Bryan High School welding class is taking on the challenge of building a monster truck with the guidance of Monster Jam professionals

Bryan, TX ( FOX 44 ) — Bryan High School’s welding students have less than a year to build a working mini monster truck.

They’re getting an engine and all the tools needed to complete the build, and their teacher, Chris Lehed, is just as excited as his students.

“I kind of was like in shock, like this is going to happen. I was like, but we can do this,” Lehed said. “It was tough keeping it a secret from the students. They would ask all kinds of questions, ‘What is it, Hot Wheels or whatever?’ I would just tell them it had a steering wheel.”

While they build, Armando Castro, a competitor driver for Monster Jam, will be one of their many mentors. Castro’s been competing since 2017 and is looking forward to helping the students.

“It’s such a blessing for these kids because these guys can really take this, and they take it seriously,” Castro said. “They can become the next generation drivers, mechanic and automotive.”

Junior Finnian Curtis is looking forward to all the opportunities this experience has to offer.

“The experience of being able to be on a team together, work hard and face challenges that we’re not used to, instead of just doing different types of welds and we’re building something,” Curtis said.

Even though he doesn’t have any knowledge or experience with this type of engineering, he hopes his welding experience will come in handy.

“I’ll have lots of questions, and I’ve been doing it for however long, so hopefully, I’ll be able to get there at the end,” Curtis said.

This unique experience will also open the door for students to have future career opportunities while making memorable connections.

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