Ryan Anderson has been to Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario before, and he’s impressed the fans with stellar performances in both of those years. However, going into this weekend, things are a little different, and in a good way because it means things are about to get a little crazier.

Notably, one of the biggest differences in Anderson’s appearance this year is the back flip ramp, which will be in play for both nights of competition. Toronto has featured the back flip ramp before, but never in a wide open format as it will be this year. With Toronto being a good show, Anderson says it “brings a whole element” to perfecting the crazy move all the fans love.

“The back flip is not a normal thing, it’s still crazy – but this weekend we get two shots at the same jump,” he told Short Track Musings. “So we get to really dial in as we hit the jump as every ramp is different – compounds of dirt, different technical stuff that a lot of people don’t understand. This time, we get to dial in our tune on the ramp and how we hit it.”

The two-day factor is something that’s been common for Toronto through the years, with both shows normally being close to a full-packed house as the Ontario fans take in the stars live. While there’s some belief out there that drivers hold back on Saturday night for Sunday afternoon, Anderson says that’s not true in his case.

“No, I don’t, at least,” he said. “Then on Sunday, the truck might not look that great but it’ll still perform like it did Saturday. So the body is probably ripped up a little, it rips off in freestyle and everybody loves it – and it doesn’t harm us in anyway as that’s what it’s supposed to do once we harm it. So it’s really cool – I really like it and enjoy it, so I know when it happens on my truck everybody loves it.”

Anderson knows what it takes to win in Toronto. In his first trip to Toronto in 2014, he left a lasting impression with a racing victory during the Saturday show, followed by the victory in freestyle on Sunday. He then backed it up last year with another pair of freestyle victories on Saturday and Sunday.

A victory could help Anderson out right now is he enters this weekend a single point behind Coty Sauicer following last weekend’s event in Orlando, Florida.

“Obviously the plan is to take it back, and I can take a good nice lead if I do good in all the competitions,” Anderson said. “So if I keep my game face on through all of racing, I should be good.

“Last weekend, I was on track to win it. I had the fastest times of the weekend and just missed the last ramp with my two front tires. It was my own fault. I still would’ve been good, but for competition sake, I wanted to go all out and missed the ramp. It was kind of one of those judgment calls where I honestly think it could’ve gone either way but they called me on it and I got disqualified. But like I said, if I can do exactly that this weekend and not miss the ramp this time, I have it in the bag. I have a really fast truck, really good at staying calm and doing well.

“Then the freestyle, my dad (Dennis Anderson) invented it so it’s in my blood. So when I go out there and do what I want in freestyle, I know I should be able to be good. So if I do what I am planning to do, I should be able to take the points lead.”

Of course, Monster Jam and the name Dennis Anderson go hand-in-hand as everybody who has even heard of monster trucks has heard of Grave Digger. This year marks a significant season for the team outta Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, with it being the 35th anniversary of the truck.

“35th Anniversary of Grave Digger is pretty amazing,” Anderson said. “We never expected it to go this long. But now that we’ve gone this long and see how big it is, it’s never going to stop. I’m excited to be here for the 35th anniversary and really throw it down.”

From the hype of a two-day show, to the points factor and the anniversary, it all adds up to one thing – Anderson is ready to go “absolute beyond crazy” this weekend.

“I’ve been guaranteeing one thing all year – I want to drive the truck like an absolute mad man till it won’t go anymore, whether the red light is on, overheating, or a tire is popped. I don’t care,” he said. “I am going to keep going till either they shut me off, or the truck is just completely done.”

There are still tickets available for both shows at the Rogers Centre this weekend. Ticket prices start at $15, with Pit Party Passes are available for purchase for $10. Tickets and Pit Passes are available at the Rogers Centre Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.ca, and at (855) 985-5000. 

The Pit Party will be held from 2:30pm to 5:30pm on Saturday, January 28 and 10:30am to 12:30pm on Sunday, January 29. The pre-show pit party gives fans the chance to see the massive Monster Jam trucks up close, meet drivers, take pictures and get autographs. To access the Pit Party, event ticket and Pit Party Pass must be presented upon entry.