 27-29
  • Roseburg, OR, May 4-6
  • Salinas, CA, May 20
  • Syracuse, NY, Jun 2
  • Sioux Falls, SD, Jun 15-16
  • Hagerstown, MD, Jul 13-15

2008[]

  • Columbus, OH, Jan 4-5
  • Knoxville, TN, Jan 11-12
  • Minneapolis, MN, Jan 19
  • Greenville, SC, Jan 25-26
  • Fargo, ND, Feb 1-2
  • Philadelphia, PA, Feb 15-17
  • Richmond, VA, Feb 22-24
  • Tupelo, MS, Feb 29-Mar 1
  • Wilkes-Barre, PA, Mar 14-16
  • World Finals 9, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 28-29
  • San Jose, Costa Rica, May 2-4
  • West Lebanon, NY, Jul 14-16
  • Englishtown, NJ, Aug 6 (Monster Truck Meltdown)
  • Sunrise, FL, Aug 15-16
  • Englishtown, NJ, Sep 13 (Motorsports Spectacular)
  • Minneapolis, MN, Dec 6

2009[]

  • Tulsa, OK, Jan 9-10
  • Wichita, KS, Jan 9-11 (Sunday Only)
  • Milwaukee, WI, Jan 16-17
  • Sacramento, CA, Jan 23-25
  • Vancouver, BC, Jan 31
  • Edmonton, AB, Feb 6-8
  • Portland, OR, Feb 14-15
  • Spokane, WA, Feb 20-22
  • Oakland, CA, Feb 28
  • Grand Rapids, MI, Mar 6-8
  • Reno, NV, Mar 13-15
  • World Finals 10, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 28
  • Englishtown, NJ, May 30 (Night of Thrills)
  • Quincy, IL, Jun 11-13
  • West Lebanon, NY, Jul 13-15
  • Glendale, AZ, Aug 1
  • Englishtown, NJ, Aug 5 (Monster Truck Meltdown)
  • Louisville, KY, Oct 23-24
  • Mexico City, Mexico, Nov 7-8
  • Minneapolis, MN, Dec 5

2010[]

  • Atlanta, GA, Jan 9
  • Tacoma, WA, Jan 15-17
  • Sacramento, CA, Jan 22-24
  • Phoenix, AZ, Jan 30
  • Hartford, CT, Feb 6-7
  • Cleveland, OH, Feb 13-14
  • Chattanooga, TN, Feb 19-20
  • Dallas, TX, Feb 27
  • El Paso, TX, Mar 6-7
  • World Finals 11, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 26-27
  • Copenhagen, Denmark, May 22-24
  • Gothenburg, Sweden, May 29
  • Antwerp, Belgium, Sep 11-12
  • Birmingham, England, Sep 17-19
  • Arnhem, Holland, Sep 25-26
  • Cardiff, Wales, Oct 9
  • Minneapolis, MN, Nov 13

2011[]

  • Rochester, NY, Jan 7-9
  • Anaheim, CA, Jan 15
  • Phoenix, AZ, Jan 29
  • Houston, TX, Feb 5
  • Rockford, IL, Feb 11-12
  • London, ON, Feb 19-20
  • Arlington, TX, Feb 26
  • Wichita Falls, TX, Mar 4-5
  • Syracuse, NY, Mar 12
  • World Finals 12, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 25-26
  • Naples, FL, Apr 8-10
  • Ocala, FL, Apr 15-17
  • Moline, IL, Apr 29-30
  • Philadelphia, PA, May 28-29
  • Englishtown, NJ, Jun 18 (Night of Thrills)
  • Baltimore, MD, Jul 9
  • Cincinnati, OH, Jul 23

2012[]

  • World Finals 13, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 23-24
  • Minneapolis, MN, Dec 1

2013[]

  • Manchester, NH, Jan 4-5
  • Houston, TX, Jan 12
  • San Diego, CA, Jan 19
  • Vancouver, BC, Jan 26
  • St. Louis, MO, Feb 2
  • Edmonton, AB, Feb 9-10
  • Atlanta, GA, Feb 16
  • Jacksonville, FL, Feb 23
  • World Finals 14, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 23
  • Halifax, NS, Jun 1-2
  • Bangor, ME, Jun 7-9
  • Erie, PA, Jun 21-22
  • Hagerstown, MD, Jul 20-21
  • New Weston, OH, Aug 2-3
  • Arnhem, Holland, Sep 28-29
  • Hampton, VA, Nov 15-16
  • Minneapolis, MN, Dec 7

2014[]

  • Houston, TX, Jan 4
  • San Antonio, TX, Jan 11-12
  • San Diego, CA, Jan 18
  • Indianapolis, IN, Jan 25
  • Tampa, FL, Feb 1
  • Anaheim, CA, Feb 8
  • Salt Lake City, UT, Feb 14-16
  • Oakland, CA, Feb 22
  • El Paso, TX, Mar 1-2
  • London, ON, Mar 8-10
  • World Finals 15, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 20-22
  • Louisville, KY, Apr 4-5
  • Austin, TX, Apr 26-27
  • East Rutherford, NJ, Jun 14
  • West Lebanon, NY, Jul 13-16
  • Calgary, AB, Sep 13-14
  • Philadelphia, PA, Oct 3-4

2015[]

  • Nashville, TN, Jan 3-4
  • San Diego, CA, Jan 17
  • Anaheim, CA, Jan 24
  • San Diego, CA, Jan 31
  • Tampa, FL, Feb 7
  • Memphis, TN, Feb 13-14
  • Jacksonville, FL, Feb 21
  • Tupelo, MS, Feb 28-Mar 1
  • Baton Rouge, LA, Mar 6-8
  • World Finals 16, Las Vegas, NV, Mar 26-28
  • Santa Clara, CA, Apr 11
  • Wichita Falls, TX, Apr 17-18
  • Bangor, ME, Apr 24-26
  • Moline, IL, May 16-17
  • Halifax, NS, May 30-31
  • East Rutherford, NJ, Jun 13

2016[]

  • Charlotte, Jan 8-9
  • Hidalgo, TX, Jan 15-17
  • San Antonio, TX, Jan 23-24
  • Anaheim, CA, Jan 30
  • San Diego, CA, Feb 6
  • Denver, CO, 12-14
  • New Orleans, LA, Feb 20
  • Vancouver, BC, Feb 27
  • El Paso, TX, Mar 5-6
  • Chattanooga, TN, Apr 8
  • Barcelona, Spain, Jun 4
  • Madrid, Spain, Jun 11
  • Rotterdam, NL, Jul 2
  • Cardiff, Wales, Sep 3
  • Gothenburg, Sweden, Sep 17
  • Frankfurt, Germany, Oct 8
  • Stockholm, Sweden, Nov 12

World Finals Appearances[]

List of World Finals Appearances
World Finals Year Driver(s) Appearance Performance
Monster Jam World Finals VIII 2007 Pablo Huffaker Main Field
  • Qualifying: 16.75 (11th of 24)
  • Racing: Semi-Finals loss (to grave digger 20)
  • Freestyle: 34 (1st of 22; won)
Monster Jam World Finals IX 2008 Alex Blackwell Main Field
  • Qualifying: 16.56 (2nd of 24; first round bye)
  • Racing: Semi-Finals loss (to batman)
  • Freestyle: 29 (6th of 24)
Monster Jam World Finals X 2009 Alex Blackwell Main Field
  • Qualifying: 17.28 (14th of 24)
  • Racing: Championship Race loss (to max-d; crashed)
  • Freestyle: DNC (due to crash damage)
Monster Jam World Finals XI 2010 Alex Blackwell Main Field
  • Qualifying: 16.78 (13th of 24)
  • Racing: Round 1 loss (to stone crusher; crashed)
  • Freestyle: 9 (17th of 22)
Monster Jam World Finals XII 2011 Alex Blackwell Main Field
  • Qualifying: 16.73 (15th of 24)
  • Racing: Round 2 loss (to max-d)
  • Freestyle: 10 (21st of 24)
Monster Jam World Finals XIII 2012 Pablo Huffaker Main Field
  • Qualifying: 16.201 (2nd of 24; tied for 1st but lost due recording time second; first round bye)
  • Racing: Round 2 loss (to wolverine)
  • Freestyle: 15 (21st of 24)
Monster Jam World Finals XIV 2013 Alex Blackwell Main Field
  • Qualifying: 16.483 (3rd of 24; first round bye)
  • Racing: Round 2 loss (to stone crusher)
  • Freestyle: 19 (19th of 27)
Monster Jam World Finals XV 2014 Alex Blackwell Main Field
  • Qualifying: 16.841 (12th of 32)
  • Racing: Round 2 loss (to grave digger the legend)
  • Freestyle: 22.5 (16th-19th of 32)
Monster Jam World Finals XVI 2015 Alex Blackwell Main Field
  • Qualifying: 16.515 (8th of 32)
  • Racing: Round 1 loss (to max-d)
  • Freestyle: 15.5 (21st of 32)
Monster Jam World Finals XVII 2016 N/A Display only
  • N/A

Video Game Appearances[]

Trivia[]

  • Captain's Curse would occasionally attach a parrot figurine onto the truck.
  • Captain's Curse is one of the three trucks to make its official debut at the World Finals, the other two being Hot Wheels (2002) and Nitro Circus (2009).
    • Captain's Curse is also the only one of these trucks to also win a world championship, notably doing so at said debut show.
  • The truck's World Finals X crash would be infamous for being censored in America, mainly the SPEED broadcast and the DVD release. It would only be viewable via recordings from people who were at the event at the time. However, uncensored footage would later be on a European airing on BRAVO. High quality footage of the crash would later be found and uploaded to the public in 2022 by Taz91.
  • For unknown reasons, the Willys design for Captain's Curse would oddly be missing the truck's grill exclusively for the 2011 season.
  • At Philadelphia 2011, Alex and the truck would do a halftime performance called "Donuts for Diabetes" for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. For this, he would do multiple donuts in a row, and each one he did, he would raise $500 for the foundation. He would do a total of 39 donuts and raise $19,500 for the foundation.
  • Images (1)22888

    "Fear the Curse" tailgate

    Following Captain's Curse's redesign in 2013, the catchphrase “Fear the Curse'' was showcased on the truck’s tailgate. However, it was neither advertised nor mentioned by Monster Jam since its addition.
  • While most chassis used for trucks owned by FELD Motorsports are built in-house, Captain's Curse's chassis features a custom-built cab, featuring a slimmer design that allowed for the ease of maintenance when fitting the truck's body onto its chassis.
  • Captain's Curse is one of the only three trucks owned by FELD Motorsports to use a 1941 Willys body style, the other two being Blacksmith and Whiplash.
    • However, PACE Motorsports used a 1941 Willys body style for their own Wall of Steel stunts truck, Mr. Destruction.
  • From 2008-10, Captain's Curse was equipped with a T-shirt cannon that was located in the bed of the truck. Before starting its run, the truck would come to a stop and fire a Captain's Curse-themed T-shirt into the stands. This was featured exclusively in World Finals events.
  • Following the introduction of Pirate's Curse in September 2015, there were rumors stating that Captain's Curse would be retired, and the former truck would serve as its replacement. These rumors were later debunked as Captain's Curse continued to compete throughout the 2016 season, alongside Pirate's Curse.
  • Following Captain's Curse's retirement by the end of the 2016 season, a cancelled render was later discovered, featuring a custom 3D pirate ship concept body style for the truck.
  • Ironically, with the truck recording the highest score at its debut show at World Finals VIII (2007), the truck would eventually record the lowest score at its final show at Stockholm 2016.

Gallery[]

Main Gallery[]

Merchandise Gallery[]

Miscellaneous[]

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