BLACK STALLION HISTORY

Street Truck
In 1981, Michael Vaters bought a black 1982 Ford F250 at a local dealership. At that time, a lift kit wasn't available for this truck so he designed and built one. He added 40 inch tires which had recently became available. He named his black Ford "Black Stallion."
One year later Mike had transformed his street truck the Black Stallion. It boasted a 12' suspension lift with 44" tires. Mike designed and built rear steering and it crab-walked down his hometown streets.  The Stallion could be heard coming by its Alpine Stereo with Bose amplifiers and 12 speaker sound system. As if maneuvering this beast was not enough Mike had a custom fitted in dash television.
Michael not only drove his truck on the streets he mud bogged in it one weekend and would spend the entire week cleaning it to enter a show and shine competition the next weekend typically winning first place or best in show.  In 1983 Mike drove the Black Stallion over 500 miles to Indianapolis Indiana for the Jamboree and won runner up for the "best engineered truck."
 
Later in 1983 Mike corralled the Black Stallion back into the garage once again. He replaced the inline 6 cylinder stock engine with a 460 cubic inch V8 Ford engine. He installed a hydraulic tilt front end to display his new engine and added a few more inches of lift. Before his modifications were complete Maryland's bumper height laws for trucks became stricter.  Mike was left with a dilemma either to lower Black Stallion to run legally on the streets or go the extreme and build a monster truck. Mike had monster fever so the result was inevitable.  Mike and his friends worked about one and a half years in their spare time transforming the Black Stallion into a monster truck.
 
Monster Truck
In the fall of 1985 his monster was complete. It stood 12 foot high, and was 12 foot wide weighing 13,000 pounds. It was powered by a 460 Ford Tunnel ram with two chrome predator carburetors. The monster motor was displayed by the hydraulic tilt front end. The monster rode on huge 66" Terra tires supported by 5 ton military axles from Boyce Equipment. Mike didn't forget about his show truck touches. Any removable part on his truck that would fit in a chrome plating tank was chrome. The interior fashioned plush seats, stereo, TV, and sunroof. Black Stallion was the most beautiful monster truck at that time.
 

 
Beechnut Crusher
In the Spring of 1986 Michael was approached by Lorilard Tobacco Co. to run there logo Beechnut on his truck. Mike agreed even though this meant removing the Black Stallion body.  For the next year Mike ran the Beechnut body on his truck in the "Beechnut Tour" which included 110 shows in 1 year. These events were performed at
fairgrounds, drag strips, and speedways. Stunt drivers in cars and on motorcycles performed jumps and stunts.  Mike would drive the Beechnut Crusher over junk cars in the grand finale thrilling the audiences.
  
One year later the Beechnut Crusher was retired and the Black Stallion body was replaced. At this time monster truck entertainment progressed to a higher level. Promoters began racing monster trucks side by side over junk cars. In his endeavor to remain competitive Mike went to work on his truck again experimenting with different leaf springs, shocks, and suspension.
 
He built a bigger motor a 477cc Ford with an 871supercharger and 2 chrome plated carburetors. He continued to crush cars and race at different events and displays. In the spring of 1987 the Black Stallion was the first monster truck to travel to the Bahamas for a demonstration at an air show.
 
Jr.     
Late in 1987 Mike purchased a 1987 Ford F350 in attempt to get around the lift laws which didn't apply to 1 ton trucks. Michael of course put lift, 44" tires, Dana 60 axels, and rear steering under his truck and called it Black Stallion Jr. or "Jr".  Mike took Jr with him on the road to events that the Black Stallion monster competed in and ran “Jr” in the mini-monster class which was running 48" tires. While running street legal with 44" tires Mike won the Mini-Monster Nationals in “Jr” at the Indianapolis Jamboree in 1988.
In the spring of 1988 Black Stallion went back into the garage. Mike replaced the body with a 1988 Ford F250. He removed his stereo, TV, and luxury items to lighten the truck to go racing. At this time monsters were jumping and starting to clear the cars..
 
Battle Kat
In this same year car crushing tanks began to appear at shows and events. Mike had to build one, he found a 1940 M5 personnel troop carrier in a military scrap yard and drug it home. He used the hull and tracks from the tank and custom fitted the top half of a Ford Econoline van body to the tank using hydraulic lift to raise and lower the body. The
tank was powered by a477 cc Ford engine with tunnel ram and 2 predator carburetors. He named it the Battle Kat.  Mike drove the tank and the Black Stallion at events for the next couple of years until the tank frenzy faded and the Battle Kat was retired.

Shock Technology
In 1991 Michael realized the need for better suspension so he designed and built air suspension replacing the leaf springs. In his curiosity took a trip to California to visit Kuster a company that built shocks for off road desert racers. He approached the company about producing shocks that could be used in monster trucks. Mike was the first monster truck driver to use this shock technology on his truck the Black Stallion.  This shock technology continues to be used in monster trucks today.
 
Boogey Van
Drawing from the knowledge and experience gained from building Black Stallion he engineered and built the popular Boogey Van with a lighter axle design. It was a 1992 Aerostar van with a blown 557 cc alcohol injected Ford engine producing over 1500 HP.
  
 In the summer of 1993 Mike debuted the purple and white Boogey Van at Maple Grove in Redding PA. In the fall of 1993 the Boogey Van placed second beating Big Foot in Naples Florida at a PENDA race. One year later it finished 9th in the PENDA point series. In the fall of 1995 Boogey Van finished 5th in the series.
  The Boogey Van did so well Mike put the Stallion on the back burner to devote his attention to racing the van in the PENDA point series.  Mike neglected the Black Stallion to the extent that it developed a new nick name among friends and fellow competitors. It became known as "Rodney" because it got no respect.
 


 
Black Stallion 2000
In the fall of 1995 Mike finally decided to build a new Black Stallion monster truck. Mike and his friends thrashed 16 hour days 7 days a week for 2 months to build the Black Stallion 2000. Mike named it "Black Stallion 2000" because for year’s friends and fellow drivers ribbed Mike that it would be the new millennium before he ever got around to building his new truck.
 
In January of 1996 the Black Stallion 2000 was debuted in Worcester, Massachusetts. Mike placed 12th in the PENDA point series in the same year.  

In 1997 and 1998 Mike raced Black Stallion for Special Events and in the Thunder National Series. 
 
In 1999 Mike won the Thunder National and Monster National championship. In the same year while at the Bloomsburg PA event he flew the Black Stallion over top of the Nitemare monster truck thrilling the crowd being the first monster truck to ever jump another monster truck. 
 
In 2000 Mike and the Black Stallion was chosen by popular vote from the Thunder National series to attend the Monster Jam World Finals in Las Vegas but due to prior bookings was unable to attend. When the 2001 Monster Jam Finals came around Mike made sure he had that date open in the event he was asked to perform. The Black Stallion was chosen by the fans to compete in Las Vegas Nevada at the Monster Jam World Finals in 2001.

Battle Kat Come Back
   Special Events approached Mike in 2001 to consider dusting the cobwebs off of the Battle Kat tank to perform in some of their summer jamborees for a comeback of the car crushing tanks. Mike got to work and put a blown, alcohol injected motor in the Kat. They did some painting and polished the tank up a bit. Mike decided to hand over the steering sticks to his crew member and friend Trey Myers of Brunswick Maryland. After 10 years of retirement the Battle Kat performed in the Special Events Thunder Drag series. 
 
R&D
  Over the years Mike has met with different challenges in monster truck engineering and design.   He has had difficulty finding parts to take the abuse he subjects the truck to for his spectacular performances. He has had to design and improvise truck parts to accomplish his purpose.
  

Mike was the first to design and build a bypass tube shock creating 36" of travel. The bypass tubes are externally adjustable allowing him to set them according to track conditions. Mike's shock design enables the Black Stallion to fly higher and farther than ever before. After Mike’s introduction of Bypass tube shocks into the monster truck industry it has became a common staple on monster trucks. 
 

The year 2007 marked 25 years for Mike Vaters and the Black Stallion in monster truck racing and performance. Over the years spectators have been thrilled and awed by Mike's fearless display of high flying leaps, unbounded wheel stands, and whirling donuts. Mike's inherent backwards leap across a line of junk cars, the "reverser" is a classic in his performances.  Mike the "wild child" is well known in the monster truck world for always putting on a great show for the fans. His favorite competition is freestyle. He always is thinking of ways to go faster, fly higher, or do it better. Mike is a true kid at heart. He was the first monster truck to jump another monster truck driving in reverse in 2002 setting a world record of 70 feet. Mike driving the Black Stallion is a six time USHRA Thunder National Champion and has made it to the USHRA Monster Jam World Finals four times. The Black Stallion finished 3rd in the freestyle competition at the 2005 Monster Jam World Finals. These characteristics pretty much ensure that Mike Vaters and the Black Stallion will be around for years to come to entertain and thrill you the fans. 
 
 
Michael Vaters’ Black Stallion Monster Truck Highlights
 
  • *- Seven time USHRA Thunder Nationals champion
  • *- Four time USHRA World Finalist
  • *- Five time Monster Spectacular champion
  • *- Finished third in freestyle competition out of the 20 best trucks in the country at the televised 2005 Monster Jam World Finals in Las Vegas
  • *- The first monster truck to successfully jump another monster truck driving forward in 1999
  • *- First truck to successfully jump another monster truck driving in reverse setting a world record distance of 70 feet in 2002 at Indianapolis, Indiana

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