The explosion of drag-and-drive in the last few years has brought more major events to the table, and dozens of conversations where competitors talk about wanting to do more than one to two events a year, but lack of time prevents it from happening.  

When Pilot Transport joined the Sick the Magazine group, it brought a lot of conversations from competitors about using the carrier. One Sick Week competitor mentioned “saving a couple days going to an event and coming home would give me enough time to possibly do another event in 2025.”

Racers and automotive enthusiasts can be resourceful in more ways than one. If something isn’t available or built to tolerate a vehicle’s demands, there is normally another option. Even if that option is doing it yourself, where there’s a will, there’s a way, and that’s exactly how Isky Racing Cams got its start.

Now, over 70 years alter, ISKY Racing Cams continues to support enthusiasts, including in the drag-and-drive community.

When discussing the needs of drag-and-drive competitors, the need to fuel your ride properly is near the top of the list, as is the need for traction to get the best time slip possible. Tom Bailey put an emphasis on both these items when constructing the first Sick Week event in 2022, and VP Racing was on board right from the start.

“Tom recognized the need to take the drag-and-drive experience to the next level,” said Jason Rueckert of VP Racing. “We wanted to do our part to help that vision, and that started at Sick Week two years ago.”

The Summit Racing Equipment name brings decades of experience in the performance and racing landscape. But their introduction to the drag-and-drive community was through one of their valued employees. “I’ve always been a fan of drag-and-drive since the first year of Hot Rod Drag Week,” said Tommy Dupree of Summit Racing. “I went a few times when it was close to my home base.” That love for cars and trucks that could handle street and strip duty took the next step when Tommy encouraged Summit to get involved.  

At Sick The Magazine, we started with an idea that a print magazine dedicated to the drag-anmd-drive community was overdue. Tom Bailey and Luke Nieuwhof put in the efforts, and the first print copy of Sick The Magazine was released in 2021.

But we didn’t stop there, as Tom dove into the event side of the community with our first drag-and-drive event, Sick Week, held in 2022. Sick Summer and Death Week were added for the 2023 calendar year, and Sick Week that year also marked the start of Sick the Mag’s vehicle giveaways!

Peak Auto is all about getting customers what they need to use their vehicles every day, and that same philosophy is brought them into the drag-and-drive world to see how products stand up to the torture tests competitors and Sick Ward participants put them through. “We’ve been involved in many forms of motorsports for decades,” said Peak’s Brian Bohlander. “One of the things that’s great about drag-and-drive is the ‘back-to-basics’ and grassroots feel of the sport, since hot rodders are building cars and trucks in their garages and then taking them out to enjoy them in multiple ways.”

The drag-and-drive community started with one event, Hot Rod Drag Week, in 2005. That event has grown into a movement with a large community of participants and fans, over 40 different events across multiple countries, and influenced thousands of car and truck builds to prove they can survive the street and the strip torture tests known by many as drag-and-drive.

There are a only a select few that have seen it all since the beginning, and Rick Johnson with Gear Vendors Overdrive is one of those people.

After putting together a Chevrolet Colorado a couple years back, Josh Reich made himself a little more well known in 2024. The single turbo pick-up scored a win and a top five finish from a pair of drag-and-drive events, and although some might have expected Reich to continue to refine the Colorado for 2025, he’s changing direction with a new build and new goals.

“My good friend Rodney Geist was building it for himself to show off his fabrication skills, and promote his business. Rod isn't a drag racer, or one to do a drag-and-drive, so we decided to partner up.”

To come out with a product or service endorsed by a big name can get you attention, but to have people talk about your products without the endorsement is the ultimate goal. Doug Cook realized this vision when he started Motion Raceworks, and the commitment to continue making products that work better and last longer has expanded into three more companies as they headed into 2024.

After getting Motion Raceworks off the ground and successful, the TBM Brakes and Rife Sensors product lines came aboard the train a few years back. Fluidworks is the most recent company added to the Motion line up in 2023, and all four continue to pump out new products while listening to the market on what’s needed to be made.

The inaugural Sick Summer Presented by Motion Raceworks in 2023 proved to be an immediate hit, with competitor spots selling out within a matter of minutes. Combine that with epic attractions / check points and the great routes, the fans that got to witness all the competitors and the Summit Racing Equipment Sick Ward presented by PEAK Performance participants visit four race tracks between Illinois, Wisconsin and Iowa.

As the drag-and-drive community continues to expand, the number of events has also increased. Sick the Magazine takes our events like Sick Week and Sick Summer a step further than others, putting more emphasis on track prep, and having companies like Mickey Thompson on hand. 

“2024 has been an exceptional year for Mickey Thompson,” said Jason Moulton, Director of Motorsports. “The drag-and-drive scene continues to show growth. These events are among our favorites to go to.”

Heralded each year for cool temperatures and killer track prep, which combined result in amazing runs and sold-out crowds, the World Cup Finals Import vs. Domestic event at Maryland International Raceway got underway yesterday. A total of eleven classes got their first look at the track in qualifying, and started the work towards possibly earnign a share of two-hundred thousand dollars in payout, plus the coveted World Cup Finals trophy.

As an epic 2024 season of racing winds down, so does the drag-and-drive calendar. Only six events remain on the 2024 event listings, with Australia hosting a trio of them, and the other three remaining in the United States.

But that isn’t stopping some familiar names from getting out to other drag racing events and putting in work before much of North America gets too cold to continue racing, and we count the days until Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive starts on January 27th, 2025.

Day five of Edelbrock Sick 66 meant we had officially crossed the halfway point of the eight day trip spanning five states and six tracks. After covering Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma, Sick 66 had made its way into Texas after a drive day on the fourth day. Amarillo Dragway hosted racing on day five, and then the tour would roll into New Mexico for street miles on day five and six.

Sick Summer presented by Motion Raceworks has proved to be an amazing way to kick start your summer time fun with hundreds of fellow enthusiasts. The third installment of the event, scheduled to take place from June 15th through June 20th 2025, will again visit Illinois, Wisconsin and Iowa for an amazing six days of drag-and-drive action.

Although the news of tracks opening and closing in 2024 has been favoring the re-opening / new tracks side of things, news broke today that California will lose another track at the end of this season. Irwindale Drag Strip and sister half-mile circle track Irwindale Speedway will close their gates at the end of 2024.

The newest build for the Cleetus McFarland camp started at Cameron Johnson Race Cars in May this year, as a new ‘69 Camaro takes aim at the 5-second zone.

Yesterday, the latest build out of CJRC hit the track at Bradenton Motorsports Park to get Cleetus ready for World Cup Finals at Maryland International Raceway this week.

Well known in the small tire and no-prep circles, the ‘Beater Bomb’ Ford Mustang has been winning on practically every surface for over a decade. Joey Hiykel’s Mustang is an eighth-mile rocket, and although he usually keeps things under wraps on engine combination and performances, he recently dropped a new record and revealed times.

It’s the 10-year anniversary of Australia’s longest-running and most prestigious drag-and-drive event, Street Machine Drag Challenge. Big high-fives to Scotty Taylor and Simon Telford and the rest of the Street Machine team as they set off this week for another five-day tour. I wish I could be there in person to help blow out the candles on the cake.  

After three days in Missouri, Edelbrock Sick 66 hit the road on day two to Oklahoma for day three and racing at Tulsa Raceway Park, then a nearly 300 mile drive day to Texas for day five action. Route 66 provided some amazing sights, as well as some good memories to reflect back on.