INTO THE LION’S DEN

For Devin Tardif, monster trucking is not just a hobby; it’s also a powerful way to connect with customers

Devin Tardif, dealer-owner of Venture Home Hardware Building Centre in Lac La Biche, Alta., was intrigued the first time he encountered monster trucks. But it was a confluence of circumstances that led to him actually getting behind the wheel of one in a competitive setting.

About 17 years ago, Tardif, a licenced heavy-duty mechanic, was working in his father’s shop in Lac La Biche. The business was celebrating its 10th anniversary, and the monster truck owner was brought in as an attraction for the festivities.

“I did drive the truck in a circle,” Tardif recalls, but otherwise he was just a spectator on that occasion.

Five years later, for the shop’s 15th anniversary, Tardif’s father brought the attraction back. “They ran the first two trucks; they did the first show. [Then] they came up and said, ‘You’re doing the second show.’

“They ended up asking me if I wanted to go and run with them at their next show, which was in Lethbridge. I drove up with them and crewed with them for their main show.”

Tardif and Jed, the truck owner, remained in touch even after Jed lost both his trucks in a shop fire. “He ended up getting a new chassis, got it ready to go,” Tardif recalls “He went down to Australia for a couple of shows and when he came back he had had some kind of reaction: his elbow had grown three times the size. He was on medication. He says, ‘I can’t drive.’”

In short, Tardif says, “He threw me to the lions.”

Tardif made his show debut at Regina’s Brant Centre in 2019. At first, he says, he was “pretty fresh,” but he soon learned the ropes. At his first U.S. show, in Louisiana, “I did pretty good. I wasn’t first; I wasn’t last.”

The store sponsors the truck, allowing opportunities for cross-promotion. “My Home Hardware logo is all over our t-shirts,” which are worn by the entire crew, Tardif explains. “We supply things like paper towels to clean our hands, hand cleanser. We did do a donation a while back as an engine sponsor.”

On the retail side, it’s one more way Tardif attracts attention to his brand. “It always starts a great conversation and it’s a great starter point to break the ice with customers.”