2022 marks the 20th year of the twin Allison V12 modified tractor called ''Green Monster Stage 4'' of the Green Monster Pulling Team from Füchtorf in Germany. With 16 German Championship and 2 European Championship titles in the 3.5t and 2.5t mod class, it is currently one of the most successful modified tractors in Germany. For the 20th season, the old Green Monster Stage 4 receives some technical changes, especially on the top V12 engine. In this 2 part story we are also looking back on what happened with the tractor and what success the German Team had with the light modified and modified tractor during those last 20 years.
Everything started with that 4th Evolution of the Green Monster in the summer of 2001. The old Green Monster Stage 3 which the team ran since 1999 was still successful, but there was a problem with the durability of the machine. The main reason for that new build was the rear axle in the tractor. After many problems with the old Deutz-Magirus semi-truck rear axle and the increasingly scarce spare parts, the Green Monster Team decided to build a new tractor for the 2002 season. That old shortened Deutz-Magirus rear axle was already used in the first Green Monster modified tractor with the carburetor Allison V12 Motor in the early 80s.
With the increased power of the Allison engines during the last 20 years, the rear axle was with the durability to the end.
After some talks with Gary and Brian Diekman of the Rat Poison Pulling Team from Toledo, Ohio, USA about the purchase of the old twin stair step Allison V12 powered Rat Poison chassis, came both teams on both sides of the ocean to the decision that it would be cheaper to build a new chassis in the Green Monster team's workshop in Füchtorf instead to ship the old Rat Poison chassis to Germany.
During a visit in the workshop of the Rat Poison Team in the USA in August 2001, Brian Diekman gave the guys from Germany the opportunity to take measurements on the old chassis. He also gave them a lot of useful advice on what they should improve on the chassis and what they should definitely not do differently. Back home from the USA trip, the team started to search for the right material for the new project. But it wasn't so easy to find the right pipes for the later chassis.
Right after the last pull of the season in Bettborn, Luxembourg, the guys started with the development of the new Green Monster. It was the first tractor of the German team, which was built on CAD on the computer.
That CAD software helped the team a lot in building the parts and also saved a lot of time in the manufacture of the components. Robert Olgemöller and Dirk Wessel (currently the driver of the Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition) did all the calculations and CAD drawing for the new tractor on the computer.
The Green Monster Stage 4 received a homemade 24CrMo4 tube frame with a homemade 3bar 24CrMo4 roll cage and a new sheet metal rearend with a completely new drawbar and hitch.
The new sheet metal rearend based on a Rockwell rearaxle and got a homemade needle bearing differential with custom-built gears from Höner Technic, a Rockwell cast aluminum center section, a Rockwell ring, and pinion gear, and homemade aluminum planetary carrier housing with Hanomag stock wheel loader planetaries.
At that time, the team built the first modified tractor with sheet metal rearend in Europe.
The crossbox and the reverser were homemade and got CNC-milled aluminum housings and custom-built gears. The gears for the reverser and the crossbox were manufactured by Höner Technic.
Both Allison engines were taken over from the old Green Monster 3 but were completely dismantled and overhauled during the winter of 2001/2002. Both engines were different.
The front Allison V1710 V12 power plant had a stock Allison block with a rebalanced stock Allison crankshaft, homemade steel sleeves, stock Allison G6 rods with Arias aluminum pistons, stock Allison cylinder heads with deeper-seated spark plugs, stock Allison cams with original Allison valves, a Mallory Stage 4 ignition, a Waterman/Enderle/Hilborn methanol fuel system, a homemade aluminum intake manifold, and a stock Allison supercharger.
The top Allison V1710 V12 engine had a stock Allison block with a rebalanced stock Allison crankshaft, Cummings steel sleeves, stock Allison G6 rods with Arias aluminum pistons, B&D revised and polished Allison cylinder heads with 4 Ford 427 Motorsport valves per cylinder, deeper-seated spark plugs, Camko cams, a Mallory Stage 4 ignition, a Waterman/Enderle/Hilborn methanol fuel system, a homemade aluminum intake manifold, and a stock Allison supercharger.
Each power plant received an 11-inch Crower centrifugal clutch with 4 discs. Also, the Epperson cut Firestone All Traction 8Ply double cut tires and the Midwest aluminum rims came from the old tractor.
The fenders on the Green Monster Stage 4 were built by the team himself and were made off Dibond.
After 5 months of hard work, the new Green Monster Stage 4 debuted at their home pull and German Championship opener in Füchtorf, Germany at the end of April 2002. The whole team around Heinz-Josef Hörstkamp was very excited the days before the start to see if everything worked as planned. The team also was followed the weeks before the maiden run by the German TV station WDR. In an interview for the TV, team member and driver of the triple Allison called ''Green Fighter'' Enrico Vollerthun was asked ''How are the chances for the win tomorrow''?. The answer from Rico was short ''very good''.
The maiden run did Tobias Hörstkamp on the completely new built Green Monster Stage 4 in front of the home crowd. The weather conditions weren't the best on that weekend.
But despite the bad weather, a lot of people came to the Füchtorf Pulling Arena to see the maiden run of their local hero. Tobias was the first competitor in front of the Red Shadow sled that day, and the local hero didn't disappoint the fans in the Arena. He did a perfect run with the new twin Allison and made a very nice Full Pull. The fans were absolutely happy and as well the Green Monster Team about this great run.
But the joy only lasted for a short time. When they pulled the tractor back to the pits, there was a strange noise in the rear axle. Unfortunately, they found out a bearing in the new rear axle was gone and a start in the finals of the 3.5t modified class wasn't possible due to the damage. Also, a repair of the rear axle in the workshop for the later 2.5t light modified class wasn't possible. The guys in the team were a bit disappointed, but the rest of the tractor like the new Diekman style chassis, the newly developed driveline, and the overhauled engines worked pretty well. Tobias Hörstkamp was one of three competitors which have achieved a full pull in the 3.5t modified class. So the new Green Monster Stage 4 finished in a great 3rd place on that day.
Only a week later was the next pull in Eschach-Seifertshofen, Germany on the agenda. The rear axle was repaired again, and the team was ready for the next competition. This time the new tractor was driven by Daniel Frische in the 3.5t modified class. Like in Füchtorf, the new Green Monster Stage 4 ran very well and Daniel did one of the fastest Full Pulls in the class. But again, like in Füchtorf the week before, the same strange noises from the rear axle and another run were out of the plans for the day. Back in the workshop, they found the same damage in the rear axle, as after the first pull in Füchtorf. After a few reflections and discussions, the German team found out the problems with the bearing damages in the rear axle. Only a week later was the next pull in Eschach-Seifertshofen, Germany on the agenda. The rear axle was repaired again, and the team was ready for the next competition. This time the new tractor was driven by Daniel Frische in the 3.5t modified class.
Like in Füchtorf, the new Green Monster Stage 4 ran very well and Daniel did one of the fastest Full Pulls in the class. But again, like in Füchtorf the week before, the rear axle did the same strange noises and another run was impossible for the day. Back in the workshop, they found the same damage in the rear axle, as after the first pull in Füchtorf. After a few reflections and discussions, the German team found out the problem with the bearing damages in the rear axle.
A small problem with big consequences. But those vibration problems continued until the end of June 2002. Another 2 examples were the German Championship rounds in Lübbenau and Verl. In Lübbenau in the 3.5t modified class, some bolts of the front axle came loose and the tractor almost lost the front wheel during the pull and in the 2.5t light modified class the tractor lost the starter of the front Allison engine during the pull.
But runs there were not bad, and a 4th and a 5th place were achieved in both classes that day. Maybe the worst weekend for the team with the new Green Monster Stage 4 was the event in Verl 2002. After that competition, the Green Monster Team went home with a lot of damage. But first things first.
In the 3.5t Modified class the Green Monster had a very good start but after around 20 m the top Allison V12 power plant tilted slightly to the side and the pull was over at 29.23m.
In the pits, they found out that the bracket for the top engine included with the crossbox was completely ripped off. After some repairs in the pits, they got the tractor ready again for the 2.5t light modified class. But the bad luck in the Light modified class continued. Driver Dirk Wessel had a very bad start and the Firestone 8Ply tires found no grip on the track.
Unfortunately, after the pull, the front engine was broken due to the high rpm during the run. Back home in the workshop, they found out the main bearings of the crankshaft were gone, and the engine was tide.
In only 6 days was the next pull of the German Championship in Krumbach-Breitenthal.
But before they headed to the south German pull, the team had plenty of work to do to get the tractor repaired for this event. In only 4 days and less sleep they repaired all the damages from Verl and also built up a completely new Allison V1710 engine for the event. Already in Verl, they have replaced the original air intake of the supercharger with a new air intake funnel out of aluminum on the front Allison engine. With the new air intake funnel, they hoped to have a better airflow on the supercharger.
In Krumbach, the hard work of the last few weeks should finally be rewarded.
In the 3.5t modified class, Dirk Wessel made 2 Full Pulls with the twin Allison. In the beginning, it looked pretty well for the first win with the new tractor. But after Thomas Zimmermann with the Arias V8 powered Joker and Günter Bals with the twin Isotov TV3 powered Isotov 2 did a Full Pull too, the Green Monster Team decided not to start in the second pull off with the Green Monster Stage 4. The reason for that was the lot of work during the days before and the damages in the past 2 months. But the team and Dirk Wessel were still very happy with the 3rd place in the 3.5t modified class.
In the later light modified class of the day, Daniel Frische did two of the best pulls with the new Green Monster Stage 4 of the season.
After so many problems in the middle of the season, especially in the light modified class, Daniel beat Markus Obermüller with the single aux-Allison V12 powered Money Pit by a little bit more than 9 m. That was the first win for the new Green Monster Stage 4 and the first victory for the Green Monster Team in the light mod class for many years. At the last and final round championship round in Edewecht, the good performance of the Green Monster Stage 4 from Krumbach continued. Another 2 nice passes in the 3.5t modified class brought them the first maximum points (26 points) for the championship. But the team didn't return to the 2nd pull off with the tractor due to the too hot engines after the 2 previous passes. So they finished 4th behind the guestpullers Fox, Fox Junior, and Seaside Affair. That meant, the new Green Monster Stage 4 finished 4th in the 3.5t modified class in the German Championship. Unfortunately, that position wasn't enough to qualify for the 2002 European Championship in Bakel, the Netherlands. Also, the chances to qualify in the 2.5t light modified class for the EC were out of reach due to the bad results at the beginning of the season.
But the bad luck returned in Edewecht for the team later that day. In the 2.5t light modified class, the front Allison V12 engine kicked a rod out and the pull was early over. For the next pull at the Windenhof in France, the team from Füchtorf built a new engine up. The Green Monster finished 3rd there in the 3.5t modified class behind Fox and Fox Junior from Denmark. The weather conditions were worse there, a lot of rain, mud, and not the best track conditions made it difficult. Later, the pull was canceled due to the inclement weather and the bad forecast for Sunday.
During the winter break of 2002/2003, the Green Monster Team did some changes on the Green Monster Stage 4. During that winter break were some major things improved to solve the problems of the 2002 season. Also, the top Allison engine received some changes. One of the main things was the original air intake on the supercharger was replaced by the same homemade air intake funnel like on the front Allison engine. After all changes and improvements were done, the team started with the tractor already at the Indoor pull in Zwolle in January 2003. All the changes worked perfectly and with a good balance, Daniel Frische beat Simply Irresistible by a few cm and took the victory home to Füchtorf in the 3.5t modified class.
The 2.5t light modified class wasn't on the program in Zwolle, so the German team had to wait for the first outdoor pull of the season. And that was Weseke. In Weseke, the updated Green Monster Stage 4 competed for the first time in the light mod class in 2003, and it was a very good start. With 2 nice passes, Dirk Wessel won the competition in the light mod class with a good gap. The 3.5t modified wasn't on the schedule in Weseke 2003, but the team decided to run in the heavier 4.5t heavy modified class with 2 Allison engines.
Daniel Frische did a nice pass with 1t less weight, and surprisingly he did the Full Pull too. Unfortunately, due to a broken seal on the supercharger of one Allison engine, they didn't return to the finals with the Green Monster Stage 4.
But the performance on that day showed that the Team was one of the main favorites for the German Championship title in both classes that year.
The team showed great performance from the beginning of the year through the whole season. With 4 wins in the 3.5t modified class and 3 wins in the 2.5t light modified class, the Green Monster Team won in both classes the German Championship title. Maybe the biggest success for the team with the tractor that season was the win in the 3.5t modified class on their home ground in Füchtorf. With the titles in both classes, the Green Monster Team also was qualified for the EC in Finland. The goal at the EC was a top 3 finish in both classes, but that plan didn't work out. In the 2.5t modified class, they struggled with the dry track and the less traction and finished only 5th.
In the 3.5t modified class, they finished 4th and missed the podium spot by less than 3 m. The beginning of the run in the finals looked very promised. With good speed, Daniel was on his way to top 3 finish but after the 90 m the top Allison engine had a little backfire which cost them the power at the end for the last 3 m to beat the 4 Chevy V8 engine powered Cougar from Sweden. 2 weeks later at the Euro Cup in Bettborn, Luxembourg, there was an international 3.5t modified competition. The organization of the pull has invited the best European pulling tractors, including the European Champion of the class every year. They couldn't win the competition with the Monster Stage 4 there but beat the current European Champion Intertechno Lambada and finished on a nice runner-up place at that last competition of the year.
During the winter of 2003/2004, the Green Monster Team made not so big changes on the Green Monster Stage 4. Technically, the tractor was overhauled and checked during that off-season. For 2004 the team had purchased a brand-new set of Firestone Puller 2000 tires for the modified tractor. After the team had seen what the other teams did with those new pulling tires in 2003, the German team decided to purchase a set of new Puller 2000 for the tractor. The advantage of these tires is, that tires make more traction compared to the old style Firestone All Traction Puller tires. But they also had a disadvantage, the new Puller 2000 were heavier than the old style tires.
At the first Indoor pull of the year in Zwolle, the team still competed with the old set of tires on the tractor, which brought them a nice runner-up place in the 3.5t mod class. For the European Superpull in Ahoy, the Green Monster Team switched to the new Puller 2000 tires. This first outing with the new tires was not a success. The balance of the tractor wasn't perfect, and maybe the pressure of the tires as well. Dirk Wessel missed the Full Pull by just 39 cm and finished 7th in the 3.5t mod class. But on the next two outdoor pulls in Weseke and as well as their home pull in Füchtorf, the new Puller 2000 tires didn't work the way the team had imagined. After these 2 events, the team switched back again to the old Firestone All Traction 10 Ply tires. With the old tires, the Green Monster was back in the championship hunt for the title.
The Green Monster Team won 4 events in a row in the 3.5t mod division and finished and twice in the top 3 spots. With those strong results, the Green Monster Team defend the title in the 3.5t mod class with the Green Monster Stage 4 in 2004. In the light mod class was the competition much harder than the year before. With the twin-Isotov TV3 turbine-powered Isotov 2, the single Aux-Allison V12 powered Money Pit and the single Alky Griffon V12 powered tractor called ''Le Coiffeur Stage 4'', they had 3 very strong rivals in the class. Especially Isotov 2 and Le Coiffeur Stage 4 were better on the tracks most of the time in 2004. The Green Monster Stage 4 was able to win only one round of the championship in the light mod class that season.
But in the end, the guys saved the 3rd place in the German Championship point standings in the light mod class. With the 1st and 3rd place in the German Championship, the team was qualified again for the EC, which was held on their home ground in Füchtorf. The expectations were high on the team. But that weekend on the home ground was far from good. In the 3.5t class, Daniel Frische was the first competitor in front of the Red Shadow sled. He had a good start with the Monster, but after 30 m everything was over. Back in the workshop, they found out the camshaft drive of the top Allison engine was broken and a further start in the class wasn't possible. Only 40.96 m and the last place in the class.
It was a huge disappointment for the whole Team and their German fans as well. The 2.5t light mod class was better for the team a day later.
Dirk Wessel steered the Green Monster to 4th place behind Black Power, Le Coiffeur Stage 4, and Isotov 2. A bit bitter was, that Dirk was just half a meter behind Isotov 2. The balance in the first run was good, but in the pull off the tractor was a bit restless on the front end, which may be had cost him the last cm to Isotov 2 at the end.
In 2005 and 2006, the Green Monster Team won the German Championship title in the light mod and mod class with the Green Monster Stage 4.
During those 2 years, the team also competed with the twin Allison in the 4.5t heavy mod class in the Euro Cup. The Green Monster Stage 4 ran with a weight of 3.8t in that class, so with an underweight of 700 kg. At those Euro Cup events, the guys also sometimes tested the Puller 2000 tires on the Monster. But with less weight and power compared to the other competitors in that class, they had no chance for the top positions. The 2005 European Championship in Great Eccleston was a disaster, with a lot of problems in 3.5t class. In both attempts, the fuel pump on the front Allison engine broke and all chances for a top 3 were gone.
The problems with the fuel system on the front power plant continued in the light mod class. It was a terrible weekend for the team with the tractor.
But the knot at the EC should then burst a year later. In Lubersac, France, Daniel Frische positioned the Green Monster in 4th place, only 2 m behind the runner-up Intertechno Lambada from the Netherlands. Interestingly, the Monster still ran with the old 10Ply All Traction tires there, and Intertechno Lambada was already at the Puller 2000 HP tires. Better was the result in the 2.5t light modified class. Tobias Hörstkamp finished for the first time with the Green Monster Stage 4 in runner-up position on a European Championship. But the day in the light mod class not started well for them.
After troubles with the ignition in the first attempt, Tobias needed the second attempt to qualify for the finals. He did the full pull, and Tobias was one of only two competitors in the finals of the light mod class. Against Black Power from Denmark, he had no chance to beat him. But the team was very satisfied with the results on the EC. By the note, the Green Monster Stage 4 was the most of the time driven by Daniel Frische in 2006. Daniel usually shared driver duties with Dirk Wessel during the season, but unfortunately, Dirk was seriously hurt in an accident in the summer of 2006. That was the reason why Daniel drove the tractor most of the time in 2006. But Dirk Wessel returned to the driver's seat of the Green Monster Stage 4 at the Euro Cup finals in Bettborn, Luxembourg.
But also in 2006, the Green Monster Team also did for the first time a trip with the Green Monster Stage 4 to the USA. That possibility came in 2005 when the German Team was contacted by Claas USA. Claas USA wanted them on the 2006 World Ag Expo farming exhibition. On the exhibition supporting program also was the West Coast Nationals Truck and Tractor Pull Championship. So the Green Monster Stage 4 was loaded into a container before Christmas 2005, and then it was shipped to the USA. That exhibition and the pull was in February 2006. Over the day, the twin Allison was exhibited at the stand of the Claas company and in the evening the German team competed with the mod on the pull.
The Green Monster Team dominated the mod class there with the twin Allison. But most of the US competitors there were underpowered compared to the Green Monster Stage 4 and the top PPL/NTPA competitors were not there/not invited. During that time in the USA, the GM Team was supported by Maxx Kakl Power Sports Team around the Fagundes Family from Hanford, California.
During the winter of 2006/2007, the Green Monster received for the first time some bigger changes since 2002.
The old Cirello ignition on the front engine was replaced by a new better Cirello ignition from the USA and a new improved injection system was added to the engine.
Also, on the Agenda for 2007 was the return to the Firestone Puller 2000 HP tires. Due to the heavier weight of the tires, a new lighter reverser was built for the tractor and the old Hanomag planetaries were replaced by new lighter machined Mercedes planetary carrier housing and Mercedes planetaries. With those changes in the drivetrain and the rearend the team saved around 35 kg on the tractor.
The updates were tested for the first time in Zwolle 2007.
Everything worked quite well and the team went home with a nice runner-up place in the 2.5t light mod class and the 4th place in the 3.5t mod class. But in Zwolle, they were still with the old tires on the track with the tractor. For the first outdoor pull of the season in Weseke, Germany, the team replaced the old All Traction 10Ply forever against the Puller 2000 HP tires. Also, the new Cirello ignition on the front engine was again replaced by a more powerful one. The Cirello ignition was replaced by a new MSD 44 Pro Mag ignition, and the Cirello ignition was fitted on the top engine.
The Green Monster Stage 4 was unbeatable on that day with the new Puller 2000 tires and won the competition in the 3.5t mod class.
Later that season, the top Allison engine also received an MSD 44 Pro Mag ignition. Like the 2 seasons before, the Green Monster Team dominated both classes in Germany and won again the German Championship title in the light mod and mod class.
In 2007, the ETPC also introduced the 2.5t light modified class in the Euro Cup. The Green Monster also competed there pretty successfully. 4th in Herning, 3rd in Bernay, and a 2nd place in Made brought them a great 3rd place in the Euro Cup point standings.
After the great 2007 season, the guys started at the 3rd round of the Championship in Haßmoor 2008 with a new system on the front Allison engine of the Green Monster Stage 4 which they have now on almost every Allison engine on their tractors. Between the pull in Füchtorf and Haßmoor, the Green Monster Team equipped the front Allison power plant with an EFI system. The Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI) system was developed by Ryan Micke of Mick's Performance from St. Louis, Missouri in the USA. Ryan already has developed systems for V8 drag racing engines in the past, but not for V12 aircraft engines from the second world war.
So it was a whole new experience for him, but for the Green Monster Team as well. But the EFI system wasn't the only new thing on the engine. Also, the intake manifold on the front engine was replaced by a new one for a better airflow. The new system worked well in Haßmoor and Daniel Frische hammered 2 nice passes with the tractor down track and won the 3.5t mod class there. But during the season they struggled a bit to find the right mapping for the EFI system on the engine, which cost them some useful points in the German Championship and in the Euro Cup. The fight for the title in the 2.5t light mod class was pretty early lost due to some bad luck and technical problems. But the fight for the title in the 3.5t mod class was pretty close through the whole season.
Unfortunately, at the peak of the Championship fight, the rear axle went broke of the Green Monster Stage 4 in Edewecht, which was the first little title decider before the final German championship round in Schmachtenhagen.
The GM Team won with the Green Monster Stage 4 in the final round of the season, but it wasn't enough to repeat the title for the first time since 2004 in the 3.5t mod class. The title went that year to Matthias Vogelsang, with Erlkönig and Green Monster Stage 4 right behind in runner-up. With second place in the modified class and third place in the light modified class in the German Championship, the team was qualified again for both classes at the 2008 EC in Bryne, Norway. And it was a successful outing for the German team with the tractor there. In the 3.5t mod class, Tobias Hörstkamp drove the tractor to a nice runner-up place behind Intertechno Lambada from Zwolle in the Netherlands.
In the light mod class, the Monster was driven by Dirk Wessel to fifth place.
But Dirk had a bumpy final run, which costs him the front axle at the end of the pull. In team also was with the Green Monster active in the Euro Cup of the light modified class again. The best result was achieved at the Euro Cup round in Herning, Denmark, with a nice second place. With other nice finishes in the Euro Cup, the team finished in 4th place in the Euro Cup point standings in 2008.
After the 2008 season, the Green Monster Team started to make some bigger changes on the tractor for the upcoming season. The Green Monster Stage 4 was completely dismantled in the workshop and all engines were completely overhauled. After the positive experience with the EFI system on the front Allison engine, also the top Allison engine received the same EFI system like on the front engine. But the main work was on the chassis this winter. The team did some changes and improvements to the chrome-moly tube chassis. After all the changes were done on the chassis, the chassis went to the painter and was repainted for the first time since the tractor was built in 2002. Last but not least, the fenders received new vinyl graphics.
With the new vinyl graphics and the green monster eyes on the fenders, the tractor looked now more aggressive. The refreshed Green Monster Stage 4 was shown for the first time at their home pull in Füchtorf 2009. The hard work during the winter was rewarded with a win in the 3.5t mod class and a 3rd place in the 2.5t light modified class in Füchtorf.
Until 2011 nothing big was technically changed on the tractor. The only thing which was changed on the tractor was the center section on the rear axle after the indoor pull in Zwolle 2011. The cast aluminum stock Rockwell center section was cracked, and then it was replaced by a stronger homemade billet aluminum center section.
In 2009 and 2010 they lost the title in the 3.5t modified class twice at the German Championship finals. In 2009 the Green Monster Stage 4 finished again in runner-up position behind Erlkönig and in 2010 in 3rd in the German Championship of the 3.5t mod class. In the German Championship point standings of the 2.5t light mod class was the runner-up position achieved in 2009 and a 4th place in 2010. Also, the results at the 2009 EC in Bakel, the Netherlands were not so the best. 6th in the 3.5t mod class and a bit disappointing 9th position in the 2.5t light mod class were the results. In 2010, they only could qualify for the 3.5t mod class at the EC in Ekeröd, Sweden. But they did 2 nice runs there and finished as best not Dutch Team in 4th with the twin Allison.
For the 2011 season, the Green Monster Team started to make the next development and experiment on the front Allison power plant of the Green Monster. This time the team wanted to do something different in terms of charging. The plan was to replace the original Allison supercharger against a Pro Charger F3 supercharger from the dragster sport. At that time, the Pro Charger was used by many V8 powered Dragsters in the USA, but nobody has tried that Pro Charger F3 on an Allison V12 aircraft engine so far. So it was a totally new experience for the team at the time. For that new charger setup, the Green Monster team had to build a brand-new intake manifold, a modified supercharger drive and modified camshaft drive for the engine. The original Allison supercharger drive was modified with better bearings and gears for the F3 Pro Charger.
With that Pro Charger setup the team wanted to have a better degree of efficiency and to get more performance out of the Allison engine. The first pulls in 2011 showed that the Pro Charger did a good degree of efficiency and performance, but the durability was a big problem of the new setup. The modified Allison supercharger drive was the main tweak point on that setup. After only 2 passes, the bearings or the gears in the supercharger drive broke. After a couple of events and too many troubles with it, the team built the Allison engine back to the 2010 spec with the original Allison supercharger, which also was a wise decision. After 3 years without a title, the team won again the German Championship title in the 3.5t modified class for the 6th time!
During the winter of 2011/2012, the Green Monster Team continued with the development of the Pro Charger setup on the front Allison. After too many problems with the original modified Allison supercharger drive, the Green Monster Pulling Team started to develop and built a homemade belt drive for the pro charger and the camshafts. That new belt drive should better for the maintenance and more reliable than the original modified Allison stuff. In the beginning of the year, they had some little issues with the belt of the drive for the supercharger, but that problem was quickly fixed. Now the belt drive worked properly, but now the Pro Charger made troubles.
After 3-4 pulls, the driveshaft of the Pro Charger broke, and that problem went through the whole season. The EFI Pro Charger Allison engine ran pretty well when the driveshaft made no troubles. But due to the problems with the driveshaft of the Pro Charger, they lost a lot of points in the fight for the German Championship in both classes. Despite the troubles, the Green Monster Stage 4 was still in the top 3 of the point standings of the German Championship to find. But all the problems throughout the season were finally rewarded at the home European Championship in Füchtorf. Daniel Frische achieved with a very good running Green Monster Stage 4 a well deserved 3rd place in the 3.5t mod class behind the two Dutch tractors Intertechno Lambada and Double Screamin'. But it was a nail-biting thriller.
Daniel's first hook wasn't very good, and he missed the Full Pull. In the second attempt, he did a picture-perfect run and a Full Pull in front of the home crowd. The Green Monster Stage 4 only was one of 3 finalists in the pull off. But the team decided after the pull not to compete in the finals and was satisfied with 3rd place. In addition, they wanted to protect the tractor for the 2.5t light mod class the next day. On the followed day, Daniel Frische again drove the Green Monster Stage 4. After a nice full pull, Daniel had a bit of a bumpy run in the finals where the front end hit a couple of times the ground hard. That bumpy ride cost him a lot of meters and more than a 6th place was not in it.
That was part 1 of the story about the Green Monster Stage 4. In part 2 we will review the time from 2013 until today, plus what have changed on the tractor for the 2022 season.
In only 6 days was the next pull of the German Championship in Krumbach-Breitenthal. 
But the performance on that day showed that the Team was one of the main favorites for the German Championship title in both classes that year.
The GM Team won with the Green Monster Stage 4 in the final round of the season, but it wasn't enough to repeat the title for the first time since 2004 in the 3.5t mod class. The title went that year to Matthias Vogelsang, with Erlkönig and Green Monster Stage 4 right behind in runner-up. With second place in the modified class and third place in the light modified class in the German Championship, the team was qualified again for both classes at the 2008 EC in Bryne, Norway. And it was a successful outing for the German team with the tractor there. In the 3.5t mod class, Tobias Hörstkamp drove the tractor to a nice runner-up place behind Intertechno Lambada from Zwolle in the Netherlands. 
