early years
Nicole’s love of cars began in her Dad’s garage in Hawaii. Always tinkering on a motor, Tom Jardin built his daughter a go-cart when she was five years old, and taught her how to drive his stick shift truck by the time she was 12.
Her love of dirt and exposure to four wheeling began in 1993 when she married Frank Johnson. The couple discovered off road trails in Utah, where Nicole was attending college. When she graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in Construction Management, the couple began their construction careers and relocated to Las Vegas in 1996. Soon they joined the Southern Nevada Land Cruiser Association (SNLCA) and became actively involved with opening new 4x4 trails surrounding Las Vegas and working with local officials to dedicate new OHV areas. Frank served as the association’s President while Nicole volunteered as Treasurer.
By 1998, Frank joined the Red Bull Rockcrawling Team as lead spotter, and competed in extreme rock crawling events around the country. During the first few years of competition, Nicole was cheering from the sidelines with their two little boys, Palani (b. 1998) and Kainoa (b. 2000), managing logistics and providing team support.
Her love of dirt and exposure to four wheeling began in 1993 when she married Frank Johnson. The couple discovered off road trails in Utah, where Nicole was attending college. When she graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in Construction Management, the couple began their construction careers and relocated to Las Vegas in 1996. Soon they joined the Southern Nevada Land Cruiser Association (SNLCA) and became actively involved with opening new 4x4 trails surrounding Las Vegas and working with local officials to dedicate new OHV areas. Frank served as the association’s President while Nicole volunteered as Treasurer.
By 1998, Frank joined the Red Bull Rockcrawling Team as lead spotter, and competed in extreme rock crawling events around the country. During the first few years of competition, Nicole was cheering from the sidelines with their two little boys, Palani (b. 1998) and Kainoa (b. 2000), managing logistics and providing team support.
2010 PROMO VIDEO
professional rockcrawler
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In 2004, Nicole drove in an all-women’s national rockcrawling event, and in her debut, took first place. Before long, the couple formed their own family team, Johnson Motorsports: Nicole as driver, and husband Frank, by now a seasoned veteran of the sport, as her talented spotter.
The team competed at various regional events until turning pro in 2007, moving into the World Extreme Rockcrawling Championship Series (W.E.ROCK) West Division until 2010. With Nicole behind the wheel, the team gained much media attention and the couple was featured on Modern Marvels (History Channel) in 2008. As two-time Women’s National Rockcrawling Champion, Nicole raced three years at King of the Hammers (KOH), which mixes rockcrawling and desert racing in a grueling format that boasts a 60% attrition rate. Nicole was the first woman to ever cross the finish line in 2008 and again, enduring the 10-hour and 47-minute race, in 2010. Up until 2016, Nicole was the only female in history to finish KOH twice.
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monster truck driver
Nicole’s experience in W.E.ROCK and KOH made for a natural transition into monster trucks. While attending the SEMA Show in 2010, Nicole met Dennis Anderson, driver and creator of Grave Digger, and his son Ryan Anderson. Within two weeks of the meeting, Nicole was test driving a monster truck and was offered the opportunity to pilot the Tasmanian Devil Monster Jam truck in the upcoming 2011 season.
In her first year, Nicole broke the record for the most wins by a rookie or a female in a single season. She received the 2011 Monster Jam Rising Star Driver award, quickly gaining popularity with fans. In 2012, Nicole drove the title sponsor truck, Advance Auto Parts Grinder, and raced in the inaugural Young Guns Shootout at Monster Jam World Finals.
A defining year, 2013 introduced Nicole behind the wheel of the brand new Scooby-Doo Monster Jam truck, officially licensed by Warner Brothers. Nicole’s popularity combined with the highly recognizable brand of Scooby-Doo has consistently been a marketable combination and a favorite among fans over the last four years. Nicole has driven in 9 countries and is the first woman to successfully land a backflip in Monster Jam competition.
In her first year, Nicole broke the record for the most wins by a rookie or a female in a single season. She received the 2011 Monster Jam Rising Star Driver award, quickly gaining popularity with fans. In 2012, Nicole drove the title sponsor truck, Advance Auto Parts Grinder, and raced in the inaugural Young Guns Shootout at Monster Jam World Finals.
A defining year, 2013 introduced Nicole behind the wheel of the brand new Scooby-Doo Monster Jam truck, officially licensed by Warner Brothers. Nicole’s popularity combined with the highly recognizable brand of Scooby-Doo has consistently been a marketable combination and a favorite among fans over the last four years. Nicole has driven in 9 countries and is the first woman to successfully land a backflip in Monster Jam competition.
jeep lifestyle
When she’s not driving a monster truck, Nicole stays in touch with her rockcrawling roots. In 2013 as a collaboration with ReadyLift Suspension to develop their new Jeep line, Nicole built Rocksanne, a highly modified 6.2 Hemi-powered Jeep JK Wrangler Unlimited. The partnership resulted in a cover story in 4Wheel Drive & Sport Utility Magazine, and feature stories and covers in eight international magazines.
Making its debut in September 2016, Nicole’s current project, JUWL, is a Jeep JK Wrangler Unlimited built by Savvy Off Road and powered by a 500-hp LS3 Corvette motor. Nicole and JUWL will be attending various trail rides and off road events in 2017 to showcase the capabilities of the vehicle’s specialty components.
As an influential off roader, Nicole’s lifestyle is followed by hundreds of thousands of fans through her social media networks.
Making its debut in September 2016, Nicole’s current project, JUWL, is a Jeep JK Wrangler Unlimited built by Savvy Off Road and powered by a 500-hp LS3 Corvette motor. Nicole and JUWL will be attending various trail rides and off road events in 2017 to showcase the capabilities of the vehicle’s specialty components.
As an influential off roader, Nicole’s lifestyle is followed by hundreds of thousands of fans through her social media networks.
