I know several contestants that have been on the show. They script it all, of course. They make them say dumb stuff to make the show more fun. For example, they said one of the trucks "Stripped the teeth off the starter and that's why it won't start" while he was sitting there spinning the engine over. They made a big deal out of replacing a busted rear shock on a Jeep "So she would be able to steer."
Bottom line, it's TV. The wheeling community is NOT the target market for this show. The target market is some 8 year old city boy that loves monster trucks.
I wish they would get rid of the silly challenges like pushing a building off the cliff and the slingshot thing.