About one year ago, news broke that Heartland Motorsports Park, a multi-use facility in Topeka, Kansas that first saw use in 1989, would be closing at the end of the year. The track was recently reported sold on July 24th; what’s the next chapter?

Combining the basics of a drag-and-drive event with a final day of eliminations to crown class winners, the Heads Up Hustle returned to Michigan for its second year. Milan Dragway and Mid Michigan host two days of qualifying runs and set an average for the final day, where eliminations are held and class winners are crowned.    

2024 has been epic for Sick the Magazine - we’ve done two great events - Sick Week and Sick Summer - and done three vehicle giveaways. But we’re not even close to done for the year, and here’s our next vehicle giveaway: this 1962 Chevy II Gasser!

G’day mate!  Let’s go for a skid or two and talk about Australian-style burnout competitions in the USA! 

After a little over a week between our last drag-and-drive event coverage, we jump back into the action with the recently completed fourth annual Miles of Mayhem event. Covering just over 1700 kilometers across Canada (over 1000 miles), contestants can compete in ten different classes.

So an epic vehicles - the Sick the Mag Ute - has been claimed; what’s next? We have an announcement coming on Monday, July 29th on our next big giveaway!  

A couple of months ago I tagged along with Tom and Aydan Bailey as they raced at the first-ever Drop The Hammer event in Michigan. It was an 1/8th-mile, three-day drag-and-drive deal. It started at US 131 Motorsports Park on Friday, moved to Mid Michigan Motorplex on Saturday, and returned to US 131 on Sunday.  

After ten years, a soft opening in 2022, and being shuttered for almost two years, a drag strip in West Virginia will get a second chance. And a former IHRA / PDRA championship family will lead the charge to put action on the track once again.

‘Been there, done that’ - it’s a phrase that could be applied to a lot of things in the world, especially car builds. Sure, there are unique builds out there, but a majority of them have similar drivelines that are employed by thousands of other examples. Until now.

Ask any seasoned drag-and-driver and they’ll tell you that the road portion is the hardest part of these events.  Sucesses on the drag strip are easily put into check if your street drive ends your hopes of completing the event, and the age-old adage comes violently into focus: to finish first, first you must finish.

There are so many things you can focus on as part of a drag-and-drive, and one that I’m diving into today is the tight competition that comes with the Hot Rod Drag Week Street Race class, as well as the Rocky Mountain Race Week Limited Street class, Sick Week and Sick Summer’s 275 Street Race and Sick Street Race classes, and the Midwest Drags Street Race classes.

Throughout history, it’s been shown that certain racers work harder, test more or spend more money to win in heads up drag racing. You can have a class where a lot is mandated or controlled, and still there are going to be those that run quicker than others.

Although some look at cars and trucks as mere transportation, others look at them as part of the family. When Travis Fathi purchased this 1983 Chevrolet Malibu wagon from friend John Barton, the purchase came with a promise. “Before John passed away, I promised him that it would always be old school, a big block street rod.” It keeps that promise into 2024, but with some updates.

This 1997 Mitsubishi caught our eye at this year’s Sick Summer, but it wasn’t until owner Ryan Spurlin visited the tower on day four at Great Lakes Dragaway asking for a cylinder head in a parts call. Ryan’s no quit attitude not only got him through the build of the car, but also the push to fix the issues and finish Sick Summer.

Following a successful first year in joining forces with the National Muscle Car Association (NMCA), Sick the Magazine returns to the NMCA event series with a pair of drag-and-drive shootout appearance in 2024.

One year ago, at Sick Powerfest Powered by Dodge and M1 Concourse, we saw Chris Mills in a clean, black 1968 Plymouth Road Runner that finished third in the burnout competition. Now, Chris returns to M1 Concourse with a new car and a new plan.

After participating in the first Sick Summer as a co-pilot, Jim Shipley returned to Sick Summer in 2024 for a competitor spot. Wheeling a unique 1988 Ford LTD Country Squire station wagon, would Shipley survive the week?

Although it’s becoming more common to see some familiar rides and names at more than one drag-and-drive event per season, a large majority will choose to participate in different styles of events. And we’re seeing dozens of drag-and-drive competitors putting together solid event results outside of the drag-and-drive event calendar.

One of the most interesting things to consider, especially in the current state of popularity for what the global state of street legal and endurance drag racing looks like, is the fact that the seed took so long to germinate. Consider the fact that long before WWII hot rodders in the western US would take long trips in their cars to get to the dry lakes and beat the stuffing out of them all day and then turn around and drive them home. It’s in the culture and fabric of hot rodding to actually drive the machines we build and then test them to their limits, so why did it take the better part of 70 years to actually start this whole craze?

Erik Lawson has been drag racing since the age of fifteen, and he even passed the drag racing addiction to his son Cooper, who regular enjoys seat time in his junior dragster. But the Lawson boys also enjoy time racing with some street time mixed in.