The influence of a cheering crowd on an otherwise rational mind is an incredible phenomenon to witness. Even when common sense and good friends are telling you it is time to pull back, the encouragement coming from a large gathering of strangers can cause people to do silly things, all in the pursuit of more applause.

When behind the wheel of a powerful Chevy pickup, this can lead to disastrous results, as you’re about to see in this next video. There were plenty of chances to pull back, but in the end even the venerable small-block Chevy can handle only so much abuse.

It’s a Chevy-on-Chevy battle, with the blue pickup hooked to what looks like an older 80s Blazer for a good-old-fashioned tug of war. Both trucks are four-wheel drive equipped, but the Blazer has much bigger tires, giving it a lot better grip than the pickup. The Blazer doesn’t even budge as the pickup struggles time and again, and eventually the engine gives way in a most spectacular fashion.

There was more than one opportunity for the driver to back off the throttle and realize he wasn’t budging his competitor, but the crowd kept cheering, so he kept pushing down the pedal. From the sound of shattering metal, the engine probably blew a rod, or maybe even a hole in the block, and it’s a good thing a fire team was on hand to put out the fire.

At least the crowd got a good show.