At last weekend's Minneapolis Monster Jam, Dennis Anderson's son, Adam, competed against his father for the first time ever. Robert Haught sat down with both father and son for an exclusive interview before the show, and some comments afterwards.

Robert Haught-Adam, how do you feel about racing your father for the first time?

Adam Anderson-I'm really excited; it's really cool racing not only my dad, but all these other guys out here, competing against Tom (Meents) and Jimmy (Creten), world champions. It's unbelievable; everybody here is top-notch and I'm definitely a rookie. I've been learning so much, and this is my biggest show yet.

RH-You didn't end up going with the original plan your father had for you as far as the Son Uva Digger project. What is the status of that?

AA-It's still around; it's not that I didn't go with that plan as much as it's a lot easier for me to take the route I'm taking now. It's just so I can learn, so I know what I'm doing before I have my own truck and everything. It's a learning experience.

RH-Have you guys made any bets with each other about who would win if you were paired against each other in racing?

AA-No, not really; it'd be awesome to win and everything, but I haven't driven in months. It's been since March before Las Vegas that I’ve been driving a truck.

Dennis Anderson-The best thing that could happen is for both of us to be in the finals, because both of us eat at the same table, so we'll respect each other anyway, but when it comes race time, he knows it's on.

AA-No matter what we race, even if we're messing around at home, it's always a competition.

RH-Have you guys had a lot of time to prepare for the event? Has Grave Digger 20 been tested a lot?

DA-Not really. To tell you the truth, for what we've got here and the equipment we have, to me we're unprepared. We did go out and field test Grave Digger 20, and I just did some mild jumps and crossed it up a little, just making sure we had the hydraulic and electrical bugs worked out, and all our brackets would stay in place. I got a couple of good jumps in, but nothing like I'll get here tonight. Adam's gonna be out here in Taz, and honestly, he doesn't have a lot of good seat time as far as turning courses and stuff like that. I know that he did well in a Chicago-style layout in Vette King, and that's similar to what we have tonight. This track is a lot bigger, so everything will be faster for him. He'll have to negotiate the turn a little different, but I think he'll do well.

RH-What do you see in the future for both of you? Will you end up traveling together?

DA-We want to bring Son Uva Digger into the game too, and we're being kind of held back on that a bit now. We wanna get him some more experience driving. My whole thought was to have Adam in the Son Uva Digger truck, and when my younger son Ryan gets older (Ryan is 16 now and can't drive a monster truck until age 18), we'll have Son Uva Digger going. Adam can step out of Son Uva Digger, give that truck to his brother, and then Adam can step into one of the Digger trucks. We have seven teams, and hopefully by the time I get ready to retire, both of my boys will be driving Digger team trucks.

RH-Who is more nervous going into this show of both of you?

DA-Probably me; it's kind of an excitement-nervous. I'm excited to be here with my son, and also, I'm debuting a brand new truck. If I come out here and fall on my face with it, then I have something else to look up to. My son's out on the track, and hopefully he'll do as well as we want him to. It's gonna be a nervous excitement, and I like it like that. It'll be a good weekend.

Event Results:
Adam Anderson was eliminated in the first round of racing competition by Paul Cohen in Pastrana 199 after keeping the race close until the final turn. In freestyle, he attempted a donut and rolled early, ending his night prematurely.

"I'm very disappointed things didn't go how I wanted," Adam told the crowd. "That was my first rollover, and I wanted to do a lot more, maybe do this at the end. This isn't what I wanted to do."

Dennis Anderson debuted the powerful Grave Digger 20 and advanced to the racing final, where he was defeated by the red-hot Linsey Weenk in Iron Outlaw. In freestyle, he received a 27 and second place from the judges, collapsing the rear shocks upon landing from a jump partway through his freestyle run.

"My son isn't a superstar yet, but he will be someday," said Dennis. "He had a lot of pressure on him tonight. We both didn't do as well as we wanted, but we'll be there."

Dennis Anderson's next race with Grave Digger 20 will be in the Pontiac Silverdome in Detroit, Michigan January 7. Adam will take Taz to Des Moines, Iowa January 6 and 7.