{"id":481650,"date":"2026-10-01T14:34:12","date_gmt":"2026-10-01T14:34:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/481650\/"},"modified":"2026-10-01T14:34:12","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T14:34:12","slug":"hot-wheels-monster-trucks-to-pull-into-convention-center-this-weekend-press-telegram","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/481650\/","title":{"rendered":"Hot Wheels monster trucks to pull into Convention Center this weekend \u2013 Press Telegram"},"content":{"rendered":"

Monster trucks will roll into Long Beach this weekend \u2014 and it should be an illuminating experience.<\/p>\n

The Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center will host \u201cHot Wheels Monster Trucks Live: Glow-N-Fire\u201d on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 3-4, and, as the event\u2019s name suggests, the show will take place in a darkened arena, with luminous monster trucks bringing the action to life.<\/p>\n

Here is everything you need to know:<\/p>\n

Show highlights<\/p>\n

Featured trucks will include Mega Wrex, Tiger Shark, HW 5-Alarm, Bone Shaker, Bigfoot and Skelesaurus. Rhinomite, the newest truck on the tour, will also make its Long Beach debut. There will also be FMX riders performing high-flying stunts \u2014 and a fire-breathing, car-crushing robot dinosaur.<\/p>\n

Driver spotlight: Mike Menter
\n\"MikeMike Menter, right, with his son, Mason, of Rigby, Idaho, will drive Tiger Shark at \u201cHot Wheels Monster Trucks Live: Glow-N-Fire\u201d this weekend. (Courtesy photo)<\/p>\n

This week, I spoke with Tiger Shark driver Mike Menter of Rigby, Idaho. He has performed with the Hot Wheels tour since 2024, alongside his crew chief and 16-year-old son, Mason Menter. They travel 30 weeks a year, and the younger Menter is homeschooled. Back in Idaho, they race remote-control speedboats that can reach 80 mph on a secret lake. The elder Menter built, maintains and drives the monster truck.<\/p>\n

Free Friday preview<\/p>\n

Tiger Shark will be parked outside the Long Beach Arena from 3 to 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2, so fans can take photos with the truck and meet Mike and Mason Menter. There will be no charge.<\/p>\n

Pre-show and VIP experiences<\/p>\n

The pre-show party will begin on the Long Beach Arena floor 2.5 hours before every performance. Families can see the trucks up close, meet drivers and performers, collect autographs, and receive an exclusive autograph card. Passes are limited, however.<\/p>\n

There are three VIP packages available: Full Throttle, Pedal to the Metal and Start Your Engine. The top package includes front-row seats, a backstage tour, and meet-and-greets with a driver and an FMX rider.<\/p>\n

The VIP Backstage Experience offers a behind-the-scenes look before the smashing begins. Ticket holders can see the trucks up close, receive official Hot Wheels swag and attend the pre-show party.<\/p>\n

For tickets and more information, go to HotWheelsMonsterTrucksLive.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Bungalow Kitchen\u2019s reopening
\n\"MayorMayor Rex Richardson, left, speaks during the reopening celebration for Bungalow Kitchen, in the 2nd & PCH shopping center, on Sept. 24. Next to him are Bungalow Kitchen owner Brent Bolthouse, middle, and chef Eric Samaniego. (Photo by Jo Murray, Grunion Gazette\/SCNG)<\/p>\n

In non-monster truck-related news, Bungalow Kitchen, in the 2nd & PCH shopping center, hosted a reopening celebration on Sept. 24, raising more than $9,000\u00a0 for groups focused on homeless services, relocation assistance, food programs, youth support and emergency needs. The event was open to members of the public that donated to the Mayor\u2019s Fund.<\/p>\n

\u201cThird time in the charm,\u201d owner Brent Bolthouse told the crowd about the reopening.<\/p>\n

The large space, with a second-story view of Alamitos Bay Marina, has undergone several iterations \u2014 and this one may be the best yet.<\/p>\n

Chef Eric Samaniego is a fine\u2011dining-trained, French\u2011technique chef, and his staff prepared a variety of small bites for the opening party.<\/p>\n

Samaniego had previously shared with me that he \u201cwould give a million dollars\u201d just to taste the fried chicken that his late father used to make. Samaniego served his version of that chicken at the fundraiser and I believe his father would be proud. Originally on the appetizer menu, the chicken moved to the entr\u00e9e menu this week.<\/p>\n

Reservations are available vis Open Table.<\/p>\n

Caffeine fix<\/p>\n

Coffee Drunk on Second Street, in Belmont Shore, celebrated its grand opening on Sept. 24 \u2014 and there was a line around the block. The coffee shop offered free totes to those wo visited early on that first official day.<\/p>\n

I go just to check out the drink names like \u2013 Friends with Benefits, Instigator or Phat Americano.<\/p>\n

For more information, go to shop.getcoffeedrunk.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"CoffeeCoffee Drunk on Second Street, in Belmont Shore, celebrated its grand opening on Sept. 24. (Photo by Jo Murray, Grunion Gazette\/SCNG)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Monster trucks will roll into Long Beach this weekend \u2014 and it should be an illuminating experience. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":481651,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[7,8132,3739,131,133,132,137,3738,136],"class_list":["post-481650","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-california","tag-grunion-business-beat","tag-grunion-news","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-the-grunion","tag-top-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/481650","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=481650"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/481650\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/481651"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=481650"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=481650"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=481650"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}